THE GAMBLING EVIL.

Taranaki Herald, Volume LIII, Issue 12925, 2 August 1905, Page 8

THE GAMBLING EVIL.

(T9,'the Editor.) Sir,-=-Soinie week or two ago I sent - you a letter on the above subject, drawing attention*i;o our general inconsistencies on this question, and a letter in -Thursday's Herald suggests a different line ,cf thought. A writer there is mentioning the fact that ths Rev. Mr Evans has preached a sermon on Bible-readiug and parental control. So far, so good.; but the thought - comes : has the rev. gentleman or any of his rev. colleagues • seen fit to attack the juvenile gambling training institutions in our mtdst known as I

Poultry Society art unions and cake gambles, which anyone must know ay« just as much, a gamble as in the totalisator, and in fact the devil's own training ground for making gamblers of our boys and girls?' Such seriuons may have been preachfd. If so I have not heard of -them, and I think if any of our parsons, did do such an unusual thing as to call a spado a spade, and put their finger right down on an evil and denounce the perpetrators of such ftvil definitely and distinctly, it would have caused such a sensation that it must have been talked about, anrl I should have heard of it. Xo Mr Editor, the average parson of to-day i.-, 1 very fond of generalising and attacking evils generally, well wrapped t»p and aimed at no one in pa-ticular. They are, 1 know, very fond of extolling the ancirnt .wortlii*}-? — prophets' and others who, in times gono by, I dared .to attack the evil? i-Mstln* In their midst. These me held up as great examples for the congelations! to copy, but Ih^y do no: .-ifvm to grip the idea that they, at any rate, do fancy the boldness of it, the rio',ility not copy iheir .an^isnt-.exampl-.'!. ■•Jiifct of it, when we read' of the prophet, where, having no fear, says it Vis not me, but you, tly« Kinr, .who is the trouble of Israel. Now is their ohanee as leaders of tlia pooj)In hi th^ir Ministers' As.^ociatio:v me'tin^s— lwad the crusade from tJicrs— get your congregations to ■iovm- l-tagmn, pledging themselves to patron i bo notlnn^ and boycott everything that -has an element of- gambling in it. Show the people that they are alive to these evils. If this is done, I thin k we would not be long in It-earing about it. — I anv:&c.g' ■■" '-••;. ■■■;■'■"■ ■;- " '- : -\ ' PATCiSNT?.