Prohibition.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 5227, 6 April 1895, Page 8

Prohibition.

PUBLIC MEETING AT THE ODDFELLOWS' HALL.

A public meeting in connection with the Prohibition Conference was held in the Oddfellow^' Hall last evening to discuss future action and consider the Licensing Bill for next session. There was a large attendance the hall being fall. The Rev L. M. Isitt oooupied the chair. Mr G. J. Smith, M.H.R., who was received with npplauas, expressed his sympathy with the prohibition movement. He moved— "That this meeting records its extreme satisfaction at the continued program of the Prohibition movement, and earnestly urgts all its supporters to. uae every endeavour to co educate public opinion that at the next licensing election prohibition by the will of the people may become an accomplished fact." When they considered the progress made with the movement throughout the year it was enough to gladden the hearts of their leaders. Notwithstanding all the evila of the drink traffic it was pleasing to know that prohibition was still on the up grade. Aa a party they were fighting for the will of the people, and when the licensing election came round ha hoped they would all vote "No License." They had no desire whatever to force prohibition down the throats of the people or to force their own opinions on any electorate, bat from what they knew of The drink traffic they were justified in trying to bring about its abolition. The prohibition sentiment was growing throughout New Zealand and he hoped that the people of the colony would do away with the drink traffic at the next election.

The Rev W. Scorgie, in seconding the motion, referred to the churches allowing men connected with the liquor traffic and jockey clubs to hold offices in the church. He hoped the Church would not be degraded by including men who lived on the proceeds of liquor and who obtained money by gambling. If the prohibitionists wished to make greater progress they should not spend their time trying to convert old people* but should educate the young men and women who •would be called upon to do the work of the country in the future. He wished it to be remembered that the hope of the movement and the hope of the country were the young men and women who were growing up, and if prohibition was to become an accomplished fact, more would have to be done to educate the young. The motion waa then put and carried unanimously^ • .

The Bey H l . W. Isitt invited everyone in the hall to join the Prohibition League. He thought they had made a mistake by not adding more recruits to their ranks. He believed that if they could put on their roil all those who voted with them a great many of the other Bide would throw up the sponge at onoe. They had been aoiueed of stirring tip strife. He wished to deny the charge ; they had eimply tried by every means in their power to kill the enemy of the human race. He did not believe in regulating the drink traffic; his opinion was that the traffio could not be regulated. The more he 'read of the Gothenburg system, the more he was convinced that it was a failure. The Bergen system had also been a failure. There was at present more drunkenness in Bergen than in any English city of the same size, and more drunkenness in Gothenburg than in Bergen. He moved— "That the attention of the Government be drawn to the fact that the Mayor of Milton and two Balolutha Justices of the Peace have confessed in open Court that they incited others to commit breaches of the Licensing Act, and that they ba requested to remove the names of these men from the list of Justices of tha Peace."

Mr T. E. Taylor seconded the resolution. It .would, he said, be interesting to see what the people's Government would do in the matter. If the Government was a people's Government ib would depose these three men, who had invited others to break the law, but if it was & publicans' "Government it would ignore the resolution. £c referred to the action of the Young Men's Christian Association in refusing to Bssist the Prohibition Lsague in putting lown the drink traffic, and concluded by saving that the Licensing Bill would be on a better footing before next 'esdon. The Eev L. M. Isitt said it would be a iremendous scandal if the Government did pot strike the names of the three men off he list of Justices of the Peace. The resolution waa carried unanimoußly. The meeting then closed.