THE LIQUOR BILL.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 5686, 3 October 1896, Page 6

THE LIQUOR BILL.

MR COLLINS'S SPEECH. • [Feom Ode Correspondent.] . . WELLINGTON, Oct. 2. Mr Collins, in his speech on the third reading of the Alcoholic Liquor Bill, explained the attitude he and those of his fellow niembors who opposed the Bill took on the measure. The Bill, he said, had not been designed to meet a pressing evil, but to satisfy the clamour of those who absolutely failed to appreciate the" effects of similar legislation in other countries. He explained that he and those who were now objecting to' the Bill, and had voted for its third reading last session, had done, so in order to have the question removed from the political arena. They then hoped that the matter would fee settled for some time to come, and believed that the Temperance Party would be satisr fietl ; if the measure passed, but instead of being content they had declared that they ' would never be content till they. had forced their extreme and dangerous views upon the country. He "and those who' 'had objocte'd to the Bill of this session had done so- because they were absolutely certain that the country, lite many members of the. House, did not understand what the Bill's' effects would be. He opposed prohibition because it had been shown that whenever it had been tried it had not worked in the interest of temperance. He referred to the fact that no information had been vouchsafed as to how the revenue, which would be lost were prohibition in force, w.is to bo made up. In addition io this loss ox revenue, the Bill provided ihati' the chemists who were to have power tof sell alcoholic liquors were to be paid byjf the State, the expense of which would comeS out of the taxpayers' pockets. The conten- ] tion that the revenue now derived by the' State from alcoholic liquors was to be made up by- profits on liquor sold by the State under prohibition, he thought " pointed to an increase of intemperance in the country. A Bill of this kind was absolutely unnecessary, as year by year the quantity of liquor consumed per head was steadily decreasing. In view of that fact it was to be deplored that the House should pass a measure the object of which was to take out a prohibition order against themselves. In conformity with the promise he had given at the conference, he -would vote for the third reading of the Bill, but he had given that promise on the distinct understanding that the Temperance Party would not press the motion for the bare majority. With that explanation he thought that the House and country would exonerate him from any charge of inconsistency on the subject.