Mrs Harrison Lee.

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume XXXXVII, Issue 11743, 20 September 1902, Page 2

Mrs Harrison Lee.

Despite the teeming rain, St. Paul's Hall was filled last night, when Mrs Harrison Lee gave her second address. The chair was taken by the Rev. J. Cocker, who, after a hymn and prayer, in a brief speech introduced the lecturess.

Mrs Lee, who was received with great applause, speedily secured the undivided attenton of her audience. • She told how in childhood's days she had wished that she might be a fairy godmother like the one in the fairy-tale of "Cinderella," and she believed God had given her in some measure her desire. And it was in the power of every one of her audience to play the part either of the fairy godmohter or a cruel wizard, as they used the pen on the voting day. A vote for no license would work such wonderful changes for good in many stricken homes. Her work was to try and fire them, all; to get them enlisted in this work for God. She proposed to answer some objections to "No License." There was the objection of those who believed in liquor as a medicine. But were they to vote for the open bar to enable folk occasionally to get their sixpenny worth of something in a case of emergency? Were they to vote for the continuance of heart-ache and heart-break just to enable them to heal some occasionally real or imaginary pain. She had heard of a woman who had been ordered a mustard plaister, .cod liver oil, and whisky. She tried the mustard plaister two days, the cod liver oil for a week or two, but she was still keeping on with the whisky. Another objection was: What about the revenue? A drinking man in a railway carriage toM her of a conversation he had had with a publican who had boasted that he (the publican) helped the revenue. "No, you don't," was the drinker's answer ; "you don't pay it; you get it out of fools like me." Why didn't the draper boast- of how much he paid to the revenue in Customs? Because, of course, it was the customer who paid it; not the draper. Then why should the publican boast of how he helped the revenue ? It wasn't the publican who paid it, but- the customer who bought his liquor. And there was another aspect. When the draper paid his Customs there was an end of the cost, but when the pub-lican-paid his duty that was the beginning of the cost to tho country. What should they do for the revenue? They answered in Gladstone's words: "Give us a sober people,' and they would take care of the revenue." To put human happiness in the balance with pounds, shillings, and pence was a miserably unworthy method of looking at the question; What should they do for tho revenue? They would have the revenue from where it comes now—out of the people's pockets,—but without the entail of misery which the traffic involved. Then it was urged that it was not right to prevent the many having their liquor because only a veiy few went down before it. They were, indeed, asking the many strong-men to use their strength for something better than the gratification of an appetite. Suppose only one in a hundred went down. Would it comfort the wife of the drunkard to say to her: "Don't worry ; though your husband has gone down, there are still ninety-nine strong men who have not disgraced themselves." Surely it would b° a manlier act for the ninety-nine strong men to deny themselves for the sake of the one. Another objector asked: What about business? Nothing interfered more with business than the liquor traffic. Many a man who earned good wages wasted them in liquor when he ought to be spending it on useful and necessary articles. "No License" was good for business. It increased it; it developed trade; it meant extra wages. Business, people ought to vote "no license" from self-interest alone. No one could ever give a moral or spiritual objection to their causa They wanted them to look at the matter in the sight of the Great God who said "Dare to do right, and leaves results with, me." The old childish classic said— Simple Simon went to see If plums grew on a thistle ; He pricked his fingers very much. Which made poor Simon whistle. She used to wonder at Sinrole Sim . out she didn't wonder now. As a, natb.a they had for years been trying to make plums grow on the thistle of the liquor ,-vi'rb She wished everyone would pray tho praynr of the two darkies, one of whom ployed "Curtail de devil." "Amen, 1..) H. smml the other; "cut him's tail off altogether!" She urged them to strike out tin lop line only in the name of God, and take their place with Christ. Who came to he-i1 He broken heart and set the prisoners fc-o The address was brimful of inci'enl nv.d humour, and at its-..close a cordial vi te r.f thanks was accorded to Mrs Lee, in the motion of Messrs Bridge and Tv leer.