THE DRINK TRAFFIC.

Wanganui Herald, Volume XXXVI, Issue 10818, 8 December 1902, Page 6

THE DRINK TRAFFIC.

• O ; ••K. "ikizni' .'l-fiV* '< TO THB BDIXOB. Sir,— You will' perhaps to comment a little on the drink' traffic, in view <>f your leader in a late issue. Your quotation- from a Christcliutch paper, which says that many voted, for no 'hcenste .wlio do not believe in, Prohibition, owing to. the horrota of the 'traffic, ,is true, I^aui a case in point; I hold that .tlie- absolute prohibition of intoxicants is wroriw^from everj" standpoint. But the horrors of the traffic ajre worse, and a voter ,js 'between the Devil and tlie deep Sea, bctw.e^n Sfcylla and tCharybdis. 1 ani'hbt.aMptal abstMnfet and doh > t.ineah.to:Jbißi-foi> I haV^ found Jh«f -aitfiv^in Wy-.'olttiagie, I am very Much better in iieSilth -by ,pßMAg A.^bderafe :;tfnahtity. -.Do,»Dtinistalte me. The yoohg . .do . nbt it»skt* intoiiea4l.tS at- all, and are wry-much better with'ont them, t but wHfen the nktutal powers be"gin to fait it is a different Matter. I view evjery >B^bjfe^t, not excepting religion, from the ufcana- , point of h*fcural law, that is, first ' prinbiplcß. What does natural law' teach uo. on- this matter? Moderation in everything, Total abstention In nothing. .Let a man ovoJ'ießt •of bvcritlrihk, or ov6r-sm6ke or over-clotlib-, and -Suture ste^* in and pUaishe's. Moreover^ it is not Nature's way to take. temptation out of dne's path; on the contttlry,*' She jinfc it there with, the object -of making st«rap the ihokal fibre, just tt^Tshe ptite physical diffifiultieb in the . way to make< strong, the human body Do we go tb a level , country with, & lovfeiy I warm 'climate, to find a sturdy and stalwart race, with well-developed physique and- hardy, constitution.? No> wt\ seek m mountainaust .country .whicli . affords- cxcr f ' cisc to. Jbhe. .physical powers and a . poor^ \ . soil which' compels wprk. As -proof,, take, * ttie Cingarlesc on the one side- and- the 1 ' Scotfli on the other. Extremes, sire always' ' bad. ' -.Too- much rain causes devastation , as we have seen in the South Island this ' season 1 , aiid too much 9ry weather spells r,uin, as- in t Australia. Nature is always striving for an average ; that^ is moderaTioft. - It* -;ib i this 1 that enables us to dry out clothes and to freeze oiir beef ana-'mttttpi^aiia Tciull out butter. Jfcwe vre,' ht the p^senf" time, got anything like moderation -in the drink traffic? Emphatically, no ; 'the thing is an abominar tion, aiid the faces of those engaged in it its evil influences, "for, rant? or less, • these bear Jthe impress of tha bird of prey, the ihumatOcaniiibal vrho, for> the lust of "gold, will delSse their.' fellow-mart. And ' look at .the' vafite. More thaU M per ' heafl foT' every man, woman, and chilS in "tins colony per annum. If it was only ' th'ose-who drank that spent this sum noth-ing-need be Said; but when you consider •"■the 'numbers who 'do, not .drink- at all thfe prospect is surely, appalling. Tb there n>> remedy;- ho -via media between Pro"UiMtion oh the v o«e side— :*hich means - the -pendlisiug of the moderate . man — or the ruination of the rising generation on 1 'the btheV? ' I think^o. Look around you notice -the trend of the* thRO-.. Every- '■ jbhing ',<is ■ going ilrto .combines,, /and these - nfwas work .lor evil,'' inasmuch as: their only 'object>is to make money,' and to that fend' destroy competition.' Brewers are no ""exception- to this rule., and. the. brewers -nowadays own. moßt, of the puplichouSes. Presently we will soe tlie brewers combine " nritess 'there is legislation -to stop itj which Pho^e there -will not .be,. -as the only - wiiy'^tOiOpen the eyes of. the public, is to let the evil grow until it gets to a - national ftcourge. The drittk traffic has, t' <*t\ne so' far now that an.increa^mgly large percentage of the people are voting for . absolute- Prohibition, .and that Prohibition will come, as regards .the whole colony; • in,- a" few -years unless a remedy is found. -That remedy, in- my; opinion; lies in State •v cbnWol'of 4bo trttific-from the mapufaeture • :of beer ,to -the retail, sale of all intoxi- • cants.,- ; Everything that has been •ihiiand and'worked.by the Stat^/or, as regards minpr matterd, by the municipality, 1 -.hatf. worked^ fozTpie good' of the people. Consider, the advantages. The, enormous ' nrofits that' are niade-.bynianuiacturerS tirpuld in s to the- public, ex- • i.cftbcfuerT- thus ,. lowering ra;tes.,a,nd' tA*es. Drink iVt all. sorts would be pure, and it goes withoAj;' s'ajfittg tfiat adulteration is bail, for thie,.hnnisiii; body. Above all, pri- ■ .yate.p.rontnbeing jeUminated .M . a factor, . .all K temptafipn to evade; the law would be • destroyed.- ' Coupled witH State control • Vslibuld be very Itringeiit fbgulatiOdS; , >o- . bo(Jy.nndej:..th.e-:age. of 21 should -be al- , lowed to dririJt at. all. A man found - diunlc— whicli should bfe' defined as having lost the normal use; \ through dtink, of, „ cither liis or her mental or physical fafenl- - tie's^-should'not be fined at All, .but sent • , t o gaol, mA, in the event of being twice "convicted within six months; to an inebriate asylum. The. bartender who.supplied a person the .worae far liquor should also be put in gaol and lose.' his billet. A drunkard is a wild 1 beast, or worse, and should be tfeatfcd a« such, Above all moderate" af inkers .who wish-.to be respect* able should abstain from treating - theirfriends in 'frablic houses, a System which is-miScallcd friendly, and is , the source of three parts of the drunkenHess. In England and Ireland, where I was two ydarti.ago, wrbody above .the artisan claBS "would be- seen: entering a bar or .bar par-"'loiirj'othcrwise'-'-he would lose caste. Iri tlio colony,- under the Old Age Pension? Act, we .speh'il hundreds of thousands per annum, and -P. venture to say that a very '" large ' part of the money goes to -support thdse* avli'o u have. wrecked themselves . through drink;. The young men and wo-rven-workers have to work, hard ,to provide 'the ,mbney' for. these 6ld reprobates. It is, perhaps, fonitalof me to at\j so, but 1 think that' the proper, place .for a con- - firmed .drunkard, .be he. old or young, is the^ river.; At any rate they. should be ' roinpelled to' earn theif own living aitd pay for those told olftto look after them. The State mivnagea the thilways, telegraohs. * and .postal' rfiatters. to the very, evident benefit of the Dnblic, not to speak bf life and ,aocidejit,insi|kratice;' it. is going, to . manage .a; coal- mine, slnd ", the tfeoplfe had ' .better «oo» make- up -their 'minds whether it shall also control and matiiipe the drink traffic rbar, be - assured it< wjll soon/, be either that or Prohibition /with 'sly girog .Wpllin<T of -poison. Personally, I am agxinst , .. -thf -bar hltdgether, ■ and worild not have drink Jiold at «ll in fcnj'less quantity than 2 gallons. Th« late Sir William Fox. whom ,1 knew pretty well, used to say that there was, no hn'rm in whisky" until it was put- in Ji bar with a. man or woman to 'serve.- it^ont." — I am, etc.;- • , '"' '"' " ' "'' r .'j'l \' „„ ?.:^.' 'KENAH.