Sairey Snodgins on the Comin’ Fite.

Fair Play, Volume I, Issue 20, 17 March 1894, Page 14

Sairey Snodgins on the Comin’ Fite.

Seein’ as the Liesening Eleckshon is hengagin’ the hattention of all thortful men an’ women, Mr. Heditor, after due considera«hon I came to the conclushon as it l would be a rite thing ]to call a meetin’ of ’members an’ intendin’ ‘ members of the Women’s Club for the per-

pose of egsc'hangin’ erpinions on the subjeck. An’ so, Mr. Heditor.last Friday being my day “At Home” I called the meetin’ for that day, an’ just after three o’clock the ladies were seated in my best parlour, an’ after Kate Deborah had bonded tea an’ cake round I got hup an’ sayed—- “ Ladies, I ’ave called this meetin’ in order that we may discuss the spros an’ scones of the Liesencin’ questshon. An’ so, ladies, without further interoduckshon I would ask for the hunbiassed erpinion of any lady present on this himportant questshon. I ought p’raps egsplane that though we decided at our last meetin’ our next would be called in order to hassertane how successful we had been in the raisin’ ov money for the bildin’ fund for our club, I thort this matter was of suffishunt importance to demand a meetin’ at once. An’ now, ladies, I shall be glad to heer your various erpinions on this questshon." (Hear hear.) An’ then our secretary, Mrs. Blanß, got hup an’ commenced—

“ Mrs. President an’ Ladies, —To begin with I should like to congraterlate our President on her sound commun sense in callin’ this meetin’ to discuss this questshon, for it is undoubtedly a questshon as consems women. (A vice —Yes, indeed.) Well, ladies, I am not a Prohibitionist. (Heer, heer, an’ a vice —What a pity 1) I am a moderate, (heer, heer.) But to a certane egstent I am in simpathy with the Prohibs. —in simpatliy with there evident desire to lessen drunkeness—but not in simpathy with there methods. What is there gratest present desire ? To reduce the Liesences. Will the reduckshon of liesences reduce the drink traffick ? (A vice—No.) No ladies, I am afrade it would not. (Another vice—Yes it would) Well, ladies, I will give you one instance where it did not. Wanganooi, as many of you know, elected a Prohibishon Commitee, who shut hup seven hotels. What was the consequence ? It was this. Wanganooi ’as opened two Workin’ Men’s

Clubs, as sell more drink than the seven hotels did, so where was the gane to our Prohibishonist friends. An’ on the other hand I am afrade that this reduckshon of liesences may leed to sly grog sellin’, wich would be infinnitly worse than the hotel trade. An’ now, ladies, I will not take hup more of your time, but will make way for more able speakers. (Lou d applause.)

Then hup jumps Miss Elizer Green, (the women’s rites woman) an’ burst forth—

“ I am surprised at our worthy seckr tary’s view of this matter. Beduce t be liesences indeed; I should think we would. I say we, ladies, for I am a Prohib., an’ I’m proud of it. (Heer, heer.) Close the hotels, indeed. Aye, everyone in Wellington —nay in New Zealand to-morrow if that was posserble. (A vice—What would you do with the publican ?) Do with him ? I’d ruin him, egsterminate him, turn him out of the country, for what use is he, only to lure men on to destruckshon. Why, if I had my way I’d burn all the hotels in the world, make them into one huge bonfire, and make all the publickans form a ring round it, an’ watch it till it dyed out as had there prosperrity. (Cries of shame.) No I’m not ashamed of these, my sengtiments, foi these* an’ none other is my sengtiments,” and with a flop she sat down amid faint hap plause. There was a slite pause, an’ I says, “ surely some other lady will speek,” when Mrs. Hawkins, the thin-faced nervous little woman rose timidly, an’ says. *• Mrs. President and Ladies, —I don’t think as there are many peeple as ’ave suffered more through drink than I ’ave, yet for the life of me I could not feel one cord of simpathy with the last speaker. (Happlause.) I think, ladies, the men an’ women may be led to give hup drink, but they will never be forced to give it hup. An’ that is where our Prohib. friends make the mistake; they are too feercely henergetick, an’ this takin’ away of liesences will do little or no good. That is my humble erpinion. An’ now, ladies, I am sure we are all anxhus to heer what our able President has got to say, (yes, yes) on this himportant subjeck.” Sits down amid loud happlause. When all was quiet I got hup and says — “ Is there no other lady as would like to speak,” an’ was answered by cries of “ No, no, let us hear you.” “Very well ladies, as you wish,” I commenced as toilers, —“ Dear friends, this liquer quest3hun is indeed a matter of himportance to all, an’ I think a matter of more himportance to women than men, because women suffer more through it than do men, an’ therefore women should band themselves together and do there level best to lessen the drunkenness an’ misery there is in the world, (heer, heer.) But, ladies, I do not perpose

as they should work in Prohibishon lines, No friends.

We shall never cure drunkeness by Acts of Parliament, or the takin’ away of the liesences of a dozen hotels, for as our good seccretary remarked, if legitimate trade is stopped, illegitimate trade will spring hup. Our Prohib. friends ’ave got hold of the rong end of the stick —if they want to prohibit anythink, they mu6t prohibit the manerfactur an’ the hirnportashon of liqer, etc. (Loud happlauee). Not, as I am agenst the closin’ of some of the hotels here in Wellington (Heer, heer). But, ladies, I don’t think as it would be rite to put the power of closin’ any hotel ithey like inter the hands of' a few faddists (Heer, heer.) I 'ave thort of a plan as would vice the erpinions of all classes of the elecktors. Let the votin’ papers be drawn hup with the names of every hotel in Wellington, the names of the proprieter, the lokality, an’ class of hotel, with direckshons to voters to strike out the names of the thirteen hotels (wich is the number, I believe, as a Prohibishon Committee, if returned, will be hempowered to close) as they think it would be best to close. (Heer, heer, capital idea). Then, I think, this committee mite appint a hinspcctor to see that the drink kept in the egsistin’ hotels was of the best, and that they was conducted in a proper respecterblo manner, an’ last but not leest let them see to it that the laws they now 'ave arc observed, I meen principally, the law wich forbids the cellin’ of drink on a Sunday, a law wich is disregarded in a most shamefaced manner, an’ also the law as -says hotelkeepers must not seli drink after 11 p.m, wich law, I ’ave no need to tell you, is simply winked at. (Heer, boor.) Yes, ladies, if we seo to these things, there will be less drunkeness, for Ibelcove people arc often hintoxicatcd threw bad stuff. Then, if our friends the Proliibr.. would take the hint 1 threw out last week, an start a Sunday sassicty, some good Sunday evenin’ concerts, and some good lectures, illerstraied—an’ if they want to dive deeper still inter ihe homes of the peeple, an' improve the sanitarey condishons, an’ try in every way to life hup an’ brighten the lives of the workin’ man (for it is the workin’ man the Prohibs. seem to think is the drunken man, though I thinks they mite look in much higher cirkles for drunken men), let them do these things ladies, an’ I am sure I vice the seugtiments of every lady here, aye, an’ of every rite-thinkin’ woman an’ man in Now Zealand, when I say that we w i 1 jine them hand-in-hand in this grate, pracktical, and lastin’ reform; yes’ listin', ladies, for once show a man i s there is somethink much better to live for than standin’ drinkin’ his earnin’s at the bar of a public-house, an’ it u>ill be a lastin’ reform —on the other hand, shut hup a place he as been in the habit of goin’ inter, an’ he will will find another to go inter. In conclusion, ladies. I

would sergest that we, as a body of women as meen to be seen an' heard, eend in a petishon to the Commitee as gets in, be they Prohibs. or publikans, askin’ them to 6ee to these things, an’ that if they do we are ready to help them. (Loud happlause, after wich my porposishon was agreed to, an’ the meotin’ dispersed.) Yours,