TO THE WHITE RIBBONERS IN NEW ZEALAND.

White Ribbon, Volume 47, Issue 4, 18 May 1941, Page 7

TO THE WHITE RIBBONERS IN NEW ZEALAND.

Dear Friends, — In this war-torn world it is not easy to depend upon mails reaching their destination promptly, but 1 hope this letter bearing my greetings to your Council meetings will reach you in time. I am very grateful for the way in which the White Ribboners of the world are holding up their work in these trying days. The war has emphasised the need for Temperance work. Young men called away from their homes for war service are exposed to many temptations and are the prey of many whose purposes are evil. Not the least of which is the temptation to drink alcoholic liquors. Therefore we, as White Ribboners, must make it a point to “defend our defenders” by supplying them with such comforts as we can and providing wholesome recreation and entertainment. The spreading of the war means many will go into other countries and the temptations will increase. The fellowship of the World’s W.C.T.U. is world-wide, and we know that wherever there are White Ribboners these soldier boys will find friends. Recause of the rules of censorship we have little news in regard to where many of our members are. To-day conies word of the death of Gustav Blueher, former president of the Deutsche Frauenbund for Alcohol Free Culture in Germany. She was a loyal White Ribboner and attended the World’s Convention in the United States in 1922. I am sorry also to report the death of Miss Hardynia Norville, who served twenty years as representati\e of the World’s W.C.T.U. in South America. 1 have not heard from Miss Slack in several weeks and trust all is well with her. She is not in her own home because it is so badly damaged it is uninhabitable, hut plans to go to friends in northern England. The world’s officers will issue very shortly an abridged report, bringing our Directory up-to-date. We can only tell a little bit alxmt what our Unions have been doing, but we want the world to know’ that the World’s Woman's Christian Temperance Union is alive, and that we stand for fellowship and world warfare against the drink habit and the drink traffic. Until the war ends we cannot even think of a World’s Convention, though we long for such an event. We will continue to pray for the end of the war and look forward to a convention which cannot occur until at least a year after the end of the war. London has been so devastated that they could hardly entertain a convention even then; possibly Scotland might consider it. What would you think? I send loving greetings to all our comrades and wish for you a helpful and fruitful convention. Faithfully yours, ELLA A. BOOLE.