The Dominion. SATURDAY, OCTOBER 8, 1910. THE LATEST LICENSING BILL.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 942, 8 October 1910, Page 4

The Dominion. SATURDAY, OCTOBER 8, 1910. THE LATEST LICENSING BILL.

; The many rumours. which; have been afloat, concerning tho. Govern-' ment's intentions in regard to licensing legislation were set at rest last evening when the Peime Minister : infrpduced a measure .wlyich we venr ture to think will be received with very mixed feelings by.the 'general public.;, Since the famous', ''compromise" proposals of last year both the. Np-Licbnse and the Liquor.parties have been; active, and the results of their activity may be seen- in-, 'the Bill now introduced. He would be a very daring man indeed who, would pretend -to. say, from tho hurried scrutiny of the..measure possible in the.brief time available since its circulation, which. of the. two contending parties has been most favoured by the Government in framing .the Bill. Something has been conceded to both. The No-License party has been granted its demand for a National Prohibition issue, arid the majority required to carry Local Prohibition has beep reduced from 60 votes put of every hundred to 55 .votes put of every hundred) :It ia also I provided that National Prohibition 'shall be deemed to bo carried if 55 per cent of the electors vote' in .-'favour thereof, and the' provision that half the electors on the roll must record their votes to make a valid poll is abolished..; On the other hand the Liquor party has been granted oerr tain minor concessions and also one of material importance .in respect of the period which' must 'elapse before National Prohibition is brought into operation in the event of the poll resulting in favour -'■■ of prohibition. It may be remarked in ■ passing .; that ."■■'. the carry-: ing of the National Prohibition poll will not mean merely the abolishing of licensed houses. Clause 20 of the Bill now introduced provides that it shall be unlawfulfor any person to import into New Zealand, or to manufacture, sell or have in his possession for the purposes of sale, intoxicating liquor of any description. In' other words the importation, manufacture or sale of intoxicating liquor is absolutely prohibited under the Bill, should National Prohibition be carried.

The portion of the Bill which will probably occasion most comment, and so far as the general public is concorned arouse the strongest protest, is that which sets out tho issue to be submitted' to the electors. If there is anyone at all inclined to believe that jn bringing dqwa this Bjl} the Waed Administration was actuated by. any, honest deeira to place

the licensing law of tho country on a_ satisfactory footing and provide a simple and effective means by which tho_ people may be able to record their views on this vexed question, a glance at the issues proposed to be submitted on the ballot-paper should bo sufficient to disabuse his mind of that idea. There is to be only one ballot-paper for both' Local No-Li-cense and, National Prohibition. It is framedras follows:

I vote against National Prohibition. (This vote is also: counted ■ , in favour, of the .grant .of licenses in the district!)' I vote for National Prohibition. (This vote is 'also counted against the grant of licenses in the district.) '-" ' : . These are the issues to be submitted exactly as they appear, so far as the wording is concerned, in the first schedule of the Bill. If giveneffect to it means that every elector who desires to vote at all will be compelled to vote for two issues although he may be entirely opposed to one of- I's(s.. two. That is'to say, if: he votes in favour of National Prohibition he is compelled to vote also for Local No-License. He is refused the right to vote for one without'the other. He may be opposed to 1 Local. No-License and nr favour of- National Prohibition- or vice versa, but he -must .vote in favour of-.both or-against .both, or else abstain.from voting at all and so be disfranchised. An elector who. votes against' National Prohibition js forced thereby to vote in favour of Local -.License. Could any better means be. of taking away the right to vote altogether—' for "preventing the electors -of the covintry from expressing their real opinions upon the important questions involved 1 We dp. not know tho views of either the 1 No-License' or the Liquor ■ party regarding this. monstrous proposal. Possibly each may; think they, have . something to gain, from it. .They are both-very much mistaken, .however,', if -they 'think that any isuch attempt to prevent the public from expressing its views on' phe different issues involved will in the end be of any real assistance to them. But the- Government, whose duty it is to study not the .wishes of the contending parties but the welfare of the; ■ whole, .community, will find it difficult indeed to explain away its undemocratic and grossly' improper attempt jx> rob the people of their right to vote on/each of the separate issues involved as. their judgment, dictates'. The Bill will not have' a shadow of a chance of., passing: this session -in its present form unless there .k a wholesale/betrayal of their . constituencies by members,.'.-..,