LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 1971, 30 January 1914, Page 8

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

THE MAJORITY QUESTION. Sir,—Wo aro making progress.; "Moderate" at.last admits—-what ho should have admitted twig ago—-that- his 63 .7-11 .-per cent, story was Wfong, whiio my contention for a 5o per ccnt. majority was right. Tho majority questioiir —the real point in dispute so farbeing sett,led,. iho'Vay is 1101 V clear for exposing another deception on tho part of ".Moderate.'* Bo now states for the first time that tho: Scottish Act is riot a No-Licettso Act. This.tomes witlv good graco from a, gentleman who in his opening artlelo Wrote: "Under this Act'No-liiceiise' may..be carried.in Scotland," .and who in a score of tim'es h&B inferred to the said Aot as carrying No- • License. Besides, the voiy claiiso which ho so often garbled and 011 which our dispute wholly turned speaks, of votes "in favour of % resolution." The' question as to whether the Scottish Aot is'a' thorough-going No-Lioehse Act is not worth splitting straws about. I havo u copy of tho Act before me, and am'delighted to know that.tho . Tory beer lords.Vrcre compelled to accept this measure o£ .'reform. 'It is'such'an ad"; vanco on any other temperance legiSla-. tion at Horae that I slnccrely hope England and Ireland will speedily follow Scotland's lead. But to como ■to "Moderate's" latest trick., - Ho ailcCts to queto fiotn the/Act; and please- Wark' lio.uv lie does ; it. He . quotes tho. Act th'tis:—"(3}, For', tho period, during' which'-a No-Licens# iivforce in any! afeajiKf- certificate shall bo .grafted therein, ■: exceptthat. tho Licensing! Court '• on • being satisfied that.undcr tlie sjiecial-'eifcumstances' of the caso aiiy certificate is reasonably required 'notwithstandiiig the* toot that a ,No-Licenso ••rospltttion i is ill force in grant ohe-iVr nWecicrtigcatcs; for aft: 11111 and',hotel or for premises structurally. adapted • for ■ the. .ttso .of and bona, ftdo uscd'.orio b& iiSod a,S a restaurant.' l . -..Hero .ho abruptly.,stops, carefully 'suppressing the all-important sentence.immediately following, without ■which tlie first part" quoted is incomplete,and misleading! The suppressed portion edhtinuos tilth"Provided that aiiy .certificate so, granted shall be deemed to include ..tho conditions that, there shall be oii tlio cortiificatM prcirtises 310 dnnkingrbar or other , part of the premises mainly or exclusively used . for this,, sale consumption ■of . oxcisablo liquors, and tliat .such liquors shall 1)6 sold therein Vy retail only and to, none j , but.persbns, lodging or residing in. the-1 ! inn. and hotel, or .persons taking-a. meal 011 tlie promis&s of tlie restaurant,: or (if tho. Court, so sanctio.fi) of tho uiii, and hotel, for consumption, with such meal.", "Moderate," I see, calls, to. his aid a clergyman, a Bor.- Mr. Rogers, who spoke against No-License, There's much vi'rtuo lit'.what a-.filorgyman..says! But for eyory.r..cleTgs;m,an "Moderate'' can bring against Xo-J.icer.so I will, produce a dozon in . its .favour. An cecentri.o or biassed pardon ea.ft.at times' Jbo' found to oppose No-Liceivsobut if parsons' aro to decide, this question I wjr tlie case -will go very hiircS with "Moderate." "Moderate" should remember that some of the stoutest defenders of tho slave trad© were to bo found among parsons. Happily their successors view the question _ very differently,, today, and thus it will bfl with tho liquor traffic; But. as "Moderate' 4 esteems so highly the utterances, of parsons I'will favour him with a short extract from a sermon preached by tho jjev. Dr. .Gordon, of Winiiipog. Tlie cie-rgyman's remarks- being alike applicahlo to Now Zealand ana to Canada. I do not hesitate to repriiduco them Here, Dr. Gordon says:—"Alcohol may have a soiinl value of.a- very low.order, but.it cerininly has 110 business value. IVorec than dynamito in tho tads of an anarchist is' alcohol' iii the realm of. hnsiliess. Alcohol in jthe pilot room.of an ecwra' «ab of a,-. ' m 'tiio'svvitchbos of a railroad—alcohol ip tho motor end of a street car—alcohol 011 the. brain of the chauffeur of .1 taxicj'.b.' Alcohol and business strike hands'hut once, aiid that is'ill the bank.book of the hrewer. Eveli the doctors have found something better tli'an 'alcohol.' " The ■ meniio.ii of' Canada rdttiinds nie that "Moderate" in his tip'oning article referred to Ontario's ."bare majority," Unfortunately Ontario has not got tho hare majority, and I only! riioiition this to point <rUt still another serious blunder in "Moderate's" so-cfilkd "fair, correct, and' informinc" artielei—T am_, ete..

ON'K VQTE ONE VALUE. ■ January 28; 1914., fA portion of. the above letter in which reference .is niade to the supposed identity of "Moderate" is omitted.]

"Temperance"' writes to. say-that- the drink bill of. Great Britain \ra«r not £1.17,000,000 iiv 1010..' but £107.000,00 p, and that .in 1911 it .'wis over five millions more, and',.that in 1912 it. showed a decrease .<?f £1,240,000. Taking a serins 'of years, there,has been a gradual decline in consumption. In 187-1 the consumption' of beer per head was -33.84 gallons, and in 1912 ft. was 27.30 ga-N lons —a decrease of 6} gallons per head 'of the population. '