ANTI-SHOUTING

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 2935, 22 November 1916, Page 8

ANTI-SHOUTING

• Sir,—l liave read your correspondent's letter in your issue of October 28. ' Statistics prove that quite .the contrary is the fact and that the AntiShouting Act has not had a depressing effect on the liquor trade, although the Press'in some instances has made is appeal' so. Certainly, lately there have been a few convictions, hut compared with the number of hotels in which shouting takes place, the-convictions are a mere bagatelle. However, if Riven sufficient publicity they may deter the reckless contravention of the law by both bar tender and shouter. Your correspondent gibes at my remarks that the Dominion of Canada is "dry." So just a few figures to refresh his memory. Every • Province, except Quebec, has carried Prohibition, aud it is not lawful to sell liquor after the following dates:—Prince Edward's Island, 1901; Saskatchewan, June ,'K), 1915; Manitoba, May 31, 1916; Alberta, Juno 30, 191G; Ontario, September 16, 1916; New Brunswick, April 30, 1917; British Columbia, June 30,' 1917; Yukon Territory, June 13, 1917. In Quebec a majority of constituencies have abolished the sale of liquor by local option and complete Prohibition of Quebec Province may come any day. Five of the largest daily papers in Canada have excluded all liquor advertisements. Newfoundland will not sell liquor after December 31, 1916. In Russia tho question has not been put to the people, but the Tsar, who lias absolute power in these matters (the drink traffic being a State monopoly) has prohibited the sale of intoxicating drinks, and the . enormous benefits derived by the people from the stoppage of this trade are shown in statistics too long to report here, but they must be absolutely convincing to anyone who will let his sense and not his thirst lead him. M. Barck, Minister of Finance, is so convinced of the economic value of Prohibition that lie lias announced emphatically that Russia can never again go back to the liquor trade in any form. Tho peoplo of "dry" Russia, during the first 20 months of tho war, increased their savings bank deposits by no less than £100,000,000. Our great heads have stated definitniv and emphatically that drink has interfered with the success of the war, and no one will know till the war is over bow torriblo has Leon the set-back to the nation caused by drink. Bri-

tain's drink bill (without her oversea Dominions and colonies) since the war begun is estimated by competent men to be not far short of £400,000,000, or just what Knssian people saved during the first twenty mouths of the war. A comparison between 1914' and 1915 of Britain's and Ireland's drink bill was 17i million pounds more in 1915 thaiijiii 1914, ana yet the population of Britain has been reduced by some million of soldiers. Most of the- States of Australia have reduced hotel hours to six o : clock, and this must gradually take away the great power of drink, for it is the evening traffic that to a great extent fills the coffers of the trade and draws both men and women into oxecss. In the United States nineteen States are dry with a population of 27,344,013, and more than eightv per cent, of the whole area of tho United States is NoLicense territory, and more than ' 60,000,000, or 6'5 per cent, of the population live under prohibition laws. Besides this, the U.S. Government prohibit tho liquor traffic amongst Indians in portions of their territory, also in military forts and the Navy.' Against all these facts what has New Zealand done? Nothing, but bring in an Anti-Shouting Bill, which if enforced will require an army of detectives, as the police cannot be expected to add this to the many duties they have to carry out. If detectives are employed who continually move about and change places and who are not stationed in any one town or district, till they become well known to the trade and everyone else, the Act will be of some use. As we stand'now tho drink bill for 1915 was £4,408,185, or £3 16s. B}d. per head, which includes men, women, and children. This shows an increase in the drink bill of New Zealand against the drink bill of 1914 £161,828, or 2s. BJ-d. per head, and yet our population has been reduced by sending away soldiers to the number of 70,000, besides which the revenue from beer, owing to a smaller duty being collected on so-called weak beer, has been greatly reduced. Since writing tho foregoing, I by Press cablegrams that a number of tho States of U.S.A. have become "dry" and as soon as the elections have been completed others will no doubt bo added to tho big list now "dry." Accordingly, a very small portion of this great country is "wet," Uncle Sam, no doubt, has found out drink interferes very seriously with "dollar making.—l am, etc., ENFORCE ANTI-SHOOTING.