THE LICENSING POLL

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 234, 27 June 1919, Page 8

THE LICENSING POLL

OFFICIAL ANNOUNCEMENT OF RESULT CONTINUANCE MAJORITY 10,362 The official announcement of the result of the special licensing poll, taken on April 10 last, was made yesterday by the Minister of Justice (Hon. T. M. Wilford). The number of valid votes recorded, including the votes cast by soldiers outside New Zealand, was 518,016, and the majority for Continuance was 10,382. The returns are as follow:— In Licensing Districts. Electors on roll 626,632 Valid votes recorded ; 478,312 For Continuance 232,203 For Prohibition 246,104 Prohibition majority 13..598 Expeditionary Force. Cont. Proh. United Kingdom 15,875 3,955 France 142 4!) Egypt' 1,653 444 Samoa 100 35 New Zealand 3,886 1,482 On board troopships 0,825 1,758 Totals 31,981 7,723 Grand totals 261,189 253,827 Total valid votes 518,016 Continuance majority 10,362 ■ THE LICENSING DISTRICTS DETAILED FIGURES. The result of the polling- in each, licensing district is shown in the following return:— . . , -3 U I. I. 1District. 5~2 , § S g g _.-2 "a so 3 p. 3 y> Bay of Is. 7,339 2,334 2,605 1,935 Marsden ... 7,248 2,128 3,158 5,288 Kaipara ... 6,318 '2,238 2,545 4,783 Waitemata 10,710 3,028 4,930 8,550 Eden 15,255. 3,817 6,622 10,439 Auck. E. ... 8,195 3,754 2,861 6,615 Auck. C.... 5.623 3,713 2,134 5,847 Auck. W. 11,070 3,798 3,955 7,753 Grey Lynn 10,314 3,781 4,937 8,7)8 l'arnell ... 12,125 3,852 4,764 8,616 Manukaii 12,056 4,132 5,696 9,828 Franklin... 9,909 2,695 4,081 6,776 liaglan ..... 8,770 2,780 3,806 6,5G« Thames '... 6,473 2,301 2,633 4,934 Ohinemuri 5,735 2,339 ' 2,074 4,413 Tauranga 9,593 3,185 3,664 6,849 Waikato ... 9,774 3,309 4,418 . 7,727 B. of Plenty 9,303 3,348 3,070 6,418 Tanmarunui 9,731 3,352 2,877 6,229 Gisborne ... 10,918 3,776 3,830 7,606 Hawke's B. 10,805 3,978 3,953 7,931 Napier 9,720 3,86S 3.520 7.65S Waipawa. . 7,231 3,010 2,819 5,829 Palnatua ..' 5,872 2,307 2,278 4,585 -Uasterton 7.553 2,781 2,780 5,561 Wairarapa 7,086 2,846 2,421 5,207 Stratford .. 5,508 1,954 2,774 4,728 Taranaki .. 8,249 2,668 3,912 6.550 Egmont .... 6,198 2,265 2,691 4,956 Patea ....... • 8,510 " 2,845 3,739 6,584 Wangamii . 10,765 4,011 4,421. 8,432 Waimarino 6,915 2,954 2,009 4,963 Oroua 6,512 ,2,319 2,800 5,179 Itangitikei 7,611 2.50S 2,495 5,003 Palmerston 10,060 3,537 4,296 7,833 Otald 6,329 2,375 ' 2,529 4,904 Hutt 9,262 3,875 3,617 7,492 W'gt'n N. 10,632 4,951 3,500 8,451 W'gt'nCtl. 9,099 4,556 2,029 7,185 W'gt'nE. . 10.07S . 4,189 4,110 8,299 W'gt'n Sth. 9375 3,879 3,745 7,624 W'gt'n Sub. 8,750 3,282 3,445 6,727 Nelson 7,492 3,163 3,021 6,189 Motueka ... 5,639 2,643 1,925 4,568 Duller 5,446 2,413 1,937 • 4,350 Grey G. 753 3,324 1,878 5,202 Westland . 5,791 3,101 1,454 4,555 Wairau ... 7,324 3,072 2,799 .5,871 Hurunui ... 6,046 2,604 1,795 4,399 Kaiapoi ... 6,417 2,759 2,598 5,357 Chch.Nth. 11,023 4,353 4,696 ' 9,059 Chch. East 5.291 4,096 2,823 6,924 Cheh. Sth. 8,829 3,515 3,780. 7,295 Uiccarton . 9,018 3,456 3,481 . 6,917 Avon 9,950 3,786 4,436 8,222 Lyttelton .. 8,329 .3,097 3,183 6,280 Ellesinere . 6,432 2,538 2,089 4,1325 Selwyn 7,315 2,817 .' 2,192 5,009 Ashburton 6,939 3.00S 2,562 5,570 'L'imaru ... 9,297 3,061 4,174 ' 7,235 Temuka ... 6,610 2,724 2,489 5,213 Waitaki ... 6,372 , 2,325 2,656, 4,981 Oamaru ... 8,115 2,566 3,191 5,757 OtagoCentl. 6,263 2,196 2,345 4,541 DunedinN. 9,438 2,770 4,469 7,239 Dunedin W. 9,773 3,085 -3,986 7,071 Dunedin Ctl. 9,526 3,035 3,829 6,864 Dunedin S. 10,116 3.457 4,708 8,165 Chalmers . 7,422 2,053 3,792 5,845 Bruce 6,232' 2,073 2,451 4,527 Cliitha .;... 5,520 1,770 2,405 4,235 Wakatipu 5,31-1 2,187 1,930 . 4,117 Mataura ... 6,541 2,233 2,772 5,005 Wallace ... 5,341 ' 2,011 4,263 Invercargill 9,331 3,280 4,307 7,587 Awarua ... 5,742 2,187 2,389 4,576

Totals ...626,632 232,208 246,104 478,312

PROHIBITION ORGANISER'S OPINIONS THE SOLDIERS* VOTE. The Rev. R. S. Gray, organiser of th& New Zealand Alliance, told a Dominion reporter that while ho was disappointed at the result of the poll he was not at all ■ discouraged. Personally, he would very much prefer to fight the prohibition issue without tho compensation- proposal than with it. The poll had settled tho question of compensation. The trade had rejected the offer, and he was fully satisfied that the liquor interests would never induce the people of New Zealand to pay between and .£15,000,000 for the purchase of the'trainc in order to get Stale control. If the people wanted State control they could first vote out the trade and then demand a poll on the State control issue. The National Efficiency League and tho New Zealand Alliance, added Mr. Gray, had definitely decided to prosecute the campaign with the utmost vigour. There would be no more talk.of compensation. The trade had set itself to burn into the minds of the electors that it would be crass folly to pay JM,500,000. It was welcome to whatever comfort it could get from an effort to induce the people to pay ".£10,000,000 or more. The fight now would be for straight-out prohibition without compensation. ".Tho soldiers' vote was disappointing," said Mr. Gray, "but I am sure that a largo part of it was cast under misapprehension, deliberately manufactured and fostered by the other side." It will hardly be believed, but it nevertheless is true, added Mr. Gray, referring to articles inserted by the Moderate League in the soldiers'. paper, the "New Zcntander," that in a statement signed by Mr. D. M. Pindlay, president, and Mr. R. A. Armstrong, secretary of tho Moderate League, 'purporting to explain tho reason for the special poll, there is not one word from first lo last which faintly refers to the National Efficiency Board, with which body the proposal for the special poll originated. It is, and was when these gentlemen wrote their advertisement, a matter of common knowledge that the suggestion of a special poll without delay had come from the Efficiency Board and not from the Prohi'liition Party at all.

"The Prohibition Parly, as a matter of fact, refused at first to have anything to do with the referendum because of the proposal- to pay compensation to the trade. The party was induced to agree to the proposal in view of the great moral'advanfngo that would accrue to the Dominion if the liniinr trade could be closed down without the four years' extension of time provided for in the Act of 1910. The Moderate League's advertisement said: 'The Prohibitionists' .anxiety to secure this special poll during ynur absence has been most marked, nnd while yon have been away they have never ceased their ngilation. and have boldly proclaimed their nvopa<randa to b" of more importance than the war.' These statements of the "Moderate League are directly contrary to fact.

'"the pj-opcsal to'lake a poll 'at the carli"st possible moment' was made by the National Efficiency''Board. The board explained in its report Hint it looked info the liquor question first from the point of view of war conditions, but 'as the inquiry proceeded it became nnnarcnt that in the interests of national efficiency the board had to consider the liquor question from the point of view of the efficiency of the State, and the individual both durin" the war and afterwards,' and the board therefore 'submitted its recommendations co as to promote norraanont national efficiency.' While _ I am not prepared to say that no individual Pro-

hibitiomst expressed the same opinion as Air. Lloyd George—that, the Empire was nghting against three enemfes, Germany, Austria, ami Drink, and that Drink was the greatest—yet it is a well-known fact that the most prominent Prohibition leaders during the war devoted themselves unceasingly to patriotic work, and gave a great deal more time' to this than to prohibition. '

A further statement by the Moderate League, in it, advertisement to the soldiers, -Hint the Prohibition Parlv had endeavoured 'to brand our soldiers before the world ns drunkards in order to secure some iminediate"hdvaiitago for their propaganda' needs merely to be presented to the people of this country for its falsHy to be apparent. There is only one word, a very short word, that could fairly be used to describe a further statement that the Prohibition Party had 'taken no steps whatever' to secure the soldiers' right to vote. The meeting, which decided to support' th'e Efficiency Board's proposal, adopted a further resolution insisting upon ihe right of the soldiers to vote being definitely provided for. This was publicly stateo, by the Prohibitionists on many occasions and was specially emphasised by myself, ns president of the New Zealand Alliance, in submitting to Mr. Mossey and Sir Joseph Ward the request that the poll should be granted. I made it perfectly clear that the only basis upon which we would desire ihe poll to 'be taken was that every 6oldier should have the right to vote, and the Prime Minister in his reply stated that no pol-1 wourd be taken on any other basis. That: deputation . was reported very fully in the Wellington newspapers and .throughout the Dominion.

"Tho Prohibition Party is quite sure that the voting of the soldiers does not really represent the opinion of the- soldiers on the great social issue raised by the Efficiency Board. The men abroad were misled, and under all the- circumstances it is not at all surprising. that they voted heavily against the proposal. A comparison of the votes cast by returned soldiers in New Zealand and by soldiers overseas and on transports reveals the important fact, that there was n difference of 10 per cent, in favour of prohibition in the votes cast by soldiers within the Dominion. Most of the returned men. who voted as soldiers had been back only a few weeks, or eyen a few days, but they had besnn to understand the true oosition. Tf the soldiers abroad had voted in the came proportions as the undischarged soldiers in New Zealand, the continuance, maioritv would have been reduced by between 6000 and 70"0 votes."

Mr. Gray mentioned that it. was undoubtedly a fact' that the pronosal to pay, cnmpsnsatic.il had affected the votes of prohibition support'" - *, particularly in no-license districts. F.l'eetor.-s who had voted the trado out.of their own districts without compensation were not easily mrspaded to consent, to- p*y enmnehsation' to the trade for the ending of its operations in other districts.