PROHIBITION CAMPAIGN

Dominion, Volume 13, Issue 41, 12 November 1919, Page 8

PROHIBITION CAMPAIGN

PUBLIC MEETING AT NEWTOWN. The public campaign of the prohibition organisation in Wellington South was inaugurated last evening in St. Thomas's Hall. Newtown. Tho chair was taken bv the Hew W. iWcourt, vicar of St. Thomas's, who introduced the question to the meeting by reminding it of the issues once, more before- the people, and of- the opportunity to voto at the general elections. The speakers for the evening wero Captain Hawkins, a returned soldier nnd Mr. A. 1!. Atkinson. Captain Hawkins pointed out that the April poll was not fruitless. It had' killed three things, viz., the four and a half vears' trading right granted under the old Act if prohibition wero carried, the three-fifths majority, and the question of compensation. There was a sign of hopefulness in the gradual change of attitude of tho sections of the Christian Church, that had stood hitherto almost solidly against the reform. Deferring to America, he pointed out that the answer to the cablegrams as to the failurn of American prohibition was in tho carrying by the States of constitutional Droliibiton! The speaker referred: to the statements by Mr. Armstrong that there was mora crime in no-lieense than in license district*. To the statement that there were three times more murders and six times more incest, the answer was given that the official returns gave not ono in each ease. In closing, bo referred to the trade admission of 11 per thousand drunkards (or 12,500 aggregate), pointing out the menace of the traffic to young men, and urging the audience to save its manhood by voting for national prohibition. Mr. Atkinson stated that tho liquor traffic had destroyed the cause of State, purchase I)}* urging the people to vote against, compensation. Tho argument required extension to its logical conclusion.' State purchase was a "bad spec." because we should buy what we. really did not require, and it would mean money thrown away. As to tho success of prohibition, ho referred to tbe almost unanimous testimony of 27 of 2S Governors of prohibition Stales, even tho dissentient testimony being qualified. This was borne out by the voto of 45 out of -IS States for eonslituional prohibiion. Tho speaker pointed out that liquor was the enemy—not the friend—of the home, of the wife and children. Ho concluded by urging his hearers to voto for national prohibition.