Temperance Conference at Palmerston.

Feilding Star, Volume XV, Issue 303, 2 May 1894, Page 2

Temperance Conference at Palmerston.

The first chapter iu the proceedings of the Temperance conference, convened by the local Prohibition League, opened in the Theatre Royal last night, when a large audience assembled to listen to addresses from some of the delegates to the Conference. The Rev. D. Gordon, Moderator of the Presbyterian General Assembly, presided, and briefly explained the object of the gathering. The Rev. Mr Walker, organising agent of the New Zealand Alliance, moved, "That this public meeting expresses its profound gratification at the hold that the temperance reform movement is taking upon the public mind, recognises in the recent general and licensing elections evidence that the votes in favor of the reform are strong enough to claim as a political right satisfactory, simple, and complete direct veto power ; and appeals to Parliament to confer this power in the coming session by means of effective legislation." He said that the fact that the temperance cause had taken such a strong hold on the people of the colony was proof that success was in the near future. The Rev. F. W. Isitt strongly criticised the fact that in Christchurch a wholesale drinkseller was Chairman of the Young Men's Christian Association, and wondered how he thought his prayers could reach heaven, for a man in such a position could only participate in the traffic because of the money he wade in it. fie denied that the minority wished to coerce the majority, for there were not 100,000 in the colony using the publichouses, and what right had they for the gratification of their appetite to subject the colony to the turmoil, expense, and worry, of the drink traffic. Mr Seddon was just the sort of a man they could expect who had come from behind a publichouse bar, and he must climb down before the people could expect to get just and pure laws. The Liberal party should say that Seddon must come down, because we cannot bear that the leader of a great democratic country should crack his whip over the heads of members, thwart and bully Colonel Fox, and boycott the Post because it dared to be outspoken. The motion was then carried unanimously. The Rev. Mr Judkins, of Feilding, congratulated the people on going straight for what they wanted in regard to licensing legislation. He' contended that the drink the wide world over was one of the greatest curses to humanity, and had not a single redeeming feature. He moved, " That in the opinion of this meeting nothing in the Alcoholic Liquor Sales Control Act or the Electoral Act taken together exempts the recent elections taken under these Acts from this operation of the provision in the Electoral Act that the rolls shall be purged of the names of non-voters, and that the neglect of the Government to have such purgations effected will be an added scandal to the already notoriously scandalous irregularities in favor of the liquor interest of the said elections and exposes the Government to the suspicion of inaction in the matter being attributable to unjustifiable partiality." Mr Gilbert Carson said in America wherever there was a failure in prohibition, it was due to corrupt Government, and he believed that before three years were over there would be a Government in power that would not allow the law to be tampered with as at present. Only the other day a lady applied for a hotel license, and one of the certificates she produced to show she should get a license was from the Premier, Mr Seddon. At next election there would be one of the toughest fights New Zealand had seen between the people and the publicans. The resolution was then put and carried unanimously, and the meeting closed. — Standard .