CORRESPONDENCE

Manawatu Herald, Volume XXXIII, Issue 1077, 2 December 1911, Page 2

CORRESPONDENCE

(To the .Editor.)

Sir, —I noticed in your report of Mr Moucktou’s address at Foxion last Monday night, that In answer to a question by Mr Whibley, Mr Mouckton denied having stated at Whitaunui that he had never read the Defence Act, His denial is incorrect. I was one of his audience of twelve, and Mr Mouckton distinctly stated that he had never read the Defence Act, aud that he did not know much about it. Of course, Mr Mouck-'. ton did not make this statement

until he was unable to answer a question in reference to compulsory training. At the same time he supported military training, although he was ignorant of the Act. I might also mention that Mr Mouckton opened his address by saying that the licensing and racing laws of this country were being forced upon the people of this Dominion by a lot of “ wowsers,” aud that he was ‘‘full up” of this "wowserism.’’ When 1 asked Mr Mouckton what he meant by a “ wowser,” he said a “ wowser ” was a man who taught Sunday School one day aud something else the next —in other words, a “wowser " was a hypocrite. Perhaps Mr Mouckton thought it he used such common and gutter remarks he might please the flaxmill employees. If such is the case, I am afraid Mr Mouckton will be amongst the ‘‘ also started ” on December Bth. The workers of New Zealand are fully aware that their representative in Parliament must be a man prepared to lift humanity, and the one way to do so is by removing all enemies to Christianity. Therefore, so long as Mr any other man who claims to fcA long to a reform party, is prepared to side-step these great reform questions, then so long will the people of this Dominion remain in poverty, crime aud disgrace. The very fact that the drink tiaffic was responsible lor producing over 7,000 first convictions lor drunkenness in New Zealand last year is sufficient evidence that it should be wiped out of existence for ever, and it the men whom we return to Parliament are not prepared to bring this into effect they are not doing their duty to the coming generation, aud cannot claim to be called reformers, but on the contrary are a drag to civilisation, 1 should like to tell Mr Mouckton that Prohibition is not a question outside politics, as he thinks, but it is right inside politics, aud it is also one of the great reform questions which every parliament in the world will have to deal with very shortly.—l am, etc., A. H. Yates. Whitaunui.