Labour v. Liquor.

Taihape Daily Times, 6 November 1918, Page 4

Labour v. Liquor.

JIMMY SIMPSON AT THE TOWN HALL.

There was a good attendance at the Town Hall last night to hear Mr James Simpson, the well-known Canadian Labour leader and orator, on “ Labour v. Liquor.” Mr A.. Munro, in the absence of His Worship the Mayor, occupied the chair, and in a few remarks introduced Mr Simpson to the audience Mr Simpson, after saying he had a most pleasant experience in visiting towns in the North and South Islands, and expressing his pleasure in addressing a Taihape audience on “Labour v. got down to his subject without delay. The interest of Labour was in the uplifting of humanity. There was no great human movement in which Laboqr was not interested, and no great reform in which Labour had not taken a part. That was why . Labour was so vitally interested in Prohibition. What did America think of Prohibition? That question he said ho would proceed to answer. The votes taken of the working men of America had made the Prohibition vA V ' movement possible. A time there was in the United States when humans were held as chattels and slaves, but that time was gone. The movement in America for the prohibition of the liquor traffic was undertaken by men of humble origin, and to-day those men had the satisfaction of seeing many who had bitterly opposed the principle now supporting it. Before the war Canada was not looked upon as a prohibition country. But on receiving the message from Lloyd George that Britain was fighting three enemies— Germany, Austria and drink—and that the greatest was drink, and when the Huns started their ruthless submarining in order to starve Britain, Canada stopped the manufacture of drink in i order to save the grain for food. There was no religious distinction in the advocacy of prohibition, as the great Roman Catholic Province of Quebec led the way in putting prohibition into force. Local option had been successful in Canada and its best advertisement was a prohibited area. Local option ho considered was the nearest approach to true democracy. New Zealand legislation fixing a 60 per cent, majority for any proposal was absolutely undemocratic, they should have j have a majority either way. Reverting to the progress of Prohibition in Canada, he said Saskatchewan in 1915 set the ball rolling and passed a law wiping out private- control and introducing State control. Later they gave the ° people'the right to vote out the liquor trade and in 18 months the State bars had been voted out by a i majority of 9 to 1. Votes taken at Winnipeg in military camps and working men’s areas had voted out liquor | one after another. Mr Simpson deI scribed how the prohibition campaign j in Ontario and British Columbia had I resulted in those provinces going dry, and by'May Ist next the whole of Canada would have total prohibition. Referring to the effects of prohibition,-the closed gaols and the reductions in the number of convictions for offences usually caused by drink told their own eloquent tale. Getting drunk in Canada was now a serious matter. The culprit for the first offence was fined £4O, for the second £2OO, and the third time he offended he would be put in i gaol .until he disclosed where he ob- ! tained the liquor. With respect to the economic side of prohibition, the speaker said the breweries had been turned into warehouses and enlarged or made into factories, and the numbers of men who were thereby employed were enormously increased. The United States had offered a bonus' to a ! shipbuilding yards for the greatest? 1 production, and the port of Seattle a prohibited area had been winning the pennant month after month. Why? Because every day 10,000 bottles of milk had bpen going into that area instead of 10,000 bottles of beer. In Seattle the saloons had been transformed into industrial centrcs ? with remarkable advantage to the inhabitants. Mr Simpson earnestly appealed to business men to support prohibition on the grounds of business interests. On the economic aspect of the liquor trade there was no such thing as setting on the fence. Working men should endeavour to get value for the wages they spent. When a man bought boots and shoes, or a suit of suit of clothes, or a piano he got value for his money. If he spent his money in liquor, what value did he get? Suppose a man spent his money on a piano, and taught his little 'daughter to play, he introduced into his house four things —culture, refinement, education, and accomplishment. Who has more right to these four things in their homes than the workers, whose toil has provided the world with things beautiful and good? The speaker then took the scientific side of question, saying that Sims Woodhead had formulated a table of food values -which showed that Id worth of flour contained 700 calories » while Id worth of beer contained M2 calories, but the alcohol contained mi beer did mote injury than the 42 units of heat energy do good The speaker then considered the effect of alcohol

biologically and physiologically, explaining the destructive effects, of air cohol on the brain cells, especially those last created—the intellectual, mental, and moral. Mr Simpson traversed the claims of the moderate drinker, and he held that a drunkard was only an unsuccessful moderate drinker. Coming nearer home, he said National Efficiency B'oard had recommended prohibition, not merely as a war measure, but for the future prosperity of this country. The Prohibition Party in New Zealand were organising now, business men were combing in in large and they were going to get the largest vote from the working man in New Zealand they ever got. The petitions which were presented to Parliament was dealt "with. The Labour Party’s petition, as it contained the single transferable vote, was the most democratic, The Efficiency Board’s proposal came before the Prohibition Party, and they could not take the terrible responsibility of refusing it, as the alternative was 44 years more of the if they carried prohibition at the nest election. He spoke advisedly when he said it would pay the country to drop the 221 millions into the Pacific Ocean right now and close up the liquor trade at once.

Mr. Simpson concluded with an eloquent peroration on “Liberty,” the beacon of human life, the Star of Hope and this prohibition movement would free man and help him to a larger liberty and a brighter future. The singing of the National Anthem and a vote of thanks to the speaker and the chair concluded the jneeting.