NO-LICENSE MELTING

Taranaki Daily News, Volume XLVIII, Issue 81918, 20 February 1907, Page 2

NO-LICENSE MELTING

There was not a largo attendance on Monthly evening, at the No License meeting held in the Primitive Methodist Church. Mr A. Pikett presided. Mr J. Pickett was tile first' speaker, dealing with the various no-license electorates, as under license compared with without legalised sale of liquor, lie produced proof of the increase in business, increased property values, decreased drunkenness, and decreased crime since the closing of the hotel

bars. Mr, Pikett urged the importance of "hiking up the temperance cause, and taking up prohibition views, if New Plymouth people devoted ! to prohibition the amount of talking devoted to talking about one another, a lot of good would result. 'Mr McDerniott, of Auckland, traced the growth of the prohibition movement during the past 25 years, mentioning the fact that me last poll gave the no-liccnse party a majority of 15,000 votes. He advocated decision of the licensing question ou; a bare, majority, and defended no-license areas against the oft-levelled cbango of sly-grog-'selling and excessive drinking in the homes of. the people. I Messes Mclsaac aiyd Wheelw ipro- ' vuled a pleasing break with a couple of I vocal members, and then Mr Wesney, of Invcrcargill, gave the audience an outline of how prohibition was carried in invcrcargill, what the workers bad to contend with, and what were the results of the change. At every election for IS years past the hotels had been reduced in number, and each closed hotel meant a reduction of the lighting strength of the trade. Prior to last election, the electorate was subdivided, and local committee,* organised. The party took steps to find out the opinions of 'the people before tre poll, and to take them to the voting places, and to so conduct the campaign that votes were won. The Young People's Society ctf Christian Endeavour organised a great meeting of nearly 0000 people, udflrcspcd by leading mercantile and professional men in favour of no-license. And the meeting was so enthusiastic that brewers and hroweijs' clerks were ti( be seen singing '-'Strike out the to]) I line" with the crowd. He showed that since the noil, local values had increased by £139,940; that rates were reduced; that sly-grog-shops did not spring up in large numbers, owing to the clean administration of the law; that the travelling public visited invcrcargill as before, and that on the occasion of the recent agricultural Avow record crowds were accommodated in the city at the usual charges; that the tourist traffic through Jnvergill to the Cold Lakes did not decrease, but showed an increase this year. Nolicense did not mean no liquor—that was "clause _nine." As a matter of fact, under the Boer Duties Act of 20 years ago, the brewers erected depots just over the boundary line, and liquor came in from there. But there was no open bar; no glittering temptation. They bad now regulated the hours of the depots, and they would sweep them away by carrying-no license in the adjoining electorates. In Invercargill the best business men and 'the best people were at the back of the no-liecnse party. The party was on top, and was going to stay on top. Votes of thanks to the speakers and to the chairman terminated the gathering.