THE LICENSING POLL.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIV, Issue 140, 9 December 1911, Page 4

THE LICENSING POLL.

The surprisingly large vote cast throughout the Dominion in favor of National Prohibition is a remarkable indication of the attitude of the people toward the licensed liquor trade. It will be seen that although many districts are obviously willing to wipe out the liquor traffic, no further districts will become "dry" (at least at time of writing this appears so). The peculiar position is appareitly but a small guide to the attitude of the individual to liquor itself. In the districts which have been under no-license there has been no very remarkable setback to the no-license cause, although the lesser vote cast for non-restoration at Clutha and Ashburton apparently shows an indecision not hitherto suspected. Both these districts were curiously against national prohibition—an extraordinary commentary on the position. Wellington Suburbs clearly desired both no-license and national prohibition, but in this district, of course, local nolicense merely means that city hotels do all the business. How emphatic the city suburban areas are in desiring to keep the hotels outside the residential districts is shown by the enormous disparity in the restoration (1958) and nonrestoration (4*51) at Mt. Eden (Auckland), the facts being that although a Mt. Eden resident may vote for local nolicense he is aWc to satisfy his appetite in the city (if he has an appetite). Here again the people, however, showed emphatically a desire for national drought, most likely agreeing that what was good for a suburb was good for the whole Doj minion. The very large vote in favor of Dominion prohibition cannot possibly be the vote of total abstainers, and I therefore it is necessary to seek for ;> ■ reason other than antagonism to the ' general habit of drinking alcoholic liquors. As we have said before, the very | widespread indication that the people desire national prohibition may be pure

unselfishness and a desire to save a minority of hard-drinkers who are cursed with an insatiable appetite. But it is much more likely that the huge vote has been cast as a protest against the conduct of the "trade" in this country, or rather a section of it, the methods of some of the men who own and control the hotels, the quality, quantity and price of liquors, and the position of the "tied" licensee. The vote is the plainest possible instruction to the "trade" generally to improve its business. Voluntary improvement would most likely reduce the vote for national prohibition at the 1014 elections. At present effort is concentrated on abolishing liquor entirely, but is it not worth while turning attention to improving the whole system and giving it a fair trial under altered conditions? This is an aspect that is deserving of the careful consideration of the moderate drinker, who without doubt formed a big section of the vote cast for national prohibition on Thursday.