THE PROHIBITION QUESTION

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LVI, Issue 91, 12 September 1914, Page 6

THE PROHIBITION QUESTION

LECTURE KY DR. SHEI.DO.V. There was a large attendance at the Theatre Royal on Thursday night to hear Dr. 0, M. Sheldon deliver an address under the auspices of the Taranaki Xo-Liccnse League. The Rev. T. 11. lioseveare presided, in the absence of the .Major.

In opening his address, Dr. Sheldon laid that lie had started from America to give series of lecture under the aus-. pices of the Young Men's Christian As.sociatiou, hut on his way his mission ; was changed to being that of the NoLicense league. He 'said that the enormous size of the cities of America made (lie problems of the life difficult. Congestion of population created many problems such as chilit labor, vi;-e, the negro population (who were accumulating wealth), and then there were all the ends of .the earth there, it being no rare experience to hear il different languages .spoken on the street. America assimilated these foreigners and made good citizens of them. The way of solving the. problem appeared to be through the children, and through the Christian church. Then there was the great drink iiuestion. Out of 10J million people at hast one lia'f were living in prohibition States. Every State had its local ,option. law.

lie proposed to give the story of what prohibition had done in Kansas—one of the 48 .States of the Union, right in the centre of America—a great rich, rolling prairie country, where the largest crops of wheat were grown. It had a population, of 1,730,000 people, a large number of whom were negroes, but there were foreigners besides. The liquor laws in all 'tire States were about the same. Referring to Maine, he said that State still held to prohibition, and he did not believe it would give it up again. Prohibition had been in Kansas for thirteen years, but all round were liquor States. Fifty years ago the ugliness of the liquor traffic was seen, and they started to put an end to it. F'rom the time the liquor -business was abolished in Kansas it had been kept out. The churches helped, the newspapers helped, the politicians helped, and. best of all, they had the help of the W.C.T.U/ (applause). A'l over the country women were doing good work in the caiiie, and had put out of business 1110 liquor bars, (ircat diificulty. was experienced in putting down the illegal trade, but as the years went by, the Mayors who did not enforce the law were put out of oilice. All the .time the brewers were trying to break down the prohibition laws. Jlu described the difference between hotels and saloons—the latter being drinking places pure and simple—and he also alluded to the "joints" where sly grog business was done. Shamed by tile action of a woman, tile men rose all over the State, and the result was that Kansas law actua'ly prohibited, and to-day there was not any liquor there. What had been the..consequence!! The liquor trade did not pay any money into the town. Economically, it was a failure. There were only 025 paupers, and 7'21 inmr.tes of the penitentiary. Every liquor State spent 7,00:),0l)0d.ol.'a year in liquor, whilst, Kansas spent only one, million, thus saving six millions. The reason why there was aiiy liquor there at all was because, it was permissible for personal use. Another fact was the very large number of children sent to the.'high school, "in the last ten years the wealth, of Kansas had increased by a million dollars a year. When the prohibitory law was enforced money began at once to flow into the Savings Bank, one bank alone' receiving 00,000 dollars in the lirst year. In a town of 23,000 people, which he claimed to be representative, there were only eight prisoners in the State penitentiary, the bank deposits being 3,300,000 -dollars. There was only one policeman, and ho was asleep half his time. The figure*, showed that the .liquor tralVic too" money out of the pockets of the people. The savings on the side of physical health by an increased vitality was most marked.'"•Alcohol was a poison, not !a medicine, jet some people could get spirits at a dry store by stating that it was for sickness,; but this had been ended in Kansas for seven years. Civilisation raid that alcohol was not needed, even for medicine. He quoted the opinions of a number of medical men against alcohol. The Kansas figures as to the health of people showed that the deaths by tuberculosis, 'heart disease, and k-id-,n-ey troubles were very largely .reduced" by prohibition. If every drop of alIcohol were destroyed that night, and not another drop was manufactured, the human race would straight away improve. The public of Kansas were arrayed against liquor to a man. and the ■speaker'claimed that the prohibition law was the best, law that could ever have been passed. They would not stop in their campaign, until the law \vu» general throughout the United States. The chinches in the States were demanding national prohibition, that the liquor Irallic been put down; so that another curse be removed for ever by preventing another drop of liquor being made. Directly he n turned to America be was going to enter on a campaign in favor of national prohibition, and ; f Xew Zealand wanted to get in lirst it would be necessary to hurry up. The majority vole ought to prevail, and the majority in Xew Zealand had voted prohibition. This was the greatest problem or" the dac, and when it was solve!, all other 'problems would be easy to dcal'with. lie prayed, that they would

be united in freeing the country from tiie curse of drink,'and he hoped that ei;e long New Zealand would be known all over the world: as a, great example of a sp'cudid country -freed from the evil of drink, and blessed by Cod. (Ap"ii'i reply to Mr Maunder, Dr. Sheldon said that in No-License di.stric.ts, even where drink was allowed, it was a di-niiui-hing quantity. In reply to another query, Dr. Sheldon said the question was settled by a bare, ninii.r'itv, and lie quoted a case where two votes cloM'd the saloons.All the lime the young people were being educated bv means of text books in the schools.

'in reply to Mr Cocker, Ur. Sheldon said that'lie believed ill ignoring party polities J,, favor of the love of humanit v. and Unit he would never vole for a political candidate on parly lines, but only ('li humanitarian lines. Mr Maunder moved: That this meeting urges on tile llovernineiit the no-ec'vdty'-ot materially the majority necessary to carry no-liecnse or iiioiiibition.—The motion was carried. d'he chairman moved: That the /Minister of Defence be congratulated on !y".s action in preventing drinking in camps, and on board troop ships. The motion was carried.

At die of Mr Maunder. I)r Sheldon -was requested to n-Oc ques- ! tioiu. in response, he inquired what was the host thine; in Xew Plymouth ? ami what was the worst? These were questions lui askt-iH everywhere. Another question was: What liad the. people of Xew Z»,iUtnd to do to fret prohibition? (A voice: Two votes in.'the. House would do it).' ' ■ ■ r'-t

After some time bad been spent over ttle ipolitieal aspect of the question, and the prospects of the forthcoming pell, a hearty vote of thanks was accorded to : Br. Sheldon.