CORRESPONDENCE.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LVII, Issue 257, 9 April 1915, Page 3

CORRESPONDENCE.

OUR DANCER.

To the. Editor,

Sir,—The headline over your war news on Saturday is "Britain's Danger." What, then, is ours? Is it not the self same drink? New Zealanders cannot help seeing that the drunkenness and in-1 capacity caused by drink is the great danger in Britain. What then, are we, .doing to ward off the same great dan-' ger from our beautiful land? I want, sir, through your columns, and with your permission, to ask all those who voted for continuance of the liquor trade in 1914 whether they are not ashamed, penitent I hope, over what they then did.' If it were pressed home here, as in Britain, that the drink is a danger—"Whore there's drink there's danger" always—they would have to admit that the whole responsibility is theirs. If we would only recognise it even here and now that danger exists and is active too. Your space would not, I fear, permit me to point it out, but I could. But while I ask the question of Continuance voters in general, I want to appeal to the backsliders in the districts where your paper circulates. The voters I refer to are those who in 1011 voted for Prohibition, and in 1014 voted for Continuance, or did not vote, which Is still more cowardly. In Stratford e'ectorate there were . r )57 of these back liders, in Egmont 447, in Patea 182, and in Taranaki 104. I should like to put my hand on the shoulder of each of these men and ask them if they are now quite satisfied, in the light of present knowledge, that they did right when the listened to the coaxing promises of the Moderates, or the blood threats as to the revenue, or perhaps gave heed to their own apnetites. Do not let Taranaki say we did better than Stratford. Perhaps Stratford did worse than Taranaki; but I would like to find the man or woman who will confess that he or she is among these backsliders, give his or her reasons for the change of front, and then say whether he or she is still of the opinion that the liquor trade is a good thing. I have read of a man who found no nlace of repentance though he sought it diligentlv with tears. These are not in that position. If any of these are truly penitent, and will ask me I will absolve them with every light penance —only they must be true, —I am, etc.,

GEO. H. MAUNDER,