TEMPERANCE SOCIAL.

Temuka Leader, Issue 2522, 29 June 1893, Page 3

TEMPERANCE SOCIAL.

The Temperance social held last Tuesday evening in the Volunteer Hall, Temuka, was a great success. Friends of temperance from all parts of the district were present, and there was a fair attendance. The social was carried out by members of the Good Templar Lodge, aud the Chief Templar, Bro. Leveus, occupied the chair, and a very enjoyable programme of songs, recitations, etc., was gone through. The following programme was gone through: Glee, Brother Whitehead, and Sisters Eva Goodey and Taylor; Song, Mrs Adams ; Recitation, Sister B. Goodey; Reading, Brother Levens; Dialogue, Sisters. E. Goodey and Cruickshanks and Brother Bowman; Glee, Brothers Dellow and Whitehead and sisters Goodey and Taylor; Song, Mr Oalder ; Recitation, Sister Cruickshank; Song, Sister M. Goodey; Recitation, Mr Sim; Song, Brother Rev. Dellow; Recitation, Brother Watts ; Song, Sister E. Goodey ; Bong, Sister Taylor ; Dialogue, Brothers Gunnion, Goodey, and Blyth, and Sisters Cruickshank, E. Goodey, aud M. Goodey. This programme was gone through in a most satisfactory manner, ana ail the items were received with great applause. Miss Eva Goodoy’s singing deserves special mention. She has a delightful voice, which only requires cultivation to be excellent. Speeches were delivered by the Revs Messrs Dellow and Dickson.

Mr Dellow said temperance was a part of his religion, and he could not understand how any Christian could be anything but a temperance advocate. He was glad all the branches of Christian Church favoured temperance, and that the cause was making great progress. There was no good in strong drink, but it was the cause of most of the crime and misery of life, and consequently he was in favour of the complete prohibition of it. An incorrect account of the Hyde Park riot had been cabled out here. What happened was this: The liquor party determined on holding a demonstration, but when they moved a resolution, the temperance party moved an amendment and carried it. This annoyed the liquor party, and hence the disturbance. It was the first time the liquor party came out in public to discuss the question, and he believed it would be the last. The cause of temperance was progressing ; they had now a Bill for submission to Parliament which would be introduced by Sir R, Stout (great applause), and he believed that the year 1894 would see them having the direot veto. It would be the great question of the next election, and every candidate would have to give a direct answer to it. The direot veto meant that the people through the ballot box should have the power of granting or refusing licenses, because men now elected on a committee were liable to be persecuted if they rqfqsed licenses. He knew a wan whq ruined in business by being boycotted on account or his action on a committee. JSTq. one could persecute a ballot box, and hence the reason that they desired that the granting or refusing of licenses should be carried out by the direct veto. He believed the Direct Veto Bill would pass before long, and that the women would get the franchise, and then he had no fear but prohibition would follow. (Applause). The llev. Mr Dickson congratulated the Good Templars on the progress they were making. It gaye an indication of their growth when their oym hall v/as not largo enqqgh, fliijiy has t.Q take the Yqluqtepr HalU Temuka wwell ahead in tlxo way of ieiUPo™ -- he attributed this to Vu H ~ ,JCe ’ * n - xa(j existence of a Good Lodge. A commercial traveller had said that Temuka was an exception to other towns, inasmuch as that it was almost impossible to get any of the shop-keepers to go into a hotel. That was a good sign, but still there was much to be done yet. The great naval disaster in which the Victoria had been wrecked had excited great sympathy, but there were moral wrecks every day with whom there was no sympathy. In fact, Governments congratulated themselves on the largo sums of money they made out of these wrecks. It was pitiable to see money made out of so much human misery. The Kanaka labor trade was a parallel case with regard to the drink traffic. Temptations were hold out to the poor natives of the South Seas to sell themselves into a regulated system of slavery, and the white population made money out of their labor. It was so with the drunkards. Temptations were held out to them to make them drink, so that other people might ppake money out of their misfortunes. The Kanaka labor traffic and the drink traffic were both regulated by law, but abuses would creep in in spite of these regulations. There was nothing for them but abolition. He hoped the people would soon get the power to veto the liquor traffic, and ho believed if they had it that would bo the end of it. The people were getting disgusted with it; oven people who were addicted to the vice of intemperance would be glad to have drink put out of the way, and would vote fov prohibition. The clay was coming

when they would get that power, and then there would be less crime and less misery in the world. (Applause) At the close of the meeting a motion expressing regret at the death of Sir William Fox was moved by Mr Dellow and carried unanimously.