THE LICENSING BILL.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXXII, Issue 10120, 15 October 1910, Page 3

THE LICENSING BILL.

CRITICISED BY THE REV. EDWARD WALKER.

The Rev. Edward Walker, telegraphing from Halcombe, says:— "Disregarding Jie second part, which contains a modicum of improvement of a regulative and administrative character, the Licensing Bill contains all that was strenuouslyopposed at the last annual Dominion No-license Convention, except that four years is substituted for five, and one year for two. what is certainly not clear is that in the event of restoration being carried after a period of national prohibition the districts I which oppose restoration by a 55 per cent, vote shall start under national restoration as No-license districts. If sub-section 1 of section 23 implies I it, that would need to be made sure, because sub-section b of section 26 implies the opposite, and would need to be expressly worded to harmonise with section 7. The fact that,in every eixsting No-license district every elector who has voted No-license but does not believe in national prohibition must vote against local Nolicense in order to vote against national prohibition presents a fair prospect of the loss of existing Nolicense districts at the next poll, and of the difficulty, >.f not impossibility, for some time of carrying any fresh ones. To me the Bill seems to present a complete abandonment of any advantages from a local option vote, ether achieved or prospective, and a fight conclusively for national pro-

hibition. lam for both local and national option, separately voted on, and believe the surrender of the former, either practically, as under the Bill, or actually, by legislation, would be a gross public wrong and tactical blunder. The No-license party is much stronger in the country to-day than it was in 1895, and if its leaders should combine to organise and call forth its strength for a political conflict with the Trade at the next general election, it could easily exceed the temperance strength in Parliament of 1895, and compel any Government to treat "the people justly in their struggle, i with their greatest curse."