THE PROHIBITIONIST.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume XIII, Issue 4076, 30 March 1892, Page 3

THE PROHIBITIONIST.

Fublvhi by the courtesy of the Editor 0} Wairampa Daihj Times, under the auspices of ihc New Zealand Alliance for the prohibitim of the liquor y trajjic, Masterton AuxiUm/. When ratepayers demand the entire cvgrthmhuk» Unction of all places for the sale of liquors, their pmycr should beyantcd. —Charh Buxton, Brewer. [Communications tor this column must bo addressed to "Tho Prohibitionist," caro of Editor of (Vaihaiiam Daily Times.] In the canonising of a Saint at Romo the Devil's advocate plays an important part by trying to blacken tho character of tho reputed saint, The local counterpart of this unenviable character is tho editor of the Wairampa Slnr in his antagonism to Prohibition Reform This worthy editor has of late been giving frank expressions to bis dislike of Chinamen and Temperance Reformers, The " Heathen (Jinnee" that sells fruit in Masterton is in the eyes of this patriotic editor our common enemy, but the man that sells whisky—no rnatterwhetherhebea Russian, Jew or a black fellow—is a publio benefactor, The patriotic principles of this heroic member of the fourth estate constrain him to wage war against John Chinaman's fruit stall and to champion the dram shop. In. the Star of Saturday last we have the latest manifestation oi pothouse patriotism. Our local devil's advocateis, in that issue of his paper, at his congenial task of slandering the Prohibition Reform, We do not object in any way to this outbreak. The article discloses the fact that the Editor can only use the weapons of ignoraiico, misrepresentation and untruth in fighting the battle of tho Masterton Whiskey Ring, and such duclosures are worth sixpence per inch each insertion to the conductors of this column, But we mußt let the publicans' advocate speak for himself. The article begins thus:—" Prohibi- " tion has been tried on a moderate " scale in Victoria, and the results " are not satisfactory, Crime, sm- " ride, drunkenneßß and vice, have "never been so rampant as they are "at the present time. The destitu- " tion in Melbourne and all over the " country is known to be appalling, "No doubt it would be unfair to " ascribe these evils to the operation "of the temperance movement. But " it is quite reasonable that the mode"rates and opponents of total ab-"stenance-should cite the condition "of Victoria as a proof of failure*on " the part of the reformers." Now this is a fair specimen of the Stat' Editor's method of assuming misstatements lo be facts and drawing conclusions from untruths. To say that the legislative prohibition of the liquor traffic has been tried in Victoria is false. To say that a thing that has never been tried has failed is absurd, Victoria is not, and never waß, a prohibition colony, It is as a whole leavened with the pot-house principles so dear to the hearts of the Editor of the Star and the Masterton " Moderate" party, The practical working of these pothouse principles is seen in the crime, suicide, vice and beggary which are rampant in Victoria. Victoria, by its enormous drink bill, has shown itself for years to be the most drunken colony in the Southern Hemisphere.- Mr Munro, the late Premier, called attention recently to the a arming fact that the people of Victoria were spending £6 per head, or £6,000,000 a year on drink. Sir Wm, Stawell declared boiuo time ago that niue tenths of Victoria's crime had its origin in the public house, The alarming moral and financial condition of Victoriaislargely the result of the work of the publican aud the stump orator. Drink, stump oratory, and gambling have been Victoria's curses for years. For the Editor of the Star to cite (he case of the most drink-ridden colony in tho southern seas—a colony which spends per head of population twice the amount spent in New Zealand—as an example of the failure of prohibition ■ is a mode of proving things altogether worthy of the Devil's advocate of Masterton pubhoans. We congratulate the "Moderate" party for possessing such a champion,

The Licensing Act of Victoria, which the editor of the War says puts the publicans under the control of the ratepayers, is an Act of such a nature that if in operation in Masterton would permit the public houses to be increased from six to eleven and would prevent the ratepayers reducing the number below eleven, The Victorian Act prescribes that a district of 4500 may not have more than eleven public houses I This says the &tw editor is prohibition I The Victorian Act is in no Bouse a prohibition Aci; but there are newly settled districts in Victoria as in New Zealand where temperance principles prevail which are allowed to grow up free from the drink curse, In those districts the moral tone of the people is much higher than elsewhere, Mildura is one of these districts, We are liged to the editor of the Staffer referring to this district. He says that thoro the "worst failure" of Prohibition is seen, The evidence that prohibition has failed in Mildura consists of the fact that sly grog selling was recently detected and smartly punished ! This evidence proves tho strength of the moral Bentimeut of the community. The law is enforced. The same process of reasoning that leads the editor of the Star to conclude that Prohibition is a failure in Mildura because lawbreakers are punished would lead him to affirm that the laws against stealing here are a failure becnuse pick pockets are punished. When the Editor can find in Mildura a record of murder, profligacy and pauperism such as wo have in Masterton, then we may expect people lo believe that Prohibition in Mildura is a failure. But at present he must not he believed. We place oyer against the Slanders of the Star the testimony pf the Review of Reviews. , A thoroughly well-informed writer jn the December number says" The new arrival in Mildura will find peace, order, and good will—educated intelligence, nice feeling, and kindly . manners—the prevailing tone and spirit of the settlements; no rowdy publicbouse bars (these are stricty prohibited) revolvers, swaggering, ruffianism, or anything of that kind, So far from this being the case, there • -j8 the strongest possible, tendency in

the opposito direction," Prohibition is thus a grand success in Mildura despite tbo lusty lying of the "Moderato" party.

We have refrained from roforring to the local Masterton drink traffic for some time. Wo have been giving by our silence rope to tbo" Moderato" party to see what length they would go, The conductors of this column have kept their eyes and ears opon, and at tbo right lime will hringbefore the publio the result of this observation and inquiry. The ratepayers now know what tbo policy of " Moderation "means. It has been explained in a practical way by prominont metnbors' of the modorato party to mean getting drunk by midday. Under the auspices of thu " Moderato" party the publicans ha»'o kept men in a state of perennial drunkenness for weeks aud have thus filled home after home in Masterton with unutterable misery. The ten o'clock license in Mnsterton is really an all night liconso, Thoro is hardly a place in New Zealand where tho same open and impudent violations of the law havo taken place. Tho clink of the billiard balls heard till three o'clock in the morning is an indication of the drinking and gambling carried on in deliance of the law. It is high time that the police should lay a firm hand on the lawbreakers. Tho crios of broken-hearted women are ascending to heaven for vengeance for ruined husbands and sons. We gladly recognise that Sergeant M'Ardle is trying to do his duty in bringing these law-breakers to book. We trust that he will see it to be his duty to probe to tho very bottom the recent case of reported wholestlo gambling and drinking at midnight. It is high time that the mystery of this iniquity should be exposed and punished. We do not believe that the Sergeant will allow himself and bis officers to be fooled by those who are willing to get fat on the moral ruia of their fellows,