Wairarapa Daily Times. [ESTABLISHED 1878.] FRIDAY, JUNE 2, 1893.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume XV, Issue 4434, 2 June 1893, Page 2

Wairarapa Daily Times. [ESTABLISHED 1878.] FRIDAY, JUNE 2, 1893.

0 Mb Ism's lectures, amusing though they be, must. be. taken seriously, ■ There is a distinct and honest purpose, ;' in all he says and he appeals to the ''. reason.of his auditors to either support him or to show him to be in the 11 wroiiff.; '.Very many people can go " with Mr Isitt along way for there 1 are diffeienfc kinds of prohibition and t it is easy sometimes to accept one .t kind and to reject another,' Our own B" diffioillty'is that we regard with disfavour all sorts of prohibitive legislation, believing that it tenda.to lessen \ the liberty of the subject. .Mr Isitt ) is quite right in his contention that tlio Liberal party with,, itsJabour ' measures is limiting the liberty, of the 'i subject and is affirming the'very ; principle for'which-he ,is fighting, also he is quite justified in accusing ■■ this party,of burking; its own priri- !' ciples in its dealings with the prohibition question. But pur own feeling is that this legislation of the Minis- ' terial party, is mischievous and arises ;: from the..prejudice of 'the working v man rather than fiom his intelligence. We have only to look at'the countries Tvlieio drastic legislation of thiß kind . is in force to see how unwise%d im« ■ politic it is. In Germany prohibitive . jegislatipn is carried to such. an. extent that many of the. peppla Vbecome [. partly like slaves and partly; like .djbildr'en. They do not'dream of thinking or acting-iorJthern'ielyes^.^.The" i Government ?think for aot • for J Pbpusahds ; 'pf taecmore ! intelligent ; give up the 'i love, for the Bake of the'liberty which ihey cannot eipjoy' wiihiii its borders. Hundreds of thousands of them bc- ' come sulfOtß of Queen Victoria, or citizens of the United States, to gain • that liberty which is dearer to many

Englaacl.-'tjie British race has fought .century after century, and generation I after genefation, foif ;freedpm from the I fetters which make the working-mail of the Continent a beast of burden. These fetters are no* beinj introduced into New Zealand, and by whom ? By the working-man himself, of all other people in the world; but fetters are fetters, whether they be fastened; by .Kaisers, aristocrats, or working we do hot- like them. The Prohibition fetter is no worse than the other manacles which the working-man has laid upon New Zealand, and we admit that this particular,,,.fetter ; will-be at* tended x wiiti J immense 'g'odd' to the' community. Still, itjs a fetter and in our opinion it is ut wongremedyj ,We| dislike to see workingrnen in their blindness forging shackles for therai-' selves and for the community, but if there be one fetter -for- which a great constitutional principle might be waived it is thnt for whiob' Mr'lsitt contends, Mr Isitt no doubt would argue that prohibition is more a fetter on a trade than on an individual, but he could not very well maintain that it! is not practically a fetter on the liberty of the subject. He may also show that the Bubject would be happier and more comfortable wearing such a fetter and this we can quite' believe. Still we do not advocate doing ill that good may come nor do we hold that the prohibitive legislation of the Government is ut Bign of progress. It is a step back towards the dark ages and we sinoeioly hope that the decensm awni will be only temporary.