TEMPERANCE.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume XVI, Issue 5183, 16 November 1895, Page 3

TEMPERANCE.

The Christian World of last week Baid; " Ono of tho surest menus of promoting Temporanco is the piovision of cheap and wholosalo Ternperanoe drinks. Tho authorities of , • tho Royal Artillery canteen at Dover roalised this, and started on the manufacture of their own mineral Raters, in order to supply the at a reasonable price. The experiment was so successful that otbor Togimontal canteens want to obtain their supplies from the Dover canteen. They reckoned, howover, without tho manufacturers, . who have been on deputation lo the War Oflico to persuade Lord Lausdowno to stop the competition with " tho trado.' His lordship gave them .no encouragement; The 'trado' lias really brought the coinpetition on itself bv the ridiculously extravagant price of mineral waters as compared with the cheapness of ' their manufacture. How is it tlmt 4d or 6d is often charged for a bottle of drinkable soda or seltzer ? This is not tho way to encourage consumption. We fear tho intention is often not to encourage consumption. One soda quonches the thirst, but a glass of beer or spirits whets tho consumer's appetite and he orders another. The ' trade,' usually represented by a licensed victualler, prefers to sell tho drink that leaves tho ' thirsty." - do tipplers drink most ?" AsimlhoWestmmskrGaselte. " From some figures worked out by Dr Gillospio, registrar of the Edinburgh Boya! Infirmary, concerning patients admitted with alcoholic symptoms, it' ,' t ' would appear that tho largest number of admissions occurred in January (143), the next largest in July, August being a little way behind. The large number of cases in January is explained by the New Year drinking, whilo the explanation given of tho nnmbors in July and August are tho holidays and trips: in these months. February, June, October and November show the lowest figures in the admission ot males. Tho majority of the females ou the other hand, were admitted from Juno (o October, the earlier part of the year showing a decided minority." The dinette says" Some curious facts appear in Dr. Gillespie's statement regarding tho occupations of the drinkers. Of the 329 women, 169 woro housewives, 33 laundresses, dfijl char-women, 20 shop-girls and ™e« Distresses, 19 beggars, tramps, etc., 18 servants, IS factory hands, and 10 wero girls at home. Among the other five were barmaids and two teachers. Of the 935 males, 461 wero of tho labouring class,comprising—Labourers, 99; skilled labourers, 172; trade labourers? 101; factory workers, 10; and railway employes, 13; 119 were of the shopkeoping class; 108 were of the professional class, including 49 clerks; 84 belonged to the liquor trade; uud 26 woro beggars, tramps, etc. The months of January, April, and July were the months in which the labouring class generally wero admitted." The Methodist Recorder reminds its readers that the " Rev. Leonard M. Isitt, the leader of the Party of Prohibition, and a Minister of the Weslcyau Church in New Zealand, is in this country. Mr Isitt commenced tho agitation at tho Antipodes, and has lived to sec his proposals carried out by tho Legislature. Pastor of ft suburban Church, —iQo population, at his instance, decided to abolish public-houses. A Licensing Bonch of Prohibitionists was elected, and all applications refused. After protracted litigation, the Supreme Court declared tho proposal to be illegal; but it was the birth of an agitation that must soon * be crowned with success. Mr Isitt was released by his Conference, for two years, to enable him to prosecute the agitation, and ho is now recognised as tho most effective Temperance speaker in the Colony. We are sure that English Methodists will extend to Mr Isitt, a generous welcome." "W.L." in the Hes/srii Daily Mercury, writes Allow me to say for ono, that 1 think Mr E. Tennyson Smith's desiro to publish a list of rev. gentlemen who are holders of brewery shares, a wise one, and I sincerely hope it will be carried out. Many thousands of Temperance reformers would like, and are entitled-and, 1 maintain, justifiably-to know who amongst of religion are connected with the drink traffic, as this information would possibly help in understanding why so many preachers of the Gospel are found supporting this crime and miseryf producing, wife-starving traffic, while presumably preaching against it. We, of course, do not expect them to vote the traffic down while , they are financially interested in the receipt, of dividends therefrom, but by all means let us know who they are, that we may know what to expect in the future, for had we known previous to the last geneia! election who these shareholders were we should not, probably,have experienced such a painful disappointment as wo then did, and this, 1 maintain was largely the result of the difficulty these gentlemen, with others who are also shareholders, found in voting against their own pocket interest." / Recording to the forty-ninth report of tho Commissioners of Lunacy the total numbor of registered lunatics on January 1, 1895, was 94,081, being an increase of 2,014 over the /sorresponding date of 1894. From -djle tables of assigned causes of insanity wo learn that during the five years 1889 to 1893 inclusive" intemperance in drink" was the predisposingorexciting cause in 1,675 male and 690 female patients, the proportion per cent, to the yearly average number admitted during tho five years being 20'8 in male casec, and B'l in females. Amongst " general paralytics" the proportion wan still higher—2s'6 males and 19'9 in females. In the class of patient with a '' suicidal propensity," tho pcrceni tago was 20'6 in males and Ti in females. No other cause accounts for so large a number of cases as intemperance in drink.