STATE OWNERSHIP.

White Ribbon, Volume 25, Issue 289, 18 July 1919, Page 1

STATE OWNERSHIP.

“When from the throne of God, th.it tnronr where the weary have refuse, Where in the midst of distress, there is cairn, that mandate is uttered. Mandate not uttered alone that d:. roi the thousand* of Judah, Hut to all ages addressed, and to all

generations ‘Go forward’ Forward, when all seems lost, and the cause looks utterly hopeless; Forward, when brave hearts fail, and to yield is the rede of the coward; Forward, when friends fall off. the enemies Rather around thee; Thou, though alone with thy God, alone in thy courage, go forward, Help, though deferred, shall arrive; ere morn the night is at darkest.”

The reformer’s watchword * “Go Forward.” Once more it has been heard by the tem|>eranoe forces of this Dominion, and once more w* are preparing for a great advance. Never be fore have we had two battle* in the space of one ye at, and never before have we faced the foe with such caun trust and confidence in the GoJ of Hatties. Jehovah of Hosts is our Leader and in His name we have set up our banners for the last grim fight with the organised forces of the liquor trade. Hut at the beginning of the fight we wish to sound a note of warning. Some may be led astray by the fact that there are three issues on the bal lot paper, and think that State Owner ship may prove a good half-wav house. To all such we would say despite the three alternatives on the ballot paper the issue is as sharp and clean cut as it was last time It is the old question “Alcohol or no Mcohol.” The fact that Strong Drink is sold by Governmentt officials instead of

private owneis does not lessen its |x»w er to do rvil. F.ven if sold by an an hangcl it would still rob men »>'

their senses and degrade and debase humanity. It is the “devil in solu lion” whoever sells it, let us keep thi> fact well in mind.

Mi Asquith when interviewed on this subject said that as an obi chancellor of the Kxchcqucr he had given the subject much thought. There were trades which the Government could t ike over and run. blit the liquor trade was not such a one. No Government could afford to touch this trade with the tips of its fingers.

We are all familiar with the old stor\ from the classics of the devoted wife who wove her web throughout the da\ and each night secretly unpicked th< work of that day. Now if our Govern ment owns and runs the liciuor bars they will lx' repeating the old story: P’lhliiiK through the dav and b\ >

pulling down the structure they an ('tempting to build.

Why run a Health Department t< build up and conserve* the health of th* Dominion, and then an alcoholic de part ment to disease and debase ever organ of the bodv ?

Win employ an army of experts to s’udy the habit - and to circumvent th doings of the lively little microbe, and then employ another set of men to sell the poison which drugs tin* white blood corpuscles nature's own expert germ dest rovers.

Why build and equip St. Helenas Hospitals and employ I'Lunket nurses to ensure that our babies get the oest possible start in life and then sell their parent* the deadly drug which by alcoholising the life germs renders them incapable of producing healthy, normal children ?

Why take* such pains to send doctor* to ins|)cci tlx* health and ph\siqu«* of our public school children, and the n take from their fathers his wages to swell our State coffers, while hi* children go underfed and ill-clad ? The same argument bolds good in every department. Why import a rail-

way expert, at per annum, to keep our railways up to the highest point of efficiency, and then allow another department to sell a poison pro nounced by all Labour experts as tin* “Greatest foe of offitionev?’

Why run a Labour Department, on the one hand, to watch the interests of Labour, and °n the other hand run a department which competent men pronounce* as the greatest foe to organised Labour? Mr Asquith i* right; no Government c an afford to touch thi* trade with the

tips of its fingers. There arc* other as|H*cts of this question. The. present Act provided that if Prohibition had been carried last \pril the sum given in compensation must not exceed 4J millions. Should the people at next poll decide in favour of State Ownership, then* is no maximum sum stated in the Act, and .mite - modest estimate is 121 millions. the liquor licenses belong to the- State, they all expire at the* end of next June. Why should the Government buy what is already its own? All the* Government nerd do ii; 10 announce that after, next June it will not i*sue any more licenses, but will keep the sale* of intoxicants in its own hands.

Is there* any reason why the Government should purchase* pa la t i d notel«, and huge buildings, which cater to food and lodge the travelling public? Their owners can still run these* places, it is onlv the bar which is t o be clos-

ed. We feel convinced that a majority of the electors of this Dominion will turn down the proposal that ehe* Slate should expend huge sums to lm\ pro. |h ities which it does not want.

Hut the crowning iniquity of this \ct is that it allows one proposal (Ton tinuance) to he carried on a minority vote. To secure either Prohibition 01 State Ownership it is necessary that a majority of the valid votes he cast in favour of the proposal. In tho v«i\ improbable, though not impossible event of half the electol voting for State Ownership, and the other halt voting for Prohibition, neither pro posal would Im carried, blit Continu ance, without one vote in its favour, would still continue in force.

State Ownership has very little change of being carried, but all elec tors who contemplate voting for it should bear this fact in mind, that in the even l of St.>te Ownership failing to secure a majority of the votes, then everv vote cast in its favour is prac tirallv a vote for Continuance.

The Moderate l eague has pronounc ed for State Ownership. Of course it has Continuance. It does not want votes. It can be carried by default. So long as they tan secure enough votes for State Ownership they will defeat Prohibition, and carry Con tinuance.

He wise in time. Don’t let 'he Moderate League nr an> other League draw a red herring across the (tail. The liquor trade is the enemy we are out to fight, and Prohibition is the only weapon strong enough to kill it