The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1876-02-05 00:00:00

• 1 Fr,. go
THE PERMISSIVE BILL.

Sir Wilfrid Lawson M.P., viifted Portsmouth on
Friday evening (28th ult.) hi connection with the tem-
perance agitation, and met with a hearty reception. ai,
the evening it was Arranged that he should address a •
Rublio meethag at the Soldiers'. Institaite„Portemouthe
llut.such piketbe general desire .ofethe 'inhabitants to
ellear.btina speak that a second meeting was held eimul.
1 taneously at the DeneficiaLSociety's Hall, at Porteea,
the speakers being _conveyed from one asisembia to the
other in cabs. Sir Wilfrid appeared in very bad health,
and it was feared at one time that he would be able be-
take no part in the proceedings. The Portsmouth meet-
ing was presided over by Mr. Robinson, the Chief Con-
structor at the Dockyard. Jn speaking to a resolution
in favour of a populae _veto upon publichouse licenses,
Sir Wilfrid Lawson said that if they wanted a reform
in the laws of this country they must go to Parliament
to get it ; and if the Parliament which existed would
not give it, they must elect a Parliament that would.
He wanted the Parliament of this country to take up '
arms and fight against the drunkenness, vice, crime,
and pauperism which were encamped among them,
which were doing them more harm than any Euro-
pean war, and to take steps that would set free the
poor slaves of the publicans, who, with their families,
were suffering quite as much as the neeroes did.
(Cheers.) That was an anti-slavery meeting, and
nobody was more in his place at a meeting pf
that kind than the gentleman who had just
entered the room (the Rev. Basil Wilberforce), whose
great ancestor fought against slavery when inflicted
on Men of another colour. (Cheers.) Parliament
had already admitted, by its actions, that there was I
an evil. It had admitted that this drink traffic was
different from any other, and had passed a number of
laws for its regulation. What was the object of those
laws To have a set of men carrying on the traffic
who should provide for their customers just enough
drink, and not a drop too much. They did not restrict
the tailor to making them two pairs of trousers, or the
baker to selling them two penny rolls; but these
licensed victuallers got their licences on the condition
that they did as much business as would be beneficial,
and not injurious, to the public. In fact, the licensed
victuallers were appointed by the magistrates as the
guardians of public morality. (Laughter and "Oh !")
Let the meeting understand this, for this was the root
of the whole matter. They were to keep people sober
by Acts of Parliament, and they found it a very
difficult job to do so. (A laugh.) It must be difficult
fir a man to know when his customers had had enough.
Many a man did not know himself. (Laughter.) How
the publican was to knew better than the man himself
had always been to him a Mystery. (Laughter.) There- I
were such different stand/lids' of what was "enough" I
that one could lay down no rule. They might have heard 1
of the Scotohman who said he was very temperate.; j
When questioned as to his mode of living with regard' -
to drink, he said he did not do much with spirits.
Perhaps when he got up he had just one glass before
breakfast; at breakfast he never had more than one
glass; between breakfast and dinner he had two or
three; at dinner, perhaps four or five; nothing before
supper but one glass; two or three at supper; and a
couple before he went to bed. (Laughter.) " But he
said, "I can't stand those folks "who are always dram-
ming,. dramming I " (Laughter.) Then Mr. Gladstone
eonce told the-House•of Commons of •ft man living by the
waterside, who •was• taken to the Hospital and whose
icpperades 'were 'asked if his..were a. temperate-mans
5 Vaey..said he •neverototsiew'rehre' than•efghtquarte per
diem ' (Laughter.) • The 'doctor ft.ske3, if this 'were •a:.
lltemperate man, what did they eama,great deal? They
•
.replied, " About.sixteeiequarts.” (Laughter.) Where,
!then, was the standard? With the high Wages which
. working men had for some tithe beeh obtaining, one
L might have supposed that the bulk of working men
t would be living in comfort. But pauperism was ram-
pant among them, and. crimes of. violence were so
much on the increase that Parliament was at its
wits' ends to know how to deal with them. Why
ehould they have all this 'pauperism and crime amid -
all their prosperity? Could any one give him any
ether reason than this—that the people were going
•on drinking steadily in The midst of all their
prosperity? People were beginning to see the vast-
ness and importance of this question, and every, one
was saying, • " Something must be done." They
knew as well as he did that Englishmen always said
" Something nntst be •clone " for about twenty years
before they did anything. (Laughter.) What Mr.
Bruce did was his best; what Mr. Cross 'did was' his
worst. (" Hear, hear," and laughter:). They saw that
the strongest Liberal Government Old the strongest
Tory Government had tried their influence in thie
ratter. Both had burnt their. fingers, as everyone
woyild who tried to make a good thing out of a bacf.'
The poor' licensed victuallers at their dinners, where
they got a few members of Parliament' to grace the
board, and sometimes a clergyman and two or three
magistrates, said all they wanted was to he let alone.
These greet monopolists, who had the trade in their own
bands; and were making money out of the people very
naturally wanted to be let alone. (Hear.) Wilt he
said was "Let them alone." That was his policy. -Lee
the people see whether they could not do better without
the public-houses. '['ho grocers who held licences for
the sale ef intoxicating liquors were about to be
attacked. His hair stood on end when he read
1 the organs of the licensed victuallers to find what
a bad account they gave of the grocers. (Laughter.)
The licensed victuallers accused the grocers of every
kind of enormity because they sold drink, which, in

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