The Catholic bulletin. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1911-1995, 1916-05-20
DOMAIN OF TEMPERANCE
ENGLISH WOMEN AND THE
DRINK EVIL.

DRINK EVIL.
a correspondent casts doubt upon
the. conclusions arrived at by the in
vestigators Of the Catholic Womens
League as to the increase of drunken
ness among women since the war. 1t
seems relevant, therefore, to dra" at
tention to the following passage in the
Bishop Of Salford's recent pastoral:
We are emphatically assured by
| the rectors OF some of our largest
town missions that, at least in their
districts, drunkenness has actually III
creased to a shocking extent, aud that
not only among men, but as much, if
not more, among women" Here VIC
have the testimony not of amateur
| inquirers, but of priests on the mis-
sion, Of men whose whole lives are
lived in hourly contact with the poor
and whose daily work makes them IA
miliar with the temptations of the
| poor.
II we turn from the North to the
/ South we find the same story told Of
the London district by devoted priests
who have unrivalled opportunities OF
| knowing the facts. Only a fortnight
ago the following report appeared in
the press:
Startling statements were con
tanned in a petition presented to the
NeWington licensing magistrates on
Monday by the Rev. E. +. Murnaue,
OF Bermondsey the Rev. w. Monk, Of
Rotherhithe, and members OF the Bcr-
mondsey Watch Committee regarding
the increase in drunkenness in Lon
don. Both Father Murnane and
Father Monk have been conductive an
active temperance campaign in South
london, and they therefore were able
to give reliable and valuable details OF
the havoc caused by intempcrancc
within certain South Metropolitan
for Greater London the convictions
for drunkenness in 1914 were no fewer
than 1854, as compared with 65,4SS
in 1913, and 1882 in 1908 Father
Murnane has publicly condemned the
increasing vice of drunkenness among
women, and his condemnation is borne
out by the petition which he and his
colleagues presented TO tbc magis-
Itrates. 1t was pointed out that in South
London the daily repetition occurred
OF the pitiable drunkenness Of the
| women whose husbands had enlisted,
and the CONSIGNMENT neglect starya-
ton and dreadful ilI-treatment of chill
dren which according tn tha tpgti-
lmopy of most reliable recent authori-
ties. had within the mast few months
been the cause of greatly increased
Iinfapt mortality THE Chairman rs
tho Bench nronisnd Father Nurrapn
land his colleagues that he would give
lc3refu1 consideration ia their sugans.
tion that tbe,, ehor1d restrict ae far
as oossible tho Hauor traffic 1T least
until tbo end Of the war"
put similar evidence ninht bn added
ta1nost indafnitnIv We take I'M =
COM. nj tho ..sfancbeetar Guardian. at
random and read AT the animal
I*essions fol, .Hc|-wood the Mavor
p6fnted ont that there had been Il
Gftv ner cent increase in The conyir-
lticns of women for drunkenness,
"Thc annual report presented to the
inetioes at Bochda1n stated that 1Ta
maIos and 49, females had been nro-
lceedod AGAINST for drunkenness durin;,
the mast twelve months. against 22S
rales and 81 females in The 1reyiou;
,ear beino decrease or n males iuf
Ian increase of "a females The in
croaeo of convictions AGAINST women
tho cbief Constable REGARDED az very
nnsatiefactory. and if was not confined
10 Rochdale but was general through
80 ~ oo,,,4,,