LABOUR AND GAMBLING
STATE PARTY ATTACKED
At a meeting in connection with the Gipps-street
Methodist Mission
yesterday afternoon Mr WH Judkins attacked the Victorian Labour
party on its
connection with the liquor trade and the gambling evil. The
church was well filled,
and the Labour Party had amongst the audience several defenders, who
questioned some of
the comments of Mr Judkins, interjections at times coming from
different parts of the
church.
Mr Judkins moved:-
“That this meeting
congratulate the
Government upon its intention to make certain amendments of the
Licensing Act, but
draws attention to the following necessary reforms:- Immediate local
option, the abolition
of art unions and other forms of gambling, prohibition of
prize-fighting and
cigarette-smoking by juveniles, charity reform, legislation to purify
our streets , and
especially urges that the conscience of the community should not be
hurt by the request of
the Trades-hall Council for the extension of the art union being
granted.”
He said that the party that asked for the extension
of the art union
made a loud song about uplifting the community. That meant more than
increased wages; it
meant uplifting the morals of people. It looked as if the Labour party
in Victoria was out
to get good wages and plenty of facilities to spend those wages in
gambling and strong
drink. When the anti-gambling and liquor bills were before the
Victorian Parliament
in 1906 their greatest opponents were in the Victorian Labour
party. The natural
sequence of this art union to build the Trades-hall would be a
national art union to
provide money for the public needs. One would be just as immoral
as the other. The
Labour Party in Victoria was unfortunate in the choice of its
representative men.
The South Australian Labour party was different. The Labour
Premier in that
state would stop all gambling and give local option tomorrow, if he
could.
After a cross-fire of interjections, Mr Judkins
appealed to the Labour
party to repudiate this thing that there leaders had done, and if
necessary to say they
would not have men who would so compromise them. The gambling
evil and liquor
traffic had got hold of the Labour party. The working men should
not support those
supported by the liquor trade and gambling. Then there was the dreadful
prize-fight, which
was paralysing the conscience of thousands. Did they know a place
was being erected
in Melbourne for the same sort of thing? But for the
gambling element there
would be no prize-fighting. It was allied to the cursed
thing the Victorian
Labour Party wished to bring under the guise of charity. (Hear,
Hear)
The motion was seconded by the Rev. R Ditterich and
agreed to.
From THE ARGUS 4th July 1910 Page 7
