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Sorely, as regards the publicans, the action of tho Alliance
most unfortunate. It taches them to look upon all ternpcranco
reformers as utter enemies, and tho strugglo aa one
without quarter. The Allianco wish to suppress the trado of
the publicans in a sudden and arbitrary manner, and thoy
offer no compensation to thoso mho hnvo in many cases sponf
large sums in buildings and trade fixtures, in a busincss licensed
by tho Government. It is truo that licenses are wiLhdmwablo
on proof of delinquencics, and are only grnnted for a pear;
but there is the greatest possiblo diffcrcncc betwecn tho modo
in which licenses havo hitherto been tcrminatcd and that in
which tho Alliance proposes to rcvoko them. Vested iut.erests
are, no doubt, D very great obstuclo to all rcforms, oud auy
precedent which recogniscs their existence, runil nfforils cornpeusation,
tl~rows so much nlorc weight upon futuro rcformors.
But I fear that sufficient prccedcnts hnvc already been created.
Thc great sum pic1 to Elarc-owners in tho British Colonios
was quitc a case in point. Military officers llnvc been compensated
to a wry large amount for money invcstcd in tho
purchnso of commissions even bcyond tho termH of t.ho regulations.
Before tho telegraph compnuicv were suppressed they
received two or thrcc times tho valuo of their property, the
greater part being avowedly clninlcd for tl~c goodwill of their
busincss. Nom, publicnus may be good men or bad mcn, but
at any rate they arc men, nnd subjects of thc Queen, and thy
have families to support, and can wo supposo or expect that
they mill acquioscc in their own suppressio11 and ruin ? I
must express very much doubt whether it would bo right and
just to suppress n tradc in tho may proposed by tho Alliance
without. some provision for compensation. But if tho ratepayers
before voting for prohibition aro amaro that it will add
sixpence or ninepence to tho rates, I should like to know
where they will get their majority of two-thirds. A rate of
not more than a penny has proved in most places a sufEcient
bar to the adoption of that most inoffensive Iaw-the Public
Libraries Act. In the parish of Wjthington, where I reside, a,
bare majority of the ratepayers could never bo got to vote for
so necessary an expense ae the lighting of the streets. This