The Akaroa Mail. FRIDAY, MARCH 14.

Akaroa Mail and Banks Peninsula Advertiser, Volume 3, Issue 277, 14 March 1879, Page 2

The Akaroa Mail. FRIDAY, MARCH 14.

We must congratulate our local Licensing Court on the position which they have evidently determined to assume towards applicants for publicans' licenses and renewals of such licenses who come before them. In the interests of the travelling public it is well that these latter gentlemen should understand that the conditions, express or implied, on which they hold their licenses are not to be regarded as mere matters of form, to be mentioned on licensing day and never heard of afterwards. We are not of those who look upon the licensed victualler as a quasi criminal who is to be put periodically upon his trial, and if caught inadvertently tripping, to be incontinently deprived of his means of livelihood. On the oontrary, we consider him as fulfilling a legitimate occupation, and entitled, as long as he shows himself worthy of it, to every consideration at the hands of the public and the Court. But a licensee, especially for a road side, house should never forget that the law practically grants him a monopoly, that this monopoly is granted on certain conditions, and that it is the duty of the Court to see that these conditions are fulfilled. If a man opens a store or a bakery, and fails to give satisfaction to the public, the probability is that someone else will start in business alongside of him and take his trade away. But rith a licensed hotel he is safe from this competition, and on this ground the Court has a right to see that he carries on his business in a legitimate manner. When an application is made for a new license in a country district, we always hear a great deal about the wants of the travelling public. A picture is conjured up of numerous travellers, hungry and thirsty ? and with knocked up horses, having to plod wearily along seeking vainly for accommodation, and condemned either to face" the perils of camping out, or to sponge on chance acquaintances. Well, the license is granted, and what is the result? The troops of travellers are non-existent, and when by chance two or three do present themselves, they, in some instances, find a difficulty in obtaining the necessary accommodation and attention for themselves and their four-footed companions. We know that there are many roadside houses where a traveller can always get every attention at any hour of the day or night, but this state of things ought to have no exception, and it is a matter of notoriety that exceptions do exist. Now we wish to point out that the duty of the Court in the matter is a very serious and delicate one. It is at best an unpleasant thing to have to be the means oftakingawaya man's livelihood, and this difficulty is aggravated by the fact that in most cases the Court has nothing but vague rumor to go upon. No publican, who is not a born idiot, will treat, a Licensing Commissioner otherwise than well, and those members of the public who fail to receive proper attention, though they can do any amount of growling, generally fail to do the one thing which would be most effective under the circumstances— viz., to make a written complaint to the Court or to the police. The Commissioners oo doubt feel that they have a duty to perform towards the puWic, but if the public persistently hold aloof, and instead of forwarding formal complaints,, content themselves with " growling " in a vague manner, that duty is rendered more onerous than necessary. We would, therefore, recommend anyone feeling aggrieved for the future to forward his complaint in an open and manly manner to the proper quarter. Such a course would be fair to himself, fair to his fellow-travellers, fair to the Court, and fair to the publican complained of, inasmuch as the latter would then have the opportunity of explaining and answering the charge. As we before remarked we have not the slightest sympathy with those who look.upon the the publican as ipso facto a criminal, who is to be harassed by the law in the pursuit of his vocation, but we feel convinced that every respectable licensed victualler, who is himself doing his level best to treat his customers fairly, will agree that others of the fraternity who neglect this duty should be called upon to perform it.

An accident, fortunately attended with no very serious consequences, took place on Wednesday afternoon. It appears that Mr Campbell Brown was driving a young horse in his spring |cart, when by some means the blinkers came adrift and the horse bolted. The cart was shortly capsized, and Mr Brown and his brother, who was with him, were thrown out. Mr Brown had his hand cut rather badly, and both were somewhat shaken, but otherwise were no worse for the mishap. The shaft of the cart was broken, but the horse waf uninjured.

The nomination of candidates to fill the present vacancy in the Akaroa and Wainui Road Board took place on Wednesday, at the Road Board office, Duvauchelle's Bay. The candidates nominated were— Mr E. Chappell, by Messrs H. G. Watkins and T. Adams; Mr E. Lolievre, by Messrs V. Masefield and Shadbolt; and Mr T. Brooks, by Mr T. Mould. Particulars of the polling appear elsewhere.

The South Canterbury Jockey Club races were run on Tuesday and Wednesday last. The weather was fine and the attendance large. The following are the winners of the various events:—Maiden Plate, Undine (by Traducer). South Canterbury Jockey Club Handicap, Camballo (7 st 5 lbs). The Publicans' Purse was practically a walkover for Titania, and Camballo scored another win in the Flying Handicap, carrying 7 st 7 lb, and beating Templeton, who was weighted with 9 st 6 lbs. On the second day the great event of the meeting, the Timaru Cup, was carried off by Mata (8 st 3 lbs), beating Chancellor (6 st 10 lbs), and Templeton (9st 10 lbs). The Handicap Hurdle Race fell to Eversley, the Tradesmen's Handicap to Titania, and the Consolation to Mr T. H. Dodson's Sapphira. The attendance on the second day was even greater than on the first, and no accident occurred to mar a most enjoyable meeting.

We regret to learn that Sergeant Ramsay is about to be removed from Akaroa. This officer has now been stationed here for nearly ten years, and during that time has proved himself thoroughly efficient in the execution of his duties, and at the same time courteous to all with whom he has been brought into contact. We have no doubt that the authorities have good reasons for changing the location of police officers periodically, and there is a good deal to be said in favor of the practice, though it must be confessed that it has its drawbacks. In the present case, for instance, the Sergoant knows every nook and cranny of the Peninsula, and probably the avocation and habits of nearly every individual living on it. That this knowledge must be valuable in the detection of crime and the preservation of the peace is self-evi-dent. We believe that the removal has been contemplated for some time by the police authorities, though it has only lately been decided on. Sergeant Ramsay is now under orders to start for his new destination on Monday next, and his successor is expected to-morrow evening. We believe it is in contemplation to present him with a testimonial to mark the esteem in which he is generally held, and to wish him success in his future career.

A meeting of the committee of the Duvauchelle's Bay school was held on Saturday evening last. Present—Messrs Cossar (Chairman), Pawson, Libeau, Sadler, and Mould. The minutes of the previous meeting having been read and confirmed, a circular was read from the Board of Education, respecting the manner in which books were to be introduced into schools. The schoolmaster reported that the rules laid down by the Board had been strictly complied with. Five applications for the post of schoolmaster were received, and Mr Walter J. Sercombe, of Dunedin, was appointed, subject to the approval of the Board of Education. It was resolved to retain the services of Mr Carden till the arrival of the new master. Bassett and Co.'s tender for ceiling the school was accepted, subject to the Board's approval, and the committee adjourned.

Of Mr Montgomery's Akaroa speech, the Ashburton Mail says :—" It is on the whole fair in its tone, it is full of exceeding great candor, and abounds with judicial dicta. In speaking of the policy of the Government he speaks as one who thoroughly believes in it; but the conduct of the Government he characterises as a woful falling short of its own standard of excellence. We dare say there is some truth in what Mr Montgomery here says; but he appears to make no allowance for the fact that it is with Governments just as it is with individuals —those who set up a lofty ideal invariably fail to reach it, 'as an eagle reaches its eyrie, by straight flying, for they are bound to make compromises according to the number of obstacles and unexpected turnings to be met with in their path of progress; but it does not at all follow that because they do so they are incapable of attaining it. Notwithstanding the fact that Sir George Grey's Ministry is composed chiefly of men of mature age it possessed at the outset of its career the distinguishing characteristic of aspiring youth—the notion that it could attain its ends by a bound instead of by means of trudging and plodding. In the fact that its anticipations in this respect have not been realised, there is nothing wonderful, but it is surprising that its sagacious enemieß and critical friends do not take the fact into account when making their • oracular deliverances."

The Assessment Court will sit at Kaituna on Tuesday next, to hear objections against the River Road District valuation roll. The Hospital and Charitable Aid Board invite lenders for supplies for the Akaroa Hospital. Tenders must be sent to the i Secretary by noon on Monday nest". The annual race meeting at Little River is fixed to come off on Friday, the 28th inst. A good programme has been provided, and some decent racing ought to ensue. Full particulars of the various events appear elsewhere. .We notice that nominations for the handicaps close on the 18th inst. " Chispa," in the . Askburton Herald wants to know " How are the subscriptions for the Kaitangata sufferers rising ? Haven't heard anything about these since ! the Council spoke on the matter. Hadn't some chap, with an hour or two of his own, better collar a subscription sheet or two, and trot round V There's plenty of foolish half-crowns knocking about that would be more useful near the pit mouth than where they are dropped now."—We may say the same of onr local subscript tion lists for the same purpose. We are afraid that they will not prove a brilliant success until " some chap trots round." The following is the verdict brought in by the Coroner's jury which has just concluded its enquiry into the disastrous explosion at Kaitangata:—" Ist. The jury find that Arch. Hodge through entering the old workings without ordinary precaution, and with a naked light, caused an explosion, of fire-damp, whereby thirty-four men and boys lost there HvSs. 2nd. The jury find that William Hodge had. not used the necessary precautions to prevent an explosion of fire-damp in the mine over which he had the management. 3rd. Seeing that there is no law for inspection and supervision in the conduct of mining, we express the necessity of measures being adopted whereby mining accidents in the future may be averted." A Wellington paper says:—ln the Athenißum Building there are several rooms, each of which is let to somebody nearly every night. The consequence is, that sometimes while a religious ceremony is taking place in one room, a comic concert is being rehearsed in another, and the members of an amateur brass band are practising in a third. The Athenaum Committee cannot, of course, be blamed for making every addition they can to their income, but we would suggest that they might exercise a little more discretion in locating their various clients. For instance, it is not pleasant for those who are holding a prayer meeting in room No. 3, to hear a hoarse gentleman rehearsing the Bong entitled, "We gather them in " in room No. 4, which is next door. Each party is likely to be "put out" by the other. Last night a meeting of the ratepayers was held in one of the upstairs rooms, and in the room immediately underneath an orchestra was practising. The consequence was that at intervals the speakers in the upstairs room were interrupted by dismal wails from downstairs. The gentleman who was in command of the cornet was evidently not in his usual health, for at times he let out the most' melancholy sounds, and quite damped the spirits of the drainage people. The latter, however, managed to* get through their business. Captain Fairchild, of the Government steamer Hinemoa, on his voyage from this port to Wellington, reports having passed a large ship in tho Straits, off Cape Pal UserWhen last seen she was bearing south. A serious accident occurrd on Wednes day on the Railway line between Timaru and Pleasant Point. As the inward train was approaching the Waitohi platform, the driver observed ft man standing between the rails at a distance of about a chain ahead. He immediately reversed the engine and screwed down the brake, but before the train could be brought to a standstill, the cow-cather the unfortunate man and he was lifted into the air, dashed against the engine's lamp, and fell again on the cow-catcher, which shunted him off the line. As might be expected, he was very seriously injured, and when examined by a medical man was not expected to survive. The man's name is Shields. He is a carpenter, residing in Timaru, and has a wife and four children.