The Akaroa Mail. FRIDAY, APRIL 30.

Akaroa Mail and Banks Peninsula Advertiser, Volume 4, Issue 390, 30 April 1880, Page 2

The Akaroa Mail. FRIDAY, APRIL 30.

The sly-grog seller is a permanent colonist. He is also useful in his way. Like the thistle, he is deeply attached to the soil. Like the sorrel, he is ever) where. His patriotism knows no bounds ; his love of country is a deeprooted passion. He affords amusement to tha police and diversion to the Bench, and he contributes a small per-centage of his profits to the general revenue. His profession is not merely lucrative ; it has singular attractions. Like that of gold mining, it is slightly adventurous, but its profits are usually as certain as they are enormous. In one respect it is better than mining. It is much safer. The miner risks his health, his bones, his life ; the sly-grog seller only risks his pocket. At the worst, if detected, he has only to contribute a few pounds in return for an excellent advertisement, aud then he enjoys a sweet revenge. He has the lively satisfaction of listening to his attorney soundly abusing the licensed tradesmen for their selfishness, or bullying and torturing the informer for his meanness.

There is a disposition on the part of licensed victuallers to look on the slygrog seller as their common enemy. They regard him as the Southland squatter regards the rabbit, or the Canterbury farmers, the sparrow. They meet and discuss all kinds of means for hi- extirpation. Sometimes they employ deputations to wait on Ministers, and at

other times they hire members of the unemployed to act is informers. But their efforts lead to no practical result. The sly-grog seller bows to the judicial decision, pays from his fat jncome the small amount' demanded, and returns with a clear conscience and an air of mock humility to hiß old occupation. The reprobation of the licensed sinner, or the law-abiding Pharisee he treats with lofty contempt. He cares not for the estimation of others, for why ? He is a man of the world. He looks upon things from a practical standpoint. Popular estimation is of no appreciable value except to public men, and he is not ambitious. On the contrary, he is of a retiring disposition. If the envious and the meddlesome would but let him alone, he would never trouble officious society with his presence. He would remain in his shanty as contented as the coral insect in its cell, and when at length he died covered with wealth, if aot honor, he might possibly leave a handsome endowment to some of the hospitals, lunatic asylums, and other charitable institution, which he worked so industriously to fill during his lifetime.

But while the sly-grog seller has a CGutflmpt for the opinion of others, he consoles himself by drawing philosophical comparisons and inferences. His calling he believes to be morally legitimate. There are frauds in every trade, and why should he not follow the prevailing fashion. The average publican he knows to be a notorious law-breaker. On Sunday he closes his front door only to open his side entrance and drive a coach and four through the Licensing Ordinance and the Fourth Commandment. The sly-grog seller, not being subject to the Licensing Ordinance cannot be a coatravener of its regulations. Then again, in prosecrting his traffic, he but follows a model of acknowledged excellence. Has he not the example of Parliament ? What about Bellamy's ? W_at about the numerous club-houses of Wellington, Christchurch, Dunedin, and other centres? What about the U.S.S. Company's steamers ? Do they contribute to the revenue ? What is the difference between them and his establishment? Is it a difference in -degree or in reality ? It is true the one is privileged and the other is not. The club-house may be better furnished, but essentially the establishments have an intimate resemblance. Well, what is to be done ? It cannot he denied that the sly-grog seller has hitherto successfully baffled all attempts at suppression. That society at large would be benefited if he could be got rid of is evident enough. It is not a very agreeable thing to contemplate a class of persons preying upon the moral weakness of men and women, and supplying them with distilled drugs and poisons free from restriction. The enemies of the medical profession allege that doctors are licensed to kill, but here we have a profession that prescribes and administers poisonous compounds without leave or license. The circumstance that they are enabled to violate the law as they do cannot fail to produce a most demoralising impression. Their presence and toleration constitutes undoubtedly a manifest injustice to the licensed tradesmen, who are hedged in by strict, and often harassing conditions. It is desirable, for many reasons, that the sly-grog seller should be exterminated. He is a much greater evil in New Zealand than many imagine. His name is legion, and he is scattered far and wide over the country. How, then, can we get rid of him ? By judicious legislation. It is no use trifling with the slygrog seller. The infliction of fines, moderate or severe, is simply absurd. The offence must be constituted a felony, and the punishment must be commensurate. If a man puts his hand in his neighbor's pocket, or a servant embezzles his employer's money, he receives no mercy. Surely the individual who de frauds the community and poisons a few of them deserves no compassion. The process hitherto adopted in dealing with the sly-grog seller is about as absurd as that of a man who tries to get rid of a noxious weed by cutting down the flower stems after the seed is ripe. The seed is merely dispersed, and the plant sows itself in every -direetiou. The authorities have simply been dispersing the sly-grog shops, and they have magnified the evil. The injury that has accrued by this trifling with one of the greatest social plagues known in the Colonies can hardly be exaggerated. Public-houses, however badly conducted, are subject to supervision, and their improvement or removal can be insisted upon. Sly-grog shops have no restrictions. They are nurseries of the worst of vices—drunkenness, female degradation, and crime. They fatten upon labor ; luxuriate on honest sweat. They are responsible for much of the destitution that every winter prevails with a larare sectton of the working men of New Zealand. It would be well for the Colony if they could be stamped out. But before the Legislature can hope to do much they must remove the beam out of their own eyes. They must show an example, and a determination to do what is right by getting rid of Bellamy's, and compelling the promoters of club-houses to take out publican's licenses or close these drinking establishments. When they have done this, they will be able with some show of consistency to declare the slygrog shop a public nuisance, and its proprietor a criminal.

What are things coming to ? Is the Borough of Akaroa on the verge of a precipice, or is it not ? Are all the ratepayers asleep, or are they thoroughly indifferent? We have done all we can through the medium of our columns

to draw attention to the fearful state into which municipal affairs are drifting —drifting daily and hourly. We will make another attempt, and then, should no steps be taken to remedy-the evil, we shall be able to comfort ourselves with the knowledge that no fault or culpability could be attached to the local Press. We have, at present, no Returning Officer. Should any vacancy occur, we should have to wait till one could be appointed to fill the same. We are either compelled to apply to the Government to validate the Burgess Roll for the ensuingyear, or else go without one, simply and solely owing to the negligence or ignorance of our Mayor or his Clerk. We have a Town Clerk, who by utter neglect of his duties and imbecility, is making himself the laughing stock or butt of the whole Borough ; and to crown everything, we have a Mayor, who in the most unblushing manner possible, bottles up all complaints made against his incompetent Clerk, and positively hides from his colleagues matters of the most vital importance, not only to the Council but to the whole of the Borough. We speak from the very best authority, when we state that no less than a week ago the surety for the Town Clerk, no longer feeling any confidence in the man, wrote an official letter to the Mayor of Akaroa, informing him that he declined any longer to act as surety. Instead of, as was his duty, immediately suspending his Clerk, seeing that by clause 116 of the Municipal Corporation Act, he was no longer able to retain his position, he puts the letter quietly into his pocket, and by statements made by himself leads not only one but the majority of the Council to believe that the only object for not summarily dismissing the Clerk was the fear of the surety doing the very thing, which to his knowledge, had happened a week previous ; and in this ingenious way hoodwinks the whole of the Council. Is not the Borough truly blessed with Mayor guilty of such nice little trickeries to screen the faults of a Clerk unworthy either of the position or the name. As to the number of sections of the Act which the Clerk has violated, ■we prefer to remain mute, as, were we to enumerate them, we dread to imagine where we should pause. In one word, we might say that he, thanks to his indolent habits, has scarcely complied with a single section, and before concluding we would not shrink from saying that the Chairmen of Committees and the councillors generally have a heavy score to charge themselves with for the state things have come to. We find that for the past six or seven months not a single entry has been made in the books. We would at once ask, aye, and not only ourselves, but every one of the ratepayers would cry—Have you no Finance Committee ? Where was your Chairman ? Both of which queries we leave for others to answer.