HOTELS AND PUBLIC OPINION.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1065, 2 March 1911, Page 5

HOTELS AND PUBLIC OPINION.

INTERESTING REMARKS BY A MAGISTRATE. IBy Teleeraph—l'roas Association.! ' Auckland, March 1. . At to-day's meeting of the Auckland Licensing Committee a . complaint was made by the police against Henry Percival Smith, licensee of the Rising Sun Hotel, Karangahapo Road (for whom ilr. J. A. Reed appeared), that men who were under the influence of. liquor congregated about liis hotel. . Sergeant Cowan, Constable M'lntyre, and Constable Murdoch gave evidence. The latter said he had often seen women who were under the influence of drink leaving the Rising Sun Hotel. Such a state of affairs was not observable in regard to other hotels in the district. ■Mr.' Reed pointed out that the evidence set out mole serious charges than those the licensee had notice of, and he asted that the matter should gtand over until the next quarterly meeting, and in the meantime the police could make another report. Sub-Inspector Hendry had no objection to this course being taken. Mr. Reed added with regard to the charge that women had been found drinking on tho premises that there was no law preventing the supplying of liquor to women, but if tho committeo said that the licensee was not to serve women he would refrain from doing so.

His "Worship, in granting the adjournment, said the committee desired to remark that supplying liquor to women was not an offence under' the Act; but public opinion was against the selling of liquor to'women, and tho committeo thought that as a hotel which supplied liquor in this way was-doing something which was against public opinion, such a hotel was therefore not property-conducted. •. It was conducted in a way that was not approved of, and therefore it was conducted badly. The same thing ..;?PElied,;to. the-question of' drunken people coming out ef hotels at 10 o'clock at night. There" was no evidence here to show that these men were drunk, only that half-drunken men were continually seen coming- out of-the hotel. It was not an offence to supply 1 lialfdrunken men with liquor, but when they were found continually coming out of tho place and loitering about 'it urns'strong, evidence-that'the hotel was-badly conducted. This matter could stand over, but the view of tho committee was that if this conduct was persisted' in, or 1 if improper conduct . .Was. continued, and the committeo had reasonably-strong grounds to'act upon,' the licenses would probably bo cancelled. The licensee could have that to go upon. - The committee then adjourned. "