THE CLOSING OF THE HOTELS.

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 1934, 17 December 1913, Page 8

THE CLOSING OF THE HOTELS.

CASES BEFORE COURT,

THE DECISIONS RESERVED,

In the Magistrate's Court yesterday, Fanny Fool, liconseo of the Empire Hotel, was charged with'having kept her premises open for the sale of liquor on November 22, one of tho days on which the Mayor ordered all hotels to close. Defendant pleaded not guilty, and was represented by Mr. T. Young. Mr. W. G. Riddcli; S.M., was on tho bench. Tho Mayor of Wellington (John P. Luke) and"the Town Clerk (John Richard Palmer), both J.P.'s, gave evidence to tho effect that they issued an order to the defendant to close her hotel on .November 22. Charles Eggie, a corporation employee, stated that he served the notice "on Miss Hadficld for tho licensee. . Mr. Young submitted that it was essential for tho purposes of the prose- •, cution that the licensee should bo I served personally. Tho licenseo was away when the notice arrived. Inspector Hendrey; If' a licensee leaves her premises she must leavo someone in control. Mr. Young: Yes, but she doesn't leave a clerk in the office in charge. The Magistrate: I am not prepared to dismiss the information on this ground. Tho prosecution then called Sergeant C. W. Kelly, who stated that on November 22 he went into one of the bars of the hotel and found there five customers and a barman. Glasses and drinks were on tho counter. The customers were not lodgers,.and wero residents of Wellington. The manager of tho hotel (John"Sullivan) .said that the men had gone into the bar while he was upstairs. The licenseo (Mrs. Pool) had said that she was unaware of the presence of the men in th.o bar. Mr. Young submitted that tho case should bo dismissed. There was no order to close because the Justices.had not made an order, but had simply signed blank forms, which wero afterwards filled in by clerks. Tho order was bad .for want of the cxerciso of proper discretion; it had not been properly proved, nor served personally, and thorc was no evidence that the houso had been kept open for the sale of liquor. Decision was reserved. Foresters' Arms.. Daniel Buckley, licensee of tho Foresters' Arms Hotel, was charged with having kept his premises open for the sale of liquor on November 20. Mr. T. Young defended. ' Tho police produced a statement signed by Buckley, in which he admitted that he had kept his hotel open on November 20, after being served with an order signed by the Mayor and the Town Clerk* as Justices of the Peace, directing him to close. Tho statement said, also, that he (Buckley) intended to plead guilty to a charge of having kept his premises open, and also to the chargo of his having sold liquor on that date. . Mr. Young said that the only question remaining was that of the validity of the order. Ho questioned its validity, and argued that it could not stand, as the original form'was'-made out to. close tho hotels for several days, and signed, and tho same form was then merely altered to cover one day only. Tho Court reserved decision. Ths City Hotel. John James Firth, licensee of thb City Hotel, was charged with having kopt his, premises .open.for.the sale of, liquor on November 21. | Mr. A. W. Blair, who appeared for '■ the defendant, admitted that there-were some people in the privato bar of tho hotel -when tho police called there on November 21. Ho submitted, however, that although the ovidonco might support a charge of having sold liquor, it would not support, a charge of having kept tho premises open. In this case also decision was reserved. Found on Premises.. Charges wero made against six defendants of having been found on hotel premises during tho "closed" period. Mr. J. J. M'Grath, who appeared for several of the defendants, contended that people found in hotels wore liable j to fine only if found there at a timo when the premises wore required by the Licensing Act to be closed. His Worship said that there seemed, to be something in the point, and that ho would look into it. '