BARS AND BARMAIDS

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 2207, 21 July 1914, Page 6

BARS AND BARMAIDS

LICENSING LAW

"LIBERALLY INTERPRETED' ,'

WHAT IS A PUBLIC BAR?

That prolific source of litigation, the New Zealand Licensing Act, is the Gubject of still two more important decisions. The. Full Court decided yesterday that unregistered barmaids cannot be employed as barmaids in any portion of an hotel, and that swing doors inside the main entrance to a bar which otherwise opens directly on to the street do not prevent that bar from being classed as a public bar. Rulings contrary to those now given by the Court have obtained for some time, and a number- of cases in the lower courts have been dfecided afccordingly. In Wellington, several prosecutions against licensees have failed because the existence of swing doors inside the street door was held to convert the bar concerned into a private bar, inasmuch as the Act' defines . a publio bar as one opening immediately on to the street. As to the other point, in 1910 the Legislature' amended the Licensing Act by abolishing unregistered barmaids in public bars. A flaw in the amending Act was discovered, and jt was pointed out that the wording of the Statute still left it open for unregistered barmaids to be employed in private bars. In 1912 Parliament passed a further amendment to the main Act for the purpose of prohibiting the employment of unregistered barmaids- in private bare, as well as in public bars. Last year, however, a test caso was taken, ana Mr. Justico Sim held that the Act was so worded that a prosecution could only lie against a licensee for employing an unregistered barmaid in a private bar if tho barmaid vended liquor at a time when the public bar was open for the sale of liquor.

A Clsborne Case. The case at which yesterday's decisions 'were directed originated in Gis-. borne. On March'. 21 of this year Francis _ Robert .' Harris, a Gisborne publican, was fined Is. by Mr. W. A. Barton, S.M., for having permitted Mary Orr, an unregistered barmaid, to serve in the private bar of his hotel. Harris appealed, and the appeal,' eventually reaching the Full Court, was heard yesterday. Mr. L.' T. Buraard, of Gisborno, appeared for the appellant, and tho SolicitorGeneral (Mr. J.' W. Salmond) represented the respondent. There were on the bench: The Chief Justice, Mr. Justice. iDenniston, .Mr. Justice Edwards, Mr. Justice Cooper, aiid Mr. Justice Stringer. '•."■'• ' ■

The ground for the appeal was that as the room in wliich the liquor was sold was separated from tho , street by swing doors,- which were three feet from the main entrance, the sale did not take place in a public bar. Moreover, Mr. Burnard said, there was no public bar in the house. Mr. Justice , Denniston: You say you can defeat the object of the Statute by haying a small porch. Mr. Justice Edwards: At a TTotel at Hamilton there is a small verandah which a bar opens on to. Do you say, therefore, that the 'bar does not open on to the street? Mr. Burnard said that he proposed to refer, to authorities. "The section," he said, "is a ponal section -' Mr. Justice Dennistou: Penal section! . Some of us have been dealing with penal sections for a quarter of a century. Never mind, perhaps we will learn something. Go on, Mr. Burnard. •Mr. Justice Edwards: You never know. Wo might hear something new. After proceeding a little further, Mr. Burnard said that he liad thought that he might assist the Court by his quotations. ... Mr. Justice Denniston: Oh! very good of you to c think so. "Large, Fair, and Liberal." Mr. Justice Denniston said that what he wanted to hear from counsel was concerning tho object of the Act, not something to tho effect that the. Court was bound to give a "large, fair, and liberal" construction: Counsel could leave the "large, fair, and liberal" construction to the CoMrfc.

The, Chief Justice remarked that he supposed Mr. Burnard would answer that he was in good company in this phase of the case,', in view of Mr. Justice Sim's judgment. ■Mr. Justico Stringer: Do you contend that if you had a public bar, and you choso to shut it, you could employ as many unregistered barmaids as you like in the private bars ? Mr. Burnard: Yes. Mr. Justice Deuniston: And you call that a. "fair, large, and liberal" construction? Ah, hem I • . ' ■ ■ Mr. Justice- Edwards said that the reason for legislating respecting the employment of women in bars was to prevent young men drinking more than they otherwise' would through wishing to enjoy, the society of the. young womnn. The man who did not patronise the private bar generally went to the public bar to drink, and did not care how many barmaids were there. Mr. Justice Edwards again referred to the two swing doors, which he said were there either to keep the ivind out or as a "colourable imitation." One of the learned Judges observed that the Legislature certainly had never intended that the Act should be read as Mr. Burnard asked. . Mr. Justice Edwards; The publicans are very foolish to' raise these quibbles. Mr. Justice Cooper: Even supposing there is a swing door, how do you get to the bar? Is it not through the front door.? Mr. Burnard: That is not "opening immediately." Mr. Justice Stringer: How do you shut the bar at night?

Mr. Justice Cooper: By shutting the front door. Mr. Justice Stringer: You might say that if you set aai hotel baok a few feet from the street you could have all the bars open and they woutd not be public bars. Mr. Justice Edwards: I think this kind of argument is merely waste of time. ■ ■ ■ .. ' Mr. Justice Denmston: You have surely ascertained (without our stopping anyone) what the opinion of this Court is—that this is a mere "colourable imitation." Appeal Dismissed. Mr. Burnard again raised the point that the bar did not open immediately to the street, because it was separated from the thoroughfare by a porch three feet wide.. Mr. Justice Denmston: A liberal in< terpretntion! A three-feot interpretation! Mr. Justice Stringer: According to your interpretation it could get smaller by degrees and beautifully less, until' there was only one foot of the porch left. ' Mr. Justice Edwards: If there, is a public right to go through it, I say that nt does open directly to the street. Mr. Justice Denniston: If this is a mere colourable imitaVon of an obstacle, then it is not sufficient. Mr. Burnard (a little later): Those are the submissions I dosire to make, Your Honoiire. Mr. Justice Dennistoa: Ah, yes. jilr. KaJmond rose to- address the

Court, but was told that it was -unnecessary for him to do so. Mr. Justice. Denniston (to Mr. Salniond): As you must have gathered for somo time. The Court then care its decision, dismissing the appeal unanimously, fho Chief Justice said that "opening immediately" did not mean that there must he only one door and that there must bo nothing between the bar and the street. As to tho other ]joint, he was of opinion that the decision of Mr. Justice Sim was incorrect, and that the word "bar," as it affected unregistered barmaids, meant the bar in which they served. Mr. Justice Stringer remarked that it would be difficult to conceive a more hopeless case of appeal.