HOTEL LICENSES

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 3120, 26 June 1917, Page 8

HOTEL LICENSES

POLICE OBJECTION NEW ZEALANDER HOTEL CASE The adjourned meeting of tho Wellington. Licensing Committee was held yesterday. Mr. W. (t. Kiddell, S.M., presided, and with him wore Messrs. J. Smith, B. Fletcher, W. J. Helves', G. J, Petherick, and G. Tiller. Tho lioensea of tho following hotels, which were adjourned because of certain repairs to 1)9 made, wero granted:—Metropolitan Hotel, Royal Hotel, National Hotel, and Clarendon Hotel. The license of the Grand Hotel, which was held over in connection with the liookstall in the vestibule, tho owner of which was connoted of betting, was next£ considered. Mr. W. L. Eothonberg, who appeared for tho licensee (E. M. Page), 6tated that tho bookstall had been closed up, and did not now exist. Tho license was granted. NEW ZEALANDEK, .HOTEL, Tho polico, 'represented by Inspector Marsack, objoctod to tho granting of tho licoufio to the New Zealander Hotel. Mr. H. I<\ OTcary appeared for tho li- , consee (F. H. Phillips), Mr. A. W. Blair for Mrs: Sullivan (owner of tho premises), and Mr. T. Young for tho mortgageo and Mrs. Phillips.

Inspector Marsack said the polico objected to the license being (frantcd on three grounds:—Firstly, tho drunkenness of tho lic«nsee; secondly, tho house was improperly conducted, - und, thirdly, there was an objection of ft technical character. Sergeant J. ]?. Wilcocks deposed thai; on tho night of May 5-B ho was on night duty. Tho licensee apparently had a poxty in a room upstairs. Witness and Constable Gunn wcro at tho corner <if Manners Street and the lano running oif from thero. They could hoar Phillips's voico; he was talking very loudly. Witness thought Phillips was under tho infiuonco of drink at tho time. Witness saw Phillips on May 9, and told him ho was surprised at his language. He 6aid that ho had had considerable trouble with Mrs. Phillips. Ho had a. black eyoi and looked as if ho wero recovering from a drinking bout. Thtero was a strong smell of liquor about him a,t the tirno. , \ To Mr. O'Leary: Phillips had been licensee of tho hotel since about last October, and tho hotel had beon under his (witness's) observation . during tho time. Tho incident related was the only glaring one that witness knew of.

Constable George Guun gavo evidence in 6upport of tho statement mado by tho provious witness.

Asked by Mr. O'l.eary if thcro was any effort inudo to get into tho hotel, ■witness said no such effort was made, although ho knew tho police had a right to enter at any time. Constable P. Mitchell staled- that in consequenco of a complaint made in a telephone message, witness and Sergeant M'Kelvio went to tho New Zealander Hotel, and saw Phillips, who said ho wonted a man roraoved from tho hotel. The man. was in a drunken condition. To Mr. O'Lcary: The telephone message was sent by Mr. Phillips. ' 'When witness got there, Phillips said men wcro brought into' the houso and served with drink who had no right to bo served. 8.0 further said that when ho tried to atop it he was badly handled, and witness added that Phillips did look as though ho had been badly handled. Phillips was respectably dressed, but smelt of liquor,, as though ho had bceu drinking heavily. This was the only incident that ho knew of against tho licensee...

Jack Dent, Staff-Sorgeant-Majar, who was invalided liomo, said that ho a.rrivod in Wellington on May 5, and stayed at the New Zealander Hotel. BeiWe proceeding further, ivitnesl remarked that the statemont ho maflo to Sergeant Fitzpatrick was mado while in a passion, and a state of excitement owing to his desiro to bo avenged on Phillips. He wished now to withdraw that statement. The chairman, said tho Bench would hear his evidence. Witness said that on tho evening of May 6 he heard screaming in Mrs. Phillips's room, and on going there he found Phillips in an. aggressive attitude, with a water-bottle in his hand. Witness bound Phillips up for a couple of hours. A day or two later Phillips made a seri--1 our accusation against witness with respect to Mrs. Phillips. Witness gave particulars of other incidents, some of an unsavoury character. Cross-examined; witness said he Lad known Phillips ■ for about eight or ten months, and had been a, fairly frequent visitor to the hotel. He had never previously seen anything in'the conduct of Phillips that was objectionable. With respect to the incidents related by witness, which occurred- in the hotel„ Phillips said to witness ho was under a wrong impression. His conduct at the time was duo to the false impression; it was the cause of the whole trouble. '' Constable J. W. M'Millan stated that ob Atay 8 he was on. duty in Manners Street. At about 9.20 p.m. he saw Mr. rmd Mrs. Phillips standing at the hotei door, and they appeared to be quarrelling. witness w'ent towards tho hotel, and when Phillips saw him' he said, Constable, I want you to put a man out of tho house." Witness went in and saw Sergt.-Major Dent, who apparently /ober. Ho advised him to leave' the hotel, which he did. Phillips at tho time appeared to have been drinking heavily. Sergeant J. Fitzpatrick said ho saw Sergeant-Major Dent at tho Taranaki Street Police Station. The latter mado a statement which witness took down and Dent signed. Later witness went to the New Zealander Hotel and saw the licensee; whose appoaranoo gave witness the impression that ho was recovering from a very heavy drinking bout. He had a Llack eye, and his faco was red and swollen like a full moon. Witness then gave details of drunkenness being permitted' on the promises. Cross-examined, witness said the hotel did a big bar trade. Tho customers were seamen, firemen, wharf labourers, and others. These men becamo noisy and boisterous .when under tho influence of liquor. Only one charge of permitting drunkenness had been brought against tho licensee during tho past- twelve months. The licenseo never hesitated to put a man out when -requested by the police to do so.. Ho saw the licensee under the influence of drink'more than once.

Constable Frost gave corroborative evidence with respect to drunkenness being permitted on tlie premises. CASE FOR THE LICENSEE. Mr. H. F. O'Leary, in opening the caso for the licensee, said that two grounds wore alleged why the license should not bo granted. Tho first that tho lioensco was a man of. drunken habits, and tho otiior was that he was not conducting the hotel in a proper manner by permitting drunkonness therein. He submitted that no evidence had been tendered in support of tho first, objection. He maintained that it must bo shown that the licensee's habits were drunken. All the evidence given was that from May 5 to !) Phillips was said to have been recovering from a drinking bout. Phillips had been licenseo of tho hotel 6ince October last, and if he were a man of drunken habits some strongor evidence would surely have been available to show that ho was of drunken habits. The evidence of Stnff-Sergeant-Major Dent disclosed tho cause of Phillips's lapse, on tho occasion referred to by tho police. Phillips was suffering from a, false impression with regard to his domestic affairs, and took mora liquor than was good for Tiim. As to tho other allegation, he pointed out that the hotel did a consiiWablo bar trade, and those whofroqucnted tho hotel were drawn from tbo Eeafaring class. 'The bar trade was a soinovvhut rough one. Sinco October Inst thero had been only ono case of permitting- drunkenness brought against Phillips. There waa 110 iillegation that Phillips knew tho drunk(ii man was on tho premises. Walter E. Wood, butcher, Manners Klreet, and Spencer George Radford, furnisher, Manners Street, gave eidcnco as to tho general conduct of the hotel, which in their oninion was good. Frank .Joseph Phillips stated that he held the lipeneo of the hotel since October last. Ho employed n inanacer and » barman and a full staff. The general conduct of (ho hotel was his business. Tho hotel did tho biggest bar trade in Wellington. TIo was convicted of permitting drunkenness on his promises, but (lie opinion expressed by tho Magistrate wna that witness was not awaro that the

dnmkeu man ivaa on tho promises. Ho i Buttered from bad eyesight; that was tho ! reason why ho was not iu khaki. Ho .was not a man of drunkou habit. About a month ago ' 10 submitted himself for medical examination for 'a life policy of .£IOOO, and wad passed as a first-clans life. Ho remembered the incident referred to by Sergeant-Major Dent. That was a grievous mistake. Ho explained ■liow lio got the black eyo mentioned by Sergeant Fttzpatrick. On tho Sunday two bulky soldiers carno into tho hotol and wanted to bo served with drinks. '.L'hey were refused by witness, and from words thoro developed a souffle. Witness then received tho black eye, and was somewhat knocked about. Cross-examined, witness said Sergeant Pitzpatrick was wrong when he stated that ho was drunk. Ho had only two glasses of stout on tho occasion referred to. Ho was not drunk; he was intoxicated with anger. Ho was angry with everybody, but was quite 6ober. This closed the case for tho licensee. Mr. A. W. Blair referred to the legal position of tho owner of the premises, and Mr. T. Young, on behalf of tho mortgagee, said that Mr. and Mrs. Phillips had mado Tip their differences, and tho mortgagee would liavo no objection to tho license boing granted to Mrs. Phillips. Tho Bench adjourned the'easo to Mon- [ day next at 11 a.m., when a decision .will j bo given. .ilJiSl