The Felding Star AND OROUA COUNTY GAZETTE. TEUBSDAY, OCTOBER 30, 189 C.

Feilding Star, Volume XII, Issue 57, 30 October 1890, Page 2

The Felding Star AND OROUA COUNTY GAZETTE. TEUBSDAY, OCTOBER 30, 189 C.

Hawkers' Licenses ♦ The fact that the Borough Council in Blenheim has passed a Bye law under which a tax may be levied on (> book fiends" as well as other hawkers, has been made a matter for congratulation and possible future emulation by other similar local bodies. The necessity for such a local enactment may be admitted, but its legality has yet to be decided. In another column we puba letter from an esteemed correspondent, who complains that a butcher who resides in Awahuri " must pay a license if he wishes to continue selling meat in this town" of Feilding. If it is the law, we really do not see why he should not pay, because by living outside of the boundaries of the Borough he avoids the payment of any portion of these rates whereby the roads over which he mußt travel to vend his wares, are kept in repair, while the butchers living in the Borough have to pay liberally. So on this score there can bo ao claim for the outsider to be exempted. For the information of our readers we quote the Bye Law clause No. 1 06, nominally in force in this Borough : "Any person carrying on the business of selling or offering for sale goods carried about on the person, or on any animal, or on any movable conveyance, whether by land or water, within the Borough of Feilding (other than those of their own manufacture or production) shall be deemed to be carrying on the business of a pedlar or hawker within the meaning of this Bye Law." Clause No. 101 provides that a hawker or pedlar's license shall be issued by the Town Clerk to any person applyiag for the same on payment of £2 for the half year or £l iper month. It will be seen that it is op tional with the hawker whether he applies for a license or not. Of course there are pains and penalties for not taking out a license, but their infliction is more honored in the breach than the observance, because it seems to be nobody's business to prosecute, although there is not a day passes but householders are pestered with these unlicensed parasites, who must do harm to the legitimate traders carrying on business and residing in the Borough. Our correspondent complains of the market gardeners; who undersell the local men, but we may point out that the regulations do not extend to prevent any person from selling or offering for sale fish; fruit, farm or dairy produce. It always has been a matter of surprise to consumers in Feilding why our local gardeners, with their superior advantages as to soil and climate, have not made a bolder stand against that outaide competition, of which so much complaint is made. No doubt they have their reasons, and if so the grievance is also their own. It is possible the members of the Borough Council may look into the whole matter and cousider whether the revenue of the Borough may or may not be augmented by the mode suggested by our correspondent. We cannot say positively ourselves but we do opine that it would require the license fees from a perfect army of pedlars to make the footpaths of Feilding.