GISBORNE CULTURE.

Gisborne Times, Volume XXV, Issue 2172, 30 August 1907, Page 2

GISBORNE CULTURE.

[To the Editor.] Sir, —Mr. Shaw Thompson’s letter, which appeared in your columns this morning, deserves more than passing notice by your readers, and in the interests ot public health it is_ to be earnestly hoped that' the police—so notorious lor the enthusiasm with which they prosecute or persecute other offenders against the Borough By-laws—may direct their attention to those who menace tho health of the town by expectorating upon the footpaths. Mr. Thompson drew attention to the one spot which had particularly come under his notice, but while tlie Masonic Hotel precincts is, as it lias always been, notorious for tlio practice of this objectionable habit, there is another place, if anything, worse in this respect. I refer to the vicinity of the Albion Hotel. At that corner Maoris always congregate in large numbers not only loafing about in their customary fashion but causing annoyance to the neighboring tradesmen and their customers by squatting upon the curbstones and doors of the various shops and at the same time anuointing the footpath copiously with sputum which in all probability is laden with the bacilli of tuberculosis. The effluvia is at times so offensive in this quarter to sensitive nostrils that ladies, from that cause alone, are compelled to avoid passing the spot. No doubt the proprietors of these hotels are anxious for business purposes to avoid disturbing their customers in the enjoyment of these delicate pleasures, but is it not desirable that the City Fathers (one of whom at least was elected upon the sanitary ticket alone) should stimulate the police into action in tho interests of the, perhaps, less important section of tlie community? While, we aro discussing the lassitude of the Borough Council in one direction it may not bo improper to remark on its vigilance in another. At its meeting last night it saw fit to refuse leave-to the proprietor of a billiard saloon, to improve and extend his premises, and at the same time members took tlio opportunity of condemning games and manly sports in a pretty general manner, and with so little moderation as to give rise to the query as to whether they were competent to give a fair and dispassionate opinion upon any subject. The chief opponent to the motion to give leave for this extension of the billiard room premises appears to have been a gentleman well known for his temperance leanings, and the public would doubtless be glad' to learn how he considers his attitude consistent with his principles, for by prohibiting these private billiard rooms the young men desiring this form of recreation are simply driven to the hotels, every one of which is, of course, provided with its ■billiard room, where each game is punctuated with a drink. I am neither a teetotaller nor a billiard player, yet I do feel disposed to protest at our young men being thus driven into hotels on the one hand or prevented from indulging in a game of skill to which there should be no reasonable objection, if properly conducted.—l mn, etc., „ . COMMON SENSE. Gisborne, August 27.