LICENSING ACT

Gisborne Times, Volume LXX, Issue 11124, 6 February 1930, Page 7

LICENSING ACT

ALI.EUED BREACHES.

tOPR CASKS DISMISSED

rive charges ot tihoged licensing Vouches, ail' arising Hum the same .v-c ei ciieiijii-iiaaces, were Heard belt.iir. F. hi. Harper, MM., in the Magistrate s Court yesteroav. In four instances, t.ie v cuavsji'b "ore uis-ju-s-seu. eat m iv'spect ol the lit til. supplying liquor, to a Native, a tine ot £b was'HiipbsedV" . raneis Clmi.es Porter, licensee ot tiie .UunwaF Hotel',' was charged

...1,1 keeping the • premises open ior the sale Of liquor alter' hours oh January 1 and also 'with' selling liquor after hours.,. Arthur. Thomson was charged that, being a person other than the licensee, 'he supplied ; liquor to George. -Murray who, in lus turn, was .charged with aiding and abetting Menyn Murray in the commission of the 'offence' of supplying liquor to a Native. .Mervvn -Murray Vriis charged with ..the major offeuee, ..suppiymg liquor to a female Native!, Kate Wylluu The last-meniioned admitted the charge, ’..but the fitliers pleaded not guilty." ; . Senior-femrgt, , Wade- prosecuted and Mr. S. V. Beaufoy appeared for •all defendants. A Kate AVyllie stated that, when she bearded a bus at Muriwai. en route to itidaucc at 'K'opun. she asked the driver, Alervvn Murray, to get her h bottle" oF ■ whisKy.V giving l him. 1 Os; for thi K purpose. Alena v asked anotlier man. whom site did not see, to obtain the. whiskev this second man * going ; to the- hotel aihl return — iiirr shortly afterwards. When they readied tlie dance hall, Murray gave, her the whiskey. Sophie Wyllie and Amy Hope also vivo evidence.

Constahie Skinner. of Korda, stated that he saw Kate 'Wyllie under the influence of liquor at the dance and .inquired where she obtained the drink. As a result of these inquiries, lie obtained a statement from Porter who' said he was lying down upstairs at the time and had the keys of the 'bar. which, therefore, foil Id not have been opened. Thomson alsomade a statement in which he said that ; a bps pulled up at the hotel and a man approached him with the request, for 1 a bottle of whiskey.’ Thomson replied that he could not.'get any from the liar, but h>d a half bottle in bis rooni which he would give the man provided he returned' the loan later. Thomson went to the fooiri. got the bottle a"d. gave it to the man. The defendant' Porter, in the witness hoy. stated that on. the night in euestioh. lie went upstairs for a read and also Mo avoid two men who were "pestering him for a drink. It waft then about 7.15 o.m. Do knew nothing of tlie transaction until well on in the evening. Mi". Thomson was a bona fide boarder. To tlm Senior-Sergeant, defendant si lled that Mr." Thomson usually, kept whisky in his room. He lie'neri in the bar dnrino husv times, hut vis never paid anything for this ns-. sbtancO.

George Murray, laborer, of Txopua. t-ited (hat the baft-driver spoke to him about getting "Some whisky. He wont' to the hutel and there. IVuiid Ml-. Thomson who, after con-

versation, loaned witness a half bottle of whisky. .He had known witness ' for'2o odd years. Actually he did not enter tho hotel, speak-, mg to Air. Thomson at the door. The .other .’.'defendant, Arthur .Thomson, gave corraborative evi. denec. <

The 'magistrate, commented that ho was satisfied there was 1 insufficient evidence to convict i’orter, the charges agaiiiM whom would be dismissed.

Regarding ThonisoiV; there was some doubt as to. whether he gave the bottle of whisky as a 'loian, but /there> was that doubt and defendant would receive the benefit of it. " The information, therefore, would be dismissed;

in respect of. the charge against George Murray the evidence otfereu ui the.previous,cases was admitted. Mervyn .vlurray gave evidence ihat, when he asked George Aimray to get the whisky, he . did not tell him who it was for, nor did he see the girl. ■■Seating.that the evidence was not jstrong enough to show that h--- admit/' knew the liquor was for d, Maori the magistrate dismissed this, information also.

■ VICKY SERIOUS OFFENCE S U PELTING NAT IYE OIK 1, WITH LIQUOR-

YOUNG MAN FINED lib

i he charge against Mervyn Murray, 22, who pleaded guilty, was taken in the afternoon. Senior-Sergeant i\ ado stated tun, defendant " supplied an lb-year-old girl with, not one drink, hut, a bottle. She attended a dance and became drunk, making an exlitlnlon of herself, Fortunately tor her. Constable Skinner saw her and instructed her friends to look after her. Defendant must have known what might .be expected from giving whisky to the girl. He was a responsible person, in charge of a bus, and should have been above such an actMr. Beaufoy submitted that Hie trirl was entirely to blame in respect of all -the cases which had come before the court that dav. Her evidence .was obviously unreliable and she was very plainly used to indulging in whisky. Almost every' tcLay. defendant was asked to do little' .iqbs for the Maoris in the district and for the men on the railway works He was only 22 and liad had no idea he was doing wrong. Further lie did not think the girl wanted the liquor tor herself, but that she was taking it ‘home for some member of her family. .Defendant Mad fiiiadvertontlj fallen into a trap. - . , Senior-Sergeant Wade pointed out that the character of the girl had nothing to do with the charge Defendant must have known the