LICENCING COMMITTEE.

Globe, Volume XXIV, Issue 2624, 4 September 1882, Page 3

LICENCING COMMITTEE.

CHRISTCHURCH SOUTH. The quarterly meeting of the Licensing Committee for Christchurch South tock place at noon to-dr.y at St. John's Schoolroom. Present —Messrs O. A. Pritchard, J, Anderson and B. Westenra. Mr Westenra was elected to the cVir. There was a la’go attendance of the legal profession, no less than six being present. MIDNIGHT BITBKSIONS. The following applications were received for midnight extensions: —F. Arenas (Cafe de Poris), Mr Thomas. In support of this application Mr Thomas pointed out that a large number of employes of the various clothing establishments, &s., were in the habit of having their supper on Saturday evening. These were discontinued because he had to close at 10 p m. Besides this, Mr Arenas was precluded from taking any contracts for public suppers owing to the ten o’clock closing. Mr Arenas was called, and deposed that he was interfered with considerably in hia business by the ten o’clock closing. Mr Loughroy applied for an extension on behalf of Mr T. Bryant, the Grosveuor Hotel, and urged that people going by train wore staying there. Mr Longhrey also applied for an extension to the Prince of Wales Hotel, and for Mr Qodso of the Southern Hotel, and! Mr J. H. Hall of the Eastern Hotel, Cashel street, Mr Thomas appl ed for an extension on behalf of Mr Hadfield, of the Langham Hotel. Mr Stringer applied on behalf of Mr O. Klingecotein for an extension. Mr H. Keene, the licensee of the Scotch Stores, applied on his own behalf for on extension. He pointed out that the alterations to the hotel contemplated would cost some £7OOO or £BOOO, , _ . . Mr C. Knowsley, of the Queen’s Hotel, applied on his own bshalf for a midnight extension, , , . Mr J. B. Fisher applied for an extension to Mr O. chard, of Collins’ Hotel. Mr Orchard was called and spoke as to the loss entailed upon him by the ten o’clock license. Mr Richardson, of the Empire Hotel, applied in person. Mr Loughrey applied on behalf of Mr E. Bavenhill of the Oaveraham. Mr Thomaa applied on behalf of Mr W. Tombs for an extension to the house situate

at the corner of Bt. Asaph and Barbadoes •tr. off. . ~ Ur Maude applied on behalf of Mr Aitken, of the Hallway Hotel, Manoheeter street. The Chairman asked Mr Superintendent Broham whether he had anything to say regarding the various houaee outside the report he had already furnished to the Committee. Mr Broham replied in the negative. The Committee, after some consideration, announced that the following was their decision : —ln the cates of Klingenstein and Arenas the Committee had decided not to

grant tho extended licenses, as it was understood they were strictly as cafes. For this reason the Oommittee’wonld not grant the extensions at this meeting, The other appli cations would be dealt with as under:— Granted—Messrs J. H. Hall (Eastern Hotel), Hadfield (Langham), H. Keane (Scotch Stores), O. Kuowsley (Queen’s Hotel), W. H. Orchard (Collins’ Hotel), W. Richardson (Empire Hotel), Aitken (Railway Hotel) ; the rest would be refused, Mr Loughrey, for Mr Schwartz, applied for a renewal of wine license from premises in Cashel street to new ones in Colombo street. The Committee granted the application. TBANSPBB. Mr Joynt applied for a transfer of the license from Mr M. MoQoverin to Mr J. Barrett. He submitted that the petition against the transfer was bad, on two grounds (I), that the petition was directed to the Committee for Christchurch South East, which did not exist, and (2), the petition stated that it prayed against the issue of a license to the house at all, which had no effect, as the application was not against the transfer at all. He also desired to call attention to the fact that the signatures to the petition, it the Committee decided to look at it, which he contended they could not, were of persons not within the district. He begged to present a memorial in favor of the application, which ha claimed represented the intelligence of the city. Mr Joyce, who oppoted, objected to this memorial being road. Mr Joynt said bis learned friend could not say what it was until ’ e heard it. It was signed by his Worship cho Mayor and thirty Justices of the Peace, and some twenty or thirty of the principal merchants of Christchurch, including the president of the Chamber of Commerce and others representing the largest mercantile firms in tho city. Mr Joyce submitted that the objections made by Mr Joynt to the memorial against the license oould not be supported, as the memorial wag in the form of the fifth schedule of the Act.

The Chairman pointed out that the memorial prayed that no license should be issued to the bouse, whereas the house was licensed.

Mr Joyce said that if the Act were defective that was not his fault.

Mr Joyce then oallel the following evidence:— John Barrett—l have been licensee of the Borough Hotel since 1875. I remember the disturbance on Boxing Day, 1880. Some time after that I was requested by the Bench to transfer my license. Ibis was done some four months afterwards. The hotel had been his home ever since he had been in Christchurch. Mr M’Goverin resided in the hotel occasionally. Mr Joyce applied that the case might stand over till the next annual meeting. The license bad been ordered to be transferred, bat Mr Barrett had lived in the hotel, and Mr M’Goverin had only been there occasionally. Under these circumstances he asked that the matter stand over till the next annual meeting. The Chairman said that at the last meeting Mr Harman, the then chairman, said that Mr McGoveriu should apply at this meeting. Mr Joynt having replied, urged that Mr Barrett had suffered a most severe penalty—the most severe that could ever be imposed on any one, for a mere suspicion of having be n concerned in a certain riot. He might say that in consequence of what had fallen from the Chairman of the Licensing Committee at last meeting, Mr Barrett had resumed the building of the new hotel, which, when complete, would be the very largest hotel in Canterbury. la reply to the Chairman, Mr Superintendent Brobam said he had nothing to report with regard to the house. The Chairman said that the Committee had decided to grant the transfer, and they trusted that Mr Barrett, in receiving the license, would take care that the house was properly conducted.