THE Grey River Argus.

Grey River Argus, Volume XII, Issue 1171, 30 April 1872, Page 2

THE Grey River Argus.

That the Luwnaing La.wa of the Colony, . as: far. as .-liquor soiling is concerned, fpe defective in the highest degree, fej/ will deny. There are in operation afctheprer Bent; time. in ; New Zealand- as;"tfeady as (possible a dozcai; different Ofrdittnncea on^, the' fltrbjectVeach 1 Ordnance 1 ' JbSiftg thY ■^p^ial- probation kjff oiie ; 6f ftHf Provincial,. Legislatures. In. Aucklandf.tyej ' lie^ir'thafe HK&mtf fatift '^aWJlufc'aiiLa.that vim nuniontiea nave eXercisecr xnenocai -permissive: law on this vexed subject dost , arbitrarily. Whether undue pressure has: •brhaa hot been-'bro'ugh't to bearVrfcannoX at a distance say, but may at least* add. that the Pfbvmce,if r report is to be :be-. lieved, is not happy under its new legislation.. Be that, however, as it may, there can be no doubt /as to. the,. .necessity for a radical alteration in the laws regulating liquor selling^being made, and seme uni-' .form|system being carried-out in all settled diatric^. Last session, Mr Creightoa (certainly a somewhat singular repreaenf ative. of the ulto-temperajnce cause), Drought forward a'Periuissive' !Bill, but, though he secured the support of the Premier in,; an, unofficial, way, he failed \p c/.rry bis ' measure, aud it' shared the fate of scores | of other slaughtered, innocents at the close 1 of the s^tlDg^Ji.is tolerably certaiuth^t' I an attejupt^will be made during the- next session to re : iqtroduce,a Bill of th4kind,' and that ft "'will' jilfe^ '"with considerable support in tbe^ouae.. Thata-Bill, such ad tne l Prerafer wbttld'aesire to pass would . defeat its own end, an'l would increase the"flti6iber*tifr *- rt sly grog" shanties, w§, 1 &'fe : tton*vinced, but that a great reform, in s qtiektidfr?.' A' workable ah l cFcompr6^eJsive Act, suited' to -the 'r^quirements"^of i all places, and framed in, Buch a manner as to 'aUowitß(ftdabMod; 4^,c6tintry, g&dfield, . or settled districts, is imperatively wanted, and.we/ihbpe* that the qiiestion will meet 1 with:th'e attention it deserves. From all -parts' of the ooutftry comdiaintS' come as to the lax manner" iti wnich 'litiensbS arer granted, and ; the rigoroua/ruTe that is ex(ercisedji^ others, !f |n several pla<s|pVo- . tests, \vl)ich we. think well ground cfThavß* be.an made against the issue of publicans-' licenses t« eiu'gloifemalesj and'thutis sjibBt'anfciutud- by a recent, presentation of a flrahd Juty at' Hokitik- to 'ihe-Jadge of who Supl-e-fte'G^hrtJ -By ; the ; cel6bra|ed BaHI" ; 'Lib{Slisiii* -'A'dt/^uhiJ^^wliidK the" .Ooniity. at .present lives cr : 'gr6ans, 'or o6tli, Ao' H'cstriction is placed on the jUUfuej of j licenses, iand .as oach represents '<&s*■ and, as the Cbuht/jFreasury is speciilly in ( ii^ed. of amounts of. tl.at idndMf an application' is made, th§-, Coin p^Wewdi ;And f ho 1 que^idnfl frte, asked; yeryr^centl^, infac't^nq lupgflr ato'tnan Wednesday^lajst^a'pypof.pjf/publican reapopaibilitji! without equivalents, v»as.oSeredm Westport. Our reader^ oj

course kno\s%jsWestpfot if iv the;Ne.l|] aoa Provitfro; a^ihat JPrbymce "rejoices | in a Licensing (&*dinanca,of&ts o^ty II? is like many 4g\er ordintgtees ojjp{ tha§ part of the w&EHt^nd posWfifea^xtr^r^iH nary elastic and^ontractile powers. It can j letthe largest and raoßt daring fish through its meshes, and can, with equal facility, i.caj)itvic9«tba-snMkUest.*hEimpi;^ Qn'tfee*oo- j caiiouTn question, a respectable publican, tfas charged with "having conYmitteti* *? breach of the Nelson Gold Fields Licens-inihathßyon-the Ztstitist/ri did unlawfully,- permit a game at chance j to be played at his hotel." The facts were; thai . some customers of the house | played several games at cards, the wagers being drinks on the result, and no more. In defence the aconsed.Baid that the practice of allowing such games was universal/; but the magistrate (Dr Giles) inflicted a fine of .£lO and costs. Though' this is themost recent instance to hand, it is by no, means a solitary one iv Svhich the inequalities that the Nelson as other ordinances, present. \ A shanty , keeper • who ; defies the law, who" takea out no license, but who sells, liquor, and very frequently poison, under "that name, can defy, law' and police, not only in the country but in settled districts.:' The Licensing Laws are such that the onus of proving the exist-; ence of \inlicensed , sellers is thrown on' ' tTie public, whilst al the sapifi time. the respect^ver ; Governments take good care to seize on all income. Surely in all good faith, if. ithey accept the money, they shpuld prior to taking it."examiue into the characters of the applicants and, if these are found satisfactory, protect those who are worthy of bein^enti?O^ed withja^ license,! Butjbwithout going into, details, It is.cleai; that, a great and^ radical change in '"the" licensing system is; absolutely,, needed, and that the question/has assumed ; guch dimens.ions^s, to,, require ihe interference 'ot the gehe^ne'gwlature.; Tliis, we think, is tiniveraftlly admitted, and that Parliament will have the question forced on it there can be np t doubt. Therej is,jTOtHHt^'s;ilbpß pra^eneral Permissive Bill, according to the ideas of rampant teetotallers, being passed, and we have no doubt that the majority here will ijsttdxtf&i&heiideaiQf liord Derby expressed; hin-w*ee«*t -and-«bte-Bpeeeh-48-Trhich Ke 1 described the &cJjioH of the proposed Permissive BillfaVa tyranny of the majority 6VeTlhe'~nVihqriJ.y / "^At ■"the" same time* there ca^ijft^^ftOjSsti 011 as to the;d^.--su^bilitjlmjßi^iKne check on|the, : indiscrimiriate issue of licenses thatjobr/ lfcins 4itWeßtfandi'ana "otfi^i "pAW| offthe Colony, and- -as tOigiceatet discretion x>^ing exercised in granting them. A general ,Licensing s Act;#.ctiuff JJws3.qnes|-ioi* -ir greatly "requii;e4; aqd will be generally met with appTOv'ai by all classes excepting those ■Wlioate' dis'ap^rbv'al- 1 Wduld be jtjVe , ; best recom meniiiitioiL At present tli ei-g ; ', 'ase'sira'n|e ; 'anomalies. «i .ihe'^dftiftiatra^ 'tpn'bf-^.^nres'^'tm^subj^ ICis, Very 1 " riecessa : ry ; tnai/on^jObjmp^hensive, measure adapted to meet ilife requirements, jfl!rM 1 JsPft rfc .^# l 9s d be bl " ou § hi forward, and that licensing powers shdald; ; be !l tfekW ! frb% .Provlticfes' and County alike* However' diirtasteful Permissive.; $ils nffifM:'*! >d%^ted;,by ' ftioipjigk rfifprnijatioji in the preisenUiCon- j ' s^g",,'.'sjstemi^aii,a '.cQnsolidatirtn^.oi Ithe fjfleierpgeneous; measures at .present! in; ippeWttcnif Tcannot; , -beifhailed- with , other rthamtiie liveliest caatisfaotibniby every re-