Liquor in The King Country.

King Country Chronicle, Volume III, Issue 150, 26 April 1909, Page 5

Liquor in The King Country.

TO THE EPITOR. Sir, —The administration of the Liquor Law in this district has got from the sub Ime to the ridiculous. It is not prosecution; it is nearer persecution. There was a time in the history of Tc Kuiti when sly grog selling was coin- : mon, and when a person was convicted 1 it was generally admitted that it served him right. He was breaking the law for profit, and taking the risk, and the law was respected by all right thinking citizen*. In 1904 an act was passed which, to say the least, is on-British. It assumes a person to be guilty until he proves himself innocent. That is bad enough, if administered with an even-handed justice, but the Act is being strained to such an extent, that the people don't know where they are, and respectable citizens are convicted of what in practically sly grog selling. I, with my old-fashioned ideas, always believed that the duties of the police were to prevent crime, not to mßke criminals of re-vpectable citizen*. The administration of the law (I won't call it justice) as it is carried out at present might suit Russia, and if the residents of this district are content to sit quietly under it, they deserve all they get.—l am, etc., RATEPAYER.

TO THE EDITOR. Sir, Ido not often feel moved sufficiently to write a letter to the Editor, but cannot refrain from commenting upon the manner in which the law regarding liquor is administered at Te Kuiti. We arc all aware of the circumstances under which the district was arbitrarily proclaimed a prohibited area. It is also well known that the proclamation failed to restrict the sup- I ply of liquor in the district For many ; years, particularly when the railway work 4 were going on, sly grog shops existed and a large illicit trade was carried on Convictions were difficult to obtain.and various steps were taken to suppress the evil. Finally the law, at present in force, was enacted throwing the onus on suspected persons of proving tfjeir innocence. It was a drastic strp.but one which can be commended on the ground that it stamped out a serious evil. On the face of it such a law requires to be administered by people who possess an intimate knowledge of local conditions, in order to properly estimate the value of evidence placed before (hem, so that no injustice shall be done to innocent people. Sly grog selling, as it existed in the district several years ago. no longer flourishes, and the only excuse for the present Act remaining in force is to have the necessary machinery ready to cope with the situation in case the evil again crops up. Instead of the act being used for such purpose, however, it is being taken advantage of to institute proceedings against persons of gooc' character, whose only offence is that they are not total abstainers. Two cases which, to my mind, clearly show that the Act is being used in a manner never intended, were decided at the last sitting of Te Kuiti Court. A settler at Aria and a Te Kuiti resident were charged with bringing liquor, intended for sale, into the District, lhe liquor, which was brought in by buggy,was seized by the local constable. There was no suggestion that the accused persons had ever sold or had ever been concerned with the sale of liquor. Even the prosecuting constable could not say anything against the character of either. On the contrary, a number of respectable people who had known the men for many years gave them the best of characters, and scooted the idea that either would be concerned in sly grog selling. Notwithstanding this the Magistrate interpreted every action of the men to suit hi* own views, and discredited the evidence of reputable witnesses who testified to the character and pa«t record of the men. It seems incredible that a Magistrate could convict men of intending to sell liquor when there was no suggestion that they bad ever sold any, or that they were persons likely to sell any. The only evidence against the men was the fact that they had whisky in their possession. The very fact that provision is made to allow people to bring in liquor providing it is labelled, indicates that it was never intended to prevent people having liquor in their possession. Thus we have the instance of men of certified good character being branded as law breakers, and hcavify fined becaqse they have done something wbiph the \w allows ; them tp do. Another cane of a different stamp was that against a traveller who at the earnest request of an estimable citizen consented to forward a case of stout to Te Awamutn. The wife of the man who made the request bad been ordered stout by the doctor, and in bis desire to do everything openly, and above board, the man related the facts to the constable. An action against the traveller was taken forthwith, and a fine of £5 and costs was imposed. I offer no criticism on the case which will doubtless go far towards arousing public feeling against the existing state of things. I hope the people of the district will combine in a strenuous effort to rectify an evil which threatens to become as repulsive to right thinking people j»s the existence of sly grog show. - I am, etc., NO-LICENSE.