Manawatu Herald. TUESDAY, OCT. 16, 1900. Licensing Laws.

Manawatu Herald, 16 October 1900, Page 2

Manawatu Herald. TUESDAY, OCT. 16, 1900. Licensing Laws.

The proposed new Licensing Bill is an improvement upon its predecessors as ii marks tbe era when the licensee of an hotel is to receive some consideration, but it does not go far enough yet to put the trade upon an equitable footing. In the past only those who manufactured and sold liquor wholesale to the licensed houses were protected, and the trade of hotel brokers was enabled to flourish and extend their operations exceedingly. No doubt a very strong objection will be raised to the Bill by these gentlemen as the clauses regarding tenants will make their business an exceedingly uninteresting and unprofitable one. The Bill providing for this measure of justice is therefore one which wi 1 meet with the support of the respectable portion of the trade. We have, however, in viewing Licensing matters, and to get at what needs further consideration and amendment, to decide definitely for what a publichouse is licensed for. Is a license simply granted to a house to enable the owner of that property to make a big profit, or is it granted as being a convenience for the public ? Roughly speaking, every license is applied for owing to its filling a long-felt want, and that its erection will be of considerable convenience to both the local and the travelling public. The working of the Licensing Act however is in direot contradiction to the views announced by the applicants for licenses, for undoubtedly the owners of publichouses, who are < brewers or wine and spirit merchants have the real monopoly of the trade, and their manner of working the business appears . to put private speculation wholly in the background. To show that this is so, to those who are not cognisant of what goes on behind the scenes, we may mention that the lease and goodwill ' of a brewer's house is sold to the tenant for a certain sum. This term . of goodwill infers that a bouse is let '

for say seven yeara, and the nominal rental is thirty shillings a week, and the goodwill extracted from the tenant means as much as an extra thirty shillings a week rental for the whole term, say £546, and the amount for furniture, which is frequently taken at its full value. The. leases generally contains covenants that for one endorsement on the license the owner has the right to make the tenant quit, and he thus loses the £546 anticipatory rent he has paid, besides being wholly in the hands of the landlord as to the price the furniture, which he, the tenant, no longer requires, will be taken off his hands. This is an excessive penalty for a small breach of the law, and though no man should break the law without punishment following, yet the Licensing Act does not permit the nature of the offence of the tenant to mitigate his dealings with his landlord, and from the carelessness of a servant a publican may be ruined. It is curious to note also how very virtuous the owner of the property can become, and how readily he insists on the conditions of the lease being fulfilled. It would appear to be a satisfactory trait in the brewer's character this desire to insist on the Licensing Law being observed rigidly, were it not that he can make considerable profit to himself by his tenant's wrong-doing. The teuant being turned out has to get along the best way he can, but the owner has the goodwill, &c. of this hostelry for sale with plenty of seekers, for is not the trade well protected? and another few years rent in advance, to be retained if the future tenant is careless, is one of those profits that only the just and the law-abiding can hope to make. The tenant should not break the law, and he ought to be extremely careful. But should a man for a small offence be so severely punished, not by the law but under the law ? It may be asked why does a man sign such a one-sided lease ? It does sound foolish, but unless a publican does, it is more than ten chances to one that he will be unable to obtain a licensed house as the brewers hold the majority. Another way can be mentioned of the insecurity of holding the tenant of a licensed house has, which has led to the want of a superior class of men taking up such business. We will leave the maligned brewer out of this case, and say any owner having leased his publichouse to a tenant is not satisfied with the rent, and perhaps falls out* with the tenant and desires his departure. The tenant having a good business prefers to remain. What is there to prevent an unscrupulous man employing some persons to break the law in that tenants house under which he must be convicted and his license endorsed. This achieved, out goes the tenant, and the andlord secures his coveted increase of rental. It is wrong that these things be, but no men are perfect and it is to be regretted that a law is so framed as to give openings for such acts, The liquor trade miu?t be improved, but the retailers position must be improved first. This has partially been admitted by the new Bill and we hope to see the idea very, much enlarged upon. We asked at the commencement of this article for what purpose are licenses granted to houses, whether for the profit of the brewers or for the benefit of the pub ie ? As the law stands licences seem to be granted wholly for the benefit of the brewers, as they are enabled to force their tenants to supply the public, not with what the pub ie want, but with what the brewer choos s his tenant should sell them. In any other business, not conserved as hotels are, every business man can sell what he pleases, but he has generally sense enough to find out what the public appreciates, and sells that. A tenant of a brewer cannot do that, he may be courteous and attentive and keep his house in first-class condition; but if the public want beer he has to draw that which his brewer sends, but not that, which the public desires to have. A;s a consequence, if there are other houses in a town where better beer is sold the trade drifts away and the tenant is perfectly helpless to save himself. Such a house is evidently not for the convenience for the local or travelling public and the license has been obtained under misunderstood terms, and the more this matter is looked into the more odd does it sound that it is quite possible for a town to have its publichouses in the hands of a brewer or brewers who do not make beer up to the popular taste, yet beoause that brewer is a monopolist, the inhabitants must drink that beer or none ! This is where we all suffer by the present Licensing Law, and it is the only remnant of a conserved monopoly in this colony. We have eighty-five breweries in this colony l and apparently the great majority own publichouses, and the public are catered for in the way of beer as it seems best to them ! The Licensing Law needs amendment so that the tenant of a publiohouse shall be bound down in no way to the manufactu er of beer or liquors or to the seller of such drink, in the wholesale j way. Let the fact of leasing a publichouse be on the same terras as , leasing other property and we should j get better landlords, better liquor, . and may be, few»r publiohouses. It I

is notorious that one-half the hotels erected have been so built, not for the convenience of the public but for the sale of so-and-so's beer. The true supporters of Temperance should thinkover these facts, and fight for freedom of the tenant of publichouses, as two points f}*« Hound to be gained by doing so — Betk "" "".* '";$ publichouae.

Shearing will commence ou the Motoa Estate on Thursday.

There will be a sitting of the Magistrates Court on Thursday.

Mr T. Easton is making additions to Mr Walter Barber's residence at Motuiti.

The new stables near Mr Hunter's hotel will probably be finished this week. •

Mr A. Pat has considerably enlarged his shop, in anticipation of his Christmas show.

The usual meeting of the Foresters will be held at 8 o'clock this evening in All Saints' Schoolroom.

Mr W. B. Rhodes advertises that he can supply groceries cheaper than ever. He is also ready to purchase ioo pair fowls.

Members and intending members of the Foxton Cricket Club are reminded that the opening of the season takes place to-morrow, and a scratch game is fixed.

The composer of the widely-known " Ora pro nobis," Signor Piccolomini, was lately discovered destitute in a London garret. He is now in Hanwell Asylum.

The Captain of the steamer Nemesis saw a sea-serpent near Cape Naturaliste about 200 feet long. The creature moved along the surface as a snake would on land.

The Czar has presented General Alcxieff with a sword of honour resplendent with gems bearing the inscription, " For victories at the seat of war. Pe-chi-li, 1900."

Next Saturday Messrs Westwood & Barham will sell by instructions from the Official Assignee, ploughs, tools, &c, in the estate of Joe Tos. They will also offer a further consignment of drapery.

Brigadier-General Chaffee, Commander of the United States troops, reports that Li Hung Chang has demanded the return by the Americans of loot to the value of two hundred thousand dollars.

According to the Otaki Mail the Spring meeting of the Racing Club was not the best they had held. The paper says " The starts on the whole were not satisfactory. . . . the

fields were not large. . , . . the general public were justly indignant at the unsatisfactory luncheon provided."

The telegram from the Agent-Gene-ral published elsewhere is very dhcering, showing that the fibre market is rising steadily. N.Z. hemp is now £i& 10s a ton showing a rise of thirty shillings within the last fortnight. It is satisfactory to notice that Manila is likewise rising.

Last week about 100 friends of the Rev. J. McWilliam met at the schoolroom and presented him with a testimonial and a purae of sovereigns. The testimonal illuminated, was as follows :— " Testimonial to the Rev. J. McWilliam, Otaki. We your late parishioners, beg your acceptance of a purse of sovereigns, as a slight token of our gratitude and sincere appreciation of your many acts of thoughtful kindness, and your willing and voluntary ministry among the European residents of Otaki and the district for a long term of years. Sighed on behalf of the above— R. Booth, W. Best, Mrs W. Best, Miss Craven, Mrs A. Rollo."

In the course of a lecture a marvellovsly long distance journey by sea without compass was mentioned by Sir Robert Stout as haying come under his personal observation during a trip to Samoa. A party of young men arrived in that place after having travelled over 800 miles with only the stars to guide tbejn. Another case of interest which Sir Robert mentioned was a trip undertaken recently by a party of Maoris, who put out in a canoe, and by following the instructions contained in a legendary song of the doings and travels of their ancestors were able to pick out their way by certain constelations and reach the destination started for.

Stowed away in the rear of a consular report is an announcement of considerable interest to cycle manufactures. Hitherto aluminium could not be cheaply employed in the construction of " bikes," because the joints had to be screwed together instead of being welded or soldered in the ordinary way It now appears that a workman at the Brindisi Electric Station has settled part of the problem. He is said to have invented a process by which two pieces ot aluminium can be securely banded together, and specimens of his work have already been submitted to the engineering experts..

Many have been the eccentric enterprises of the Yankees, but that of a U.S. millionaire " caps " all. In a squall 20 miles trom Cleveland, Ohio, Capt. Corrigan's yacht Idler was wrecked on July 7, and his wife, three daughters, an aunt, and a baby nephew were drowned. With two exceptions all the bodies were recovered. In ord-r, if possible, t* discover these two, Capt. Co-rigaii has had a scow built, with, circular water-tight plates of glass ' placed in holes cut through the bottom, so that as the boat is towed through the water it will be possible to see to the bottom of the lake. An electric lighting apparatus is fitted, and lights suspended below the bottom to illuminate the bed of the lake.

Jimmy and Joe Governor, the outlawed black murderers, surprised a constable named Harris and a tracker, who, with two other pursuers, were hidden in a hut. Firing between the slabs, the desperadoes wounded the constable in the thigh. Several shots were afterwards exchanged, and it is believed that Jimmy Governor was hit.

The following high prices for horses sold at Greymouth will give an indication of their scarcity : —Two draught horses, at £55 10s each, one draught horse at /"so, one spring-cart horse at £24.

In our next will appear thn new advertisement of Mr Geo. H. Stiles, which announces the arrival of his first shipment of summer goods. A specialty has been made this season in ladies' and children's sailors, also a special consignment of Japanese silks just arrived in all shades, which will be found splendid value. In dress serges, lustres plain and figured, cashmeres in all shades, and alpacas, the ladies will find it to their interest to pay a first visit to this establishment before purchasing elsewhere, as all the above are at last season's quotations despite the rise in prices.