“SIX O’CLOCK, PLEASE.”

Manawatu Herald, Volume XXXIX, Issue 1760, 4 December 1917, Page 3

“SIX O’CLOCK, PLEASE.”

WELLINGTON’S FIRST NIGHT,

Contrary to the expectations of some folk, the first night of 6 o’clock closing was marked by no disturbance or special ti’ouble of any kind in Wellington, says the Post. Gf course, there were men who, when the licensee came round with “6 o’clock, gentlemen!” were loth to leave. But it was the same when the reminder was “10 o’clock, gentlemen!”; it would be the same if it were “12 o’clock, gentlemen!” or any hour, for that matter. All the afternoon the bars had been busy no unusual experience for a Saturday—and I here was no rush at the lasfhour. With few exceptions the doors of the hotels, except the private entrances, were closed by the last stroke of six, and in a very few minutes later the bars hud been cleared of customers. Policemen were making their rounds, a fexv minutes after the hour, and their appearance was generally sufficient to convince the last lingerer that he must obey the landlord’s request. When the hotels had finally closed one failed to notice in the streets much difference from any ordinary evening. Of drunkenness, even in a mild form, -there was practically none.

Perhaps the biggest disturbance —and this was only trifling —was the gathering of a small society of revellers outside one city hotel to groan for 6 o’clock closing, and for a minister of religion who happened to pass by on the other side. “Just like a Sunday night,” was the description applied by several pei'sons to the appearance of the town later in * the evening. This, however, is hardly correct,. There were cx’owds in the streets —promenading crowds, as on a Sunday evening, but picture shows were open and doing good business, and places of entertainment generally were crowded. The refreshment rooms held even larger throngs than usual. That many men in khaki were to be seen was due mainly to the fact that xxxore than usual were in the city,- having come hither- for the xfiilitax'y sports, not that the hotels were closed,

The change, of course, was made the subject, of much talk and merriment. Mrs Brown meeting Mrs Jones, would remark, “I see you’ve got your husband with you to-night” : —though probably Mr Jones had accompanied his wife and family to the town every Saturday evening from times unrecorded. To remark on the fact as unusual was merely Mrs Brown’s little joke. Similarly, men meeting friends with bags which held nothing more than two pounds of sausages and six collars would pretend a great curiosity as to the contents, and talk mysteriously of “droughts” and “Sunday supplies.” In some cases, of course, the contents were purchased from bottle.stores, which had done good business during the afternoon.