THE Manawatu Times. WEDNESDAY, JULY 16, 1879. VEXATIOUS LEGISLATION.

Manawatu Times, Volume III, Issue 57, 16 July 1879, Page 2

THE Manawatu Times.

WEDNESDAY, JULY 16, 1879. VEXATIOUS LEGISLATION.

" irvr&m an thln«a. and a irtp M kik foiUag Hi* d«w apcai »he»sht. prod**** thutwUaknuUm ttMMfMls, perkiijw alUkoma kkiaJk."

The recent prosecution under tlie Armi A<*t, and the instructions issued to tho ,police, haTe. caused a panic amongst the licensed dealers. There is a flatter of excitement amongst the fraternity, and a most laudable desire has been exhibited to matter tho intricacies of a place of legislation which «eems to hare been •nacted for no other purpose than to puzzle and perplex. It hai been freely conceded upon all sides that for stringency the Arms Act take* precedence of all other measure* on the Statute Book ; but this admitted stringency pal«s into utter k insijjnificanoe wjionsput sid« by side with the gross absurdity of some of its ! prcTisions. Let u« giy« on,e of the many instances. The twenty -third clause of the Arms Act Amendment, 1869, which webelieTe we are correct m saying is the t'ery latest legislation on the matter, provides that ilt ihall b» lawful for any one or more Justices of tho Peace to grant to any person desirous of buying gunpowder for the purpose of 'blasting or mining, a certificate authorising such person to buy any quantity of gunpowder to be. specified m such certificate to be applied to such purpose upon being satisfied that such gunpowder is wanted for such purpose, and that the applioant is m his on their juderment a fit person to be entrusted therewith. Stripped of the superfluous legal verbiage, that clause, to "the comprehension of the lay reader, would mean — that any Justice has the power to give authority to a licensed dealer to tell blasting powder, provided he is satisfied of the b.o7ijfi fides of the purchaser, and the inte^dekl jjse. Such, however," appears jiQt.i« be,,th.e.case, and the police have received instructions that other steps are necessary. According to, the new ukase, when application is ma.de by a settler for blasting powder, the dealer, has to forward his name either to Wanganui or Wellington, stating the of powder required* and a shilling for the4icense. This step is taken, as a presumed caution against the amniunition getting into the hands of disaffected persons ; but we would ask m the name of common sense by what stretchy of imagination it can be made out so. . .Tlie dealer intimates that P\aul Jones" wants a quantity of powder, caps, and shot, and the Customs authorities m either Wanganui or Wellington, as the case may be, return a permit for the sale, although as far as they; may know j?^ULi Jones, may be one of Te TPhi^i'S emissaries, and may have travelled from town to town making similar application. How, we ask, is this an improvement upon the. 'clause'bf. tlie Statute quoted, which enjoined upon the Justice signing the certificate that the purchaser of the powder " was a fit person to bo trusted therewith?" We will bring tlis matter home, and take the experiences of, one of our local dealers, Mr. Ferguson, to sjibw: not .only the absurdity, but also , the" positive jpjustiee and. tyranny; of the n*w regulations- Wishing to conform to the utmost of his power to the ,ins^ruo.tions issued Jry the police, during the past ' weet Mf/ despatched the following letter to Mr. Lttndoni — ■ Palmerston North, 9tli Jnly, 1879. To the Collector of Oustbmsi, Wan^anui. Sib,— Would you please senrl me lil cense3 'to sell powder, &!•., a3 noted an the ; ot her, side. .• The. Constable informs me that •the old style of selling on J;P 's recofnmehdatipn will not do now, and 'fchaVthe proper iplace Js toiapjjly, ,ta you. for, the. license. TTouV k'uid ' attention to the abora will .oblige. P. 0.0. enclosed for seven shillingß to pay for above. . L^ Your3 .truly, . „.. „. Albxa^idbb Fbbghtsok. On the p|her sideio.f tit* letter the list was sent, with the quantities arid qualities of ammunition required, but instead of the dosired permission, the .following memo, was returned :— rMr. Ebrgusov —Not having been licensed by me, you will have to apply to Wellin g t«n.--i).. Ltjndok. v # - iFroro this it will be seen that the Oustoms authorities endorse the eopreotnesa of the Constable that Clause 23 has become obsolete, . and that consequently there are certain sections of the Act which liave become a dead letter. We would, ask by whose authority has it become so ? and particularly why mch. .an insane change has been effected ? Doc? it nat stand to reason that the magistrate who is bound by his oath of oflife will c^rry out the provision which makes it compulsory uprnj him to be L satisfied of the buyer's lo'na fides far more strictly. than au official a hundred miles away, who has not the remotest idea of the personality of the purchaser —whether Maori or White— and who never has seen, or perhaps never will gee him, ? B.itf fe§ nevr. re^lati^ be-

side entirely defeating the specific object for which the Act was framed, is a '"in&st uiicalled-for and vexatious ' g^umblingiblock to the district. In a bu.gh country like Manawatu, settlers aril constantly using blasting powder, and; the consequence is that residents living online Fitzherbert side lose the best ptrfc/bf the .day coming into town ; :Jhejr: names have to be forwarded to^ and taking into account. the** orthodox circumlocution of such offices, .a.week must expire before tho order is fulfilled.