LICENSING LAW.

Taihape Daily Times, 7 September 1918, Page 7

LICENSING LAW.

AN INTERESTING POINT. WHAT IS A PUBLIC BA3? CHRISTCHURCH, Sept 5. An interesting point as to the meaning of "Public Bar," and as to the number of bars allowed on licensed premises, was raised at a meeting of the Christchurch Licensing Committee to-day. The first case was that of F. M. Brewitt, who applied for a renewal of the license for the United Service Hotel. This application was adjourned from the last annual meeting because it was stated that the hotel had more than one public bar. The chairman, Mr. McCarthy, S.M., said he had visited the hotel, and was satisfied that according to the full court decision there were four bars on the premises. The chairman also quoted the section of the Act which said that no bar shall be opened cused after the publican's license has been granted except the one mentioned in the license. If extra bars were opened he publican would be deemed to sell liquor without a license. THe chairman said that the committee had no jurisdiction over private bars, but, because a bar was marked "private," it did not necessarily mean it was a "private bar" according to the Act, which defined a public bar or bar to be any room or passage on any licensed premises that opened immediately to any street, highway, public place, or public thoroughfare. The magistrate said this matter had not been fully considered by any licensing committee in New Zealand. The committee did not wish to differentiate in this case, and would adjourn the whole question of extra bars until the next meeting. In the case of the Dominion Hotel (T. J. Sutton), the application was adjourned from the las* annual meeting on the same grounds as the United Service, namely that or having more than one bar. In this case the application was also granted, the question of the number of bars to be decided at the next annual meeting.