EARLY CLOSING.

Taranaki Daily News, 10 March 1916, Page 5

EARLY CLOSING.

AND WET CANTEEN,? MR. MASSEY ON THE QUESTIONS. By Telegraph.—Press Association. _ Wellington, Last Night, Replying to a Methodist Conference deputation which asked that New Zealand hotels lie closed at six o'clock that "shouting" be prohibited, and that no wet canteens bo established i«T camps, Mr. Massey said: "I don't think the proposal to establish a wet canteen will ever take legislative shape in this Parliament, even if it could be secured by regulation. I don't think there is a chance of it. As to the other.two points—early closing and anti-shouting —these must come, before Parliament before anything can be done. It is quite likely that the House will.meet earlier than usual this year, but even that depends on other circumstances which I cannot make public but I shall be in a position before the House meets to tell whether these proposals will be submitted to Parliament this session. I have heard another report from the Police Department upon this suggestion. The report is not as satisfactory as I should like. It says that while there are a number of hotel keepers anxious to prevent drunkenness among soldiers and civilians, there is a proportion who, if they do not encourage drunkenness, wink at it. lam very strongly opposed to anything of that sort. I think that an hotelkeeper who permits drunkenness in his house, or even the bar atteadaat, should be given a punishment he would remember for a long time. I was very pleased to hear the deputation say they were not prepared to advocate preference against osldiers, for if we are going to stop shouting for ■oldiers, then we must stop shouting for civilians, and if we are going to close hotels early for soldiers then we must close hotels early for civilians."