The Temuka Leader SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 1882. THE ADMINISTRATION OF JUSTICE.

Temuka Leader, Issue 1032, 18 November 1882, Page 2

The Temuka Leader SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 1882. THE ADMINISTRATION OF JUSTICE.

The N.Z. Times says :—“ According to Mr Ilarcastle’s reading of the law, there , is nothing in the Licensing Act to prevent a publican ‘ shouting’ for his friends on Sunday, On the morning of the 14th instant, the wife of Mr T. J. Glew, landlord of the Crown Hotel, presented her husband with a son, and the happy father was standing at the hotel door, probably for the purpose of receiving the congratulations of his friends, when a couple of old acquaintances came along. He naturally asked them to step inside and take a drink, and one partook of a little rum, while the other ordered shandygaff. While they were enjoying their liquor, Constables Harnett and Carroll stepped in, the result being that the hospitable landlord was summoned on a charge of selling liquor on Sunday. The Resident Magistrate dismissed the case, as it had not been proved that the defendant had sold the liquor.’’ If Mr Glew had done the same thing in South Canterbury, he would have been fined £5 and his conviction endorsed on his license. The case in which Mr Peter Cuba was fined recently is on all fours with this. In one ease the landlord myited ids friends (o ('rink in his house on Sunday hi honor of an increase in his family, and in the second place a landlord gave? a few friends adrinkin his house after hours, in honor of an old friend who was leaving the town next morning. Of the two offences we think that to open an hotel on Sunday is far more serious than to open it at about 11 o’clock at night, hut the law in Wellington lets off the publican scot free, and the law in Teruuka mulcts him in a fine of £5, and the conviction is recorded on his license. In (he same way when the law was in a state of transition and there were no properly constituted authorities appointed to administer it, the police weie told not to interfere with persons having unlicensed booths at the Wellington races. The owners of these booths applied in the usual way for licenses, but the power (o grant them ( had passed out of the hands of the ( former tribunal, and the Licensing i

Committee liad not yet commenced its duties so there was no legally constituted authority in existence that could grant licenses. Under these circumstances the authorities ordered the police not to interfere with them. Mr Tombs, of the Arowhenua Hotel, wanted an extension of his license just aboutthesame time but as in the case of the booth holders of Wellington. There was no one to grant the license, and so Mr Tombs kept his house open after hours. He was first tried by two Justices of the Peace, who disagreed, and then that highly intellectual judicial functionary the Resident Magistrate was called in, with the result that Air Tombs was fined. Last Tuesday, in Timaru, a Maori named Kotopahi was brought up charged with stealing a watch. It appeared that he had only come out of prison a few wee'-s before, after having done 12 months for a similar offence. It is usual to make the penalty heavier when a previous conviction has been recorded against the offender, but in this case the very opposite course was adopted, and the offender was sentenced only to six months’ imprisonment. Had Kotepahi been committed for trial, as he certainly ought to have been, Judge Johnston would have given him three years. And certainly the offender in this case deserved it. Twelve months’ prison life had made no change on Liim ; as soon as he was let loose he commenced his old games again, but instead ,of shutting him up, so as to prevent him from preying upon society, he is let off with a comparatively light sentence ot six months. At this rate he will get only three months for the next watch he steals, and probably the Court will be reducing the penalty till it takes into its wise and learned head to pay him for stealing them. We should not be surprised at any eccentricity being indulged iu our Courts of Justice now. The state of affairs is certainly most unsatisfactory, and it is time that attention was directed to it.