THE Evening Star. PUBLISHED DAILY AT FOUR O'CLOCK P.M. Resurrexi. FRIDAY, JANUARY 5, 1877.

Thames Star, Volume VII, Issue 2496, 5 January 1877, Page 2

THE Evening Star. PUBLISHED DAILY AT FOUR O'CLOCK P.M. Resurrexi. FRIDAY, JANUARY 5, 1877.

A question was brought by the Town Clerk last night before the notice of the Borough Council which is briefly referred to elsewhere. The question was what was to be done regarding the 323 rd section of the Municipal Corporations Act. As the public generally may not have paid much attention to this section, even if they have studied the Act at all, it may be as well to make some comments on the same, j By this Act it is provided that no building or enclosure situate within the Borough shall be used for public mee'ings, or as a theatre, music hall, or any " public performances or amusements whatever," except under certain conditions. The first of these is that the owner or occupier of the building must apply to the Council for a license, and state where the building is, of what kind it is, and for what purpose it is to be used. Next a competent person appointed by the Council, a surveyor or otherwise, is to inspect the building required to be licensed, and to give a written certificate that the building is a secure one and suitable for the purpose ; that it has sufficient means of ventilation, and also of " ingress and egress in case of fire." Why means of ingress should be needed in case of fire is not at first sight apparent. Besides this, if the Borough is supplied with water by means of waterworks, the surveyor must see that a sufficient supply is laid on, and also proper appliances for using the same. The license is to be issued under the hand of the Borough Council or the Town Clerk, and is to remain valid for one year, and the building is to be used for the purpose stated in the application. It may be presumed therefore that any one applying for a license for a building to be used as a theatre, say such as the Academy of Music, would not be allowed to use the same—unless he had before applied for leave to do so—for the purpose of holding a tea-meeting, soiree, ball, or any other of those uses to which such places are very often put, under the penalty of incurring a fine of twenty pounds, that being the sum at which such offence is valued. So that if anxious to use his hall, theatre, or whatever it may be, on any or every occasion for which he may be able to let it on hire, the owner or occupier must send in an application stating every conceivable use to which the building or enclosure may be put. The lists furnished by those who would do this would necessarily be long, and it would be rather comical to read that a license was required for one gentleman or another to speak on a certain occasion. However, we certainly do not think that this is the meaning of the Act, for though ,it may say that it is necessary that the purpose be stated in the application made, yet in parliamentary language thesiingular is made to include the plural, and probably thg^pirit of the law will be carried out by^eachi public buildiDg or enclosure being licensed. It will be observed by those who read the Act that there is a foot-note appended, which makes the word building include any enclosed ground or premises open for i public amusement. The amount to be paid for the license required is left to the Council, and as regards the Thames, will probably be- fixed after their next fortnightly meeting.