IMAGINARY OFFENCES CREATED BY LAW.

Wairoa Bell, Volume IV, Issue 149, 10 June 1892, Page 2

IMAGINARY OFFENCES CREATED BY LAW.

[From The Aratafu Mutual Magazine]. Sir, — I think it may bo accepted a* a general axiom, that any law which punishes people for doing that which they do not fed to he a crime, which cannot be construed into an offence against anyone, is bad in principle. Gladstone laid down the principle that laws ought to be easy to obey.” Admitting these premises, it is hard to understand how such an act as the Slaughter house act. can be defended. This act makes it a punishable offence for a man, to kill one of his own sheep, or pigs on his own p’ace. for sale. Though he may kill it far away from other people, though no one could be offended in the slightest degree by the act , though it might be, and frequently is, very inconvenient to kill it elsewhere, yet for so doing- a man is liable to be prosecuted and branded as a lawbreaker. Surely there is no sense or reason in this. The act is supposed to be useful to prevent cruelty to animals, yet X have myself seen .sheep penned in a licensed slaughter house for three days without food or water, and cattle are frequently treated with gross cruelty. In fact it is hard to see how the inspector can prevent it. But in any case where gross cruelty to animals is brought under public notice, the ordinary law is amply sufficient to punish. Again the act is thought to be useful to prevent a public nuisance. But here again the Police Offences Act is quite sufficient to protect the public. Besides under the present law I have known a slaughterhouse left in a filthy condition, so that the owners have been obliged to close it, and this near to the inspector’s residence. The act is supposed to be useful in preventing cattle stealing, but I have myself had cattle taken and killed in a licensed slaughter house and could get no redress. Ido not know of a single instance where the act has sheeted home a charge of cattlo stealing. The whole act is simply a piece of unnecessary and vexatious legislation. We are getting too many laws and the County Council are very ill advised in attempting to enforce them. They have recently adopted a cumbrous lot of regulations respecting the width of tires used on public roads, which will be exceedingly difficult to enforce, and which seem to be quite unnecessary. And now they are threatening with vengeance any person, who allows any water to flow from his land on to a road, or,into a ditch or drain. Petty little tyrannies of this sort will surely help to bring the laws into discredit - ■ The few pounds of revenue they may bring the Council are not worth considering. It is like an old hen. scratching the ground with prodigous labour for a few grains of corn.—l am etc. Radical.