POLITICAL NOTES.

Waikato Argus, Volume V, Issue 317, 21 July 1898, Page 2

POLITICAL NOTES.

(BY TELEGRAPH— SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT) Wellington. Last Sight. THE LICENCING QUESTION.

A protracted sitting is expected tomorrow niglit over Mr Millar's Licensing Act Amendment Bill, and I understand that the committal of the Bill will not he blocked by Messrs Taylor, Smith and Co. ; hut they intend to fight every clause in Committee. If they should .succeed in making any serious amendments in the Bill, io is likely to he dropped for the session. The Bill is admitted Ly all but the extreme prohibitionists to be of a moderate character. It makes one important alteration in the present Liw by providing that if any breaches of the Act are committed, the licensee of a hotel should suffer and noc the house itself. This is obviously most reasonable, as it might happen that alterations to the extent of thousands of pounds might be made to a hotel, but iu the case of three convictions that house could Le closed up indefinitely instead of the licensee being punishtd for brerkiag the law. The Bill further proposes to throw upon the hotelkeeper the onus of proving that he had a reasonable excuse for not knowing a prohibited person. A SECRET DEPUTATION IN CONNECTION WITH THE LICENSING QUESTION. I may state that a rather mysterious meeting took place to-diy between the Premier and several representative brewers, at present in Wellington. The Press, I understand, was invited in the usual wav, but, on the reporters presenting themselves, they were informed that they could not remain in the room. In consequence of this secret conclave, the impression has got abroad that the Premier now intends to abandon the prohibitionists altogether, and openly advocate the claims of the liquor party. Mr Seddon is, no doubt, astute enough to see by the Bill introduced last week by Mr G. W, Smith, on behalf of the prohibition party and rejected by 31 to 13, that public feeling has apparently turned against the prohibitionists. I hear, however, that notwithstanding tht summary treatment Mr Smith's Bill received, the prohibitionists intend to run teetotal candidates for every seat in the colony at the next general election. HOSPITAL ENDOWNMENT. An interesting question was raised today by Mr Lang, member for W-nkato, who asked the Government if they will introduce the necessary legislation to make hospital endowments in the King Country before opening up that district for settlement. Mr Lang said he had already brought this question under the notice of the Minister, and he pointed out that the Waikato Hospital Board was more than £2OOO out of pocket through having to receive cases from Kotorua and other places into their hospital. He hoped the Government would take some steps in this matter, as it was oue of great hardship. Mr McKenzie replied that this was not the only pert of the colony where such a state of thinps existed. If the Government took the matter up they would, no doubt, be asked to assist many other places in the same way. He could not, therefore, give the lion, gentleman any encouragement in the direction asked for. MR PIRANI'S ILLNESS. Messrs G. W. Smith, McNab and Taylor have been to Palmerston North for the purpose of enquiring after Mr Pirani's condition. They found him greatly improved in health, and he expects to take his scat in the House on luesday next. THE LADIES' GALLERY. The Premier told the House this afternoon that when he visited the House of Commons last year he was so much struck with the contrast between the way the ladies in that chamber were treated and in the New Zealand House ot Representatives, that he had jome to tho conclusion that we in this Colony had the highest civilisation in the world. It may be explained that the -ladies gallery iu the House of Commons is completely screened off from the rest of the chamber. MISCELLANEOUS. It appears from the railway statement that excursionists to the number of 530,000 were carried on the railways of the colony last year, producing a revenue of £86,392, an increase over the •previous year of 73,290 excursionists and £17,337. The Minister for Education (Mr W. C. Walker) made a rather offensive reply yesterday to the Hon. L. Walker iu the Upper House, to the effect that the Legislative Council Reform Bill would be introduced when the Government thought prcper to bring it down. The number of passengers carried on the railways of the colony during the past year was 4,072,201 or 232,877 more than the year nrevious, and 5591 more season tickets were sold, and if to the number of passengers are added the estimated number of journeys travelled by season ticket-holders, it is calculated that over 7,000,000 pissengers used the State railway during the year.