MR. FOX ON THE LICENSING BILL.

Waikato Times, Volume IV, Issue 242, 27 November 1873, Page 2

MR. FOX ON THE LICENSING BILL.

In his address to fhe people Mr Fox says :—": — " There are twoways in which it is proposed to give a permissive veso, r or, atit was well designed by Mr Gladstone, a local option.fto thepeople. The first, and in my opinion the most efficient, ii that known as Sir Wilfrid Lawsons plan. By this it itproposed that two-thirds of the ratepayers in a district may,, by a vote, declare that the Permissive Bill shall be in opeA ration, and after that no alcoholic liquors may be sold in sucl^ district. If so carried, no attempt to make a change can bemade for three years, when the question may be tried again. . Another form of giving the popular veto is that known in. this colony as the Auckland clause. It gives totwo-thirds-of the adult male and female residents the power of prohibit* ing, by a signed memorial, the issue of any particular license, and, of course, they can if they please prohibit all licenses at once, just as Sir Wilfrid Lawsons clauses enablethem to do. They mar put down a single existing publiohouse, or put down all, or prohibit any new license, juit asthey please. The absolute power is in the hands of the twothirds, and if they so decide, the Licensing Bench ennnot issue & license to the house or houses agninst which thepublic will pronounces. My bill originally contained the clauses known as Sir WilfridLawson's. Ky aa amendment n ado in thi House of Kepresentatives, the Auolcland> clausewas inserted in the earlier part of the bill, and on its beings carried by a large majority, I threw over the rest of the bill,, including Sir Wilfrid's clauses, in order to secure what was- a so great a step gained. There were other good clauses in the ' bill which I had to sacrifice, especially the Ohio clnuse.-whicn, makes a publican responsible for deaths and ruin inflicttt^ tf by his trade ; but to have persevered late in the session in the attempt to carry more, would almost to a certainty harelost what was already gained. I think you will agree that I exercised a wise discretion. There is also a considerable improvement made possible by the Act in the constitution of the Licensing Bench. You know that it is under the protecting wing of Licensing Benches, consisting of unpaid Justices of the Pen'-e, that all the immense evil has grown up, and that drinking houses have been scattered broadcast through the land. The Justices of the Peace had proved their unfitness to be entrusted with the power of granting licenses or taking them away. My bill, as introduced, proposed to give to the ratepayers the power of electing a licensing board in each district. I believe in trusting ttijp people willi the management of their local affairs. The opponents of the bill, however, did not; and this part of the bill, afW a hard fight, failed to pass. It was, however, enacted tJP; the Licensing Court of each district shall consist of a Resident Magistrate and such other persons as the Governor may appoint. If the Government takes care not to appoint the class which hitherto has done the mischief, torn* improvement mny take place. But I am little hopeful of any improvement till the whole power of regulating the liquor traffic in all its branches is placed in the hands of the people. From the description I lihvo above given you will see that the people of New Zealand have now, practically to the fullest extent, though not perhaps in the most convenient form, the power of freeing the colony from the intolerable bondage of the public house. It will, however, depend on their voluntary action, and will involve very considerable labor and somo expense wherever any section of the people determine to shake off their shackles. But they can do it 4 if they will.

A paper tells an amusing story of an old lady — n strenuous advocate of the rights of women as interpreted by the leaders of the rights party — who was recently a visitor at the Isle of Sboals. When she left, she was in Ihe way. of being assisted from the row boat to the steamer by A Lowell gentleman, when her foot flipped, and in sho went up to the neck in the buuy deep, cariyiug ber faithful assistant part way vith her. 'I he latter, however, with great difficulty, held fast to the old lady with one band ;md to the ste.ujier with the other, his feet dangling in the water, and just keeping the J&dy's head above the surface, until srveial men got bold of them, and pulled them on deck. The steamer was ciouded with ladies and gentlemen, among vibom there was considerable flight for a Mlule, for the woman and her assistant were for •> t,me in considerable damper. 'I he old lady behave<Un i the most cool and mavful manner duiing the si4K. When she was fairly out on deck, and stood there calmJ and unmoved, with the briny water diippiag from be.rl dress and the kind ladies all around offering ber sympathy^ nnd assistance, the iiiat worda the spoke were—'* Welij, this is the Hist aigmuunt lever met with that has at all shaken my women's rights notions. If there had been nobody but women netr£l should J most certainly hava been drowned,"