1.—9.

74

[r. a. hall.

the Friday, and it is a day on which very little business is done there, whereas in other places they have been accustomed to give the half-holiday on Saturday, and I do not think they should be compelled to take another day objected to in the district. Mr. Hall says that if he has employees and they go away, he should be allowed the privilege of handing out goods to people who may have come long distances to obtain them. Many of these people are bushmen and gum-diggers, who come in on the Saturday to get their goods for the following week, and if he were compelled to close on that day, it would inflict a very great hardship on those men. With regard to blacksmiths, they do not as a rule employ assistants, but if they were not able to shoe on Saturday afternoon, the result might be that the traveller would have to wait for two or three days before he could get his horse shod. With regard to Marsden, there is a hardship in one man having to close on one day while just a short distance off another man is allowed to keep open because of the half-holiday being taken on different days. If they all closed on the Friday they would be all in the same position, and no hardship would be placed on any one. 181. Mr. Aitken (to Mr. Hall).] I want you to emphasize your desire to keep open so long as yov. give your assistants the half-holiday ?—I do not go quite so far as that. I want the privilege to open if I like. There might be people come along who desired to obtain goods, and it would be a hardship to the settlers even more than to the storekeepers if they were unable to get them. I know that there is a difference of one ; fourth in the takings of the storekeepers through closing on the Saturday. 182. The Chairman.] But supposing the holiday were fixed for Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday. or Thursday ?—So long as the assistant is not there, I think the storekeeper ought to be allowed to serve his customers. 183. Mr. Ell.] Have you a road district there ? —No. 184. What is the extent of the county—many miles ?—Yes; but I could not say what it is from memory. 185. Have you a township there ? —Yes, ours is a township. 186. It it under the Town Districts Act ?—No. 187. You have no town districts under the Act up there ? —No; the only local authority is the county. 188. And you desire that a smaller area should have governing-powers with regard to the houM of closing ?—Yes. It was Friday, and the Inspector came round and asked us what day we were going to take for the half-holiday, and we fixed our day. It was always fixed. 189. Mr. Bollard.] You say you are a butcher ? —Yes. 190. Are you satisfied with the hours fixed under the present Shops and Offices Act—to open at 8 o'clock and close at 6, except on Saturday ?—That does not apply to us. 191. There is power given under the present Act that if a majority decides it can be brought into force ?—-We are quite willing to be governed by the majority. 192. Could you carry on your business as a butcher if you were not allowed to open until 8 in the morning in the summer-time ?—lt would be rather arbitrary, and the people would find it so themselves very soon.

Wednesday, 12th July, 1905. A deputation representing the restaurant-keepers attended the Committee. The Chairman.] I understand you have come to give evidence with regard to the restaurants in connection with the Shops and Offices Bill. The Committee have suggested that you will probably ask for exemption under the Act, and while I do not want to limit anything you may wish to say to the Committee, I might say that the Committee quite understand the position you are in. If one of the deputation will make a statement, others may be heard if there is anything further to add. Arthur Henry Rogers examined. (No. 74.) 1. You are a Wellington restaurant-keeper ?—Yes, and we represent not only the restaurantkeepers of Wellington, but of Auckland, Christchurch, and Dunedin. 2. You have a communication from those people asking you to represent them ?—Yes. The reason why we ask for exemption is because the Act already assumes it, and gives us partial exemption. There are several clauses defining what shops should be exempt under certain conditions. We point out also that our employees are working under an award, and although the sittings of both the Conciliation Board and Arbitration Court were very lengthy when our case was under consideration, both the Board and the Court found it impossible to fix a day of so many hours for our employees, and fixed a week of so many hours, and provision for a certain amount of overtime to suit the requirements of certain branches of the trade. The requirements of the trade can not altogether be covered by legislation, for some of the shops open for breakfast and close early, while others open at 10 o'clock in the morning and keep open till midnight. The restaurant-keepers of Christchurch and Dunedin have no award, and consequently would be brought under the Act if total exemption were not granted to us. We have to cater for the public in the large centres, and our trade is spasmodic. We cannot tell when there may be a rush of people coming in in consequence of a train being late or a steamer coming in, or through a large meeting at the Opera House or the Town Hall, or at any of such places, and our employees have long periods of idleness between hours. I might say that the majority of our hands— especially in the female line—are recruited from domestic service, and they come to a restaurant in preference to working in private houses, because they consider the conditions superior. Hotels are exempt under the Act, and our hands do not work actually so long as similar hands in the hotels. The wages are provided for and our hands are protected by the award now in force. The award has been