A.—6b.

In " The Electoral Act, 1905," the provisions respecting election petitions are confused with those respecting corrupt and illegal practices: we have rearranged them in proper form. ; Section 218 of " The Electoral Act, 1905," fixes a time limitation on proceedings to recover " any fine hereby imposed." The language is wide enough to cover the whole Act. This is a mistake. The section is taken from section 22 of "The Corrupt Practices Prevention Act, 1881," and applies only to fines under that Act. We have therefore altered the words to " imposed by this Part of this Act " (section 232 of the Consolidation Act). Licensing. In section 3, which contains a series of exceptions from the operation of the Licensing Act, we have inserted the governing words "except as expressly provided in this Act" ; our purpose being to save the various statutory amendments made by legislation subsequent to the Act of 1881. ' Section 52 of the Act of 1881 (Fresh licensing poll) is dropped as obsolete. This was the opinion of the majority of the Judges in the Newtown licensing case. The Act of 1894 provides, in section 16, for a fresh poll where a prior poll has been declared void (section 37 of the Consolidation Act). Section 18 of the Alcoholic Liquors Sale Control Act of 1895 provided that no new bottle license should be granted after the commencement of the Act, and that all such licenses then in force should continue in force until their expiry on the 30th June then next ensuing. We have therefore dropped " bottle licenses " from section 73 of the Consolidation Act, which sets out what licenses maybe granted. It is, however, not quite clear what effect the above-mentioned section 18 had on then existing bottle licenses so far as concerns their renewal, and we understand that renewals are being granted. To preserve the legal position, we have in section 1, (2) (6), made a special reference to bottle licenses. Section 127 of the Consolidation Act deals in subsection (5) with the removal of New Zealand wine licenses. The reason is curious. The Act of 1881 (section 97) as amended by section 22, (4), of the Act of 1895 dealt with all removals except in the case of packet, wholesale, and conditional licenses—i.e., with publican's, accommodation, and New Zealand wine licenses, and fixed the limits of removal These limits were altered in the case of publican's and accommodation licenses by section 31 of the Act of 1904. Thus the original limits remained in the case of New Zealand wine licenses, and we have accordingly so provided m subsection (5) of section 127. This may not have been the intention of Parliament, but we did not feel justified in altering the law. Section 149 of the Act of 1881 and section 44 of the Act of 1904 overlap and conflict to some extent, but on full consideration we decided to let them stand (sections 184 and 185 of the Consolidation Act), leaving it to the Legislature to deal with the matter. Section 149 makes it an offence for any innkeeper to suffer any unlawful game to be carried on on his premises. " Innkeeper "is defined to mean the holder of a publican's or accommodation license. Section 44 makes it an offence for any licensee to permit or connive at gambling or the playing of any unlawful game on his licensed premises. " Licensee " is defined to mean the holder of any license under the Licensing Act. The sections impose different penalties. The provisions as to indorsement of licenses have been recast so as to state the law in simple form (sections 246 to 251 of the Consolidation Act). The various amendments made from time to time had resulted m much entanglero.6iit Sections 206 and 207 of the Act of 1881 and section 22, (7), of the Act of 1895 (Disqualification of persons and premises) are dropped as being superseded by section 35 of the Act of 1904 (section 248 of the Consolidation Act). Under section 229, (2), of the Act of 1881, a club must consist of at least twenty members. Under paragraph (d) of the same section any number of persons not less than ten, who propose to establish a new club, may apply for a provisional charter, and after the lapse of a year may obtain a permanent charter, if, inter aha, the number of members is not less than twenty.

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