A PLEA FOR THE CABMEN.

Auckland Star, Volume XXIX, Issue 303, 23 December 1898, Page 2

A PLEA FOR THE CABMEN.

(To the Editor.)

Sir.—The fiat that has gone forth that no less than twenty-one of the cabdrivers are to lose, their licenses, and consequently their means of livelihood, has created no little consternation among the men, and it is not to be wondered at. « After the game of see-saw which has been going on between the City Council And the police authorities as. to who should own up to the responsibility of the issuing of drivers' licenses, it has in the long run been put on the shoulders of the Inspector of Police. . and he has celebrated the honour conferred upon him by at once recommending that twenty-one men shall be thrown out of employment. We are wout to hear of such snivelling flapdoodle as British fairplay, and so on. What have we to say to a case of this character where men are judged, condemned and ostracised without being allowed to say a word in their defence? To me this action appears to be a most cruel and unfair injustice. Admitting there are engaged in cab driving men who should not hold licenses on account of bad behaviour, the same thing might be said of almost every other calling or j profession in existence—there are j some rough diamonds in them all: but ! is this a sound reason why a whole- ! sale and arbitrary step such as that I recommended by the Inspector of i Police should be given effect to with- j out the slightest inquiry into the facts j which have led up to it? Certainly not. ;

A man is innocent until he is proved guilty, and he has every right in a free country such as ours is to have at least the charges against him placed in evidence with a view of having a c.hMtee of defending himself.

I am not in a position to vouch for the characters of all the men who are marked; but 1 can say there is one at least who cannot by any stretch of Gie imagination be termed a bad character, who will if the recommendation of the Inspector of carried out. suffer a gross injustice. This man unfortunately got mixed up in. the late police episode in Hobsonstreet, but he came out of the case

wi.il-.oul a stain on his character, and there is not a single conviction against him. What has this man done that be should have his living practically snatched away from him? Vie is a steady, hard working man. with the full confidence and respect of his employers and fellow drivers, and to place it in the hands of any one man to deprive another of the means of providing for himself, and may be a family, without some inquiry into the circumstances, as is the case here, seems to be a most unwarrantable and arbitrary proceeding to say the least.

" The e-filinc- 0 f n cabman at best is a hard one. They should claim the sympathies and fellow feeling of all sections of the community, for they labour under conditions that showdife ' in anything but its brightest aspects. ' Moreover, they are beset by by-laws and regulations of n most irritabl--nature: indeed, there is no cainsayinr the fact that Ihe cab drivers and pub licans of Auckland take the bun for being' the best harassed sections of the people. Therefore. I trust that, in the effort, to purify."the ranks of the cabmen due consideration will be given to the claims of fairplay. and j that an endeavour will be made to temper justice with merc V.—l at n etc -> -..- . ... JAS. REGAN. ' i