URGENT PRESCRIPTIONS.

Auckland Star, Volume XLVII, Issue 67, 18 March 1916, Page 6

URGENT PRESCRIPTIONS.

MAT BE SUPPLIED AFTER HOURS. AN IMPORTANT DECISION. A question of considerable importance to chemists and the public generally) was decided this morning at the Magistrate's Court by Mr. C. C. Kettle,. S.JH., namely, that where there is no all-night pharmacy, any chemist may supply urgent prescriptions or surgical appliances after the hour fixed by requisition for closing the shops at night. Action was taken against Mr. T. W. Irwin, chemist, for whom, at the hearing, Mr. H. H. Ostler appeared, and pleaded not guilty to a charge" preferred by the Inspector of Factories that defendant had committed a breach of the Act by supplying medicine after the hour at which chemists' shops require to be closed.

His Worship said the information charged the defendant with having failed to close his shop on the evening ol February 14th, in accordance with the requisition under section 25 of the Shops and Offices Act, 1908, and fixing the dosing hours of chemists' shops in the City of Auckland and gazetted on November 25th, 1915. The facts were not disputed. Defendant admitted that on the evening in question, after S p.m., he supplied medicine according to a prescription from Dr. Stride marked "Urgent." The Inspector of Factories admitted that the medicine was urgently needed, but contended that because the requisition did not provide for the exemption therefrom of any specified chemist's shop or shops for the purpose only of the sale of medicines and surgical appliances urgently needed, theretore that sub-sec-tion 4 of section 3 of the Act of 1908 was not applicable, and that the defendant and all other chemists had no right to supply medicine after hours, although it was urgently needed. That sub-eectiou provided, "notwithstanding anything in this or »ny other Act, it shall not be unlawful for any chemist to supply at any time medicine or surgical appliances urgently required. Mr. Kettle said that was a distinct pronouncement that all chemists were entitled to supply medicine and surgical appliances urgently required. The Act did provide for exemptions for any chemist chop or shops to supply all night, but in that respect, word used was "may," and not "shall," therefore it was not mandatory. If there hafl been exempted shops, it would prohibit any other within a radius of two miles from supplying medicine after hours, but in Auckland there were no such exempted shops. "It is, in my opinion," said his Worship, "quite clear that the Inspector's contention cannot be sustained. There are no chemists' shops exempted from the requisition under section 3 of the Act of 1915, and therefore all chemists in the City of Auckland are entiled to supply at any time medicine or surgical' appliances urgently required. In my opftion, there was no justification whatever for the prosecution, and the information is therefore dismissed, with £2 2/ coste.

Mr. \V. Newton represented the Department of Labour, and Mr. C. J Tunks. instructed by Mr. Ostler, appeared for the defendant.