The Bruce Herald. "Nemo me Impune Lacssit." TOKOMAIRIRO, FEBRUARY 7, 1872.

Bruce Herald, Volume VI, Issue 404, 7 February 1872, Page 6

The Bruce Herald. "Nemo me Impune Lacssit." TOKOMAIRIRO, FEBRUARY 7, 1872.

The Licensing 1 Act introduced (>y Mr Creigiiion, of Auckland, into the General Assembly las>t session contained some very important provisions) and as it is more than probable that it will be again introduced next session we give a short resume of its principal provisions, with the view of stimulating the expression of a health} public opinion. It is a maiter o"pgreat regret to ns that tbe public seem so 'much inclined to leave everything to their representatives, without availing themselves of the opportunities afforded of discussing l.jrge and impor ant questions through the medium of the columns of the Press ; tins i> not as it ought to be. After providing for the repeal of all existing Acts and securing exiting rights duiirij* 1 their currency, the Act referred (o, made provision for the proclamation ot licensed districts, j Instead of leaving the granting of licenses to a bench of Justices, as at present, it proposed to throw the entire onus and re-

sponsibility of granting licp.nsfts and carrying out of the general provisions of th Act upon the Resident Magistrate. W heartily agree with the framer of the Ac in this— -in matter? of this kind w. thoroughly approve of individual re*pons' bility, arid we' have no doubt every honest upright, mugistrate would much' prefer tha f it should be so. In all cases where thesis divided responsibility, it is always th»< unprincipled aud unscrupulous that, i" any unpleasant matter of duty that has to be performed, endeavor to shift the burden or odium on to the shoulders of their coadjutators. Responsibility limited to the individual, together with a good healthy expression of public opinion, aif>>rds the best security for {lie 'honest and faithful performance of dufy. It was proposed that alcoholic liquors should not be sold without a license, and licenses to be limited to three classes— via!., wholesale license, publican s license, and packet license ; the first limning the minimum quantity to be sold to two gallons, not to be drunk on the .premises ; the second, authorising the sale of alcoholic liquors in any quantity, and the third for the sale vi the same on board of steamers or other passenger vessel ; publicans not to have more than one bar opening to a public road or srreet, or private vrny. The Act provided that the R.M. should fix a day for hearing applications, such day to be the third Tuesday of April, or some day as soon after as convenient, and all applicants to appear per.-onally, and not by agent or solicitor. The following is a most important provision proposed in the new Act:—

Clause 23. — "No certificate shall be granted unless the applicant for the same shall produce to the Resident Magistrate, at the sitting of the Court, a memorial in favor of the same, signed by at lea3t one-third of the residents in such district who shall be entitled to vote under the prohibitory clauses of this Act The genuineness of such signatures to be verified on oath before the Resident Magistrate by the person or persons in whose presence the sama may have been written."

On hearing applications, reports, and objections, the magistrate to decide on all such. The next most important provisions of the Act are what are termed the *' Prohibitory Clauses." It was proposed to provide that it shall be lawful for twenty or more persons entitled to vote to require the magistrate to take the vote of the district as to whether the prohibitory clause* *hnll he put into operation, and directs how the opinion of the district is to be arrived at- Clause 36 provided for thft magistrate declaring the result of the voting, and requiring 1 that not less than two-thirds shall be in favor before bringinoprohibitory clauses into operation. In the event of the Act bein^ adopted by any district, such adoption was not to be a'tere.d, as lon»- as the Act, was not repealed, uutil after the expiry of three years, when a new vote may be taken on i he request ol fifty persons resident in the district, and after the adoption, no licenses or renewal of licenses to be granted for the sale or disposal of alcoholic liq-ior. Another important provision embodied in the Act was to the effect —

Clause 62. — "No holder of any license \mder this Act shall in or upon his vessel house or premises or any of the appurtenances thereto supply or give or permit or suffer to be supplied or given any alcoholic liquors to any person any of wliosa faculties whether mental or physical are affected by alcoholic liquors. Tt shall not be necessary to prove that the person supplying such liquors did so knowingly if the fact of the person receiving the same being under such influence be proved."

Clause 74 declared the fact of delivery to be sufficient prima facie evidence of sale, po as to support a conviction unless proved to the contrary. In oases of conviction for drunkenness, the lowest penalty whs proposed to he fixed at ten shillings, and the highest at forty shillings, and in the event of being- thrice convicted within 3 months, the party to be dealt with as an habitual drunkard, and be held as having earned that title for one year, the penalty brin^r limited to imprisonment with hard labor for a term not exceeding seven days Onanv person being convicted as an habitual drunkard, the police would be required to furnish the names of such yjerson ro all holders of licenses, and any licensee supplying liquor, or permitting or suffering it 'o be"supplied to such habitual drunkard, to be liable to a penalty not exceeding" five pounds for each o&<nce and nny licensee being thrice convicted to forfeit hi* license and be thereafter incipable of bein-- licensed. Clause 79 provided as fcjllows : —

' E^ery husband wife widow child orphan guardian employer or other person who shall be injured in person property or means of support by any intoxicated person or in consequence of the intoxication habitual or otherwise of any person shall have a right of action against the person who may have sold liquor to the person by whose act Jthe plaintiff shall have been Hnjured under the influence of which liquor the iujury may .reasonably be presumed to have been inflicted and may sue for damages in respect thereof in any Csmrt of competent jurisdiction. Any judgment for damages in such action against the "keeper of any licensed publichouse shall be a lien on the house in which the liquor was sold and may be levied thereon by sale or otherwise or an order of the Court in which such damages were recovered." Most salutary provisions were those rejrardinjr 'lie adulteration of liquors clause 80 provided—

" Every person who mixes or causes to be mixed with any liquor sold or exposed for sale by him or kept in any licensed house or premises any of the substances mentioned in Scheduled, to the Act or any other substance injurious to the health, or who" sells or exposes for sale any .liquor mixed with au«h substances or who.baing a licensod vendor of alcoholic liquora has in his possession any of th.c said substances shall be liable in the discretion of the Court to a penalty of not less than ten pounds nor more than twenty pounds for the first offence, for a second or third not less than twenty pounds or more than one hundred pojjnds or to imprisonment in each case for a period not exoeeding three months, and ia casa of a third

•.onviction shall forfeit his license and be ncapable afterwards of holding one . Schedule K. — C icoiilus Indicns, Fab% \rabica, Digitalis or ENix^love, 0 »pparas. ov uiy other metallic or mineral p usrm, Hirts10m Shavings, Henbane, or Aconite ; Jalao *, Lime ; tlia sub3tince^ knnvn among piv»l'ijan3 as " Mlultum;" Nutgalls ; Nux Vomica, or Strychnine ; O^iurn, in any ;form ; Oil of Vitrial ; Potass ; Quissia ; Tobacco ; Wormwood ; Yew Tops ; and any other subtances capable of being used for adulteration injurious to human health.

And the succoediag clause was to the effect that, in the event of a conviction, the fact and cause of conviction should be printed on a large placard, and affixftd and main* rained on one or more conspicuous places of the premises.

Such are some of the roosl important alterations and additions contemplated, and as il is a matter of purely public policy, it would be well that public opinion should be "Well ventilated on the question* We have no hesitation in expressing our conviction, that at lea<t some of the provisions would be oF a most, salutary and beneficial character. We cordially invite discussion of the principles embodied in the proposed measure.