THE LICENSING ACT.

Press, Volume LII, Issue 9176, 6 August 1895, Page 6

THE LICENSING ACT.

♦ —-—■ At Kaiapoi, yesterday, before Messrs H. S. Wunlell, S.M., and H. Blackwell, J.P., Henry Smith, of the Belfast Hotel, was charge;! with selliog whiskey to H. Henry on Jnlv 23r.1, the person suppiitvl being in a state of intoxication. x \lr Fißher appeared tor defendant. The defendant, who did not produce his license as required by summons, promised to put it in before the case was decided. P. Ryan stated thai Henry was at the Papanui Hotel on the 23rd, about 2 p.m. The landlord refused to supply him. At the next hotel, the Sawyer 3' Arms, witness gave Henry a glass of whiskey and water. When witness left Henry, it was near MnlhollandV on the North road, ami Henry w.is going North. Henry drove all right. He had a fair drop of drink ana seemed to roll about a bit with the motion of the trap. When Henry left the Papanui Hotel he had s-is-ns of drink on him. Henry did not complain of any accident having happened to him. , To Mr Fisher—Henry said he stayed I the previous night at the Papanui Hotel. Witness lirst suspected Henry was in drink when Mr Poff, at tiic Papanui Hotel, told him to go home. Henry was able to drive. Witness' attention was particularly drawn to Henry. No one would have known he was drinking. T» the S.M.—Henry was the worse for drink, and could not have driven a younger and j more sprightly horse. ' F. Coombes, coaciibuilder, Belfast, stated on the date in question he saw a man driving past between 2 and 3 p.m., who ap- | peared to be in,an intoxicated state, and was throwing his left arm about. He was not able to exercise control over his horse J. Blumski sail that, on the date in question, ho saw Henry pas 3 between 2 and 3 p.m. Henry was driving a horse and trap, and was swinging from one side to the other. Witness' impression was that he had been drinking. He (Henry) was going in tbe direction of defendant- hotel. J. Pateman and J. Dippenheim gave similar evidence. P. O'Neill said he was at the Belfast Hotel on Tuesday, July 23rd, about 2 30 p.m. Had a driuk of beer. Henry had a whiskey, which was supplied by Mrs Smith, wife of the licensee. Witness thought he was sober. Henry said he had been on the spree. He said he had been at Papanui and met with an accident to his shoulder. After the drinks witness missed Henry, and was told he had gone to a private bar. He saw Mrs Smith with a small bottle go towards a slide in the bar. He did not know whether there was anything in the bottle. When Henry came to the hotel and when witness left him the man was sober. He got out of the trap as a sober man would get out. Henry Newton and Walter Robinson gave similar evidence. A. Mateer said he was returning home from Belfast on 23rd, at 3 30 p.m., and met Henry about a mile on Kiiapoi aide of the hotel, going in the direction of Kaiapoi. Henry was driving his trap. He looked to be intoxicated by the way he hung his head and swerved from side to side. Owing to his condition witness rode at a walking pace behind Henry's trap to White's bridge, fearing Henry might fall out. John Winterbourne and Isaac Wilson gave Bimilar evidence. Constable O'Connell gave evidence that on July 25th he was at the Belfast Hotel, and ■aw Mrs Smith, who, in answer to his enquiries, told him that Henry, with O'Neill, came into the bar on July 23rd, and both had a drink—O'Neill a beer and Henry a glass of whiskey, which she supplied. After having the drink both men -went outside. Shortly after Henry went in to the passage, and asked Mr* Smith for a shilling s-worth of whiskey at the side window, which he said be intended taking home to bis wife. She gave him the whiskey in a lemonade bottle. In putting it into his pocket he spilt some of it. Henry pioked up the bottle, but it fell again, and the lot of it spilled. Henry left the hotel, leaving the empty bottle on the stairs. Mrs Smith said Henry was quite sober. Constable Cartmill gave similar evidence, and added that Henry was prohibited in the districts of Kaiapoi, Christchurch and ▲yon. The Belfast Hotel is in the Riccarton district. To Mr Fisher—Had been ten years in the district and no complaints had ever been made against the defendant or his wife, who had a good charactsr as a j licensed victualler. The Stipendary Magistrate pointed oat that in future prohibition orders the Belfast Hotel must be included. Mr Fisher addressed the Bench for the defence and called the following witnesses— H. Smith, defendant, said he was from home on July 23rd. Had held a license twenty-three years, five at the Belfast -Hotel, and made it an absolute practice not to supply drink to persons who were nnder the influence of liquor. Mrs Smith said on July 23rd Mr O'Neill came into the hotel with Henry. Witness did not know Henry. She supplied them with two drinks, a beer and a whiskey. Henry was perfectly steady. Knew there was a man named Henry who was a pro- ' htbited person, but did not know the man. After getting the drinks Henry went out and returned and bought a shilling's worth J of whiskey for bis wife. When putting it j in his pocket the cork came out. Witness told him he was making a nice mess. Henry Jbegged her pardon. She went to get a cloth to wipe it up and when she came back Henry waa gone. He did not pay for it and took none of it away. She last saw Henry trotting his horse up the road. Jamea Poff, licensee Papanui Hotel—Did not know Henry till lately. He left the Papanui Hotel on July 23rd with Ryan. He was perfeotly sober. He refused Henry liquor, as he was told an hour before he was a prohibited person, and witness thought Henry waa wasting his time by hanging about Christohurch. Witness had no notice Henry was prohibited. A sheep drover told him Henry was .prohibited. Henry was capable of driving home. To the police— Witness did not see anything in He> v's manner to denote he had been drinking. £c had come to witness's hotel on the previous night, and was then under the influence of liquor. "To Mr Fisher—Henry had a glass of whisky on July 23rd about 9 a.m., titer breakfast, and went to lie down in bed, and came down about 11.30 and had a good dLnner. The Stipendiary Magistrate—His stomach waa said tt> be empty at tj*e post mortem. R. H. Nicholson stated' he knew Henry. On July 23rd met him about a quarter of a mile on the Christchurch aide of Belfast. ■Witness saw Henry pull his trap out of the way of a dray, and he said " Good day " to witness. There was nothing to indicate that Henry was under the influence of drink. E. Storer said on the date in question he passed Henry, who waa sitting upright in his vehicle and drove on his right side, and had no sign of drink on him. Henry passed the time of day. Saw Henry turn into the Belfast Hotel, and on witness' returning from the river Henry's trap hid left ti-o hotel, so that be could not have been there more than fifteen minutes. R. Bartlett and Alice Palmer gave similar evidence. The Stipendiary Magistrate, in summing tip, observed a great amount of the evideuce was very conflicting. It was difficult to reconcile the description of Henry's condition from the two sets of witnesses, three of whom at the same time and place said he was swaying about and three others declared he was sitting up in his cart. As to the poor man's condition when he left the Papanui Hotel, the witness Ryan decribed him as having signs of drink He had a glass of whiskey at the next hotel, and was in a sleepy state on the road, which showed his condition. At the Belfast Hotel he had another glass of whiskey with O'Neill, and there he also had the shilling's worth in a bottle which might or might not have been wiped up off the floor, but he had it, and it was clear couli not take cars of it/ if even Mrs Smith's view was accepted. Beyond chat there was no question that the man was in an unfit state to be supplied, and the Bench concluded that was his condition when the shilling's worth of whisky was handed to him. {The licensee must be held responsible for that condition which decided whether a person was under the influence of drink. A$ to the penalty the fine for the first offence was up to £20, for a second offence up to £50, and It was well that people should know it. Taking, however, into account the reputation and excellent character defendant had held as a licensee, the fine would be made £5 with costs, the conviction to be endorsed on the license. The costs amounted to £6 16s.