BY-ELECTIONS.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 158, 28 March 1908, Page 5

BY-ELECTIONS.

LIBERAL "ROT" MUST BE STOPPED. BY TELEGRAriI—PIIKSS ASSOCIATION—COPYRIGHT. • ; London, March; 26. ' Liberals declare that' tho Unionist; and tariff refornv victory at Pcckham makcs .it imperative to pass tho .-Licensing Bill, otherwise the' Liborals may loso'all. tho byelections. •. , , . , ' , ■

BREWERY INTERESTS Vested, interests in > the brewing trade of tho United Kingdom areimmense. Therefore the Imperial Government must havo, been prepared for'the'prcsbntvoutburst of indignation when it decided upom its new: licensing legisla--tion.'Apprehension.'in respect..to. the future of tho trado has; been general, "or, some time past, and has accounted in some meaauro for the shrinkage not oftly in the price of brewery6hares, but also for. the depreciation in tho worth of tho debenture issues of the companies. A shrinkage iii tho output of beer been. responsible for sorab .of this loss, but certainly tho disturbing factor in tho market has been ' tho contemplated legislation. The heavy fall in all brewery stocks since the introduction of : the icensing Bill into, the House of Commons shows that tho provisions of tho measure were oven more drastic, than was expected, though, it had, been ' assumed that it .would hit tho'trado pretty, hard. The "Economist"' recentlv compiled a statement showing the capital and assets, of 10 English provincial companies I hat made up their accounts to September 30, 1907. Tile share capital of these concerns , amounted, to <£0,899,680,-- and debentures and mortgages to .£7,797,271, or; a total of . Tho total'assets were jei7,'M1,953, or which : JE1t,943,951 was freehold' and leasobold properties, and inclusive of goodwill in somo owes.'.. .These" properties• are tho main security' of the debenture-holders, and it is manifest that if licenses are lost tho valuo of -the properties as-assets will shrink very greatly; - • This phase of tho • subject was 'put by tho directors to the shareholders of tho City of London Company, at their meeting recently held in London. ... It was then mentioned that 200 freehold hotols owned by .the Company stood 'in its books at ;£2,000,000. If the licenses were takon away the valuo of tho properties would drop to ,£300,000, or, if.-a 21 years' "timo limit" was, adopted, a sum of from .£50,000 to ,£60,000 would have to.bo,set apart each year to provide the amount at which tho ; properties . now t figured in the nccounts. ■' '