Napier Licensing Committee.

Daily Telegraph (Napier), Issue 6170, 10 June 1891, Page 3

Napier Licensing Committee.

The members of the Napier Licensing Committee sat in the Supreme Courthouse at noon to-day Present—Messis H. S. Tift'en (chair), R. Price, J. H. Coleman, W. I. Spencer, and J. C. McVay.

On the Committee taking thoir seats, the •hairman made the following remarks :—

" Before the Committee proceed to hear applications for the renewal of licenses, they desire to explain the reasons for the course they intend to pursue. The Committee have now been many years in office, but up till last week they had never received anything more than a bald report on the condition and conduct of the licensed houses. They therefore determined to inspect these houses for themselves, and they intend to do so for the future before each quarterly meeting, in order to satisfy themselves that the orders of the Committee are strictly carried out. With two or three exceptions, which will be roferred to when the applications for the renewal of their licenses are made, the Committeo found the interiors of all the hotels clean, tidy, and furnished suitably to the class of trade peculiar to each, and they are very glad to be able to say so. With regard to the back premises of these houses, the Committe regret to state that, with only very few exceptions, they found a total negligence of the commonest sanitary precautions, together with a total disregard of the Borough by-laws. This state of things may have been going on for years, the Committee having been kept in ignorance of what ought to have been made known to them both by the Police Inspectors and by the Health Officer of the borough. The Committee found that in the great majority of houses no deodoriser is used in the closets, and that the pans are only emptied once a week. It is already laid down in the by-laws that the earth-closetsystemshallbeenforced, and in the contract between the Corporation and the nightsoil man the nature of the earth is specified. But in every hotel a sufficiency of ashes is made every day to supply the closets attached to eaoh house, and the Committee, in the interests of public health and decency, insist that ashes or earth shall be used in connection with the closets, and that the pans shall be emptied at least twice a week. It would be better indeed if they could be emptied oftener, but it exhibits a gross disregard of every law relating to sanitation that these pans have been kept open without deodoriser of any kind for a whole week. This the Committee intend to alter, and, as was said before, they will take care to see their orders in this respect carried out. In regard to the urinals, tho Committe* found that in the majority of houses no water was kept running to keep them sweet and clean, and they insist that this must be done.

" And now with regard to the hours of closing. Iv former years, when tbe Act of 1881 came into force, only a few hotels applied for and were granted midnight licenses. Afterwards it appeared unfair to make any difference in respect of closing, and every hotel in the borough applied for twelve o'clock licenses, wbich were granted, apparently, as a matter of course without regard to the necesbities of the public. The Committee do not intend to make any distinction now, but they do wish to point out that in many cases a ten o'clock license would serve every reasonable public requirement. For this next twelve months no house will be permitted to keep opea after eleven o'clock. The Committee are perfectly satisfied that this rule, which has been found to answer in all the large cities in the colony, will be found to work equally well here. The licensees will not be required to keep their lamps outside burning after half-past eleven. It has been reported to the Committee that though twelve o'clock licenses have been granted in the past, the greatest laxity has been shown in the observance of the closing hour, and this fact has largely influenced the Committee in coming to their decision to grant only eleven o'clock licenses. Tho Committee feel that they have not been treated properly by the Police Inspectors in tbe past, in keeping them in ignorance of glaring broaches of the Licensing Act in serving liquor after tho closing hour, in Sunday trading, and in serving drink to persons against whom prohibition orders have been issued. The Committee take this opportunity of charging the police to t-ee to these matters more closely in the future than they have done in the past.'' Renewals were granted to the following: —W. Lucas, Railway Hotel, Spit; James Briggs, London Hotel, Spit; George Herbert Gilding, Shakespeare Hotel; H. W. G. Henderson, Occidental Hotel; William Mayo, Empire Hotel; Thomas Peddie, Clarendon Hotel; Robert Smith, Masonic Hotel; Patrick Gorman, Criterion Hotel; R. P. Flanagan, Royal Hotel; C. O'Donoghue, Provincial Hotel; Joseph Roulston, Victoria Hotel; Arthur McCartney, Caledonian Hotel ; James Johnstone, Star Hotel; James Roulston, Terminus Hotel; C. O'Driscoll, Albion Hotel.

Plulippa Tyrell, Napier Hotel. This house is in a sad state of disrepair and must be re-built in three months' time. The case was adjourned for a fortnight, and if active steps are taken to replace the building, a renewal will be granted.

The following transfers were granted : — From John Scott to Edward Smith, Crown Hotel; from William Smith to J. R. Braybrooke, Exchange Hotel; and from H. Willis to James Shannahan, Union Hotel.

A number of wholesale licenses were also

granted. In nearly every case where renewals were applied for the Chairman stated that the Committee's orders would have to be carried out forthwith. The earth closet system must be adopted, urinals supplied with water, and every place provided with plenty of fire escapes. In one or two instances repairs were ordered to be effected. The Chairman also said it had come to his kuov/ledge that prohibition orders, made by th. Court, were not strictly obeyed, and that prohibited persous could get drink at any timo. This would have to be.put a stop to, and ho hoped the police would tako action in any caso that carao to their knowledge.— Detective Grace said Sergeant Cullen would attend to the matter. Tho Committee then adjourned.