THE THORNDON CLUB.

Evening Post, Volume XXI, Issue 62, 16 March 1881, Page 2

THE THORNDON CLUB.

' "THE PRESIDENT FINED .£4O. STRONG REMARKS' OF THE RESIDENT _„' ..'MAGISTRATE. An elderly man named William Ebden , appeared on remand at the' Resident Magistrate's Court this Jriofaing, .charged with having sold thre& bottles ot spirits to John Strike, the stewatd^of the Thorfidotf Club, v without a' Hcreusa in Dpde"uibet lasfc. v Mr. Forwood «lef«n^ea/.r-Tb«dttmmßtan(fe3 of the case Nftrfi "^rifeny'repotted in yesterday's EvbninVj Tfp&r. *, The offence" was conolusively pyoVfeflJ and in delivering his decision Mr.-ShaW,R.M., commented in strong language on the existence of a» institution like the Thorndon Club; in connection with whioh.it was shown the defendant acted in a triple 'capacity,- viz., as the landlord of the premises, the president of the clnb, and the wine merchant who supplied liquor for consumption at the ' olub. After reviewing the i6ga\ aspect of the matter, his Worship referred to the real merits of the case. He alluded to the -fact that for offences of this nature Magistrates had the discretion of "fining a defendant any sum ranging from a shilling to .£5O. He added that Ebden, the present defendant, Was* the owner of a large house in one of the principal, thoroughfares of the city, which he agreed to let for the purposes of a olub. We had heard a great deal in Wellington from time to time about these clubs. Ihe modus operand! in forming the Thorndon r Club was very simple A number of men joined together, formed themselves into a committee, elected a chairman, appointed a steward, secretary, and treasurer, and invited others to become members at the purely nominal subscription of e-ixpence per quarter. Having so arranged matters, the steward, Mr; Strike, had not been paid wages, but.,was authorised, it seemed, to recoup himself out of the profit on the sale of liquor to the members, who, it was said, numbered 200. The steward was liable for the rent; and tho so-called " club " was kept open- all day and all night if the steward cnose, not only to members, but to any others who might be 'introduced by members, including women of the town, and those persons were supplied with drink to any extent. On Sundays, when every respectable hotel was closed, this institution was in full a win? ; and any person who went there with sixpence in his pooket could become a member. Now, that such a state of things could have gone on in Wellington from November last to the present time without interrogation appeared to His Worship to be impossible. It had gone on, -however. He did not wish to prejudge the legality of such a thinsr, because a question of this sort might have to be decictod-by him in.a judicial capacity. Since hearing the evidence yesterday',- he had endeavored to ascertain whether there was any element in this case which conld possibly tell in Ebden's favor, but he coul^,. see absolutely nothing in that direction. 7 It 'appeared that Ebden had been fined. ,on two separate occasions in times past for breaches Of the licensing ordinance, and that an information- was laid against him under thi^-Act in, October, last, Jt>ut was withdrawn, consequently he^asaumed it could not be proved. Again xhe defendant stood convicted of what, in his Worship's opinion, was a g^oss and deliberate breach of the Licensing Act, the circumstances on this occasion being of an exceptionally disreputable description. He therefore decided to fine Ebden in the sum of £40 ; in default of payment distress, and in default of distress three months' imprisonment. — The defendant here endeavored to explain matters, with the object of securing a mitigation of the ; penalty, bnt his Worship declined to accept Ebden's mere ipse dfcsiit, pointing out that if he had anything to urge on this head it should be done by means of a statutory declaration, presented without unnecessary delay through his counsel. Sergeant Anderson stated that summonses had been issued against Strike and his wife for sly-grog selling ; and Mr. Shaw replied that as these were not then before him he had nothing to do with them at present. In conclusion, he expressed his opinion that the matter ought to be thoroughly ventilated.