ADULTERATED WINE. ALLEGED ABUSE IN THE NORTH

Evening Post, Volume LXXXII, Issue 27, 1 August 1911, Page 7

ADULTERATED WINE. ALLEGED ABUSE IN THE NORTH

"DOCTORED IN OUTRAGEOUS MANNER," DEPUTATION TO THE MINISTER. The evils arising out of the sale of colonial wine in the North Auckland district were brought under the notice of the Acting-Minister of Justice (Hon. O. Fowlde) to-day by a deputation from the New Zealand Alliance. Mr. Wesley Spragg said that those of them who belonged to the north were aware that the wine-selling business had got. entirely out of hand, and wob now one of the_ most pernicious things in connection with the sale of liqtlor that was known in the Dominion. They were not able to ■estimate the actual amount of grapes used in the manufacture of the- wine, but it was suggested that the liquor was doctored in the most out» rageous manner, and the result waa the demoralisation at those who purchased it— gttmdiggers, Maoris, and Maori wo* men, to an extent that ought not to be tolerated in a country like New Zealand. The whole stale of affairs was sad beyond description. Ei?J?ECT ON CONSUMERS. The Rev. J. Dawso^ secretary of th« Alliance, said the trouble was 'particularly^ acute in the Herekino and Mongonui districts. They recognised fna,t the law provided for a certain class of wine business being conducted, but they complained that the law Wa® beiflg abused in a very flagrant manner. Perhaps the trouble would not be so serious if the wine gold was purely the juice of the grape, but it was shown time and again that the Austriani wots using some vile spirit for fortifying the hquof, which, if not guaranteed to kill, waa having that effect, and tho effect on both natives and European's w^s very serioiis indeed. Drunkenness was increasing, and in oiie district last year there were eight fires, four of them in schools, which were ascribed to the same cause. The usual results of the liquor business were in evidence—flagrant eases of perjury, for instance, and young fellow going to football matches clubbed together for the purchase of wine, and the subsequent orgies were described as distressing in the extreme. In on© instance a supply was packed to a Cei'Uift saWnull, very much against tho wish of the manager, and the result wa& that the mill had to eußpertd operations for a week while the men drank and Sot over the effects of it. The deputation asked, first, that there should be ffloi'o police supervision. In many instance* the pohcfe got the credit of doing the beet they could, m view of the large area, they had td be responsible for, and during the last two years, wherever they had been able to eSefctee their authority, they had had a marked effetjt. but as a whole tha force was not able to cope with the evil. Secondly, th«y asked that, the Act should be amended bo as to pro* vide that Wine-makers, should not be allowed to sell except to licensed persons. At present they practically peddled it round th© country in small quantities, and it Reemed to them that stuff that was so highly intoxicating should not be sold even by the wine-maker except to a licensed person. Otherwise the revenue was being defrauded, and a very serious Mischief was being wrought. Thirdly, they asked that steps should ba taken, immediately to have the stuff analysed, a-s they had every reason to believe 'from very many authorities that it wae having the most disastrous effect*, both upon natives and Europeans. La«t year, they understood, Inspector Cullen had reported on the subject, and they urged that h» report should be gone into Very fully. ■ J MINISTER'S REPLY. The Minister, in replying, said that to ft very larg« extent the police report* that had comu in bor© out the statemettt® made by the deputation aa regarded the condition of affairs in th& North, and, to his mind, clearly indicated the necessity of Something being dohe. It was difficult to provide sufficient polic« to control such a scattered i population, and necessitated the provision of more police than he thought they would be able to supply. It eeemed to him that before they could do very much, even >n "j l ncrea&6 d police supervision, they needed to get an amendment of the law. That, he thought, was very urgent, but whether the suggestion that only licensed persons should bo supplied, wae another matter. The law did not deal with adulteration of wine Except when it was sold by persons holding a wine license, tftiti small quantities, and that was a point that certainly ought to be provided loi. Even if they allowed the maker to sell, he was certainly of opinion heshould Only be allowed toeell at the place where he manufactured it, and not be allowed to peddlar it over a wide district. Also, th*y ought to have legislation against adulteration, so that the maker would ,only be able to sell under the same conditions fts those holding licenses were allowed to sell, namely, that it should not contain more than 20 per cent, of proof spirit. He proposed to get a Bill drafted and submit it to his colleagues for presentation this session, because it was qaite dear to him that the evil was of such magnitude that it needed to be grappled with, and the evidence of the police was that they could not grapple ! With it properly with the law ac it' 1 stands. Legislation was an essentia-1 condition of improvement. He hoped they wonld be able to get something done this session to strengthen the hands of the police in dealing with the eubjecct. As faf aa he could arrange for police supervision, he Would be glad to do it ; «tt any rate, he would have thfe question. ] of fresh legislation considered.