The Licensing Case.

Manawatu Standard, Volume XL, Issue 7843, 21 May 1904, Page 5

The Licensing Case.

A Portia on Compensation.

Du_rEDi__, May 17. Miss Benjamin, who is acting as advisiog solicitor to the Bruce licensees, in reply to Mr Adams, says she was considerably amazed at the position he takes up with reference to compensation claims, .According to Mr Adams, the members of . be Licensing Committees, and not the licensees inZßrucannd in Newtown, are entitledto compensation from the Government. " This claim," said Miss Benjamin, "is preposterous, It show how mock-. justice an d common-sense oan be expected from the prohibition party. To unbiassed persons the right of the publicans in Bruce and Newtown to compensation must be very clear. The Privy Council has determined that their licenses were wrongfully refused, to them by the Licensing Committee in June last, and through no fault or omission of their own, for nearly eleven months they have been compelled lo close their licensed houses.g and have lost all the profit that would have been made during that time. They have also suffered a serious dislocation of their businesses, to say nothing of the expense and trouble to which they .have been forced in fighting for their rights. What better claim could there be for compensation. Mr Adams, however, asserts that it is the members of the Licensing Committee who should be compensated. When these Committees sfood for election as nominees of the prohibition party, they were pledged to refuse licenses in Bruce and Newtown, and in Bruce they expressed their determination. -to go to -prison rather than grant licenses. The pu.lican party in Newtown and Bruce had nominees wiling and anxious to ta_» office, and bear the brunt of the battle that was inevitably before them. But no! The prohibitionists were determined to elect their nomnees, and succeeded in aiming the coveted _osition, and now, when taey haye lost the battle they want the Government to indemnify them against loss. Hitherto I have understood" that it was the winning party which should be so indemnified. *' Spoils to the' vanquished" is, according to Mr Adams, to be the order Of the day. It seems to me aa absurdity that the prohibition party should now ask the Government to pay their expenses for causing all this trouble. Mr Adams, in his concluding' paragraph, makes a great talk about flouting the decision of the people. Does he forget that the statute, the interpretation of which has just been decided m favour of the Bruce and Newtown pubilcans, is as much the decision of the people as is the result of the election expressed at the local option poll, only that in this instance, the statute has the decided advantage of expressing the will of the people legally, •whereas ■ the local option vote was illegally expressed."