WHAT IS IN IRONMONGER ?

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XLIII, 5 April 1909, Page 2

WHAT IS IN IRONMONGER ?

AN INTERESTING CASE. THE SATURDAY CLOSING REQUISITION. A WIDE DEFINITION. . A case of far-reaching importance and interest to shopkeepers who come under the operation of the Saturday half-holi- . day option clauses of the' Act was decided at the Magistrate's Court this ' morning before 'Air H. Eyre^Kenny, o.m. John Raymond Bethwaite, ironmonger, was charged on the information of the Inspector of Factories with failing to close his shop at 5.30 p.m. on Saturday, March 6th -{the ..day observed as the statutory half-holiday by.ironmongers), m terms-of the --'requisition by a majority of the trade fixing the closing hour of ironmongers" establishments .in Neisoii. „ •■" ■:.-." : "."--'--v. 7 -.-'-: .■ Mr Hayes and Mr, Atkinson appeared for tlje defendant. -~V .J--~ Mr Tyson, Inspector of Factories,- in explaining the case for the' prosecution, said that 'defendant had tin ironmonger's shop, in Hardy-street,, and Viept it open after ah hour fixed for closing" by the majority of ironmongers in, Nel- • son.- -He gave evidence to finding tke ' shop open at the time mentioned. Mr Hayes admitted that the shop liad been kept open at the' time mentioned in the information. Mr,- Hayes .desired to attack the gazetted requisition. His Worship; thought that as the notice had .been gazetted and the Minister's signature attached, he could •■nrdly allow the requisition to be attacked, but after further argument he allowed the case to proceed."" ''-'■'-. -V Cross-examined by Mr Hayes,, '.wit-nets (Mr Tyson) said he could not- prove iho signatures on the requisition, or tnat tl.e signatories purporting to sign had in fact authority to sign. Both companies signing the requisition (Bnxton and Co. and the Wilkins and Field Company) carried on wholesale and retail business. Ho would not say that defendant was a wholesale merchant. There was no signature on the requisition of any person carrying on a purely retail business. He: agreed with the definition of ironmyii^ gers and hardware dealers cited, in the*;,-' Century Dictionary. He was rsspinsi- • ble for the annual report for 1908 for the - district of Nelson in connection with the Department of Labour... The Nelson district included Nelson,, city,. Mot ioka7'"Collingwood, and Takaka. There .was one ironmonger in Motueka, none in Ta. .kaka. There was a store in Takaka > (Langridge's) that sold the articles men- 7 tioned. in the "Century" Dictionary, but the owner was not classed as an ironmonger. He (witness) did not call a . storekeeper an ironmonger unless iron- , mongery was his chief business. Ironmongery was Buxton. ond Co.'s'. chief 7 business in that particular shop. If a man kept a general store he was not an ironmonger. Ironmongery must .J>e the'; leading line. Messrs Franzen.and -Co.; •at tlu Port sold ironmongery and hardware. He would say that the . ironmongery part of Franzen's was a small part of the business,- itffcich was that of a ship chandler. Nearly all the things Mr-Hayes \ called ironmongery was ship . chandlery.

If Franzen's were an ironmonger, then, the requisition had not. been signed by a majority. Messrs R. Snodgrass and Sons' were, not ironmongers.' They sold hammers, nails, saws. They sold most of the household ironmongery. He would say that their chief business was with crockery anl enamelware, Mr Hayes contended that so- long, as a man sold ironmongery' in the way witness had just said certain firms did, they should be classed as ironmongers. 'He. cited a decision by Dr. McArthur, Wefc lington, in which he held that a pawn; broker who sold jewellery was a-.jewel-ler, and had 'to conform with the regula- " tipns binding jewellers. If a man could, carry on ironmongery wit(i other busf- ..-; | ness he came into- unfair competition - j with hona-fide ironmongers. . ;'■.-'. His Worship supported tite views of V counsel for the defence, and rnled that .? the signatures did not embody all the ; ironmongers in the city. He therefore dismissed the case. ' ■ -.'