WELLINGTON'S SLY GROG.

Free Lance, Volume X, Issue 499, 22 January 1910, Page 6

WELLINGTON'S SLY GROG.

Has the Weekly Raid Come to Stay? THE monotonous regularity with. which Sergeant Itutledge and his party of constables from Mount Cook make their weekly raids on the sly-grog salesmen- —asnd salaswomen—in the vicinity, of Tairanakistreet, prompts the man an the street to ask whether the sly-grog vendor has become a recognised institution in Wellington. Also, if he has become one of our instiitutiions, why 3 in the name of all that's fair., he shouldn't be allowed to run his show and eairin his enoirmous profit of about '250 par cent., without moilestatiom by the police? » » « Of course, if there is to foe a serious attempt to block the vendor of sly grog, aru entirely different aspect of the case ds opened up, and there is immediately room for stcrong argument. It may be accepted as ia statement of fact that there are two classes of people in Wellington, ma>mely, those who have no sympathy whatever with the liquor traffic, and those who take their drink either moderately or habitually. It is also safe to. say that neither of these parties as a class have •any sympathy with the sly-grog seller. The person who patronises the nefarious Sunday traffic is the very man who requires to be protected from himself, since he cannot curb his passion for the drink for a. day. In. his case the craving has become a,disease, and the subject should be the more jealoasily safe-guarded. * * «■ . Yet, the means employed in "Wellington for bloickijn'g this pernioDus business of Sunday drink traffic are so inadequate "that the Sunday raid of Vap police on sly-grog shops is confidently looked for in Monday's news columns. There aire several aspects of unfairness to the present evident lack of determent methods of coping with this evil. Tri the first place, the law of the land is not only held in contempt by those who traaffic in liquor on Sundays, but it is held up to ridicule before the whole community each time a raid is effected. - « ■ •» « It is by no means an unoonumon sight to see a lorry load of liquor beinig driven off to the police station on a Sunday. This sort of thing is a reflection upon the administration of •our licensing laws. Them, also, it is •all too frequent an occurrence for church-goers and ladies in the- vicinity of Courtenay Place and others of our

thoroughfares, to be jostled by helpless inebriates on Sundays. TMs is? a matter which ought to foe vigorously dealt with. , * . - ■' *';.■' Another phase: of the question* ia that which concerns the law-abiding licensee of the hotel. Has doocrs air© kept closed -on; Sundays under- most stringent pains and penalties. Three such offences as occur weekly in slygrog shops would deprive "an : honest publican not only of bread.and butter to-day, but of the prospects of eanoiing any at Ms calling:, for all time. Where's the justice of tinkering with this business of fining the sly-grogger small amounts, and holding a sword - of Damocles over the publican? i ; We have pointed out on more,than one occasiom that nothing but imprisonment without the option of fine will put a stop to the sly-gsrog trade in Wellington. The illegal Sunday vendor is on too good a wicket to bold back from his enormously profitable game because of a paltry fine, which he can moire than make up in a couple of good Sun*days. Once again, we venture to advise our magistrates to one*© out "imprisonment" as the only c^^