THE ARMS ACT.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XIII, Issue 4534, 25 May 1876, Page 2

THE ARMS ACT.

A good deal of inconvenience to business people and residents in the Poverty Bay district must be felt there, consequent upon the provisions of the Arms Act. From an article on the subject in the Standard we take the following extract:—" The Licensing Officer is, we believe, a person attached to the Native Department—a department that is anything but remarkable for punctuality and expedition in public business—and it often happens that many months elapse before the licensee is apprised of his application being granted or refused. In some instances no reply is at all vouchsafed to the applicant, even after he has repeatedly written to head-quarters concerning it—a treatment which is at once disgracefullydiscourteous, as well as unjust. Through this contemptuous and censurable conduct on the part of the Licensing Officer, not only sellers of arms and ammunition, but purchasers thereof are subjected to loss and inconvenience, for which they can get no redress. Either the permission to sell arms to the natives ought to be withdrawn, or the Licensing Officer should be compelled to attend to the applications of licence holders much better than he does." The working of the Arms Act was discussed on one or two occasions in last session, and a good deal of complaint was made respecting it, especially by members from the South Island. Nothing was done ; but we hear that the Government have been directing some attention to the subject during the recess. Mr. Vou der Heyde, last session, drew attention to an Order in Council prohibiting the exportation of gunpowder and munitions of war to the South Sea Islands. He pointed out that there was a considerable trade between Auckland aud the Islands; that it was necessary, for the protection of the lives and property of those engaged in it, that they should have the means of defending themselves ; and that it was also necessary that they should he allowed to carry with them, for purposes of trade, arms and ammunition. No restriction to the exports of arms and ammunition exists in Sydney, and traders from that part *re therefore in an advantageous position as compared with those from Auckland. Mr. Von der Heyde also stated that a large depot of arms and ammunition had been formed at Samoa by the various European houses established there, and at these depots any of the Island traders from New Zealand could easily buy any quantity of ammunition and arms they might want, and take them to the various -Islands and sell them. We have no fault to find with the working of the Arms Department in this colony, but we think that many of the, provisions of the law might be amended.