THE LIQUOR LAW.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XL, Issue 12317, 8 July 1903, Page 2 (Supplement)

THE LIQUOR LAW.

PROHIBITION IN OPERATION. Ashburton, July 1. To-day the no-license regime begins for three years, licenses having lapsed at eleven o'clock last night. Although there w.?,s a large number of people about the streets and frequenting the hot-els last night, nothing out of the. ordinary occurred, and the police cells were without an occupant during the evening. CHRjsTCjnracw, July 1. Undoubtedly in a number of cases hardship has been inflicted upon licensees at Ashburton .by , the confiscation of their licenses. There are at least five houses in the electoi-.lc that are owned, either entirely or partly, by the licensees. In the majority of these cases the proprietors are hard-working men, who have saved money and sunk their capital in country houses. Now that prohibition has arrived they practically see all their hard-earned capital melt away before their eyes. The local brewer, Mr. THgby, is contemplating closing down. His trade has been to . a large extent purely a. local one, , his output being approximately about 400 hogsheads per annum. The two cordial manufacturers in Ashburton, taking the experience of cordial manufacturers in Olutha as a guide, anticipate that their output will be decreased by at least 70 per cent. Fewer hands will also bo required.. •