AUCKLAND HOTELS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLV, Issue 13766, 3 June 1908, Page 8

AUCKLAND HOTELS.

WELL-CONDUCTED HOUSES, j FAVOURABLE POLICE REPORTS. I Drr.i.vc the proceedings at the annual meeting of the Auckland City Licensing Committee yesterday, Sub-Inspector Gordon stated that the police reports on the various hotels showed that the number of women visiting the houses had sensibly decreased. Mr. Graves'"Aickin, a member of the Reach, said that Sub-Inspector Gordon had j been the first to draw- attention to the mat- j ter, and he (the speaker) would like to ask j Mr. Gordon if lie thought Auckland was worse in this respect than any of the other centres. j The Sub-Inspector: The whole question is one of inspection. The Committee had asked the police to make inspections with a view to seeing that- hotels were properly j conducted, and during' those inspections th« j police discovered a great '.many women visiting the hotels, and were surprised to find such a state of affairs.. He did not know, what system' of inspection was carried out j in Wellington, but he was very glad to say | that'the publicity given to the matter had j decreased the number of female visitants to hotels and had led to the better conduct of J the houses. Mr. Aickin: It only applies to three or four houses? The Sub-Inspector: No. a good many houses. Mr. Dyer (chairman): he police are inspectors of licensed houses, and if they see anything of exceptional or unusual character it is their duty to report to the Committee. The Committee was pleased that the police had made the report in the public interest; and that'-; the practice was' now found to be decreasing. ' The Sub-Inspector: As regards the man- i agement of the hotels' here. I think they! compare ' very favourably with those inother centres. I. can say without hesife- 1 tion that no hotels could be better conducted than they arc in Auckland. The police do their duty as well as possible, in the matter of making inspections, and the houses are all clean. I have noticed a marked improvement in the houses. There are \ very few badly conducted houses that we j know of in Auckland. , The Chairman: There is no doubt a i steady gradual improvement in the houses \ from year to year. The" Sub-Inspector said the question of accommodation must crop up shortly. At present there were only BCO bedrooms in j the whole of the hotels in Auckland. i Mr. Dyer: Yon are of opinion that there ; is too much bar accommodation, and not ! enough bedrooms? Sun-Inspector: The bars increase, the bedrooms do not. - Mr. Casey: Still, you consider there has been an improvement in the hotels'' Sub-Inspector: Yes. Mr. J. R. Reed said he had been instructed to say that at the present time there were more bedrooms attached to the hotels than there had ever been in Auckland before. The Chairman .- The population has also increased, and possibly the bedroom accom- ! modation has not increased proportionately. Mr. P. E. Cheat (a member of the Bench): I think it is a matter of satisfaction that the number of women visiting hotels has decreased in the last quarter.. I think the instruction to the police; should be. renewed, and we should have. a report again ■next, meeting. The Chairman: Very well, and then .we. can decide if it is advisable to have any" further reports, " .-' ■ '.*■■■*'*-?'