The Oamaru Mail. WITH WHICH IS INCORPORATED THE NEW ZEALAND AGRICULTURIST. SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 13, 1879.

Oamaru Mail, Volume IV, Issue 1061, 13 September 1879, Page 2

The Oamaru Mail. WITH WHICH IS INCORPORATED THE NEW ZEALAND AGRICULTURIST. SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 13, 1879.

I TstE raid that was lately made oti the sty gri of Oamaru, met with the approval of all people in this cuuiutnity. lint it should have 'accomplished more than this. It would have been better had the informers never interfered, fr»m present appeariancea. f"t. »•> far. the " thunders of the ! law " have turned I'ttt to he nothing better than empty a»>«nd. "f course, it was not ; t» be expected that, at one operation, this Htdieafchy excrescence on our social life fc-onUI k? envticafed. The game is to« ntfiiey-makinu' brr readily relinuttbhed. lc was felt. thecet'>>re. when the prrsccticf.trtst were tirst in.-»t;t«ti'd. that an occtiy -;i• "-■ -i;.i.t t.> thtr *a»te4 of those j. t«. .. * in i; and who gr>w wealthy t«y ii, dv hard. Tli.'V ar«» ist this. ♦•I-'Hifn" V :r ."'•>> ?Krr»'W«d»'d by h.'ir. ivn.iri T "*i ■•£ . and other.t .. t; iiif'iirr r i r '' l r r:I " U** .-a*su* r. a t. Itu.Ja.w.i:if'. , rw»iw>-K , d with the v.-nra: watt l cliaruc'ers it? theccTmi!ti!iit\. whoaie excited by bad li>i;t' , ra»;»i the idrcantst uie-.-.-and ereacifre* stMT»ttt:dj>; titem, and who w.mldordvdratr theline at mur.L-r. w.- were «.>Er; {i> say -istt we are imt *•> anre <»f tnaf r.ud we have a perfect picture of one at feast >'t i»:r >'.innni "* Boarding Hortstes f»">r the accommodation and rest j of the weary tatwrer. Are these poisoners of the morality of this community—these nurseries where the unwary female, at-

tracted by the mazy dance, is educated in infamy and profligacy; where the unsuspecting L'irl. almo3t before she has dropped her pinafore, i 3 whirled away i:.-,o a frith from whiclu alas, she seldom jv'ums, (jrucas witli a blighted life that wotilti render a physical death a welcome Kf-juel to her moral degradation—to be permitted to continue their vile business ith impunity. The foregoing will give .- me idea of the immorality that is rife in < J.unaru. under a cloak. "Decency l- rtinii in tn particularise all that wu kan'.v ri-.'.sriiit),' this subject—the pranks that are played almost nightly at one or tv.. nf ii,.-«>.uuani dens of infamy. One I thciu. far iivw beiu_' improved since ir-pr-ij-ri: ;i r :t:.p..-arc«i bof.-ro the Court. :i: it w.ts fined. is worse. < Imposition in "in.i in many other things, seems to -.v« had the effect of increasing the \: ; /r of the proceedings at this establishment, as though the proprietor had determined to do douole the business in oruer ro make up the amount of the fine. Tin: law is thus set at defiance. Is this to be permitted ? A hoi el-keeper pays his It,it would appear, to purchase re- . ~:rictio:>. He dare not have a little private j.iUi'ica; i"n amongst friends in his own { liva e parl'-r—that is if music happens to b.> i:ie!:id.-d in the programme. 'J'he s'.ydens a !i:.te further along the street ! mav make as much musical, or raiher uuI musical, noise. as they please v/ith im- ! putiity. They may include oiher less I legitimaie item 3 in their programmes, in I spite of the law. There is a flaw somc- | where, and we think we know where it is. j The penalties have been too light. Lately ! one woman, who perhaps sells one glass of S liiiuor where another sells hundreds of I -hisses, was fined L'M for selling lirjuor i without a license, while the one who 1 transgresses wholesale was lined Li) less. We do not say that the L3O fine was too heavy, but we do say that the L 25 line was too light. In one case the trans-ure-.si' li. so far as the unlicensed sale of li f,i«r is concerned, wa3 unimportant when compared with the transgression of the other. The evil is not likely to be compassed by aimititr at the smallet branchestlic root must be attacked, and the main root is to be found in the largest sly-grog concern in tile town. We would suggest the following treatment of the proprietor of this concern : For lirst offence, LSO tine ; for the second, LSO tine and three months' imprisonment ; fiK- the third, LSO fine and sirt months imprisonment with or without hard labor; the penalty, if not paid, to be recoverable at any time after the expiration of tho period of imprisonment, and, in default of paying the line, the oilender to be, at tiie discretion of the Court, recommitted for another term of three months wiilt hard labor. Tin's may appear a harsh sugges. ion, but the enormity of the offence demands .s-ringetit treatment. We must remove these foul blots from our town, arid experience, so far, has laugh; us that tiiis will not be done without ad-tittitii!t--lvrin'.' penalties so heavy that the 1 LjiuiiC will te.vs- to pr«>tii:ib!" to ih< j win. have to pay tin m .-iiott!d be imposed. The first penalty we have lvconimenued it- the heaviest now permitted by the law, j but the law should be so amended ti.at | largely extended powers should be placed | in the hands of the magi.-tracy. so that [ ••t'ljlttiers would no longer iiml it profitable I "o act the !;t'.v tkeeiiey :U uirfiaucc.