INFORMING IN LICENSING

Otago Daily Times, Issue 10419, 23 July 1895, Page 4

INFORMING IN LICENSING

A MAG-ISTRATB^ STRICTURES,

Mr H. W. Bishop, S.M. at Chrietehurcb, in tho course of the judgment delivered by him on Saturday, wh'enhe fined six hotelkeepers for Sunday trading, referred in the following terras to the methods employed to secure a conviction ■— | "The facto-disclosed,-in'-the evidence are so extrsordinary and have excised so much liublic interest ana attention that I fesl compelled to rsfer to, them afc some length. In these Cdse3 there is the ethical or moral side and the legal side. With, regard to the former,. I wish to guard against saying too much, for I am fully aware that however strong the opinions I might hold, and expiesn, they would still be only those of an individual, aud I could scarcely claim any special right by "virtue of my judicial position to rep'res-eut the Roman magistrate of (Old and act. as censor of public morals. The conduct of : the ■ informants has been, and is likely to be. so fully discussed and canvassed that probably it could ba safely left to public opinion to pass judgment upon. I feel compelled, however, to say somstaiiig to the infonußU-'a by way of romoustrancß and friendly counsel. \\ ere you youag men of the common informer class doing this sort of work for fee or reward, I should not think iv necessary to say one word, for we quite know how to appraise those people at taeir proper, value. 'But "the circumstances hare are quite different. It must,! think, ba conceded taat you young men thought you were doing good and rigtteous service, for otherwise you would surely, never have willingly incurred such unenviable notoriety as has been yours over these eases. But it is' just here that we jom issue. Does not your conduct savou-rather much of the doctrine that the 'end justifies the ipeacs';—a doctrine so vicious", so pregnant of evil, that its condemnation must bo apparent to the most superficial mind ? You have shown yourselves to be weil acquainted with the provisions of the Liceosiug Act, and yon knew full well that only' travellers aud lodgers can be legally uupplied with liquor ou Sundays. Ea3 it.never frtrnck you that by going iuto Ibese houses as you did you acted a lie, and incited the licensee to break the law, even although you m y have experienced no difficulty in procuring the sale of the liquor you asked for ? True, it may be that people ire constantly doing.the same tiling, bub this affords no excuse for you. In my owinion your conduct has been mbsfc reprehensible, and is certainly not tbe less so on account of the curious admixtsre oi religion and deceit. Believe me, no cause, howevar good, can possibly be advanced by conduct of this sort. If I thought otherwise, I should have but a poor opinion cf. the morality of the community. Kight-thinking people will at ali times sympathise with those who de-ire to enforce tbe law and to suppress Sunday trading by all honourable means ; ' but what sympathy can you expect with methods such as yours ? I would strongly; urge you and others who may desire to emulate you to refrain iv future from any such course of action as you have followed in this instance, as not conducing to sound morals. And now for tbe legal aspect, as affecting the defendants, acoordiag to the evidence which has been adduced. Although I have reprehended and entirely disapprove of, the conduct of the informants, I cannot Cad that it affords, the slightest possible excuse for the actions of the publicans concerned. It would ba utterly illogical on my part, I consider, to hold the defendants in any way absolved of the responsibilities of their breach of the law where such ;s. proved, because in my opinion the means of procuring such breach were highly objectionable in their moral aatiect. Publicans bnow full well the risk they ran when they indiscriminately supply people on a Sunday with liquor, and I have not an atom of sympathy with the man who, for greed of gain (tor it can be nothing else), deliberately breaks the law. He deserves'to be severely punished. It is all very well to talk about the obligation that is cast upon him to supply travellers with | refreshment, thus necessitating his keeping his house open. To my mind he had far better run the risk of refusing nil nnknown persons than urge what can be at the best only a plausible excuse for illicit trade.

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