THE VOICE OF MR GRADY

Otago Daily Times, Issue 26410, 14 March 1947, Page 6

THE VOICE OF MR GRADY

The -most interesting event in the sittings of the Gaming. Commission so far is the appearance to give evidence before it of “Mr William Grady, a dairy farmer, of Dalefield, Carterton.” ; What makes it so interesting is not only the evidence that Mr Grady gave, but the fact that it was ' given by a member of the , general public; it was not the statement of a learned counsel putting forward the claim of some organised section of the community, nor of -a witness whose livelihood may be affected by .any' change in the gaming legislation. Mr Grady gave : his* views as one of the public who “helped to keep the racing game going.” He had discussed the matter with a few friends, he said, and he told the Commission how the system appeared to them. Such evidence is the most important that the Commission could be presented with, but little of it is ever put before a commission’. The sittings and the report of the Licensing Committee furnish a case in point. The evidence taken was voluminous but the one for whom the whole licensing trade exists—the Man in the Street—was the least represented, and in the Committee’s recommendations was the last to be considered. . Because of the organisation of the interested parties the'same thing can happen with the Gaming Commission unless other Mr ; Gradys accept their opportunity and their responsibility.

The crux of tho whole matter of race betting was simply stated in the evidence of this dairy farmer. In his opinion, he said, no off-course system would be satisfactory unless it was as simple as that which, though illegal, was obtained by telephoning a bet to the local bookmaker. That is what the general public wants, and no matter what amendments may be made to the gaming laws, if they do not provide this facility a way will be found to circumvent or to flout them. The moral aspect of thfe matter cannot be dealt with effectively through mere legislation; the approach is best made through other channels. In response to Dr Mazengarb, counsel for the seven Associated Churches, the witness admitted that he knew he was breaking the law by betting with a bookmaker. He said candidly that it gave a “certain spice to life” to break a law which penalised a great many inthe community. He felt justified in breaking a law if he considered it was a “wrong law” and, by inference, he preferred to ignore the strict moral implications of his action. That is, beyond doubt, exactly how thousands of citizens feel about the matter, and it is something that the law-makers_ must take into account. The voice of Mr Grady should not be forgotten.