The Licensing Question.

Rodney and Otamatea Times, Waitemata and Kaipara Gazette, 20 September 1911, Page 8

The Licensing Question.

HOTEL PROPERTY VALUES.

When no-license was carried in Invercargill in 1905 many dire predictions were made as to the results on the business of the town and especially as to the effect of the vote on the value of hotel properties, and a doleful picture was drawn of the poor owner of these properties being ruined, by the depreciation in value of his property. In order to test the matter, Mr C. W. BrowD, of Invercargill, recently searched the valuation rolls, which were open for public inspection. "It may be stated "he says, " that it was only quite recently that any authoratative opinion could be expressed upon the progress which Invercargill has been making since no-license was carried in 1905. The valuation roll which should have come into operation in 1909 was

with-drawn . V . consequently the present roll "is the only one under which comparison can be made of the value of property under license, and for the period covered by no-license. The return works out as follows :— HOTELS. Name of Hotel. Valuation 1904 Present Cap, Value Cap. Value. Crescent £6000 £7650 ' Albion 9701 12,555 Supreme Court 2817 4100 frincess " 4920 6250 Shamrock 1672 1600 Criterion 2633 4275 North Star 629 '2310 Carriers' Arms 2418 2850 City 5190 6225 Prince of Wales 5715 4790 Club 8708 10,350 Railway 3850 6400 Deschler's 5865 6400 Clarendon 1585 1275 Park View 930 800 Royal 1900 9000 White Swan 3010 3700 £65,543 £89,345 Deduct 1904 valuation 65,543 And we have an increase of £23,802 Or nearly 36£ per cent, during the nolicense period. These are no fairy tales, but can be checked and re-checked by any ratepayar applying to the proper quarter in the usual way. It cannot, of course, be claimed that all the increase is due to no-license. Southland, of which Invercargill is the distributing centre, is being rapidly developed and is coming to the front in regard to dairy produce, etc,, but the cry that property will be depreciated by no-license ought surely to be silenced by Invercargill experience. It may be explained in reference to the return that the whole of the valuations are based on the capital value (i.e. land and buildings) with the exception of the Prince of Wales. This is based on the unimproved value, as the building has been removed, and consequently no other valuation could be made. The land has recently been leased for 15 years at an annual rental of £365, a rental which would have warranted an unimproved value of £7000 instead of the recorded value of £4790.

In only three instances, it will be noted in the return, is the valuation less than in 1904. This is accounted for by the natural decay of the buildings, there being a considerable increase in the unimproved value in each case, but the aggregate return of 361 per cent, on the 17 hotel properties is surely good enough to satisfy any canded critic." Straws which show how the wind blows. In the New Zealand Herald of Monday September 11th, appears the following two items of news which are worth thinking over in connection "with the same prediction of evil dealt with above. vu! "The Supreme Court will open at Masterton. to'day^ before Sit Robert Stout. There are no criminal cases.'* " The membership of the Masterton A. and P. Association was increased by 94 at a meeting on Saturday, and now stands at 1033. It is expected^ that another 100 will be added." Liquor advertising in Catholic Papers. The following extract is from the 11 New Woild," a Catholic periodical. "These advertisements shock Catholics and scandalise Protestants. Distillaries and breweries are all right enough in their places, and their products may be bought and sold in a proper way, but it would not be edifying to have them advertised from the alter. What are the advertisements for ? To increase the sales of the things advertised. Is it the business of Catholic papers to increase the sales of intoxicating liquors ? Is it their work to add to the number of drunkards ? How can they preach temperance in one column and in the next urge people to buy " this brand of whisky and that brand of beer? Such papers are not fit to be taken into Catholic homes." "If this part of the editorial be true" sayg a reader, " how can distilleries and breweries be ' all right' at all." And one might add, why not apply the same arguments to other than Catholic papers.