CHRISTCHURCH NEWS

Timaru Herald, Volume CXXV, Issue 18627, 24 July 1930, Page 13

CHRISTCHURCH NEWS

(Prom Our Own Correspondent.) IN AND ABOUT THE CITY. CHRISTCHURCH, July 23. Conjuring with Number Plates. William Montagu Siveraton. a conjurer, appeared before Mr H. P. Lawry, S.M., this morning, charged with driving a motor vehicle without a license; that he drove an unlicensed vehicle; and that he used false number plates. The Inspector stated that defendant painted his old number plates to correspond with the new number plates, also altered the plates by punching in them the two dots that appear on the current number plates. The number which he was using was legally held by Mr N. Sale, of Opawa. “There has been more deliberation over this than any other case of false numbers I have had.” said Mr Lawry. “Not only is he depriving the Government of revenue, but the truck is going round without insurance. If there had been an accident, there would be no insurance to fall back on.” “If this man had had an accident,” said the inspector, “it would have given Mr Sale some trouble to straighten things out." Replying to the Magistrate, defendant said that he had never possessed a license to drive. For having no driver’s license Siveraton was fined £1; for altering the number plates he was fined £3; and for having an unlicensed vehicle he was fined 10'-, with costs in each case. “Do you want time to pay?’ inquired the Magistrate. “I do not know how I am going to pay at all,” said the defendant. “You should have thought of that before you altered the numbers,” said the Magistrate. Cigarettes a Penny Dearer. Many of the tobacconists in the city raised their prices to-day. the increases affecting principally the “cut” lines of

cigarettes and cigarette tobaccos. Packets of 10 cigarettes formerly selling at 7d and 8d have gone up a penny a packet, and the tobaccos correspondingly. Some retailers were still selling their standard lines at yesterday’s prices. “Nips” Not to be Dearer. Though the price of bottled whisky will increase, there is not likely to be any change in the price of “nips.” according to a statement made by Mr R. Nash, president of the Licensed Victuallers’ Association. The increase will mean that the bottled whisky now retailing at 12/6 will sell at 13 6 or 14/-. “I am not quite sure what the exact increase will be,” said Mr Nash, "but it will be between 1/- and 1/6 a bottle. I have not discussed the matter with my committee yet, and until we hold a meeting on Tuesday next I cannot say anything definite. In the meantime, however, I do not think that prices will go up." Mr Nash added that the increase in the beer duties was too small to effect the retail price of the glass. The Petrol Tax. “This extra tax is practically a death blow to those endeavouring to supply cars for hire,” declared Mr W. Hayward, of Rink Taxis, in referring to the increase of 3d a gallon for petrol ' in the Customs tariff. | Other ow’ners, most of them having private cars, took a more philosophical view of the imposition, declaring that if the money went into the funds of the Main Highways Board, as had been promised by the Prime Minister, motorists would benefit. The new r retail prices of petrol per I gallon in the city are: First grade 2/1 I instead of 1/10. Second grade 2/-, inI stead of 1/9. The tax has been inI creased by threepence and twosevenths of a penny, and there is said to be a possibility of the retail price being raised by another penny a gallon. The increased prices were charged this morning. The Car Duty, Describing the increased duty on imported cars as very drastic, one motor importing firm quoted figures to show the actual difference between the old duties and the new. "Taking it on a basis of £100,” he said, “the duty on American cars has been increased approximately from £52 to £6B/18/-, 32J per cent, increase. This will mean that the price of a car now selling at £440 will have to go up by £SO. “On a basis of £IOO, the duty on British cars has risen from £22 to £26 0 3. or 18 1-3 per cent. “I consider the duty to be very drastic. Our firm alone has been importing about 600 cars a year, and the average duty on each is about £l2O, w'hich means that we pay £72.000 a year in duty. That is just one firm, and it is an enormous amount of money. The new duty is in addition to an increase in the petrol tax, and is practically robbing the motorists. It means that they are going to pay for a large slice of the w'hole depression. It is bound to slacken up the industry by decreasing sales.”