SLY GROG SELLING

Wairarapa Times-Age, 1 August 1939, Page 11

SLY GROG SELLING

STOREKEEPERS FINED. (By Telegraph—Press Association.) CHRISTCHURCH, July 31. Complaints to the police about sly grog-selling by storekeepers near public works on the South Island Main Trunk Line resulted in inquiries by detectives from Christchurch, and arising out of these inquiries numerous charges of sly grog-selling were heard in the Magistrate’s Court this morning. Four persons were concerned in the charges, three being storekeepers and one the wife of a storekeeper. Fines of £5O and costs were imposed on the first three by Mr E. C. Levvey, S.M., and the wife of the storekeeper was fined £lO. The defendants were Maude Stead, Domett, who faced four charges of selling liquor without a licence, and was fined £5O and costs on the first charge, and ordered to pay costs on others; George William Dransfield, Conway, who was fined £5O on the first of three charges of selling liquor without a licence and costs on the others; Ada Dransfield, who was fined £lO on the first of two charges; and Joseph Cannon, Parnassus, who was fined £5O on one of ten charges, five of which the magistrate withdrew, and ordered to pay costs on the other four. All entered pleas of guilty. Chief Detective Dunlop said that search warrants had been issued, and in Stead’s store on the Main North Road 29 bottles of ale were found. Several sales had been made. The liquor had been bought at 12s 6d a dozen bottles and sold at 18s. At Dransfield’s store fourteen dozen bottles were found. He had been selling liquor at 21s a dozen. His wife had had a part in the selling, and both had admitted the offence. Twelve dozen bottles were found at Cannon’s store, and he had also bought ale at 12s 6d and sold it at 21s a dozen.

There was no suggestion of disorder at these stores, or that any disorder arose at camps as the result of liquor being supplied,’’ said the chief detective.

Counsel said that the main reason for the offence springing up was the distance that the public works men were from the nearest hotel.

“They obviously found it profitable to carry on this offence,” said the Magistrate, in imposing the fines.