The Wanganui Herald. [PUBLISHED DAILY.] SATURDAY, MARCH 19, 1898. THE POLICE REPORT.

Wanganui Herald, Volume XXXII, Issue 9392, 19 March 1898, Page 2

The Wanganui Herald. [PUBLISHED DAILY.] SATURDAY, MARCH 19, 1898.

THE POLICE REPORT.

Our morning contemporary, which is the reoogniaod organ of the Prohibition party here, has taken up the cudgels in defenoo of Sergeant' Ellison's report on the eotttlutJt 'of' the licensed , houses hi this district, to Which Wft tooK exception a few' dfty'g 'ago. The report, as we pointed out, was not such a clear and exact expression of opinion on the subject, dealt with as the Licensing Committee and the public had i right to .expeot, nor, .were the terras " fairly well conducted " and "middling" sufficiently explanatory. Our contemporary states that Sergeant Ellison's remarks anent tho state of the building of the Rutland Hotel have been fully borne out by the independent builders who were called in at the owner's instance to feport; on the building. This 'is not true,' as the laHer's report distinctly, 1 Stated that the main portion of the building.is in excellent preservation ,\ where<w thS police repprt said it is Very old and worse of wear, and requires great improvement, before, the annual menting. It, furthermore, [ stated that ." the building is 'quite out ofprop.oi'tfeft So Hie requirements of to Site." What this may mean We cannot pretend to say. The building occupies more ground than so valuable a business site would warrant in most owners estimation, aa even larger accommodation 'could be afforded thi) "travelling public were ft smaller ground space occupied by an hotel of an addi ioual storey. The requiremont9 of the site have nothing to do with either the Licensing Committee oi 1 Iho police, the members of which ftrb mainly chtuged wtth Iho duty of seeing that the requirements of those using an hotel are provided for, and that it is well conducted. Tha Rutland Hotel has plenty of accommodation ! for visitors, ithtt is exceptional "y well I furnished in the opinion of those best i fitted to speak on tlto subject I'et i the polfoo report state 3 ifc'hlt the! furniture, is only " faMy g6od." Oincritic s'feetsto make ft Appear that, in ' our strictures OS Ihe roport, we have done the writer of the. report an injustice. We. hope not, as nothing was further from our mind. What' we did objeot to was its slipshod ohavaetet t»utl inacouracies, which latlor were, as we pointed out, numerous and patent to anyone with the slightest knowledge of the subject. There was no desire to imbue Sergeant Ellison with tho belief that he shou d troat oertain licensees with more leniency than others, and no one but a person determined to impute improper mo tives would find anything in our remarks to justify such a charge. We are no respec er of persons, as our leaders well know, and would be more pleased to praise than blame ; but we refuse to do tille fbrmer in cases where it is clearly our duty to i do the lat^r in the public interest.