THE ENGLISH ROYAL COMMISSION ON LICENSING.

New Zealand Illustrated Sporting & Dramatic Review, Volume VII, Issue 324, 8 October 1896, Page 10

THE ENGLISH ROYAL COMMISSION ON LICENSING.

[From English Licensed Victuallrrs' Gazette."] Further evidence was given before the Commission on July Ist, when Mr Digby, of the Home Office, reappeared to give evidence as to a memorandum previously submitted which gave the views of his department on the existing state of the law. He carefully guarded against giving any opinion on points of policy, either on behalf of himself or his department. He stated there had been several instances of prosecution of proprietary clubs, and the reason why such prosecutions were not more numerous was the difficulty in obtaining sufficient evidence to ensure a conviction. At present many illegal acts were frequently overlooked, and it was undesirable that this should continue. As early as 1883 Sir Edmund Henderson, the Chief Commisioner of Police, said if the police were given the power of entry into all clubs it would probably create so much friction, especially in connection with working men’s clubs, that the advantages that might be gained from the exercise of such powers would be counterbalanced. Mr Gladstone proposed in 1863 to deal with clubs, but the West End clubs offered such serious opposition that the project had to he abandoned. True, there were nut so many working men’s clubs at that time. If the Commission Cuuld devise some scheme for controlling and dealing with bogus ' clubs his department would be very glad, but up

to the present no Secretary of State had been able to devise a method. Mr Whittaker, M.P., however, failed to get an admission from the witness that the police ought to prosecute in cases of offences against the Excise. He could not say that the police took no action in cases of mere, illegal sales. Ae a rule in such cases the police took the initiative incases of gambling or offences against the Licensing Lawsand the Excise, when the offences were against the Excise laws. His department also thought that railway shareholders should be relieved from the disqualification which prevented their acting as licensing justices. The next witness was also a gentleman from the Home Office, a Mr Troup, who said he had a great deal to do with the preparation of judicial statistics. The returns of drunkenness in. the annual returns were accurate, and were prepared from the Home Office instructions given to the police. Cases in which other offences was included with that of drunkenness were not classed with the returns for drunkenness —they might be five or six per cent more. Drunkenness in the statistics meant drunk and incapable or drunk and disorderly. Drink led to crime in three wa y 8 _ through excitement, through pauperisation, and bad company. He did not know that drink led directly to dishonesty. There had been less crime and also less drunkenness during the last twenty years, but he did not think it necessarily followed that being less drunkenness there was less crime ; the relationship might be, and probably was, coincidental, and not the result of cause and effect. The statistics did not prove the relationship. The following statistical table was put in by Mr Whittaker, as showing the parallel diminution of drunkenness and various crimes during the last twenty years England and Wales. Persons Tried per 100,000 of the Population. Annual Average.

In reference to this table, the witness explained that the reason why he admitted a casual connection between drunkeness and certain offences, such as assault, while ' he denied it with regard to others, which also showed a parallel diminution in the table, was that, w-hen the figures were taken year by year, there was always a correspondence between them in the one case, but not in the other. He did not admit that any conclusion could be drawn from Mr Whittaker’s table, except that there had been a simultaneous decline in the offences specified. Mr R. Ellett, clerk of the Cirencester justices, was called, and said he was chairman of the Justices’ Clerks’ Society, and represented their views. They did not advocate a change in the constitution of the licensing authority. They thought the bench of magistrates preferable to any popu-larly-elected body. They agreed that a magistrate’s clerk should not be connected with any trade or temperance organisation. His was a wholly agricultural division, with a population of about 15,000, including the town of Cirencester. The number of licensed premises were eightynine, of which seventy-nine were for “ on” and ten for “ off” consumption. In 1886, with a slightly higher population, the numbers were eighty-one and twelve respectively. The justices’ clerks did not urge any change in the law with regard to the endorsement of licenses, but their opinion was that the register of offences formed a complete record for the information of justices, and was quite sufficient. There had been a great improvement in the conduct of the traffic and the habits of the people. Captain the Hon. G. A. Anson, Chief Constable of Staffordshire, was the next witness. He said that the population of his district was about 900,000. It included nearly the whole of the county, with the exception of certain boroughs. The number of licenses was as follows :—Publichouses, 2064; beerand wine “on,” 1806; beer “ off,” 369 ; other “ off,” 501.. The proportion of public-houses and beer-houses to the population was 1 to about 210. The proceedings taken for drunkenness were as follows for each year since 18907,135, 7,316, 5,593, 5,890, 5,516. Whenever there was a temporary revival of trade, drunkenness increased for a time ; but prosperity had never continued long enough to affect the figures for a whole year. The smallness of the numbers in 1895 was due in part to the great frost, when people had no money to spend. The numb. r of licensed houses in his

division was far too large. There were so many houses that the licensing'of a'ny number of new ones would make no difference to the amount of drinking. If a reduction were made it would have to be very large to do any good—at least one-half or two-thirds. In 1895 proceedings Were taken in 119 cases, and convictions obtained in eighty-twb. The offences were mostly permitting drunkenness, serving drunken persons, and permitting gaming; The license was endorsed in four cases, and'in one the endorsement was removed on appeal. The proceedings against licensed houses had diminished of late years. The houses were better conducted as regards permitting drunkenness. At the last sessions seventy-two licenses —that is, renewals—were objected to by the police, and eight refused. He thought all or none of the convictions should be endorsed.

(To be continued.)

Years. Drunk Indictable offences. Offences tried Summarily Total of Offences 1874-7S ... 812'48 ... 217’66 ... 649-33 ... 866-99 1879-83 ... 697-50 ... 230-67 ... 543'43 ... 774-10 1884-88 ... 635 40 ... 208-50 ... 499'61 ... 7C8 11 1889-93 ... 614 95 ... 194-18 ... 438'88 ... 633-06 1894 .. 594-54 ... 187-22 ... 399-63 .. 586'85 Total indictable Crimes. All inAgainst , Selected _ Uie a Assaults Offences Years, person, Against - m i nus except property. Assaults, against dictable Offences, plus selected Offences, morals. minus Assaults. 1874-78 7-54 ... 48’65 ... 401’56 ... 247’77 ... 465-43 1879-83 6-07 ... 43'29 ... 320 10 ... 223-03 ... 454-00 1884-88 5’74 ... 34’52 ... 289-43 ... 210'18 ... 418’68 1889-93 4-95 ... 28.24 ... 267'71 ... 171-17 .. 365-35 1894 ... 4-90 ... 27-81 ... 243’32 ... 156-31 ... 343-53