TRAOE TOPICS.

New Zealand Illustrated Sporting & Dramatic Review, Volume X, Issue 478, 21 September 1899, Page 18

TRAOE TOPICS.

On Monday a prohibition order was granted against William Dalziel. The secretary of the Licensed Victuallers’ Association of New South Wales gets a salary of £3OO per annum, which is provided by the Sydney brewers, Messrs Tooth and Co., J. T. and J. Toohey, the Australian Brewery Coy., Marshall’s Brewery Co., and Reade’s Brewery Coy. The Rev. R. Wilson, a former resident of Clutha, was a speaker at the Wharf meeting on Sunday. He gave some personal reminiscences which must have been pleasing to the prohibitionists only, for they were dull and uninteresting to the general public. Mr Robert French, on Sunday night at the Firebell meeting of the prohibitionists, went in for a vehement attack upon Mr Thomas Hutchison, S.M., who he declared thwarted rather than helped the police in carrying out their duties. At the quarterly meeting of the New South Wales Licensed Victuallers’ Association, held last month, resolutions to the effect that strong efforts should be made to bring about a reduction in the duty on spirits and the introduction ot a measure having for its object limited Sunday trading.

Mr J. J, Donovan had a very busy time of it at Avondale on Saturday. There was a very big attendance, and the weather was thirst-creating, so it is not surprising to Know that Mr Donovan’s supply of liquid refreshment ran short towards the end oi the day. On Wednesday nearly the same state of things prevailed, though the attendance was not quite so large.

At the teetotal slanging meeting on Sunday evening the following resolution was, according to Richardson, carried unanimously:—“ That in view of the increasing interest in the forthcoming local option poll and the unsatisfactory state of the city electoral roll this meeting respectfully requests His Worship the Mayor to call a public meeting to enable the citizen s and electors to call the attention of the authorities and the Government to the necessity of making immediate provision to ensure the enrolment of all duly qualified electors, and that the Executive of the Prohibition League be asked to invite the cooperation of other public bodies to provide speakers.”

Many of the publicans tell us (Australian Brewers' Journal) that times are confoundly “ soso,” and if anything, getting worse in Melbourne. Someone, however, must be making money or have a surprising amount of confidence in the country, or have good landlords and generous brewers—any one of the reasons will suffice—because in every direction, in city and suburbs, hotels are being re-built and adorned, as the drapers say regardless of expense. The pubs, have made up their minds that when the Federal Parliament meets in Bourke Street it will have in its individual capacity nothing less than palaces in which to drain the quiet nobbier or neotarious longsleever.

The local correspondent of the Age states that Messrs Anderson, Dwyer, and Green, P.M.’s, held a special meeting of the Kyneton Licensing Court on Saturday, September 9, to deal with an application by George Moody, licensee of the Macedon Family Hotel, Macedon, for an order cancelling the license of the Victorian Alps Hotel, Macedon, on the ground that the certificate for the issue of the renewed license was void, as the licensing fee of £l5 had not been paid into the Treasury within the prescribed time, Mrs Fletcher, licensee of the Victorian Alps Hotel, stated that she had forgotten to pay the fee within the allotted time. Two or three days afterwards she gave ger husband the £l5. and he went to Melbourne, paid the money into the Treasury, and brought back the license. The application was dismissed, with £3 3s costs against the applicant.

The prohibition campaign is being carried on at Waimate. but not with very much success. The Rev. R W. Isitt has been addressing the people there, and his and. other people’s statements led to counter meetings at which the following resolutions were carried : —“ That in the opinion of this meeting, ministers of religion who devote their time lecturing the people to vote ‘ no-license ’ would be acting more in accord with their holy calling were they to pay more attention to the spiritual training of the rising generation.” “That the time has arrived when the people of the colony should demand from the Government a settlement of the drink question, and that this meeting considers the position of the licensed victuallers of the colony in regard to the present licensing law as unbearable and chaotic, and if permitted to continue will create a hatred amongst the people more intense than that which obtained in England at the religious reformation of the fifteenth and following centuries.”

Mr, Mrs, and Miss Moss-Davis returned from. Sydney by the Zealandia on Sunday.

The N.S.W. Minister for Justice was waited upon a week or so ago by a deputation composed principally of reverend gentlemen, who directed their attention chiefly to impressing upon Mr Hughes the necessity of making the Sunday Closing provisions of the Licensing Act more effective, and of ensuring the full measure of local option which had been so seriously restricted by the recent decision in the Mosman case. The deputation assumed an air of pained surprise over the Mosman case, which was really comical in some of its aspects, and they were delightfully ingenuous in the convenient construction they placed upon the promise which they allege had been given by Mr Lee, the formerMinister, regarding the introduction of a Sunday Closing Bill. They represented that Mr Lee had promised a previous deputation that if Mr Copeland’s Sunday Trading Bill were rejected he would recommend the Government to introduce a more effective Sunday Closing Bill. It had been an impression for years past that the residents of a locality had the right to object to the opening of a pubfichouse of any size in their midst, and the right of objection applied with equal force to the granting of conditional licenses as well as ordinary licenses. Mr Hughes heard all the deputation had to say, and then very courteously spoke a few wordsof wisdom and farewell.

On Monday at the Auckland Police Court, before Mr H. W. Brabant, S.M., John Bogue, licensee of the Lake Hotel, Takapuna, was charged with selling liquor on Sunday, September 3, to one William Smith, who was not a bona -fide traveller. Smith, with others, was served with drink on the date in question. Smith had slept the night before at a house within the three mile limit, while the others were all travellers within the meaning of the Act. His Worship, in giving judgment, said it was admitted that the liquor was sold to Wm. Smith on the date mentioned in the charge. The defence was that the said Wm. Smith represented himself to be a traveller. The learned gentleman, who appeared for the defence, had pointed out section. 157 of the Act of 1881, but there was a further provision amending that Act, at section 22 of the Alcoholic Liquors Sale Control Act, 1895. From that section it was clear that the burden of proof was on the defendant, and not on the prosecution. The defendant’s wife, who served the liquor, said that she had asked the men if they were travellers, that one of them said he had come from Northcote, that the other had saidsomething that she did not hear, but which she took to be the same reply. Another witness, Charles Dilly, had said he heard the men asked if they were travellers, and where they came from. His Worship did not think he could accept the evidence of the witness Clayton, because it had been shown that that witness was not sober at the time. The evidence for the police seemed to be perfectly straightforward. The constables had given their evidence in a plain and straightforward manner. But even if the evidence of the defendant’s wife was correct, which His Worship did not think could be the case from the evidence, she did not seem to have taken sufficient precautions, according to her own account, to ascertain if the men were travellers. It was quite clear, therefore, that the defendant must be convicted of the offence. Mr Baume, for the defendant, asked that the fine be made more than £5, so that the Magistrate’s decision could be appealed against. As SubInspector Wilson had no objection to offer, Mr Brabant made the fine £6 and costs.

On Monday Thomas Meehan, licensee of theRising Sun Hotel, Karangahape Road, was charged before Mr H. W. Brabant, S.M., with selling liquor to one Margaret Wilkie while shewas in a state of intoxication. One of the witnesses was William Richardson, the self-styled prohibition lecturer, who said that he saw a drunken woman in Newton on Friday, September 8. It was about the middle of the day. He saw a man and woman there, the latter was very drunk. Attracted by the condition of these people, he stopped and watched them. They went into the Rising Sun Hotel. Witness continued to watch outside the hotel, others joining him. Witness subsequently saw a constable, and made a complaint to him. The constable went into the hotel, and returned, carrying the woman out. The woman was in the hotel fully five minutes. There was not the least doubt that the woman was drunk. In cross-examination th exwitness swore that the woman was in the hotel five minutes at the very least. She walked into the hotel without support, but was only “just able to stand.” When the constable came out of the hotel he laid the woman down ‘ ‘ like a bag.” Mr Morton the photographer, constable Waterman, and Sergeant Walker also gave evidence for the prosecution. For the defence Mr Baume said that the defendant was charged, with “ selling” liquor to a drunken person. There was not the slightest evidence that any transaction of the nature of a sale took place, and counsel therefore contended that there was noevidence against his client. Mr Brabant reserved his decision on the point raised by Mr Baume until Tuesday afternoon, when in giving judgment, the Stipendiary Magistrate said he would, deliver his decision on the point raised by Mr Baume as to there being no evidence of saleuntil he had heard the evidence for the defence. The defendant deposed that he saw two men in the bar, and supplied two glasses of beer, for which one of the men paid. As witness waspicking up the change he saw the woman Wilkie. Just then the constable walked in.. Witness did not serve the woman ; it was a. fact that he had not seen her until that moment. He would not have served the woman in the condition she was in for £lOO. Mr Brabant said be would give his decision in the case on Saturday morning.