THE TRADE IN ENGLAND.

New Zealand Illustrated Sporting & Dramatic Review, Volume IX, Issue 682, 2 April 1903, Page 22

THE TRADE IN ENGLAND.

A POLICY OF DEFENCE. * ( (“L.V. Gazette/’) There has been some considerable divergence of opinion as to the policy of “ waiting ” with regard to refusals of renewals of licenses, the advocates of not “ crying before you are hurt ” being challenged by the counsellors of “ prevention is better than cure.” The Metropolitan Beer and Wine Trades’ Protection Society advocates a mass meeting of the Trade. The Central Protection Society of London, whilst un- i dertaking to protect its members, thinks i we should wait. While there are some Licensing Benches—Justices in Brewster Session would be a more correct term —who are proceeding on the full lines of the Farnham precedent, there are, happily, others, and those in large' number, who. have j adopted the course suggested in our leader j of last week. But the great majority j have intimated intentions of reducing li-, censes next year, if no voluntary action be in the meantime taken, and it therefore behoves everyone concerned in the Trade to unite on one common ground and in one common course of action for mutual protection. Some, in Birmingham especially, are talking of establishing a National Trades Defence' Fund. What we want is a National Trades Compensation Fund. There is no reason whatever why immediate steps should not be taken, and the best method is one which we think should meet with acceptance by members of the Trade of either opinion as to what should be done. Unfortunately, if there be no final appeal on the Farnham or similar cases, or if an appeal be against what we of the Trade consider justice, there will be many unfortunates sacrificed this sessions, and those unfortunates' will naturally, and as usual, be the poorest members of the community. Mr Arthur Chamberlain, at Birmingham recently, talked about a tax to provide compensation for those interested in cancelled licenses : But it is not to We forgotten that the tax is already with us, though its proceeds have been misapplied I Let us quote a paragraph from our retrospect of last year : “ The close of the year has been marked by a decided threat on. the part of some Licensing Benches of an intention to avail themselves to the full of the new opening, given by the Farnham case, to abolish licenses. Some brewers have drifted into a panic in consequence, and 'have keen intimating, a readiness to compromise with the . jus-

tices. Experience has shown that diminished houses does not result in diminished drunkenness, and it is safe to infer thajt the brewery trade would not suffer by anv decrease. But it is otherwise with the retail Trade. Everywhere where a man has put his capital into his business he will suffer for the loss of his license, for we hardly dare hope that the brewer who assents "to the cancellation of the license will compensate the licensee. And even the man who is only the brewer’s manager will suffer from the loss of his employment. More, the fewer licenses the closer "will the competition be for them, and prices will go up for those that might be left. It imust not be forgotten' that in 1890 Mr Goschen put on an extra fid per gallon on spirits, which even then was estimated to yield nearly a million per annum, £44,000 of which was to be devoted to the buying up of licenses. Temperance faddists made an butcry which resulted, not in the abolition of the duty, but devoting it to other purposes—so that downright robbery resulted.” That “ robbery ” has gone on now for twelve years. During that time something like six ’million pounds, destined for the fair and honest cancellation of licenses, has been devoted to other purposes; and if not diverted would, without injustice to anyone, have brought about the reduction now sought to be made by the ruin of hard-working and unfortunate license-hold-ers, whose only fault has been that they have been amongst the struggling, and therefore, selected for sacrifice. The fiasco of 1890 at once suggests an action now to be adopted. Let usi unite to request a couple of members of Parliament to ask the Government (a) whether they will this session bring in a Bill to devote to the object for which it was intended the portion of the extra 6d a gallon on spirits imposed in 1890 for the buying up of licenses ; and (b) failing that, if they propose any other legislation for the compensation of license-holders deprived of their licenses (and livelihoods) for the public good and for public purposes. Mr Joseph Chamberlain long ago declared himself in favour of compensate n, and will be back in time to have a voice in the matter. Amongst other fairminded men, the present Archbishop of Canterbury and Sir Algernon West have similarly expressed themselves in favour of compensation. .

Should the reply be unsatisfactory or indefinite, there will be imperative grounds for an immediate mass meeting of the Trade, for the subject will be removed out of the region of speculation. A Bill can be formulated and introduced for the object we have at heart; and petitions in favour of the' Bill can be placed for signature on the table of every licensed premises in the kingdom. A very large number of Members of Parliament (some reports give four hundred) are pledged to the principle of compensation, a course which, as we pointed out ‘last week, has had several precedents. And we believe that all unbiassed men would support, such a measure. .As it is, many members of the Licensing Bench have declared their reluctance to beingparties to the injustice now being perpetrated.

A short extract from the chairman (Mr Motion’s) speech at the annual meeting of the Cannon Brewery will not be out of place :—“ To take away any man’s license and livelihood, whether it may belong to us or to any other individual or brewer, is, in plain language, nothing better than legalised robbery, and it is a new system of ethics to prove it right to steal a piib-lic-house and wrong to steal, a loaf. The magistrates act upon Licensing Acts dating from 1828, and, although nearly a century has elapsed, it is only recently certain justices have thought fit to strain their powers against the Trade. But what an anomalous condition of things exists ! The London County Council has only recently paid about £1,000,000 as compensation for licensed houses .in one street—namely, from the Strand to Holborn. We contribute over £40,000,000 a year to the revenue of the country, and our property is as much entitled to protection as other trades. /Even Mr Gladstone’s family received a large sum. as compensation for their slaves. The Unionist Party is pledged to. full compensation —Lord Salisbury, Mr Chamberlain, and Mr Ritchie especially —and if it becomes necessary, the least they can 'do is to pass a short Act making the question clear, and if they will not, all we can do is to appeal against every license taken away to the highest tribunal, and for the wl®le trade to vote solidly against the Government at the next election. It is occasionally suggested that the Trade should find their own compensation. They have already done so. Mr Goschen was Chancellor of the Exchequer he taxed' us for this purpose, and then feebly devoted it to another object—namely, "technical education. It is a strange doctrine for magistrates to preach —namely, to do evil that good may come. : It is not a creed that has ever done any good. If any of our property is confiscated, it is only the thin edge of the wedge ; no property will be safe, and it will only be used as a precedent to attack property of any kind in the future.”