TRADE TOPICS.

New Zealand Illustrated Sporting & Dramatic Review, Volume XVIII, Issue 1049, 14 April 1910, Page 21

TRADE TOPICS.

An important meeting of /f :tire New Zealand Licensed Victuallers’ Association' is taking place in Auckland as we go to press. Those in attendance are Messrs. J. S. Palmer (president), F. McFarland (chairman of executive and vice-president), Lavelle (vice-pre-sident), J. Beveridge, J. Dwyer and Quinn (members of the executive), the several districts being represented as follows: —Auckland, Messrs. J. Molloy and P. Brodie; Wanganui, Messrs. C. J. McCarthy and W. R. Tuck; Hawke’s Bay, Messrs. Cotter (Napier) and J. D. Rivers (Hastings); Waipawa, Messrs. Badderley and Lavelle;! Palmerston North, Mr. W. Grau; Wellington, Mr, F. McFarland; Hamilton, Mr. J. B. Hooper; Frankton, Mr. Bain; Thames, Mr. J. T. Inglis; Wairarapa, Mr. J. Card (Featherston) ; Christchurch, Messrs. E. E. Daniels and E. Norden . (secretary, Canterbury L.V.A.); Waimate, Mr. A. Harris; Westport, Mr. Nahr; Reefton, Mr. R. Dunphy; Dunedin,'Mr. J. H. Pagni (of Auckland). A social is to fie given at “The Tiffin” this (Thursday) evening in honour of the visiting delegates.

Another change that has to be recorded is in connection with the Rising Sun Hotel, Karangahape Road, the new proprietor of which is Mr. H. P. Smith. Mr.; Smith is already very popular with the patrons of the hotel, and may be expected to develop an even more thriving and . profitable trade than that enjoyed by his predecessor in the business.

When-the Society for the Promotion of the Health of Women and Children at New Plymouth undertook twelvemonths or .so ago to engage a Plunket . nurge to assist them the local L. V. Association agreed to provide free board and lodgings for the lady so engaged. Recognising the good work she had accomplished, and the importance of further assisting the Society, which has determined to retain the nurse’s services for a further term of twelve months, the New Plymouth licensed'victuallers have again-charg-ed themselves with the duty of boarding and lodging her gratuitously during her fresh ' term of engagement. The fact was included in the report of the Society presented at the annual meeting last week; and the announcement was greeted with loud applause. A hearty vote of thanks to the L.V. Association was carried by acclamation. .

Several days- ago the railway station at Ongarue, on the Main Trunk line, was broken into and a case of beer was tampered with. With such a tempting bait in a prohibition country, it was only natural to expect that the station would receive another visit, and so Constable Owen took up his watch there to be ready to receive any midnight visitors. He was not disappointed. Last Sunday two men were seen to cautiously approach the building and force the door. The constable then made himself known and arrested a man named John Thompson. The second man, Duncan M’Rae, got away, but was captured ■shortly afterwards. The prisoners were taken to Te Kuiti, where they were charged and remanded till Friday.

Sly-grog sellers are being still prosecuted at Masterton, and yet the Police are unable to stamp out the illicit traffic in liquor. The latest conviction recorded is that against Kate Neilson, a boarding house keeper who fined £5O and costs. During the hearing of the case, Mr. Pownall who appeared for the accused raised an

interesting point. This, said Mr. Pownall, being her. second offence, accus- . ed was liable according 'to the Licensing Act of 19 08 to a term of imprisonment not exceeding three months, without the option of a fine. An Act in the same statute book, however, the Justices of the Peace Act, passed in the same session, laid down the same procedure. The latter Act provided that the Court, in a case where a person was liable- to could impose a fine not exceedirig £5O, instead of imprisonment, or 'in ; ,-. ; addition to the imprisonment. fore the Magistrate had discretion to . fine notwithstanding the Licensing Act. The Magistrate agreed with this view, although he stated he was somewhat surprised at this provision of the Act.

The Albert Hotel, Hastings, is one of those comfortable houses thatare patronised by the travelling public with every confidence that they will be made comfortable and treated with civility, and attention at very reasonable charges. Host O’Donoghue has a well deserved reputation of looking after his guests, and treating them to the best of everything. May his shadow never grow less.

William Burridge, a brewer, of Carterion, was charged at the S.M. Court with sending liquor into a no-license area at Mastertoh, having reasonable ground to suspect that it was intended to be kept for sale. Counsel for the defence contended that the mere fact of a brewer supplying any quantity of liquor did not warrant the presumption that he knew it was to be kept for sale. The defence consisted of a complete denial of any knowledge as to the liquor being intended to be kept for sale. His Worship stated that defendant had often been before him as a witness for the police, and- had always given evidence in an honest Arid thoroughly straightforward manner. He would accept his evidence, and dismissed the information. ■ i: :i . ■ ■

Mr. J. T. Constable, lately a Carterton hotelkeeper, was found dead in bed at TO'Kuiti on Bunday morn-; ing. Death was supposed to have been due to heart failure. : ■

An instance of the high rents paid ' in Wellington is given in the bank-.' ruptcy examinatibri. of : G.’ : Fmrio.ck. ; For the New Commercial Hotel; of? which he was licensee, he paid a. rent ’ of £76 a week, of which a £ll' redriq- : tion was made provided he bought his liquor from certain quarters. This rental is typical, of others in the Empire City, where rents for licensed bouses approach in?; some, instances to close on three figures. •? .

At Masterton last week, Mr. •C. (A.Pownall made, application for A re- ' hearing of the case in which Edward :• Walton; was t fined £lO, for having orrU dered- liquor for another’ person: > with-:' out giving that person's name and: adjdress. He : made the application : because certain important facts: ■ had ' since come* to - his knowledge, with: which he- was, not conversant /at . the ; time. Burridge had made A statement ■ that the liquor was delivered at Mrs.l Neilson’s : entirely without > Walton A : knowledge or consent; - Mr. Porter of ■ the Club. Cafe, had given instructions 1 that no ,been should, be .left - at: his hotel, and Burridge> knowing: this, had taken it on tihnself to leave it at Mrs./ Neilson’s., : • Accused said i he; had :«r-: dered the liquor fori his' friend with-: out any intention of committing a breach of the Act. He intended it to be sent to the club. His Worship said that in the circumstance he would reduce the fine to 40 s and costs.

The Central Hotel at Eltham is changing hands, Mr. R. H. Campbell having disposed of his interest in the house to Mr. J. Bethune of the saine place.

The capital of the West Coast, Greymouth, is being well catered for in the matter of carriages and conveyances. The well-known firm of Kennedy Bros, are keeping well abreast of the times, having imported an Auto-Harvester motor car, while several hansom cabs have been constructed by Messrs. Stevens and Sons, Christchurch, for Messrs. Kennedy Bros., which are a credit to the manufacturers and to the business energy of the owners. The cabs are of the latest and most up-to-date pattern, with patent rubber tyres and pneumatic cushions, and for style and comfort could not be beaten. Messrs. Kennedy Bros., we learn, are ordering an up-to-date motor car,for quick transit of passengers between

the various towns and districts around the, Grey, the patronage extended to the auto-car having decided them that a really good car would be a great convenience to the public, especially to public men. Resides owning the most important livery and bait stables in Grey, Messrs. Kennedy Bros, are the largest coal merchants, and have a large and lucrative connection in this district. The business of the .firm is crowing all/ the .. .time, and? both brothers; , who .cohstitute the firm, are highly respected citizens. •: .7; - ; -V■ >’ f* • There: are many curiously named inns in the North Country to this day, (says the London L.V. Gazette), al-though-a large number of. the more nn common titles r have disappeared through the operation ,of the Licensing Adt. The old-fashioned ‘ pub is, •in fact; being gradually obliterated. In London;.the process of weeding out is going dir steadily, and in the'latest list - of houses reported for compensation are numerous peculiar names.They include the Hit or Miss, Ship on Shore, Two Brewers, Old House at Homeland, oddest of all, the Honest Lawyer. At one time there were sevei’al ■ puhlicJioiises. -ili.. .LOfidon design&ted /Honest Lawyer, - but their number has' greatly ; , decreased until now tlle : fast of-that' name is to go. Ano|hepof the doomed- houses had the i’of standing between a workhotise and a church. • / -• Dr. Collingridge, Medical Officer of Health for the City of London, in his monthly report, mentions that it was found Recently that a City firm were advertising as ‘non-alcoholic cyder” a beverage which did hot appear to be genuine cider. Samples Were obtained, and they proved to contain 2.6 per cent, of proof spirit, and 2.09 grammes per 100 c.c. of cane sugar. The liquid, therefore, was not ohly not “non-alcoholic,” but was not cider, and the sellers had their attention drawn to their position under the ' Sale of Food and Drugs Acts. _ The more the result of the local option election, at Worcester, Mass., is examined, the more remarkable it appears. Last year Worcester voted no-license by a majority of 200. This year it gives 3,740 in favor of license. According to a Worcester correspondent of the New York “Times”: “It was evident that spellbinders for and against the., open saloon had nothing to do with the majority that was piled up,> and that the people of Worcester had decided that the speak-easy and the unlawful dive were worse than the open saloons. The vote showed that the" people have tired of prohibition, and are anxious to return to the open saloon and to the lawful sale of liquor in regularly licensed places.” »** " * Thus President Lincoln: —“Prohibition will work great injury to the cause of temperance. It is a species of intemperance within itself, for it goes beyond the bounds of reason in that it attempts to control a man’s appetite .by_legislation, and in making crimes out ofythihgs that are not crime. A 'strikes a blow at the very prinWfflfe’ on which our Governments o ?aTre\-founded. I have always 'be^n‘ to protect the. from the stronger, and' I /never? can . give my consent to siich a law: as you propose to enact. Untir my tongue shall be silenced in death, I will continue to fight for the rights of men.” 1 ' '

At the Wellington Magistrate’s Court last week, Mr. -W:, R. Haselden, S. M., gave his decision with regard to the prosecutions against George Pinnock,. licensee of the Commercial

Hotel, charged with .keeping his premises open and exposing liquor for sale, and selling it on March 13. It was stated that a sergeant and constable entered the hotel on the Sunday night and found about a dozen men drinking in a room adjoining the bar, which -was. ligh.ted._as usual. . .For illegally selling beer defendant was fined £lO, with costs. The remaining two in-formations-were dismissed.

“If I were asked to say whether more physical deterioration was produced or by defective teeth (says a well-known medico), I should unhesitatingly say defective teeth.”