Parliamentary deliberations and debates upon the drink traffic.

Date:
[between 1864 and 1870?]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Parliamentary deliberations and debates upon the drink traffic. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    c. 2 (1495)—an act directed against vagabonds and beggars —gave two justices in petty sessions the power to stop the evil, and take surety from ale-sellers for good behaviour. At that time parliamentary institutions, as we now inherit them, were developed and in a working condition; and had any peer or any member taken notes of the discussions on this novel clause, our knowledge of ale-houses in the fifteenth century would have been considerably enlarged. But blankness reigns, and the same blankness covers the debates, if debates there were, attending the passing of the 5th and 6th Edward VI.,, c. 25 (1551-2), which aimed at removing the f intolerable hurts and troubles to the commonwealth/ caused by the increase of ale-houses. This reform was sought by renewing and extend¬ ing the powers given to justices of the peace over ale-houses, and by rendering a licence necessary to the sale of ale. Next year an act (7th Edward VI., c. 5, 1552-3), f to avoid excess of wines/ attacked the other and more socially respectable branch of the traffic, the remedy in this case being a specified limitation of the number of inns in the various large towns of the kingdom. We mav be sure that a bill of this tenor would not pass into a law without many arguments in its favour and possibly many objections; but the muse of history has left no recording lines. Our first peep inside the doors of Parliament when deliberating upon this subject is procured through some f Historical Memoirs of the Four Last Parliaments of Eliza¬ beth/ which one f ITeywood Townshend, Esq., a member in those Parliaments/ compiled f faithfully and laboriously/ as the title-page assures us. One entry states that on Thursday, February 13th, 1589, a bill to reform disorders of common inns and other victualling-houses was read a second time, and f after many speeches and arguments/ plainly evincing the interest of hon. members in the question, was referred to a Select Committee. This bill passes out of sight; but nearly nine years later, on Wednesday, November 9th, 1597, a bill 2 to suppress the multitude of maltsters was upon a second reading referred to a Select Committee/ the chairman of which. Sir P. Wroth, reported on Saturday, November 12th, that the committee f had thought good to draw a new bilP after having f met and travailed^ in the business assigned them. This bill, which stands as the 39th and 40th Eliza¬ beth, c. 16 (1597-8), gave power to the justices of peace to diminish the number of maltsters, and to prevent according to their discretion the buying of barley for conversion into malt. This act was repealed by 9th William III., c. 22. Nothing, however, answering to a debate on the liquor traffic gratifies our search till we have crossed