Final report of Her Majesty's Commissioners appointed to inquire into the operation and administration of the laws relating to the sale of intoxicating liquors.

  • Great Britain. Royal Commission on the Liquor Licensing Laws
Date:
1899
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Final report of Her Majesty's Commissioners appointed to inquire into the operation and administration of the laws relating to the sale of intoxicating liquors. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine Library & Archives Service. The original may be consulted at London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine Library & Archives Service.

    217/406 (page 199)
    This discretion might include the power to fix certain hours during which the bond fide DovcWilson, traveller might be served, instead of letting them, as now, have the whole of the 70,168. run of Sunday. A minimum distance, say seven miles, should be fixed as qualifying the traveller for refreshments. By these alterations of the law the nuisance caused by the bond fide traveller, under the present system might bo sensibly abated. CHAPTER VIII. APPEALS TO QUARTER SESSIONS, i. The Law. There is an appeal to county quarter sessions against refusals to renew or transfer a 9 Geo. IV. certificate both in counties and burghs. c- 58.ss- 14 > 25 There are no burgh quarter sessions as in England, as there are no burgh justices, 39'&40Viet. but three cities are also counties with a separate commission of the peace and in these, c. 26. s. 16. viz. : Edinburgh, Glasgow, and Dundee, the appeal lies to the city quarter sessions. Glasgow and Dundee have only been counties of cities since 1893, and Edinburgh since 1882. ii. Appeals from Burghs. During 10 years 1886-96, there have been, excluding Inverness, which sent in no returns, and Edinburgh city, which during the whole decennial period had its own yo] y quarter sessions, and Glasgow and Dundee cities during 1894-6, when they had their p. 197. own quarter sessions, 490 appeals, of which 235 were allowed, and 255 dismissed or abandoned. A great discrepancy of opinion is thus manifested between the decision of the local and of the external authorities. As in England the appeal from the burgh magistrates to county quarter sessions is felt to be a great grievance. The feeling on this subject is very strong in Aberdeen, and in 1891 the town council Kemp, memorialised the Prime Minister that the countv justices should no longer have the 72,838, '70 U 1Q power to interfere in licensing matters affecting the city. If there is to be an appeal 7^;s4y. it should be made, thinks Bailie Kemp, to men within the city. Mr. Wyness, chief constable of Aberdeen, speaks very strongly. He said that during the last 9 or 10 years the efforts of the magistrates had been constantly 45,538. thwarted by the county quarter sessions. Justices were whipped up to attend from all parts of the county by active canvassing. From 1880-90 the average number of justices attending quarter sessions did not exceed 10. But when the Aberdeen magistrates took a strong line in reducing the number of certificates, the attendance 45,373. immediately jumped up to 60 or 70. When a case in which they had been particularly interested had been disposed of, 10 or 12 justices would disappear together in a batch. As far as Peterhead is concerned, the provost thinks that the appeal to quarter Smith, sessions is of no use, and that its tendency is rather injurious than otherwise—but 46,138. subsequently he modified this opinion ; and said he would be content with an appeal 46,510. committee, instead of for the present haphazard gathering. This select court of appeal would do away with the whipping-up which is a feature of the present system. The chief constable of the county of Aberdeen mentions a case where the justices Gordon, came together with the evident intention of reversing the decision of the burgh 48,596. magistrates, leaving the court in a body after that particular matter had been decided, 38,600. and not stopping to attend to the remaining business. He advocates a court of appeal constituted of justices of the peace elected by quarter sessions, county councillors elected by the county council with other i 9 Dd