The Northern Daily Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1857-04-28 00:00:00

IMPORTANT EXCISE DECISION.

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At the Bow street Police (lourt, on Saturday, Mr. Wm.
Cloak, "the proprietor- of the oyster room., at 47, Strand,
appeared to an a(l...j.ourDed summons, charging him with
having wine 4.:e1 spirits in his possession in rooms entered
for the ceie of hew.. The prosecution had made out a
7,"7,43 facie case by proving that on the 27th of January,
Wea..Muggeridge, an excise offlo.er, searcned the premises,
and Totiud itt a cupboard a decanter containing ab ut
half a pint of gin, and on a sideboard another containing
half a pint of orange wine. This was in the parlour, which,
as wail as the shop and the whole of the first and second
lloOre, had been entered under the beer ac-, Mr. Cloak
holding a re'ailer'es license. The defence was that the
'orange wine hal been left after a juvenile party, and
'that tee gin was far the use of the defendant's tamily,
incising the waiters, but nor. for customers. It had been
'contended by Mr. Dwelly, tha excise solicitor, that this
,icas no answer to the ehvga, and that a retailer of beer
must not have spirits or wale in his entered idioms, even
for domestic lice. Its worship having taken timeto c insi-
der the point, gave judgmeat on Saturday, when the court
Was unusually full, the question having exeited consider-
ible interest among persons interested in the bear trade.
Mr. Henry said : Mr. Dwelly, I have considered the act
'of parliament under which the defendant was summoned,
'and I am clearly of opinion that the strict interpretation
you c 'mend for cannot he put upon the wards. I think the
`object of the Legislature was to prevent the keeper of a beer-
shop from having in his possession, for the purpose of
sale, any wine or spirits, but it was never intended to pro-
hibit him from having 'upon his premises wine or spirits
for his own poivare use or the use of hos family, or that he
ehould_not be at liberty to drink a gist of wine in his own
parleue, though that parlour be part of the premises
licensed. I can vary well conceive why the words, "for
the purpose of sale" were omitod from the act.
It is my belief that the Legislature intended to
throw the onus of proof on the defendant. It
is enough for the Excise to prove the finding of
the wine or spirits on the premises, and then it
Is for the defendant to prove, if he can, that it was for
private use. However, in Phis case the evidence produced
for the defendant has satisfied me that the orange wine •
and gin used in his parlour were fir the use of tie family,
and not for the purpose of sale to any customer, and I shall
theiefore dismiss the summons. At the same time as it came
outin the comae of the former examination that the de-
fenilants servants do sometimes send out for brandy to be
consumed by the customers, I think it right to caution him
that, if he permits them to do so, he is liable to
penalties, even thongit they receive the money beforehand.
The defendant said ne bad posted bills in the rooms, in-
forming the customers that the waiters were not permitted
to fetch wine or spirits under any circumstances. He had
been put to great inconvenience by these proceedings,
having had his parlour unentered to c ,mply with the
excise view of the law. The decision being in his favour,
he would now have to re-enter that room.

RAILWAY A CCIDENT.—On Saturday afternoon, abo'it foar
o'clock, a railway excavator, named J,hn Russell, was
employed levelling the embankment of the new Le,ide,
Wakefield, and Bradford line, near to the station at Wake-
field. A train was approa •hing at the time, but the man
did not appear to observe it until it was close upon him
In endeavouring to escape, he was knocked down, and a
portion of the train went over one of his legs, almost
severing it below the knee. He was at once taken to
the Clayton Hospital, where the limb was amputated.
THE FIRE AT ALDERSIIOTT —ln yesterday's publication
we gave the mere !act of a fire having broken out at the
Aldershott Camp. since then we have received full parti-
culars. It appears that, on Saturday, the troops stationed
in Aldershott Camp were suldenly aroused by the alarm
of fire. The premises stood on a large surface of ground,
and conprised the camp bakery, two mills worked by horse
Power, and nu the ground floor were six]Npacinus rooms f
ir
bekieg bread, and two oteer mills, also worked by horse
power, for mixing, and in the brewhouse at the side were
four tremendous boilers used for brewing yeast. The whole
of the buildings formed almost a paralellogram, and included,
beyond those above enumerated, a spacious raege of stabling
in which several horses, belonging to different officers,
were depsited; the new forage stores, the bread stores,
the coaltard, oven houses, and timber huts. In the upper
story of one part of the bakery were not fewer than 350
sacks of flour, and saverakth usand loaves of bread, besides
various other descriptions of stores. From personal
enquiries made on the spot, it appears that whilst the men
wee actively engag din the bakery they vo-re astonished
at seeing an unusual body of flame it one of the build egg
counseled with the bakery, used as stores. An instant
alarm of " Fire" was therefore raised, which was re-echeea
through the ranks, and in a brief space of time the troops
were ordered out, and a brigade of firemen attended
with their ensine, It was teen found that nothing
short of the most strenuous exertions of those on the
spot could save the surrounding buildings. With as little
delay as possible the ergines were set to work nreier
the superintendence of the commanding officers but in
spite of the continued exertions of all present, the work
of devastation continued, and before the flames could be
entirely extinguished, the large bakery was consumed—ad
that remains being the tail chimney shaft ; six of the ex-
tensive ovens are al'o burned out. The camp bakery is
corsemed. Two large mills are gutted, and their contents
are also consumed. About 1,000 loaves of b ead, and a
quantity of flour have been saved, except by the damage
done by the heated water thrown upon the ?saute. A g eat
many other buildings connected with the c 'mmtssariat
department ware saved, as well as the huts on the opposiie
8' de of the entrance. As to the cause of the fire, nothing
that could be depended upon could be ascertained.' •