, 1882-07-15

The Councils Members rose from their
seats.
The minutes of the last meeting were
read and adopted.
The Chairman notified the receipt Of a
letter from Bird CrOwnmember (Fdber)
dated 22nd May a. c. whereby he notifies
his intention to be absent from the Island
for a period less than 4 months. The hon
orable Member could not be considered rs
having resigned his seat; but as he is
Vicechairman, the election of a Ficechair-
man during his absence has been put on
the Order Of Day.
The Chairman also notified The receipt
of a communication dated 3Ist May a. c.
from the Presidency, whereby the Council
is requested to elect 3 Members to sit in
a Commission to report on the establish
ment of a Poor and Work-House III the
Island the election had also been put as
an item on the Order of Day
Ihe Council proceeded to Order of Day
viz:
J., 2nd Discussion on Draft of Ordinance
prohibiting the sale OF Rum IN SugaI-eS-
tates in st. Croix etc. introduced by
JunghanS and others.J
(lst discussion p.-.-
The Chairman explained the course the
matter had hitherto had: that the Majority
and Minority of tie Committee on this
Draft had on the 3rd March last rendered
reports and had proposed amendments to
the Draft. subsequently the Majority
and Minority had handed in another re
port, of which copies had been distributed
to the Members previous to this meeting:
in this the Majority had proposed that
the Council would adopt an Order OF Day
as follows:
d" The Council, while recommending to
the Administrator to take under c0nSide.
ration the question Of a better organiza-
ton of the t AIDE with and retailing in this
island OfRum and other Spirits ~andeventu-
ally to bring in proposals on the matter, pro
ceeds to the next item on the Order of the
Days The Minority is opposed to this
Order Of Day and proposes that the
amendments originally introduced by the
same Minority be put before the Council.
The Chairman placed first under discus
sion the proposal from the Majority for
the beforestated Order Of Day.
TherOmm tees Report reads as follows
While from all sides it is admitted, that
the illegal trade with Rum, now CARR
ed on III the country to a great extent, and
the drinking propenSitieS Occasioned there
by among the rural lab0UrerS, is a source
OF great danger to the Estates, still on
the other hand, it Will have been seen,
not only from the report rendered by the
undersigned Committee, but also from tie
discussions in the Council, that there
exist different opinions as to the means
best adapted to suppress the evil. This
difference of opinion depends not eXclu-
slVely on the different standpointS from
which the question is viewed, from that
OF the planters or that of the traders; for
also among those who suffer more parti-
cularly by the evil, among planters them
selves, a difference OF view prevails in the
matter. The minimum limit for the sale
of Rum on Estates which the Committees
Majority proposed q galI0nS) is by some
proposed at 100 gallons, while others
again suggest that that limit should be
50 gallons. In the Committees opinion
1t would be i'll vain to seek to suppress or
remove the evil by only fixing a high
limit, below which the sale of Rum on
estates shall not be allowable; for in that
case the rural labOUrerS would resort to
the towns to get Rum, and no material
change would be obtained in the present
untayOurable state of things. 1t has also
been advanced during the discussions in
the Council, that already the sale Of Rum
IN the RumshOpS, in the way this sale is
beng carried on now, does much harm to
the estates. And When, furthermore, the
proposed enactment that a portion of the
fines shall IN future fall to the infOrmer,
can not either, Judging from what was
stated during the discussions, be consider
ed sufficient to remove the existing evil,
LsA