The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1889-02-19

his was an application by Henry
Bradley and William r. Chiffon for
Writ Of Mandamus, directed to tn,
Minister of the Interior, to cOmpe
him to grant the said Chiffon a license
TO sell spirituous liquors at retail OF
the premises known as the keystone
Saloon, situate at the corner of King
and Fort streets, Honolulu.
The petition alleges that the peti.
TONERS are owners as tenants in com
mon Of the premises known rs the
keystone Saloon. That since the
year 1876 the said premises have been
owned as aforesaid and used for the
business of selling wine and spirits at
retail under license issued by the
Minister of the Interior first 10 said
Bradley and afterwards TO different
persons representing said owners or
their lessees. That large expense, to-
wit: over $1,000 was incurred by
petitioner in fitting up said premises
as a saloon for the purpose of said
business and that by continuing such
business therein a much larger income
can he obtained therefrOm than from
any other use thereof. That on the
seventh of January, 1888, the annual
license for said saloon expired, being
then i'm the name of J. =. Bowen, the
barkeeper for the then lessee thereof,
but such license was Professionally
renewed until the sixth day of March,
and that the Minister of the Interior
and the then acting Minister of the
Interior had since been requested by
petitioners TO renew such license for
said premises by granting TO said
Chiffon a license for selling spirit
uous Liquors at retail at said Key
stone Saloon, and that although such
request had been accompanied with
the tender OF the sum of 81 900 and of
a bond with surety TO be approved by
said Minister in the form required by
law in such cases, yet said Minister
absolutely refused and said acting
Minister still refused such request,
and they severally based such refusal
solely on the ground that the Minis
ter had decided to issue no more such
licenses in Honolulu. And the petit
toner submitted that thereby they
were unlawfully and arbitrarily de
barred from and deprived of the right
OF acquiring property, and that they
were entitled to have a license for the
vending OF SpirituOus liquors at retail
at said Keystone Saloon, granted by
said Minister to said Chiffon upon his
filing a bond with a surety to be APP
proved as aforesaid and paying the
fee required by law in such cases.
And the petitioners prayed that a
writ of mandamus should issue di-
rected TO the Minister OF the Interior
commanding him to grant such
license TO said Chiffon upon his Civ
ing bond and paying the fee required
by law, or TO show cause to the salts |
faction of the Court why such license |
should not be granted.
This petition was heard by Mr.. |
Justice Dole on the 30th day of Octo- |
Der last, who granted an alternative |
writ commanding the Minister of the |
Interior TO issue q license to the peti- |
toner Chiffon upon his filing an APP |
proved bond and paying the license |
fee Of one thousand dollars, or to show I.
cause to the contrary on the 9Th of /
November a demurrer was filed |
which was argued before the said |
Justice, when the Acknowledgement |
on behalf of the Minister urged that |
the petition did not allege that the
license fee OF $1,000 had been paid
and an approved bond given, and also
that under the statute regulating the
sale of spirituoUs liquors, the grant
ing OF a retail spirit license Is entirely
in the discretion of the Minister of
the Interior.
The demurrer was overruled, the
Justice being of opinion that as the
ground alleged by the Minister was
solely that he had decided to issue
no more such licenses in Honolulu
there was no exercise of discretion at
all. and that he found "Upon eXamin-
alton of those cases which form pre-
cedents to the question, that where Il
is admitted in an officer
authorized TO grant similar licenses ii
is nowhere allowed that he should
exercise an arbitrary discretion or
one founded on caprice.n
RcU as. Young ct al, l Burr, $50.
Reg. rs. Sylvester, b. & S., $50.
Reg. rs. .W0IsaIl, c. l.. r., 100.
ZdRORc rs. Mound city, 103 H., sos. ]
sharpe as. Justices Of Wakefield, J..
r. p, @. B. Div. so. /
The Minister thereupon filed an
answer in which he admits that he j
refused to issue a license to the petit I
toner Chiffon, but denied that he {
based such refusal solely, or at all, on
he ground that he had decided TO t
ssue nc more such licenses in Homo 5
ulu and alleged the truth to be that l
be refused to issue such licenses for l
he reason that he deemed it undesir- I
ible in the public interest, that !
-etail liquor saloon should be estab- i
ished or continued in the premises
Known As the keystone Saloon, and c
'et forth various reasons for arriving [
Il such conclusion. And the Minis t
N his answer further submitted
that he is by law vested with a il
power as to the grant b
ng Of licenses such as is sought by 5
he Petitioner Chiffon, and that, in o
efusing to issue such license, he
cte6 in good faith, in the public t
interest and within his discretionary il
,ower in the premises o
The case was heard before the same q
ustice on the 18th November, who q
.eld. that a discretion is conferred on 81
he Minister OF the Interior by the u
tatute in the matter of granting Il
e.ail spirit licenses. And that the y
Expenditure of money in improving
saloon after it had been licensed as 81
UGH could not bind the discretion OF c
n official in such case if he had q tt
discretion. And that the Minister ci
Laving by law discretion it was not Il
Dr the Court TO pass upon the sUffi- la
;n-,a1- of tha TpaSOOS Of tho rnSnOnd