The Licensing Bill is not to come on till the
Ballot and Educa- tion Bills have been disposed of ; but the Home Secretary stated on Wednesday his hope that it would be found as effective and as stringent in its provisions as that of last year, while it would avoid the rocks which endangered the latter measure. The "rocks" intended, we suppose, are the ten-year clause, and the sale of licences by auction ; but, we suspect, Mr. Bruce will find that any effective clause will be a " rock." The publicans like police supervision and short hours as little as they do the termina- tion of licences without compensation. We believe the existing ad interim Bill to be the beat and most effective check yet applied. It strengthens the magistrates' hands, it irritates nobody, and it would not take ten minutes to extend it for five years.
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