H—3B

717. The Europeans may include persons carrying on an " agency " (Chapter 33, supra, and R. 6578). In one case mentioned to us, youths obtained beer from an agency within half an hour of going in and giving their order (R. 6087). Europeans may also include " droppers " (R. 3620 and 6475), boot-leggers in hotel bars (R. 2807), barmen (R. 1566), carriers and taxi-drivers (R. 130 and 3620). 718. Maoris operate in the King-country. An example of their operations is given by Mr. Paterson, S.M., who said (R. 130): — A Maori sends a written order with or without cash in a pakeha name to a brewery. The liquor is railed to Te Kuiti, and the Maori goes to a carrier with a written authority purporting to be signed by the pakeha and a letter directing the carrier to take delivery from the railway and leave it on a certain stand to be picked up by the writer. In one case at Te Kuiti it came out that a Maori woman had successfully worked this scheme five times in different pakeha names within three weeks, using order forms supplied by the brewery, and which appeared to indicate that the brewery had set itself out to do a cash mail-order business in the King-country. The carrier was prosecuted, but not the brewery nor the woman. 719. Hindus are alleged to obtain liquor for Maoris and sell it to them in the pas or elsewhere. The representative of the New Zealand Indian Central Association (Inc.), (whieh was formed in 1927) said that, so far as they could ascertain, there were not more than ten Indians resident in Native pas (R. 6529), and that during the last five years, fourteen Indians had been convicted of the offence of supplying liquor to Maoris. The ■offences had been confined to Rotorua, Frankton, Te Kuiti, Te Awamutu, Pukekohe, Hamilton, and Kawhia. There was no record of any conviction in Wellington, Taranaki, or Hawke's Bay Provinces or in the South Island. There is evidence that Hindus were suspected at one time of supplying liquor to Maoris in Auckland (R. 5866). 720. Although the number of Hindus operating as sly-grog sellers to the Maoris may not be as great as is sometimes supposed, the evidence shows that those who do live in the pas are a grave danger to the Maoris [see, for examole the evidence of Mr. Paterson, S.M. (R. 6083)]. 721. The evidence shows that Dalmatians operate among Maori communities in the far North of New Zealand, where they sell wine and other liquors unlawfully to Natives (R. 3585). We have had a strong letter from the Mangonui Hospital Board on this subject. The Board says that locally-made wine forms a large proportion of such liquor. 722. Sly-grog sellers appear to be of two types. Retired Superintendent Lopdell distinguished between the " real sly-grogger " and the " mushroom sly-grogger." He gaid that the real sly-grogger was jealous of his clientele and very cautious. He would sell as he bought, without adulteration, but only to his customers whom he knew. The mushroom sly-grogger would come into the market only occasionally, when he would obtain a dozen bottles of liquor and, by dilution, turn them into two or three dozen of various concoctions. 723.' We refer now to the position in the various districts. Superintendent Edwards said that sly-grogging was most likely to occur in the large towns and in the no-license .districts. On the other hand, retired Superintendent Lopdell did not think that the no-license district specially favoured sly-grog selling unless the district had back areas with small settlements, as in the King-country, where there were, for example, sawmills .and mines and no hotel (R. 2969 and 3000). This reasoning seems to be sound, and it must apply also to licensed areas where there are scattered communities of workingmen without comparatively ready access to a licensed house. 724. With reference to the license districts, we had evidence mainly concerning the position in Auckland and Wellington during the war. Sergeant J. L. Adams explained the conditions in Auckland and how they were mastered (R. 2807). In one raid at Titirangi, in Auckland, £4OO worth of liquor was seized (R. 3098). At first the American authorities in Auckland co-operated with the police in enforcing the law, but subsequently withdrew their support because they thought that their men, when

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