Sevenoaks Chronicle and Kentish Advertiser, Friday 21 March 1913.

The Royal Standard.

Superintendent Fowle stated that there had been five changes here since 1904.

Mr. Cecil Whiteley (solicitor):- Do you know that at least two transfers were due to illness?

I cannot say.

The Chairman:- To whom does this business belong?

Mr. Whiteley:- To Watney, Combe and Reid. It is the only beer house in Westerham.

Sgt. Huggett said that the premises were closed in at the back and there was no trouble about supervising it. It was situated about 90 yards from the "Warde Arms" and about 270 yards from the "Kings Arms" and "George and Dragon."

The Rev. Acworth:- There is a means of ingress by going round the back?

It is a right of way to the stables.

In reply to the Chairman, Sergeant Huggett said that the right of way was near a tobacconist shop and there was a doorway entrance from there back to the beer house.

The Chairman:- I cannot quite grasp whether there is a special virtue in a beerhouse. I do not know whether there is any special difference between beer and ale.

Continuing, Sergeant Huggett said that the premises were usually large for a beer house. The licensed premises were larger than the other houses dealt with. There was no complaint to make.

In addressing the Bench, Mr. Whiteley said that his submission to them with regard to this house was, that there was exceptional features which should move them to renew the licence. It was a matter of very great difficulty indeed for any Bench in considering this question, to determine which of any house ought to be closed. So far as he was concerned, he was going to submit that at any rate the "Royal Standard" was not the house. It was difficult to deal firstly with a question of redundancy. He supposed that that was why those cases were there that day, because prima facie there were too many licensed houses. If it was proved to them that in each of the houses of special trade was being done, then he submitted that the evidence that they there were too many houses was repudiated. With regard to Messrs. Watney, Combe and Reid, this was the only house that they had in Westerham, and that differentiated them from either of the other houses. If this house was closed it would be inflicting more hardship on his clients than on either of the others. Another point was that it was the only beerhouse in the village of Westerham.

The Rev. Acworth:- It is a town.

Mr. Whiteley:- I have never been to Westerham, and I beg your pardon.

The Rev Acworth:- They are very sensitive about it.

Continuing, Mr. Whiteley said that he thought it was the experience of everybody who had anything to do with the licensing question, that certain people of the community prefer to go to the beerhouse rather than a fully licensed house. It was for this reason that the beerhouse was generally more comfortable for the working man, and the expenses for keeping a licensed house were larger than those of the beerhouse. The annual value was larger, the licence duty was larger, the compensation was larger, everything was larger. If I close this beerhouse they would not be another in Westerham and therefore he asked them to consider it. He had had experience of business in his county, and he found that the authorities had laid it down that they would not close beerhouses. The premises have been kept in excellent repair and his instructions were that they had recently been done up. Mrs Mr. Cafferty was granted the transfer of licence in December, and therefore it was impossible for him to present a list for the Bench. He was an exceptionally good tenant for this house. He had served his time in the Army and had gained the rank of Sergeant, and he had also served as a Sergeant in the Volunteers and Territorials. He had a wife and three children, and had paid £180 to go into the house. The trade had increased since he went into the house compared with the same period last year.

Mr. John Cafferty gave evidence corroborating what his solicitor had said, and Mr. T. J. Durrant, local manager, gave evidence, stating that one transfer have been through the illness of the licensee, and another one through the illness of the wife. The last change was due to bad management.

Mr. Edser, assistant surveyor to Messrs. Watney, Combe and Reid, stated that the premises had recently been done up.

The Chairman:- Do you say it had been done up?

The order was given six or seven weeks ago. It is not yet finished.

Mr. Whiteley:- The Bench will understands that the order was given before the notice was served.

The Bench adjourned to deliberate for some time, and upon returning to Chairman said that they had settled to refer the "Grasshopper" and renew the "Old House at Home" and the "Royal Standard."