Page:History of Adelaide and vicinity.djvu/527

 Mr. D. Nock ADELAIDE AND VICINITY 501 supported Mr. Krichauffs Bill for the preservation of forests. In the second session he introduced a Bill for the amendment of the Licensed Victuallers Act, which provided that where a new licence was applied for it should not be granted if jjetitioned against by at least 20 persons, being a two-thirds majorit.)', residing within a quarter of a mile in the city, town, or village of the house for which the licence was sought. The Bill also provided for the closing of public houses all day on Sundays, thus attempting to amend the existing law, which allowed them to open on those days from 12 till 2, and from 8 till 10 o'clock. The first reading was moved by Mr. Nock on July 12, 1876, and the third reading was carried, after much opposition, on October i i following, 20 voting for and i 1 against it. The measure passed through the Legislative Council with the alteration of the distance within which the ratepayers should reside in city, town, or village, from a quarter of a mile to 200 yards. The Sunday-closing clause was thrown out altogether. Early in the following session Mr. Nock again introduced his Bill, mainly to ensure Sunday closing, and to extend the area from 200 to 500 yards. After a hard struggle, he succeeded in getting the measure passed, but his opponents su cceeded in amending it to the extent of permitting public houses to be open from 12 to 2 o'clock on Sundays. He then got a clause inserted allowing any publican to close all day if he chose to do so, and carried the point in regard to the distance. The first reading was moved on July 12, 1877, and the third reading was carried on October 4. The Legislative Council adopted the Bill, with a few minor amendments, in the same .session, and it became the law of the land, and thenceforth was known as " Nock's Act." For a new member, Mr. Nock was very active in Parliament. Among other questions in which he evinced a vital interest was that of Bible- reading in State schools. He pleaded for the retention of this course when the Act was passed making the education of children compulsory. On another occasion he seriouslv condemned as inconsistent the encouragement of lotteries at church bazaars. His "platform" included the 0})ening-up, where warranted, of the country by railway extension, and the sale of Crown lands at cheap rates so as to induce bond Jic/e farmers in larger numbers to settle upon land fit for agriculture. He was also an advocate of water conservation, believing, as he says, that "money wisely spent in such work would be a great blessing to the country." Since his boyhood Mr. Nock has taken great interest in religious and philanthropic matters. He feels that life has its duties, as well as its pleasures, and he acts up to the principle. He has been extensively associated with endeavors of the kind, and modestly says that he "esteems it a privilege to be permitted to help others in such useful work." He has filled most of the offices open to laymen in the Wesleyan Church, and is a local preacher, class-leader, and .Sunday-.school teacher. He has been a total abstainer for upwards of 50 years. Since his retirement from business, he has been an earnest charitable worker in the city. He is a member of committees of the Female Refuge, Blind and Deaf and Dumb Institution, Industrial School for the Blind, Deaf and Dumb Mission, Belair Retreat, City Mission, Home for Weak-minded Children, and Young Men's Christian A.ssociation. Mr. Nock has been a Justice of the Peace for over 30 years, and was at one time associated with municipal matters at Kapunda, where he occupied the mayoral chair for two years. His work in temperance, religious, charitable, and philanthropic causes ensures him a high position in public estimation.