West Coast Times. MONDAY, AUGUST 8, 1881.

West Coast Times, Issue 3848, 8 August 1881, Page 2

West Coast Times. MONDAY, AUGUST 8, 1881.

Thb long promised Representation Bill is on the eve of making its appearance. The Hall Ministry have staved off the evil day as long as possible. Even now they may hand the matter over to a Select Comatittae. They do not like dealing with dangerous questions, and this question ia one which may easily trip up a strong cabinet, to say nothing of each an irresolute and i gelatinous body of gentlemen as our present rulers. The Ministry have, we are told, by a Conservative journal, performed the operation of "putting their foot down," The cause of such i a singular display of firmness was a suggestion made to them, that the country waa over-represented. The proposal to increase ihe number of representatives teems incongruous. Tha large and flourishing Colony of Victoria does not send so many gentlemen to Ike Victorian House of Representai tives, as we do to "Wellington. But the Ministry have put down their foot. After that there is nothing to say, un» lesß the House also puts down a foot in which case the Miniiterial hotf will be removed with exceeding 1 rapidity, and with suoh grace as may be reconciliable with great haste. Itis somewhat unreasonable to propose to increase the number of memben. The House is too large for the country, and may well remain stationary, until tha Colony growl a little stronger and better able to bear such a legislative weight. The expense of sending so many members to represent us is a serious consideration. There is not the slightest hope of getting tho House te abandon any portion of its honorarium, and en the ground of economy, it would be well to reduce the number of members instead of to increase them. There are | dificulties in the way of making a reduction which are so obvious that they need not be enumerated. Bat we cannot see why the number need be increased. It is proposed, as a matter of coirse, to take one member from Westland, and three from Nelson. Canterbury and Otago will gain increased strength, and Auckland one seat.

Now, we might suggest the elimination of the goldfields' members. Let the Ministry come down with a scheme to transfer the representation, hitherto enjoyed by miners and such undesirable persons, to the intelligent agricultural population of the East Coast. The bucolic intellect chooses its Halls, its Rollestons, and hoc genus omne. It looks upon a land owner as a great and holy being, whose word is law, and with whom it would be a profane and horrible circumstance to disagree. Indeed even in this Colony, Hodge is not quite free from .squire worship. He bows down before the little squatters and land owners of the Colony, if not | so abjectly as the wretched agricultural laborers of England before their masters, yet so abjectly, as to cause the gorge of the ordinary man to rise. Under these circumstances, why should not the Hall Ministry for once risk making a bold step. They should bring in a bill to extinguish the Hokitika, Totara and Buller electorates. The Grey "Valley might get another chance, as that constituency has an extraordinary aptness for smelling a 1 rat and choosing him to represent them. We offer this suggestion for what it is worth. It is noticeable that the Conservatives are very much disgusted with the Triennial Parliament Bill. An effort is now being; made to alter the 'duration of Parliament. The Conservatives allege that the cry for a return to the old state of things is general among the members. That may be so, but we do not believe it. Now that triennial Parliaments are established, it would never do to permit a retrogade step to be made. Let the people say at the next election whether they desire to alter the duration of Parliament. Upon this subject we make the following quotation from the Auckland Herald :— " It were not easy to conceive a more glaring instance of the treatment which constituencies receive from their merabors than the impudent attempt which is now being made to tamper with the Constitution. It was but yesterdry that triennial Parliaments were approved of by the Legislature, and now Mr Murray has carried the first reading of a bill again to alter the duration and I the period, and its second reading has been affirmed by 37 votes to 34. There has not been a whisper of dissatisfaction with the late change. No meeting has been held condemning it, nor has a petition been presented to the House to repeal it, and yet in the last tension of Parliament, and without- the constituencies being allowed to express any opinion, an attempt is being made to effect a change. That this matter has been arranged is one on which there can be no doubt, because nothing were easier than to hold the matter over and allow the constituencies to express their opinion at the approaching general election. It is presumed, however, that they would not tolerate it, and so Parliament is asked, and 37 members consent, to give the constituencies the goby, and leave them to make the best of what they could not help. Mr Murray has so far been fairly successful, but should the House have the audacity to alter the duration of its own existence, without first having the approval of the constituencies, those same constituencies should, at the general election, inflict such a penalty as would teach the offenders, and all others, the peril of exercising a power which depends upon their good pleasure."

His Honor Judge Broad will hold a sitting of the District Court at ten o'clock this morniag. There is an indecent assault case, Regina v. Galland, under criminal jurisdiction, and a few cases under civil jurisdiction* and in bankruptcy. The Christchurch coach arrived about halfpast four on Saturday afternoon. A serious accident occurred on the 28th ultimo, at the works, on section 13 of the Paringa road contract, by which one of the men, named Reynolds was injured. It appears that Reynolds and a man named J* Thompson had charge of the blasting on the works. On the morning of the day mentioned, Thompson, before going to work, placed ten dynamite cartridges in a caffee tin, covtred tbt tin with a close lid and then put the tin in a billy of water, hanging the billy over the fire for the purpose of soften|Bg the dynamite, ths frost having made it too hard far use. Thompson left the billy tver the fire and went away to the forge. Shortly after he had gone, an explosion took place, blowing everything right and left. Reynolds, who waa sitting in his tent received the discharge full in the front, but was able to run cut on the road. Reynolds was carried by Mr Macfaalane's instructions, to Ward's where be was undressed. It wrb found that his legs, body, arms, and face were covered with punctured wounds and both hands terribly torn. The knuckle bone of one of his fingers was blown away, leaving an ugly hole. His face was burned. His womnds were dressed, and he was taken, as soon as possible, to the Ross Hospital, where be arrived after seven days' journey. I Severe as the injuries are, it is surprising how the unfortunate man escaped with his life, seeing that not only were two cats I killed, but everything in the immediate vicinity was blown to atoms. Ia spite of the bad weather, there was a very good house at Sigaor Tamburini's peri formance on Saturday evening. The signor is remarkably clever, and his magio tricks are really worth saeing. Among them may ! be mentioned the pigeon and the ring, a marvellous exhibition of jugglery, This evening, Sigaor Tamburini will appear for the last time in Hokitika, when he will repeat his performance. Those who wish to be well entertained should pay him a visit. In another column we publish Mr J. J, i Miller's series of consultations on the Melbourne Cup; full particulars of which appear in advertisement. The unfortunate miner, who some time ago broke his leg, and is now at Mr Mark's store, at Haast, has been compelled to remain at that place, in consequence of the neglect 1 of the Wallace to call in at Haast en her

last southern trip, as the conditions of her contract demanded. However, as the southern subsidy is now a tbing of the past, it is useless to complain of the want of considera" tion shown by the contractors. The annual general meeting of subscribers of the Westland Hospital takes place tomorrow evening at 8 o'clock, to receive the report of the committee, surgeon's report, and the financial statement for the past year. Mr Ssddon telegraphed recently, in the manner following to the Kumara Times : — " Mr Seddon's Abolition of Gold Bill passed iti second reading unanimously. The arguments brought forward by him for the abolition of this obnoxious tax were unanswerable; not one member opposed. The Minister of Mines admitted having been converted, and stated that Government would not oppose the bill. This announcement ! was received with cheers. The bill was then referred to the Goldfields Committee." We really do possess a most extraordinary I Ministry. Mr Dick, a member of the Cabinet, waited oa the Premier with other Otago members recently, touching the Representation Bill ! The special Wellington correspondent of the Lyttelton Times says:—" Referring to my telegram the other day, relative te another vote of Want of Confidence motion pending, I am now in a position to state that it will be moved in a day or two, probably on going into Committee of Supply on Friday. The form it will take will be an attack on the whole financial scheme of the Government, particularly the proposition to reduce the property tax in the interests of tha propertied class, while no equivalent reduction is proposed in the duties on the necessaries of life, towards which the unpropertied and working classes mainly contribute. The general charge against Ministers will bo that of class legislasion." " Robin Hood," the English sporting correspondent of the Australasian , ia bis last letter from London, dated April 29b, sn,yß :— " I yesterday had a long talk with Pitzroy, who brought over Sir Thomas Elder's two-year-olds, Roy's wife, by Scottish Cliief, out of Helen, and Dutch Skater, by Bomba, out of Queen of Naples. They have arrired in Bplendid condition, and have gone to Alex. Taylor's to be trained. Fitzroy told me they were so fresh that when he got on to the downs at Manton he and Alex. Taylor's man could hardly hold them. Taylor was very fond of them at first sight, and was surprised to find them so well furnished. He proposes to get them in some stakes (nurseries), and that probably towards the back end at Newmarket. I hope the handicapper will not be too hard on them, but he does pop it on to the Americans. Id is a pity the two horses sent by Sic Thomas are not by Gang Forward, or better still, by a sire bred himself in the colonies." " iEglea " In the Australasian writes :—: — "A wild scion of an excellent English county family has been for some time roving about Queensland. He has a good quarterly allowance from Home, which is transmitted from place to place after him. He found himself the other day ia one of the coast towns without funds, and went to the bank. Inquiry showed that there was a sum at his disposal, but the manager required some identification of him as the proper recipient. Here waa a fix. He walked round the township ia the hope of meeting some one who knew him, but in vain. Just before three o'clock he again entered the bank, and placed his case strongly before the manager, who continued obdurate. 'Then,' said Mr De Vere, ' will this do 1' as he withdrew from beneath the waistbend of his trousers and placed upon the counter a portion of an undergarment marked with his name and crest. The manager considered the identification perfect, and let him have his money." A correspondent of the Argus writes :— 'An amusing instance of the manner in which the quarantine regulations are carried out oh the border is related by Mr George Corn well, the well known contractor, who arrived in Melbourne from Sydney reeent^ He states that after the train stopped at the station a head was poked in at the window, and a stentorian voice shouted out—' Anybody here got the smallpox ?' Numerous replies equal stentorian of the monosyllable 'No!' satisfied the illustrious functionary, and with a gratified ' All right !' he passed ob from carriage to carriage, and having gone through this absurd farce, no doubt felt he had done his duty by the colony, and earned his salary."