THE GOLD DUTY.

Auckland Star, Volume XXVIII, Issue 225, 28 September 1897, Page 4

THE GOLD DUTY.

The communication sent by the Ohinemuri County Council to the Chamber of Alines recommending that "the gold duty should be estimated at the rate of one penny per carat of fine gold" is rather a singular recommendation to have come from that body, and it would be worth inquiring whether the constituents of members of the Council who adopted such a resolution know what it means, or if they know whether they appvo\e of an alteration in the mode'of assessing the duty which will deprive the Council of about £1700 a year in revenue which is now available fov road purposes, simply in order that Ohinenniiri gold may be refined in England instead of in New Zealand. Now a great deal may be said in favour of the total abolition of the gold duty, which is only levied on gold won from the Auckland goldfields, but if the duty is to be collected then we believe that the Government are perfectly right in maintaining the existing ratios_ on refined and unrefined gold, against which the present agitation seems to be alone directed. It has

! been calculated that the English companies which are mining in the Upper Thames district pay between £3500 and £4000 a year to refine their gold in London, a work which might be done perfectly well by them here, just as it is already done by the Bank of New Zealand with all the gold the bank buys for export. Moreover, if the English companies do not care to refine themselves, we understand that the Bank of New Zealand is willing to refine the gold at exactly the same charge as the companies pay for the work in England. In that case the duty would only be the rate chargeable on refined gold. The companies have, in fact, the remedy for their alleged grievance entirely in their own hands without any legislation, and we do not see why either the Ohinemuiri County Council or the Chamber of Mines should concern themselves about the matter. This discrimination between refined and unrefined gold is simply one in favour of the employment of local labour in doing work which can be done just as well and as cheaply locally as in England. The Bank of New Zealand, which, is the largest exporter of gold from the. colony, makes no complaint because it refines all its gold here, and other exporters can do the same if they please. If on the other hand they prefer to send their gold abroad in an unrefined state that is. their own look out,, and we do not see why the Government should alter the law to make it more profitable for them to do this; still less was it the duty of the Ohinemuiri County Council, seeing the amount^ of necessary road work which remains to be done in that county, and the extent to which the roads are broken up by the traffic of the big English companies, to go out of its way to make the recommendation it has done.

The Secretary of the Postal Department has. written to the Auckland Chamber of Commerce, by direction of the PostmasterGeneral, stating, with reference to the delivery of Southern mails arriving by way of the West Coast on Tuesdays and Fridays, that the Hon. Mr Walker has made arrangements by which the delivery of the mails will be expedited as far as possible until an accelerated steam or train service is provided. In future as far as possible commercial papers will be kept separate from newspapers. The inconvenience which existed owing to the interval between the despatch of the 1.15 and 3.50 p.m. trains from Onehunga to Auckland has been met by the addition of a train timed to leave Onelmnga at 2.20 p.m., and this will be supplemented by arranging for a special train, or the detention of the ordinary trains, when.any material saving in time would result.

A meeting of the nominators for appointing a successor to the late Rev. Canon Bates Mas held yesterday afternoon at the diocesan office.' The Yen. Archdeacon Dudley (Bishop's Commissary) and the Hon. Colonel Haultain represented the diocese, and Colonel Burton, Mr William Philcox, and Mr Oliver Mays represented the parochial districts of Devonjrort and Takapuna. It was agreed to nominate the Rev. Sydney Hawthorne, of Naseby, Otago; to the vacant charge.

The diver May informed the postal authorities that it would take at least a fortnight to remove the cargo to enable the Tasmania's mail room to be.reached In view of the contingencies, the weather and the labour involved, the Department thought the best course would be to blow up the deck and so release the cargo, hut the,purchasers of the .deck refused to allow this to be done. They offered to make the salvage of the mails part of their own operations to be undertaken shortly if the Government would pay for the whole or any portion recovered, but this offer is not of a character the authorities may accept. The recovery of the mails is not definitely abandoned, but remains in abeyance.

The ordinary meeting of the Auckland College and Grammar School Board was held yesterday afternoon, Colonel Haultain in the chair. Sir G. Maurice O'Rorke, on behalf of the Joint Committee, suggested the postponement of further action in the matter of the Girls' Higli School until after the present session of : Parliament. This was agreed to. It was resolved to expend £60 on the roads on the Grammar School property at Epsom provided the Epsom Road Board did the same. Accounts to the amount of £581 were passed for payment, and the meeting adjourned.

The Amalgamated Society of Carpenters and Joiners in Wellington has made a demand on the employers for Is 4d an hour and a 44 hours' week, which would bring their wages up to £3 per week. The masters have decided, however, to pay the men by the hour and not by the week, so that it' they like to work only 44 hours they can do so. They decline to increase the rate of pay, and. will give only Is 3d an hour as at present.

Bj- the s.s. Takapuna yesterday, Messrs Cousins and Cousins, the well-known coachbuilders of this city, shipped to Government House, Wellington, a handsome pony dog-cart for Captain Ward, A.D.C. to His Excellency the Governor.

An inquest was proceeding at Gleeson's Hotel this afternoon before Dr. Philson, Coroner, on the body of the infant found dead in Customs-street yesterday.

Some weeks ago a baby was found lying in the Western Park fully dressed with a feeding bottle by its side. The infant was handed over to the Charitable Aid Board, and the police communicated with. A few days afterwards Detectives Herbert and Bailey were able to identify ths child, and for the next ten days made a thorough search for the mother, visiting the various boarding-houses, hotels and registry oifices in the town. Yesterday afternoon Detective Herbert arrested Mary Ann Barton, who is a woman about 30 years of age, employed as a domestic servant iri Garlton Gore Road. She was brought up at the Police Court this morning, and charged with abandoning her child, but as the police were not ready to go on -with the case it was adjourned till Monday next. The accused states that she had given the child to a woman who had promised to adopt it, and that she had four other children living with her husband near Whangarei. She had been in her-present situation for about a fortnight.

Phil May has just signed contracts with George Alien to illustrate the new edition of Dickens which th« Orpington publishers has resolved to bring1 out.

Henry Lipscombe, fruit- importer and general dealer, of Auckland, a bankrupt, in a sworn statement made before the Official Assignee in bankruptcy, says lie Lad no business premises in town, hut earned on his business in fruit mostly through the auctioneers. For the first two years of the six lie was in business here he did fairly well, but subsequently he incurred losses in business, when he launched oat more largely. He had dealings with Fiji, Hobart and other places, and he lost on several shipments from Tasmania, through damage to fruit, and also owing to . bad markets. The immediate cause of his filing was a judgment obtained against him in the ■ Magistrates Court 'by a creditor. He had previously to that attempted to effect a composition with his creditors, but it fell through. His assets consist of book debts £36 13s 4d (estimated to be worth £10), and his household furniture about £25. He owes various sums to local business men chiefly to auctioneers.

A fourth public exhibition and trial nPHawke's patent sub-soiler took nlj °F Mr Shibley's farm, Mangere, on thr IRa of September. ■ At this trial a 5-skeeth worked attached to an Elder Bros' rid plough, which dug the very retentive sS, 5 soil in a most perfect manner, 21 to 4 below the plough, ploughing q to 6in A^ by 14 to 16m wide. Although the soil w of a very hard nature it was admitted h Mr John Scott, who is an authority I such subjects, that it did its work in thorough and. efficient manner, and re! marked to the public, it would be invpossibl to drive a spade so deep. There were bnl a small company present, as no pute^ had been given of the exhibition. A pute * trial of the above plant was announced ta take place on the 25th inst., hut on account of the inclement state of the weather th same had to be abandoned. In another l portion of this paper will be found an ad. vertisement referring to Hawkes' patent subsoil er, which farmers and others in, terested will do well to peruse.

On Tuesday evening last the Epsom Football Club held its third annual drnw and smoke concert in the Epsom Hal] Mr F. Hull was in the chair in the absenps of the President, Rev. W. E. GilW About 36 sat down to dinner, including a number of friends and Vice-Presidents A number of toasts were drunk and honoured, including the " Epsom Football' Club," ''Presidents and Vice-Presidents" " Captain " (Mr A. L.Andrews), '.Secretary/ (Mr J. Gf. Wynyard), "Treasurer" (Mr C. Stewart), "Ladies," "Visitors," etc. Then followed a pleasant musical programme, items being contributed by Captain Richardson, Messrs "W. Owen Andrew J. Stewart, Ryan, Chas. Stewart' Colson, M. H. Wynyard and others. ' M. Arnaud, Inspector of French Colonies^ visited the Calliope Dock yesterday afternoon in- company with the Chairman of the Harbour Board (Mr W. J. Napier), and was much pleased^ Avith the size' and solidity of the dock.. Subsequently M, Arnaud was entertained at Lake Taka> puna by Mr Napier, and expressed himself as delighted with the beauty of the Lake scenery.

A young man named James Bishop, employed at Mr Raines' butcher's shop,, Parnell, met with a painful accident on Friday, while cutting meat. The knife he was using slipped and gashed his face severely; though fortunately his left eye was saved by the knife hitting the eyebrow. Dr. Marsack stitched up the wound, which stretched right across the left cheek.

An American paper says :—lt is seldom anything is heard from the country of Terra delFuego, which terminates in Cape Horn. However, the brig Phantom has just left Newport with one of the .most miscellaneous cargoes • ever consigned in these days to.a distant land. It comprises nearly 2,000 different kinds of merchandise —tin trumpets, toys, dolls, and whistles for the natives, to machinery, a quantijty of corrugated iron for roofs, 30,000 .hricjcs for, dwellings,;coal, etc. '.. Thebrig was recently purchased by Mr Thomas Bridges, a missionary in the Argentine settlement of Terra del Fuego, when on a visit to Newport to buy the. articles referred to. The vessel takes with her ten emigrants, who will act as mechanics and labourers in the colony. Gold is found in the place, and Mr Bridges brought over with him about £600 worth of gold dust.

It has been found that more damage was done to the Wellington Public Library Building by last Tuesday night's earthquake than was at first supposed. On examination of the tower directly above the main entrance it was found that the brickwork in several of the angles of the octagon just below the dome of the tower had been considerably shaken. Probably, it will be necessary to take down a portion of it to prevent further damage in the event of a repetition of the tremors. ■•"

The Secretary of the Auckland Technical School requests that students who have not already enrolled should,do so now, in order that the classes which have 'started may not be disturbed after this week. The day wood-carving class has grown so large that arrangements are now being made for dividing it into two day classes, or reviving the evening class for woodcarving. . Already half the required: number of names have been handed in for the latter class and the balance should soon be obtained. The free demonstrations given last week illustrating some of. the .advantages, of the Excelsior system of. dressmaking taught at the school have led to a number of young .women joining the classes for the same. The course of instruction in dressmaking has been lately extended in the direction of supply-3 ing fuller-information respecting the adaptibility of the system taught to the latest fashions, and will be found exceedingly useful to former students who have already learnt the Excelsior system.

At 12.30 o'clock to-day, Mrs Soltau delivered an address entitled " A Queenk Dilemma," to women only, intheY.M.CJL Lecture Hall. The lecture was part of the programme of the Christian Endeavour Convention. There was a large number present, the hall being well filled. Another meeting will be held to-night, when messages from all parts of the world will 1»: delivered, and addresses will be made by Revs. F. Warner and G. Soltau. .

Messrs O'Connell and Evans (late of Dunedin) announce, by advertisement in another column that they have comenced business at 87, Cook's Buildings, Auckland, as engrossers, law stationers, and draughtsmen. Plain and ornamental writing of every description is undertaken.

The box plan for the Auckland Banjo, Guitar and Mandolin Club's grand concert to be given at the Opera House to-morrow night is rapidly filling, and there is no doubt that with such a programme they will have a bumper house. Miss Constance Hatherly will play two harp solos and in a trio with Messrs Alf. Bartley (piano) and A. Wynyard-Joss (mandolin). The following well known artists will also contribute items: Misses Celia Dampier, E.L. Featon, ilessrs Abel Rowe, G. Tracy Hall and Ernest Schatz. The scenic arrangements are under the supervision of Mr Walter Wright, artist. An excellent photograph of several of the members of the abo*e Club was taken at Sarony's Studio, New-ton,. which was re-produced in last week's issue of the "Graphic."

I had been a martyr to indigestion for a number of years, during which I tried many so-called remedies, but found I go* no relief until I was prevailed upon to try Nurse Woodward's Health Syrup, and the effect Avas magical. I therefore feel it i?y fluty to give this testimonial for the information of those who are suffering from the same complaint.— W. D. Scott, auctioneer, Opunake. —(Advt.) We have just received a large shipment of ladies' umbrellas in real silver mounts* at 4s lid, 5s lid, 6s 6d, 7s lid, 9s6cl,» r strength and durability unequalled. •Snutn ami Caughey.—-(Advt.) On Thursday morning next we will show a special job line of 3000 yards oi latest dress fabrics in black lustres antt alpacas (plain and fancy) at prices to sea quickly.— R. Hobbs.—(Advt.) Manufacturers samples. — Smith and Caughey have purchased a big lot °* samples of open work sideboard clotns* runners, doylies, antis, and novelties va napery. The above are shown on tables, and marked at half price.—Advt. Salvage Sale—Delivery of goods ONLJ to-morrow (Wednesday). No goods wu» be offered for sale till Thursday mornin o 10 o'clock. Any customers who wan* their goods sooner than we can delive!■ If they send their own carts to-morrow *» will give our best attention to them. Tonson Garlick Company, Ltd.-(AdvM