FROZEN MUTTON AND THE NATIONAL DEBT.

Press, Volume LV, Issue 9990, 21 March 1898, Page 5

FROZEN MUTTON AND THE NATIONAL DEBT.

The importance to the colony of the frozen meat industry to New Zealand has been emphasised in many ways of late, but perhaps one of the most forcible ways of putting it, as was done by one of the visitors at the freezing works at Timaru on Saturday, was that the frozen meat now exported from the colony annually paid the interest en our national debt. PRESENTATION TOMK MOSS JONAS. On Saturday evening tbe presentation of a purse of 250 sovereigns was made at (Timaru to Mr Moss Jonas, who for about thirty years has been a leading business and public man in the town, on his leaving for Wellington to begin business there. Great regret at his departure was expressed by the representatives of all ranks. A separate purse was presented on behalf of the South Canterbury Rugby Union and the Timaru Rowing Club.] FOOTBALLER__n_NSIJRANCE. In the course of the proceedings at the •nnual meeting of the Christchurch Foot- . ball Club, a member introduced the subject of the insurance of footballers, with the principle of which he expressed his approbation. He mentioned that the scheme pro- - posed was to charge ls a week during the •eason. Thi a woa ]d entitle a player to leceive £1 per week if he were disabled and £50 if he were killed," a piece of information which, notwithstanding the gravity of its character, caused a moment's merriment «om the manner in whioh it was supplied. OLD AGE PENSIONS IN DENMARK. In the course of his address to the Canterbury College Dialectic Society last night, Mr Alpers gave a brief account of the Danish old age pension system. In Denojark there was no trouble in the matter of obtaining money. The question was how to dispose of the surplus revenue, obtained, it •a-ty be mentioned, by a tax on beer. Every ■ative born subject of the age of sixty years, who is in necessitous circura•wnces is entitled to relief from the pension fund with the exception of those whose poverty has sprung from some such cause as wilful extravagance and a disorderly hie. The relief, which is paid either in money or kind, varies in amount but never exceeds £16 16s per annum. A successful -"vision is made between the thrifty and the undeserving poor. Another somewhat remarkable feature about this pension system is that the whole substance of the . enactment only covered, when printed, a •pace equal to about a page of foolscap. ENJOYING FROZEN MUTTON. The large gathering of visitors who, at *he invitation of the Christchurch Meat Company, inspected the Smithfield Freezing Works at Timaru on Saturday, were given *n opportunity of tasting meat that had :• pawed through the frtiezing chamber. The oniversal opinion regarding the joints, <_c, cf mutton and lamb was a most favourable

one, and general surprise was expressed that the meat was so deliciously tender, sweet and juicy. Indeed, some of those who partook of the meat evidently iound it difficult to believe that it had ever been frozen. One of the secrets probably of tbe excellent flavour and juiciness of the meat was that it had been properly thawed before being placed in tho oven, and if more information on this point were given at Home among the consumers of frozen mutton it would be a good thing.