ANGLO-COLONIAL NOTES.

Press, Volume LVI, Issue 10320, 14 April 1899, Page 6

ANGLO-COLONIAL NOTES.

(FROM Otm OWN COttRESPONDENT. 1 LONDON, March, 3. ' la-a somewhat similar fashion.'fo that which occurred after tie death of Sir George Grey, though not to so marked a degree, stories of the late Sir George Bowen are cropping up in many of the London papers. Onetrf these gives it that Sir George Bowen' was once at a dinner party, at which also was Sir James Fitssjames Stephen, the celebrated criminal Judge. The former was tell- ] ing 'Svith much gusto and self-appreciation" how, when Governor of New Zealand, attended by his A.D.Cs, in their plumes and finery, he was on a progress through a part | of the country which had lately been in re- j bellion, he was told tuat a brother of the late chief, who Lad been executed by Sir George's own orders,, wished to see him. "What a touching incident, , ' he wound up by saying, "ot the absence of ill-will and of for-, giveness." "I suppose he was heir-at-law," broke in Stephen. . fcir George's reply is not given. Whether the story is true or not no one can say, for both are now dead, but it is exactly the kind of thing that would be said by Sir Justice Stephen, who once summed.up on case of alleged libel on a dead man with the terse sentence: "The dead have no rights, therefor* they oan suffer no wrongs." A warm eulogy is paid to, the late Sir George Bowen by the"Saturday Review:" In him, it says, "fchere has disappeared from the midst of colonial circles in London a striking personality. He belonged to the old order of colonial Governors, the order that is, which prepared- the way for • younger men, who are mostly innocent of official experience and rely on their tact and social position for success in the role of figure-head in various colonies. His memory .will-long be cherished as a good and wise Governor. Sir George had a real gift for creative statesmanship. But !he was something more than a colonial Governor. He was an Imperial statesman, whose imagination was fired by acquaintance with classic example. He regarded himself as the pro-Consul of a newer and Greater Rome." The Christchurch friends of Mr Gerald Russell, who has for some months past been studying medicine at Guy's Hospital, will be pleased to hear that he has passed his London matriculation examination. Mr Russell tells mc that he is now living at Devonshire road, Honor Oak Park, with Mr Maurice Louisson, also of Christchurch. Another student at Guy's is Mr O'Brien, and he is now living with, Mr Aiilsom, at. Brock-' ley. ' '• ' ' ■ Mr H. Moncrieff Paul, who has been for many years past manager of the New Zealand Loan and Mercantile Agency Company, has now retired from active service. He joined the Company in 1572—twenty-seven years ago—as produce manager. After that he took up the position of secretary, and latterly that of manager. Mr James Paterson, who has been appointed wool and produce manager in London, was, until recently, sub-manager for the Company in Sydney. Having arrived in this country a. fortnight or so ago, via America, Mr Paterson has justtaken up has new duties. I learn that the secretarial work of the Company will still be performed by Mr Brander, who has long been associated with the New Zealand Loan and Mercantile Company. a large number of visitors have viewed the exhibition of colonial pictures by Messrs Wadham and Sinclair, at the Graves Galleries. The success of the commercial side of the undertaking, is evidenced by the display of "sold" labials that decorate many of the pictures. Mr Wadham's 'largest picture fetched- £262 10a last year; the largest in the present collection is comparatively small, but it has sold for £180. A view of Kinloch, Lake Wakatdpu, has attracted a great deal of attention. ' Last week, at Carlisle, a paper on "Tuberculosis in New Zealand," was.read before a' meeting of the Cumberland and Westmoreland Chamber of Agriculture by Mr Watt, who - has been engaged in s f arming in the colony. He stated that "the cattle Twere sometimes housed at night, the -cows being milked in open sheds, where there is seldom so much as a feeding trough.' If plenty of air could prevent - the disease, one would think it would get little footing there.' , " Yet he went on to say that in one district the Stock Inspector condemned and killed without'compensation 80 to 100 head of cattle, and though, those best qualified to judge did not' consider the disease so prevalent in New Zealand as in Great. Britain, the tuberculin test bad given sufficient evidence to warrant the statement that 25 per cent, of the cattle in the colony were affected. This is Air Watt's statement, and, of course, tbe most has ueen made of it here. But on the authority of the President of the College of Physicians, there is infinitely greater risk of tuberculosis in the staged ox of Great Britain than in the cattle from the pure air of the colonies. . ' . Whaling in the Southern , seas, once an important industry, according to a writer in the "Pall Mall Gazette," has seen decline since the of the New Zealand or "shore" method of securing the cetacean. Holding that the whale is as abundant as ever in th* Antarctic, he seems to be seeking for .an explanation, of why the industry is not what it once was. Who. in New Zealand waters does not know the Pleiades? And who would have expected to find upon her articles the n?pie of a budding novelist?. Yet such proves to be the case, Mr Harry Vandervell, who "signed on" as an ordinary seaman at 8d a day, haying written up hia experiences under the title of "A Shuttle of an Empire's Loom." The author's principal work for the five months he was on board was scrubbing out the forecastle, tbe shunting of coal, and the cleaning of brasswork! His "kit," however, comprised a bonjo-r-with which he entertained his. companions—and a kodak, which apparently only entertained himself, for it drew from the bce-tswain the unkind remark that His shipmate "must 'aye 'ad more money than sense when he bought that there btoomin , filing." The Pleiades, with a orew of forty-seven, all -told, visited, pmontc other places, Sydney and Auckland. On the picturesqueness of Sydney Harbour, "tl\e loveliest hiTDour in the world," the writer is erpoiiaHy enthusiastic, but in New Zealand b ; s outspoken, txlnuraition of a lovely sunrise only called forth from a sailor the.remarkjhot it was a "one-eyed place." The imin part of the book, however, is given un to describing tie sailor's life. Literatuie. the antlior says, is in pTeat demand rt sea, fud net only also good worTis, botJi bi«torUnl and poetical: Kipling's naut : w»l p-rrcs ©specially bringing forth tb-e cp'nidn 'hit "he knew what he wrots about." Th/ire is a good deal about b"d conkincr. waste of.food, '\nd the like, but the sailor, or "A.8." himself, despite has occasional "lapses" and peccadilloes, is described, after five months' close acquaintance, as on the" whole a very good fellow. - What vast sums* are stall being subscribed for public comp'uiies here, although everyone talks of bad times for such purposes! Since the Ist of January of this yer, only two months, no less capital than 23| millions sterling has actually been offered for public subscription. This is pretty good evidence of what the company promoter <■ thinks of tie state of. the British public's pocket. In the large sum-named is included recent colonial loans, £6.918.000, N<ew Zealand mining being represented by a compara- j tivelv modest £50.000. - j After a. very successful trinl trip mm the | Tyne, the New Ze.lajid Shipping .Com- j panv's new steamer, Wakaimi. ha* do. Vwl. in London, and is now loading "in* , tlie colony, for which she will sail on tli? L'tb inst. In appearance she is very sinulm to the s-s. Papanui, now co her first <;ip to New Zealand, but the Wakanui docs rot possess so much passenger accommodation. Lα fact, she carries only about twenty-six ■ cabin passengers, while lier cargo space is greater. Here I may remark that the trend seenrs to be to approximate first and second saloon more closely in the direct j liners. In fact. I have been told "on good authority that, except for existing frrangeraents with the Australian lines, first and second-class would in all probability be amalgamated.

Febrnary, 1899, will long be looked upon with painful feelings on account of the terrible weather then experienced at sea. In fact, one of the weeks pravesLto. be .the "blackest" even in the Atlantic's black list. Partly owing to the weather i* due, with'

out doubt, tie non-arrival of some of 3Tew Zealand's wool ships.* The following of these have completely missed the wool sates which dosed on February 27th: — Archtor, Tekoa, Rimataka, Delphic, and Mutatua. Tie sates closed at 4 p.m. "on the neit morning a*? 4 a.m. the T«koa was/reported, only twelve tours lat-e/brit a£ efforts made to effect an alteration of the rule of closing were fruitless. Of course some of the vessels named could not possibly have arrived -in time. "Hauri" writes to a.Dundee prfper to the effect that it might be worth while for some of the younger members of the fishing community to consider seriously whether it m-ig&t not be for their ultimate advantage to try their fortune on some part" of the Australian or New Zealand coast. "All round the latter are numerous places where fishing stations could be established, not to meation existing harbours, such as Auckland, Wellington, LyttcLton, and Port Chalmers." He thinks a small colony or fishermen, with the necessary capital, could scarcely fall to prove a success financiaJ-v, and "the Government of that colony would doubtless dp for the fishermen what they have done in the past to foster the agricultural and other industries." Unexpectedly the departure of the Lyttelton dredger, the City of Manchester, has been delayed. • The officials of the ,Board of Trade" were wOing enough that she should resume her voyage from Waterford, where she had put in by reason of stress of weather, but Lloyds' Surveyor recommended that she should be first placed in dry dock. Not wishing to run any risk, instructions have therefore been given to dock her as advised.