LETTERS TO THE EDITOR.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 308, 22 September 1908, Page 4

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR.

WOODWARD STREET. Sir, —It would bo easy to point out tlio manifest misstatements and inaccuracies arising from inadequacy of statement in evory one of the propositions made by your correspondent, Mr. F. 11. B. Fisher, but I will delay dealing with tlio questions until a fitting opportunity arises. Probably this will bo on Thursday, evening, at tho City Council meeting. In tho meantime, I am sure the public arc quite satisfied that tho Government land was sold at a very full price at £052 (Mr. Fisher could bring no evidence to the contrary), that the city got free of cost the parcel it wanted which would in tho Court have boon assessed at not loss than £180, and with costs at at least £220, and that there was a saving to tho city in tho cost of the wall, through the arrangement mado with Mr. Macdonald, and that your pleasant remarks about irregularities wore no more nor less than might have been expected of you.- _ There has been an incident in connection with tlio matter which has been disagreeable, but I shall be able to show tho public that the mistake was not with mo. In tho meantime, I am making investigations which will help to demonstrate this. That incident does not, however, affect tho questions of whether tho Government got full value for the land or whether the city mado a good arrangement. Both these matters liavo been fully established.—l am, etc.. T. W. HISLOP. September 21.

"THE REIGN OF INDUSTRIAL DESPOTISM."

Sir, —Perhaps no member of tho House represents tho viows and aspirations of tlio working classes 'more accurately than Mr. Arnold, and by the reports of his speech on the Arbitration Bill ho thero dealt with class relations from that standpoint. He also then asserted, that in certain factories tho men aro so driven that they daro not look up rom their worl} at tho clock; while so toiling, ho tolls, it takes one-half of a man's earnings to pay his rent, leaving him, in conscquence, with insufficient to pay' for tho othor necessaries of life. Yet, ho points out and complains that all the while riches aro being heaped up,, and that wo aro creating in our cities a condition of congestion, squalor, poverty, and filth. Mr. Arnold holds that this is mainly due to tlio extortionate demands of the landlord class, arid it is not unusual to so explain the extremely high rate of -rents now prevailing., ■ • But is the rate of rent really due to avaricious extortion, or what is the immediate' cause? Unquestionably tho cost of sites has probably been doubled during tho last 12 years, adding thereby to- the r wealth- of- owners or to that of speculators, and iii a small degreo this bears out. Mr. Arnold's contention. But then how far is this advanced value permanent? The prico of land has boon boomed, but is now a drag and on the down grade. Very important, however, is tho extra cost of house building, tho principal expense in tho problem. Timber, from the -extra cost of conditions of labour and of transport, and from combines amongst millers and tim-' bor dealers, now costs close on double what it did 12 years ago. Hardware and sundries pay to a professodly sympathetic Government duties fit tho rato of 22 per cent, on cost. Tho associated Eng-. lish makors of roofing iron: in" -fixing their prices tako full advantago of our quixotic preferential tariff. Local makers of cement are protected, riot alone by tho freight, but by a duty equal' to 40 per cent, on English cost. "With these enhanced costs of materials tho building landlord has next to face the contractor. Ho again has to provide against all tho exactions under Arbitration Court awards, tho extra wages and restrictions in connection with evory grade of workmen, with holidays and irregular hours, Compensation for acoidents to workmen, • and, although Mr. Arnold claims that ; factory liandsv; daroi not .-look up from their work, tho "ca canny": spirit.rules'on; every building contract, as is evident at. all :v ho.urs. ..from.-,:the-..,prova*.-■leiieo of pipe' and cigarette smoking. Tho contractor lias further' to add to his prico ■the heavy municipal fees and loss under tho voxatious by-laws, and 'ill carrying "out his legitimate work lie is under the vigilant supervision of labour and various other inspectors, who regard him and treat him .almost as if ho was ono .of tho criminal class. All this lie now submits to, but avenges himself by adding to tho price of his tender a solatium for thoso humiliating circumstances so painful to any solfTrespccting man. On top of tlieso aggravated costs the owner has further to now pay 7J per cent, for architects and other fees, and while all may bo yonsidered necessary and proper in building Mr. Arnold's Elysium, yot as a result such circumstances add at present quito 75 per cent, to tho cost of any building as compared with such cost-12 pears-ago. Under such circumstances low rents in the future are moro than' improbable, but' tho harassment of an investor in buildings does not stop hero. The Stato in its wisdom heaps exceptional and excossivo burdens upon such a citizen. Fori instance, I own, to my sorrow, and I let certain buildings and land. The rates on these in 1902 amounted to £130 per annub; this year the demand is £201, and my land tax is similarly progressive; with the certain overshadowing fact that with our Government and municipal'indebtedness, and' while values may go down, thoro can bo no reduction of the existing oppressive demands from these bodies. On the contrary, when tho further charges resulting from tho expenditure of tho million about to bo borrowed alike by both tho council and harbour board are added, thero seems to be no oscapo from a semi-confiscation by direct .taxation on town property. Mr. Arnold sees in tho. Arbitration Act emancipation from' serfdom. Bo that as it may, so far tho elfect has been to markedly raise rents, and tho prospect is the result which Mr. Arnold deplores, or in other words, that tho family which of old could afford a five-roomed cottage will have to crowd into a three-roomed, with all' tho attendant squalor of a congested district, at least that appears to be tho sorry outlook under our boasted"up-te-date" humanitarian public pblicy. Until recent yoars, competition was tho corner stone of "our economic success. Now no man is free even in his labour, all is regulated by Arbitration Acts and controlled by combines, or, adapting tlio words of a recent American report, '' Tlio reign of industrial despotism is upon us."— I am, etc., MATTER OF FACT. September 21. EPISCOPAL AND PRESBYTERIAN UNION. Sir, —As ho can find no record in history of a Presbyterian system in existence before Calvin came upon the scene, and desires to : prove that PresbyteWanism was not tho invention of that leader, "Presbyterian" first reads Prosbytcrianism into the Now Testament, and then reads it oiit again. Hence his "five marks of tho primitive Apostolic Church." Calvin based his systom on liis own interpretation of Epli. iv., 11 and 12. Prestorianism resulted, and merely bocause old names wero employed in tho new system "Presbyterian" thinks tho now system must bo tlio old. It is as if a Baptist claimed antiquity for his communion by referring to John tho Baptist. Tho title of "elder" adbptcd proves nothing. Mormons, too, havo "elders," and Irvingites have, or rather recently had, "apostles." But if we lot "Presbyterian" off hero we must ask him to establish his important "mark" that the N.T. bishops and presbyters \vcro identical. If ho .will refer to the Cambridgo Greek Testamont ho will find ' in the volumo containing tho Pastoral Epis- , ties a learned introduction by Dr. Bernard, showing that there is no ground for such an opinion. But if wo lot him off bore again, we aro in no difficulty, seeing that whatever "bishop" moans in the Now Testament, tlio title afterwards became restricted to tho < successors of tho Apostles. 'I nocd.not accept his c'nallcrigo to prove the theory ho mentions, as 1 am concerned with the fact of episcopacy, l ot with somo theory about the'fact. 1 did not concede, as ho groundlessly claims, that ho has given a single instance of the recognition by tho 1 Church of England of tho Presbyterian minis ; try or Church. He is but grasping at straws. A breach of the rules of any-society by a i mombor cannot be described as the dot of tho

society. But now for a theory about episcopacy. It was held by somo Caroline divines that certain bodies of Christians oil the Continent who had broken away from the Roman Church should bo considered "churches," although they wero without bishops. The reason was that, under pressure of circumstances, they could not obtain bishops. A shipwrecked party of churchmen isolated on ail island and forming an assembly for worship would now be similarly regarded by some. But whothor the theory is right or wrong, tho reformed ministers, when they camo to England, could not minister without episcopal ordination. I can supply abundant ovidenco from contemporary writers, friendiy and hostilo to tho Church of England, of this fact. The theory thus gives no comfort whatever to "Presbyterian," who insists upon making capital out of it by means of a partial view of the situation.' Again he grasps at a straw. Union will never come in the way he suggests, and yet tho question is not hopeless. When it comes it will como in the way it came ,to tlio author of "Looking for the Church" (St. Giles's Printing Co., Edinburgh), tbat is to say, it will come to people individually, not Collectively. The book describes the struggles of tho author (who was an able Presbyterian minister) until he felt compelled to seek episcopal ordination, and another field wherein to labour. —I am, etc., PHY LAX.' September 18, 1903. -> BOR ISM. Sir,-—For a long time now a section, o! tho medical profession have had a loud say in tho application of tho now. hygiene,. but at last they are getting crowded in upon by the thoughtful among the people afflicted through tho perversion of medical science. Threo years ago a report of a magistrate's court appeared in the London "Times," in which a Dr. Kenwood gave evidence to the elfect that a diseaso known to _ the medical profession by the namo of. borism was engendered by "the rise of boric'acid. In that case the defendant was fined on tlio strength of tho expert evidence,- After tlio lapse of threo years the same evidence is trotted out, but its fate is-different, purely because the defendant was not hand-tied. If the defendant in tho case you quote this morning had been too poor for a proper defence, tlio caso would have gone by default as previously I am. etc., '" HENRY BODLEY. September 17. 1908. — THE ARBITRATION BILL. Sir, —There is 0110 amendment to existing law being mado in tho Bill now before tlio House, and adopted by tho Minister 111 charge on. the suggestion of tho Iradcs and Labour: Council, .that..requires much moro careful consideration than its apparent demo-cratic-,-justice would suggest. --That is the proposal to allow, 0110 vote for each union, and one vote additional ■ for oach fifty or fraction of fifty-members, in .calculating tlio strenf th 'of the recommendation of the unions in the selection of tho labour representative on tho Arbitration Court. The writer thoroughly endorses the principlo of majority rule in all cases whero tho general interests of the community .aro thrown into tho cr-u----ciblo of popular control,- but considers thero is a serious danger in its application to tho appointment to a judicial position. It must bo understood that tlio 'appointee under this systom of majority rulo will bo charged with the caro of varied,, and perhaps clashing, interests, from trades that require a high degreo of protection from tlio Court to ensure a sufficient inflow of good material to maintain a fair standard of efficiency, to tho unfortunate majority of sweat and blisters. Obviously there can only. bo. 0110 result. Tho interests of tho division represented in a hopeless minority of tho skilled trades will hardly bo considered a factor in tlio hurly-burly of tho election. It is in regulating and enforcing fair conditions of employment in tlieso trades that tlio Court has hitherto beon highly successful, and now it seems tho Government is about to reduce its influence in selecting the personnel of tho tribunal. Under, tho system' . of'-, representation. of numbers'rather than interests, the-i various unions of labourers, together , with ,tho railway servants' union, could almost control by .combination,, the election of . tho. labour representative. In the caso of the largest section of labourers, tho Court has already oxprcssed its impotenco to regulate their conditions of employment: Railway servants only como under tho Act provisionally, and to-tho best of my knowledge havo never yet employod its offices, though regularly casting a voto for tho labour representative 011 tho Court. Surely this is an anomolous position. A fair system of representation would bo obtained'by classifying all those occupations that como under tho review of tho Court into divisions, as is done in tho Public Service, and allow each division to decide by selection within itsolf tho person best suited to represent tho common interest. Tho present proposal in the • amending Bill appears designed to still further impair our system of industrial arbitration.

Thero is another aspect of tlio proposal that should also bo considered. A largo proportion of tho membership of unions in .what are styled unskilled occupations have become members merely by enforcement of preference in awards of tho Court.. Many aro involuntary unionists, and it. is wellknown- tako no part in the ' union's proceedings. boyond conforming to the mandate of the Court to pay 3d. or 6d. per week. Tlio work is carried on by a small section of .the membership, assisted, or, unfortunately in some'cases directed, by a paid official. 'As thero-appears to bo no provision in tho Bill that the selection of tho union shall only be mado after an exhaustive ballot, it will give an enormous power to those should bo tho servants' of tho labour bodies to become the masters. —I am, etc., LABOURER. September 19. CITY RESERVES. Sir, —It is only natural that there should bo some opposition to tho Bill that is now before Parliament.'dealing with the leasing of city reserves, but I think that a good deal of tho opposition is due to n misapprehension as to tho position. Tho controversy reminds us of what took place "some years ago when tho then Mayor, Mr. H. D.' Bell, had. a very fine scheme in hand which would have secured for the city the whole of tho flat land at Miramar'for . recreation grounds in exchange for parts of tho Town Belt which a.ro valueless except as'building sites. Much tlio same sort of cry was thon- raised, and tho exchange was defeated in Parliament. When people talk about leasing our reserves they seem to bo.under tho improssion that they aro to become private property. Such is not tho case. Vory small area,s will he handed over to sports' clubs to bo used as tennis courts, football grounds, bowling greens, etb. Only tho aotual acreago 011 which tho gamoS aro playod will-be closed against tlio public in order to preservo tlio turf, and this will only bo for part of the year. 'Tho bo.lanoo of tho land leased to the clubs will be open to the public at all times, and when planted will c form vory pleasant reserves for tlio peoplo to stroll about in.

Compare tho present stato of our reserves with what is possiblo if tho Bill is passed. Wo havo 900 acres of hilly land nearly all covered with gorso a,ud noxious weeds. It is only capablo of being used for grazing horses, and tho bulk of it is leased for this purpose. Very few of the public know that it is a reservo that they have tho right of access to. Even if they did' know it they would not be induced to walk through'-the reserves, as they look so uninviiilig. Jlio rentals received aro only nominal, and hardly pay for tho cost of clearing-. off itho gorso from thoso areas that are:; of 110 value for gracing purposes. If the proposed Bill is passed level playgrounds will be formed by dozens of clubs, thousands of trees will be planted, paths will be formed, and 011 Saturday afternoons wo will see seven.or eight thousand players getting recreation and another ten thousand people looking 011 at tho various matches. Football, cricket, tennis, etc., will'be, spread over the reserves at Thorndon, Island Bay, and Kilbirnio. Only 011 special occasions will any charge be mado for admission, and then people would get good value for their money, and will havo the satisfaction of knowing that tlio gate money is.to bo,,devoted to further improvements to the land leased from tho corporation, or will lib used to pay interest 011 tho capital already expended 011 tlio reserves by the various ciubs. • The Bill is not for tho object of handing

over the reserves to private indivituals for their own enjoyment. It is to enable tho corporation to hand over small parts of tho reserves to tho young peoplo of this city, to allow thein to indulge in healthy pastimes which nr.o essential to tho wolfnro of tho community. Is it not bettor that tho reserves should be turned into playgrounds rather than bo used for grazing purposes? Tho corporation has spent over £20,000 in forming two football grounds, and if they spend very much moro thcro will be a howl about tho increase in tho rates, as tho interest 011 this money must come out of tho general fund, because the football grounds formed by corporation loans cannot be made to bring in any revenue, excepting in tho case of liilbirnie, whore wo have tho right to chargo admission on certain days of tho year. I cannot seo any possibility of the corporation raising loans for further expenditure on football grounds for the next ten or fifteen years. So tho only solution of the difficutly is to got power from Parliament to lease our waste lands known as the Town Belt, so that small areas can be converted into playgrounds at the expense of tho persons who patronise thi) sports played thereon. I think that sentiment should give way to a practical application of tho necessities of tho city. It must not be forgotten tiiat tho city only proposes to lease portions of the bolt, which can never become tho property of private individuals, but will always revert to tho city at tho end of tho lease. —I am, etc., A. S. BISS. September 17. WHY?—A QUESTION FOR THE MINISTER. Sir, —In Hansard (August 27 to September Ist) will be found the following statement made by tho Hon. Mr. .M'Nab, Acting Defcnco Minister:— "The A.A.G. Wellington was tho senior officer of that rani: in the Dominion. Ho was tho executive officer of the Central Board of Military Examination for some years prior to taking his present office, for which 110 received a remuneration of £50, and this gavo him a start above officers 01" like rank." Now, sir, I wish to state that tho abovo statement made by Hon. Mr. M'Nab is not in keeping with defence records. In tho Army List of March last is to bo found a tabic of seniority, and from this it will bo found that there aro officers of tho samo rank and of like position senior to tho A.A.G. Wellington. It is well known that the A.A.G. Wellington has risen in tho service very quickly, and his salary has gono up as quickly. It is strange, but true, that the A.A.G. , Wellington draws tho samo pay each month as the O.C. District, and nearly double what A.A.C.'a of other districts draw. Mr. M'Nab might bo ablo to tell tho public why such is tho case, and I ask tho mefhber for Wellington Central to obtain this information if, possible. It might not ■be generally known, but I am assured such is the caso, that tho A.A.G. Wellington draws a higher salary than a colonel who wns C.S.O. for New Zealand under the old system. This colonel was through 'tho South African wtr and had a good deal of experience. I doubt if tho A.A.G. Wellington district has ever had a day in tho field with a company, battalion, or troop. I fancy his nearest approach to such has-been in tho Mount Cook School ground. How such is tolerated in this Dominion I cannot understand. Tho working men should rise up and protest against such a condition. They should mako a question out of it, and make it a political one. Wo then? might have returned to Parliament men who would not suffer such positions to arise. In conclusion, I ask English papers to copy the fact that a captain, the A.A.G. of a district, draws a higher salary than a colonel who was C.S.O. for New Zealand.— I am, otc., M. S. SHARP. Septembor 17. THE DECALOGUE. Sir, —The action of the Wellington-Educa-tion Board in placing tho Ten Commandments in their schools was timely, and has been followed' by' Auckland;! Napier," and Christelmrch schools, and tho majority of tho Dominion education boards approve this reform. But, sir, may I suggest that tho boards insist that these commands bo repeated once a month by the scholars? In Ontario thoy aro repeated once a week, otherwise theso charts become dead typo to scholars. Mr. 'Vilo's motion to get tho Education Department to furnish freo these charts is an excellent one. —I am, etc., A NEW ZEALANDER. September 17. FIRES ON WOOL SHIPS.

Sir, —Tlio quostion of tho ignition of wool in tho holds of our produce-laden ships is oiio primarily of interest and importance to our seafaring community, but it is for, obvious reasons entitled to the attention and consideration of a much larger circlo than that of those whose lives are imperilled upon —for a considerable portion of their jouruoy —ono of tho most stormy and, in somo respects, one of tho most perilous .waterway's in tho world. Judging from the fruitless results of recent investigations, tho .field of research ./continues ,to present features 'of attraction to all those.interested in,tho problem. When sailing before the mast I very frequently interested and amused myself in obtaining, by. quostions, suggestions and discussions, the views and opinions of seafaring men in reference to'a variety of subjects. I thus elicited articulate expression of opinion in reference to beliefs or instincts of which they themselves had hitherto been scarcely . conscious. Tho debates; thus raised wore frequently oxtromoly interesting, and I then took to myself much credit for the tact which 1 displayed in directing and controlling these occasionally ,fiery discussions. Tho question of the ignition of wool was a subject which I generally introduced, but never in any instance did it givo rise to discussion in which there wore differences of opinion. I found that tho belief that these fires were caused by the ignition of damp wool constituted ono of tho most stronglyheld traditions of tho profession. And I heard the question much discussed by tho "watcrsido" community in Brisbane many years ago, when a ship called the Ramsay took fire whilst boing loaded in Moreton Bay. All tho men engaged in loading her alloged that the ignition was unquestionably attributablo to damp wool; indeed I never heard anything to the contrary, oven 'so much as suggested. I can also well remember how they attributed the loss of tho Omar Pasha a,nd soruo other vessels to tho same cimso. Those stevedores had all been seafaring men, and a really fine -lot of follows they were, in general intelligence far abovo the average of their class.

It must not be thought that I regard the apparently universal belief of seafaring men of my time as being conclusive, as covering the wliolo ground, but in any exhaustive analysis of the question it furnishes testimony of a kind which it would not bo desirable to ignore. During a couple of visits to New Orleans, I inquired from American stevedores if cotton had ever been known to ignite on the wool ships homeward bound from Australasia. Although they had heard of nil theso losses by fire, tlioy told mo that they know of nothing analogous in tho cotton ships. Cotton is, as a matter of fact, more inflammable than wool, but iii consequence of its treatment prior to its arrival at tho ship's side it is roasonablo : to ;assume that in all cases it is stowed away' in perfectly dry condition. Although this "is my belief, I do uot base it upon actual personal knowledge.

But now in referenco to this subject I como a littlo nearer homo. 'Personally, I am inclined to boliovo that damp wool is presumably responsible for the ignition which may bo attended with tragic results. Tho clipping, which I enclose, testifies to tho ignoranco prevalent in referenco to spontaneous combustion. And I know that in this country much damp wool has been shorn and baled' up, as a proof of which there arc frequently heated altercations between tho wool growers and tho shoarors in reference to this question. Personally, I would hold any wool grower who shears when his sheep are damp as being 'responsible for a line of action which might result in a tragedy. None but those who havo oxperienced it can in any degree realiso tho horror of the cry of "Fire" in a ship far away out to sea, away from all probability of succour or assistance. Just fancy such a position fur away down in the southern latitho peril and horror- of tho situation

probably accentuated by the blasts of an icy benumbing gale, with the sea. "running mountains high." . j I talto a keen interest in this "whole question, for although for ntany years settled ashoro, my sympathies are ever with who "go down to the sea in ships. Thero aro amongst them many of the finest men m tlio world, and in my opinion neither for ard liflr aft do they receivo anything approaching adequate remuneration for the hardship,' peril, and social isolation which they endure, or for the great services which tlioy render to human kind. Sir, this letter has been suggested by a perusal of tlio clipping which 1 enclose in the hope that in the hands of a scientist it might, perhaps, fling, even if indirectly, a flickering gleam of light upon a subject of great importance to our island community.—l am, etc., R..C. BRUCE. ' Ngaruru, September 16. [Enclosure.] Tho familiar phenomenon of tlio heating of hay in the stack has usually been ascribed to purely chomical reaction. Researches carried out by Miclie, however, show that tho process is a physiological otic, and due to bacteria and other lowly organisms. It was found that sterilised hay would not heat, but that if sprinkled with water contaminated with earth' or ordinary hay it did so.. A species of bacillus and a fungus were found to be chiefly responsible for temperatures up to CO degrees Cent. For higher temperatures another species of bacillus was found to be responsible. The work of the bacteria in the heating of hay illustrates tho curious fact that theso organisms usually end by killing themselves. In tho centre of a largo heated stack tho hay is found to be stox'ile. r And this is Attributed to tho. killing of the bacteria by the heat which they have themselves evolved. In' other cases they aro poisoned by tho toxins which they themselves produce.

THE PROPOSED PARLIAMENT BUILDINCS.

Sir,—l trust that tho contention of. Mr. Davey, M.P. of Christchurch, will bo carried out in its entirety, viz.:—''That architects from all parts of the world bo asked to compete in tile designs for the new Parliament Houses, since it was important that the very best edifice should bo erected." And Ido hope we will not bo compelled to put_ up with a costly , yet plain, if not ugly-looking, structure 011 one of the grandest sites to bo found in our Dominion, judging from the designs shown in your paper recently the exterior of the. new Gcnqr.il Post Offico, as drawn by' the same architect, and the plans shown of the proposed Parliament Buildings are of exactly tho same plain and simple pattern as if it was too much trouble to draw entirely new- designs for'tho two buildings. 1 am acquainted with nearly all the capital cities in this Hemisphere, and. find that tho Government buildings in this city aro the plainest and cheapest-looking to be found anywhere. New Parliament Houses ai'o not built evory day, or even every century, so I do hope tho architects and builders will bo allowed by our Government to give us a stately edifice that no New Zealalider now or ill tho days to come will- need to be ashamed of. It will bo a groat mistake to bury ' underground nearly half of the* building, or one of the three stories, as intended by tho Government architect. I consider the site a magnificent one, and every floor should bo raised as high as convenience will allow above tho present level of tho ground so to raise tho whole structure as high as possible, thus preventing it from being dwarfed or the grand view of tho building shut out from vessels , entering or leaving tho port. There can bo only 0110 Parliament building in the Dominion, and let it bo something to be proud of. —I am, otc., NEW ZEALANDER. Septembor 17. .. ~

THE DAIRYINC REGULATIONS. Sir, —Permit mo, as . a. practical dairyfarmer, to make a few' remarks upon the new dairying'regulations formulated by tho Hon. Mr. JlWdb, perflations, sir, which I assert will : pres"s most" harshly, and; arbitrarily upon the hardest-worked and most industrious ■ class 'of 'settlers. Prior to "the advent of the -hon. gentleman as Minister; tho dairying industry.'was progressing byleaps and bounds, but Mr. M'Nab is evidently not content to lot well- alone, and. in his ardour to pose as a reformer proposes to harass struggling fanners with costly and unnecessary regulations. No -reasonable man will object to reasonable inspection, but tho enforcement of somo of tho conditions suggested will involve a large expenditure which scores of Main-men, hampered by heavy mortgages or high rents, aro, quito unablo to alford.' 1 ~

W'a would all, sir, like to have model farms and dairies, but-that is a condition of things which has to be gradually worked up to. Tho dairy-farmer, as a rulo, is a man with' small capital—in • scores of instances' ho takes, up a small'bush section, buys, a few cows, builds his own .shed, and _ trusts' by cleanliness in milking and by keeping his utensils pure and sweet to convoy his milk to the factory in a condition which will ensure tho manager turning out a wholesome article. As his circumstances improve he increases his herd, betters his shed accommodation, and gradually works up until lie lias, in many cases, a model farm'. But, sir, tho lion, gentleman, who holds the destinies of the dairying industry, in his hands, wishes to place tho cart before, tho horse, and to force 'the struggling backblocks dairyman into an expenditure, he cannot afford, or otherwise warn him- that- ho'will he-stopped from supplying tho factory with hjs, milk. Siich methods', I maintain, will not only drive, numbers of tho smaller farmers out of dairying, hut will prevent others from embarking in the industry. The fact that our butter brings within a fow shillings of the'best Danish on tho Homo market after a journoy of six weeks shows that thero is not tho necessity for the wholesale and costly alterations which tho Minister would imposo upon farmers. Then, sir, let us take. but two of. the regulations specified. Olio states / that all manure or otfensivo matter shall'be removed to a position distant not loss than' 300 ft. from the cowshed within two hours of each milking, and tho floor of the shed., thoroughly, cleansed. Very well, 'sir, if that is so, what is tho position, of, say, a man and wifo putting through tweiity-fivo cows. Tho riso at 4 o clock, got'a cup of tea, and start on their milking. As soon as they finish the husband harnesses" up and' goes to tho factory. Very often he is moro than two hours away. Is he, when he returns, to go without his breakfast and postpone feeding his pigs and calves until he unharnesses, places his horse in a sledge, cleans out his shed, and conveys the manure a fifth of. a mile away? Or perhaps tho Minister, in his wisdom, expects tho wifo to do that in her husband's absonco ' instead of' getting' his breakfast ready. . Hero again, sir, is another junk of Ministerial wisdom:—No milk-houso or standshall bo within SOOft., or, if on the leeward side with respect to tho prevailing wind thou within 60ft. of any cowshed, etc. This is to say that as soon as tho milker has a bucket of milk ho has to run either 60ft. or 300 ft. before he can empty it into the can. Judge, sir, where a largo number of cows aro being milked of t-lio time entailed and inconvenience caused by this absurd and ridiculous proposal. There aro a number of other points upou which I could" enlarge, but ,1 think I have sufficiently trespassed upon your spaco for the present, and 1 trust tliat our legislators will not be led away by specious' arguments- into inflicting such hardships as are proposed by Mr. M'Nab and his theoretical advisers. —I am, etc., BACKBLOCKS. September IS. [Our correspondent's views as to the distance* to which tho manure has to ba removed from tho- cowshed, and as to the distance of tho milk-stand from -tho shed, aro based on a typographical error. Tho distance, 300 ft., should read 30ft.]

In some eases (of polico traps} it is openly acknowledged that the object is to'collect money from motorists in order to alleviate local rates, and, in other words, that tho police have bc«n turned into highwaymen in order to collect monoy from passing travellers. Until this kind of blackmail ceases it is idlo to ask leading motorists to combine with .the polico of those districts wliorc this kind of thing goes on.—"Car."- ■