LETTERS TO THE EDITOR.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1165, 28 June 1911, Page 9

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR.

n THE STORY OF WASTE, f< a WILL THE PUBLIC PERMIT ITS " CONTiNUANCL? j! Sir,—Wo settlers aud farmers were f' naturally interested upon reading a letter j 1 ; m your coiuiuus oy -ur. \ uvutjur, u'iio ' is, ,us ycu nniy bo awtUT, me most in-. P JiiieutiUL man m this mscnci, tne suo- r joct wing co-operative iaw>ur. My iurni is actuany clivmea by tnu recentiy-opciuM A rnmvay—fceuuon to \Yar«—consequently, 1 Have seen every phase and action since 0 tiie construction ot tiie line was started & some lew yours ago by a Air. Woisify. c an Australian, I believe. >io\v, to snow you and your readers how* accurately Mr. Vavasour has gauged the possibiu- - ties as regards corruption ot Ministerial supporters by false statements and promises, it may be ot interest to you to know that when Air. Wolsley was actually ready to start work ono of his first acts was to call together by fi circular letter for tho purpose of a conference, all tho persons through whose land the rail- n way passed. \Vy met at the Public Works Otiicc, at Seddon, and Mr. Wolsley read o out to us, /Without hiding anything, his j instructions from headquarters in conncc-. o tion with fencing in the line lrom Sedilon p to the Blind Kiver. These instructions B stated that this fencing would be done n by tho Public Works department, and d further slated that iron standards would p bo at once sent up from Wellington tor tho purpose, and that the work was to 5 bo earned out at ouch. Air. Wolsley was p extremely courteous to us all from .tho t time of his taking chargo of tho line to fc bis departure for Australia, and at all " times spoko and acted fairly; in a word, j we believed in him, and trusted hiui. It J will be unnecessary to state that the railway* was started very shortly before t tho last elections, and that although the 1 standards were undoubtedly sent to bed- 0 don within a few w-eeks of our having J been called together to discuss the proposed fencing, etc., no fencing was erected c along the line to Blind River at tho ex- 1 penso of the Government. We, after use-, i less waiting, hud to do it at our o\m 1 expense. . , I "When tho first batch of railway work- c men arrived, Air. Wolsley insisted upon g the tents for their accommodation being erected in symmetrical lines, with pro- { pprly cindered paths to form a street by c which the men could obtain clean and dry s access to their tents; also, in order that s the air should not be polluted with the t disagreeablo odour incidental to camps [ constructed and run without sanitary 1 consideration, ho bad proper accommoda- j tion erected wherever thero was a temporary camp. The orderly appearance of { til© Seddoii and other camps was dis- c cussed by tho residents at the time, and ] we wondered why our interests were j being so- carefully studied. Further, Mr. 't -Wolsley erected suitablo gates .to all c fences so that slicep or cattle should not stray or becomo bossd, He instructed { his men that no blasting operations < should be done unless a red flog was 1 hoisted while the chargo was unexplodcd. t He had safety lines put across the Awatere 1 River, where shinglo washing was being t don*, and, in fact, no Government officer c that we have seen ever took so much trouble to ensure the convenient of us j settlers or the 6afety of his men. This f also we farmere woudered at; we are, j of course, wiser now. . I will now pass on to tho actual work < done under Mr. Wolsley. There were ( several culverts constructed, and, in order j that the country should bo saved the j expense of carting water for concrete. t "mixing (a big item when you consider j that the water had to be carted some four miles), he had dams, constructed out 0 - < tho «oil excavated for the foundations of , culverts, aud these dams when I- saw t thorn were full, and thereby had £ro«. j vided wateT actually on the snot at which { it was wanted. They were maliciously . destroyed in a mysterious manner one rainy night, shortly before he wtitei i was required, and it .is not difficult to , understand that Providence would not ] stand quietly by and see water carter., i deliberately deprived of their Pfi- , qviisites when a judicious trickle couk. .0 ( •'Easily be made in the tenV which wonM.: of course, in a few minutes widen £ , serions break in the dam, resulting in its entire destruction. This, I toUl ono 'of the. oldest Avorkevs on,: he -line. 1- ( what was.' done:. . tricklo made about three inches below the le\el if tho overflow outlet, and the da 1* j vero wrecked ,in a few hour?. to state that some time before this acci dent Mr. Wolsley had asked hisJ)cnartment to transfer him to some other work where house I possible . for Sedclon, 'V.ntl* accordingly, j ,th"department made a, eh:inse. ■ nn T csflw- tho gates'which Mr. Wolwiey j had erected left open so that, sheen and cattle'strayed into neiglibonr s paddocKard did an enormous amount of damage. I «aw ten men on day. work cut a drain - which was supposed to drain a. bank . . the Blind Itivcr, and which ?aid main was ultimately found to be wrongly ■ placed, aud was actually covered hy the 1 vcrv bank it was supposwl to drain. I caw feveral hundred loads ot washed Shingle swept into the strtam because it had not heen carted to safety, and I -aw six picked men, with a boss carpenter as well, work on a concrete board, all on day wo"«, and this fine body of men only nuf'in six yards of concrete per day. This gang of men worked at this rate for months, and must have cost the Government several h " ndr^ inr , po through want of proper supervision. Lagging had been prepared, shoots made, and gravel carted to renuired spots months beforehand, so that all that these men had to do was to place the gauge, run the shingle down tho shoots into the « au «e, put 011 cement, and turn the lot over two or three times, say, in all, ten minutes''work; and yet. these fine picked men only managed six times this quantity in eight hours. I awl several other farmers used to laugh as we watched the picket who had been sent up to watch for the approach of a boss, Tun down from his view-spot to warn this concrete r*f>ng that yarning, cards, etc., must lie temporarily suspended; There was a sort of time-keeper, who. in addition to his ordinary work, combined that of a money-' lender to 'all and sundry of tho labourers who cared to pay high interest to him, I suppose his security was that no man whose time he kept would in honour fail of returning principal and interest on rnv-dav The system struck me as dangerous, and I wonder that the Public Works Department allowed it. Truly the Government proved a fine milch cow during the building of the Seddon-Ward railway and it is earnestly to be honed that all ■ voters will think. ;.nd think hard. Surely the people of New Zeal aud must have seen that a iery large maiority of the M-P.'s returned to Parliament only seek election for ttie salary attached to the .position, and that these members and Ministers, to pleaso their supporters and secure a continuance of their support, have built up such a ponderous and colossal Civil Service as to be a positive scandal to ail who are conversant with the imriiiity of the whok business. Asa majter "f * r£v Mr. Wolslev tell -Mr. Weld, of Mnrnts that this co-operative labour system was mn'to new to h'm, but that it had many fine points for genuine workers if worked upon honest business 1 lines without favour to any person employed under tho system. It is to be 1 hop'ed that the coming elections will, throughout i>ew Zealand, return members whose honesty of purpose is undoubted.. I AVe want roads and railwavs, not elatnr- .' ate buildings to act. as offices for a lot. ■ ot useless drones. This is a young and i very much overtaxed country, and we do ' not require for any purpose outside actual ' use pest offices and public biuldinrs ' generally to cn-t a lot of money for fine i architecture. Koads and bridges should be the programme for the next few years, 1 to supply the railways already completed. ' —I nm, etc., - n. W. EOBEBTS. [ Keddon, June 20, 1911.

THE FARCE OF IT. Sir.—l see that, la>t week, at a banquet 1 given to the Premiers of the oversea - Dominions in London, Hie Secretary lor t 1110 Colonics congratulated New Zealand . "For having thrown open during the last - six months two million acres of Crown 1 lands, specially suitable for attracting 1 fanners with small capital." Can you, i or any of your .readers, kindly tell me ; where this laud is situated? Does it. ? refer to some-of the runs in Otngo, prin--1 cipaMy mountain tops, -.rabbit-infested, :1' where the kea" hunts his woolly victims over precipices? Or to some of the

pumice plains round Taupo, of ten acres to one sheep carrying capacity? Certainly I do fee one scction advertised for ienso by the Government, twenty miles inland from Waitotara, by rough cart-track, ail mixed bush, except 11") acres grown up in fern, second-class land, valued at. .£lOls, area 01,1 acres, rental .till per annum, "payablo half-yearly in advance. lhis would possibly just suit a small farmer from Home with, say, .KM capital, who for the trifling rent of .El per week (including rates) might cart bis goods over the 20 miles of bog-track, and become tho proud possessor of the "wharo in poor repair" stated to be on this Eden. Is it not, Sir, bringing people out from Homo under false representations, to inform them that we have this.large area of land here "just opened up and specially suitablo for small settlers' ?—ls it not a case of "The lie that is half a lie Is ever the worst to meet"? —I am, etc., Ngaio,. June 10, 1311. SIR J. G. WARD, BART, Sir,—No doubt the cablo mcssago announcing thai' Sir J. G. Ward was awarded a baronetcy (a hereditary title) came as a positive shock to Dominion Liberals. At the time of Sir J. G. Ward, Bart, s offer of a gift of one or two Dreadnoughts (with -Now Zcalnnd taxpayers money), and tho subsequent' peculiar manoeuvring by which Jl.P.'s ivere induced to support his offer (and which manoeuvring was subsequently exposed by Jlr. T. E. Taylor, much to Sir Joseph 'Ward's discomfiture) thoughtful people wondered, and came to tho conclusion tho versatile gentleman was after something. As it has been very aptly put: "Sir J. G. Ward gave the Dreadnought, New Zealand gave the money, and Sir Joseph Ward got the reward!" Far bei it from us to refuse assistance to the Mother Country if she required it! I feel sure New Zealanders would make deep sacrifices for the dear old Mothef Land if sho were in need. There is no doubt, taking all the circumstances into consideration, Sir Joseph Ward's selfish action will have a most damaging effeot upou his leadership aud the Liberal party at the next election. To. prevent tho vanity and self-glorification of our political leaders doing the damage above referred to, I advocated many years ago that it should be made illegal for any New Zealander to accept a title, or that it should bo illegal to recognise such title in print or elsewhere. I then stated that tho greed for a title would encourage some of our leaders to betray the interests of this Dominion, either in minor matters, or in matters of vital importance.

As tho gift of titles by the Home authorities can be, and is, used as a means ot Influtncinu oui colonial politicians here, so tho latter can use it as a corrupting influence with their followers, and the degrading practice is tolerated or endured, instead of being made impossible. I venture to assert, without a fear of truthful contradiction, that the earning of the esteem, trust, love and respect of a nation for services honestly rendered to the :b'tate is of far more value, and far more enduring, than the acceptance of tawdry titles' with their invidious class divisions, with their servile and snobbish influences. How remarkable it is that titles, in five cases out of six, fall to politicians. Why? No answer is needed—the reason is only too obvious! . How refreshing it is to think of men of another calibre altogether! Did Mr. Gladstone or Mr. Chamberlain want their names embellished, to magnify their importance? Were they not satisfied to let their deeds speak for them—to possess the honest regard of the people! Coming nearer home, were not the late If. J. Seddon and Mr. Ballacpe esteemed all the more because they were satisfied to remain truo Liberals. Then, again, Andrew Fisher, the Federal-Premier, was evidently proof against what, to most politician's,'is anirresistible temptation.

In this new and beautiful country we thought we were at least freo to model a noble manhood and womanhood, but it remained, for our alleged Liberal leader, who was placed in power, aiul kept there, by the working' classes and Liberal elect■ors, : too,wantonl}'.:disregard and defy a pre-' cious arid deep-rooted New Zealand sentiment—a ■ sentiment against hereditary titles. ■ ■

Wo desire to establish an aristocracy of character and : culture, which will bo obtainable by any of our citizens, as opposed to tiie selfish, exclusive, and debasing influences of tho hereditary article, which is transmitted from father to son in the older lands. But obstacles aro being placed in tho way of this'patriotic ambition—obstacles which," if tolerated, will grow and develop until opposition would be useless. And Sir J. G. Ward, Bart., the Liberal leader, is the man to make these, obstacles.

I have voted for Liberals all my life, J but of one thing I am determined upon, . viz., that I shall never again east a vote ' for any candidates who will support Sir J. G. Ward. A man of his calibre should, without delay, be relegated to political obscurity, and thrown out of power and offico with a bump which would bo heard from one end of New Zealand to the other,—l am, etc., A LATE SUPPORTER. HONOUR TO WHOM HONOUR IS , DUE. Sir,—Tour excellent and well-timed articw in your issue of June 21, commenting on "Tho Coronation Honours," will doubtless meet with the approbation . of thoughtful men and women'in the Dominion. It certainly is positively distressing to. reflect on tho number of men who, having rendered practical and lasting services in developing the resources of this country, thereby rendering possible the position which New Zealand holds in tho "Imperial Councils," are entirely passed over, and apparently forgotten, whilst tho men who now unfortunately dominate our Parliament arc honouted and rewarded for services which aro not only shadowy, and of doubtful benefit', but only too often inimical to the best interests of the people. As I think tho present is an opportuno time (honours being thick in tho air), I wish to remind the public, and more 'particularly thb fanners, of New Zealand of the claims of these gentlemen who by their untiring energy and enterprise initiated our grand frozen meat industry. I allude, llr. Editor, to Mr.'W. C. Buchanan, of Wairarapa, and Mr. Brydone, of Dunedia. Seeing that these gentlemen's claims are entirely removed from the realm of party politics, and that no farmer can deny that they are one and all, small and large,, both sheep and dairy farmers, deeply indebted to these gentlemen, I would ask all to unite and support some scheme (which I hope to see promulEatcdl to perpetuate the memory of these eentlemen, whose claims (in contradistinction to those who have had recent Coronation . honours. showered, on thorn) are solid and well earned. Hoping that this suggestion will not be fruitless, and that some more able pen than mine will further support it.—l am, etc., . MURRAY ,T. H. JACKSON*. Masterlon, June 2), 1011. "PLAYING THE FOOL." Sir,—Chance found mo in T,ambton Quay as tho Victoria College students' procession passed along that thoroughfare today, and set me thinking. It occurred to me that the prftcessinn contained those who were being educated with the object of taking a high place in uiir society, and I could not help asking myself whether the sorry procession I saw before me was an indication as to which track wo arc on in regard to university education. I admit that it cannot be expected ail can think alike, nor would it bo for the general good if we did, but I could not help wondering whether the country was justified in giving money to provide university education for men who could so, "act the fool." | I had previously thought that the idea of a higher education was to uplift the individual, and in so doing spread a ' leaven amongst the multitude. Unfortunately the leaven that could be expected from the minds of men who are content to so act could not be of a very high order. There is agitation in some quar- , ters for university refr,rm, and after vicw- '■ ing the procession I camo to the con- :. elusion that it cannot come too soon. In the crowd, I heard one person re- , mark, that it was evident the members ' of the procession were suffering from the ! effects of having too little to do. Whether

this is the real trouble or not I caunot say, but felt satisfied that tho students whom I saw before me could with advantage lo themselves, and their country use their time and energies in a much better way.

1 fully recognise that where individuals] pay fuli value for what they receive, they are free agents, within certain limits, to do as they please, but where, as with.our universities, so much assistance is given by tho State, it must be apparent that tiio taxpayer has some right to criticise the actions of those upon whom his monev is spent. I for one should like to see our students play the man, and not. tho fool, and in sa doiiirr return some gain aud honour to the country which is called upon to do so much for them. —I am, etc.. TAXPAYER. Wellington June 27, 1911. WHERE ARE THE POLICE? Sir,—We liear so much about the police and gambling that it will not do any harm to ventilate a further complaint. People all over the Dominion, and especially the "goodie-goodie" ones, alO anxious to stop nil gambling. lam not one of those, but I do think it a crying shamo that whenever a raco-uioeting is held at Trentham that Calcutta Sweeps are held at one or more clubs in tho city of Wellington. Tho police can hardly plead ignorance of such sweeps taking place. Nearly every ono who takes an interest in racing know of these sweeps, and the people in certain places are openly canvassed to -take tickets in such sweeps, and it is a matter for common .talk who drew the horses, what they were sold for, who bought the horses, what they fetched, and what the sweep is worth. Yet the authorities do not interfere. Why not? I supposo they will .say they do" not know it is going on. But if a few poor "Chinkies" wero to play fan-tan or pack-a-poo, or somo equally harmless game, the officers of the lawwould soon find out, fall 011 the offenders, and haul them off handcuffcd to tho police cells; but they aro only Chinamen* and the people who. indulge in Calcutta Sweeps, at at least. two of our social clubs in the • city, comprise some, of the I 'Tiong-tang" of society.-- No matter if tho police don't wake up and stop tho practice, I shall supply you, Mr. Editor,with "'the names of the clubs at which these sweeps aro held, and also the names of the well-known citizens, touts, bookies, and spielers who subscribe to these sweeps, so you will bo able to publish them in vour widely-spread and influential paper. Will tho Police Commissioner or Minister for Justice, or both, take a note of these few remarks?—l am, etc., ARGUS. June 2G, 1911. WELLINGTON EAST SEAT, Sir,—l do not think that Mr. Atkinson should give way to Dr. Newman. As a voter in Wellington East, I applaud Mr. Atkinson's refusal to back down for Dr. Newman. Mr. Atkinson made a gallant fight for this seat last election, aud was in the second ballot. What right Dr. Newman has to squeeze out Mr. Atkinson I fail to see, and from what I know of Mr. Atkinson I believe that he is not of the weak-kneed, jelly-fish variety, and will stand to his guns as he has always done. If-he does go to the poll—and I am sure he will—he will find a band of strong workers behind him. I am, etc.,

AN ELECTOR OF WELLINGTON ' EAST. WHY NOT MARGARINE? Sir,—ln connection with tho agitation regarding the high price of butter, I would suggest that, margarine be allowed to enter the Dominion and compete with the higher-class article. In New Zealand the poorer consumer has to pay the same price for butter as the wealthier citizen, or el?e go Without it. Yirhin.Uj-, he is compelled to buy butter, for ho has no substitute, unless it bo dripping, which, I. believe,, becomes almost as expensive as butter. In this respect ho is disadvantaged more than his brother in England '(Whoso market regulates our butter prices) by the fact that there margarine ran bo bought in qualities ranging from sd. lb. up to 9d. a lb. It is an excellent substitute' for butter, and is. used ■ almost: , exclusively by the poorer classes. It would only bo necessary to impose ono restriction-, viz.—that all margarine must be labelled margarine, and must not be sold as butter. In Denmark very little pure butter is consumed bv tho poorer classes—even among the dairy people themselves. The price is too high, and the butter is too valuable. But in Denmark the rule is very strictly adhered to that all margarine, must bo labelled such in the shop?, and must 1* kept in distinguishing-receptacle?. I would suggest that tho Labour unions take the matter up.—l am, etc., COPENHAGEN. IMPERIAL RE-WARD. Sir,—Tho following little epigram appears to fit tho situation:— In selfish glee Ho crossed the sea, And meant to be The Imperial Conference pet; With Fisher mate^ Prepared his bait And laid in wait, But hauled a barren-net! PHACOrS.

MAM. NOTICES. Subject to necessary alterations, mails will close at the Chief Post Office as under:— THIS DAY (WEDNESDAY), JUNE 28. Wanganui, ■ New Plymouth, also Jlanawatu, Kangitikei, and Taranaki districts, per .Manawatu train (Thorndon Station), 0.30 a.m. „ . Wanganui, also Manawatu and Kangitikei districts, per Manawatu train (Thorndon Station), 3 p.m. Wairarapa district, per Wairarapa tram (Lambton .Station), 6.3u a.m. and 3.45 p.m. Napier and llawke's Bay district, per Manawatu train (Thorndon Station), 8 a.m. and 3 p.m. Auckland and district, also Ncv Plymouth and Wanganui, per Main Trunk train (Thorndon Station). 11.15 a.m. Westport, per Komata, 2 p.m. Blenheim, per Blenheim, 7.45 p.m. Nelson and Coast, per Wavcrley, 4.20 p.m. ' Picton,-Blenheim, tlavelock, and Nelson, also the bays, to connect with s.s. Elsie atiHavelock, per Patcena, 11.50 a.m. Westport and Karamea, per Mangapapa, 4 p.m. Parcels for United Kingdom and Continent of Europe, per Turakina. 5 pm. Southern offices of Mew Zealand and Greymouth, Hokitika, and Beeftcn, per Maori, 6 p.m. THURSDAY, JUNE 29. , United Kingdom, and Continent of Europe, via Monte Video ana Tcocriffc, due London August 10. (for specially addressed correspondence only), per Xurakina, 10 , a.m. Southern offir.e3 of New Zealand and Australian States (duo Melbourne July 8), per Warrimoo, 4.20 p.m. Napier. Gisborne, and Auckland, also Australian States (due Sydney July 71, transhipping to s.s. Maheno at Auckland, per Mokoia, 4.20 p.m. -. I'RIDAY, JUNE 30. ■ Cook, Tahiti, and" Pcnrhyn Islands; also, United States of. America, West Indies, and Canada, via San' Francisco, and United Kingdom and Continent ol Europe (duo London July 31), to connect with Maitai at Auckland, per Main Trunk train, 10.30 a.m. (Correspondence for Continent of Europe must bo specially addressed. Money orders must be taken out by 9.15 am.l Ceylon, India, China, Straits Settlements, South Africa, and Continent of Europo and United Kingdom, via Brindisi (due London August 6). per Ulimaroa, 3.30 p.m. (Correspondence for United Kingdom must be specially addressed.) Australian States. New Guinea (duo Syd- ! ney July 4), per Ulimaroa, 3.30 p.m. (Money-orders must be obtained two hours ; before the advertised time of closing the mails.) KaiUoura, per W akatu, 3.20 p.m. The next best dispatch for Canada, Unit--1 ed States of America, West Indies, and ( United Kingdom, will be via. liarotonga, i Tahiti, and San Francisco, closing at Wellington, per Main Trunk .train, Friday, I Juno 30, at 10.30 a.m.; late fee at Chief Post Office, 10.45 a.m.; late fee at mail-van, ■ at 12.15. p.m.; to connect with Maitai, at 1 Auckland. The next best dispatch for Continent of - Europe will be via Brindisi. closing at . Wellington, per Ulimaroa. Friday, June 30, at 3.30 p.m. . Unless otherwise specified, registered let- ' ters and parcels-post packages must bo ' handed in and money-orders obtained one ) hour before the ordinary mail closes. ; June 28, 1911,