THE KORERO COLUMN.

Evening Post, Volume LVI, Issue 74, 24 September 1898, Page 3 (Supplement)

THE KORERO COLUMN.

[By Katipo.] The Press Gallery affair ia ended, and the upshot is all that the women-reporters can desire so far as their personal comfort is concerned. They are to have permanent accommodation for themselvoß and such facilities as they require for doing their work. But for the agitation that has taken place there is little doubt that the original refusal of the majority in the Gallery would have compelled the unfortunate women to do their reporting under disadvantages that would take about 50 per cent, off the copy sent in by the most brilliant of special correspondents. In respect of accommodation, the proposed arrangements will doubtless be more comfortable for the women than coming into the Gallery would have been, but there is au element in the whole incident that is to be regretted. It seems to ' Katipo ' that the application for the admission to the Gallery of a certain lady reporter was not made from any motive other than the legitimate one of claiming for a woman journalist the same rights and privileges as would have been enjoyed by a man had he hold her post. The principle is one of great importance at present to women who wish to have a career in the world, a,s men have always had, and it is to be regretted that tho Parliamentary pressmen of New Zealand did not hold out freely the hand of fellowship to a woman member of the craft instead of harking back to antediluvian notions of female propriety, and considering first of all their own comfort and predilections. ' Katipo ' cannot conceive why men and women should not work freely together without all this foolish, insistence upon separating the sexes. The presence of 'women would certainly improve the men, but there is just a doubt in some cases whether the gain would be mutual. The members of the House of Representatives are entering heartily into their work this session, and playing their game of talk with as much enthusiasm as chess-players do their game of silence. Night and day are alike to them ; -the game must be played. I am not aware if the present session breaks the record for late sittings, but as there are five or six weeks yet to run, I think it bids fair to do so. There is, however, a recent innovation that tends to soften the asperi- j ties of an all-night sitting-. Members, we I are told, provide themselves with rugs and blankets, and some of them with pillows. On being questioned a few nights ago as j to the legality of this proceeding, the Deputy -Speaker ruled that members were allowed to provide themselves with necessary comforts, and the practice had never been interfered with. The Premier added that he had looked up May, Todd, and other Parliamentary authorities, and could find no precedents on the point. It seems to me that a Premier might be better employed than in hunting through the pages of constitutional guide-books to see how much bedding he is allowed to take with him into the House. Personally, I should have thought a Parliamentary Chamber was a place for debating, and should be furnished with that end in view, and I look upon it as a sad falling-off from the Spartan simplicity of our pioneer colonists when the benches of our national senate are turned into roostiugplaces. Still, the Deputy-Speaker having ruled — and Sir Maurice O'Rorke has given no sign of the ruling being 1 incorrect — that necessary comforts are to be allowed, I bow gracefully to the decision, merely asking whether members are to be permitted to form their own standard of comfort. If so, I expect some night on dropping into the House to find Mr. Rolleston and Mr. Duthie smoking long churchwardens and glaying a friendly game of cribbage, or the Left Wing indulging in a quiet rubber at whist. And> if members can take rugs and blankets into the House, why not bolsters and sheets — aye, and fullblown feather-beds ? These are necessary comforts at night, I take it, for the modern legislator, though they may not be set out in Magna Charta. A few minutes before midnight the Chief Messenger should go round with tho warming-pan, and the first stroke of twelve on the Post Office clock would be the signal for members to * turn in.' The spectacle of a number of drowsy legislators rolling into the lobbies in dress-ing-gown and slippers to vote on a division might not be very edifying, Dut I venture to predict that it would not be often repeated, and that the contending parties would soon come to an agreement to regard Bedfordshire as neutral ground. One of the most popular and satisfactory provisions in the Industrial Conciliation and and Arbitration Act is that whioh excludes lawyers from taking part as counsel for either side. In the hearing of a recent dispute before the Wellington Conciliation Board why was the lawyer allowed to creep into ' the background ' by an employing baker ? And why did the Operative Bakers' Union itself bring a lawyer's clerk into the immediate foreground as one of its three spokesmen ? It may be, as the Chairman of the Board explained, that a lawyer's clerk is not a lawyer, and therefore is not debarred from appearing as a representative for one of the parties in the dispute, but a progressive Labour Union like that of the | bakers of this city should be the last body to attempt to ' get round ' a statute devised for the benefit of labour. A lawyer's clerk can at times ably represent the views of his employer — in some cases, it is alleged, even better than the employer himself. And 1 certainly this action of the Union is plainly liable to the construction that was openly placed upon it at the beginning of the proceedings. The palpable evasion of the Act I is much more flagrant on the part of the workers' union, apart from the principle involved, than on that of the employer, because in the latter case the gentleman in the background was only watching the proceedings on his client's behalf, and took no open part in the case. With the moat benevolentfeelings towards the Benevolent Trustees, I really cannot approve their conduct in connection with the Mrs. Williams will affair. Here we have an aged couple with a sufficient competence to preclude them from receiving old age pensions under Mr. Soddon's Bill admitted to a Home established for destitute and homeless per.sons ; in less than a month the man dies, aud the woman makes a will leaving the bulk of her property to the Matron and her family. Happy Matron ! Lucky family ! This is how it strikes an unsophisticated observer : In the first place, the Williamees should not have been admitted to the Home, as they were not destitute persons. This the Trustees admit, thus convicting themselves of not making proper enquiry. Then, being admitted in default of proper enquiry, aud the man having died, when it was found that the woman possessed property — which was almost immediately, for the will was made in loss than » mouth after her admission — she should have been sent out of the institution to make room for some one who was really de&titute. At their meeting recently the Trustees passed round the pail of whitewash fteely, each oue doing his best to painHtis comrade white. The Rev. Mr. Elliotjß wnp an honourable exception. He woulll not havo stood alone had 'Kiitipo' been Wiere.

Mr. Robert Taylor, of Scarva, County Down, the oldest postmaster and probably (he oldost man in the world, died in July. Mr. Taylor, who was recently congratulated ' by the Queen on attaining his l]9t,h year, was fifer to v yeomanry corp3 duriug the Irish Rebellion of 1798.

kept alive interest in local racing, and they should be better looked after so as to enable them to get their horses well. His remarks about the dangerous turn into the straight brought forth a chorus of applause from the members assembled, and he waa supported in this point by Mr. James Ames, who thought it would be advisable to shift the judge's box further on, so as to give a longer straight run home. The present run is undoubtedly too short, and his suggestion is worthy of consideration by the present Stewards. The reduction of the eutrance fee made at the sparsely- attended special meeting to consider the new rules some time back caused dißsatißfaction among tho older members who had brought the club to such a sound position from a point touching on bankruptcy. They failed to see why younger members should enjoy the club's privileges for so small an amount. On the other hand, it was urged that the reduced entrance fee meant a large increase of membership, and consequently new blood in the club. But the older members carried the day and re-inserted the provision for a three -guineas entrance fee. After the result of this motion Captain Falconer rose in a disheartened state to propose that bookmakers be licensed to bet £n the courHe, but eventually warmed up to *EJb task, and spoke with zest in support of jhis proposal. He was assisted by Mr. T.IM. Wilford, who failed to Bee the difference morally between betting with bookmakers or with the totalisator. After much discussion the motion waa eventually carried and the Stewards will therefore be required to make arrangomonts with bookmakers to p«*c4heir calling at the club's meetinira. TJ»| majority of the Stewards are opposed to tlTeVroposal, and therefore it may yet not be^fil plain sailing. It will be interesting if/sets what conditions of admission to the course are ineisted upon. With regard to Mr. Macdouald's motion that the Stewards should discuss with the Hutt Park Railway Company the mutter of improved access to tho course, Mr. Ames, one of the directors of tho company, stated that he was certain that the shareholders,

Dr. Cahill, speaking at the W.R.C. meeting on the question of licensing bookmakers : ' I have heard of a prominent New Zealand bookmaker in the olden days, in offering odds on a certain race with six starters, putting before backers the '• tempting " odds of *' 3 to 1 bar four." ' St. Paul had a very easy win in the Avondale Cup. Getting well away, and maintaining a handy position in the earl/ part of the journey, St. Leger's game little eon could be seen moving up to the leaders — Supplejack and Explosion— when the five-furlong post was reached, and getting his head iv front as they raced into the home turn, the New Zealand Cup candidate could be seen drawing away from the field with every stride, and though Horton, on Supplejaclr, made vigorous use of the whip in his effort to hold the favourite, it was without avai), as St. Paul continued to gain ground, and, beating oil the opposition in the easiest possible fashion, he caught the judge's eye three lengths to the good of Supplejack. This is the third year in succession that St. Paul has triumphed in this particular race. Backers had a good innings at the Egmont and Avondale meetings, and on the seiond day of the Egmont meeting practically picked the card locally. Bookmakers lost heavily, and if their luck does not change soon there will be few loft to do business with, which will obviate the necessity of a Betting Restriction Bill. The punters appear on a fair way to exterminate the local layers of odds. Mr. J. B. Vallance, Ihe young English anmteur rider mentioned in my notes last woek, won two races on Sir Athol at H.twera. Sir Athol, who is by Torpedo — Lady Athol, won a fow races a couple of seasons baolc for Mr. D. Thurston, and has been spelled since owing to going wrong. He is a fine big gelding, and should make a useful cross- country horse. W. Davios has had a big Remington mare placed under his care, and J. Prosser has received a Vanguard— Laurel colt to prepare for racing. Claymore has been blistered and turned out.

1 Canet (Remington — Minnie Palmer), chestnut filly by Ascot — Culverin, Dum Dam (the full brother to Canet}. H. W. Clay— Roseleaf's sister Rosette, Guardfish (Piscatorious — Zara), and Au Revoir (St. George— Farewell). From a private source I learn that Swordfish has been found unable to beat Nestcr over the N.Z. Cup distance, and Nestor has been backed by his party for a good stake, a wager of 1800 to 68 being accepted in Christchuroh. A line of 800 to 58 has also been written about Altair. T. Scott, the owner of Plain Bill, explains in this week's Referee that the reason the folding was not taken to Riccarton to fulfil his National engagements was owing to his fearing at the last moment that the horse might .break down. He struck his tendon at Hawkes Bay, which now and again made him go sore. He seemed to get over this, and was tried previous to the final payments over three miles of country. Not coming through the ordeal satisfactorily, he was scratched for his engagements. Scott thinks the public are treating him unfairly in accusing him of anything unsportsmanlike. He inatanoca that ho ran Plain Bill 27 times last season, and he was only unplaced five times, snowing that he ran the horse as a true sportsman should do. Mr. W. R. Wilßon and his wife were present at the Avondale meeting. Ho has aince gone back to Victoria. It is rather an interesting fact that Campania, the dam ot Miss Delaval, the winner of the Juvenile Stakes, waa bred by Mr. Wilson in 1891, and that he should bo present in person to see tho win. A full brother to True Blue (Hotchkiss— Rose of Wellington) and a full brother to Day star and Altair (Castor — Cisßy) have made their appearance at Mr. Morrin's stud farm. Irish Twist has again broken down, a tendon giving way, and has been turned out. The Masterton Racing Club has decided to do away with the system of re-handi-capping winners after the declaration of weights, and has fallen back on the ,jpld Byetem of fixinjr stipulated penalties. ''

P. Regan had his collarbone broken when Ditto fell in the First Steeplechase at Kandwiok. St. Paul's two-year-old brother St. Peter was not started at Avondale owing to soreness. When Mr. S. Hordern disposed of his racing string in May last, Oravat and Johansen brought 320gs each, and as Cravat won the Metropolitan and Johansen annexed the two handicaps at Randwick they havemore than paid for themselves. Cravat had the 'unlucky' number 13 in front of his name in the book. Other winners at the second day's racing in Holster and Lelamine were also number 13. Mr. John Cotter's mares Caller Herrin', Nectarne, and Merry Maiden visit Saracen this season. At the Kirkham sale the four-year-old mare Princess (Abercorn — Princess Maud, imp.) and the three-year-old sister to Acmena (Martini-Henry — Acme) were purchased on behalf of Mr. W. Allison, the ' Special Commissioner ' of the London The two mares will be shipped to England in company with Captain Scott's horses. A Melbourne scribe who recently visited Burrumbeet reports favourably on the Derby candidate Cordite. The gelding has not grown much since he last appeared in public, but he is a picture of health and condition, and has apparently done plenty of fiolid work. He may be seen out in the Narre Warren Stakes atFlemington to-day, in whioh Bobadil is also likely to compete.