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Evening Star, Issue 12762, 15 March 1906, Page 4

The announcement made in onr cable messages to-day that thus earlv The Home in the history of the new Ulkw Party. Parliament there is a split in the ranks of the Labor party will not come as a surprise to those who have followed the progress of the labor movement at Home or in other parts of the Empire. The weakness of the Labor party is as conspicuous as is its strength ; and it is the more regrettable, because as long as it lasts the party are shorn of much of their power. This weakness may be variously termed. Some ca.ll it lack of discipline, others the faults of inexperience, and yet others an almost morbid jealousy of those of their own number who by flint of hard work, brains, and good fortune are able to attain positions of influence. This last charge is probably at the root of the trouble. Careful observers have noted that far greater irritation among- what are termed the workers at the advancement of one of their own number than is felt in similar circumstances by the middle and higher grades of society. The world had a painful insight into this unfortunate trait when Mr John Burns— a. genuine, sincere, and able worker, if ever there was oneaccepted the portfolio of President of the Local Government Board in Sir H. Camp-bell-Bannerman's Cabinet. He was shouted at as a traitor and a turncoat; he was sneered at by Mr Keir Hardie; he was held up to ridicule by the Battersea Social Democrats ; .and he had to submit to more bitter hostility, as he indignantly declared at one of his election meetings, from the jealousy of the men of his own class than from those of any other. Mr G. Bernard Shaw, in the course of a recent article in the 'Clarion.' wittily and sarcastically directs attention to the same evil. Nearly every Socialist and Labor representative, he says, who raises himself to a position where he can be of some .practical good to his fellows is hounded down as having sold himself to the capitalists, and much more equally nonsensical rodomontade. Mr Burns, though the most prominent, is by no means the sole butt, for these useless and puerile charges. Mr William Thorne, the member for West Ham, has not escaped; Mr Quelch, the defeated candidate for Southampton, offended some of the extremists; and Mr Keir Hardie, the Labor Leader, who has yet to learn the imperious need there is for self-discipline and obedience and loyalty, if his party are to be of any weight in the government of the Empire—even he has not escaped the common lot. All this would b e laughable were it not so serious. The true friends of Labor, as well as the more far-seeing among the representatives of Labor, know that Mr John Bums, as President of the Local Government Board, can do infinitely more real work for the betterment of the working classes than he could had he remained what his opponents term " loyal to his class," and wasted his time, as well as the patience of everyone else, in delivering purposeless denunciations of the aristocracy.

The people of England, with few exceptions, cordially welcomed the. entry of the working classes into a more liberal share of parliamentary -representation. For a generation the workers held the power in their own hands, but failed to exercise it. They were content to accept as their representatives the men sent down to them by the central organisations of either of two great political parties; they were dead to the possibilities at their own doors and within their own ranks. All this has changed. Labor has awakened to the fact that it has the power, and has given partial expression to its consciousness of its own possession by returning fifty-four representees to the new Parliament. In itself this is not a great number —it does not represent a twelfth part of the House of Commons ; but the momentous feature of the late success of the Labor party is found in the knowledge that with efficient organisation and loyalty to each other the entire machinery of- the government of the British Empire may eventually pass into their hands. That is the lesson of the elections, and it is on the futnre rather than on the immediate present that cool-headed leaders and organs of public opinion are concentrating their attention. Labor as a potent factor in the legislation and government of the nation has come to stay. . The question that is interesting the thoughtful is no longer Will it last? but What will it do? Meanwhile there are diversities of opinion, petty jealousies, internecine feuds, and personal pettinesses ; and Mr Keir Hardie and other able men in the ranks of Labor will not be able to advance very far until they have recognised and accepted as the supreme need of the hour the principle of harmony and unity within their own ranks. So far the Liberal Government have treated the Labor party well. They have agreed to inquire into, and if possible-to place on the Statute Book, much of what they desire. The Government know that the greater portion of their support comes from the workers of the The Labor and Nonconformist elements put them in. power, and the Ministry will, we believe, loyally seek to give effect- to their promises. But there is a Labor group within the ranks of the Liberals, and most closely allied to them, that has no dealings with the new leaven that the elections have brought into the House. Men like Mr John Burns, Mr H. Broadhurst, and Mr T. Burt, all tried and proved friends of Labor, are not in the same political class as many of the nominees of the Independent Labor party, who in turn hold their.organisation apart from the Social Democratic Federation. Those whose names

we have mentioned belong-to the old Labor party. They are shrewd, practical, and able; they have learned that no Act of Parliament can usher in the millennium, k and they know the value of unity. It is these members who will doubtless rally to I the side and to the cause of the GovernI ment the more restrained of their fellowmenibers, and who will possibly become that element in the Liberal ranks "on which the Government will depend for their information and support in social legislation. The one lesson above all others that the English Labor representatives as a whole must take to heart at this stage in their history is the criminal folly of frittering away their power in isolated action, and the absolute necessity before and above"all else of unity. A meeting of the Ota-go Ladies' Navy League was held yesterday afternoon, Mrs George M'Lean presiding. Various communications from the secretary of the Navy League in London were- read, and letters from the captain and crew of the Prometheus, thanking the Committee for their gift of Christmas cakes. The resignation of Mrs Downing, the secretary, was accepted with regret, and Miss Linda Fenwick was appointed in her place. Interest is growing in the Gospel meetings conducted in the Leith, Valley Schoolhouse by members of the Y.M..0.A. At. last night's meeting there was a good attendance. The chairman of the junior department of the Y.M.C.A. (Mr J. C. Loan) was kadcr and speaker for the evening. Mr Frank, a Scotch singer, who has taken the place of Mr Hugh Miller, sarnr a hymn awl then spoke of the Christian life. Mr Morrison also addressed the meeting. The City Corporation havo appointed Mr W. C. M'Noe their assessor in the compensation case brought by Mr G. Searle in respect of the Forbiny*comer widening. Some of tho water pipes in Cavcrsham are too small. The inch and a-half pipes put down in certain streets sufficed for a few houses, but they do not now carry enough water, and Gr Lawrence- says that' the cost of larger pipes "will liave to be faced shortly. The same tiling is in front of the Council in parts of the three City wards as will. The reticulation of forty years ago is out of date. Some of the money that has gone to the general account would now be handy for tin's purpose. The scarcity of hotel accommodation in Tiinnni is being shown by the. -visit of the Melbourne cricketers next week. They are unable to put up at one hotel, and 'have been compelled to divide into two parties. " They don't know much about the colony at .Home, except in interested quarters," remarked Mr David-Nathan, a Wellington merchant, who returned this week from a visit to England; imt he added that the New Zealand football team had done a great deal of good in that respect. He had nothing but praise for the way in which the team hid conducted themselves, and that feeling was, he declared, universal. A movement is on foot- to hold a reunion of the telegraphists who were stationed in Blenheim when that town was a central distributing station. In those "good old times" (says tfce 'Marlborough Express') the local telegraph staff numbered some seventy or eighty, and business people well rentember the shock that, the town sustained when, the large body of men were shifted to Christchurch some twelve years ago. Among the third class passengers/ by the Ruapchu this week were about a dozen, chiefly tradesmen, who joined the vessel at Cape Town, They describe tilings in South Africa ne being very bad indeed? and appear to be thankful that, unlike others, they are able to leave the colony. The remainder of tlte immigrants (Bays the 'Post') appear to be of good stamp, and comprise a wide variety of occupations. The endeavors which have been made to effect a compromise in the dispute between Momona settlers and the OtaJcia Drainage Board have proved of no avail. The hearing of the claims will be resumed before the Compensation Court, Mosgiel, to-mor-row. The hoarding that has for months narrowed the Princes street footpath opposite the banks is now cleared away, leaving Thomson, Bridger, and Co.'s new and hand° some building a conspicuous adornment of our main thoroughfare. The structure covers an area of about an eighth' of an acre, being 165 ft deep and 33ft wide, and there are three floors above the cellar. The fiim have put up the place by day labor. Mr Gow and his staff have already begun the shifting. For lighting and modern conveniences there is no better shop in tho colony. The Dunedin Horticultural Society's dahlia show was fairly attended last night, when the Drake family played an acceptable programme of orchestral music. Two exbibts of exceptional merit were forwarded to the show too late for our first notice. One was a superb collection of sweet peas from Mr Wm. Sinclair, of the Bank of New Zealand, Lawrence. Included in this were some of the most recent varieties raised. The second was a magnificent sjKvj'men of the rose "John Buskin," grown in the oarden of Mr Harry Clarke. Special mention must also be made of the exhibits sciii in by the Union street School 'hildron. The plants were really well grown md muca admired. Mr H. Maxwell, returning officer for Dudcdin, commenced this vhe scrutiny of the rolls that were used at the Committee election on Tuesday. This scru--liny is provided for by section 132 of tie Electoral Act of 1905. Its purpose is to find out whether there ha.'.- been any dual voting. The candidates were invited to send - scrutineers, but nobody turned tip. On tho completion of this scrutiny the returning officer will count the votes u; the presence of a J.F. and scrutineers. >o as - to be able to rnako an official declaration as to tho result of the poll, as provided by section 136. The police have word that a man named Georgo Mafheson, a railway porter at Palmcrston, was arrested this morning. He was discovered at four o'clock in the store kept by Elizabeth Clements. Ah the actual cost of the Waitati-Lcith waterworks extension scheme was the subject of keen discussion and sober 1 contradiction at-the City Council meeting last night, we have since asked Gr Lawrence, as chairman of the Water Committee, if he could supply the exact sub-totals, and in this way we are able to furnish the public with the following figures:—Amount paid on labor and material, £31,197 13s 8d: for compensation, £13.267 14s Id; to Mr Barr, £1,945 13s 6d; to Mr Park, £372 15s; for legal charges, £1,951 7s Id; to arbitration, £lO6 Is; to witnesses, £742 16s lid; to professional men other than engineers, £703 l&s 6d; other payments. £558 17s; to Mr L. H. Reynolds, £l3l ss; to Mr 11. Hay, £549 6s 6d; total, £51,527 lis 3d. Taking out the separate items of the above, it will be seen that the engineering and legal charges come to £4.471 17s 6d, not £7,000 odd as stated. The "other payments" item is made up of printing and advertising, audit fees, interest, insurance, hire, and sundries. These are a few facts to go on with pending tit* preparation of the detailed statement, with which Or Lawrence propoees""to clear away common mis» understandings about the water scheme. At the last meeting of the Presbyterian Church General Assembly it was resolved that a colonial conference should be held to consider various matters vitally affecting Sabbath school work in connection with tho Church. It has now been arranged to hold the conference in Dunedin on Auril 16 and 17 (Easter Monday and Tuesday). The Rev. J. Mackenzie, of St. Andrew's; Christchurch, convener of the Assembly's Committee on the Youth of the Gnurch, will preside. The subjects to be discussed will include modern methods of Sunday school work, questions of organisation, the appointment of a general Sunday school agentj teacher training, and the Sunday school and missions. A Boulder (W.A.) as the result of a dispute with the local brewery, lowered the price of beer from 6d to 4d" the pint, and immediately commenced to do a roaring trade. He had to increase his staff of baTmen, and a cash desk expert was" kept hard at work taking money. Towards morning the night's takings were removed under escort to the police station for safety. The .beer was brought from a town 300 miles distant, ,

The 'Onlooker' states that Mr. John Bums sent a petition to His Majesty asking to be allowed to dispense, with the goldlaced official uniform which he would have to wear as President of the Local Government Board when in the Royal presence, and that his petition was refused. "Our Own" at Christchurch advises that during Ids present visit to Christchurchj Mr Hamer, Secretary to. the Mines Department," will arrange for the establishment of a depot for the State coal mine. Members of the Citizens' Band turned out in uniform this afternoon v to attend the funeral of a daughter of Mr T. M. Gillies, a former member of the band. - Wo in New Zealand axe by no means singular in our experience that along with considerable national prosperity there is an undoubted rise in the cost of living. At the .'tnmual meeting of the Canadian Bank of Commerce, held in January at Toronto, the president (Hon. George A. Cox), after referring to the healthy condition of Canada's home industries and trade, said: " Unfortunately, wc cannot have prosperity, apparently, without a general increase in the ccst of everything, and in this connection the cost of buildang and the consequent cost of house rent should be a matter of great concern. When hard times come, as come they must, there will be.a sharp readjustment "in some direction, because clearly the wage-earner will not be able to continue to pay such large rents as are being paid now by' tho working men in our large cjties." The applications to the Labor Department from the Homeland for advice and information are increasing fast. Mr J. Mackay informed one of our reporters to-day that each mail now brings 'a large batch of such letters from farmers, manufacturers, artisans, and all classes of inquirers. In many cases they 'possess a little money with which to make a start in life; hi nearly every instance the writer is fired with energy and a desire for work; and out of the multitude of applicants the majority are eligible for colonial life. The department takes pains to answer such letters with the best information at command, and the correspondence often leads to the inquirers fairing ship for the Antipodes. It is satisfactory to learn, also, that the majority of those who come in this way are content with their New Zealand experiences. There aie but few growlers. Three of the members of tho Workers' Dwellings Board havo left Dunedin, the sittings of the Board as a Board being over for the present; but Mr J. Mackay" •assistant secretary of the Labor Department, is remaining herei for a few days on departmental business, and, opportunities being made by Mr J. F. Arnold and Mr T. K. Sidey for inspecting various sites suggested as suitable for groups of workmen's homrs, Ma- Maekay has taken advantage of tho members' offer and accompanied them on visits that may at the least lead to reommfindations if not to actual business. There is, we understand, a chance of several desirable sites being placed under offer to tho Government. What seems to have been a rather smart application of an old confidence trick was made a couple of weeks ago under disarming circumstances on a teacher in a secondary school. The smart gentleman passed himself off as a runholder in the south, who desired to send his boys to school, and he succeeded in gaining the confidence of his victim, and pocketing a loan of £5. The rest is silenceT An ordinary meeting of the Otago High Schools Board of Governor;? is being held as we go to press. Mr J. R. Sinclair is in the chair. The bank book laid on the table shows the-following balances at March 13: —No. 4 account, £1,021 lis (cr.); No. 1 account, £26 19s 7d (dr.)— leaving £794 11a 5d to credit iii the bank, less outstanding cheques for February and March totalling £562 8s 4d. Mr*W. F. Inder, Gore, wrote on behalf of a prospecting syndicate at Wyndham stating that as the deposit of coal which they proporrd to work could not he traced, the project had been abandoned. They therefore asked for a refund of £6 ss, being half of the year's rent deposited with the Board for land leased by tho syndicate. The matter of the refund is being discussed in committee.

The boy who was recently arrested in connection with the obstructing of the south express at Waiwera was charged at Balclutha yesterday before Mr Cmickshank, S.M., with having placed an obstruction on the line. He pleaded guilty, and an order was made that he bo chastised by his father. He is only seven and a-haK'years of age. Detective* Hill prosecuted, and Mr Crisp appeared for the defendant. A mild sensation was caused -on the Tiihavu railway station on Saturday evening stay of the second express, the causa being the behaviour of a sailor off the H.M.S. Challenger. He' was drunk, and desired to fight everybody within reach. Several other sailormen endeavored to restrain his< pugilistic impulses, with the result that one of them received a blow that drew blood. The next second the inebriated tar was knocked off the platform and under one of the carriages of the train bv the stalwart person whom he so harshly hit. The bluejackets soon hauled their fallen mate from under the train, and they then attempted to get him into a carriage. This was a lengthy business, as he hung on to every thing like a limpet. Five sailormen and two civilians finally got him in. and as the train steamed out of the station a parting glimpse was caught of the warrior, still fighting hard, while one sailor held his head, another his feet, and three sat upon him with much calmness. One of the latest forms of speculation that have caught on in Loudon commercial circles is the flotation of rubber companies to operate principally in the East Indies. Some of them are to acquire rubber plantations, while others are to acquire the land and plant trees. An English paper, in its notices of new capital issues, says of one : " The keen demand for. rubber is leading io numerous promotions, each apparently more speculative than its predecessor. If some companies have somewhat remote prospects, what shall be said of this, which has not begun to plant its rubber trees? In fact, it is admitted that profits will not begin to accrue at the earliest until 1912." The official immigration and emigration returns for January show that 4,878 persons arrived in the colony and 1,726 left, lu Jjrmuarv, 1905, the arrival;) were 4,277 and the departures 1,759. The bulk of the arrivals in January last were—from New South Wales- 2,502. Victoria 1,041, and the United Kingdom 816, while most of those who left the colony went to New South Wales. 1.127 out of the. 1,726 ..departure's for that State. Twenty Chinese came to the colony in January iiud four departed Archdeacon Cole, of St. Mary's Church, New Plymouth, in a, recent address, said: " The children of the South Sea. Islands are better off spiritually than the people of your back-blocks, twenty, thirty, and forty miles away from New Plymouth. The spiritual condition of these back-block inhabitants is very sad indeed. . . . And people have a love for the brown heathen, and will contribute willingly to funds for their spiritual amelioration, but, strangely enough, the same people will not give a penny towards the uplifting of their own kith and kin in the back-blocks of Tara naki." Here is a typographical error (says an exchange) which should occupy a good position in any future list. The Hon. J. D. Ormond wrote to a paper to say "the Premier's speech deserves earnest consideration tif he is correct in stating that the result of the present teaching benefits eventually only a few—the pick of the pupils—and that the great majority drift back when their school term is ended into the communism of the pah." The printer made it read "communion of the pub." Rand mining stocks seem to be in a very depressed state just now. A Home paper states that just inside the main entrance to the London Stock Exchange,: and where the Kaffir Circus drags out its dismal days, there is stretched a substantial expanse of canvas, designed to exclude the draught. The canvas is thickly studded with .Jittle .paper darts, which stand out like bo many quills upon the fretful porcupine. To some members with plenty of time upon their hands, the screen and its appurtenances present an allegory, representing the market and its manifold misfortunes. ° For everybody seems to have a fling at Kaffirs sooner or later. Politicians of all shades have" had a, dart to cast at the luckless Kaffir Circus since the days of the-war.

The conditions ofilife in someipartsyof the colony are simply awful (says the Manawatu 'Times'). , A .witness - living near Apiti, at Court, actually told the judge that he had not had a newspaper for six months. : . , Thus the ■ Wellington- correspondent of a contemporary : —■',' The. servant difficulty is still. rampant, arid one sees no solution of the question. It is not low wages, for they have steadily risen for some years; and even £1 a week is offered by despairing housekeepers in order tb get "help. As a rule high wages do not attract efficient maids, for it is too often those very places that are made the dumping ground of inexperienced and irresponsible Everything that can tempt a servant is offered in the advertisement columns—every night out, afternoons free, no washing, and no family. All these inducements are by turns pathetically displayed—often without avail." Two interesting and valuable cabinets of foreign insects have been added to the collections in Canterbury Museum. They comprise specimens of coleoptera and lepidoptera, from South America, Australia, and New Guinea. The contents of these cabinets make a popular collection, and are in i tlie v nature of a supplement to the very valuable scientific collections of foreign insects which have been in the Museum for. many years. Two more cabinets are on their way to Christchurch. All these additions were obtained by Can tain Hutton, the late curator, when he was in England. A demonstration of the efficiency of the heating apparatus recently installed at the new railway station by Messrs A, and T. Burt was given this" afternoon, when a number gentlemen were present. The system is a hot-water one. and the pressure is very slight (only that afforded by the height of the building, at the top of which is a cistern containing the water) Under the-flooring of the. building there are two section boilers, where'the water is heated and transmitted to the radiators all over the building. There are in all seventy-three of these cast-iron, and of ornamental des ; gn. The system is reallv a combination of hot water and hot air, since the large surface afforded by the shape of the radiators hears-the air passing through and over them. There is little waste of water, except through condensation, for there are return pipes to carry it back to the toilers. As a further means of radiating the hot air, there are ventilators at the foot of each radiator, and the air passing up through these disperses the hot air thoroughly through the room. It is claimed for the system, which ds one of heating by direct and indirect radiation, that it minimises the risk of leakage and consequent dampening of the atmosphere, and that there is no dust or vapor of any kind incidental to radiation. The first instructional practice of the First Battalion Rugby Football Club will be held at the Garrison Hall to-morrow evening. We have received the following subscriptions for the Farquharson fund:—' Evening Star' Company, £1 1b; Speight and Co.. £1 Is; " Wellwisher," ss; M.C., 10s; "Fellow Soccer," 2s 6d. A meeting of the Roslyn Bowling Chib will be held in the bowlhouse, Roslyn, on Wednesday evening, the 21st inst. The Dunedin Carters' Union of Workers meet in the Trades Hall, Moray place, tomorrow evening. Messrs Myers, dentists, are back in new building, Octagon and George street.—[Advt ! The Anglo-N.Z. Cycle Company's closingup sale a great success; still further concessions; customers who have been unable to receive attention owing to the Tush are invited to call again. Shop to let.—[Advt.] New costs just opened, in stylish patterns of tweed and rich caracul; price, from 15s -6d to four guineas. At T. Ross's.—[Advt.] Mr Hendy, hair specialist, invites inspeotion new combs, hair nets, brushware, etc., just landed. Latest hair frames, all colors, Is.—[Advt.] The road to health paved with good digestion.— Vegetable Charcoal, invaluable for indigestion, diarrhaja, fevers, etc. Powder, 2s, 4s, 6s; biscuits, Is, 2s, 4s; all chemists. Bragg. Wigmore street, Loudon, England.—[Advt.] Messrs Myers, dentists, are back new building, Octagon and George street.—[Advt.] Mountain King Asthma Powder for chronic bronchitis, Inmrid asthma, is unequalled. [lo9] Large quantities of Mountain King Asthma Powder are now exported to Sydney and Melbourne. [lo9] Have you a sore that won't heal? Witch's Ointment, a mighty healer. [lo9]