The Evening Star FRIDAY, AUGUST 4, 1911.

Evening Star, Issue 14636, 4 August 1911, Page 6

The Evening Star FRIDAY, AUGUST 4, 1911.

This Minister of Agriculture lent a sympa-

thetic ear to the two de- *' Consider, putations that waited Old Cow, upon him yesterday in Consider!" teferenee to the subject tf irrigation in Central Jtago. He also spoke smooth, encouraging words, of a kind similar to those uttered a few weeks ago by Sir James Carroll—the only difference being that Mr Mackenzie has ?ome acquaintance with the matter, whereas the Acting Premier virtually admitted that- he had the rudiments to learn. Both Ministers promised to consult their colleagues and, in effect, to "keep the question steadily in view." Now, there is a growing opinion in Dunedin, as well as in the districts immediately interested, that the stage of consultation ought to bave been past, and that action is the imperative need of the hour.

Mr William Fraser observed in the House last night, in allusion to the Government's promise of " careful attention," that the matter seemed to have received such careful attention that nothing had been done. That doughty champion of Central Otago, the late Vincent Pyke, used to liken the attitude of the Governments of his day, in relation to the interests of this province, to the tactics of the man who sought to alleviate the sufferings of his starving cow by warbling the ditty " Consider, old cow, consider!" The cow considered and gave up the ghost. To vary the bucolic simile, optimistic words butler no parsnips, and the Central Otago parsnips are waiting to be buttered ; or, to be literal, the land is waiting to be watered. We may be reminded that the Government have made a start with irrigation work in Ida Valley. It is a moot question whether they have started in the right place; but, waiving this point it is ruflicient to say that there is no reason in the world why operations at Cromwell and other localities # should have to await the results of the Ida Valley undertaking. Mr Mackenzie, when receiving deputations, has a penchant for wandering off to topics only indirectly related to the matters in hand ; but it would have been very mrch to the point if he had explained why the report of the Government Engineer concerning the irrigation of Cromwell Flat has not been made public. There is room, no doubt, for difference of opinion as to whether a single comprehensive scheme or a number of sectional schemes would be the more effective method of carrying out the necessary work. Mr Mackenzie says, truly enough, that this is a question for the Cabinet to decide ; and we take leave to add that it is high time the decision was arrived at. While the Government are shilly-shallying and sympathising and consulting, young men are reluctantly leaving the province, and, in many instances, the Dominion, in order to satisfy their land hunger in more favorable localities. They would prefer to remain where they were bred ; but, in the circumstances, who can blame them for going? It may be observed in passing that the question of the subdivision of runs is closely related to the irrigation project. The Alexandra deputation reminded the Minister that the wholo of the area for which irrigation is sought is Crown land, traversed by the railway, and some of the runs will be falling in before very long. The representations of the Mayor of Alexandra are worth emphasising : A< present the land was bringing in only a nominal rental to the Crown, whilst if this scheme were completed it would bring in sufficient revenue to more than pay the interest and sinking fund, whilst giving the water and the land to the settlers at a more moderate sum, and thus be the n eans of settling some 200 or more selectors, who. with their families and extra labor employed, would mean, at a low estimate, I*ooo extra people employed and settled in the district. At present all their young men were being forced to leave the district for other parts, this of necessity being the case, as the dredging industry was on the 'vane.

Both the schemes, at Alexandra and at Cromwell, would be comparatively inexpensive, and in both instances tho settlers would, if necessary, be prepared to provide the money for the work. Wc regard the project as a rational affair, and think that the Government should take all the financial and operative responsibility, but the readiness of the residents in this tcspect is at least a valuable proof of the bona fides of their representations. There should be an end to mere talk, and a beginning of resolute action.

Scddex as was the decision of the Laurier Government to dissolve The Parliament am] appeal Canadian to the country before takCeneral ing a final vote on the Election. Reciprocity Agreement which they had entered into with the United States, it can hardly be regarded as a surprise. Sir Wilfrid Laurier and his Ministry, from causes which, though difficult to explain, are fairly familiar to politicians in all countries, have undoubtedly suffered in prestige and popular esteem during the last eighteen months. This feeling was practically expressed last year by the electors of Drummond and Aithabaska, in which constituencies an unexpected rebuff was given to the Administration. It is not Reciprocity alone that compels Sir W. Laurier to consult the electors. At the back of this successful piece of statesmanship—successful to the extent that Washington had been compelled to come to Ottawa and to grant more than Ottawa had at one time asked —were the angry feelings and passions engendered by the Navy Bill, which became law in May of last year. That measure, it will be recalled, made provision to create, build, and man a purely Canadian Navy. The Laurier policy was severely criticised byMr Borden, the Leader of the Opposition, who, however, \ oted for it; by the Conservative party as a whole, who advocated a fleet that should unite, act with, and be subject to the British Navy; and strenuously opposed by Mr Monk and Mr Bourassa. of Quebec, whose policy has been, possibly unjustly, summed up in the words " Canada wants railways, not battleships." Short-sighted and deplorable as the agitation of Messrs Monk and Bourassa seems to be—its analogy may be found among what are known as "the little navy men" in Great Britain—its influence cannot be lightly dismissed, particularly in Quebec, where it has been persistently in evidence for many months. The propaganda of Messrs Monk and Bourassa is sure at all times of catching the ears and the votes of many electors. They stand for what they proudly, term "JSTa-

tionalisrn, 8 * •which,-to some, is in this relation but another name for a selfish and dangerous provincialism. "For some time past Sir Wilfrid Laurier has been held up to scorn and savagely caricatured in his own home province. In the words of the Canadian correspondent of 'The Times,' "he has been : presented from day to day as a traitor to his province; ho has been pilloried as engaged in a Jingo movement to enslave his compatriots, to destroy Canadian autonomy, and to sacrifice the honor and integrity of to the schemes of British Imperialists." This furious rhetoric sounds grotesque to citizens in other parts of the Empire, where there is more or less suspicion that Sir Wilfrid represents the disintegration rather than the unification of Empire. And he is so regarded"because he has publicly declared that " it did not follow that Canada would take part in all the waTS of the Empire." The Quebec Nationalists, however, have compelled the Conservative party in that province to come into line with them, and the Canadian Premier lias had to clear himself from the charge of favoring a jingo Imperialism, and, at the same time, to make el«ar his I loyalty to Canadian autonomy. Hence the ambiguous nature to British ears of some of his more recent utterances. Hence, too, his attacks on the Opposition proper—i.e., the Conservative party—who are ably led by Mr Borden. The.Opposition stand for a Canadian Navy that shall bo part ami parcel of and subordinate to the British Navy. They aro those who wanted to follow New Zealand's example, and offer two or more Dreadnoughts to the Mother Land, but on this issue at all evonts they are far from being representatative »of the majority of the Canadian people ; and in Quebec Province, for political purposes, they have gone over, willynilly, to the Monk-Bourassa side. The position, therefore, is somewhat as follows, as far as the Naval Question is concerned :—Sir W. Laurier is held up to ignominy as a jingo Imperialist., and, simultaneously, as an opponent of the Imperial supremacy, thereby necessitating the use of arguments that, apart from politics, are not easy to reconcile. To the world at large the "Prime Minister stands for Canada as a self-governing, independent nation first, last, and all the time. To his political rivals and enemies ho Li a tub-thumping, street-corner Jingo of the most offensive type, and at the same time an anti-Britisher, who would make Canada over to the United States. Following on the Government's naval policy came the proposed Reciprocity Agreement with the United States. This master-stroke of diplomacy loosened at a bound the somewhat humiliating nature of the Opposition adherence to or confusion with the Monk-Bourassa party, and gave .Mr Borden his opportunity. He is now able to pose as the champion of the threatened manufacturing industries of the East and of the pastoral and farming industries of the West. To the men and women of English birth and speech he can say: " Axe you prepared to surrender your birthright for "a doubtful mess of pottage? Is annexation the less galling because it comes in the guise of Reciprocity?" To farmers and manufacturers he can affirm : '"Your wheat and your dairy produce, your implements and your machinery will be swept out of the home market by your southern rivals, - ' and to the fervid Nationalist of Quebec he can appeal as the advocate of a nationalism of a wider and more effective kind than that which the extremists of either side are proclaiming. The defeat of the Laurier Ministry does not inevitably or even probably mean a reversal in naval policy, but it would mean closing the door in the face of the United States, a reaction in international feeling, and a renewal of racial hostility within the Dominion itself.

General Godley last night made a strong appeal to publi'c bodies for help in the accommodation of the Territorials. A .site had been selected in Dunedin, but some time must elapse before provision could be made against the weather. Ho confessed to disappointment at the state of affairs in Dunedin. The South Dunedin Hall was not available, the North Dunedin Drill Hall had been pulled down, the Andrews bequest had terminated, and permission to build on the Oval had been refused. Tho general reminded his hearers that when a site for a fever hospital was required the Defence Department was found, Te-a-rlv to help. Tho obstacles were mest 'appalling, but difficulties were only made to be overcome. At Homo the Territorials had to face the same things, and now _ all the trouble had subsided to almost vanishing point. "But." the general concluded, "wo want to make this movement an example to t'r.: rest of the Empire, and the success of the scheme depended to a large extent on the help and co-operation received from the general public, especially the employer of labor." Mr C. F. Statham is definitely out as a candidate for Dunedin Central in the Opposition interest. In the course of his speech on Tuesday night on tho Address-in-Reply Mr Massey said: " There is a matter which is not mentioned in the Speech, but which ought to be dealt with, and which is occupying the minds of a great many people of the Dominion. I refer to an amendment of the law which will provide for the complete independence of the judicial bench. The people are asking for that all over New Zealand. lam not going to enlarge upon it tonight, but if we are not paying our Judges a sudicient sum per annum by way of salary I am willing to increase the amount. I "speak for myself, but I believe I can speak in this instance for a very large majority of the members of the House. I am quite willing that the Judges should be paid properly—paid in proportion to the responsibility of their position, and paid in the same way as Judges in other colonies are paid; but I do sav that something should be done to prevent these extra payments to Judges. I do not want to reflect on the present Judges. I am not doing that. I say the system is wrong, and it ought to be put fight by legislation, and the same with regard to cur magistrates. There is no earthly reason why our magistrates should not hold office during good behaviour, and have their salaries provided by Act of Parliament. I believe if we made there two alterations we should be doing right and doing something that would bo very acceptable to our constituents." The foundations for the new Mount Cook Hermitage are all in, and the work will be put in hand in the spring. As with the foundations, it is probable that this work will be done by clay labor. The Hon. T. Mackenzie says it is intended to make tho new Hermitage thoroughly up to date, and the probabilities are that it will be heated by electricity.

The Minister in charge of the Tourist Department (the Hon. T. Mackenzie) informed a member of our staff last night that some of 'he experiences of the department lately had been tnat very high tenders had been pcit in for works, which at times prevented the undertakings going on. As an illustration, he mentioned that recently the department called for tenders for a bridge across the Taieri Mouth. The lowest tender (£6,000) was about £I,OOO above the departmental estimate, and this tenderer, when he found how much he was below the nest lowest, wanted an even higher price. The department again went carefully into the matter, and found it could do it for about £5,000. No tender was therefore rccepted. The work had been entrusted to the department and was now :'n hand, the very best of materials having been ordered and were arriving on the ground. A man arrested last night for drunkenness had over £3l in his possession. A special meeting of the Gas Committee of the- City Council will be held on Mondav to consider the reports on "the gasholder foundations. It is understood that opinions are divided as to whether the holder should be shifted or not, but it is hoped to have a recommendation to make to next Wednesday night's meeting of the council. Mr H. Y. Widdowson, S.M., presided in the Police- Court this morning, when four men were charged with drunkenness. Two first offenders were each fined 10s or 24 hours, and another 5s or 24 hours. John Farrington, an old age pensioner, was convicted and discharged. Mr Panlin telephoned ab y 2 p.m. to-day : - Strong N.E. to N.W. winds; fine for 24 hours; barometer fall.

Mr William Thomson, on© time minister of St. Andrew's Presbjterian Church, Palmerston North, subsequently Dominion organiser for the New Zealand Licensed Victuallers' Association, arid now farming at Linton, is a candidate for the Otaki seat. Speaking at Linton on Monday night he described himself as an "Independent Oppositionist," and declared that if ever there was a timo in tho history of New Zealand when strong, fearless, and independent men were needed, they wore needed now. Ho was a freeholder out-and-out, but would support the leasehold as a stepping-stone to the freehold ; advocates the abolition of the Upper House; and would start Civil Service reform by cutting down the salaries of Ministers, and the better paid servants next.

The South Dunedin branch of the New Zealand Labor party held a public meeting at Kensington last night to choose candidates for nomination to the Labor Council in connection with tho General Election. Mr W. Fleming (president of the branch) presided, and made a short speech, in which he outlined the aims of the party, and expressed the opinion that Jvabor should have a more proportionate representation in Parliament. Mr C. W. Fisher, secretary, also addressed the meeting. Mr W. Fleming declined nomination for Dunedin South, and the ballot resulted in the following names being forwarded: —Dunedin North, Mr A. R. Barclay; Dunedin Central, Mr C- W. Fisher; Dunedin South, Mr A. R. Jackson. At intervals during the evening songs and pianoforte solos were contributed by Misses Watson, M'Carthy, Rawley, and Mr Roberts.

The inward train traffic has been very heavy this week, close on 13,000 passengers having come to Dunedin from various stations north and south. For tho first throe working days of this week the number of arrivals was 8,300. Of that total 5,450 passengers hailed from the South and Otago Central, and 2,850 from the North. Exactly 5,000 people came to Dunedin bv different trams yesterday, 1.050 coming from the North and 1,950 from the South and Central Otago, the latter district's quota being 150. The two expresses from Invercargill brought 400 each, whilst the two from Christchurch brought a. total of 450, and of that total 250 came bv the first express and 200 hy thfi second.' A special train from Milton brought 250 passengers, and one from Clutha brought 300. The early train from Palmerston brought 400, and 450 camo by the early train from Clinton. The bookings by the train from Oamaru totalled 200. Up till noon to-day 1,500 passengers had arrived in Dunedin, 1,100 from the South, 400 from the North.

The meeting of the Port Chalmers School Committee was held on Tuesday evening, Mr J. M'Lachlan presiding. It was resolvod to write to the Education Board drawing thoir attention to tho state of the fence in front of tho rectory in Scotia street. The visiting committee reported having visited tho school and carried out several small repairs that needed attention. They also reported that tho miniature rifle range was completed, but that it required fencing and otherwise protecting. It was resolved to have the necessary protecting work carried out. The inspectors' report was received, and found to bo very satisfactory, and it was decided that the rector and staff be written to, expressing the committee's appreciation of the report. The rector's report showed tho average roll number in the primary department to be 371 and in the secondary department 13. The attendance had been interfered with bv sickness and bad weather during the month. The attendance shield was won twice bv Standard IV. (with 93 and 95 per cent.)*, once by Standard 111. (with 94 per cent.), and 'once by Standard I. (with 90 per cent.). Messrs J. hmerson and H. Montgomery were appointed a visiting committee. Not one complaint as to street thefts or Josses has been made to the Dunedin police so far in this, the busiest week of the vear.

A start has been made under Mr Tannock's direction to level and clear of stones the Maori Hill football ground. Tho Football Association are paying half the cost. This ground lies high, and when in prime order it will be of great value to the Association game. Some excitement was caused at Ratanui on Tuesday by a visit from Detective Thomson, of Dunedin, who, in company with Constable M'Kenzie, of Owaka. raided tho dwellings of a number of suspected opossum liunters, and seized over 200 skins. Four persons are implicated i'savs the 'Free Press'), one man having no less than 150 skins in his possession, whib the three others had about 20 each. They are well-known residents, and had not considered that they were doing much harm, seeing that the marsupials (onginallv imported from Australia by tho Acclimatisation Society) iiave increased at such a Tito in the Catlins bush as to become a pest to settlers with gardens. To show the fecundity of the opossums, which were only introduced to the Catlins bush afew years ago, it i 6 commonly reported in Owaka that one man made £IOO in 10 weeks by selling skins, which are much sought after, being superior to the Australian, for the making of rugs. For a good shot it is quite possible to get several hundred skins in a few weeks, the hunting being done principally on moonlight nights. This is the first- time tho police of tho Otago Acclimatisation Society have taken action against 'possum shooting in Catlins, although it is well known that the thing has been going on for some time, especially about the railway workers' camps.

For a satisfactory line of furniture at reasonable price visit Sanders's Furnishing House, 1?5 George street.—TAdvt.] Iti is delightful to run your own railway train. We axe exhibiting at the Show the famous Clement-Bayard cars, Triumph, 8.5.A., and Bradbury motor cycles. Look at the engines and look at the bodies. We impress upon you with all the earnestness in our power that these will prove great valuo for your money. Stedman and Wilson, Cumberland street, agents.—[Advt.] A telephone office and bureau has been opened at Clarendon. WaJlace's- Dreadnought Sale of high-class men's wear successfully launched. A great victory scored on Saturday. Hosts of bargains for this week. Genuine, good goods, not warehouse sweepings. Come and see for yourself. Everything reduced in price. Country visitors and patrons specially welcomed at the Golden Hat Shop, Priness street. See Wanted Knowns—[Advt.] Fast lenses, high-class equipment, and tireless tact are tlie true reasons for our remarkable success in babj portraiture. Acma Photo, George street. 'Phone 965.—[Advt.] No softer or more beautiful effects in photo portraiture can be seen anywhere than in the showcases in vestibule of Morris, photographer, Princes street. Telephone 859. [Advt.] Speight's ale and stout are acknowledged by the Dominion public to be the best on the market.—[Advt.] Extraordinary bargains in house furnishings are now on view for a few days only at F. and F. Martin's, Octagon, just prior to stock-taking and the alterations to our premises. Now, don't forget to call and see for yourself.—[Advt.]