OPINIONS.

Gisborne Standard and Cook County Gazette, Volume II, Issue 193, 8 September 1888, Page 3

OPINIONS.

“ Opinions may be worn on both sides like a leather jerkin.’’ "CoNTBIBETKD.I ASKING FOB BBEAB ; BECEIVING A STONE. •* Aye I” said the mother of Borne, at the unveiling of the monument of her poet eon at Humphries; ” whilst alive ye asked them for bread, now that ye are dead they give ye a stane.” So with the memorial windows placed in Westminster Abbey to the memory of Biohard Trevethick as it was with Burns, this remarkably gifted man had -in the words of one of the grandees there in the Abbey assembled—” bad died absolutely penniless, and had been buried by the kindly charity of those who had known him best." Such was the close of the famous engineer's career. And now forsooth ! a bit of stained glass in a church, depicting fat head Cornish saint, bodies with jaw.wrenching names, together with badly-shaped angels driving droll chambered locomotives, all under the chief managership of a someone called Michael; a native of some undiscovered planet, always a useful figure where realities end and tomfoolery begins: and that is all those good natured, but tardy, recognisants of genius can do; make a subscription to erect a memorial window, etc. Imperial Ce sar, dead and turned to clay, Might stop a hole to keep the wind away. INTERESTING WORK. It must be exciting and interesting work, that of tunnelling into a brick pyramid some 240 feet high, with a quadrangular base of 348 feet A each way ; and this one now in course of perforation’by an Egyptian explorer, a Mr Petrie, is well known as the sepulchre of Amenemhat the Third, together with its famous Labyrinth, mentioned by the Greek Geographer, Strabo, and also described by Herodotus, as a marvellous building. And now at this time of ds v . there seems to be no reasonable doubt enter ed, but that this pyramid is the tomb of the Egyptian monarch, where deeply hidden in the strong room of his unbroken silences, hie brown mummy lies in its state and magnificence absolutely untouched—an event unparalleled in the records of modern tombrifling. Thie locality has yielded many and varied items of art and wealth to this prince of grave diggers; hundreds of mummies, and buried with these were found vases in alabaster, terra-cotta, and glass; ornaments for the toilette, tools, coins, amulets, mirrors, beads, caskets with carved panels of ivory, beautiful embroideries and woven textiles ; and most interesting, a fragment of the Iliad, written on papyrus in the finest Greek characters. This relic Mr Petrie found rolled up under the head of a mummy buried in the sand, even without the protection of a tomb. Wonderful climate that must be, to preserve so many perishable articles through so many centuries! Those old Egyptian burial customs bear a resemblance to Maori bunal usages; by far the most valuable possessions which these old Egyptians carried with them to the grave, were* their portraits, painted on panel, the colors being laid on with a wax medium, and generally as fresh as the day when the artist finished them on his easel, MAKING HAT WHILE THE SUN SHINES. The Peruvians at Mollendo have hit on a |A|l industry- but as times are hard, and penny hard to earn, it is just as well to nave one’s eye open to the utilities. A limited liability company has been formed there with a decent little capital of £B,OOO, with a high sounding Spanish name, with the object of exploring—why not in plain English, ransacking—the tombs of the dead Incas for whatever in the way of valuables they may find in the ancient burial bouses of that once densely populated country in South America. The Inca nation numbered some thirty millions about three hundred years ago. Now population of the same territories is a little over two millions. There is no chance Of doing anything in this country in the same line; the Maoris were too primitive a people, if we except the greenstone all their other possessions carried to their graves were but poor things and perishable. «*' THE YELLOW AGONY. Four years ago the Government pi British Columbia passed an Act to regulate the Chinese population of that oplony. This Statute was not only severe in all detail, but ft was, from an English point of view, most unscrupulous. The ordinary safeguards which law sedulously sets around the liberty and property of citizens were in this instance quite swept away in the case of Chinese: if hard and oppressive laws could drive the sone of Han out of British Colombia, they weald all have disappeared from the province within a year of the date on tvhich the Act came into fbroe. For instance, an annual tax of two pounds was levied on all Chinese ; he must show the receipt on demand that euoh tax has been paid. Employers of Chinese were required under heavy penalties to supply a full Ust of all in their service. Again, distraint was permitted for amount of tax and costs on the goods of any Chinese not producing a certificate, or on goods in his possession, though not his own, or on goods in gny premises for the time being in his occupation; and for the purposes of Section No. 10 of the Act, premises are to be deemed in his occupation if it be shown that he habitually frequents them with the consent of its owner (which would include a public house, hotel, or restaurant), or that ha has passed a night or slept there within a week of the levy. Again, if a Chinese produces a certificate, the goods may still be distrained, unless he proves that he is lawfully in possession of it. They were not tq be allowed to pass any toll-gate until they had produced their certificates. It was also Unlawful to employ a Chinese who was not in possession of a license. An additional certificate, costing three poundc, was to have been taken out by any Chinese desiring to work at mining. The disinterment of their dead was prohibited, also the consumption of opium, Save for medical purposes. Now, after the above claoeee were put in force, what chance has boycotting to compare with this Act of a British Colony? Nevertheless, John still exists in British Columbia, and reader, this phase of the business is worthy of your attention—John is not only still there, but lo ! he has smashed your British Parliamentary (colonial) Act into a thousand tmithereene, aye with a wall aimed blow of his own powerful and

crafty pig-tail. And now we proceed to tell how the pig’s tail switched the brains out of the Act and hanged the little brains it ever

had, high up on the nearest tree. A gentleman named Wing Chong, of the city of Victoria, in British Columbia, proceeded in this wise:—ln the year 1885, an inspector under the Act, by name William Bull, (a good name that), swore before a magistrate an information against W. Chong. That he Bull applied to Chong for a forty shilling license, Chong had no license, didn’t want one, wouldn’t pay for one, etc. Bull for ten years had known Chong as a merchant in a large business etc. Chong employed the best local lawyers, the defence—the Act was unconstitutional and void. Chong evidently had studied the constitutional authorities on English usage, etc, etc; the police magistrate naturally—poor easy man—could not consider such a far-fetched argument; Chong was thereupon fined four pounds and costs. Chong applies for a writ of certiorari— to remove his cause to another court; recognisances were entered into, the rule nisi— unless previously— was granted ; and in July 1885 the case came for argument before a judge of

the Supreme Court. The Attorney. General was there; and Chong was represented by two Queen’s counsel and a member of the junior Bar. The defence took the broadest ground, the Act was an interference with the rights of aliens; it interfered with the trade and commerce ; it was an infraction of existing treaties between the English Government and China; that the taxation imposed was unequal, in short it was unconstitutional. The judge decided in Chong’s favour, saying, “ this Act reverses all the old law of England and one of the most cherished and priceless safeguards of the freedom from oppression won for us by our forefathers—that no one shall be deeemed guilty until he has been proved so.”

This very remarkable case does not end here—for, on January 19. 1886, Bull, by direction of the British Columbian Government presented petition of appeal to the Privy Council from the decision of the Supreme Court judge. Now, mark this, Chong buckles on his armour piggie-swish and all, for a tougher tug of war than he had yet had. He made competent preparations for the battle, aye before her august Majesty Queen Victoria, Empress, etc., etc., herself; but from that day January 19, 1886, to this moment Chong has heard no more of Privy Council frowns or smiles, and Bull and Co., are all gone to grass there to chew the cud. Even Sir Henry Parkes, big drum as no doubt he is, it seems has subsided. Verily, John is somebody, and not far away movements will demonstrate this.