PRICE OF TIMBER AND WAGES OF WORKMEN.

Hawke's Bay Herald, Volume XXI, Issue 5400, 5 June 1879, Page 2

PRICE OF TIMBER AND WAGES OF WORKMEN.

When it was announced that tho sawmillers of the Manawatu had reduced the wages of their workmen about 20 per cent, "in consequence of the remission of duty on American timber" we exr pressed' 'an opinion that this reduction was not necessary. Our beliof ia confirmed by , a letter from a timber-morohant in the Manawatu Herald, in which, the writer states that the price of timber has within the last twelve months been increased by 25 per cent., while tho wages . of the workmen have remained stationary. : It is, therefore) evident that the mill-owners could have lowered the price of timber 20 per cent, and still have made . 5 per cent, more profit than, they were making at this time last year,' when they found - their mills pay well enough. It appears to have been high time that tfie duty was remitted. While; there was a' brisk demand for timber the! mill-owners made enormous profits, and tbe high prices they charged drove trade away. With this and the slackness in' the building trade the Manawatumillers, no doubt, find, the demand, for their timber iniich reduced'? but it is ■ flying in the face, of patent facts to. assert that this reduced demand is due to the removal of the timber duty. Only two vessels have yet arrived with American timber, and yet we are asked to believe that this small contribution to the necessities of the colony has been ruinous to colonial mill-owners ! It may add point to our argument to quote the following from the letter of the correspondent before referred to : — " The next point is to inquire the cost of production. Nearly all timber will be logged and put on the skids at Is 6d per hundred feet, and sawn at 2s 3d to 2s 6d per hundred feet ; allowing the sawhiiller a tithe of Is the wholo cost will only amount to 5s per hundred foot ; yet tho selling prices have have been — For Totara, 16s and 13s; Matai, 14s and lis ; Red .Pine, 10s and lis; "White Pine, 8s and 9s; thus yielding immense profits after making every liberal reduction for plant, &c." We should be glad to be "ruined" by such profits.

Last evening Inspector Scully received a telegram from Colonel Reader to the effect that .Colonel Whittnore directs him to say that any men physically strong and active, who served under him in the war, might be sent at once to Wellington for enrolment ; also any young, strong men, not too big and heavy, who might wish to join the Field Force, might be forwarded to Wellington. Colonel Whitmore particularly wants the former — that is men who previously served under him. We are requested to state that any men applying to Inspector Scully before 10 o'clock this morning will be sent to Wellington by the Hawea, which leavea here at 11 o'clock.

Dr Hector yesterday telegraphed to the police that he had detected earsenic in the handkerchiefs found in Mrs M'Lennan's boxes . after her death. The handkerchiefs were stained with vomit, and it will be remembered that one of the theories for the prosecution was that the small quantity of arsenio found ■in the stomach of the deceased was to be accounted for by her excessive sickness, by which the system was rid of a portion of the poison. •

A Greytown exchange gives the following to show the cost of making up a ton of flour into bread in the Wairarapa district : — Flour, £9 10s ; yeast, 7s ; salt, 4s ; firing, £1 ; labor, £1 10s ; potatoes, 4s; rent, £1; Total, £13 15s. The estimated number of loaves which the above will turn out is 1350, at which 5d a loaf would realise £28 2s 6d. In Napier the estimate given is as follows : — Flour, £11 j wages, firing, yeast, potatoes, rent, &c, £5 10s ;" total, £16 10s. A ton of flour, it is stated, will turn out -1380 2-lb. loaves, which at id a loaf will amount to £23, leaving a profit of £6 , lps • upon a ton of flcmi.

'Tis pleasant to see brothers dwelling together in unity, therefore it is gratifying to note in the Waipaiva Mail the report of an Odd Fellows' dinner, held at the Tavistock Hotel, on Friday last, where "Bro." C. Harding presided at the pianoforte, and "Bro." Gow provided the feast. Mr Gow, in responding to the toast of his health, expressed a hope that Mr Harding's lodge of "Good Templars would grow and flourish. One step nearer the milleninm.

There was a light charge-sheet at the Resident Magistrate's Court yesterday.. Samuel Chappell was fined 2s and costs for leaving his hackney carriage unattended, and without the wheels locked. James Keys was fined 2s and costs for using abusive language towards Margaret Cleary, a neighbor. „

A lecture will be delivered this evening, on yeast, by Dr Spencer, in the Napier district school. There will b 9 no charge for admission.

At the Waipawa Licensing 'Court, on Tuesday, the police opposed, the renewal of the license to the Te Aute Hotel, on the ground that a licensed house was not required in the neighborhood, and that drinking among Maoris was encouraged by it. The. police, however, said that since Mr Massey had held the license the Maoris did not. appear to get drunk there, and the bench granted the license. An hotel at Norsewood was also licensed, the police, for the first time, supporting tho application on the ground that drink could be obtained at Norsewood at the Working Men's Club, oyer which they had no control. An objection was lodged to the renewal of the license of the Woodville Hotel, on the ground that breakfast had on one occasion been rofused to two travellers, but the objection was not supported, and the license was therefore granted.

The oiitortainment for the Cricket Club, at the Theatre Royal last evening, was not patronised to the extent it deserved, but nevertheless was fairly attended. The selections were well played and the songs well chosen and sung, those by Miss M' Alpine and Messrs Foster and Gilpin being especially appreciated. The farce

was very amusing, and speaks well for tlie ability of the; gentlemen who took part. in it. ThreeJbr four performers whose names-, were oh the programme failed* to appear, "which? is not fair?to the public. On the ; whdlo ,the!cohcert ?went off successfully?/ andp&hdpelifc will riot be the last; .of ;th& .Beiies,! brtt; we re'cdrninen.d ? at the ,neit' performance' thal'the doorkeeper receives' : instructions to, curb the rowdyism of thoße youthful larrikins who try to make tlie place untenable by respectable people.

The members of the Wickliffe Lodge of the PrtJtesfcant Alliance Friendly Society of Australasia are requested to meet in the lodge room this afternoon at 2.30, to attend the funeral of the late Bro. William Thomas.

During the hearing of the charge of perjury against Mr Kinross at the . Wellington Resident Magistrate's Court, says the Post, Mr Rees paid a compliment to Mr r3bene2er Baker, the Clerk of the Court. When the Case against Mr Kinross was called oh, an argument took plade as- to Whether it was the custom to take the evidence in such c&ses in both Maori and English. Mr Reea pointed out that the' exact words of a witness should be taken down, and if that were done in the case of Maoris, the evidence should be taken in his own language. Mr Travers said that it was not' the practice to do this, and called on Mr Baker to corroborate his statement* ■ Mr BakOr, however, stated that it had been the custom to take the evidence in both languages. Mi* Rees thereupon remarked that nobody in New Zealand was more competent than 'Mr Baker to take' the evidence, in Maori, -and Mr Travers concurred in the opinion expressed by Mr Rees. It ia worthy of note that'wh'en Mr Baker read the evidence in Maori the native witnesses did nob make! a single correction. ! His Honor Judge Weston, during the examination of George Clark, a bankrupt,, at Westport, said : — " I am:not a Catholic, but must say Father Hennebery has done an imme'riso amount of good on the West Coast. If he would only come once a year, there might be some hope that the; hotels would get weeded out; I 'have seen* bo; much that I cannot ; refrain from, giving expression to my ■ views^ such aa; they are."

' ' iflgles," in the . Australasian 'tellsj this story: — "Tail 'ciii, in charge of a: mob .of fat cattle, was passing Nail! 'em's selection towards evening, and wasoffered permission tp place the stock in; the latter' s paddock. The proposal was; thankfully accepted. , 'About' midnight; the hospitable grazier and agriculturalist, . accqmpanied by his nephew, rounded up some of the cattlo and selected a nice little heifer, which he slaughtprd. : After sinking in the stream the head, hide, and; other evidences, the carcase was fairly divided between the' relatives. In the morning the drover counted his. .cattle, found theni all right, ; and procooded on his journey. Shortly c after Nail 'em wiissed a heifer pf his own, and, mounting

a horse,- gave chase to. the drover,.carefully examined the mob, but failed to ; find the missing beast. If then. dawned on him that ho had slaughtered one of . his own herd, and on fishing up the hide discovered his own mistake.- Hiscup of bitterness did not overflow until his nephew ignored his melancholy explanation and refused to refund a side of excellent beef.". .., ,: ,■ ' The English shot Admiral Byrig " pour encourager les autres," as a witty French writer put it. It appears that Cetaway'o has similar ideas of encouraging his troops. . Says an exchange,: — "The latest news from. Zululand is that history hasbeen reproducing itself, and Cetewayo has been imitating Xerxes in his mothod of numbering his troops. Before he started his ipms on the Isandlana expedition, he put pogs into the ground tp measure off his men by the- yard? When the regiments returned, two of them, the Umcityu and another, did, not come up to the original measure by a considerable space : in fact, they had been nearly exterminated. Whereupon the leaders were put to death for having lost too many men. Again, when Colonel Pear 7 son' defeated the Zulus, tho leaders complained to the King that, though they could face cavalry and cannon, they could make no way against the '"'running fire" of the white men. (Whether this was Martini-Henry or Gatling guns does not appear.) But Cetowayo, unable to understand the details of the engines of destruction which they had described, put them to death for ' frightening the rest of the soldiery by their stories.' " While the transports with soldiers for the Cape were coaling at St. Vincent, says a recent English paper, the troops were astonished to hear of further large 'reinforcements having been sent after them. A telegram announcing ' Scots Greys left in Clyde this morning, also Royal Welsh and Blaok Watch,' was freely circulated ; and it was some time before it was discovered that the names were not those of regiments, but of merchant ships, which had sailed from the Clyde river.The advocates for tho rights of women have achieved a triumph in the United States, for Mrs Lockwood has been duly admitted to practise at the bar at the Supreme Court at. Washington. This lady, is tall, gray-haired, and fifty years of age. She does not attempt any professional costume, and made her debut in court dressed in a blue-cloth. sacque with brass buttons and plain velveteen skirt. The Army regulation revolver cartridgo contains fourteen grains of powder and- a bullet weighing 225, • grains, and at 60 • yds the bullet will . penetrate four half-? inch elm. boards placed one inch apart; and at thirty it will penetrate the steel cuirass of a' cavalry soldier. At GO yards an ordinarily skilful shot could hit a man with a service revolver nine times out of ten ; at thirty yards, targets of twentyfour consecutive shots have been made at Woolwich over and over again which could be covered by a man's hand ; and the same number qf shots can bo fired with fair accuracy in one minute thirty seconds. ' ; A good stoiy is told by "Atlas" of General Clifford, who is now Lord Chelmsford's second in command. Ono day in British Kaffraria, during tho Kaffir war of 1546-8, he was in the act of sitting down on the ground, placing one hand beneath him for the purpose. Ho felt something clammy to the touch, and found to his horror it was a puff-adder, a most venomous reptile. Another man with less self-possession would have removed his hand, probably to be stung in the act. Not so Clifford. With groat presence of mind he held the snake down firmly with one hand/with the other drew his clasp-knifo from his pocket, opened it with his teeth, and then coolly severed the reptile's head from its body. If General Clifford displays the same quality of cool courage in a moment of great danger, he will prove a valuable lieutenant to the General-in-Chief in the coming campaign.

The last outre fashion in Vienna, says tho World, is the so-called " Boccachio " stockings, i.e., a white silk stocking on the left leg, and a pink one on the right. The idea was taken from the charming costume which' Frauloin Link — whose marriage was announced a fortnight ago— wore in the last act of Suppe's now opera. Whether the demi-monde took the notiqn from tho grand monde, or vice versa, it is hard to say—they always copy one another. Certain it is that both, the couclies of society have adopted the Boccachio hose, as tho very short drosses and low-cut shoes now worn give one ample opportunity of ascertaining. A misogynist would say that, as many of these ladies can hardly toll thoir right from their loft, the fashion of "pink and white" will be of practical use — like the "hayband" and " strawband " for the' recruits.

IA married man's fato (in brief) — Hooked, Booked, Cooked. — Punch.

J-7The English Government is despatching numbers of horses and mules to the Cape frpbi^he River Plate^ and-.much interest ' is7;kttach,ed, to tllip eijießnlent. It is ddnfid^ntly Hdped that tKe^South AnieriMn horses and niules will take, kindly to . the? climate of South Africa, whichpre 1 ? sembles that of their native, country. K If so; these animals will prove a valuable acquisition to the .colony. Fleet of foot,^ able to travel .quickly arid for lprig dis-6 toes oVer couiitrf,_ both horses and liixilea wdl do good service," not only during the war, but afterwards in more, peaceful occupations.

Tho Chinese of Auckland have turned their attention to a branch of the fine arts, Avhich, however, will not interfere with Tlocal .talent. •: It appears that' a comuion carte de visite photograph is sent to China, and in a few weeks the sender receives back a splendid portrait life siie, painted ,in oils !and wonderfully executed j being att exact copy, of the photo senk Ah Chew,, of Queen-street,', has' obtained a great assortment of them for the School of Arts ; and amongst them isj a portrait of Sir George . Grey, painted; from a small photograph, which consider-: ing that tho painter nover stiiw tho origi-j nai, is said to be marvellously faithful, j At a meeting pf the .creditors, of Henryj Taylor and Sohj corn merchants, pf ,Glas-{ gow, of whicli?Williatn. Taylor, 'the irii-f prisoned baftli director ', is' the Senior: partner, the offer of Henry Taylor, his! son, of 1^ , per ; pound was finally "ac- 1 cepted. Tbe r liabilities of the firm,in-j eluding the -present calls on the. City! Bank stock,. are estimated at £IY^QOQ;.i! i In a •letter, addressed tO Mr Abraham j Sharp, of Bradford, Mr. BriglnV'fe-j ierringiito^-the .outcry .for reciprocity,; says that., the'- distress in the country ; rfrom 1839 -i'to- 1842 , was ten .times greater than it 'has been f rom '; 1877 until how. •'- If working men ask for ' Protection and reciprocity after, what"' they have seen ancl known? during the past thirty years, it is clear neither fact, . nor , argument, nor experience? can be.of?apy 'service to. theni. ; : '. •;•; . The London Daily Telegraph ought to ,be well' posted up iii its Old Testaihent, ,-anyhow. ; Yet it informsus ; 'that thejsubject of Sir Frederick Lpighton's 1 great picture is Jeremiah "fed. by an angel) 'We remember equal ignorance displayed a l'^Hort time i ago -by the Staiidard. A loading article commenced 7thus : — " 'Where the carcase is. there, .will the eagle's be gathered together,', as a, quaint g t ld writer has it." : r ; : . ..■ : •; . Woman's curiosity must be satisfied, : «ays a IRavenswood correspondent of the Q,ueensldnder. Here is a caße in point : 1— The tvife of a ;•; man named Garnett; having occasion to overhaul her husband's pocket, found . a bright-looking .. article containing a whitish- blue substance inside. Feeling, no doubt, a sort of curiosity, t to knb;w what it was, she commenced pricking tho inside with some metailio * subStance, ' jvhen suddenly it exploded, .blowing .three of her fingers off.- „ She had simply been playing with a lithofracteur cap! iMoral-T-iHusband's pockets should be sacred, ■•'■ ■ ; '' .

-"■ A number of workmen were recently engaged 'the 'foundation for some, new. houses about to be built on a, plot of ground between Shadwell station and the East India Docks, London, when, at the depth of twenty feet, they struck against, a large piece of circular mosaic . Roman' pavement of eighteen distinct tints*: On striking further. down a number of other antiquities were found, amongst ' ; them being a huge silver chalice, some old Roman coins, and a large quantity oi glass and shells of variegated colors, most, of which were found lying undor a portion of a beautifully carved stone pillar, supposed to have formed part of ' the facade of a building. . • "." 7 .-•/, ■ Lord , William „ Beresf ord, after - ; the manner of his race, has been spoiling for a fight f br-iiiany a long day, : says -" Atlas' 5 ' in the World. A year ago he volunteered for the' Cape, got permission from his owner for the time being— the Viceroy of India— -and • actually started from Simla on his way to to find aT belligerent. But ho stopped en route, either to play a polo-. match or' to ride a race, Ido not quite remember which ; and he broke his collar-bone -for about the ninety-ninth time, and had to abandon the projects .'Last November; 'he had just one week ! with Sir Sam Browne in the Kyber, and had at length the good luck to get shot at. : In point of fact he got shot at very freely, ;as he crossed on foot the line of direct fire from Ali Musjid, with a message .from Sir Sam to Brigadier Appleyard. But still he was not happy ; so when the ;bad news of the January disaster at" the ' Cape reached Calcutta, Lord William again volunteered, and got his leave from laide-de-camping for six months. This time he has so far met with no mishap, ;for I » hear ;>of , >his ■ having left Aden for •Zanzibar .on the 22nd of March, in the 1 congenial I 'cbiripahionship of Mr Archibald Forbes.