CURRENT TOPICS.

Lyttelton Times, Volume XCIII, Issue 10663, 25 May 1895, Page 4

CURRENT TOPICS.

There is nothing like s':atippling tlstica for dispelling popular statistics. delusions. One of these is to the effect that the people of the United Kingdom sire the most drunken on earth, and another is that the Germans are the greatest beer-drinkers. Mr Mott, by a series of carefully-compiled' figures, shows in the Brewers’ Almanac that Great Britain is really the most sober of European nations, and that while ourJriu at-Home coaeuia© more .ale

than “the beer-swilling Germans,” their record is quite eclipsed by the Belgians. His figures, representing the general average of recent years, show that in the United Kingdom the average consumption per head is equal to SOgal of beer, Igal of spirits and J? gal wine ; whilst in Prance it is 18gal of wine, Ifgai of spirits, Bgal of cider and sgal of baer. In Germany the consumption amounts to 27gal of beer, 2f gal of spirits and 2gal of wine; and in Austria-Hungary it is Bgal of beer, sgal of wino and “ probably ” 2galo£ spirits. Italy is a wine-drinking country, and there 22gal of wine, i ?al of spirits and Agal of beer make up the tale. Spain is also a wine country, and there 20gal of wine, |gul of spirits and a small quantity of beer and cider ia tbe estimate. In Belgium it is calculated that there is consumed per head of population 40gal of beer, 2gal of spirits and 4gal of wine. On this basis Mr Mott calculates the alcoholic consumption of Great Britain as about 4gal of proof spirit per head of the population, that of Franco at about 6gal, that of Germany at about SJgal, that of Austria-Hungary at about 4gal, that of Italy at about 4-jgal, that of Spain at about sgal, and that of Belgium at about 6gal. Without going into the same detail, Mr Mott reckons that Switzerland, Denmark, Holland, Sweden and Norway “ show an average consumption equal to from 4gal to 6gnl proof spirit, the statistics being generally imperfect. The real consumption in Russia,” ha adds, “is not known, but is probably about the same.”

The annual meeting of the cruelty to Canterbury Society for the animals. Prevention of Cruelty to Animals is called for Tuesday evening next, and we trust a lively interest will bo shown in the society and its operations by all friends of the brute creation. Such a society has a large field of ussfal work in a community like that of Canterbury, where flocks and herds are abundant, and where such operations as the dehorning of cattle, the docking of horses’ tails, and the clipping of dogs’ ears ace constantly being par formed. Then the treatment of domestic aaimsls is not always what it should be. The Timaru Eerald the other day told of a harrowing case of cruelty to a dog which was badly diseased. The owner paid a man to kill the poor animal. “The man took the dog to the Benveaue cliff, knocked it on the head, and then threw it over on to the sharp rocks below. A passer-by found the poor brute next morning near tbe cliff bank in a shocking state, with legs and other bones broken, and mercifully ended its existence.” Recent papers from Napier contain details of a worse case, in which a man was fined 40a and coats for ill-treating a little fox-terrier dog. The animal had given his owner some trouble by straying, and when be found it the inhuman b: pod was seen to lift the dog by the collar and throw ft on to the pavement four or five times. He then carried it along the street a shout distance ia hie arms, when he struck tbje dog’s head t gainst a verandah pout violently, and then threw it to the ground, picking it up again immediately afterwards and carrying it on, the animal all the while howling pitc-cusly. The defendant said he had only “ administered mild chastisement” to the dog, but the Bench thought differently. In last Wednesday's Dunedin Star a eorrespoaclelnt tells the following tale of brutality “As I was passing the Cumberland Street tramyards one day, two or three jaded, tiuedJ.ookiag animals were being driven in, when, to my astonishment, the man in charge took up a post—it was as much as he could do to lift—and struck the Mob horse with all his might on the back. It ia a wonder to me its back was not broken. The poor beast could do nothing but limp away after the savage blow, looking a litlile more dejected than before, if that weira possible, and ia pain. The mm was mot content with that, but threw the pest after it, bitting it again on the bind! lega” Actions such as these towards dumb creatures make us almost ashamed of our species, with its lofty patronage of the “ lower animals.”

By way of inculcating tha

humane duty of humans treatment feeling in of animals, tha Education England. Department in Engla jad baa

resolved to introduce into tbo public schools lessons bearing on tha subject. Mr Aoland, the head Of the Department, has taken action ;imd is having a series o? careful studies in animal life drawn up. It is proposed that ;in connection with these object lessons the teachers should impress on the child ten the necessity of dealing kindly with th b fourfooted companions who may ho pis iced at their mercy. " There is no doubt/' writes a London correspondent of an Australian paper, “that the natural boy has still a good deal to learn in this respect. Tho youthful rough in the lower pari is of London, for instance, is a formidablle enemy for a half-starved dog or a stra.y cat to meet, especially if there is a stone heap at hand. Every now end then, too, the records of tbo Police Court rover U canes of brutal savagery to horses?, whio h are often thrashed and goaded into woe k long after they should have gone to the knackers. Taking things generally, howlover, I think wa have improved very greatly of late years, and certainly Londoic. is a perfect paradise fet animals us compared with any large Oontiinental town with which I am acquainted L Among Englishmen I should say that) wanton cruelty to animals is largely con-* fined to backward rural districts, fo:r Hodge ia his natural state finds-it vor;)r difficult to realise that ‘brutes’ hayb nerves and feelings. Ia the towns it i b mainly confined to the classes with when i wife-beating is fashionable, end to themia • chiovoua boys whom the Education De - partment is endeavouring to take ia hand.. There ia an idea that .cabmen 00 a clasg), treat tfcsir-horses brutally. "It is true that) the hansom driver does nob spare the £eel-| ings of his steed when it is a matter of! making money, but this is different from? sheer purposeless cruelty, and I have seei i many cases of real kindness on tha part of drivers to their horses. Indeed, no? oh«b who knows the London streets can f tail t<) notice a very great change for the b etter?, not only ia the appearance of the- cabhorses, but of the carthorses employed by the great business firms, aud' last, but by no means least, h! the humblo ‘moke’ of tha costermonger/’ The Canterbury Society might do worse than obtain a sot of the English ] Board school lessons referred to, and urg|a the Hew Zealand Education Department to introduce similar teaching in our own State schools.

If them are still any the Battlers whose political prcCHEAi* money judico blinds them to the 'scheme. advantages of the Government Advances to- Setitlers Act, they might, with advantage read what Mr J. . A. Millar,. M.IS.R. for Chalmers, had to say ft few - tlttys -ago on the subject. . He-: pointed- --tjutyifhat;

one great result achieved under thsi cheap money scheme was the reduction of! law charges and coats. He set forth the old and new rates in telling form. The law charges and other coats m connection, with loans on mortgage under the various Acts were, he said, as follow OLD CHARGES. Deeds Land Registry Transfer Act. Act.

Under the old system there were in addition conveyancing charges and valuation, fee, while it was customary to charge 1 par cant as a procuration fee. The charges oa ■ ' a loan of, eay, £2500 would be as follow OLD CHARGES. Deeds Land Registry Transfer Act. Act. Law costs ... .£l7 8 0 ,£ll 15 0 Valuation ... 8 3 0 3 3 0 Procuration fee 25 0 0 25 0 0 Total ... .£45 11~0 £39 18 0 CHEAP MONEY SCHEME. Law costa ... £5 10 0 "£2 5 6 Valuation ... 22 0 22 0. Procuration fee Total ... £7 12 0 £4 7 6 There was thus a difference of £37 19s ia favour of the cheap money scheme for. mortgages under the: Deeds Registry Act,, 4 and £35 10s 6d under the Land Transfer Act. Mr Miliar has disclosed nothing new; but intending borrowers will banonei the worse for being reminded of tbe great saving ia preliminary expenses under the Government scheme, in addition to the lower rate of interest payable. A matter of £35 to be saved may well decide borrowers to give the preference to the Government, even if private lenders were to oiler money at the same rate of interest.!

£100 0 0 ... £4 16 6 £3 15 0 500 0 0 ... 6 IS 6 4 16 0 1000 0 0 ... 9 11 0 6 11 0 2500 0 0 ... 17 8 0 11 15 0 CHEAP MONET SCHEME. £100 0 0 ... £2 10 0 £1 ;4 6 500 0 0 ... 2 10 0 1 4 6 1000 0 0 ... 4 0 0 1 15 0 2500 0 0 ... 5 10 0 2 5 6