Nelson Evening Mail. SATURDAY, APRIL 29, 1893.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XXVII, Issue 100, 29 April 1893, Page 2

Nelson Evening Mail. SATURDAY, APRIL 29, 1893.

It frequently happens in the case of the death of the head of a family that care and anxiety for the future are mingled with mourning. However severe grief 1 may be, matters of business have often to be attended to at once, and no disrespect to the dead is shown in taking necessary steps for the welfare of the living. If this be the oase when the head of a private family dies, the necessity is much greater after the death of a man holding the position whioh was occupied by Mr Ballat.ce. The Government of the country must be carried on, and the Ministers and the Governor have probably already had anxious discussions as to future arrangements. It is stated in tolegrama that there will be nothing to report till after Mr Ballance'e funeral, and that Sir Robert Stout will not give an answer to a requisition asking him to stand for the vacant Inangahua seat till the last tribute of respect has been paid to his late colleague. It is probable, however, that by that time the leaders of the Government party will aave made up their minds as to the advice to be offered to the Governor. Sir Robert JStout is said to be willing to re-enter politioal life, and in that case it is almost oertain that he will be chosen leader of his party. Indeed it can hardly be said that he has ever given up political life, as few members of Parliament have spoken or written more about politics than he has even since he ceased to hold a seat in the House of Representatives. It was generally believed that he would seek a seat at the nest election a few months hence, and now he has the' opportunity to do so a little earlier than he expected. Of the feeling of the Inangahua eleotors we cannot speak. At the last election Mr Reeves, a supporter of the present Government, narrowly escaped defeat, and there is no saying how an election on strictly party lilies would go. It is possible, indeed, that the electors wonld be flattered if a man of Sir Robert Stout's eminence were to stand for the district, and tbat he might carry the election without difficulty. In case of defeat he would have a second string to his bow. The Wanganui seat ia of conrse vaoant, but again there Mr Ballance himself was defeated in 1890, and the return of a non-resident of the district would be very doubtful. The probability on the whole is that Sir Robert Stout will try to get into Parliament in order to become Premier, and that nothing more will be heard of the rumour which we mentioned the other day of a coalition inoluding Captain Russell. It remains to be Been whether Sir Robert Stout has the power to keep in order the somewhat unruly elements of which the ministry partly consists. He has been nominally Premier ! before, but only nominally. Like the' Spanish nobl.uiuu quoted by Sancho Panza, wherever Sir Julius Vogel sits, at all events iu .New Zealand, he is at the head of the table. In the combination in which they were leading performers, Sir Robert Stout's part was unquestionably second fiddle. Now if he goes into office it will be his business to keep tho peace among ministers of a vory different sort from those who formed' the last Government of which he was a leading member. Ma T. Neal/E met with a nasty accident yesterday morning. Owing to the fall of a horse which he was riding ho received a nasty bruise over the eye, and a kick on the side of the head. It appears that Mr Neale was just starting from home to ride down to business when the accident happened. His horse crossed its fore-legs ia some peculiar fashion, causing it to go head over heels. Whilst on the ground Mr Neale waß kicked by the leg not the hoof of the animal. If the iron shoe of the horse had come in contact with Mr Nc ale's head, a much more serious accident would no doubt have occurred. We are glad to see that Mr Neale is able to be about. A telegram of condolence was sent yesterday by His Worship the Mayor, on behalf of the citizens of Nelson to Mrs Ballance on the death of her husband, The following are the vital statistics for the month of April :—Births, 16 } deaths, 11; marriages, 10. An advertisement appears in another colnmn with reference to the Exchange Hotel, Bridge-street. A petition is being oiroulated in town againßt the motion passed at the last meeting of the City Council with reference to transferring £300 from the Gasworks Account to the General Account, with the view of it being transferred if accessary to the Rooks Road Fund. The: anniversary services of St Johns Church Sunday scncol will be held to-mor-row wie'i, the 7th of May/

The following gentlemen were elected members of the Long Plain School Committee for the ensuing year:— Messrs Jno. Staples, Alex Spittall E. A. Gooch, Thos Hume, Jno. Hunter, Thos. Hitchcock jun., and A. E Langford. The last |named was re-elected chairman. The following are the Committee for the Lower Takaka district :— Messrs J,J W. Sigley (chairman"), John F. Rose, John Page, William Baird, John Walker, George E. Sigley, and George Duncan. D. M. Ross, of Timaru, was liberated from Lyttelton Gaol on the morning of Monday last, and left Lyttelton for Auckland to catch the boat for San Francisco to settle in America, The Timaru Herald expresses surprise at the aotion of the Government in not further prosecuting him, and says : — " It was generallyexpected that on his discharge from gaol, he would be prosecuted for sonn of the numerous rascalities of whioh he appeared to have been guilty. The list inoluded forgery, perjury larceny, embezzlement; breach of trust, &o„ &o.— a rich aad choice assortment of plain and fanoy criminality not to be matched in the colonial or any other market. The learned judge who presided in the Bankruptcy Court plainly intimated that Ross ought to be prosecuted, and a representation to that effect was made to the Minister for Justice. The latter thereupon caused inquiries to be instituted, and satisfied himself that there were substantial grounds for proceeding. _ He then communicated with a firm of solicitors, asking them if they would undertake the prosecution for the fees paid in ordinary cases to the Crown solicitor. It should be mentioned that the latter was debarred from acting for the Crown as he had appeared for Ross's partner in the Bankruptcy Court. The firm of solicitors made the reasonable offer that they were prepared to undertake the business for their taxed costs. They received no reply, the matter dropped, and Ross was allowed to retreat unmolested." Messrs Frank Lawry and Jackson Palmer M.H.R., when " on the tramp " with the party examining the Stratford route for the ftorth Island trunk railway, state that they experienced great relief and comfort from Ye Bishops Bottle, for aches, pains etc. TO-MORROW'S SERVICES. The Rev. J* H. MacKenzie will preach at the Presbyterian Church morning aud eve* ning. <•■■ • . -,-... ... ".'■ The Rev 0. A. Lyon- will oonduot the services at the Congregational Churoh morning and evening. The servioes at St. John's Wesleyan Cburoh will be cmduoted morning and eve» ning by the Rev George Bond. Mr Lindsay will preach at the Oddfellows Hal), Richmond, ia the afternoon. The Rev T. Bray will preach at the Baptist Churoh morning and evening.