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North Otago Times, Volume XXVIII, Issue 3887, 21 February 1885, Page 2

North Otago Times. SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 1885.

Tiie dealers in claptrap have already been at it in connection with Sir Julius Vogel's Auckland speech. One of the fraternity says that " the speech will raise Sir J. Vogel himself, as well as the government to which he belongs, in public estimation ;" and that may be taken as a fair sample of what is said by all the others. It would be interesting to see those gentlemen trying to give reasons for the faith that is in them in that respect. The speech as a w^oio is not national in its character. What, then, are the particular portions of it that aro likely to commancl the esteem of the country? It is a clever speech, we admit — a speech that bears evidence to the possession of a certain kind of cleverness on the part of its author. Considered piecemeal or as a whole it bliowb that Sii' Julius "Vogel knows that there are a great many cliquish interests in the colony ; that political capital may be made by paying court to those interests; and that he knov s how to pay court to diem. In all that there is cleverness of a common and perhaps unwoithy kind ; but surely a grand exhibition of that class of talent is not the thing that can raise a minister or his colleagues in the estimation of an enlightened population. And for this reason. It shows that the interests of tne country as a whole are either not realised, or that they are wilfully neglected for the sako of pandering to the aims of cliques, whose aims are personal and selfish and for the most altogether alien to the national interests. With regard for the aims of cliques Sir Julius Vogel's speech abounds ; of consideration for the well-being of the colony as a whole it gives little, if any evidence. Some local interests aro in entire harmony with colonial interests, while in regard to others the fact is entirely different. At Auckland and Christchurch tl'ere are loc«.l interests which only too surely belong to the latter catagory. For examplo, at .Auckland, the Hotorua district ra'lway, whose patriotic proprietors wish to sell out to the government ; and, at Christchurcb, the West Coast line. And it is with proffers of unlimited government countenance to these undertakings, and to undertakings such as thes3, thafc Sir Julius Vogel's speech is mainly taken up. How, then, can the speech possibly raise Sir Julius, or the government to which he belongs, in the estimation of the country, if the country haß a particle of discrimination 1 We suppose that those who talk and write in that way arrogantly assume, as Sir Julius himself too often does, that the public mind of the country consists mainly of two ingredients — ignorance and imbecility. Unless they assume that, or unless we are to assume that they are intellectually incapable of analysing their own utterances, it will, we fear, be impossible to account for the strange statement that Sir Julius Vogel's Auckland speech will raise himself and his colleagues in public estimation.

Even if the speech did not consist almost entirely of huckstei'ing attempts to cui'ry favor with cliques whose ends, if gained, are gained at the country's expense, the Treasurer's unbroken silence about the existing state and the prospects of the public finances would disentitle it to the approbation of the intelligent public. The financial year is near its close, but though Sir Julius Vogel is Colonial Treasurer he makes not the slightest remark as to how the colony stands, or ia likely to stand, financially. If he had shown that for'h in a clear and candid manner, he mi^bt have risen in public esteem. Sir Julius, however, possibly cares as little for the esteem as he cares for the interests of the country as a whole. His ruling idea of government seems to be that the many can. be governed

through the medium of the few, providing the few are axe-grinding coteries and the government manifests a williugness to aid them with their axegrinding. And if tlie reiterated expression of an idea like that is the kind of thing that raises governments in the estimation of the public, then Sir Julius Vogel's Auckland speech must infallibly call forth a vast amount of public c teem. Otherwise, it is pretty certain that the feelirg which the speech will awaken in the mind of every intelligent public-spirited colonist will be one of dissatisfrction and contempt.

The Rev. Mr Currio, minister elect of Balclutha, will preach in Columba church to-morrow morning and evening.

The cricket match between the Oamaru club and 15 of the echnola with teachers will be continued this afternoon at 2,30 p.m. sharp.

The dredge Prorre-s ar iverl in the harbor at 6 o'oloak last night from Pore Chalmers, where she had been uadergolug an overhaul.

The railway department will not run a cheap excursion train between Oama r u and Dumd'n on the Cup day, The o-dinary excursion fares will ba charged, viz, 16a 6cl first dhsp, and 11s second class.

A man named Edward Jirvia waa arrested by Detective < >'l'>rien ynsterday near Teaneraki for embezzling moneys of his employers, the proprietors of a Bteam laundry at North Kast Valley, near Dunedin. Accused will be brought before tho court this morning.

Nearly the wholo of the crops in the Pukeuri, Papakaio, Awamoko, Duntroon, :;nd Marawhenua districts have been cut, and stacking ia being pushed ahead while the fine weather lasts. The yield of both wheat nnd oata will be without doubt very much above the average, and in some instances the crops of these cereals are remarkably heavy. Very little barley has J been grown in the above mentioned dia-

tiicts, wheat being the principal crop,

A meeting of tho council of the acclimatisation society was held yesterday in the cuinty council chambers There were y resent — Mr Butt (in the chair) and Messrs fli wards, Mackintosh, and Cap'ain Crawford Ihon, secretary). After the transaction of the preliminary businecp, it was resolved that the periods within which harea,

pheasants, and quail may be shot should he tho same »3 lasb ehooting seaton, the Amount of the license foe to bo LI.

At the resident magistrate's* court yester'l,.v, before Mes3rj Sumptor snu Shrimuki, J.P., an information laid by Anaie Mosa against John Jof naton, publican, of Waitaki South, for using iusultiug and provoking lan«ua,e calculated to provoke a broach of tho peace, on the 12th February, waa heard. Plaintiff asked that defendant be bound over to keep the peace. It was shown in evidence that the parties were not oa very friendly terms, and "that the language nwle use of was the outcome of an accusation made against the defendant by the plaintiff, aucl which she declined to substantiate. The bench dismissed tho case. A small boy was charged with stealing a quantity of coal, valued at 6d, from a coil yard in town, and was discharged wi'h a caution.

Sir Julius Vogel'd speech at Auckland has in>pi«cd the people with so much confidence Ui.r ono individual, who had evnded the payment of what wag jnstly due to the country in the way of taxes, eends Sir Julius Ll7 104 as conscience mon-y, Nothing Bhort of the confidence arising from the probable purchase of the distrlot railways, the construction of tho East and West Coast railway, and the Institution of tho new railway tariff could have prompted this evader of tho property tax to repeat and pay up. The worst icature of the whole affair Is that

the miecreant imagiues there aro others in the colony who do not f-ive correct returns of their property for taxing pu''pos3s, and dedrcH the f tct of his repentance to be made k u.wn, so that others may taki a le?f from his book anl do as ho has done.

A Chrislchnrch telegram received yesterday says: "Mr J. D. Lance, M.H R. for Cheviot, addf sed a large meeting of his constituents at Amberley last night, and received a unanimous vote of confidence. He generally approves of Sir Julius Vogel'a policy." So do all the Jarge landholders in Canterbury, and more especially those who will be likely to be directly benefited hy the f v nat an'l West Coast railway, which Sir Julius th : uk3 so much of, and which Mr Lance also, very naturally too. thinks a giod de&l cf. Wh-it is Mr Stout's poMcy like ? It is very well known that it ia not at ail similar to that of Sir Julius Vogel. It appears very much as if Mr S tout's policy is to act r,a a stalking horse to keep the Liberal quiet while the policy of the Conservatives, of whom Sir Julius -is the mouthpiece, is pushed ahead. At the meeting of the education board on

Thursday the finance committee's report contained tho following : " That the Oamaru school committee be informed that it is the

duty of school committees to keep in repair the interior of masters' residences, and that tho old south school building be sold for removal." R, J, Barrett was appointed third assistant at Oamtru South, vice Gill, piomot'-d; Caroline Church was appointed put.il teacher in the north school ; and Alfred Grenfe'l to a like position in the south school. The election of Mr Donaldson 111 1 the Waianakarua school committee was appealed againa; on the ground that he was not entitled to be eec ed The board decided that as Mr D inaldson had not the statutory qualification, Mr Green must be declared rinly e'ec.ed. The Maheno election wai ' rheld. A letter was received from Mr Parnell in reference t) the action of the Pukelviti school committee in granting the use of the school for religious services free of charge. The secretary wag instruoted to merely acknowledge the receipt of the letter; A mreting of tho Oimaru regatta committee, washed in St. Andrew's hill last even-

ing. There was a largo attendance, anrl Mr George Sumnter wan elec ci chairman. The programme, as prepared by the com-

mlfctce was adopted ; but the efforts of the canvassers haviog met with such liberal support it was agreed that several of the prizoa be augmented, and a sailing rac=i of 10 miles for yachts up to 10 toDS was added, the prizes to be LlO, L 5, and L 2. The canvassers reported that upwards of L7O had been promised, and that more than half of that sum was in hand, It wai dflcided that the programme be advertised in the morning papers of Christchurch, Timaru, Dunedin, and Invercargill, and In both the local papers. Several trophies had been promise i by the local jewellora, and it was resolved tha% seeing that the different shipping companies had given cups at oth<T regattas, the secretary should write to the Union, the New Zealand, the Albion, the Black Diamond companies soliciting cups for the Oamaru regatta. The coneideration of the offer of the garrison band to play on board the flagship was deferred till next meeting. It was suggested th»t the government should bi induced to run trains at cheap fares from Dunedin an'l Timaru, and also to a^-k some of ,the "shipping companies to allow one of their stoamers to inaku an excursion trip to Oamaru on the daj of the regatta. At the suggestion of Mr Henry Aitken it ws decided that the trophies promised by the jewellers be offered 03 prizes in a ladies' raco. The regatta committee deserve praise for the way in which they have exerted themselves, and it in now certain that their efforts will be followed by Bucce s -B.

A. SARGEANT, PHOTOGRAPHER TEES STREET, IS NOW TAKING PORTRAITS FROM 12s 6d PER DOZ.

I beg to call your attention to the fact that you cannot get better value for your money anywhere, and in your own interest ask you to call and compare my goods with what you have been buying, and you will be well repaid for your trouble. Suits to measure at L 3 10a. Peter Cormack, Tailor and Clothier, Teea street, Oamaru, — Idvt,