North Otago Times. PUBLISHED EVERY MORNING WEDNESDAY, JUNE 15, 1892 THE BURNS' MONUMENTS.

North Otago Times, Volume XXXVI, Issue 7390, 15 June 1892, Page 2

North Otago Times. PUBLISHED EVERY MORNING WEDNESDAY, JUNE 15, 1892 THE BURNS' MONUMENTS.

Immediately under the abovo is chiselled the information that ''Robert Chapman arrived in Otago in 1848." The monument would thus Boom to bo erected about as much to Mr Robert Chapman, a person of no fame or importance in any respect, as to Dr Burns. These inscriptions are really an eyesore to tho Dunedinites, and had tho Council had their wits about them they would havo takon care to prevent such an abuse of the monument. As to the monument itself, it can scarcoly be considered a success. The best part of it is tho blueatone basement, the shaft, or column, being a nondescript kind of thing, without grace or style of any kind. The designer has indeed shown somo originality-r-but it is not tho originality of genius — rather tho desiro of a commonplaco mind to produce something now. Ho would havo dono bettor to havo copied some of tho old, what wo might call classical, examples of monumental work. What a difference between tho still', tolescope-and-tombstone-looking column and Pompoy's Pillar — tho latter a light, beautiful shaft, which looks as if it would bend like a willow wand, rising from a simple basement, and adorned with a Corinthian capital. In tho Duneclin monument there is, besides its own want of symmotry and its glaring disproportion to tho basement, an ujbtor absence of anything like unity of design, the Maltoso cross Murmounting tho vase-like

oapkal oomploling fcho incongruity. Bufc it is an ungracious thing to say aught in disparagement of local talent. Monumcnl.il work indeed is not much in tho lino of 73ntjsh genius, most of tho more ambitiousexamplesboingoft to provoketholaughi'jv of foreigners, as well as tho wit of tho irreverent native. One of the happiest works of this kind in the United Kingdom in unquestionably tho Scott monument at Edinburgh. The vast majority of them, however, are an olfenoe to the oyo, and certainly an equivocal compliment to the memory of tho notables in whoso honor thoy aro erected. This in not a little to bo regretted, as there Ik nothing more true than that "a thing of beauty is a joy for ever ; " and every public monument should have tho secondary design of educating tho public taste. The Octagon, Dunedin, is now furnished — we can scarcely bay adorned — with these two Burns monuments. The poet who in some of his maddest rhymes, ridiculed tho Auld Light, being stationed on the upper side of tho open space, looks down on tho ''monument of his nephew, who introduced that samo Auld Light into Otago. So does the " whirligig of time bring in las revenges." A certain class of Burns's apologists tell us that ho performed an invaluable service in lashing hypocrisy, and all the rest of it, as if the Scottish nation in general, and tho professors of the Auld Light in particular, had been chielly composed of Holy Willies, the poet and his roystering decalogue-defying boon companions being tho only honest men. The truth is, that Burns too often satirised the wrong peoplo, and had lie dono nothing but ridicule tho unco guid, his works would havo boon long ago forgotten. In this imperfect world wo seem to take men and facts as wo find them ; bub there can bo no doubt that some of the productions of the Ayrshire bard which were loudly applauded a hundred years ago now press rather heavily on his memory. Tho time has surely come when popular editions of his works should be relieved of tho moral rubbish with which they aro encumbered. Coarseness and impurity such as that which mars many of his poems is becoming intolerable to the higher moral feeling of the ago ; and we notice that in a recent beautiful edition of his works, tho cantata of " Tho Jolly Beggars," certainly one of tho cleverest of his productions, is conspicuous by its absence. We all wish to think of Burns, not as tho victim ©f his follies and vices, but as the author of "The Cottar's Saturday night," "Scots Wha Ilae," "Auld L.ing Syne,"aud " Mary in Heaven," and of his many more inimitable and perfectly pure hongs and poems. Why then, should we go on reprinting, year after year, what is unfortunately so inconsistent with .such a conception of the bard, and what, we may be quite sure, he would himself be now the first to consign to oblivion ? Dr Thomas Burns has left no written works, but his memory, though not " immortal," like the poet's, will be long cherished in Otago as that of a faithful minister, wise counsellor, and ono of the founders of tho settlement. Indeed Otago is a much nobler monument to his memory than tho column which has boon erected by Mr Robert Chapman.

to look after tho pl»o« during tho ourwnoy of his lease He (defendant) had moro recently boon appointed agent for the property I — So lot or sell it— or rather ho iroa nubagent, and had to consult Hislop and Creaqh. Ho lia'l nevnr appointed plaintiff to look aftpr the place t »t LI a month. There was a larcjc quantity of fruit in tho garden! He (defendant) had taken some himself, and Clydfsdtlo had had the greater portion. Plaintiff had sold some to Mr (■'rumitt, and he had s»on him oarrying fruit into tho Kmpiro Hotel. Me had seen {>laint IF in the garden with scald and a basket. To the Magistrate defendant said ho had never told the plaintiff anything that would lead him to believe he at.vs to look after the property k To the defeudanfc i Ho never told him in the hotel to look after the place. PUintiff was non-suited.

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