AUSTRALIAN NEWS

New Zealand Mail, Issue 1611, 14 January 1903, Page 46

AUSTRALIAN NEWS

The aged man William Newton, Avho, as, the cable messages recently stated, has become a millionaire, has lived in the Forbes district, N©av South Wales, for. many years, following Avood-carting and many other occupations for a hare existence. Mr NeAvton, who sprang from a good family, migrated to Australia many years ago, eventually settling in Forbes. He used to tell his friends he Avas entitled to a lot of money in Chancery, and intended to prosecute his claim Avith the aid of Mr William Brooke, a son of the proprietor of the “ Forbes Times.” His identity has uoav been established. Mr Newton and his sons are and have been in poor circumstances, and lately the old man has been befriended by old acquaintances. A letter received a feAV days ago places beyond doubt his identity, as his sister and other relatives have left England for Australia in connection AAdth the matter. Some years ago a reward of £IOOO was offered for information ks to the claimant’s Avhereabouts, and this reward will fall to a local resident. Want of means has precluded Mr NeAvton from establishing his claim earlier, hut a couple of friends have stuck to him, Avith the above result. The claimant has received the news as a matter of course, and is not excited in the least, merely contenting himself Avith the fact that his years of labour have been reAvarded. Mr Newton expects to return with his sister

and relatives in February to the old home in England. The intention of Mr Bent (Minister for Railways in Victoria) to recommend the Cabinet to reduce the staff engaged in the Avorking of the raihvays by 1300 men has. evoked considerable comment, and expressions of opinion for and against the proposal have been received in large numbers by Mr Bent himself. Some of the old railway servants have Avritten to Mr Bent, and urged that it Avould he very hard on them if they Avere sent adrift after years of service in the department. Most of them are married men, and in letters which Mr Bent receives their case is contrasted Avith younger men in the service, Avho, as a rule, have not the same responsibilities. On the other hand, a great amount of pressure is being exercised to prevent any dismissals at all. One Avoman, Avho is the Avifo of a casual employee, says that her eleven children and herself are totally dependent on the Avages Avhich her husband receives. Members of Parliament have also intervieAved Mr Bent, and asked him to consider Avell the question of dismassals before resorting to them. Some of the members suggested that before such a thing AA r as carried out the men should be put on four days a Aveek. Mr Bent says that he had reports from Mr Kent (the raihvay auditor), Avho looks forward Avith positive fear to the small amount of revenue the department A\ r ill receive during the next feAV months. That oeing so, something must be done. It Avas reported that 5(30 men had been dismissed from the NeAA r South Wales serAuce; but he had a talk Avith one of the Commissioners from that State, Avho has been in and he was informed that the number is really betAveen 800 and 900. He Avas further informed that 4,000,000 bushels of grain Avill have to be brought into NeAV South Wales to make up for the failure of crops. The NeAV South Wales Commissioners had therefore to look ahead, and the Raihvay Department in Victoria must do the same.

The Chief Commissioner of Podice in Victoria does not think the Bertillon system of criminal identification could be adopted in Victoria, owing to the cost of establishing it in its entirety. Mr O’Callaglian- has taken special pains to acquaint himself Avith the system, and he states that it would be of no use for police purposes, though of advantage to penal establishments; but he considers the expense of applying it in connection with the latter could not be justified in view of the comparatively small population of the State. At the same time the Chief Commissioner thinks it might be possible to employ some modification of the system. It was suggested some time ago that a conference of the permanent heads of the police and penal departments in each State should be held for the purpose of considering the proposal, but nothing Avas done. Mr O’Callaghan is now trying to revive the project. In a paper on the Superannuation Fund in the New South Wales Civil Service, read at the Public Service Association conference in Sydney, the fund was given as folloAvs: —Balance to credit on 30th November last, £68,686; annual payment of pensions, £113,000; refunds to ex-contributors, £193,537. Allowing for contributions, there would scarcely be sufficient in the fund to pay pensions to the 30th June next. This is a serious outlook, when it is considered that public servants had contributed, including interest £1,109,839 to the fund, Avhich is now practically exhausted.

The Government of South Australia has recently issued regulations with regard to the introduction of plants into tiie State. The importation of vines is absolutely prohibited. Other plants, unless sent by post, can only be introduced at Port Adelaide. Clause 6 of the regulations provides that —No parcel of plants or portions thereof shall be introduced into South Australia unless accompanied by a declaration made by the grower, before a Justice of the Peace, in the State or country of origin, to the following effect(a) That the case contains no grape vines or portion thereof. (b) That the plants were grown at a greater distance than fifty yards from any grape vines or roots of vines, (c) That no phylloxera exists, or has existed in the nursery or garden in which the plants have been growing, (d) That the whole of the plants are free from the insect known as phylloxera vastatrix.

Sydney charities have had a particularly had time during 1902. The drought and consequent badness of business led to retrenchment throughout the industrial world. That meant more people out of work. It also meant less money available for donations, and consequent reduction in the incomes of the various societies and institutions. Thus with diminished resources more indigent people had to be provided for, and to add to tbe difficulty of the situation the ad. ditions made to the cost of living by tbe tariff and the drought, the rise in every commodity, but particularly in meat and vegetables, increased ordinary household expense from 33 to 50 per cent. Thus with less resources than usual the charities had to look to more distress than usual, and endeavour to make money, already by the rise in the cost of articles depreciated from a third to half, go* further than in the good years. How they did it is a mystery behind which there must have been much crushing anxiety on the part of those responsible.