TOPICS OF THE DAY

New Zealand Times, Volume LXXI, Issue 4264, 25 January 1901, Page 4

TOPICS OF THE DAY

THE GOVERNOR OF FIJI'S ATTACK. Referring to the published reports of Sir George O’Brien’s notorious speech, in which he attacked British colonists in general, and those of New Zealand in particular, for their treatment of aboriginal races, the “British Australasian” of 20th December last says:—We can hardly credit that Sir George did deliver the speech, as it is transmitted to us, for, quite apart from its temper and tone, it blazes with gross misstatements, to use no stronger word. Addressing the Fiji natives, he is reported to have said that New Zealand wanted to get the land’ from the Fijians. “It has always been the same,” he went on, “ in every country under the kind of Government there is in New Zealand—the white men have always taken the land from its coloured owners. It has been so in New Zealand, and it all belonged to the coloured people; the white people have got nearly the whole now; while the coloured people are cooped up in the fragment of land that is left to them.” We say nothing in criticism of the conduct of a British Governor who can thus malign the flag which ho is supposed to represent. The mere statements of the speech, challenge our won. der and disgust . Has .Sir George O’Brien ever studied the history of New Zealand? If so, he will be aware that the Maoris never occupied the South Island in any numbers, and never had any claim to the main bulk of the land. In the North Island,.so far from being landless, as Mr Seddon pointed out, 40,000 Maoris own 5,000,000 acres in the heart of the richest country. They are not cooped up there, but it is, and always lias been, their stronghold—the so-called King-Country. But the temper of Sir George O'Brien’s attack should sufficiently condemn it, and if any Governor has ever deserved castigation from the Colonial Office, he has done so. We can only hope that he will receive his deserts .from Mr Chamberlain.

FAILURE OF PkOHIBITIGN. I came to Kansas forty-four years ago, and have always been a worker in the temperance cause (says Mr Albert Griffin, '.of Topeka, Kansas, in the* “Outlook”)- I helped to secure the adoption of the prohibitory amendment, and for ten years helped to enforce it; but candour compels the reluctant admission that all of my work in that direction was worse than wasted. It is true that there is less drunkenness in Kansas than in any other State with as many people —but this was as true forty years ago as it is ,td-day. An unusually large) part of its early settlers were temperance people, and the State has never lost its Helative position. Unfortunately, we were soon lured by the ignis fatuus of prohibition into taking what looked like a short cut to the goat of universal sobriety, and for twenty years we have reHeld almost entirely upon law—law—law. During about half that time the impetus we had received kept us going forward, though with steadily decreasing speed, but during the last half we have lost

ground faster and fastdr. ■ At the present time tlicro is hardly a village in the State with a few hundred inhabitants in which liquor cannot be obtained by every resident who wishes it. Wei have spasms of “lav/ enforcement," but they constantly grow more infrequent, weaker, and iarcical. “Making liquor selling ileg.il is not “making liquor drinking clismmpuraole. ’ On the contrary, the drink habit is spreading and becoming increasfa.snionablo. Even tho preachers -seldom urgo total abstinence upon tho members of their congregations. The triUli is _ that there aro fewer total abstainers in Kansas to-day than there were twenty years ago. In tho fashionable and lower circles drinking is now almost universal, and in tho middle walks it is also hist becoming the rule instead of the exception. THE QUACK’S ELYSIUM. There seems to be, after all, a little dhiicnily iu working out—in the Police <,ouiTs---tho penal provisions of tho New South. Wales Medical Practitioners Act, and .Broken Hill lias had tho first oxperi-eru.-t-. At that happy hunting ground u> ' bracks, a batch of Asiatic medicos * >roll ftht up for judgment, and the .Bench had no hesitation In fining a brace oi Hindu practitioners £OO apiece, with the usual option, but they failed to find it m their hearts or brains to deal similarly with a “Chinese doctor.” The Confuemn medico escaped scot free, on the ground_ that his assumption of the doctoral title could not have been " with intent to deceive,” because no sane person could possibly be deluded into believing •hat a “Chinese doctor” is a medico within the meaning of the Act. The point has not. been raised lately in ' mtoriii, tint, judging from the recent experiences of tho verdant and guileless north-east, probably it would he safer—and quite as profitable- for a. quack fe style himself a “Parisian healer." WO R,!vS HOP HOLIDAYS.

A deputation from the Pc tone WorkiiProiliicccl hy Messrs T. VVilfortl ami G. I' isher, M.li.ll.’s, waited on .he Hon \V. C. Walker yesterday with a roi(i!csl that ihe order whicn. hud been i-’Mied m respect to the employees ;.,t (lie Government: Buildings should he extended .to the employees of the, Government. workshops, viz., that there ‘honld ho a cessation of work until the (allowing Monday. Mr Walker promisod to communicate with his colleague the Minister for Railways on the ,subject. A reply was received later in the day to the effect that the. lion J. G. Ward had acceded to the request. Ik. i- understood that the permission will extend to employees in the workshops throughout: the colony. It is estimated that the concession will mean an expenditure of about £3OOO n day. A SWORD OF HONOUR. The sword of honour which Capetown gave to Lord Roberts was designed and manufactured by the Goldsmiths’ and Silversmiths’ Company, Limited, Regent street, Loudon, W. Tho hilt is of ■'olid 18-carat gold, and the decoration is of rich repoussee work of f-ho highest character. On the obverse is a finelychased figure representing “ Britannia,” while on the reverse is that of “Justice. ’ The initial R, composed of col. cured enamel, is introduced in the centre of the guard at each side, with a baron's coronet above, and surrounded hy decoration of palm, .shamrock, oak leaves, etc., the sides of the guard being ornamented with shamrock ami oak leave-. The upper hand, of the .scabbard is decorated with repoussee work, having the arms*of Capetown in. the centre on ono side, and the arms of the genenil on the other, both executed in coloured enamel, while below the arms will appear ithp. VAC, decoration and crossed batons. The centre band has the K.P. and G.C.B. decorations, with the Im. ferial arms on on* side and the arms of Cape Colony on the other. Th e .shoe of the scabbard has the G.C.S.I. and the G.C.I.E. decorations introduced, with motto and ribbons bearing the names connected with Lord Roberts’s chief exploits in India. The blade is of the finest steel, richly etched with omanierifation and emblems, the names connected with tho general’s great successes in tho South African campaign, and bears tho following inscription: “Presented hv the Mayor mid Corporation of the City of Capetown to Field-Marshal Lord Roberts, V.C., K.P., G.C.8., G.C.5.1., G.C.I.E.,_ in recognition of his brilliant services in South Africa, 1900. ‘Draw for God and Thy Queen, Justice and Truth.' ’’ THE FEDERAL CAPITAL. Singletaxers will find .some cause for satisfaction in the promises of the Premier of the Australian Commonwealth willi regard to the Federal capital. Early steps, ho said, would be taken to select the capital site, which it ( was essential should be free from any provin'cial influence. It was tho sot .policy of the Ministry that land, as distinguishable from property, within the Federal territory, should not be sold. The ownership would be retained in the Commonwealth. The land would he let for a considerable terra, but with periodical terms for appraisement, so that the revenue from it would assist in reducing the cost of creating the Federal capital. Tho Government would pay no Fancy prices for land, or play into the hands of the speculators. It would fix by law a date independent of any anticipant heaping up values before the speculator would have n. chance of get ving his hand in. Fair play would be given to New South Wales in the final settlement of terms.

GENEROSITY ACKNOWLEDGED. ■So gratified are the men at the Petona Railway Workshops at the recent decision of the Minister for Railways to add sixpence a day to the pay of the artisans in the service tliroughoiit the co.ony, that they have decided to make an appropriate presentation to Mr VVard, in acknowledgment thereof. The matter has been on the tapis for sr.mo time, and now a .scheme lias been prepared by which each of the railway employees throughout New Zealand who have benefited by tbe increase will be given an opportunity of making a sixpenny contribution towards the presentation fund. A similar idea hawing occurred to tbe men in tbe Tiraaru workshops it is thought that no difficulty will ho experienced in getting the North and South to work together in furthering the project. Circulars are therefore being issued by a local committee inviting the co-operation of the workshop artisans in every part of the colony. Apart from that, it is the intention of the men in the Petono workshops to organise a banquet to the Minister for Railways, at which the presentation will probably bo made. As Messrs T. Milford and G. Fisher, M.U.K.'s, have proved themselves ever anxious to further the best interests of the railway workers, these gentlemen, also, aro to be presented with tokens of esteem and regard on that occasion. LORD R.ANFURLY’S CRUISE. During the absence of Ins Excellency, the vice-regal party, consisting of the Governor. Captain Alexander, A.D.C., the if) on H. F. Butler, hon A.D.C., Captain Hutton, curator of the Christchurch Museum, and Dr Collins (of Wellington) took a cruise in the Hinempa among the Southern Islands. Leaving the Bluff on

the 31st December the vessel touched at tho Snares, the Auckland, Campbell. Antipodes, Bounty and Stewart Islands Quo object of the trip was to examine tho provision depots on the various is, auds, all of which woro found to bo it. good order. Another object was to colmot birds for tho British Museum. An excellent collection was secured —the host collection, in - fact, that has ovoi neon made. It included the Merganser, a very rare bird. It is a kind of duck <i’jt has a narrow bill, like that of tho ..hag. There aro few specimens of it in existence. Tho Hinomoa has never before found more than three specimens, all of which were bought by Mr \V. Xlothschild, who has a famous collection of birds and insects at Tring. Two othei hinU secured, a shag and a torn, are supposed to ho now to science. A young bird and an old bird of each kind wore shot. Thero are different species o! shags found in Now Zealand and the islands of the South, out the kind secured by tho party differs in several points from any that* have been fore. The torn is certainly now to New Zealand, and Captain Hutton believes it to bo quite now, bub without boo Ivor reference ho cannot be sure on the noint. All the birds aro preserved in formalin, and will be sent Homo at once. In auuition, collections of insects, shells and plants were made. The insects and shells are for tho Christchurch Museum, and the plants, which aro alive and young, for Air Cockayne, a wellknown botanist of Christchurch. The object of tho last-mentioned collection is to compare the seedlings with the old plants, which are already well known.