TOPICS OF THE DAY.

New Zealand Times, Volume LXXI, Issue 4441, 22 August 1901, Page 4

TOPICS OF THE DAY.

WELLINGTON FOOTPATHS.

Speaking at a social gathering last night, the Mayor said that the streets of Wellington were not in so bad a condition as those of Auckland and Dunedin. He admitted, however, that some of the footpaths here were in a disgraceful state. It was, he explained, the in* tention of the City Council to consult the ratepayers iu regard to flagging some of the footpaths. Until the views of the ratepayers' hh that proposal were ascertained, it would not be wise for the Council to spend .money on extensive repairs of footpaths. “OUR LATEST TRADUOER.” One of the speakers at the Yorkshire Society’s dinner last night was Mr W. Franklin-Brown e, who made some severe remarks on traducors of New Zew land, and especially on a gentleman who has just had published in London a book on the Maori war. and whom he described as “ our latest traducer.” This author has cast blame on Sir George Grey for interfering with General Cameron in regard to the war. Mr Franklin-Browne, who has followed 4 ha sea, said he had the honour of Sit George Grey’s friendship, and had often carried General Cameron about. , He used strong words in repudiating the author’s attacks on Sir George Grey. The author, he said, had waited for thirty years to disseminate statements which he dared not have published at the time in question. In the course of his speech Mr Franklin-Browne pave an account of an occurrence near Wanga« nni which, he claimed, did not exhibit the author he had referred to in a favourable light as an officer. DOMESTIC SERVANTS’ HOLIDAYS. The House of Representatives employed itself last night in endeavouring to solve the problem of granting the domestic servant a half-holiday without endangering the British Constitution. Mr Meredith drew a pathetic and even tragic picture of the household away out in the back*blocks, far from every other dwelling, with all the inmates suffering from influenza or measles, and the domestic servant gaily prepar. ing to go out for a walk, according to law, and remaining out for the rest c| the day. Mr O’Meara voiced the feelings or many weary housewives in this young country at the present time when he declared that it was extremely difficult to find a good servant, and that a inistress would be only too glad to give such a treasure a halWiohday, or two half-holidays, a week, without any legislation on the subject. Mr R. Thompson appealed to the House to give the servant an opportunity to meet her “voung man” on the half holiday, for the reason that Parliament ought to encourage matrimony. Mr Barclay, who is in charge of the Bill, was informed bv Mr Massey that Mr “Tim Doolan,” of Auckland, had drafted a Bill dealing with this question. At __ this there "were cries of “Who is Doolan?’ -to which Mr Massey replied that he was “a lawyer and philanthropist, like the hon. gentleman in charge of this

JUII.” Mr Monk demurely cam* for. ward with a satirical suggestion that u._ Uio hall holiday the servant’s Romeo should ho brought to the house, and that the jiarlour and piano given up tp them lor that day. The general merriment indulged in at the expense of the Bill led Mr G. W. Russell to protest ia pained tones. There wore eases, ho said, in which ‘ girls were compelled to got up at six o’clock in the morning, milk the cows and teed the horses, work all day, then mind the children, whilst her master and mis= tress went to the theatre, prepare sup. per so that it might be ready for them wnon they came home, and then wash the crockery before she went to bed. Mr Collins indignantly scouted the suggestion that domestic servants were overworked in this way, and said that if ;i rdrl loft her “place” she would hncl another within two hours. Mr Tinim said that the House was laughing, not at the domestic servant, but at Mr Barclay's Bill, which, as it was framed, was one of the most absurd over introduced into the House. He pleaded for the lady helps, who were tar worse off than the servants. Mr Piram said this (jUito seriously, hut the House was in no mood for serious business, and flashes of humour more or less vividly lighted up the scene until ten minutes to IJ, when Mr Barclay, recognising the hope* lessness of carrying the clauses relating to tho domestic servants’ half-holiday, agreed to abandon them so as to save tho other portion of the Bill, which gives a half holiday to chemists, ibis the House agreed to, and the domestic servant is deprived of a half-holiday for yet another year.

THE COLONY’S TRADE. The Mayor, in a speech at the Yorkshire Society’s dinner last night, said he thought the imports of the colony lor the yea, ended the 150th dune last went un too nearly to the exports. He took it that tho exports niif'lit to exceed he imports by something like three millions of money. But they did not do that last year. They exceeded the imports by only about one and a half million. It might bo that increases in prices had somethingto do with the increase in imports, in conversation the other day, a gentleman suiwested to him as an explanation o. thelncroaso in imports the circumstance that the legislation of tho colony had .>ecomo so restrictive that manufacturers wore not extending so much as they had done in the past. This gentleman also expressed the opinion that the labour troubles were becoming to some extent too much to cope with. Mr Altken said lie was not prepared to say that tliese explanations were the right ones, but they were tho conclusions come to bv the gentleman bn bad referred to. The Mayor added that he mentioned them, because he thought the question should be looked at from all sides.