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Oamaru Mail, Volume IV, Issue 1319, 4 September 1880, Page 2

Our local regarding the adulteration of brandy by the hotelkeepers of this town is, it appears, from complaints which have been made to us of our harshness, capable of misinterpretation. Be it said to the credit of the hotelkeepers that no ingredient more deleterious than Oamaru water was detected in the samples of brandy analysed. In this respect our hotelkeepers, to a man, have proved themselves less corrupt than those of other plapes. It may be viewed as considerate oh the part of the publicans to add a modicum of water to their spirits so long as the water is pure. The professional " doctcrer " not only supplies a spurious article, but, to tickle the palate of the imbiber, he adulterates his liquor with poisonous ingredients regardlos3 of his stomach. The hotelkeopors of Oamaru are more moral, or, at all events, not so immoral : as to do anything so vicious. Somebody put water into the liquor that Mr. Sergeant Beattie procured from them. Whether they did bo or not, is, of course,

a question that will have to be decidedBut it has a suspicious appearance to sea the sergeant pulling out his -bottle -and asking for a shiliing-s worth, of; :;4rdent spirits ; and if the hotel-keepers; with a view of maintaining the sobriety of one of the heads of the police force, did take the liberty of exceeding the; allowance of water, who can say that they 'did not err on the side:: of lawand, order. Even if they, systematically water their spirits, who can. say .that tliey do riot as well err on the side of humanity.. In our opinion, sixpence would be: more wisely'expended on a glass of pure, water than on a glass of the finest brandy ever distilled. -

A most elaborate system of computing the wages and salaries that shall be payabl'e to railway employes has been issued. We have not published it because we are aware that it is already in the hands of those interested. It is impossible to conceive what object the :Government has in view in thus revolutionising the system ryjw prevailing, unless it be to pretend to make a concession with the; idea of propitiating the railway employe's. |f this, however, was their intention, they have failed ; for notwithstanding the ' elaborateness of the conception, the employes see through it. Not all the cunning devices of the department will atone for pittances rendered still more miserable by deductions. The Premier, said in Parliament, more than once, that the wages and salaries of the servants of the Railway be arranged go that they be in harmoney with the rates paid f6r similar work outside the Railway Department. It was expected by t}ips§ who P ot know 4)® unreliability of Ministerial pledges, however solemnly made, that, at all events, employes would riot be offered j wages lower than those, ruling outside the railway department.' But, they have been mistaken. The Government intend to take advantage of j these exceptionally bad times tq put the screw or railway employes./ EJorae drivers, shunters, signalmen,' porters, and laborers, are offered upon an average Is less per day than they have ( hitherto been paid. This may not be exactly the obnoxious ten per cent, reduction, but it amounts to the same thing' under another name. There are grades in the different department and if a laborer cein manage to. support himself and family on 36s per week for a sufeciently long period, he may eventually be promoted to the position of a Commissioner. But he must, in the language of the document issued, be a strong, ablebodied man, capable of performing rough, hard work. He must have perfeot eyesight and hearing, and must be of good character." Possessed of all these admirable qualifications, he will be entitled to 6s per day. We stop here to enquire : What will become qi the iflprj theft grs not such perfection ? We presume they will, according as they lack one or more of the neppssary qualities, receive ranging from ps down to 2a 6d. Thg of tlie pw §ystein geem to have forgotten that s.uph men as they pourtray would be worth at least a shilling or two more outside the railway department—that, in fact, ordinary men are being paid at that rate. "We do not counsel the employes to strike. They have been treated meanly and with an indecision that is discreditable to the Government; but, at such moment as the present, they could not do anything more unwise than to leave their woi'k in a body. If they were to do so, their places would be filled up from outside, and they would be thrust out in the cold, until it suited the department to reinstate the most valuable amongst them. . On the other hand, the effect of ;i latpijje on the Railway r>epartn}en£ would be most injurious. Inpompefcents would be a fruitful source of inefficiency, blundering, and accidents. It would be far more economical to retain the present trained hands at the pay they have been receiving than to bring about such a result by insisting upon the reduction.