THE OTOGO DAILY TIMES FRIDAY, AUGUST 27, 1886.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 7652, 27 August 1886, Page 2

THE OTOGO DAILY TIMES FRIDAY, AUGUST 27, 1886.

We have dealt already with :he figures showing the total indebtedness of the City of Dun' din, and more especially with what is denominated in the published sheet the municipal account, but which ought to be divided into drinage account and municipal account. Of the necessity of this division and the expenditure on drainage which is demanded by the Act, we shall have somethii g more to say herealter. Turning now to the waterworks account, we are much impressed with the fact which we noted previously— namely that any further extravagance will most certainly entail an increased rate, for this reason : that there is nowhere else from which the money can come. It is all very well for the Council io go on muddling money away in the profitless and careless way in which it lims been spent in the past, but the law puts an iron, stop to the process at last, unless the general body of ratepayers are prepared to put their hands in their own pockets instea I of the pockets of posterity. In a word, Dunedin has exhausted its borrowing powers, has gone to the highest limit in charging water rates, and has now no resource to fall back on but a g neral municipal rate. We conjure our more prudent citizens who have large property stakes in the city to attend to its affairs in time. If the management of municipal affairs is left much longer to those whose first great idea is to keep themselves popular by having plenty of money s^pent, they will soon find that it is too late, and h»ve to face all the unpleasant consequences of a mucli heavier rate.

Very few figures are required to show i his. The Ross' creek water suppl}', purchased from the Waterworks Company, cost £122,809 out o' loan; the Silv. rstream Supply, £80,777 out of loan, and juss £20,000 out of revenue. The total cost of the two supplies is £223,427, while the revenue derived from water rates and special supplies is £20,023, beig £16,500 from watt rand £4400 from other sources. The highest water rate that can be imposed is 7 per cent, on the rateable value of propettyinthe city (i' 291,971) which produces £20,437. It will be seen from this that there can be hardly any expansion in income here, and if the expenditure in the future continues as in the past, no hope of any diminution in the price charged for this first necessary of existence, the mere item o> interest, sinking fund, anl commissions alone amou ting to £13,598. \V~ need, we suppose, hardly pint out to <ur readers that the Silverstream supply has been the re.l ogre thaUms eaten up our money, the £80,777 *h-ch may be set down as the first cost of th". monster havicg now mounted up to £100,618. Tae Gas department presents the most remarkable recoicl of ii ca >:i i:y and waste. The Gasworks were acquired from Mr Hankey in 1866, and cost then £49,400. The price at which

they now stand is £122,800; and yet it would be hard to lind a more " ramshackle" and badly plannel gasworks than (.hat which is to bo soon ou the Anderson's Bay voad. Nevertliol' ss this is not', tho time to rebuild the gasworks, as tho engineer naturally desires, and it is for the very reason that some expenditure would appear to be really required I that shvng and capable men are required to keep that expenditure -within the limits ol! the absolutely necessary. The Corporation seem to have secured a good engineer in Mr Graham. During the three years and a-hal£ of his tenure of office tho gas account lias been changed from a doiiit of over LIJOOO to a credit of LGOOO ; whilst thu price of gas has lieen lowered 'Is, and tho supply has become excellent in quality and always reli .bio. These facts speak for themselves, and, as far as we can judge, Mr (iraham is right in reporting that the present gasworks are inefficient and oxtravagan.:. But we may be allowed to hint that Mr Graham is an onthiisinut in 1 is profession, who would like hi*t works to be a perfect model mid in naturally inclined to bring them lotlmt state of perfection as speedily as possible, hideed the very plausibility of his plans makes it the morn likely that they will be uai ried out sooner and moru quickly l.hin' is absolutely necessary. Wo do not dread downright bad construction from Mr Graham such as there has been in the past, but we do dread premature expenditure and a supcrlinonoHS of excellence greater than ordimiry olliciency require. Again, the credit of £0600 is ominous of nil nttempt to spend too much money upon reorganisation, and to our mind shows that the price ol' gas ought to have been reduced a year ago. It is a dangerously large credit.

Th'i plan of reorganisation submitted by Mr Graham is very plausible, but it must eventually run into a large sum of money, and it will •■ equire the greatest caution to prevent him pressing it ou prematurely and carrying it out too grandly. It is reasonable and piudent to work on a plan which will provide for future requirements, but it is necessary to exercise considerable scepticism as tv the need for each part of the plan as it is pressed forward, so that no improvement may be authorised until the object it replaces has been proved to demonstration to be inefficient. In the preset position a reduction of at least a shilling ought to be made in the pri. c of gas, and no expenditure upon plant or works should be allowed to affect that price. In short, such expenditure should be drawn entirely out of the depreciation account, which is intended to serve that purpose. We cannot afford to have the price of gas kept up for the sake of improving the works.

A number of letters to the editor, of which several have been held over for a few days owing to pressure on our space, reports of yesterday's Land Board and Harbour Board meetings, and other matter appear on our fourth page:

Telegraphic communication with the North was interrupted last evening, the snow having probably blocked or broken the wires. Only one wire was available between Christehurch and Dunedin, and that was working unsatisfactorily

Our cablegrams this morning announce the overthrow of the Provisional Government formed in Bulgaria by those who deposed Prince Alexander, and the proclaiming of martial law by the Government formed by Prince Alexander's supporters. The whereabouts of the Prince himself is unknown. Russia is ominously preparing and equipping the Black Sea fleet, and a conference between Prince Bismarck and M. de Giers, the Russian Minister for Foreign Affairs, is now taking place.

A very important report on the works at the heads was submitted to yesterday's meeting of the Harbour Board by the engineer, Mr G. M. Barr. From this it appears that the portion of the breakwater already constructed stood the test of the recent heavy weather in a most satisfactory manner. It appeared to have had a very appreciable effect on the scour, as the ridge of sand which formed the bar had shifted some 800 ft to seaward. At present the depth of water on this ridge was slightly less than was the case previously, but, as stated by the chairman, the report might be taken as evidence that when the works were further advanced the bar would be swept out to sea and give no further trouble. **•

The Hon. W. H. Reynolds arrived from Christchurch last evening.

The funeral of Noel Lees (son of Mr Win. Lees, manager of the Union Bank), who died so suddenly at the High School on Tuesday morning, will take place to-day, and will be attended by the whole of his schoolfellows. The service will be conducted on behalf of Archdeacon Edwards by the Revs. Dr Belcher and A. R, Fitchett.

Mr John Carroll has definitely decided to become a candidate for the city mayoralty. With the exception of his Worship the Mayor, Mr Carroll's connection with municipal matters extends over a longer period than any other member of the council, as, with the exception of one or two years, he has been a member of the City Council since 1869.

The University Council are inviting applications for a professor of mathematics in the university able to conduct classes preparing in pure mathematics for the B.A. and B.Sc. degrees, and in pure and mixed mathematics for senior scholarships and honours.

Still another discovery in the way of gold has been made. The North Otago Times reports that after the storm of a few days ago the sand of the sea shore between the ■Awamoa creek and Kartigi has been found to be impregnated with gold, and a number of men are at work on the beach. We are told they are earning good wages. As a proof of this, two men have left good situations to work on the beach. The appliances required are of the simplest character.

Messrs S. 6. Inston and G., Robertson, J.P's., dismissed an information heard before them on Monday last against J. Horr, chairman of the Colac Bay School Committee, for neglecting to send his children to the Government school. The minute-book of the committee did not show what members of the committee were present when the compulsory clauses of the act were brought into force, and the bench held this fatal. There were some peculiar features about the case as reported in the Western Star. Mr Horr said he was qualified to teach tl:e children himself, as he held a certificate from the London School Board. His children attended the Native school regularly, in proof of which he put in a certified list of the attendance during the year. One of the five children was above the age prescribed by the act and another was below it. The reason he objected to send his children to the Government school was because his children had been under a great many teachers and had suffered in consequence. They were now getting on well, and he did uot wish to take them away from the school they were at present attending. Besides, they were learning the Maori language, which he wished them to learn. He forwarded an application to the committee for an exemption certificate, but he received no reply.

Football clubs are not much given to appeal to the public for funds, and the concert to be given this evening in aid of the funds of the Union Football Olub, who have been at considerable expense in improving a ground where a charge cannot be made, is an exception which is likely to be well supported. The concert, for which an excellent programme has been put forward, is under the patronage of the two interprovincial teams and the officers of the Rugby Union, and has the support of the innumerable footbal clubs in and around Dunedin.

Labour troubles still continue in New South Wales ami Victoiin. The brickmakors in Sydney are still on strike, and no attempts at a reconciliation are being made. All efforts to sett'e the difficulty in the iron trade in Victoria have so far proved unsuccessful. Some of the strikes in New South Wales have been accompanied by disturbances. Four miners have been sentenced to various terms of imprisonment in connection with the strike of miners at Woolongong, and several arrests have been made in connection with some rather serious disturbances by shearers on strike at Netley.

Eight claims for damages to property by the recent flood will lie considered at a special meeting of the Caversham Borough Council on Monday evening next.

The Rev. Charles I'rasor, formerly minister of St. Andruw's Presbyterian Church, Christchurch, died at his [residence, Merivale, on Wednesday, afc the age of (hi. Ho liad been a resident of Canterbury for this last 30 years, lie was v native of Aberdeen, and a graduate of tho university of that city.

Alexander Graham, a painter, was received into tho hospital yesterday-suffering from severe bruises about tho body, caused by a ladder falling on him in a right-of-way off St. Andrew Hfcrt.'ol. A horse attached to a spring enrt was in tho right-of-way, and something caused it to titurl off and the spring cart knocked down the ladder, which was standing against tho side of a lumwi.

A young woman of respectable appearance has been victimising a number of the goodnatured people of Sydney by variously representing herself as a Miss Floreuco Brereton, duughtnr uf Dr V. Le Gay Brereton, as wife of l,!in miii of the Uight Hon. W. E. Gladstone, and iii iliiujjlitur or relative of various other wellknown persons. She not only receivad goods from tradesmen, but on several occasions rei!iiii'i'ti monoy by those representations, even burrowing XI of a housemaid on the plea of hi'inK a daughter of Dr Brerutoti and having unlunliily left her purse at home. She has been iuml.i:inii!il to nix months'imprisonment.

Tim l'rimale, Bishop Harper, yesterday conunoratuil .St. Mary's Church, Timaru. There was it larj(n attendance at the service, and i.lining I,lm clergy present was Dr Nevill, Bishop of nunndln.

Of all imr various societies and club.?, the least ii»l.iinUl.i(iiiH, perhaps, is the Sixpenny Clothing (Iliili; yet 11 reference to the report of the Minimi meeting, which appears elsewhere, will nliow that il.n work in relieving the distress o f I.lin iiiiiii- iv dm a vury extended scale, although, as iliiimmi) implies, the amount of subscription is vnry iihmluhL. Some £172 was expended last .year, tiliiolly in the purchase of articles which wnro made up by members, who freely give I heir time and labour to relieving distress. 'L'liu scarcity of employment and the distress which inevitably followed has severely taxed the resources of the society, and in some instances the relief which would under more favourable circumstances have been readily given has had to bo curtailed. This do doubt arises in some measure from the great modesty with which the clab's excellent work is conducted, and the appeal so faintly put forward in the annual report is, we feel sure, likely to meet with a ready response once attention is directed to it.

At the Clutha Parliamentary Union the adjourned debate on Home Rule was continued. The following motion, proposed by Mr Fraser, was carried:—" That this union approves of the Right Honourable Mr Gladstone's scheme for the settlement of the Irish question." Tho following resolutions by MrT. Mackenzie met with the approval of both sides and were carried :— " (1) That in the opinion of this House the progress of this part of the colony necessitates the immediate survey and sale of portions of the 200,000 acres of fertile country known as the Kiinu, Tautuktt, Woodlands, Glenomaru, and Catlins districts. (2) That the Government be requested to profitably employ a portion of their survey staff to triangulate and cut into 100-acre sections the said land. (3) That tlie laud be sold at a minimum of 5s per acre, and no family be allowed to take up more than fivo sections until a certain amount of improvements be made. (4) That the Government ought to devote their energies to opening up the Crown lands in this part of the colony instead of spending large sums of public money in purchasing inaccessible lands of an inferior quality in the North Island."

Thirteen members of the Christehurch football team arrived by last night's train from the North. An unusually largo number of footballers assembled at the railway station and greeted the visitors with ringing cheers on their arrival. The team are staying at AVain's Hotel. There is, we understand, some likelihood of a special train being put on from Christehurch in connection with the match. Two of the Dunedin team—viz., Austin (full back) and AVedderspoon (three-quarter back) —are unable to play, and their places are to be taken by Vallnnge and Millar. To-day, if the weather is fine, the visiting team will go for a drive, and in the evening both teams will patronise the Union Football Club's concert at the Lyceum.

The abandonment of farming at the Chatham Islands (says the ( Lyttelton Times) has thrown ou*; of employment almost the whole working population of the islands, and the white portion only want the means to take passage for New Zealand. Their condition is, in many instances, deplorable. Times have indeed changed since the supply of potatoes for Canterbury was mostly dra>vi> from Chatham Islands. Now only sufficient for their own use is grown there, and, with very little grain and a few vegetables, this is all the cultivation now practised. Fruit trees, especially apples, have been planted, and yield plentifully without further care. The laud in the districts mentioned as being capable of cultivation is rich and black, resembling volcanic sail, but is, to all appearance, of vegetable formation.

Some curious cases crop up now and then in connection with the disposal of property. Many years ago a father and two sons were drowned at Invercargill by a boat accident, and the direction in which the property should go depended upon which survived thelongest. Thepropertyi which has since become valuable, was divided by the court as if the father survived his sons, as it was assumed that .being the strongest he was likely to fight the longest. There is perhaps a still more peculiar point in connection with a case in Paris, where the question of latitude and longitude decide the matter. A gentleman there died some time ago, who left COOOdol to his neice in lowa. Inquiry led to the discovery that the niece died on the same day as her uncle. Everything now depends on the hour. This gentleman's death was at 10 a.m. If the girl died before 4 a.m. her undo would have survived her, and in that case the legacy would revert to the estate. If she died any time after 4 a.m. she wouldhave been the survivor, and the money would be vested in her heirs. The.se being the circumstances, there are doubtless a good many interested persons who will now learn all about longitude and solar time.

An act of unpardonable Vandalism is going to be committed, if (says a Home paper), as report says, the old bridge of Ayr i* to be demolished. If when Burns wrote of the bridge of Ayr he could talk of the " poor narrow footpath of a street, where twa wheelbarrows tremble when they meet," it is not surprising that the stones are now dropping from their places, and that the auld brig is considered unsafe for traffic. But for close on GSO years it has done its work, and that surely is long enough to have earned the repose not of annihilation but of an honoured national monument. That "conceited gowk," the new bridge, is still quite capable of carrying all who wish to cross the Ayr, and it is difficult to understand what imperative reason there nan be for destroying the " brig of ancient Pictish race, the vera wrinkles Gothic in his face." And besides its commemoration by the Ayrshire poet the bridge has a romantic interest of its own, having, like the pyramid of Rhodopis, been built at the sole expense of a single ladyi though tradition variously describes her motives. So no time should be lost in earnestly appealing to the

Men, three parts made by tailors and by barbers, Wha waste your well hnlned gear on new brigs and harbours.

Writing to Mr Kit-son on his defeat for Leeds, Mr Gladstone said:—To suffer in a good cause is a thing so honourable and noble that I will not offer to condole with you; but I am truly sorry that after so much of the most intelligent and patriotic exertion you should not form one of our parliamentary band. We have Scotland, Wales, Ireland, Yorkshire, and, I hope the north'; and we have with us the civilised world. From this moment it is probable that our cause will visibly move upwards. It has, indeed, enormously moved upwards within the last 12 mouths. Its final triumph is certain. The only question is how much there will be of unhappiness for Ireland, of difficulty and delay, of pain and shame for England, before toe consummation will be reached.

Mr Thomas Duffy, well known in Dunedin, has been transferred from Blenheim to Christchurch, having been promoted to the position of Deputy-reg:..;rar of Deeds in the latter place.

Notwithstanding the cold and boi>terous weather which prevailed last night, there was a very good attendance at the Hanover street Baptist Church, where service was conducted by Messrs Mateer and Parker. The former gave a discourse on " Sacrifice," during the course *of which he referred to the great ncrifice Christ had made by dying to save the world, an.-! pointed out that there could have been no remission of sins without the •shedding of Christ's blood. Mr Parker sang two solos during the evening—" Peace, be still," and "I have trusted Jesus." The present series of services close to-night, and on Sunday morning Messrs Mateer an^ Parker intend to conduct similar services at South Dunedin.

Tho rcCi-.nt rains have caused the Portohello Beach road to be almost unsafe for traffic, and the road board find it necessary to warn the ■public of ils dangerous condition.

The iirst prize among tho competitive designs for the Colonial Mutual Jjife Assurance Society's building at Wellington was awarded to Mr W. C. Chatlield, architect, Wellington ; Air Thomas Turnbull, of tho same city, securing the second prize. . There were altogether 31 nets of plans sent in from all parts of the colony.

A correspondent writes to ibn St. James' Gazette:—" May J ask a corner in your paper tv protest against one incident in Mr Gladstone's journey to Scotland which happens to affect me somewhat seriously? Tim train stopped several minutes at Hawick, during which time the right hon. gentleman said that h« ' regarded Hawick as the birthplace of his family.' For the last month I have been busy compiling ii little booklet of views, with illuntrative letterpress, of the chief places where Mr Gladstone was born. This includes front and side views of his birthplace in Wales, a bird's-eye view of Leith (where Mr Gladstone was born), two sketches of the house where he first saw tho light in Lancashire, and one of his Norway birthplace. By springing Hawick upon me after the volume had gone to press, the right hon. gentleman detracts from the completeness of my book. I may add that it will bo out in a fortnight, under the title ' The More Famous Birthplaces of Gladstone.'"

" Called Back" continues to attract large audiences to the Princess Theatre. Last night, in spite of the snowstorm, the house downstairs was crowded, and the dress circle was also well tilled. The acting was received with marked signs of approval. It may not bo out of place to remind our rondeni that it will he repeated to-night for the last time, as it gives place to "My Partner" on Saturday night. Those who have not yet seen " Called Back" should therefore take advantage of this occasion.