THE OTAGO DAILY TIMES

Otago Daily Times, Issue 10443, 20 August 1895, Page 2

THE OTAGO DAILY TIMES

' TUESDAY, AUGUST 50,1895. Theee has been unanimity throughout the colony in the. expression of an opinion that it would be desirable to improve the position of District Court judges and stipendiary magistrates in certain respects. .At the present time these officials, are entirely at the mercy of the dominant political partj r, holding office at pleasure, not during good behaviour only, ancl receiving salaries j'which can be increased or diminished annually on the motion of the Government. If it be replied to these statements that there has been no charge even brought of a Government using their power improperly to reward or punish the officers of the lower courts, jwe reply that the, mere fact that wrong j has not hitherto been done is no reason j why the existing position should be j maintained. The party at present jin power appear unwilling to adopt any recommendation for a change, and allege as a reason for retaining the pre- , sent position unaltered that it is neces-

sary to remove magistrates from time to time. According to the Hon. Minister for Justice, as reported in Hansard, the question of the independence of the judges is a " minor detail" upon which he and some of his colleagues differ. His colleague the Attorney-general (Sir P. Buckley) thinks with him that the judges should be independent and free from Executive and political influence ; but the other members of the Ministry think it better to keep the judges well under their control. The JSfew Zealand Times, the Ministerial organ in Wellington, says that "the mosfc sacred thing in. the Constitution we live under is the independence of the Bench of Justice." It is high time the Government as a whole followed a course in consonance with this wholesome view , the position. Curiously enough we find in the Economist for June 8 an intimation of how English public opinion regards the unstable position held by judicial officers in the colonies. The strictures which Judge Molesworth in Victoria felt it hia fluty to pass on a similar condition of things there form the test of an article in the Economist in which security of tenure and salary of magistrates is strongly insisted upon. Judge Molesworth pointed out that in his bankruptcy jurisdiction he~ had to deal with persons who had been high in political power—-in one case even the head .of his own department ; that he had to review their conduct and express his opinion oh it, and to grant or refuse them a discharge. While distinctly hinting that pressure had been brought upon him to review his judicial position in the light of party needs, J;udge Molesworth contented himself by. pointing out' that it was in the nature of X things that politicians should express their satisfaction or dissatisfaction with the condition of things as the cycle of events turned and opportunities arose. In the- course of its criticisms the Economist says: "It is a curious commentary on the state of things referred to .by Judge. Molesworth that in the paper containing his remarks an announcement is made that the additional allowance of £250 to the County Court judge , sitting in Melbourne -vyaa.tp be :struck , oil. Public attention has been called to this subject none too soon, and if the Victorian legislators are wise and self-respecting they will lose no time in putting an end to a system which is little creditable to the public life of a colony. Until they place the whole of their judicial authorities' in a position of absolute independence, they can scarcely wonder if investors in the mother country entertain" fears lest political exigencies may sometimes defeat the end of justice." Of course nothing like the position of things in Victoria which Judge Molesworth quoted has ever occurred in New Zealand. . The judge said that he had to adjudicate upon the affairs of a Premier and Treasurer of the colony, a Speaker of- the Legislative Assembly, as well.as Ministersof the Grown and prominent members of Parliament; while at the time of, writing he'had to deal with the application of Mr J. M. Davies, " who was at one time at the head of the department in which I hold office, and who probably may be head of that'" department again " ! The Economist,! of course, regards the whole position from the standpoint of the English lender, and it is, of course. ■ a disgrace ito the colony of -Victoria that so many prominent men;, who have been guilty of gross and culpable mismanagement, have practically escaped the proper consequences of tiheir misdeeds, and been let off in the " whitewashing" process with little or no punishment. Even" in Great Britain the, ' larger bankruptcies are generally smoothed over, and ' the , chief; offenders escape the . retribution which the magnitude of their misdeeds should have brought on: them. , ; But'in Victoria the punishment has failed to suit the crime to an : extent which has rendered bankruptcy proceedings, in that colony a scorn and derision to all honest men, and-more'espiecially to all honest traders. The security bf a distant lender, whether he be merchant or mortgagee, must depend in some degree, in the last;resource, on the excellence and, indeed, severity with which the laws of the borrowing country are administered. In a British colony it is always assumed that the whole judicial system, albeit costly, is absolutely and implicitly to be relied upon for fairness and impartiality. It is this belief which at bottom renders the British lender more willing to part with his money to a British dependency than to, say, a State of the United States, where the lower magistracy at anyrate are notoriously inefficient and corrupt. The national honour of the whole colony is concerned to take such steps as may be necessary to place the judiciary all found in a position .of absolute independence. In answer to a question asked by Mr Willis in the House recently the Hon. Mr Reeves said that he was personally of the opinion that the position of magistrates and District Court judges should be improved and rendered secure, but that the Government did not think.so. -We trust tliat the '. almost unanimous opinion of the i colony—viz., that the status of the . judges of the inferior courts should be • improved—will have same weight with" I a Ministry which pretends that its ■ mission is to give articulate utterance '. to the will of the people. It 'is only necessary for some grave scandal to ' arise in order to secure the necessary legislation, and it seems a pity to have to wait for the evil in order to provide , the remedy. We may suggest to Ms i Reeves's colleagues that prevention i [ better than cure.

Our Auckland correspondent telegraphs that much iuterest is felt in the relics brought from Waugaroa from the wreck of the ship Boyd. A party visited the spot where the ship drifted ashore after the massacreof the crew by Maoris in 1809. Apparently the hull bas shifted nearer the beach, as at low tide the cbarred remains were not more tban 4-ft under water. A piece of the wreck was fished up with a boathook, acd in the centre of the mass was discovered two iron cannon shot from 4ft to sfb in diameter. The party who visited, the place could plainly see the ship, which has been i lying thero for 86 years. It is proposed to j further examine her. The output of coal from the Westport and Greymouth mines for the month of July was as followa :—Westport, 16,376 ton 3 lewt; Greymouth, 6758 tons 2cwt. Mr Paulin advised at 9.45 last night:— "Squally to light S.W. to N.W. winds aud rain showers ; indications improving for short time after 12 hours ; barometer fall." We have authority for stating that Councillor Hariy, whose term of offico expires in September as a representative of South Ward, will ofier himself again for re-olectiou. The Guards Band ia counuection with tho .Salvation Army will give a performance in : Dunedin on Thursday next.

Mr T. Haley, an old settler at Livingstone, has died in the Oamaru Hospital from the result j of injuries received on the 15th inst. Tho shafter in a three-horse dray team belonging fco f Mr Haley bolted, and tbe leaders taming at t 1 right aagies afc full gallop upset the dray. £Sr i Haley's bead and arm lay under the edge of tbe ' dray, until assistance readied bim. , At the regular meeting of St. Paul's Associa- ( tion lost night an excellent lecture on "The j Antarctic Regions" was given by Mr A. . Haasilton, registrar o. the University of Otago. , Illustrating his remarks by map and charta, Mr i Hamilton indicated the tracks of various erpe- ( ditions, and quoted evidence to thoif that in i the interests of humanity and for tbe safety of t iron steamships, ifc was necessary that observa- j tions should be takeu at the South Pole as ear)y ; as possible. There was a good attendance. . The usual compliment to the lecturer was passed i by acclamation. At Oamaru yesterday Peter Nelson was fined ! ; £5 and costs for permitting an unlawful game i ' on his premises. A number of young men were, -', playing with dice for pennies in defendant's . billiard room, when the.police entered. The seven young men who were in the room were then charged. with being in a certain gaming house, bnt the magistrate dismissed the information on Mr Newton's contention that; Nelson had not been convicted of keeping.a gaming house, but simply of permitting an unlawful- ' SaH)o. A deputation, including Archbishop Redwood, waited on fche Hons.'W. P. Reeves and A. J. Cadman on Saturday in favour of the inspecp" tion of Catholic schools by the examiners and " . inspectors of Government schools. Archbishop Redwood said the inspection of private schools was contemplated by the father of fche present acfc (the Hon. C. C. Bowen) when the act was passed, but the use of the word "may "made ifc optional with the boards. The Hon. W. P. Reeves said the Cabinet wonld consider whether 1 the matter should ba made mandatory on the ' boards. The intention of Parliament had be-en to leave the option largely with the committees ■ and boards. He could see do objection to the ; more important private schools being inspected . by Governmeut inspectors. The decision must rest with Parliament as to making ifc mandatory. When the boards said that the only thiog standing in the way was lack of funds for inspection he would go into the matter as to how those funds could be supplied. The award in the case of Sparrow and Co. y. fche Para Para Hydraulic. Sluicing and Mining 1 Company, Nelson, has been made (siys the '■ New Zealand Times) by tha Hon.-B. Richardi son, who was appointed arbitrator. The amount i claimed for.unpaid balance of fche contract price and extras for supplying and laying down . pipes on the company's property was £233713s lld. Sparrow and Ca; also claimed interest as • from fche Ist of April 1895, aud a further sum of;; £300 as damages for being delayed in the completion of the works. The company cdunfcar- . claimed for penalties by, reason of thenon- ■ completion of thework within the time specified, 1 and ifc also claimed to be entitled to retain a sufficient sum to make good any damage which- . might occur in testing the. pipes. The arbi- , trator bas awarde , Sparrow and Co. £2299 Us , 9d as unpaid balance and extras, and £200 ls Id as damages, together with the costs of' the t case, bat has disallowed the claim for interest. \ The counter-claim has been disallowed, and the , Para Para Company has been ordered to pay its own costs. The Paris correspondent of The Times says it has beeu supposed that the war indemnity • to be paid ; by -China to Japan shonld , be paid in gold, but as a matter of fact , the stipulation was for payment, iv taels. The result is that the 300,000,000 fcaels' which China has to pay/represent: £45,p00;000, and ,nob . ; £75,000,000, as had been believed, and as 'is still believed in some quarters. He is' also responsible for the following:—■ "Ifc is part and parcel of Russia's scheme ; to continue for the whole of the indemnity loan the system just employed for the £16j000,000, ■ then to reimburse by the same ! process the £5,000,000 or £6,000,000 previously • borrowed,_and thus to have in her. hands, with- | out the interference of aay other Power, the whole'of the Chinese customs.. Such is the . political bearing of this operation—_namely, the taking by Russia in the immediate future of almost the whole of the most available Chinese revenues." ■ 7 ■ A correspondent of Modern Society writes: — < "Camphor is becoming scarcer and scarcer. The Japanese Government have placed still . furfcber restrictions on its export from their ' dominions, and it seems thafc tbe officials who [ have replaced the Chinese in Formosa have j received instructions to do the same with . respect vto that island for the present. I This will Beriously interfere not only with many medical compounds, but with the manufacture of smokeless powder, ' into which camphor largely enters, and so Japan seems to have suddenly jumped into the '' position of the universal arbiter of war, con. L ducted id accordance with the latest scientific [ discoveries, as the yello.v-faced Jap practically . controls tha supply of camphor, and thus of the . smokeless powders wbich ara now so extensively manufactured throughout Europe." , . Quifcea modern Bayard was the late Lord L Sfcrathnairn, whose statue now adorns Knights- [ bridge. In. Syria, says the Pall MaU Gazette, he charged alone into fche niidsb of the advance guard of an Egyptian cavalry regiment, and then, with; the assistance of 25 mounted Arabs, l drove back tho advance guard and checked • the march of the whole .regiment. In : Beyrout he fought cholera again, and again i triumphed. In the Crimea he came almost I unharmed out of even more terrible •■ ■ dangers.' From the heights o% Inkerman the i ■ Russians were amazed fco see a tail, gaunt ' figure come leisurely froni the French position ' and ride with iDsolenfe'disregard of danger down ' the line of their.pickets. He rode steadily and 1 leisurely through a withering fire, the target of every Russian gem. It seemed to them i that it was impossible to hit him. At , lasb he reached the end of his promenade. As he turned to go back he. was hit, and fell , headlong from his horse, which remained standing by him. In a minute or two the fallen figure was seen to painfully rise, to shako himi self, pat his charger's neck, and then, with the same leisurely, careless air, to lead the horse, which was also wounded, back. The coolness of ifc all made such an impression on the Rnssians fchat the order was given, " Cease firing at the figure!" At the usual meeting of the First Church Young Men's Literary Association, held lasfc evening, Mr J. L. Salmond presided. A review of the "Laat Days of Pompeii," given by Mrß, Couston, was greatly appreciated. Mr M. Thomson gave as a reading "The Death of Sydney Carton," from Dickeus's " Tale of Two Cities." . . The Rev. Father Madden, who is giving a series of lectures on fche subject of "Christian Uoity," paid a great compliment to fche people of Scotland (says the New Zealaud Herald) ia his discourse. He said fchey were the flower of 1 the British race, and the buildecs of England's colonial empire. Dazzled by the intellects of Hume and Carlyle, the educated amoogst tbem were afc present sank in the cheerless hopelessness of Agnosticism, but deep down in the hearts the Scotch people were religiously mii clined, and he ventured to predict that they would be the fir6fc to return to the simple childJ like faith, aod lead the English people back to the fold of fche cburch. The second performance at the City Hall of Mr Barrie Marschel's drama, entitled "The Murder at the Octagon," was given last night, wheu ifc elicited the heartiest approval of an audience which evinced warm interest in the story unfolded iv tho piece. The drama is so full of incident as to possess ono great element of popularity, bufc it has for a Dunediu theatre au additional attraction in tho fact that each of tho five acts is locally laid. The capital scene depicting the Octagon under snow wss, as on Saturday nighfc, greeted with loud applause, and the appointments generally were satisfactory, while the performers almost without exception gave very effective representations of their respective parts. F or to-morrow night " Arrah-na-Pogue " is announced. Spreial display of sterliti . silver and electro-silver-plated ..ocas in G. akd'T. Young's window 88 Princes stroet,. It is worth seei-ic- _r A nJr 1 COW 3 Oil JT'Ciliy. iiniljr Y^ly V' A' WBltun WHI SeU fa™ roperty on

Mr D. M. Spedding will sell fruit this morning.

A notice to professionals and doorkeepers engaged at the recent Gaelic gathering appears in this issue.

The N.Z.TL. and M.A. Co. will hold a sale of stock at Clmtou on Thursday. *£ V -' X£w} on, an el(krly gentleman, who resides in Walker street, suffered for over a year with liver complaint and' indigestion. He took Loasby's Wahno," and was cured in four days with less than ono bottle. 2s 6d. Grocers and chemists.—[Advt.] The cheapest shop in Dunedin for tea sets, dinner sets, and all household requisites is Montague s. Sale now on.—[Advt ] We would respectfuUy request intending patrons to our Tailoring Department to order as early in the season as possible, and so save disappointment.— W. and ft: Scott.—rAdvt;] ■ Messrs Kidd and Co., surgical and mechanical dentists, notify that theyhavecommenced business opposite Cargill's Monument, Princes st.-fADVT ] Mesas A. and J. M'FAliijkNK beg to cVll attention to their advertisement over the leader. Any orders^entrusted to them will receive the best attention.—|Adv-l\] Mollison and <;o.'s annual sale now on. Send for price list of 12 pages. Post free. Mollison and Co.', drapers and clothiers, 195 and 197 George street, Dunedia.—[Advt.] John Hislop, Watchmaker and Jeweller, 74 Princes street. The oldest established house in w ,'t. I<x^ us oi all kinds. Good assortment Watches, Clocks, and Jewellery. Spectacles to suit all siR-hts.—[Advt ] PublicNotiee.—New Label.—Owing to our registered- sodawater label being so extensively imitated by otber makers, we hnve been compelled to aR .in alter the colour of our soda label to a brown insteau of a blue colour. Thomson and Co. supply the Dunedin and W .Kington Hospitals and the Union Company's entire fleet with their pure crystal soda. Specially prepared sodawater for invalids, prescribed by physician*, for its purity and wholesome action ia assimilating with milk and other nutritious liquids.—[Advt.]