CURRENT TOPICS.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 10901, 7 September 1897, Page 2

CURRENT TOPICS.

The disclosures recently made in Wellington are such as to cause the moralist defjsavitt in to despair, arid show that no Wellington, locality has a monopoly of vies, ( but th&t it may fester unsuspected where to the outward eye all is fair. • It is almost incredible that elderly men should patronise the traffic in young children, whem it would be natural to expect unconscious of an evil thought or deed, and decectioa of such a horrible offence ought to be followed by severe punishment—even if necessary by the lash, which is usually the only effective deterrent to vice of this kind. The periodical discovery of such occurrences as those at Wellington is calculated to create a fear that vicious conduct is more prevalent than is believed, and that muoh more supervision mußt be exercised, especially in the case of young girls, than raany now consider necessary. A ( careful parent may conceive that he is doing his duty by taking cure that his children do not openly keep known- bad company, but no oue knows how many seemiugly innocent children are cankered by evil associations. Of course there are many who will attribute such a condition of things to secular education, but it will be found that these children have never been educated at all, or if at all then they have been coriupted by those who have been brought up in We do not pretend to say that the mere knowledge of the elements of morality will shield s. boy or girl from vice, but it is only reasonable to assume that in homes w,here the education of the children is cared for there is so much of orderliness that morality is-inculcated in a way which might be termed automatic. Bab it is obviously the duty,of every parent, as it is to his interest, to see that nob only are the ordinary channels of vice closed against his children, but that ho should watch for unsuspected, vicio.usness. Meanwhile satyrs like j those in Wellington ought to be flogged. j

The seemiugly unabated virulence of the dispute in the iron trade in Britiin the may ioad to a barren victory on engineering either side, for if it continues stbike. much longer the shipbuilding and engine building trades will take, their departure to foreign lands. We have already mentioned that the strike is unprecedented for magnitude and the extent of the resources on both sides. The employers have formed the most powerful combination evor known, and the engineers have funds to the extent of a very large sura. It is only too much to be feared that the demand for an eight-hour day by the employees is insincere, and that what they really ask is more money for less work, and wish to add overtime rates to their wages. Such a demand would be more intelligible if it took the form of a stand for an increase in wages. And it would be more easily answered. Put ;n the specious form of a strike for eight hours, the employees have on their side the custom of their members abroad, who in the colonies and dependencies ebjoy an eight-hoar day, ar»l

regard it as tbe palladium of industrial liberty. Moreover, they have on their side the example of the Government, which has conceded the eight-hour day in its dockyards and so on. Bat the misfortune is that the busiest period known for many years has been chosen for the strike, and strike clauses in agreements do not cover an infinity of delay; so that orders for vessels and for engines and machinery, which must be fulfilled will be placed elsewhere than ia England, and it may fall out that irreparable ruin will be inflicted on the trade in. which Britain has prided itself most.

If the Otago Agricultural and Pastoral Society decides upon tha system of judging by judging by points it will have points. inaugurated a system that will cot only make tha society i unique, as far as we are aware, among colonial I societies, bus will have set in motion a most | valuable educational process. It is of course api parent that every animal, as well as every machine or product, is susceptible of definition by parts having a proper relation in point of value to each other. There are such standards in existence, and the estimation of the comparative excellence of two or more animals ought to be as much a mechanical matter to a good judge as defining,the merits and demerits of, say, a cheese, for which bo miuy points are awarded for colour, texture, flavour, and so on. Moreover, the:owners of animals which are not winners will be able to see where and in what particular their exhibit is deficient, and will sat ihsmßelves to the' tf.sk of removing the blemish by selection. In a rough and ready j way the judges do at present judge by points, j for they place a weak feature in &n animal against a strong one, and always approximate at all events t0.% just -virdict: 'Bat all judges are not infallible, nor is friendship entirely unknown to 'influence decisions, though we ha3ten to say that, ths Otago Agricultural and Pastoral Society., has beeu singularly fortunate in this respect. The unlucky exhibitor has not been informad of the nature of his mistake, and perhaps goes on hoping for more lenient judges, and psrhaps concluding that the taking of prizes is as much a matter of luck as Skill. Anyone who takes an interest in such matters will observe that animals meet in successive show rings and change places on the prize-list with perplexing frequeacy. Thi3 ought not to be possible, for the fallibility of a judge ought not to be an element in any competition. We would therefore welcome the introduction of a system which makes such occurrences impossible, .and which would further tend towards making the production cf good sfeoc'k much more nearly a certainty than at present, provided no serious inconvenience is occasioned by the necessary limitation of the field'for the selection of judges.

(There ia probably no incident which creates more widespread sympathy than - A pathetic such a one as that reported in STORT. Saturday's- issue, where three children near Wagga Wagga; in r7ew South Wales, wandered away from their home and perished in the bush. These three mites, aged three, four, and five years, wandered after an opossum od Saturday evening, and were not found until Friday, ths weifaer meanwhile having been cold and wet, and when the woman who traced them through the movement of some crows found them they were lying' dead face downward on a stony ridge, being thinly .clad and without boots. .16 is nob difficult to imagine that the woman's fore-. bodings' when she saw the crows hovering over the spot must have led her to expect a,more gruesome sight than a dead lamb, but luckily this" additional pang was spared to the parents ; and, as is invariably the case, the whole of the neighbours turned out in the search. In Australia, where there are unpeopled solitudes • even in districts which are termed, settled, men and women leave their own business at the cry of "snake" or on a tumour that 'someone js lo3t. The despairing cry of the mother and the pale and set face of /the father find ready response from- willibg hearts, and frequently no resi is taken until the fate of ' the little ones is ascertained. Sometimes a j whole continent is thrilled by, the news that after a number of days the lost ones have been found unharmed:';' and the incident^furnishes material - for pathetic pictures and stories, it may be, cf childish heroism. Such episodes are almost peculiar to the colonies, and they contribute not a little to the romance which pervades colonisation.

i ' . . % A correspondent who informs us that he has just completed a residence of six 4 want at weeks in the Dunedin Hospital, the ■ state? that he desires to suggest „ hospital, an addition which would add to the comfort of the curses and not impossibly co the patients.' Like almost everyone who has been attended, to in the hospital our correspondent is imbued with feelings of gratitude and affection for the nurses, and desires to contribute something which might mitigate the drawbacks involved in their calling. He points out that the Nurses' Home is at come distance from the main buildings, and that consequently, i the nurseshaveto negotiate the^intervening space sometimes in wet weathey, which at half-past 6 on a winter's morning is neither plaasant nor safe. Consequently he suggests that a covered way might be erected. It need not beef pensive, and now that the public have subcribed so liberally for the children's ward there should be ample means at command. We pass the suggestion on to the truitees with the greatest pleasure, although we' are aware the subject has not escaped their notice. One would thinksthat it was not conducive to the recovery of a;patient to be attended by a nurse, who, however well wrapped up, must be more or ■ less damp after passiag through driving • raiu. A covered way would undoubtedly add tov the ' comfort of ' the nur3es. We regard the incident'as an exceedingly pleasing one, testifying as it does to the nature of the feelings evoked from patients by the nurs6S, and a strong corroboration of tbe hope 3 entertained when the female nurses ware substituted for males. The institution is one in which the city may take justifiable pride, and in due time no doubt ife will find a place among those to which benefactioos are given by grateful or sympathetic persons. J

i A wall-attended meeting of the executive of the Otago Central Riilway League was held j last evening, at which numerous lettera wers received promising co-operation with respect to the league's petition. Several of the letters contained somfj strong points in favour of the prosecution of ths railway, and these letters are published in our report of the meeting. The executive last evening resolved to invite members of. Parliament to a conference, to be held on the 17th inst., or.some other convenient; date, to discuss and to advise as to the position of the railway. His Honor Mr Justice Williams was to have left Dunedin yesterday for tke purpose of holding sittings of ths Supreme Court at Oamatu, but this was not necessary as the only civil oa.se set down for hearing had been settled, and there was no criminal business to be dealt with. A sitting of the Supreme Court in Banco is to be held to-day, and an appeal against the decision of the magistrate givan in the Jockey Club's trespass cases is to be argued.

The Hon. J. G. Ward's supporters and admirers in the Awarna electorate have (our j Inverctrgill correspondent; wirts) decided to j honour him with a banquet in Invercargili on ! Thursday, the 16th iast. This date has been j fixed to rniit the convenience of the Hon. John j H'Kenzie,.who has promised to be present. '■ ■ The ordinary meeting of tbe Otago University Conncil was hold yesterday, but • very little business, and that of an ordinary j character, was transacted. The council also 1 considered in committee the draft of a bill { dealing with its endowments. | The Acting-Premier has informed Mr Hogg, i M.H.R , that a bill to assist dairy farmers, by i means of advances repay^le on the instalment I system, in establishing butter and cheese factories and creameries, has been prepared. and will be introduced at an early stage on the ' assembling of Parliamaat. ■Mr G. A. Biroh in to ba succesded in the | management of the Bank of Now Zealand at j Timaru by Mr Callenner, of Wellington, who j has been acting as one of the inspectors of the i '• .bank. I

Mr Paulin, who has sufficiently recovered from his illness to resume bis weather forecaats, predicted at 8 o'clock laafc evening: "Heavy weather may be espacted south of Christchurch and Hokitika' after the next 30 hours, with strong N.B. to N.W. winds, and subsidiary electrical disturbances."

The Rev. D. O'Donnell continued his mission in the City Hall yesterday. la the eveniDg, before a very large audiencs, he gave an addrtss on the text from Corinthians, "If the Gospel be hid it is hid to those who are 103t." His discourse included soma very brilliant and powerful passages, which "wsre really fine examples of word-painting, possessing the additional merit of not being orerdrawa. There was a deep feeling in the gathering, and at the after meeting, at which there was a great number preseut, several parsons went forward to receive salvation. At the midday ■meeting yesterday there was a large attendance at the hall, when Mr O'Djnnell gxva an addreßS on "Daniel," which wa9 full of good points. To-day special attention is drawn to the fact that the meeting advertised for midday will in future be hald from 3 to 4 p.m.

i In the Calcutta Englishman of July 17 | giving particulars of the. expedition seat to • punish the Muliks concerned in the attack on | Mr Gee, political officer, Tochi, some idea may he gathered of the terrible work involved' in forced marches in ladia. For instance, a telegram from Dftfctii Khel states that the Argyla and Sutherland Highlanders ravened in there j 517 riflea strong. .This meant that in 13 I marches nearly 300 men have become aoni effective. The relieving column of the Rifle j Brigade performed a march of nearly nine miles in an hour and a-half. On everything that a European private carried being weighed, including rifle, 100 rounds ammunition, and clothing the total was 371b lOoz. The weight carried by the 14th Sikhs in the same march was 431b Boz, or s!b 14Sz more than his British comrade. , Mr J. W. PoyntoD, S.M., gave judgment at Invercargill on Saturday in a case in which a fishmonger named John. Ramsay was charged with esoosing unsound fish for sale. Mr Macalister, for the defence, had taken the objection that the fish should have been shown to the magistrate or a justics before a summons was issued, also that' there was' no proof that the fish which were fhown to rival tradesmen and condemned by them came from the def,en-. dant's shop. The magistrate dismissed the information1, holding that notice must first be given to the person exposing the article, and if he did not withdraw ,it then he would have committed an ofience. No costs were allowed the defendant. . :. j Mr William Thomson, who^ died at Maori j Hill on Saturday, at the advanced age 0f.86 j years, received a mercantile training in Liver- j pool, and in 1645' went out to India, landing in j Calcutta, as the new partn; - in the firm of Malcolm and Co. Daring his 18 years' residence j in India Mr Thomson became largely interested in the jute industry, and he had extensive indigo plantations and an important factory at Tirhoot; while he also experimented in the j production of coffee,, but this did not turn out so well as his venture in the tea line, which was the beginning of a very, important concern. Mr Thomson was a pioneer in the Indian tea-grow-iug business, his plantation &t Assam being the second that was started there. As the outcome of his energy and application, Mr Xhomeon was able to retire from India with a considerable fortune, and he settled down in England to enjoy his life quietly ; but as. the. reiulb of the crisis of 1866—Overeud and Gurney/s year and the stoppage of the Agra. Bank—his plans had to be altered, and,, coining to New Zealand in 1863, he settled three years later in Dunedin,. where his family have largely identified themselves with ths history of the place, Mr J. C. Thomson and Mr G. M. Thomson being-two of his sons. . .■■'..'.' The death occurred at Wellington on Sunday of Mr Tallis Trimnell, the well-known musician, j formerly of Auckland. ■ The deceased was judge of the bands contest ab Dnnedin inHB9l and at Wellington the following year. He waa to have acted at the Oamaru contest nest November. The Oam'arti Mail says that it will be generally conceded that the musical world of New Zealand hr.s lost its moat illustrious figure.. Modest to. a degree very unusual with those who are devptse3 of the art, Mr. Trimnell had earned "distinction long before he came to this colony, alike as an organist, composer of church music, instructor of brass bands, and adjudicator of band contests, in which latter capacity he had been associated with Lieutenant Charles Godfrey and other eminent musicians afc many of. the most'notable contests m-England, his experience- in that direction dating bsck to the early sixties. . .

In the course of a' recent proceeding in the Magistrate's Court in lavercargill,.in which a man was charged -with criminal libel, Mr Poynton, S.M., characterised as cowardly a question put by Mr Macalister, the defending counsel, to the husband of the prosecufcrix. On the case being called on for the resumption of the hearing on Saturday, Mr Mxcalister said (the Times reports) that he, did nob remember that remark being made b/his Worship, otherwise he would have had some explanation to make at the time. He maintained that he'had never, acted in a cowardly way, and in that respect the word was meaningless when applied to him. He maintained that the question put by him was open and in order, and he therefore thought that the remark by his Worship was uncalled for and as far a? he (counsel) was concerned, meaningless. Mr Poyhton said h& used. the word taken exception- to after delibaratioa, and he was still of opinion that ib was a cowardly thing for a counsel to bully a witness. I'he words used by counsel were "You're a thief, are you not ? " and in his (Mr Poynton's) opinion a lawyer exceeded his privileges in making use.-of- phraees of that description,- as the witness, unless" he was a wit, could not reply sharply, and it was therefore the duty of the court to protect him. His Worship read the section of the act which showed thab it was the duty of the couvt to protect witnesses when questions; sven if proper, were put in an offensive form. He considered the way the question under notice was. asked was offensive and insulting. Mr fflaoalister stated that he was not frightened of any magistrate or solicitor, and he could not be called cowardly in his conduct of casßs or in any other way. Mr Poynton said he did not want Mr Macnlister or anyone else to bo afraid of him, but it was his duty to protect the witness, and, should a similar occasion arise, he would most certainly characterise the conduct in the same manner.

The Belgian bar is at) this moment a* a erasbed worm. It had quite recently sent out cards for an international congress, the Minister, for Justice having promised his patronage and a credit for expenses of £600. All was goiDg as merry as a marriage bell, when, on the credib beiDg proposed in Parliameut, the chief of the Right got up and averred that lawyers talk a great deal too much as ib is, and it war outrageous that they should ventilate small talk at the. taxpayers' expense.. The chief of the Socialist Left said., ditto, and the mortified Minister withdrew his proposal.

There was a large attendance st the CavarBliatn Presbyterian Hall last evening-, when, the Literary and Debating Society held a "Gentlemen'it night." The gentlemeu had prepared a miscellaneous programme, which evidently was highly enjoyed judgiDg by the applause which greeted the efforts of the performers. Ths first part of the programme was styled "A Night in the Barrack Room," and appropriate songs, recitations, &c, ware gone through. Th« second part consisted of a tragedy entitled " The Irish Bricklayer. It was fallowed by 8 comedy called "In Paradise." Both were gone through with skill, and proved a source of enjoyment to all present.

The Southern Starr-Bbwkett Society held its second Rale of an appropriation oE £500 last niaht, the result being that £4-00 was disposed of "at £30 per £100, and the remaining £100 for £2C. • .

Messrs Reid and Gray have been advised by Mr I*1. N. Meadows, who has charge of the New Zealand court at the Brisbane International Exhibition, of the following awards in connection with their exhibits :—Special first (gold medal), champion doublerfurrow plough ; special first (gold medal), disc harrow; special first (gold medal), grain and lncerne drill; first, portable, chaffcuttcr and bagger.

A sale of work will be opened in the Y.W.C.A, sooms to-morrow afternoon