THE OTAGO DAILY TIMES WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 3, 1898.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 11182, 3 August 1898, Page 2

THE OTAGO DAILY TIMES WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 3, 1898.

Parliamentary elections in New South "Wales have of; recent years possessed outside interest from the frequent changes .which have been made in the fiscal policy of the parent colony.' These elections have also,, not only for the reason mentioned but because political life is very active in New South Wales, presented features of great internal interest, and !an election in that colony is attended by a state of political effervescence not exceeded in any English-speaking electorate. But the general election of last Wednesday probably exceeded any of its predecessors in internal and external interest, for upon the issue depended not only the question whether New South Wales should join, in the Federation of the Aus-, tralian colonies, but whether Federation itself should become an immediate possibility or. be indefinitely postponed for discussion under such changed circumstances as would involve a reopening of the whole question. The question before the electors'on Wednesday last must have been tolerably familiar to them from the circumstance that the subject has just been most exhaustively discussed by the press and public men. An actual majority decided in favour of Federation on the terms laid down in the Commomvealth Bill agreed upon at the Convention,: but the mandate so delivered was astutely nullified in anticipation by the provision that 80,000 electors must vote in favour of the Bill. Mr Reid's at- . titude was extremely difficult to understand. It was not even understood in Sydney, where a deliverance by him was summed up in the contradictory phrase " Yes-no," wliich seems like a resuscitation of the phrase "Free-tection," happily devised, to express the attitude of the policy propounded by the late Sir Henby Parkes in his latest appeal to the electors. But although the policy of Mr Reid and his followers was indefinite, it , was not avowedly anti-federal ? and in all | the election no candidate stood in oppo-

sition to Federation. It wasls fight between the followers of Mr Barton and those of Mr. Reid whether the other-colo-nies should "be asked to agree to the striking out of the " Braddon " clause, altering the three-fifths majority in the joint sitting to a bare majority, and to place the Federal capital within the boundaries of New South Wales, or whether New South Wales should attach ; conditions not contained in the . Bill, and not .. eye,n . yet outlined with distinctness, to falling into line with the other coldnies. ' Wednesday's election gave Mr Reid"a majority of eight only in a House of 125, and it must be remembered that of fill's number there are 19 Labour members, who, finding themselves in a position to turn the scale, may at; any moment, on any crucial division, attach'an impossible price to their adhesion.. It is true, that the whole of the members are,committed to the principle of Federation but conditions may be annexed which the other colonies would not accept. '".''"' " The election was plentiful in surprises and kaleidoscopic changes. Mr Barton, the leading advocate of the Commonwealth. Bill, and the man entitled to the credit of having piloted it through' the Convention, deserted a country constituency, where his election was practically assured, in order to measure swords with the Premier in the King constituency, one of the suburbs of Sydney. This was a masterly piece of strategy, though it resulted in Mr Barton's defeat. Mr Reid's personality woulcfhave practically assured him a walk-over for the King division against ally other candidate, but Mr Barton's candidature made it necessary that Mr Reid should stay at home and fight a battle, and the latter, gentleman was therefore unable to stump ; the electorates in support of his "Yes-, no" policy. But Mr Reid lost three of; his Ministerial colleagues, and though: several leading Oppositionists failed to \ secure re-election, a seat will almost certainly be found for Mr Bakton, who will then probably succeed Mr Lynb as Leader ; of the Opposition. \ The Labour party , has lost two of its prominent members, Messrs Schey and Black, who will now ', have an opportunity of earning a liveli- j hood in. some other way than by their poli- j tical talents. Mr Norton,' also, not long i since chosen at a by-election at Fitzroy, j will now have leisure to meditate upon | the fickleness of constituencies. Mr, Bruce-Smith, Mr R. E. O'Connor j and j Mr M'MiITjAX have '.also bee"n relegated ■ to private life for a time. \ The bearing of the election upon Fede- : ration has yet to be seen. It is not likely that Mr Reid will mbe -allowed to shirk Federation, nor will it,,be prudent for him to attach such conditions as. will make the inclusion of New South Wales unacceptable to the other colonies. For example, after the abortive plebiscite in June Mr Reid put himself in communication; with the other Premiers and

asked that a conference of Premiers j should be held with a view of modifying the Bill so that it should be acceptable ■in New South Wales. He suggested that • I the necessary alterations. should be submitted to the respective Parliaments by way of an address from the Governor or by a Bill, specifying the, changes made. The objections against such a course- were ! obvious. Victoria, Tasmania, an.d South Australia had just accepted the Cqmrnon.wealth Bill by large majorities, arid it. would be. highly improper ,if the Parliaments of these colonies were to disturb a decision so ■ recently arrived at. It may be urged that it was not in contemplation to make any vital changes in the Bill, but if that were'so it considerably . discounts the force of th,e New South j Wales objections, and only adds to.the j fear- of Mr Reid's insincerity. It is. very, j evident that, in the words of the Sydney j Morning Herald, the electors, have taken ■ Mr Reid at his word, and have given him | the opportunity he asked for in order to ' accomplish Federation,; The return of a: House practically luianinious on the subI ject proves that the "Will' of the people has been elicited by the personal appeal of the candidates, although the plebiscite failed to elicit that opinion with sufficient force. It therefore follows that , what remains in order that New SouthWales shall federate is a matter of details. We are not sanguine, however, ; that the remaining difficulties will be easily surmounted. Though we are hardly disposed to go so far as the Argus when it said that " unholy coalitions of Protec- j j tionists, ultra-Freetraders, property-: owners, crazy Socialists, money bags, and , gutter-snipes," conspired +) defeat Federation at the plebiscite, it is never- j tholess undeniable that conflicting inte- j rests, chiefly on the fiscal question, will j materially l'etard a decision. Mr Reid i has been given a great, opportunity; to display his tact and' ingenuity, and he will be stimulated by the instinct'of selfpreservation. This makes the prospects of Federation more hopeful". : : ;

In'the Legislative Council yesterday, the Stratford Electric Lighting Bill was read a second time, and some progress made in Committee with the Animals' Protection Bill. ■

In the House of Representatives, the Light Locomotives Bill, dealing with motor cars, was referred back to the Private Bills Committee. Questions occupied the rest of the afternoon sitting. In the evening, the question of a Pacific cable.was referred to the Public Accounts Committee, and the Dairy Industry Bill was read a second time. The Banking Bill was then taken in Committee, and clause 8 was under consideration when the telegraph office closed. .. '

The Telegraph department was advised last evening'from Sydney that the Victorian and South Australian telegraph wires were interrupted through heavy gales'and a snowstorm, and that all work would be delayed.

The case in the Admiralty jurisdiction of the Supreme Court jn which Cxptain Paterson geeks, to recover £3400 from the Union Steam Ship Company as damages for the loss of the barque Laira will be commenced before Mr Justice Ponnefathor on the earliest date after the Supreme Court sittings at Oamaru, the day appointed for the opening of these being the 6th September. It was mentioned by Mr Holmes, solicitor for the company, in Chambers, when this' arrarigemont was arrived at, that the witnesses for the defence were nearly all on. tho ocean at presont, but as they arrived back in Dunedin they would be dotained here. " They would all be back in Dunj edin .within four weeks—most of them pro- j j bably within three weeks. The novelty ,pf the i procedure under the Admiralty ' rules was made apparent yesterday on an application j by tho defendants for the delivery of plead•i ings in the case. Nq statement of claim is .! filed and delivered, as in a case on the civil side of the Supreme Court, and there is no ; statement of defence. The object of the rules i is to avoid pleadings, and the application of ! the defendants for the delivery of them was ■ dismissed. Instead of pleadings, the plaintiff has to deliver what is called a" preliminary act," which contains what would ordinarily be contained in a statement of .claim, and probably more, but it ie sealed up until the case comes on for trial, and it is only then that its contents are open to the defence. I At a special meeting of the North-East Vali ley Oounoil on Monday evening the torms i which are to be offered to tho City and Suburban Tramway Company were iigroed upon. A valuator was appointed to repie^ sent the council in. case the terms weio not .accepted.

] The case of Couston v. M'Kenzie, partly argued in the Supreme Court in Banco on Monday, was mentioned yesterday in Chambers by Mr Hosking. who observed that there were sections in the Land Act of 1877, not quoted by him on the previous day, which seemed to him likely to dispose of the matter. ! Sections 16 and 17 of that act seemed to imI ply, he »aid, that a perpetual leaseholder had j a right of acquiring the fee simple, and if • that was the case a perpetual lease came directly within the exception in the definition of Crown lands in the Mines Act. A man named J. R. Morrison was arrejcod by Detective O'Brien last evening on three charges of alleged forgery and uttering | cheques. Morrison had taken up Lis 1 quarters in one of the hotels in the city, and when Detective O'Brien entered the sitting room he found his man engaged in reading a novel "In the Nick of Time." It appeared from a letter read at yesterday's meeting of the Council of the Acclimatisation Society that, a resident of the Waikouaiti district recently had a rather singular experience. Hehad gone out with a pdlico constable to watch for. poachers of fish, and was following the railway line in order to cross the Waikouaiti bridge, when a surfaceI man's trolly appeared on the scene, and to j escape it the amateur detective lay down on ! the Bleeperg,. and thus allowed the trolly to pass over him. " What the mischief are you ! doing here?" the lineman' asked him, and that is a question which; is to be solved in the ■! Waikouaiti court, an information charging 1 him with illegal trespass' having been laid against the resident. It is evidently apprehended that there may be some difficulty in securing the appointment of disinterested assessors to assist Mr Justice ; Pennefather. in the Laira case, which is | shortly to engage his attention. The matter ! was discussed informally, in Chambers yester- \ day morning, when Mr Solomon, who ap- ; peared with Mr for the late owner '■ of the barque, said it was a matter of great ■importance that assessors who had no interest ; either way should be appointed, and, so far I as the plaintiff was concerned, lie would be \ quite satisfied if either one or two assessors j were appointed who did not live in New Zeaj land at all, and he. was willing to share the j expense of importing assessors from Australia. His Honor inquired if there were no retired sea captains living here. \" They are: very | old,'1 unfeelingly replied Mr Solomoii;;.while !Mr Hosking, who asked that both parties • might have an opportunity of being heard on ■ the question of appointment of assessors; said ■that the Union Steam Ship "Company emj braced the largest number of naval experts j in the colony, and it was difficult to find men ; who were not connected either with the comj pany or else With the insurance companies as j Lloyd's surveyors. His Honor, who cou- ■ fessed that he had himself no nautical know- ! ledge, mentioned the names of two former I naval officers who live in the north, and quesi tioued whether there were not any persons : connected with the Government steamors or with the direct steamers who might be suitable. Mr Chapman, counsel for the Union Company, said there was the objection against the naval officers that they probably knew very little about seamanship, and Mr Solomon objected to the appointment of captains of English ships on account of. the fraternity between them and the colonial captains. l\o definite understanding was come to, but the matter is to be brought formally before the court at some future time. . .

I It was suggested by'ivlr Justice Pennefather yesterday that the evidence in the Admiralty case of Paterson v. tlie Union Steam Ship .Company should be taken as binding in the Supreme Court case of Hoigh v. the Union Company. His Honor said it would be a foolish waste of money to go through the whole of the evidence,'twice,;but at the same | time,the cases coiild not-be.heard.together, as i they were in different courts. It was under' stood that counsel on;.both, sides assented to the suggestion made by his Honor. A queslion raised by the case^qf'Hoigh Vi the Unicin .Compauy was whether .pleadings were neces- | sary in an action which, instituted in the Magistrate's' Court, was remoyisd into .< the j Supreme Coiirt. The; question was whether plaintiff- should file a "Statement of claim-in the Supreme Court or whether, the Magis- | trate's Courfr particulars of claim were to be J treated as a statement of claim, and, then, ■ whether the defendants were to file a statej ment of defence. The contingency, Mi- ! Solomon said, was one that was not provided j for in the rules. Mr, Chapman also remarked ! that the rules were absolutely bare on the ' subject of the procedure in the evant of a case being removed from the Magistrate's Court, but he pointed but that in the case of j Satchelor v. Gore, which had been so Removed, pleadings were exchanged. His Honor said it seemed to him on the face of it that the fairest practice' was that there should be a regular statement of claim, and Mr SolJmon i imdertook that that course should be followed ■ in the case in question, j ' j It was arranged in the Supreme Court yes- • terday that the' Banco argument in the case ; of Fleming v. the Bank of New Zealand— tried at the last sittings at Invercargill— should be taken on the 17th inst., when the matter will come up in the form of a motion i for judgment on behalf of the plaintiff, and ; a motion for a nonsuit or a new trial on ba- , half of the defendant. The annual business meeting of the Young ! Women's Christian Association was held in ] ! the association's rooms last evening. The re- j ,' tiring president (Mrs. Paul) occupied the ! chair, and explained that the report was not yet ready, but would be presented at a social meeting, for which the new Committee of Management would make arrangements. A great deal of good had, she said, been done during the past year, but the association was still suffering under financial difficulties, which it was hoped it would in time overcome, and towards that end it would be a great help if the membership of the association were extended. The following officebearers were elected for the ensuing year: • - President, Mrs A. North; vice-president, Mrs Paul; hon. treasurer, Mrs M'Leod (reelected); hon. secretary, Mrs Downie Stewart (re-elected); committee —Mesdames T. Dick, Duke, Eunson, Gilray, G. Hercus, Pirn, W. L. Simpson, Vanes, and Wheeler, Misses Hare, j M'Dougall, and Statham.

Mr A. Wilson, rector of the Boys' High School, having returned from his holiday tour of the Home Country resumed his position yesterday morning. He was enthusiastically cheered in the hall, and after prayers he briefly addressed the boys, expressing his pleasure at being amongst them again. He had travelled through many countries since he had seen them last, but came back qtiite sure that there was no place like New Zealand. Ho thanked Mr Watson for the way he had Iqpkcd after the work during his absence, arid lie was glad to hear that the conduct of the boys had been satisfactory. In a raid made by the police on Sunday j evening on o gambling house in Alexandra I South, the Ohineso occupier, of the house, 13 Europeans, and four Chinese were captured, and afterwards admitted to bail. Gambling : appliances were' secured by the police, and some £70 in money was found on those arrested. At the executive meeting of the Christian Endeavour Union on Monday the president [ (Rev. F. W. Boveham) stated that a Christian | Endeavour Society existed on board Admiral Dewey's flagship, the Olympia, which possessed a considerable membership among the men, and which met in the officers' room on Friday evenings. I

The output of coal from the Westport Coal Company's mines for tho month of July was 25,538 tons 16cwt.

I Me3srs J. N. Brown and W. Bridgman were the presiding justices at the sitting of the City Police Court on Tuesday, when Jeannie Knight was fined 10s for being drunk. John Jury was fined 2s 6d for driving round the : corner of Princes and Rattray streets at other than a walking pace, and was allowed a week in which to pay. The remaining case was a charge against Lawrence Johnson of depositing nightsoil in his yard in Walker street. Inspector Donaldson asserted that this sort of thing was becoming a habit in tho city. The defendant was fined 10s, and 11- days waa allowed in which to pay the fine. The bench stated that they had 'made the fine light in [ co:isec>uenco of defendant being a poor man.

At a meeting of the committee of the Dunedin Fanciers' Club, the secretary reported that entries were coming in freely from all parts of New Zealand, including several champion collies, St. Bernards, retrievers, and spaniels, and a great many imported fowls, including game, Minorcas, Orpingtons, etc. Several more special prizes have been promised. The committee . decided, as a special encouragement to children, to allow them to enter free in the class for children's pets, and have offered six trophies to be competed for in this class.

The latest letters received in Dunedin from Mr James Allen, M.H.R., were dated the 16th June at Rome, and stated, that Miss Allen had recovered very considerably, but that she was still not sufficiently Btrong to permit of her removal. It was hoped that within a week cr two the patient would be sufficiently recovered to enable her to be removed to Naples, and thence the party would proceed as, speedily as possible to London with the view of returning to the colony by one of the direct steamers, but their movements were entirely in'the hands, of- their medical' adviser.

The Fredos repeated their performance at the Alhambra Theatre last evening in the presence of a fairly numerous and exceedingly appreciative audience. The programme prosonted on the preceding evening waa gone through, and the surprising feats of strengUi and skill deservedly elicited the very warmest demonstrations of approval. Madame Fredo's j performance was especially commendable, while the balancing acts of Mr J. Dristell, the pedestal posturing act of' Terenoski Kadamo, and the -aerial act by Master Lar and Madame Fredo were the principal features of what may justly be;described a« an excellent entertainment. Miss Nellie Finley and Mr Will Watkins, who. were recently connected with the Ada Juneen Oompanv, diversified the series of feats performed by the Fredos with enjoyable character sketches. To-night the programme will'be repeated for the last time, a change of programme being announced for Thursday, r The pictures of a <'Tour Through Japan," which excited admiration last Saturday evening, will be. reproduced again this evening at the Garrison Hall. An attractive ■musical programme has also been arranged. It is scarcely necessary, to remind our readers that Mrs Collet Dobson will take a benefit at the Princess Theatre. this evening, when ["Sweethearts" and " Pygmalion and Galatea"- will be staged. ; The,sale of tickets has been so extensive that there is sure to be j a very large attendance. .. ... .] ... The Lucas-Hardie Company . have secured performing rights of "The Silver King" for their present, tour from Messrs ..Williamson and Musgrove; also of '.'The Middleman,' for which they have to pay royalty to Mr .Charles Cartwright. In "The Middleman" Mr Luoas should be seen to advantage in a I powerful oharaeter. ' •-'.'.' ' \ ! ■— V-— >-~-- " ■ ! A diocesan festival will be.held in the Garrison Hall on Monday next/ when music and reI freshments will be provided. .The speakers will : include Bishop Nevill, Very Rev. -Dean Fitchett, ;Mr Justice Pennefather, Dr Hocken and : others, ' . : The annual meeting of the New Zealand .Refrigerating Co. will be-held-in the Chamber of Commerce on Friday afternoon. ' ; The usual meeting of the Gaelic Society will be held this evening: in the Stuart str.eet Odd-. ' fellows' Hall. , •• ■ - ' , . - ■ In connection with the First Church Literary and Social Club a leoturd will be given by the Rev. W. Saunders this.evening. ' Messrs James Samson and Co. will, sell household furniture on Saturday: * John Hislop, oldest established Watchmaker and Jeweller, 74 Princes- street. Good assortment Watohes, Clocks, and Jewellery. Spectacles suit ill.sights.—Advt. ' Massage and Electricity.—Mr and Mrs D. Edwin Booth, Massage -■ Institute, Stuart street, Dunedin.T—Tjbdor the, patronage of the medical gentlemen of Dunedin. ■ Visitors to Dunedin during the Jubilee holidays are cordially ■ invited to inspect G. .and T. .'Young's' magnificent stock -of watches, j clocks, jewellery, silver, and -silver-plated goods. G. and T. Young supply, the, best;.at reasonable prices.—Advt. ' . . ' •..•'. Foe. PUNCTDT.VL Ttota!—Peter Dick most j reliable Watchmaker and Jeweller,' opposite j Coffee Palace, Moray place'/ Dunedin. Charges j strictly moderate. —Advt.-" '