OUR MELBOURNE LETTER

Otago Daily Times, Issue 14001, 6 September 1907, Page 6

OUR MELBOURNE LETTER

(Frou Our Own Correspondent.) MELBOURNE, August 28.: Mr Carruihers's various feuds with the Commonwealth culminated on Wednesday ■last .in an act of definite lawlessness. A quantity of wire netting ordered by the State Government lor sale to farmers and graziers at cost price had arrived by. tho Kent. Two officers of the State Government went down lo Darling Harbour and took possession of 6omo of the netting, placod it on trolleys, and took it awafr. Customs officers attempted to intervene, but tho police in attendance prevented tlieni from using any force, and word was sent to the Customs, and all hands, clerks and messengers, under Mr Baxter, went down to Darling Harbour. They outnumbered the State forcc t and no more wire was taken. Several rolls had, however, .been taken, and there are all under lock and key in the custody of tlio Stato. The. incident was announced in. tlio House of Representatives that' afternoon by Sir William Lync, the, Acting Prime Minister. Ho spoke with becoming restraint, but his remarks created a sensation. Several Labour members called out, "Havo hiiii arrested!" and the sentiment was endorsed by cheers from the Ministerial benches. Not a public, man throughout Australia was prepared to endorse Mr Carruthers's action, though he has received private . telegrams in great numbers, congratulating him on- the step ho has taken. State Prom tors and -others were prepared ito admit that there was much in the Commonwealth altitude,to provoke resentment, but ono and all oondemnod tho recourse io force. There is a very strong suspicion that the coup wa6 an electioneering stroke, but there is by this time some difference of opinion as to whether it was a wise one.

It. must not, however, be supposed that Mr Carruthers is entirely without defence. Tho Constitution says that the Commonwealth shall not impose any tax on, tho property of a State. The question whether they could tax imports was settled in tho negative by tho State Full Court before the High Court camo into existence. That therefore was tho Jaw, but in spito of it the Commonwealth continued to levy duties on State imports, Mr Cairuthors was not going to law again, so lie bad recourse to other methods. "The Federal Government," ho said, " takes no more notice of State rights than if they were a dog ■it was running over with its political motor car. I am determined, however, that the matter shall be brought to issue speedily." Speaking to his constituents, next day at Rockdale, ho said that things had. come to a pretty pass in a country supposed to he under democratic institutions when it. was a crime for a man to do moro" than talk; a crime for a man to act in accordance with the written and interpreted law of the land in which ho lived. He had no wish to. keep a dog that would only bark. He wanted a dog which could bito as .well, and ho had no faith in the class of nian'wlio was always yelping at the heels of other people, and could do no more than talk.

Action was commenced by the Commonwealth befoio the High Court claiming the return of tho wire netting; a declaration that it was forfeited, and an injunction to restrain the State from disposing of the rolls. The High Court refused to move, the reason king that tho Now South Wales Government was capablo of satisfying any order that might be made against it. WAR 'INVENTIONS. Melbourne, which was the birthplace of the Brennan torpedo, promises to produce two other very important engines of war. Mr G. Austin, of tho Public Works Department. is at present in London in connection' with some marvellous inventions which it is said will sight a gun at sea. in the roughest weather with perfect accuracy. When Mr Austin went Home ho was to explain the general principles of his invention to Sir George Clarke, formerly Governor Victoria, but then Secretary of tho Committeo of Imperial Defence. If Sir George wero satisfied that the matter was worthy of consideration the .inventor's representative was to be introduced to the Admiralty. Well, Sir George Clarke was seen, a.nd since then all has been silence. A co-inventor has been summoned to London from.. Melbourne, and. tho syndicate interested in tho patent believes that all is going well, and that the new device is to be adopted. A new torpedo has been invented by Mr R. Millanc, a young man living in Fitzroy. He had anticipated that lie would be able to propel torpedoes at 35 miles an hour. He built- his torpedo at the Naval Depot, Williamstown, and only finished it on Thursday last. It worked smoothly from tho first, and in a trial made on land developed a speed of from 43 to 45 knots an hour. Captain Tickell has not yet reported on tho invention, but it is believed that lie has been favourably impressed by it, Certainly those who saw the trial were. ; A CHURCH DEMONSTRATION. Archbishop Carr is to lcavo Melbourne early next year on his decennial visit to Rome. His congregation desired to give him some testimony of tho esteem in which they hold him, and as ho would not take any personal vift it was decided to clear tho debt off the Cathedral Hall and present tho archbishop with, the title dedse. This fine building, which contains : two halls and men's and women's club rooms, was tho idea of the archbishop. It cost £21,000, and there remained a ■ debt of £6700, for which Archbishop Carr had mado himself personally responsible.. Appeals wero mado by tho Central Committee to the various parishes, and tho result wjis that £7843 was raised in four months, being £1097 over the sum required. Last Monday was the "silver"'anniversary of Archbishop Carr's episcopal conserration, and the presentation was made to him in St. Patrick's _ Cathedral. Over 10,000 peoplo were within the cathedral an hour before the proceedings started. It- was probably the largest assemblage ever got together under one roof in the Southern Hemisphere to listen to speeches. Addresses were presented to tho archbishop by the bishops .of the province, by tho clergy of the archdiocese, and by tholaity. The title deeds of the hall, were handed over to him and the bank book with a balance of over £1000. This surplus is to bo disposed of as the archbishop thinks fitting. In reply, ho stated that he would devote it to the Catholic primary and subschools. He already had £2000 placed in his hands by a friend for the defence, of tho schools, whose work, ho said, was being threatened by. the requirements of tho Teachers' Registration Board in regard to tho training of teachers. MR CRICK STRUCK OFF.

Mr \Y. P, Crick, formerly Minister of Lands in New South Wales, was on Friday last struck of! tho roll of attorneys in connection with tho finding of the Royal Commissioner (Mr Justico OWen) in regard to land scandals, The Chief Justice'dc-. livercd tho finding of the majority of the complete bench of the Full Court, Mr Justico G. B. Simpson being the only dissentient out of tho.six judges. Having stated the reasons for the findinrr briefly, the Chief Justice said: Let the name of William ' Patrick Crick bo struck off tho roll of solicitors of this court. We direct him to pay the costs. Mr Crick: You cannot'order me to pay costs. This was a motion by this court directed to mo by the Chief Justice to come here and answer something. Hie Law Institute then came along. The Chief Justice liave made our .wagr, ■ - •

Mr Crick said that" the court moved of its own motion, and he received notice to defend himself. Later ou Mo Law Institute caino in. 'He submitted that tho court could not; order'him'to pay the costs of some person outside who might walk into court, when''the court itself had initiated tho proceedings. "I candidly say," ho continued, "•that.l will go to — before I pay s shilling to hirii." The Chief Justioo: Now—

Ifr: Crick I beg • your Honor's pardon. I do' not tliink I am oxcitcd. I have been pursued-for three yearSj and if I have to go down, two'.or three more will como with me..; 1;; 1 ; ■ • • The Chief :' Justice said that the order must stand as it was pronounced. Tho court invited tho institute, if it saw fit, to take tho matter up. It went there, and having now succccied, the usual order must follow. ■■ . Mr Crick: Thon I hope they will live long enough to get a bob out 'of me. ' MORE. CLOSER SETTLEMENT. : Mr, Bent, wlio has not got his groat Western ■district land settlement shemo yot through, has now another big proposal 011. the stocks. To the east of tho Tambo River in Gippsland there is an area of nearly 3,000,000 acres, only about 5 per cent; of which- has been alienated. It :is exceptionally rich land, especially on tlio river fiats, lint it is heavily timbored, and: the pioblom'of clearing it.for cultivation would bo beyond the resources of any ordinary farmer. Mr Bent's idea is that tho State should improve its own property by clearing all the richest land, running a railway - through it, and then selling, it at the prico of first-class cultivable land. A railway to Eastern Gippsland would liavo to cross several fine rivers,- including tho' Mitcboll, Nicholson. Tambo, Snowy, Brodribb, Bcmm, and Camm. 111 anticipation of the line being constructed the Government closed,'.-tho land along tho route agariist selection some years ago. A railway v to Gippsland has further possibilities iii that it might creato a tourist traffic to a. picturesque land of cave and • mountain,'forest and stream. , It would aleo form tho first section' of a railway often talked..-of—viz.; one , to.; tap ,' Nevr South Wales, at a point nearest to ,the projected : capital, site, at Dalgotv.

'A MINING MILLIONAIRE, • ' Mr Berit went up to'Beridigo on' Saturday last to iinvcil a memorial tablet to the memory of 'the late Mr George'Lansell. Tlio ward was renamed the George Lansell Ward, and another, wand tho Edith Lansell Ward. This was the recognition by the committee of the late Mr Lanscll's bericfac: tions to the hospital. Mrs Lansell furnished the second ward when her daughter (Miss Edith 1 Lansell) recovered last year from a. very,-severe illness. Speaking later, Mr Beht said that Viotoria had pro-' duced £260,000,000 worth of gold, and 'he believed ' that the surface had only been scratched. If wo had only a few men with the confidence arid pluck of Mr Lansell lie was sure tho industry would prosper morp.than ever. Piuok certainly was, it ma.y;:be/adrtiitted, a. characteristic of Mr Lansell. ,Ho stuck to Bendigo mines throughout, often sinking, large sums in calls genorally to be rewarded in the end. The result was that he, died an' octogenarian, leaving ah estate worth over £600,000. •. On : Saturday Mr Bent announced that': Mrs Lansell had offered £1200 to the. chair of . mining at the univelisity if. ihe Government would give another £1200. On behalf of the Government lie promised that,'and as £5000 was wanted he would make up' half if private liberality, provided the, other half. ( ' , The Premier also announced that he was prepared to spend £1000 or any other reasonable sum in conducting experiments to secure a proper system of ventilation in. the deep mines of the State,