Our Correspondents.

Otago Witness, Issue 1230, 17 July 1875, Page 6

Our Correspondents.

MELBOURNE.

June 2Cth.

The moat characteristic, if not the most creditable, part of the Parliamentary proceedings of the last week or two has been the quiet, unassuming introduction and progress of the Bill for the Amendment of Officials in Parliament Act. This statute, which was passed in earlier better days, is, as it stands, something to the credit of our Parliament. It is an hone3t, well-intentioned, self-denying Ordinance. It provides that no member of the Parliament shall be appointed to any place of honour or profit under the frown — with certain obvious exceptions— during the time of his being a member or for s-ix months afterwards. It assumes that members and Minis, ters are alike weak and fallible —that the former are subject to temptation, and that the latter may find themselves in the position of the tempters. It therefore comes to the aid of imperfect human virtue by assisting it with what has in practice proved a very effective protection. No member now can sell his vote for a place without consenting to run the risk of a hazardous half year, during which time the Government who, tonight, may go out of office and be succeeded by another which might heartlessly repudiate the transaction. But now comes forward a legislative market gardener — Mr Bent — who coinplains that this Act is " a slur" on the character of every member of the House. Another member, withunmistakeable fervour, denounces it as a "blot on the legislation of the country." Well, so far as the sentimental argument about the " slur " is concerned, it may be at once admitted for what it was worth. If it means that the Act implies a suspicion of the immaculate purity of members and Ministers, the answer is that the general outside feeling is that neither the one nor the other is above suspicion. We do not absolutely trust these gentlemen, and prefer to keep a little check upon them. However, the Bill to abolish this measure has been brought in, and very quietly passed its second reading. Honourable members did not care to say much on the subject. They debated the Land Bill for three weels, and then passed its second reading by 52 votes to 9. But they did n>t air much eloquence about the other Bill. They voted straight, but did not discuss the matter very much. Mr Carey drew an affecting picture of a good fat sinecure the Government sow have to give away, and that it is unable to give it to any^ honourable member, on account of this flagitious Act. Honourable members were moved to tears by the picture, and their souls burned with indignation against the conduct of the Parliament which had been base enough to pass this wicked measure. However, it is pretty certain that the little Bill will not get through the Council. The members of that august body are not likely to profit much by any exercise of Government patronage, and will, without doubt, make a cheap display of disinterestedness by rejecting a Bill by which they would have but a very small chance of profiting. But so that it is rejected it does not matter how or why the good result is accomplished. # A curious repetition has been made in the House by Mr G. P. Smith of a charge that was once made in the Upper Chamber by Dr Dobson against the same Minister. Both of these honourable members declare that they mooted to Mr Casey the subject of land selection, and regretted their inability to comply with the residence condition of the Act. To both of them Mr Casey was most accommodating, and promised them that their objects should be forwarded as far as possible. He was also good enough to point out to them how they could evade the conditions of the Act by declaring that it was their intention to reside on the land, and "change their intention five minutes afterwards." This is politic ilJesuitism with a vengeance, but not therefore irreooncileable with the character of Mr Casey. That honourable gentleman, however, flatly denies the statements. The misfortune is that they hay« been made v«ry often by independent witnesses, and that Mr Casey has nothing out his word to urge against them. The consequence ia that public opinion has borne very hard on that self-oomplacent gentleman. A Irtrange rumour has obtained currency to the effect that many members who wanted land were more compliant than Mr Smith or Dr Dobaon, and that they have taken up and expended money on selections which they hold in evasion and direct violation of the Land Act. They are thus thoroughly under the thumb of the Minister, and are compelled to vote at his dictates. It would be interesting to know how much of truth there is in this singular report. The English Government has of late earned ft good deal of public blame by delegating some of its duties to Committees of Enquiry, which have had to investigate and deal with matters which the Government ought itself to dispose of. Our own Ministry is proceeding in a similar course, and an instance of the practice is the Kew Lunatic Asylum Board of Inquiry, now sitting and taking evidence on the statement of a patient that he had been brutally used by one of the warders. The evidence called in support of the statement is, so far, auite ridiculous, and i 3 abundantly refuted by tie counter-testimony. The man's statements Beem to be merely the result of his disordered intellects, and it seems perfectly absurd for a Board to sit and gravely take evidence, of which the following is a specimen :— " I recollect a time when a patient named Stafford told me that if he died I would know that he was smothered. He did die two days later, and I then knew he had been smothered. He also told me that 25 patients had been smothered in one week. I believed it because he told me so. I believe patients were smothered in those days, but Ido not think it is done now. I intend to lecture at the Town Hall, by which I S£ ke a lot of Ultme y> an <l I will then give £000,000 to all the hospitals. I shall also give all the members of the Board £1000, a diamond ring, aud a gold watch and chain. I have not got any money to-day, but I will borrow £10 000 this afternoon from Mr Allan. I went to a jeweller's yesterday aud told them to pack up all their diamonds, as I would buy the lot. I ehall fetch them as soon as I get the money Mr James got my coat out of pawn for me this morning. I had to leave it for six dozen of oysters. When I get my money I will go home and make the Queen a handsome present. I I will give her a gold box and two millions of money. " It may be readily inferred what light is likely to be elicited by an inquiry when such men aa this are the witnesses. The only thin" noteworthy which the investigation has elicited is tbe complaint made by the Superintendent Dr Robertson, of the injury done to the discipline and efficiency of the asylum by the manner in which "political influence " interferes with its management. Men are appointed, not because they are suited to the work, but because they have some member of Parliament to back up their applications. Men are sometimes found to b«^ unfit, but they can-

not be discharged on account of " political influence." One man was once convicted of cruelty, and was sentenced to be dismissed, but " political influence was brought to bear," a r id he was only lowered in rank. In other words, political corruption — for this is what it me.vis — -prevents the Asylum from being managed as it should be. It may readily be seen how futile are inquiries into its management whr-n the efforts of those in charge are counteracted by such influences as these.

A Bill has lately been introduced into the Legislative Council by the representatives of the Government to amend the' law relating to attorneys. It proposes to incorpoiate a Law Society, and to invest it with great privileges. On the one -side, laymen are to hv strictly prevented from doing work that is now perfectly open to them ; and on the other, the common law right of barristers to engage in conveyancing, or to see their clients direct, is taken away. In fact, the measure seeks to establish a close and unfair monopoly, to create a favoured guild, and to give it privileges of a most important character at the cost of the general public The Bill has excited a good deal of opposition out of doors, and, although it may get through the Council, it can hardly fail to come to grief in the Assembly. And thus do the two Houses mutually supply each other's deficiencies and correct each other's partialities. The Hon. J. G. Francis has been very unlucky during- his absence from the Colony. The other day the Victoria Sugar Factory, in which he wa-s a large proprietor, was burned down, and now a store owned by him, and in the occupancy of Messrs Luke and Co., la-, been destroyed by another fire. About the same time an explosion took place in a <j. r s manufactory attached to the Theatre "Royal, employed to produce gas for the lime-light effects in the theatre. The result was the killing of a young man named Sidney Smith, an assistant gasfitter, to whose negligence, it appears, the accident was due. It is satisfactory, however, to find that even thi* rough test did not in the slightest jeopardise the interior of the theatie : so that, if tli ere is a dangerous manufactory of gas just outside, dangerously liable to explosion, it is well to know that there is no danger of any damage being done to the inside of the building or to any of its inmates. The affair reminds me of a little incident that I once observed at the Theatre Royal some years ago. During the course of a performance some disturbance arose in the pit or stalls, and several persons walked out of the house, apparently to settle matters outside. The sight of so many quitting the house in the midst of the performance caused, on a small scale, one of those unreasoning panics that occasionally be»et large assemblages. The people in the dress circle took the alarm and hurried out, but. after waiting for some time, and finding that nothing came of it, they gradually and unobtrusively stole back again to their places. Some came iv looking very sheepish, others with an air of innocence, as though they had merely gone for a drink. When all was quiet again, a gentleman who was in my company, said, " Did you observe that there were only four of us who kept our seats, and all four were pressmen ?" And this was the case.

The great event of the commercial world is still the insolvency of the Messrs M'Ewen, wholesale groceis, with liabilities amounting to about £100,000. At the first meeting of the creditors of the firm, the Manager of the Colonial Bank, which lost about £50,000 by the linn's failure, absolutely refused to give auy information whatever regarding the transactions between the firm and the bank. The refusal caused a good deal of indignation, and it was resolved to at once place the estate in the Insolvent Court. It would seem that the somewhat traeulent manager was brought to book about his behaviour, about which there was but one opinion iv commercial circles, as he has since shown a much more accommodat ing spirit, and has offered terms to the other creditors, which they have taken time to consider.

The Rev. Chas. Clark i 3 still the rage. The lecture on the Tower of London is to be repeated for the fourth time to-night, and it appears likely to be as crowded as on the former deliveries. Of all the brilliant lecturers that we have had in Melbourne there have been none that realised a success at all approaching that of Mr Clark. His success is indeed something wonderful. The hall in which he lectures holds, I think^ gome 3000 persons, seated comfortably. But this has been crowded on each occasion, and hundreds have been turned away from the doors. Whatever explanation may be offered for this success, it is clear enough that Mr Clark has been able to give a new pleasure to thousands! of people who, without his aid, would not get the entertainment which he has been enabled to give them. At the Theatre Royal, the "Shaugraun" still holds sway. It is not poetry of a very elevated order— it will hardly remain to future agea-as a, high achievement in dramatic Htera-ture-Htmt it tickles the ears of the groundlings, and gives them a pleasing stimulus and excitement fairly adequate to their mental powers. Miss Alice May (Mrs Allen) is doing very well at the Opera House. The lease taken by her husband, Mr Allen, has been extended, and the prima donna has won warm praise for the way in which she surprised the public by sustaining a part in serious opera. Her Marguerite, in Faust, extorted a high tribute of commendation from critics who went prepared to pass censure on Misa May's presumption in attempting a performance so far out of the range of her abilities.