NOTES FROM THE SEAT OF GOVERNMENT.

Otago Witness, Issue 1812, 13 August 1886, Page 29

NOTES FROM THE SEAT OF GOVERNMENT.

By Pearl Pen.

Wellington, August 4. Now heaven and all the saints be praised ! Parliament will soon be over, proceedings closed, and our national talking-shop shut up for some time to come. Then will " Pearl Pen " gleefully bid good-bye to these benches, and shaking off the dry dust of debate and the turmoil of things political, hastily pack a portmanteau and flee away over the broad bosom ef the Pacific just as fast as a fleet U.S.S. Company's boat will travel. There can be no doubt that hon. members of the House of Representatives ought to be well and ungrudgingly paid, for it is a weariness alike to the flesh and the spirit to go toiling on right through a long session. And many of these gentlemen leave their homes and business, travelling hundreds of miles perhaps, to reach the seat of Government, where the lengthy sittings in the House, the constant attendance at committees and meetings of all kinds fill up most of their time, leaving but a scant margin of leisure for recreation. And yet there are scores of unmitigated grumblers who declare their conviction that hon.members are overpaid. On the contrary, I affirm, and many will bear me out, that our M.H.R.'s conscientiously earn all that they receive. Among the small army of " prominent colonists " now at home, there is more than one whose heart is filled with envy, and the bitterness of ungratifiedjambition, at not having found their names enrolled upon the list of recipients of royal favours. What matter if they have every other good, if that one much-coveted pleasure be denied ! Alas ! for the small weaknesses of our human nature. What poor creatures we are even at our best ! ' Was it not the stone of Sisyphus which rolled back from the mountain top so soon as it reached it ? I often think that with some people whom I know, the pleasures and enjoyments of life are like that ; they take immense pains to roll the stone uphill, but it invariably returns upon them. The men of this stamp will fume and fret, and toil for a desired joy, which probably dies at the very moment of completion, conferring no lasting happiness upon the discontented ones. There is nothing satisfying in the possession of good fortune to persons of this turn of mind (there are several men of this class in the House of Representatives), for it is no more real to them than is the mirage of the desert, which mocks the thirsty traveller with the sight of cool, fresh, fountains sparkling in the sun, and the weary wayfarer with the hope of shelter and repose. True enough, all men crave for happiness, it is the donimant desire of every human heart, and yet how often one comes across individuals who, apparently, possessing every essential to true happiness; having around them, so far as one can judge from outward seeming, every material'good this world can give, are yet withal discontented, and envious beyond measure, ever wishing for just the one thing they do not possess, and which, if attained, confers but a transitory enjoyment. These meu arc -but in reallity slaves to; their unfulfilled desires, and from a want of intellectual energy and stability, never reach more than a fragmentary happiness. In truth they are wanting in the elemental qualities that go to make real happiness. These unfortunate mortals often throw from them their greatest blessings, and by weakly yielding to their discontent, succeed in turning things upside down, and making "pi" of everything. The exVictorian, Sir Samuel Wilson (cartooned in London Punch as Sir Sampson Woolbale), is an example in* point, a "representative Australian " (?) of whom Victorians speak and write with the unmeasurable contempt and scorn such characters deserve. Referring to the recent election of Sir Samuel for Fortsmouth, a correspondent writes :—": — " No one has done more to cover the colonies with contempt and ridicule than the vulgar, purse-proud knight whom the electors "of Portsmouth have seen fit to send to the Imperial Parliament, ' in order to maintain the integrity of the empire.' Sir Samuel, goodness knows, has consistently done his best since his departure from our shores to lower us in the estimation of the English people ; but his ostentatious toadyism and aggressive peeragehunting will now be displayed on a far larger and more conspicuous field, and thus we have every reason to fear that he will drag still deeper in in the mire the fair fame of the unfortunate country from which he derives his enormous wealth."

To the large class who may be styled general readers, a lecture, or pamphlet on geology and mineralogy sounds but dry material wherewith to refresh, or satisfy the hungry mind. And yet I will venture to assert that anyone of average intellect, and with an ordinary quantum of brain, who will take up the pamphlet, or Parliamentary paper, entitled " Statement of Mines" by the Hon. W. J. M. Larnach, C.M.G. Minister of Mines, which has just been issued from the Government Printing Office, Wellington, will find therein, contained ' a surprising fund of most interesting and varied information, the very reverse of what one generally understands by the term"" dry." The subject matter has been so well and carefully selected, and the whole arranged in such an attractive style, that in reading this valuable paper, one is surprised to find that sound science is being sipped as if it were "nectar of the gods." It is obvious that all works bearing specially upon the subject of mining must ever be deeply interesting to a large class of persons throughout the Colonies, and the sound, practical knowledge conveyed through the medium of this and like papers, cannot be too widely disseminated. The genuine student of geology and mineralogy finds much that is fascinating even in this rocky field of scientific research. And, apropos of rocks, I observe that in the Victorian Court, in the Indian and Colonial Exhibition there is displayed a not uninteresting geological series of what scientists term "cores." These are obtained by boring with the hollow diamond-drills, which bring out from the depths to which they penetrate undisturbed specimens of the rocks as easily as a cheesetaster brings the core from the middle ef a cheese. The most astonishing thing about this novel manner of boring through the crust of the ear this the fact that it is positively the cheapest yet discovered. It is also economical, for when a railway-director's wife has bo further use for her diamonds, she can lend them to -her husband's company, to bore railway tunnels with. A "core" is certainly a curious thing, and both realistic and geologically instructive also, for it is an actual " section " of the part from which it is taken. It is like the chimney-pot, which the ancient Greek humourist tells us the Sophist carried about with him in the Athenian market-place as a sample of the house he wanted to soil. Professor J.G. Black, M.A., has also during this session furnished an exhaustive and highly interesting report on "the work done in the Goldfields Classes and Schools of Miues throughout the districts which he and his assistants have visited, and where he has lectured and established these

schools with such marked success. It is a thoroughly practical paper, and the various subjects are treated in Dr Black's customary clear and lucid style. Papers such as these to which I can but make brief reference within the circumscribed limits of a "note," should, I think, go far towards dispelling the popular fallacy — viz., that scientific subject* must of necessity form dull and unattractive reading. Poor Te Whiti will probably pose as a martyr now that he is not permitted to have his pipe to soothe his nerves while in gaol. However, the fiat has gone forth ; the Minister of Justice has decided that the Maori prisoners shall be treated neither better nor worse but precisely the same as European offenders ; and lam sure all rightthinking persons;will applaud the resolution and consider it a step in the right direction. The arguments brought forward in the House by certain hon. members in favor of extra indulgences being granted to Native prisoners were obviously founded upon a weak and altogether false sentiment of mistaken sympathy. One hon. member urged that smoking was necessary for Te Whiti's health, as he was suffering from a malady the pain of which could only be relieved by the use of the fragrant weed. But Mr Tole coolly demolished that theory by replying that a well-known medical man had examined Te Whiti carefully, and pronounced him to be sound as a bell ; that in fact there was nothing wrong with Te Whiti's health in any way. But the climax of absurdity and palpable presumption was surely reached when Mr Wi Pere rose in his place in the House of Representatives, and asserted that Te Whiti ought to be treated with exceptional leniency, " because he had only instigated to forcible entry and malicious injury to property, when he might . have killed the settlers, or committed serious outrages." One would imagine that such mischievous reasoning as this from a Maori member of Parliament should open the eyes of thinking people to the mistaken tendency of a too lenient policy. That hon. members are beginning to get heartily and sincerely tired of each other, goes without saying, and that they would be glad to bring the session to a speedy close is evinced plainly every day, not only by their distrait manner in the House, and also by their impatience of control, and their over indulgence in j undignified personalities. The Speaker of the j House of Representatives has had frequent occasion to enforce his authority in a firm and emphatic manner during the past few weeks, and although Sir Maurice O'Rorke is one of the most genial of men, he will not permit the dignity of the House or his office to be trifled with in the smallest degree, ruling always with a firm and admirable impartiality. By the way, we have recently added one more name to the list of " funny men" in the House. Until quite lately Mr Hursthouse and Mr Whyte were considered as inapproachable in this particular line, and frequently afforded hon. members a great deal of amusement. But suddenly Mr Taylor sprang to the front rank and has succeeded in eclipsing all competitors. It was when making his speech on the Loan Bill that Mr Taylor (member for Sydenham) unexpectedly shone forth as a " bright, particular star" amoDg the galaxy of brilliant humorists who adorn the House.

A delightful novelty in the way of concerts was given a short time ago in one of the chief Continental cities, which I should think would "draw "immensely if adopted out here. The idea is simple enough, and one can easily see that it would be highly effective. A screen is painted to represent a scene in a flower garden. This stands upon the platform. Before it are potted plants in great profusion. On the screen, flowers are painted of various kinds and of immense size. In the centre of each there is an opening, skilfully covered by a moveable covering. Behind these flowers stand the singers, of both sexes, whose faces appear in the centre of the flowers, when floral solos, duets, quartettes, and choruses were sung. The effect is said to have been novel and charming in the extreme. The singing flowers were the rose, dahlia, sunflower, daffodil, pansy, lily, tulip, daisy, and buttercup, and there was also a man in the moon.