PASSING NOTES.

Otago Witness, Issue 1856, 8 July 1887, Page 21

PASSING NOTES.

When Sir Egbert Stout writes- .his autobiography for the future Eminent Colonial Statesmen series, he should include a chapter on the temptations and* moral perils of ad ccvptaoiduvi oratory. At his mass meeting the other night Sir Robert, still being— or," for electioneering purposes, seeming to be— ! in a condition of sacred frenzy for education^ free, secular, and compulsory, Quoted three sentences from my note on; the, subject last, week. The paper, he said, had just. been put into his hands. He had but glanced 1 through the paragraph when— Hah ! What do mine eyes behold 1 '.* Hewers of, wood and drawers of water" — " butchers,' [ bakers, and candlestick-makers "—the high I school, and. the university not' for | such as these ! Treason 1 Treason against the majesty of the Democracy' and the, sacred rights of the people I— Thus ' Sir ■Robert, in his most fetching a& K ~captmiAwn, manner, deploring the while,. with tears in his voice, the disgrace of Dunedin-in. having, nourished in its bosom such' a viper as the author of these sentiments. And then — ". With holy anger and pious grief ' ■ He solemnly cursed that rascally thief j —the woulct-be thief, that is, of the people's rights and liberties. In' short^ Sir Robert had made an excellent rhetorical .point, and not even my regard for truth, fairness, and my own good name shall hinder me from expressing my admiration. It is true, ,as every reader of the note >is aware, that had ;Sir Bobert; who quoted three, sentences, read on till he had quoted six, he would have nullified the whole effect. He would have shown his audience that the opinions of. "Civis" on education were as liberal as his own.and a good deal more in- ; telligent. But to ~besj)lendide mendax is the very crown and flower of the rhetorician's art. The rhetor, who in the Athenian democracy was held to be more thanhalf -brother to the sophist, uses what suits his purpose ; what doesn't suit his purpose he ignores., as though it existed not. And this is what Sir Robert Stout did in quoting a fragment from my note. I admire his tact ; not less do I admire his courage. He knew that the note in its integrity would appear in the Times supplement next morning ; he knew that he hud " Civis " to reckon with, and that within a week " Oivis " would assuredly be sticking little pins into him by way of , gentle corrective to his too facile adroitness. He knew'all this, and yet he did it ! I don't complain, — far from it ; lam too much lost in' admiration.

Serious discussion of what is just now called the "education question," the ques*

tion," that' fa, whether -in-- educations as in bther matters' we mayndt be compelled to cut our coat according' to pnrclot^lleave'tp serious' politicians; Opinions 'expressed in', thiscolumja are not' to be taken too seriously, J and,' as tK6 .editor explains' to a'correspondeht; .this, week, comniit nobody' bu£ th.c 'writer. Not always even himl' Thus' I r said pliov^! in my haste^that.myop-inlons on edncationj werenot only as liberal as Sir,B()bert Sto.ut's,! but •" & -goockdeal more intelligent." That] -last modest assertion I take- back.< Were.it! not'that Sir ? Hobe f rt Stout is running a cori-' 'tested election and: feels' himself insor6iieedi of a; pppfnlar election cry; • the 'intelligence of ' .his;" opinions" '/on" ' edtication, ' wbnl* be Httle ,open ta . ' ' Iflde^ldl his,ppinions ;would,'l fancy, '.be' found p^jltW ■nearly : '/identical, with my ownj „V, primary; education, free up to the Fourth; St^ndwd,! ■ higher, education .free up to the yery topijpr ■»U who can profit by it and provethe factbyj ■passing successive exazninationsV-^-that was my suggestion of last week. Does Sir Robert want more ? "Would he provide free higher education ; for those who, from J ' whatever cause, can't profit by it ? Our present 'system; under which Sir Robert is Minister for Ed»4 cation, and which he is determined shiall Tfib-j ,main, intapt, is" far' less,' liberal, jjpari! liho system,',, I ,haye' yentured to ,' suggest] Our present,, system makes higher educa] tion- free only to. the holders of a few scholarships. But' -that, which •> kindled most Sir, Robert's rhetorical .ire) <■ was the question whether' he really wanted to send the honourable confraternity of artii sans,' "butchers, ' bakers, and i candlestick jmakers," to the High School and Univef siiy, Does he?' I ask him the question' again'. Come, , Sir , Robert I— rtry to. forget Dunr edin Bast for a moment, , and *" an|swer straight: — iDq you really! think ib necessary that the butcher, , baker,, and candlestick -maker, before beginning tp butch, bake, and candlestick-make, should receive' an academical training? .Would you sentence them to sacrifice their earliest w,Sige-earning and trade-learning years in' the attempt to becomeM.A.'s? You wouldn't? Of course you'wouldn't ! Then why do you heap your rhetorical scorn on me for saying that neither would 1 1 Why? Because you count on ,the ignorance and .class prejudices of your hearers. But it won't . do, Sir Robert I , j The Dunedin artisan electors are a more intelligent and a' more fair-minded ,folk. than . you think. < . ..,'.. The public, quick to take up a ory, are loth to lejt'it drop again, especially if it be a orV against 'a man whose popularity 'with the masses can .be weighed with very'ligbjb weights ' indeed. ' Mr Carltbn's meeting at" .Roslyn,. ,which .peems to have .been a 1 thoroughly rollicking affair, affords evidence that the old grievance of the, sheep's heads, and plucks has not yet been forgiven MrjA. O. Begg. , That gentlemen presided, and: We are informed that ','the chairman was. received with cries of ' Baa,' • Sheep's 1 heads and plucks,'; ' Get a- new chairman,' 'Put but Begg,' "and general uproar." This' is' elegant anddeliciously frolicsome in its way,' but is it fair 1 Assuredly not. Mr ' Begg" being perhaps justly 1 out of favour, as the holder of strictly ante-glacial opinions upon most subjects, under" the sun, was qonsidered fajLr game fronVtne moment when he , recommended plucks and sheep's heads for the sustenance of the un- 1 employed. Had he recommended devilled drumsticks and truffled turkey he wouldstlll not have escaped popular clamour.' He'had oped his lips, and that was the' signal lor every dog to ! bark. But mature reflection must long ago have convinced 'everyone with' a passable digestion and. honesty 1 of appetite and speech that the bill of, fare -the^b'are mention of which was received with 'such .revilings is really by no means to besneezed at. The offence to the working' man lay firstly in the fact that it was • suggested by Mr Begg,' and secondly in the hint that if the people did not consume these morsels nobody else would. Obviously because 1 there would be nobody else to do it. But there is an offence in the very thought of rescuing any comestible front certain .waste and interning it ,in the belly of a Christian. This .it was against which the gorge, of the working man rebelled. A wealthy Scotchman of this totfn (if there are any still to be called so in these hard times) confided to me not long ago that he had never yet subjugated a deep and abiding passion for sheep's heads contracted somewhere north of the Tweed in youth's shining hour. Well do I remember in some popular novel the gentleman who upon high feast days regaled himself solely' upon' "in'ards" in the coffee room of a snug tavern ; ,and well am I aware personally' that roast bullock's heart, accompanied by red currant jelly, is never to be slighted whenever and wherever it may be encountered. Whence, then, this anti-Beggian outcry? Because Mr Begg possibly omitted to recommend the currant jelly. ' Yet that oversight, easy of pardon as it seems to.be, has never been forgotten, and, on the testimony of Mr Carlton's meeting, never will be. ' ' ■ ■ The correspondent who writes asking me to show up a shady transaction — which, he minutely describes — in connection with a lamplighting contract under the City Council, knows not what he asks. In reality he asks that the Times and Witness Company should run the hazard of v a libel action. In good times and with dividends at 15 ,per cent., that, of ' course, would be a luxury. Theprivilege of martyrdom in so good' a cause would be welcome. But as times are, newspaper managers as a rule prefer not to go to ' the stake, reckonings quiet.life of more value than public' plaudits (which don't pa'y r law , costs), or the satisfaction of haying exposed a piece of municipal jobbery. Only the other day it was shown that under our admirably perfect judicial system an insolvent may bring a libel action, may lose it, and yet mulct the defendant newspaper in costs. It is conceivable, of course, that in the lamplighting- case the person impngned might not choose to go into court. The libel action Fish versus Walter has been postponed apparently, to the Greek Kalends. This"marvellous exhibition of self-restraint under provocation would be hard to parallel ; " Civis"and his editor would scarcely be justified in counting on its recurrence. Let my corres r pondent get the chestnuts out of the fire for himself. He seems personally interested ; let :him,write.a,,le.tter inhia jdwji name* to,- the . City Council detailing the facts he details '

to me, . and.then I will see whether I cannot give him efficient backing. > A ' •'<. '

- A t striking difference .in. public tone and temper • is ,- indicated -by the treatment 1 accorded here and in New-South Wales to 1 the' Sunday erenihg lecturer; < The southern ■firaiament,* by' the- way, is 'literally 'studded atars^ whioh ' twinkle briefly,' '&e'teor-like, and; as far as can be discovered, Mydrk ! little; good: or : ill' '"to 1 anyone^ ; :' No! /pe^tilent'heretipsfare i born tinder such stars.' *pCh'eyVare-,rath%'-bqm nurtured in .the .church, ajid. presently, pprjbaps, ( s,e«t yawn.ingfrom her,fpld bypfihe'^^fthly and in ,con- ; "of .aome mis.take.n preaoher. They prefer, therfloggediekiquence of 1 the' platform to 'this,; and>wend .their way consequently to the LyceuDd, pallid startwinkles coldl^ upon them, for an hour ;or two eaoh 'Week/ -In 1 New Zealand' we are well enough conte'nt'e'd'' that -this' should be. ' We even , fiir^sb. "a to take the chair to ProfessorpKaines', 1 anidf east upon! che eloquence jsaldt^ have^channed.even Ingersoll. In,, l^ew. South. Wales, -,a£. the other hand, „they,;'harcer ,a u! Premier ( who '„. arbitrarily shuts „up theatres , and music, ,, halls on., i Sunday evenings , under an act of George illl^and. manfully stands the racket >m" Parliament i afterwards. And a pretty racket" there^ appears tor"Jbave been ; all the Churches'-" militant^ and' the'- Freethinkers fiiriousl Mr Salomons, a member of Hebrew extfactibn', spoken of Freethinker^ .as '.'revileifs of ( the l Crea'tor, l .",was p'rc&aptly reminded that -"his ' forefathers' crucified Him,,"^ .The same gentleman was further re : minded by „a Mr Fletcher that in days ,of ; old , his ancestors were "hung head, down between, dogs." ,A sigh of regret iwas no doubt breathed here > for 'the (days -of old' and the merryj manners that are no more, 1 and* then Mr -M'Blhone, a perferyid religionist of considerable vituperative' power, stepped into the breach.' ' The ; scene is thu& sketched by a Sydney paper : — „,,Mrj M'Elhone,, had been uneasy, all, along. Now. and then he interjected <* low blackguards," "ragged ruffians," "lazy scoundrels,", and " dirty humbugs/, He now' took the floor, He flung oat against lecturing Freethinkers of 'all, sorts and conditions. He regarded them , as mean, paltry schemers, who , extract threepences, from the' pocketa, of npor| ignorant,, and unfortunate devilSjOf idiots. He called on the Premier to go further,; and arrest the whole gang as rogues and vagabonds. Striking an attitude, , he proclaimed that the feeling 'nestling most cosily in the wannest part ( of. his being is reverence for the sacred Sabbatn. ' , . .' i( 4, , Here, we see, is a distinction and a difference. -Is Mr M'Elhone right ? If so,; he should be, •invited forthwith to New Zealand; where we. could show him a Premier presiding over ah. audience 'of "poor devils, of idiots," and. 'where' he '.could, if'sd^rnifaded, 1 lead, on the pofice' to a sensational capture. ' iFromtime to-time readers of Passing Notes write to inquire by. what name I am pleased to behivoked — as though »" Civis "i were 'an ancient heathen deity. (Vide the classic poets, passim.') Here is* a specimen letter 'received tins week : — - l •*'••. ; through,,the medium of your excellent Passing Notes, what ,18 the correct pronunciation of the first vowel'in'. your name. ,/l hear it variously prbnounceia^Ci'wsj'with,' the' vowel ph'ort, and . Cjwfc, iyith the vowel long.(a3.ih the wor<J"bite"j).: I pronounce it, short, and believe that ia the correct way, but, on the other hand, such a high 'authority- as Dr Belcher pronounces it in.' the 'second instance. ' , Jf we are to pronounce it with the" first jvp^el long, why' not have the second one, long also! , .Then' we could have the name sounded as in, the two words sigh-yke. ; , Blindly reply through. your Notes at an early ' opportunity, "and oblige.— Yours devotedly, "' \ • • [' '[ ' Coloniai,. j > P.SIT-Pardon me i£ I suggest that in future you spell, your name phonetically, <in order io save the doabt that now exists in jUJany minds as to what J is the correct pronunciation. , I ' As I remarked when' replying to -an earlier inquirer on' the same subject; the question isone which my readers, in common with my- 1 self, will feel to be of public and national importance. And yet, as so high an authority as Dr Belcher has already pronounced upon it, there seems little need for further discus,sion. Cadit qiiaesiio. I should. hardly presume to have an opinion- as' to, 'the proper pronunciation of my own name in .opposition to the opinion of' the erudite' reotor ofhthe High School. Nevertheless, I have a formula for 'clearing up the doubts of too scrupulous correspondents — a metrical formula 11 which, 'I publish once every three years; ■ Here iit is:— • ' , '"^ ' (< ; • '", i - A rhyming answer easy to cohtriv'ejis. : ' ' In England, C-i-v-i-s spells, Qiyis ;, , ' • ' But North of Tweed the learned all believe . That C-i-v should have the sound of seev. - A third opinion, harder to receive is : When Cicero's Eikero, then is^ Civis Kivis. . ' " Colonial ",pays his; money and he takes his choice.- Personally, I care little what, he calls me, provided only he calls me not — as Sir ; Robert Stout this week seems < disposed t to do — a bloated aristocrat and -hidebound Tory. " • ' ' | • Civis., ' ' i ' ; /i

Still another instance of railway management. The owners of the Greenfield station j have sent about 7000 fat sheep to Dunedin this' j year for shipment, and in no case has the railway carried one of them. They have all been sent by the road in droves of about 2000 at a time. In the course of another week or so a further consignment of about 4000 will be despatched byroad. '! When is this state of affairs' to end? — Tuapeka Times. In connection with, the recent strike at the , Kaitangata coal mine ,the Brace Herald says :— "Five of the • employes-^Mr, W/ M. Shore (manager), Messrs J. Irvine, R.Macallister, John Shore (underground workers), John , Welsh, and Jos. Shore (surface workers) — stuck to their posts, and, notwithstanding the pressure brought to bear upon them, refused to; go out on strike. This conduct met with the high approval of the directors, who showed their appreciation, thereof by presenting Mr Shore,ihe, manager, with a handsome gold watch, and chain, the three underground men with cheques for , £10 each, and the two surfacemen cheques for £5 apiece. The presentation was made last Saturday by Mr W. P. Watson, who stated that the directors wished him to conyey to the men their grateful recognition pf the manly way in which they had remained at their posts when their services were so much needed. The recipients expressed t^eir pleasure and surprise at receiving such hand.some gifts, jand c deputed;Mr, Watson, their thanks' to toe directors^but at the same

thtte < point ; out j to : them that they • considered their services had been very much oveiestunatecL as they themselves felt' that by remaining their posts they had simply been doing thej duty." ' • ... Serious floods have. been, caused in Canter* bury, West Cqast,' and Wellington/, by I! thb pontinnbus rain experienced daring\ the- 3 Week. Beyond swollen 'creeks and jriVew no inconvenience has been caused in Otaga : > 'At.'We^esday'g'' r wdekly l ''ißieetmg of "the Benevolent' Institution Trusteeß^MessW L Murray,". Roberto; 'and Co. ' forwarttefo^aff J o*aer from Gladbrook' station for £16 fisy -being the proceeds' of. a concert held in .the' Strath-Tkier district >in aid of the institution; ' The donation were'received with thanka. > o ( ...t.- . . ---i The members of i the Riverton Harbour Board have decided ihatihek. difficulties are not of such a nature as require their resignation, as there seemed' to be ample ineahs to pay interest for'sbme time 'to come. ' • f* • • ■ - - ' The Lyttelton"Tfmea'*BtafceFthat Mr Allan M'Lean, of Oamafu} has forwarded 'a donation of £1000 [to hia lExceUenoy^the, Governor for.the | fund^of the Imperial Institute. -„.; > „*, i 'Tne Tapanui Courier, States, that Mr D M'Kellar's BroOksdale wool has 'topped the London market 'kt last' series of New Zealand vrooißales. '"''- 1 - .M r ' 1 ' '»[" ' 3 The tendency ip\cfit\upMr$e estate Vis shoWn in the case of /the ' Merino! Downs, the ; proper ty 'of the late Mr'M'lntyre. ; It-briginally consisted of 22,Q00 acres of good freehold land fit for agricultttra) purposes. On 1 the ' death' [qi. the, , proprietor in 1885 i it' wai» 'surveyed ana"ont,',up Into farms', and as a .result 'of; the'^lea, ; which have Seen held, what was'once a sheep .walk i^ now in the occupation of some '6^'f^arqaeraj' who appear tobedding'well.aswe are.'injfonnejl that every purchaser has been -able, 'so 'far; to 'meet |Iv engagements., l The remainder of the' ie^iate" is ;bo be suHmitte'a to auction shortlyi'andit is'expeoted that this will result "in jsettljhg another, 15 families on the estate, which, will be then occupied by som6 J BO 'or 90. families! ' ; , „ The Roxburgh correspondent; of the Tpopekt Times writes :•?-'< Be^on/nd party.have't»ken op a mile of theClutha river, for dredging purpoßf,d f commencing' from iihe ,dfcTbridge aait^ t In, the ground taken vp t some rich deposits,, have been traced, but the current-wheel dredge has proved itself incapable of competing against the largt quantity of, tailings which are being, constantly carried, intoihe river from the sluicing claims on the east bank. , .The lessees consequently propose to work ,the claim with one of < WelJman's patent dredges." . ;, In these days', %Uen' the deslrofco break up large private freehold estates is bo strong, and Land Acquisition Bills are talked of.it/ls'gratlfyjDK to note that one of the large estates in the South ii'now very largely in the hands of farmers,' and we 'notice that the balance of the 'estate is to be put up 'afc a final sale on the 15th tost, at She. Merino Downs estate originally consisted of no less >an area than 22,000 acres of freehold WnS'.' On 6h'e"death of;the btoprietor W 1885,'it'wasput up'for'ssle In .farmers! areas, and since< then 'several auction 'sales .have been held, with the result that this property— all of which;is fj.t for agricultural purposes— jnstena of, being owned by one mag, is riow'Jn.occupationof some 65 farmers. '. The Bale now advertised will probably result In settling some 15" othe* families, and this fine, estate will .tben, Sinstead of being a large sheep walk, support t.h© families of. between 80 and ,9j thriving fanners., t That. those who have gone on to the estate ;h'ave done well is, evidenced by fcha tact that, as' we are Informed, ' every purchaser ha» hitherto been able 'to meet his v engngemehta.^lt ia gratifying- to find that money can -still be made oufe , of the lanfl, when ib is bought at a reasonable cost. We /have, to. acknowledge receipt of. £9 0s 6d, .through, Mr James M'Donaldj towards Burns statue fund from~ admirers of Burns engaged.on.Olydevala station. , , 1 The time for receiving tenders for'the'e'roppmir on Biversdale estate has been'extended till the 9th fiut. We would ' call our readers' attention ' to ' the advertisement of Messrs Beid, Maclean, and Co. ' which appears on page 20. The firm have taken the large stores formerly used by the British andJ?<Z.M. and A. Op., and offices in the Equitable Insurance buildings near the Hallway station. Messrs Campbell, Trabt, and Co., .Melbourne, tannov'nee their annual Bb'oVand'saleof thoroughbred*, trotting horses, and draught entires for the first week in August. ■ ■ -■ * .>„ ! Messrs Donald Seid and- Co. will sell a freehold farm at Clinton Gorge on' the. 15th iinst. ; and 1088 acres in i the Slopedown district at the Corn. Bx« change, Dunedin, on the 30th inst. The Opunalie Dairy Faotory Company are in want of a butter and cheesemaker. , Mr Dbwrile Stewart has a farm in th'e.Otepopo district to let oh leasei ' The date of Messrs Wright, Stephenson, and 1 Co.'a sale Or Messrs Murray Brothers' stock, &c, has been ■ altered to the 12th inst. , ■ i , Messrs Wright, Stephenson; and Co. will sell 3319 acres freehold land in the Moeraki district on the 16th inst. .