SETTLEMENT OF THE LAND.

Otago Witness, Issue 2105, 28 June 1894, Page 3

SETTLEMENT OF THE LAND.

[From the Oxago Daily Times.]

On May 31 we exposed the hollo wness of the boasts which have been made from time to time on behalf of the Hon. John M'lCenzib's record of land settlement in comparison with the record of his predecessor. As we have been charged with ridiculing Mr M'Kenzie's efforts and with an attempt to discredit the land policy of the Government, we may say, in passing, that we plead guiltless to both charges : our article was a dispassionate statement of facts gathered from official records, and we frankly admitted that Mr M'Kenzie had not done badly, and that he had done his best. Our indictment lay in the demonstration that what he had done had been grossly exaggerated. The Lyttelton Times made an attempt to controvert our position — with what poor effect we showed on the 13th inst. We showed that we had been fully justified in omitting from our table of statistics the small grazing runs and the special settlement associations, since the former do not really represent settlement in the proper sense of the term, while the men composing the latter, in the vast majority of cases, are not on the land. At the same time we showed that the inclusion of the small grazing runs would only serve to accentuate

our contentions. Nonplussed once more, the Lyttelton Times is obliged to resort to misrepresentation, not so much of our argument as of its own original position. Our contemporary says :—: — " Now, as a matter of fact zue were, in no way concerned by tlie omission of these small grazing rims, and dismissed the subject in exactly 11 lines . . . Our objection was to the exclusion of the Special Settlement Associations." The italics are our cnvn. Now, any of our readers who take the trouble to look up the Lyttelton Times's article of June 5, and scrutinise it from its own weak point of the number of lines it used in discussing special arguments in our article, will find that 18 lines were devoted to the joint consideration of the small runs and the special settlements, 11 lines to the special settlements alone, and 10 lines to the small runs alone. The treatment of the latter subject is introduced by the following sentence (and here will be recognised the force of our italics) : — " It is just as unfair to take no account of the occupiers of small grazing runs." Yet (after we had shown that taking account of these runs would do Mr M'Kekzie's case no good) our contemporary discovers that it was "in - no way concerned by the omission of these small grazing runs " ! As regards the special settlement associations, we must adhere to our refusal to include what are practically bogus " occupiers" in a table made with the sole object of showing the actual state of' settlement, though doubtless it would suit Mr M'KE2fziE and his apologists to have the "838 selectors" of last year

reckoned in the statistics with a view o£ swelling the Ministerial record. Of those 838, some 15 were actually settled on the land on March 31, and in regard to the success of this system generally during the past fow years the head of the Lands department reports that - not one-fifth of the men are on the land. And yet it is urged that we unfairly exclude these nonresident, and in many cases nonexistent, settlers. The argument is beneath contempt. We repeat that we have no wish to belittle Mr Joiin" M'Kenzib's efforts in the direction of land settlement. We desire to give him full credit for what he has done, but we confess to being disinclined to go further and praise him for what many of his admirers merely imagine that he has done. And we must add that he would do well to deprecate these vivid imaginings instead of directly encouraging them by such statements as he recently made at Timaru.

The Gambling Mania.

The sent( nee of three months' imprisonment which was imposed by Mr Mabtin, S.M., at Wellington, on the keeper of a common gaming house, should, if the appeal is unsuccessful, act as a deterrent. We agree with the stipendiary magistrate that gambling is a curse that is undermining the community . Nay, we go further and say the whole of the colonie3, for it is doubtful if even the precocious New Zealander commences so early or goes so far as his Australian brother. The extraordinary hold which the gambling vice has got over colonials is well shown by the enormous sums which are entrusted to promotera of sweeps, who may distribute among subscribers just as much or as little as they choose. Oce promoter of these monster "consultations" boasts that he paid in first, second, and third prizes for " placed horses ' alone more than £550,000 in two years and a-half. Between October 1890 and April 1893 there were 82 "events" which

were made the subject of "consultations" by one promoter. In two in&tanccs the subscriptions wtre £100,000 of £1 each, with a first prize of £27,000; in another instance the first prize was stated at £22,500 ; while in 19 others the first prize ranged from £6000 to £9000.- And yet the Queensland Government allows these vampires a safe refuge in the capital city. From horseracing the evil has, since the boom failure, extended to property, and in nearly each colony of Australia attempts are being made to unload on the public. What thetse lotteries mean was well pointed out by our contemporary the London Sun, in commenting on the Tasmanian lottery scheme. It shows in the " dry light " of figures that "if 300,000 persons pay £1 each for a ticket only 376 of them will get a prize, and 299,624 will get nothing. They will thus lose £299,624." If the evil were confined to the adult population it would be bad enough in all conscience, but the rising generation bid fair to outstrip tbeir parents unless some drastic steps are taken to put down the evil. We are assured that in Auckland youths and young men are to be found nightly gambling around the lampposts in by-streets, on the harbour and railway reclamations, and on Sunday afternoons in the public parks. The evil is just a3 rife in Dacedin. Ifc was only the other evening that our attention was drawn to a band of boys, tbe eldest of whom could not have been 13 years, playing " poker " for coppers with a dirty pack of cards on the kerb stone by the light of a street lamp, not more than a hundred yards from Piiaces street.

Australian Federation.

The Dibbs federation scheme is, we venture to say, t he greatest obstacle to federation jet produced . We can speak with comparative indifference on the subject, because although New Zealand is interested in federation she must wait until a scheme for uniting Australia is matured before bhe can possibly say whether and to what extent she can join it. In the meantime we watch with interest the strnpgle on the other side. The Paekes federation scheme seemed on the road to success a few jears ago, but the ardent delegates forgot to discuss the most difficult question — viz., th 9 site of the capital. This is an important question, because it is evident that the question whether there shall be a dominant federal Government turns pi rtly on this. In the United States they were for some generations content with a weak Federal Executive. When ciicumstances forced a strong one upon them, they found that they had grown big enough to manage with a relatively insignificant official capital. The Dibbs scheme is not a scheme of federation in the ordinary sen&e. It is a plan for the annexation of Victoria by New South Wales. It is countered by a scheme for the annexation of New South Wales by Victoria. The great beauty of these two schemes is that they eclipse the real, federation scheme and destroy each other. Such is the present condition of federal politics in Australia.

A Tariff Wnr.

While waiting for Australian federation we have the edifying spectacle of a renewal of the border tariff war. Tin re is a country in the back districts of New South Wales, lying along the borders of Victoria, of undefined extent, called Eiverina. It used to be regarded with much complacency in Victoria, as New South Wales was at the expense of governing ifc, while Victorians owned most of the Bheep and cattle sla ions in it. Victoria, too, supplied it with merchandise, and most of its produce went to Melbourne. This state of affairs still continues to some extent. However, customs duties and customs regulations are so severe that the two colonies stand to each other more like hostile States than friendly neighbours, and from time to* time fierce quarrels break out between them. After debating the subject for years, Victoria a few years Bince insanely levied a stock tax on stock crosfeiog the border. As most of the stock belong to her own people, it was

chiefly paid by them, and its tendency was to impQverish them. We now hear of a threat ot another kind. The stock is taxed because it comes into Victoria to be used there, and so competes with local production. There is no occasion similarly to tax the wool which passes through and is shipped from Melbourne. On the contrary, it has been carried at a low railage rate in order to compete with the New South Wales railways. These might compete by reducing their charges, but only to be met by still further reductions. As this won't suit, New South Wales now proposes to force the traffic over her railways by an export tax. This is paying Victoria with her own coin, but we should prefer to see the more straightforward step of absolute prohibition against taking wool across tbe border. This is what is meant; why not say and do it? Thus the brotherhood of man advances in Australia.

To Treasurer Oarteb's magnificent conver-

sion scheme there is still a Conversion, little "if." Nothing can be done, we are told, until the 3£ per cents, reach par. Now as these never have reached par, and are at least 3 per cent, below par without any immediate tendency to rise, the time has hardly arrived for 60 extensive a conversion. It is, however, a good thing to see our Victorian cousins game and hopeful. A year ago the gayest city in the colonies was reduced to one theatre; now they have three or four going, and all paying handsomely. It is certain that they will not in the lives of the present generation Bee boom prices for vast areas of suburban land again, but they may still be a wealthy people and may grow more wealthy. Victoria has begun her recuperation as she began her great wealth. Her goldflelda are increasing again in yield, as men resume work after a long spell of senseless speculation and idleness.

The death of Lord Chief Justice GoLEBiDaE

naturally leads to speculation The Lord as to who will succeed him. Chief Jnstico. Had he died three months ago it would undoubtedly have been Lord Russell, then Mr Chables Russell. The fact that this distinguished advocate is now out of politics may have the effect of lessening his claim. The office of Lord Chief Justice is a very ancient one in England, probably coeval with the regular organisation of fixed courts. He was Chief Justice of the King's Bench and at the same time Lord Chief Justice of England. The ancient Court of Queen's Bench was abolished 20 years ago, when all the courts were blended Into one Supreme Court of Judicature. Since the second year of this century the office of Lord Chief Justice has been held by sis distinguished men in succession. Thus the average tenure is a little over 15 years. Lord Coleridge was Solicitor-general when the great Tichbobnb trial commenced, and became Attorney-general daring its progress. His famous cross-examination of the barly Claimant was reckoned a very dull performance at the time, though now it is lauded as a masterpiece. The truth is that it. had none of the brilliance which the public demand of a cross-examination, but it was truly represented by Sir John himself, in his apologetic speech, as being designed to induce the Claimant to tell as many lies as could be crowded into the three weeks over which it was spread. In this sense it was a great success. A brilliant cross-examination is evanescent: this celebrated performance is good reading to this day. Disbabli hated Colebidge, and described him as " silvery mediocrity." He was, in truth, a well-detested man as long as he was in the House of Commons, and in a measure remained so. His personal meanness and his obtrusive self-righteous-ness, as evidenced in the proceedings taken againßt him by his son-in-law, Mr Adams, are nob pleasing features" in his character. He had, however, many •fine qualities, otherwise he would not have become Lord Chief Justice of England.

Wool.

We confess to a feeling of considerable uneasiness about the fate of the wool tariff in the United States. That manufactured woollens should hare a protective duty imposed on them is not surprising ; we did not expect anything else. We have, however, recently lived in the hope that raw wool was pretty safely placed on the free list. It is evident, however, that a desperate struggle to protect it is being made, and that there Is still some fear that it may succeed. As evidencing its importance so far as we are concerned, we notice that until the question is settled the American buyers, who are actually in London in attendance on the markets, are ' abstaining from operating. The fact that wool has risen and fallen a little as the tariff question has swayed backwards and forwards is rather suggestive of the correctness of our forecast that wool would rise were the repeal assured ; indeed, as American stocks must be getting low, we fully expect a considerable rise directly this question i? settled — even if settled adversely to our interests — as wool will be required for filling up the manufacturers' requirements. To us it is a matter of great importance that the tariff reform should pass this year, as next year the mood of the Americans may have changed.