LAND AND WATER.

Otago Witness, Issue 2330, 27 October 1898, Page 24

LAND AND WATER.

A London cable states that Mr P. Latham, the champion professional tennis player of England, defeated Mr T. Peltit, the American crack, by seven sets to lore. The return game of whist and euchre between the Dunedin and Public Service Clubs, held on Friday, resulted in a win for the bowlers by one game on the totals. The Public Service Oiub won by two games in euchre, and lost by three in whist. A pigeon recently reached its home at Blackburn, having taken seven weeks to make the journey of 630 miles from Bordeaux. A Kite-flying Record. The world s record lor kite-flying has been beaten at Boston, in America, when an altitude of 12,124-fb wag reached by the upper of two kites flown tandem fashion. This is 277 ft higher than has ever been attained before.

Fnfenced Railway Lines.

TO THE EDITOR. Sir, — It seems to me a. standing disgrace ta the Government of a great colony to have tha railway lines so utterly unprotected in tha major part front the encroachments of horses, cattle, and sheep. I think I am justified in. stating that the Hon. R. J. Seddon can carry out plenty of nonsense in finding work lor the unemployed and his " props " for office, \vhile at the same time he ignores tha fact that works on a gigantic scale must ba undertaken before the New Zealand railways are properly fenced. — I am, etc., Mataura, October 23. J. B.

A Protest from Waitati.

TO THE EDITOE. Sib. — I wish to say a few words in reply, to a letter in yours of the 13th inst. under the above heading, signed "A Bachelor." Tha points of objection tho writer raises to my report are that I should not have used the terms " financially speaking " and " moderately successful " in writing anent the bachelors' entertainment. The sum and substance of tha matter arose from a trifling error of judgment on the part of the majority of the Bachelors' Ball' Committee. Invitations, as I stated, were issued to the heads of families and their grown-up daughters. At that point the bachelors stopped, whereas they ought to have gone on and invited the grown-up sons. No, saicl some of the committee, any bachelor wha presents himself at the door of 1 the Good Templar Hall must pay 3s for admission, or pjoducs a ticket. Some of the young men felfi annoyed, and reasonably objected to such » charge, so did not go to the ball. Hence double the number of ladies present to gentlemen, leading sequentially to dancing disappointments. " A Bachelor " writes : " Tha whole expenses in connection with the ball were borne by the young men who got! it up." If they had made the ball free ta other young men, say " outsiders," as tha spinsters and married people did, then the few bachelors who got it up, through their representative " A Bachelor " would have been jus* tified in using such an expression. As it is, I think a majority of your readers will agree with me that the bachelors made a financial mistake. Further on my bachelor friend in making some remaiks about the spinsters and benedicts' ontertainments writes : " Both of which! passed off eqiially as successful as the bache--tors'." Why introduce the word "equally? 1 * The sentenco would have read better withouff it. Biit no, man's stupid assumption of super* iority over woman must even crop up with 1 simply a little village dance. Fairly, an in* forence may be drawn from the introduction

oi the word that the bachelors' ball was the best of the lot, whereas what I have written goes to prove that it gravitated to the bottom 'at the list, plainly through, a trifling little bit of bad management. The lest of the letter rrder review does not call for any comnieut on my part, so thanking you in anticipation— l am, etc., Edward Johnson.