The Otsgo Wetness, WITH WHICH IS INCORPORATED THE SOUTHERN MERCURY. WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 28, 1900.) THE WEEK.

Otago Witness, Issue 2437, 28 November 1900, Page 37

The Otsgo Wetness, WITH WHICH IS INCORPORATED THE SOUTHERN MERCURY. WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 28, 1900.) THE WEEK.

" Sanquam aliud naturx, aiiud sinientia dixit." Jotznix. "Good nature »na goou sense must ever join."— Popn,

It is natural that Mr Ward should be appreciated by his oavii disBniiquet trict, for he is the sort of Speeches. man Avho to a certain extent adds momentum to the progress of a district under any ordinary circumstances, and as Colonial Treasurer he has, of course, the poAver to supply " longfelt Avants," a? the phrase goes. But he is undoubtedly a good man for the colony as -Avell — bhat is, as lieutenant to some one of ■wider grasp and maturer judgment. The keenness ot Mr Ward's mind in matters purely commercial — a keenness that depends largely upon a someAvhat narroAV concentration on such subjects — and the courage with which he acts upon his commercial ideas once they are formed, are extremely useful qualities in the composition of a Cabinet. He is in -short a very pushing, energetic business man, Avho has sufficient individuality to give a pushing character to the Administration to Avhich he belongs. But Mr Ward's ideas on general political questions are decidedly crude, and the crudeness is often peculiarly conspicuous in his speeches. His tone on the subject of the recent annexations to ]STeAV Zealand was not only .unAvise, but calculated cA r en to be mischievous. It Avas surely absurd to say that the inclusion of these small islands, 'many of whose" names are absolutely un"known except to geographers, would gVeatly add to the " poAver and prestige" _of JSTeAV .Zealand; and it Avas as surely misehieA r ous to suggest that this neAviy-acquired "poAver and prestige" could be used as a means of extorting from the Australian Commonwealth better terms iv the Avay of a reciprocal' tariff than she could get as Xevv Zealand proper. The if'ea v>i' New Zealand} backed by the , Islands and half a dozen, others of lesser note, becoming suddenly formidable to the Australian Commonwealth is onft. that Avould do for the comic" stage. Ncav Zealand as she stands, or stood a couple of months ago, Avill no doubt be able to treat Avith the Commonwealth on equal terms, for the commercial Avelfare of both countries' will be concerned. But our recent extensions need not be mentioned in the connection. No doubt Mr Ward had the inclusion of Fiji in his mind, but Fiji cannot be amuxed. It must first be created a self-gOA^erning colony, and then federated Avith JN t cav Zealand. Our poAvei and prestige Arould be but little altered then. But it is not A 7 ery Arise for those who think otherwise to threaten the Australian ConimoiiAveaich (avlio Avill have a big say in the matter) with the countervailing power which this Avould add to NeAv Zealand. Very crude, too, and decidedly unintelligible, was Mr Werd on the subject of the passing into foreign hands of iSamoa and German New Guinea. " Had those islands been originally the property of either Australia or iNfeAV Zealand, cA r en England, Avith all its greatness, would not have attempted to wrest from its children islands Avhich rightly belonged to them." What does this mean? What on earth could NeAv Zealand do Avith the vast tropical island of NeAv Guinea V And hoAV could NeAv Guinea become the " rightful " property of either Australia or New Zealand except by the action of the Imperial Government? And AA-hy should the Imperial Government set to Avork to "wrest" from one of its OAvn colonies, invested with responsible government, territory^ Avhich the said Imperial Government had made part and parcel out of ltY The truth seems to be that Mr Ward Avas obscurely making capital for his Government ovei the recent' annexations to NeAv Zealand. He Avould have it appear as if the extension of the colony to include these islands was part of . the " progressive policy " of a Liberal Government, whereas the initiative, of course, came from the Imperial Government, in whose mind the idea had rested for years, and Avho no doubt thought that the federation of the Australian Colonies Avould be a. good time to relieve itself of the responsibility for these islands by handing them I over to NeAv Zealand.

Rather worse in tone and taste, and in other respects more ridicuThe Common lous, Avere Air Ward's reSeiise and tli c marks about the Pacific , Facts of the cable, iioav reaching the] Case. practical stage — the " all , red " cable as it is called. J " They saw for the first time," said Mr Ward, "in the history of the Old Land a matter looked upon years ago as extremely socialistic now in course of being brought about — that is, the State obtaining property for the use of tke people."

: Nothing surely could be more jejune, more puerile, than this attempt to drag socialism into the construction of a commercial treaty by the Imperial and colonial Goj vernments ! Does Mr Ward really think that socialism consists " in the State owning property for the benefit of the people " '( It would be curious to see sucu I a doctrine, propounded to Socialists themj selves. Here again Mr Ward's object is Ito glorify. his Government to the ignorant. I The inference is that not only is he a | 'member of a progressive Government, but one which actually advances far within the lines of socialism— an idea which many : simple people have quite accepted. Con ceive any person taking Mr Ward seriously, and saying : "We are a very socialistic people in New Zealand, and not only that, but we have induced the mother country to become socialistic too ; we are about to construct a cable for the benefit of our commercial men, which Aye hope will react beneficially for the commerce of the colony.' The answer from the greatest dullard to Avhich such a remark could be addressed Avould be : " Why, that's not socialism ; that's business." As for the mother coun try, perceiving for the first time the socialistic advantage of owning property for the benefit of the people, surely Mr Ward must be aAvare that for 30 years the Imperial Government has OAvned tens of millions worth of telegraph lines for the benefit of the people, and has acquired from the beginning land and buildings and Avhat not for the same purpose. As for the projected Pacific cable, it is pure business from beginning to end. There is but small room for sentiment OA'er the " allred " part, for it is extremely questionable whether in the event of Avar" it Avill prove any more secure than the line through Europe and parts of the Ea.st, for, of coarse, the cable can be cut anyAvhere iv the A^ast tract of ocean through which it Avill pass. But it Avill destroy the monopoly, of the Eastern Extension Company, and greatly reduce the cost to the commercial man ; and it proA r ides an alternate ce.ble line — and all these are solid business adA*antages. Now a Avord as to Mr Ward's part in the Avork which has culminated in the. determination to lay the cable. Mr Ward deserA'es every credit for haA'ing kept the project well in vieAV ior years back, and for- having intelligently advocated it. But,- consciously or unconsciously, he conveys a Avrong impression Avhen he says that he Avas laughed at at the Brisbane conference in 1893 Avhen he proposed a resolution for a Pacific cable. He may have earned the resolution by his " persistency 1 of purpose," as he says, but on the Avho;e . it Avould be better were he to leave others to speak on the subject. "The impression conveyed is that he originated the idea, and that, like all daring reformers, he was laughed at as a visionary. That is a greab mistake. The project was soberly discussed by delegates from all- the colonies , Nvhen Mr Ward Avas a boy in pantaloons, and resolutions carried unanimously in favour of precisely &uch a line. At no time has the project been laughed at, but the Avay was blocked because the colonies could not construct the work themselves, anid the English Government could not, and rightly enough, see the then advantage of it. The general agreement about the work is due noAv to the new-born enthusiasm for the colonies and the Imperial fervour of the day. As to the origination of the idea (and Avhich has been kept .aliA'e eA'er since), the conference to which wo have alluded was held in Sydney in 1873 — 27 years ago. All the Australian colonies" Avere represented, the New Zealand delegates being Sir Julius (then Mr) Vogel and the late Hon. W. H. Reynolds. The con- ; ference in its report pointed out the ob- ' jections to lines being in the hands of joint stock companies, Avho looked for large profits for their shareholders. The | conclusion arrived at Avas concisely stated, i and as follows: — i " The conference Avould prefer that her Majesty's Government elaborated the dei tails ; and they merely throw out as a suggestion that the Imperial Government, in conjunction Avith the GoA-ernments of India : and the Australian colonies, should jointly acquire or construct a through line betAveen the United Kingdom, Australia, and NeAv Zealand, and by Avay of her Majesty s Indian possessions."" I Sir Julius Vogel moA^ed and carried a reso- , lution giving effect to this:.

The last year of the century has been marked by a discovery in An Old medical science which Avill Criminal quite certainly prove of imAiid a Patient mense value to the human Detective. race, and especially to those Avho have to live in tropical climates. It is,- that the much-dreaded malarial feA*er of such countries is not caused by exhalations 01 miasma from tropical sv. a.mps, or regions of rank Aregetation, but is really disseminated hy mosquitoes who have fed upon a malarial paticut, and Avhose bites are thereafter deadly to eA*ery person avlio may suffer from them. This disposes of all our ideas as to the essentially endemic character of the disease ; for in a deadly country like, &ay, Sierra Leone, the destruction of the mosquito, could that be accomplished, Avould leave the inhabitants no more liable to malaria than individuals in a temperate climate are to rheumatism or a common cold. The experiments have been A~ery conclusive. The deadly campagna of Rome Avas selected as the theatre of them. The campagna, as doubtless most of our readers knoAV, is a huge tract of waste and deadly swamp surrounding Home, some 80 or 90 miles long, Avith about half that breadth. In the br?ve days of old, it Avat a cultivated and fairly peopled tract, on AA'hich Roman Emperors had their villas. The country avas first desolated by the enemies of Eome, and then fell under the domination of the Tiber, avlioss inundations made the tract a series of stagnant marshes. The deadly " pe.stilential A r apours " of this region have piwcd to be the mosquito. In one of the most deadly spots of this region tAVo doctors (one an Englishman), an Italian artist, and two Italian servants arranged to take up their abode for six months, living, however, in a house the doors and windows

of which Arere Avire gauze, entirely mosquito proof. As mosquitoes feed only at night, the men could Avander about through the day time, but had to be within the hut from an hour before sunset to one hour after sunrise. In the fifth month of their residence they were examined by a deputation of scientific doctors, who, in a telegram to Dr Manson, of the Tropical School of Medicine, London (Avho originated the mosquito theory), certified to the perfect health of the gallant experimentalists. To complete the experiment, a number of mosquitoes were hatched from the egg in a Roman laboratory, alloAved to feed on a malarial patient, and then sent to London. They Avere liberated in a mosquitoproof room in which a son of Dr Manson's deliberately alloAved himself to be bitten. In a few' days he deA r eloped an attack of malarial feA-er, so severe as to culminate in delirium, though, fortunately", he recoA^ered. Inns the mosquito stands revealed as the disseminator of the much-dreaded malarial fever. Protected from his, or rather her, bites at night (for the female is said to be the mischief- worker), tropical tracts that have been but a grave to Europeans Avould be exempt from the disease. Readers who care to look up some simple non-technical account of malaria, such as is to be found ip Chambers's Encyclopaedia, Avill find that some two thousand Avorks haA'e been Avritten on the subject Avithin the last 300 years, and that up to the present time endless speculations have been, made as to the character of the morbific agent at Avork in the production of the disease. "It has been said to be due to a parasite, to a germ, to some telluric origin, which the French call telluric intoxication, to the toxic excretions of living organisms, plant or animal. Some gay it is caused by chills, others by certain electric conditions of the atmosphere, and others say it is due to a gas emitted iby marsh Avater." While those 2000 books were being written and all these .speculations hazarded, the audacious mosquito was killing off the human race by millions. It sometimes takes science a long time to drag a criminal into the light, but, thanks to the gallant spirits who are so ready to risk their own lives in the attempt, it always succeeds in the en*d.

Everyone -will remember a remarkable letter, signed "P. 5.," from Two the pen of a Boer resident Remarkable in London (in some secret Letters. official capacity for his Government), sent to the London Times in October, 1899, just a fey," days after the declaration of war. It was copied into our columns, and when we say that everyone will remember it we keep in mind the fact that it was* the most insulting letter ever written about a people. Perhaps we ought to remember with pride that no newspaper of any other "country ;n; n thu world would permit such " a diatribe Against its own people to appear' in its columns. We question, indeed, whether the life oi the writer of such a letter would be safe in any other . .capital in Europe. The writer in .picturesque phraseology spoke of the British working classes .as a degraded, -ignorant, drink-besotted mob, that our army was rotten with filthy diseases, and our officers imbecile ; and that the entire nation was cowardly and given over to hypocrisy and cant. The writer concluded by saying that our time had a<t length come, that the Cape Dutch (he himself comes from Colesberg,,.as it now appears) would rise, and that we should be driven out of South Africa. There was a snappy sentence which ran : " You want tLe truth, and now you've got it." It 1 appears that Mr Spencer Wilkinson, a well-known English writer on military matters, made some allusions to this letter, which had the effect of drawing out the Boer writer in The Times once more. The sec.ond letter is written precisely one year after the first, when the Boers had been hopelessly defeated, 16,000 prisoners taken, both Republics annexed, and President Kruger a fugitive "from the country he" had ruined. There is a certain alteration in the 'tone of the Boer writer, but the malevolence and the intense hatred of everything English are there still ;_ but at the same time our nation has .to thank him for revealing to us the Boer mind at the beginning of the war, his aims and hopes, and thus placing beyond cavil what was previously but a subject of speculation. If outside the ranks of foreigners and 'faddists there are any persons of pro-Boer proclivities who had not read this Boer's first letter of a year ago we commend them to the second, the main features of which Aye shall present in a separate note.

"P. S." is a methodic il man, and divides liis letter into numbered Lii'tinjr paragraphs. We shall not the Curtain, take these in their order, as it . may be convenient to show for this outspoken letter (for it certainly has the merit of outspokenness) — first, the Boer feeling toAvards the British race ; and, secondly, the ideas prevalent in the minds of their leaders at the time they declared Avar against Great Britain : for there can be no question that the impudent ultimatum giving us 48 hours to AvithdraAv our own troops from our own territory Avas , simply a declaration of Avar. The eA'ents Avhich haA*e occurred during the past 12 months have not disposed our Boer to in the least AvithdraAv from his former position and statements, though the' tone is somewhat less jaunty. " Every- j thing," he declares, " about the imbecility of your officers and the physical rottenness of your soldiers has oeen proA'ed true up to the hilt," and he refers to some criticism of Mr Spencer Churchill's, the Avar conespondent, to substantiate this point. Churchill had remarked that one Boer in his OAvn country is equal to seA'eral regulars, Avhich proposition none of us are disposed to deny. The same could be said of colonists anywhere in their OAvn country. Hers is a gem which is quite equal to anything Avhieh appeared iv the first letter of "P. S. "' : "We haA"c plAvays despised and loathed the British race, and Aye can only look forward eagerly for the time av hen your atrocious cant, your filthy I luxuries, and your degrading vices will-l

make an *nd of a psople who are as vile*-, as those were who lived in old times ir'<j the Cities of the -Plain." "P. S." denies* tis even our colonising qualities, and re-* minds us in his disparaging comparison be-* tAveen our race and his oAvn people of r.' controversy that raged in our columns rJ few Aveeks ago : " Your race has not vigour.^: virility, or virtue to produce children as* formerly, whilst Aye Afrikanders can, and' do, increase and multiply, and can swamp you by that means alone in a very few years." This argument is used to shoAV hoAV vain it is to try and swamp the Boers by sending out immigrants to South Africa:. Finally "P. S." tells us that, "rather than: submit to dwell permanently with such a contemptible race on terms of equality, av<j would prefer to remove ourselves, our women, and children to Java or Sumatra, or any other island under the Hollander flag, where we should be out of the range of the detested English language." But) they only intend to Avait there, or in South • Africa, xmtil the time comes when " Aye shall be able to help A r our enemies and treat the British garrisons in Africa as the patriotic men and women of Mexico treated the French soldiers there betAveen 1862 and 1 1870." We have small space left Avith which to deal Avith the aims of the Boers in declar- ' ing AA'ar, but they are curious and show, ..the depths of Boer ignorance and their rather childish credulity. " I maintain the absolute truth of all my statements," theAvriter commences, " but I must confess we Afrikanders have been grossly deceived and , deserted by the European Powers, Avho led us to belieA-e Aye should not only receive their moral, but material support." Then he goes on to say that " AA-e had every reason to believe that you would be attacked: in Egypt by the great army of France, • and that the population of India, suffering from both plague and famine, would rise in rebellion and Avelcome the invasion by - the Russians, which Aye had good cause to expect. Why these things did not occur is a perfectly insoluble mystery." The "conduct of Germany, Aye are told, " has been so bad 'that I dare not trust myself to speak 1 of it." Finally, we are told that "we' overrated the Liberal party in England, ! r and were vilely misled by many prominent ' members of the party.'' Then comes a,"' qualifying expression of gratitude "to the ' large-hearted philanthropists Avho have been' faithful to us in our direst necessity." The . " philanthropists " in question are Mr Labouchere, Dr Clark', Mr Stead, and the rest of them ! Heaven save the mark ! Thankful Aye ought to be now that the i great mass of the British people throughout ■ the Avorld stood shoulder to shoulder in' the hour of danger, and small wonder that* they get a little impatient with pro-Boer.?. _For, beyond a doubt, it was this unex- , \ "pected solidarity that warned the Powers t mentioned not to interfere. -And it is : Avarning them now. There is something i pathetic in Mr Kruger's impatience Avith 1 the cheap "sympathy" that is pouring on i him in France, and his vain hopes that "it will be followed by acts." ~f

Plainly it was a red-letter day at the Bluff on the 21st inst. The trade A Gala Day of the port has in late years at the increased so rapidly and has Bluff. now attained such dimensions that the Harbouj Board has felt justified in acquiring a tug, which is described as the most up-to-date-vessel of her kind in New Zealand waters, - and the business of the public departments has expanded so greatly that the Government has felt it necessary to provide improved facilities for its transaction by the ' erection of a neAv block of buildings for the accommodation of its offices. And while the Harbour Board's tug Avas christened last Wednesday — christened with the name of the Avife of the popular member for the district, — bhe public buildings Avere opened on the same day. The Bluff is to be congratulated upon tlhe material progress Avbicii it has made, and Avhich is marked by the simultaneous occurrence of these events in its history. But the welfare of the Bluf! is bound up in that of Southland. Wher. Aye learn that the seaport is being visitec by a class of vessels that Avere strangers 'co it 15 or 20 years ago — by cargo steamers of huge capacity, Avhich take away heavy and A r aluable shipments of frozen meat, - frozen rabbits, grain, and other produce, direct' to the markets of the Old World — Aye knoAV that it is because Southland a& a w r hole is prospering. The Minister o.' Railways, Avho Avas appropriately the"' principal speaker at all the functions at the Bluff on the 21st inst. — appropriately because he is distinctly the representative men of the place. — quoted statistics to slioav that the port and the district are progressing in a marvellous manner. There is no question as to the literal accuracy of this , statement. In 1890 the imports at the port Avere of the value of £120,050, and the exports Avere £475,997. Last year the imports Avere £258,713, and the exports amounted to £751,881. These figures are proof conclusive of the great strides whica -^ the Bluff is making. And the Bluff would not have prospered unless Southland had been making .substantial progress. While '" the most southerly municipality in the Avorld, ' as, Mr Ward reminds us, the Borough of OampbelltoAvn is, has been making material advancement, however, it has not been blind to the desirability of in-" creasing its attractiveness, and so a part of last Wednesday's functions, as Aye ar© pleased to record, consisted in the opening and naming of a Avell-chosen parade, which may in course of time prove a valuable asset to the borough. Mr Ward, besides being the principal figure at these ceremonies of the day, Avas the guest of the citizens in the eA^euing, when his speech dealt Avith matters of a colonial and Im-" perial, rather than of a local, character. As the hon. gentleman had in the morningof the same daj- delivered a speech also ai>. the unfurling of a national flag at one of the State schools at InA-ercargill — to Avhich town Dunedin must clearly give the palm in the movement to inculcate a spirit of patriotism in the children of the public, schools, — he a'chieA r ed the creditable record of delivering fiVe speeches on diA r erse subjects, and none of -them uniniaojctaab,, ia a

single day. Even Mr Seddon must look to bis laurels after a; performance of this kind.

The transport Harlech Castle with the first part of the first contingent returning .from South Africa will make Otago her first port of call. The duty of welcoming the returned soldiers will therefore devolve upon the reai- ' dents of Port Chalmers and Dunedin. Aclive preparations were being made in. "Wellington to welcome our boys back again, but in view of the change in the first port of call these have now been abandoned, and the duty now devolves upon his Worship the Mayor of (Dunedin, who will no doubt receive cordial support from the Patriotic Committee and all cit-izens. 13? our1 3?our criminal cases were disposed of at the "Supreme Caurt ~on ; JMonday. , Sarab Jones,'; charged with, the theft of harness at Bannock- ! jtturn, wasacquitted. diaries Hendrick, on a , charge of theft ; ffom the person at_Cromwell, j (i»vas found - guilty and sentenced to nine . •months' imprisonment. The case against rEdward Horton of receiving goods which had ■ Hbeen stolen from the premise:, of Messrs Sargcod, Son, and Ewen and Messrs 3?ergus&on i and. Mitchell, was admitted by accused's! own \ counsel to be a bad one. The man threw •himself on the mercy of the court, and was j jeontenced to five years' imprisonment. James • sPal&tchie, charged with stealing a watch at •Huxburgh, "was declared by a unanimous jury, .to be " Not guilty, with-mt a stain on his character." When the verdict was' announced ■Palate-Ma's , friends in the court received it with a demonstration of approval, which was quickly checked by the police. The following is a statement showing the sv.pport-that has- been so far accorded to the Uihle-in-schools circular o£ the Council of the Churches. Tha Rev. Dr Copland having made ■known its contents lo the recent meeting of the Otago Presbyterian Synod, the referendum" as 'advocated byjthe circular was upheld by a ■unanimous vote, while all the kirk sessions Hvere recommended to petition Parliament to rpass a bill to give it effect. The Otago Wes•leyan District Synod carried a similar resolution by a hearty and unanimous vote. The 33aptist Union, just held in Ohristchurch, have - 'decided fotitby 25 votes to 16. The Otago Sunday School Union, by a unanimous vote, 'did the same. T-he Auckland Christian Endeavour "Council write, by their president, saying: "Your circular was heartily and unanijjnously endorsed." 'The Auckland Sunday "School Union send word, through their vicepresident,, that its purport had been embodied 'in a " resolution pa&sed by a large majority." lA- "committee composed of,«the ministers of the Jvaaious. "Wellington- churches, , with Bishop liW,allip as convener, are in correspondence (with the Key. J. J. Lewis (convener of -the (Dunedin Bible-m-&ehoois . Committee) as to /the best means to secure what is sought. The QBishop sees clearly the "need of united action, and wishes to advance in' line with the Dun"edrn. ministers. The question has yet to come■before the assembly of the Northern Presbyterian Church, the Congregational Union, the (W.esleyan and Primitive Methodist- Conferences, as well as other church courts ; but Mr \Lewis continues to receive assurances of the deep interest fell in the question in all parts of the colony, and the promises of hearty cooperation in the work that has been entrusted to his hands. The twenty-fifth annual general meeting of the shareholders of. the Union Steam Ship Company of New Zealand was held at the offices of the company on Monday, the Hon. George M'Lean, M.L.C. (chairman of directors), presiding. The Chairman, in moving the adoption of the report and balance sheet for the year 1 ended 30th September last, passed 4 in review the work of the year, and gave an interesting account of the company's operations. The directors' report recommended /the payment of. a dividend of 4- per cent, for ithe six months, making, with the interim dividend paid in May last, a total dividend of 1 per centj for the year. Mr Kempthorne j ' i econded the report, and, after a few compli- j snentaEy remarks from the Hon. A. Lea j Smith, the recommendations of the directors 1 Trere carried unanimously. The retiring di-, lector (the Hon. George M'Leau) was unanimously re-elected, as were the retiring auditors (Messrs Alex. Bartleman and Walter Hisiop). After a vote of thanks to the diractors, officers, and staff, afloat and' a«hore, which was duly _ acknowledged by the Hon. George M'Lean and Mr James Mills, the meeting closed. Mr J. Wycliffe Baylie writes : —About 8 e'clock on Friday morning, whilst walking along Clyde street, Roslyn, towards the city, j . on looking towards the Kaikorai A 7 alky I saw the most beautiful fog-bow T have ever witnessed. It was not a bow in the strict sense of the term: the wind was blowing rather strong from the east or south-east, spreading the mist or fog on the level of the ground from about the Kaikorai and Roslyn. terminus for a mils or so towards Flagstaff, and as the sun was shining brightly at the time, the effect was most brilliant and enchanting for the few minutes it lasted. Mr Charles Edwards, KMus.,. T.C.L., who arrived in town on Saturday evening, was engaged during the whole of Monday at the ' Town Hall conducting the practical examinations of the London Trinity College of Music. In Dunedin 132 candidates (including nine j from the Convent) have entered, and the examinations will extend over a week." Edwards' next proceeds to Invereargill, and subsequently to Tasmania, where his examining tour will come to a close. The American Export 'Journal says : — On October 10 the National Steel Company shipped from Youngstown, Ohio, a special train of 40 cars loaded with 1000 tons of steel rails, the train going via the Lake Shore railroad, the rails for shipment to New Zealand, j A special demonstration was made by the workmen: of Youngstown. The cars j were decorated with portraits of President M'Kinley and, bsyiners upon which were in- '

scribed ''Made by Youngstown, Ohio, workmen. Protection, Prosperity, and Progress." , The employees at the steel plant have also provided a flag which will be presented to the consignees in New Zealand. The Rarotonga paper, loi Karanga, of the 3rd inst., says:— "Now that we have become part and parcel of the British Empire we are in hopes that things in general will improve. One thing we look forward to is to see the j natives either cultivate their land or else have it leased for a satisfactory period under proper guidance to those who will turn it to advantage. There are vast tracts of fertile land that are now lying idle, when they could b& made to produce that which would be beneficial to the country and its inhabitants. A short climb to the summit of one of Raro- • tonga's rocky mountains affords a panoramic I view of the island, and one would be astonished to sea the quantity of flat land which i can be seen spreading on all fides. Even , the soil in the vicinity of the rocky cliffs is of ' a rich quality, and very suitable for growing either vanilla, coffee, or cocoa beans. On ' the summit can be seen several trees of New Zealand species growing, such as the punga, \ the ngaio, and others, and, judging from this, ' some people believe that New Zealand pro- . ducts could be grown to advantage on the ! hills." - A Wellington telegram says:— The DepartI ment of Agriculture have received an inquiry | for the names of persons likely to be sending frozen pork to London, and would be glad of information on the subject.