INTERCOLONIAL.

Otago Witness, Issue 2509, 16 April 1902, Page 20

INTERCOLONIAL.

i MELBOURNE, April 8. ! The Federal House reduced the duty ou c-ottou to a per cent, aud caHco and linen meat wrappers to 10 per cent. The Government were defeated on both proposals by a narrow majority. April 9. * The Federal Postmaster is taking .step-, io mcercept, the correspondence in 1 connectiou with bookmakers- business and all letters relating to church bazaar*, raffles, and art unions. The steamer Paroo, bound for Ade- . laide. went ashore at Point Loasdale, ait the Heads, early this morning. There is no present danger. Assistance has been, sent. ' The Paroo has been towed off. It is believed she ha-, lost several blades of her propeller. 1 In view of the removal of the headquarters of the pearling industry the Government is making immediate in1 quiri«s with a view to seeiug how far circumstances justify the action being taken. April 10. The banks have decided to reduce the di-count rate-, on 6U-day bills on Lon- | don by 0 per rent., the premium on the celling t -j(J t . being correspondingly mi creased. .Mr Barton, referring to the proposal i for the Empire's defence, states that ifc is based on a speech by Mr Brodrick, who said there was absolutely nothing in. the speech to give colour to the statements based on it. It was quite natural as Mr Brodrick ••ays that if the whole Empire is involved, the whole Empire should help to divide the issue. i The Home has reimposed the duty of los a ton on galvanised iron. j Apnl 11 Thp man Hawkins, accused ot the murder ot his wife at Ballarat, has, I alter two trials, been acquitted. I .Miss Amy Castles has made a brilliant 1 debut. .Mr 0 Connor, in the Senate, stated tli.t* m addition to the subject-, proposed by New Zealand for dkeuwon at tb. Imperial Conference, South Africa ha 3 propo-ed the following- — Naturalisation, political lclations of the Mother Country uith the colonies, defence and relations of Au>tr,ili,i and New Zealand to the Paeihc Inlands, the commercial relations of the Empire. ( ongratulatory cables hare parsed between the Administrator of Fiji and the Federal Postmaster-general. It is expected the cable between Australia, New Zealand, and Fiji will be opened for the public early next month. .Meanwhile only official mes-age 5 - will bo sent. A pnl 12. The -hip Strathoryffe is high and dry, and fear, are entertained about getting her off. 'l!ie Victoiian Employeis' I 'edcration have decided to abandon their att-tude of defence in favour of a policy of active opposition. Tlipv have issued a mani-

■" Wet Paint " wo often sec about, And v. lidy keep our distance; Ad \ ico like that is good, no doubt, And \alut-'>lc assistance. But there"*- otic thing more precious till, Of lli'it you can make ■•ure, Cy dri\in^ eff jour cougji 1 or tlnll Jj^ili .Wooi>V £ekai jPjaxxpjiiKT Cubs,

festo opposing undue Government interference in the fixing of wages, hours, and also opposing Arbitration Acts similar to those of New Zealand and New South Wales. April 14. Mr Drake, Postmaster-general, is trying hard to secure a reduction in the Australian-New Zealand cable charges. Of 2610 Queensland sugar-growers, 1398 have registered as employers of •white labour, enabling them to get a bonus. It is estimated the bonus this year will amount to about £100,000. M'Namara was hanged in Melbourne Gaol for the murder of his son through burning his dwelling house. The condemned man attempted to commit suicide by dashing his head against the bars of his cell after breakfast, inflicting a gash on the head. He declared his innocence on the scaffold. Death was instantaneous . M'Namara, a recent arrival from South 'Africa, rented a shop in Melbourne, which lie insured heavily. After taking his wife out for a long walk, he gave her some spirits as she was retiring to bed, and then ostensibly went out to post a letter. The wife was aroused by a burn on her arm, and in the haste and confusion of escaping overlooked the child sleeping m the same bed, with the result that the latter lost its life. There was a joint insurance policy on the lives of the husband and wife. SYDNEY, April 8. Breadstuffs and foodstuffs are active, j owing to the short supplies. The Adelaide wheat market is excited, while Melbourne anticipates startling advances in wheat up to 4s, E>nd of flour ud to £9. The census shows that the number of New Zealand-bom residing in New South Wales has increased from 9015 in 1891 to 10,589 last year. The Daily Telegraph says that Mr Seddon's speech at Papawai is his latest bid for Imperialistic and jingoistic renown. It is also his boldest. The Maoris themselves are above the reproach of ferocity implied in Mr Seddon's harangue. As a race their war methods were, on the whole, singularly humane, and they had palpably exhibited far finer ideals than those of some of the more violent jingoes of to-day. The paper dreads that, as Mr Seddon is pushing forward as the leader of Imperialistic opinion in this part of the world, his latest scheme may be taken as an Australasian one. April 9. The American Consul in Newcastle recently reported that a favourable field for American capital was provided by the tariff. Inquiries are now received concerning the opening for the manufacture of iron goods. Tlie Italian barque Paola Madre, which left for Genoa early last month, has arrived here in a disabled and battered condition. She encountered a terrific huricane off the coast of New Zealand on March 21. The boats were washed away, the bulwarks and wheel housps destroyed, the s-tcering gear injured, the sails lost, the forecastle flooded, and the men were for two and a-half days continually at the pumps. The barque made back for Sydney as soon as the weather moderated. April 10 The high price of wheat locally has led to a &hip, which was loaded, and on the point of departure for England, returning to her berth and discharging. The Premier denies Mr Lee\ statement that the finances are embarrassed. The fir->t nine months' revenue, he state-, is a quarter of a million better than for the corresponding period cf la'-t year. Con-idering the effect-, of the drought, he regards the po-ition a- satisfactory. Il<> hope- to call Parliament together in May, after the new Governor's arrival. The new.-, received by the American mail regarding the Empire defence scheme outlined by Mr Brodrick is looked upon by the Daily Telegraph as an attempt to force Imperial federation. The paper says there i-, ominously good reason to suspect that an early effort will be made to bring an undesirable and unwise idea of defence federation into practical shape. It is none too ■-oon for an emphatic Australian repudiation of a scheme which would impo-e galling limitations on their «.elf-government, and introduce militari-m m its mo-t obnoxious form. Apnl 13 George Telham, third officer on the Talune, died in the ho-pit.il to-day from injuries received while superintending the loading yesterday. An iron girder ■which wa- being hoisted abroad <-hpped, crushing his client. ADELAIDE, April 8. A fearful condition of thing-, exi^t^ in Central Australia. Reports vtate that natives are arriving at the telegraph stations in an emaciated condition from starvation, and that several had died of thir-t. Apnl 10. The official wheat yield i> 8,012,7(32 bushels — an average of o.bti bu-hoK per acre. BRISBANE, April 8. A New Guinea official states that the murderers of Dr Chalmers and the Rev. Mr Tompkins, when spoken to by white men, made no attempt to conceal the crime. When told that the clergymen ihad never done them any harm, they replied that they "v, anted to kill the jrhite men." April 9. £>ver COO man. coua,octed with tlig^

pearling industry have removed to new headquarters in Dutch New Guinea. This means a. loss to Queensland oi £25,000, besides the loss to business people on Thursday Island. April 10. The Government offers a reward of £500 for the arrest and conviction of the perpetrator of the outrage on and the murder of the fourteen-year-old girl Amedee at Ithaca, near Brisbane. April 13. Thursday next has been proclaimed a day of humiliation and prayer for rain. April 14. The schooner Fearle=s was wrecked on San Christonal Island. The crew escaped in boats, and are believed to be safe.