Chaffing the Cabinet.

South Canterbury Times, Issue 4911, 21 January 1889, Page 3

Chaffing the Cabinet.

The Post disapproves of the appointments of Mr Seth Smith to be Chief Judge of the Halivo Land Court, and of Mr MeKerrow to bo Chief Commissioner of Railways, and suggests that the following further changes are to follow as more of Major Atkinson’s “ practical jokes ” : —ln the first place, then, Mr J. C. Gavin, Secretary to the Treasury, is to be appointed to the command of the s s. Stella, with the rank of Inspector-General of Lighthouses, and Captain Fairchild is to become Inspector-General of Schools, in place of the Rev. W. J. Habens, who is to to succeed Mr Gordon, Inspector of Mines, the Premier rightly holding that if Mr Habens is an Inspector, it is quite immaterial what he inspects. Mr Gordon is to receive the vacant Judgeship, and Mr Haselden, Under-Secre-tary for Justice, is to ho appointed SurveyorGeneral, being succeeded by Mr William Agnew, temporarily attached to the Prisons Department. Captain Edwin is to be made Secretary to the Treasury, and the duty of forecasting the weather is to bo transferred to the Commissioner of Police, the person to fill whose office is being at present sought for amongst graduates at Mount -Cook. Major Qudjeon is to be an Examiner of Titles. Mr Reid, Solicitor-General, is to be Mr Blackett’s successor as Engineer-in-Chief. and Mr W. R. E. Brown is to add the duties of Solicitor-General to those of RegistrarGeneral. Mr Sperrey is to leave the Property Tax Department to become Government Printer, and Mr Didsbury tp, succeed Sir James Hector as Director of the Geological Department, the latter retiring on pension, as it is universally acknowledged that it would be quite impossible to find any office which he was not specially well qualified to fill Lieut Colonel Hume, Inspector of Prisons and "Volunteers is to exchange duties with Mr Erankland, Government Actuary and Statist, and Dr laishley, of Auckland, is to be the new Property Tax Commissioner.