Political Notes and Com meats.

Southland Times, Issue 13287, 14 August 1895, Page 3

Political Notes and Com meats.

(By Telegraph.) (FROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT.) Wellington, Aug. 13. For eight .months Mr J. W. Kelly has been trying to induce the Department of Lands to reduce the royalty on hewn sleepers. At present a sawmiller may go into a maiden bush and cut as many sleepers as he chooses for a royalty of Is per 100 feet, but when he gets all he wants out of the bush and then leaves it and working men go to hew sleepers from the remaining trees the royalty they have to pay is 2s per 100 feet. The unfairness of this has been persistently dwelt on by Mr Kelly and the department has at last promised to reduce the charge to one shilling. Mr Kelly has also been endeavouring to induce the Minister of Lands to construct at Makarewa a road which would be the means of giving employment to small settlers in the district, but so far the Minister has not definitely agreed te do anything in .the matter. Mr McNab is to ask the Minister of Lands whether any demand has been experienced by his department for land adjoining the settlement at Quarry Hill, Southland, and if such demand has been experienced will he cause steps to be taken to resume possession of run No. 257 for settlement purposes.

The conviction that Sir Patrick Buckley will be Judge Richmond’s successor spreads day by day. Judge Ward’s chances are a till occasionally spoken of, but with lessening assurance, and Sir Patrick’s appointment is now looked upon as being practically a certainty. It is true that nothing is certain until it happens and after all the proverbial “dark horse” may walk into the position. Many circumstances make me think otherwise. A small but significant incident is that Sir Patrick’s name; does not appear on the committee set up in the Council this afternoon to inquire into the relations of the Estates Co and the Bank of New Zealand, though Sir Patrick leads for the Government in that particular Chamber. Those who have been watching this matter look upon the omission of Sir Patrick’s name as evidence of a desire to release him from such political work as a prospective judge would naturally prefer not to touch. In fact as I write I received the following note from one of the best informed men in the House-“ Regarding the judgeship it is pretty generally understood that Sir P. Buckley is the man ; Mr Guinness taking his position in the Upper House and the Chairmanship of Committ it s going to eitherfMajor Steward or Mr Joyce.” Mr W. Hutchison says that there are men in the public service who judging from their sycophancy in the presence of Ministers woula black those gentleman’s boots if asked to, and yet the same men, when Ministers are not within sight or hearing, caricature their idiosynoracies and sneer at their bad grammar and provincial patois.

The member for Clutha is following up the question of sending sleepers from the West Coast.-all over the colony as well as to Gatlins river. He will to-morrow give notice of a motion calling for a return of all contracts entered into with the Government for the supply of sleepers during the past three years. He is also asking that all correspondence shall be placed on the table of the House which passed between the engineers on the North Island railways and the Government. Mr Mackenzie feels satisfied that if the return be granted it will be seen that the West Coast silver pine will pot bear out the reputation ascribed to it by the Premier. It is doubtful, however, jf he will ever get the return ; the Government is by no means ’* liberal ” in that respect.

Mr G. J. Smith is to ask the Minister for Labour whether the provision of “ The Shops and Shop Assistants Act, 1894,” relating to the granting of a weekly halfholiday to assistants employed in hotel bars is being observed; if not, will he give instructions that such provision shall be enforced? Mr Montgomery wants to know whether the Government intend to provide free storage for a month for dairy produce at fche Government cool stores this year. The debate on the Budget is expected to close to-morrow. The amount expended on roads at the Pomahaka estate up to the 31st of March was L 1852; on surveys, L 48 6; and on management and other expenses, H6O. On the 31st of March the men employed on Government works (co-operative or °th®r) numbered 2638; engineers and 32 » inspectors and overseers, 82—total, 2752.