Waltekauri. Every Time.

Observer, Volume XVI, Issue 949, 6 March 1897, Page 14

Waltekauri. Every Time.

w' :. vF?ais inspiring theme having 'fetched' Edwin . Edwards', is now responsible for fourteen fullblown verae3 from Tim Doolan ~- otherwise Mr: ,3:. N D. ■ O'Meagher). „We must. give the rival : Paeroa poet a *how,hut have not room for the -. Whole of his able-bodied..' pome '— Bi»..O.J ..Where the weary old prospector .: Plods up gully and up creek,- , ' r -'• And the wefl-paid mine inspector " : Uja six months spends jhalf a week; . "Where thekaka and the tui ■ - Wake the echoes of the bush, ~ And the digger humps bis ' bluey ' . • Through the ever present slash ; » Where the long-legged young surveyor Does, ah ! many a risky climb, Rings with blatant, raucous blare, . * Waifcekauri, every time.' r Where the foreign speculator .-v And the German mine expert, And the Yankee calculator . Handle the 'kindly-looking dirt ;'' Where the manager— yes, daily— ' Juet before the mine is sold. Breaks a reef" or two down fairly, Showing freely ' dabs ' of gold. How the expert puffs and splutters Every day he does a climb, • Damn and blast,' he softly mutters, ' Waibekauri, every time.' Where the Royal -Mail up3tandetb, Yawning for the thirsty souls, And the passengers have landed, Carrying many flowing bowls ; Where the beer pump's ivory handle Oscillates, diffusing beer, And the latnps are one-pow'r candle, Making.darkness hardly clear ; Where the landlord ao polite is - ■ ' Begging pardon ' with, a smile, - Luggage to him great delight Is, ■ Likewise ' Lords,' with cash and style. Then comes wiping out his mime, ' Waitekauri, every time.' Where the County Council never Tried a footpath to improve ; They are all too beastly clever To desert their ancient groove. In the mud and slu-h they wallow, With the gusto of an eel— Their neglect we have to swallow, Mud begrimmed from hip to heel. Ba'.epayers no longer tarry^ Smother them, in their pet grime, .Be the dirge of Chairman Barry, ' Waitekauri, every time.' Where the little foreign creature Crawls about, and rubs his hands ; Greed is stamped on every feature, Grabs he datly Maori lands. How the little varmint chuckles When he gete outrageous rent • Tenants underneath his knuckles Have to pay him • shent per shenfe.' But the time is coming, surely Coming to blot out this shame* Then he will retire obscurely ' When we sphoil his * littelsb game :' Never more the ladder climb, 4 Waitekauri, every time.' Where the wily mine sharebroker Makes his harvest out of shares ; Where one sometimes meets a low cur, Lots of bulls and lots of bears -Where the wild cat, blithe and frisky, -Basketh iv the sunshine warmWhere pervades the smell of whisky And likewise iodiiorm. Where the simple speculator Parts with ail his ready pelf To the fortune incubator,' Who is scheming for himself ; Then one hears.at every o ime, ' Waitekauri, every time.' Where the city Beak presideth, Up thoae stone, thigh-aching steps, Law of b Justice over rideth, Where are dealt with demireps Where the law \ era, oft debating Kept in order by old Mac, ' 'Every time ' their clients slating „ Where they sense of humour lack Where the larrikin assembles Just to hear the legal sport, Whilst the docked one squirms and trembles Quite enough to shake the Court, . Bings the burden of my rhyme, 1 Waitekauri, every time.' But there is a thought of sadness Stealing o'er me as I write. What's parsmt of gold, bat madness, Ending in Cimmerian night ? Where will be the hardy toilers Forty years from now; who knows? Where will be the billy-boilers ? Buried deeply in repose, All their toil and grefs forgotten, Which they suffered in their prime. Bones sing not when they are rotten — Waitekauri, every time. 1

The subject at the bachelors' hall up ia the vicinity of Parnell one night last week was' narrow escapes from matrimony.' The oldest member confessed with a blush that he bad once actually popped the question. ' And howdid you feel, old man, when you proposed ?' asked the junior member of . the establishment. ' I felt for my hat,' he drily replied. They understood right enough. _ It was on a suburban tram. ' Tickets, please,' exclaimed the inspector, suddenly entering. The fat woman in the corner fumbled in all -her pockets, producing, in torn, a half -nutmeg, a box of hairpins, a recipe for coma, and a penny ladies' journal. Then Bhe tried again, and triumphantly drew out a ticket. The guard examined it carefully. ' Sorry, mum,' he said with a grin, 'but we don't pass there.' 'Don't pass; where ?' exclaimed the elderly female, * I thought this was the Ponsonby tram ?' 'So it is, mum, but we don't pasß there. 1 The woman suddenly snatched the pasteboard away. It was a pawn- ticket.

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