Pars About People

Observer, Volume XXIX, Issue 27, 20 March 1909, Page 4

Pars About People

PETER VIRTUE burst into th* . Observer office the other : .-. .d^y in his most blustering• ;, manner, i 'to champion the cause of the Band of _Busybodies, of which -he is a distinguished member, against our strictures ' upon the abuse of the proxy system in the Harbour Board election. Peter, hdwever, was unreasonably angry, and in his wrath he soon got beyond his depth. His grievance was that the Observer had . stated that he and his Busybody associates constituted a Tammany Ring in Auckland. Of course the Observer did not say anything of the kind. What it did state was that the present rotten proxy system was conducive to Tammany in its most insidious form, which is an entirely different thing.

But Peter was not Ln a mood to argue logically, or to apprehend the obvious meaning of simple words. Clearly he had come to make a row, and was determined to have one. A-gainst all proof to the contrary, he maintained that we had branded him and his friends as Tammanyist practitioners, and demanded a retraction of an assertion that had never been made. Theiij when his attitude had got to the point of being ludiorous, Peter altered his tactics and became abusive and offensive. Moreover, he declared that if the Observer wouldn't father a charge which was his own invention, and go down on its knees to him in apology, its staff needn't darken his doors again for business purposes.

To this kind of argument there was only one possible answer. If Mr Virtue didn't want the Observer. the Observer had no use for Mr Virtue. He was politely asked by a member of the staff to take his shadow out of the office. After backing to the footpath, he continued to raise his voice there, until the patience of aie staff was exhausted, and he was left to expend his futile anger in the street. A feasible explanation of Peter's volcanic outburst is that the. Brass Band had had their financial settlement over the licensing election that day. That would account for a great deal.

Cabled that Dr. Graham Bell; inventor of the telephone, is experimenting with a " tertahedral aerodrome." Any individual who fools round with a machine with a name like that has only got himself to blame- if he meets with an accident.

Selwyn traditions linger long in the country districts. A pioneer settler in the Far North, Mr G,. tells at his own , expense one of the variants of the bullock story. One day in the sixties he was punching his horned team along an unformed road-line, and using some of the picturesque language that they best understood, when a quiet-look-ing stranger , happened along on foot. Just then the bullocks jibbed, and the teamster let go another salvo of lurid expletives. The newcomer, who afterwards turned oiit to be Bishop Selwyn, on one of his solitary journeys through the diocese, expostulated .with him upon the forcibleness of his mode of expression. " Well, sir," protested the driver, "suppose you try them in, your way." The good Bishop accepted the challenge, and in his most seductive tones tried to persuade Blossom and Strawberry to put their shoulders to the yoke. After about ten minutes' effort, however, he had ; to acknowledge himself unequal to the task. " Ah, well," said his lordship smilingly, as he resigned the wMp, "perhaps you know their dialect best," and he passed on his journey, leaving Mr G, to apply the methods that his own experience had shown' to be efficacious.

Henry Martin, whose majestic beard and the musical speaking voice in which he demands " Silence ! for His Honour the Ring's Judge" have been features of the Auckland &u---prejne Court for a generation, retires from .the Government service at the end of this month. He is the oldest official now about our temple of justice, with the single exception of R. G. Thomas, the present registrar, who was a junior clerk iii'the office when Mr Martin became usher, 26 years ago. H. E. Brewer, then registrar, and G. W. Basley, deputyregistrar, have quitted the civil service to enter upon the practice of law. Mr Justice Gillies, under whom Mr Martin first made his call for " Silence," has gone the way of all : flesh, and so also with most of the barristers then in practice. When Mr Martin first became connected with the court the heavy guns of the Auckland bar were Edwin Hesketh and E. K. Tyler, both long ago traaislated to another world, and Theo. Cooper, now an ornament of the bench. Practically all the barristers of to-day have won their professional standing under Mr Martin's eye, so to speak.

It is, however, as Sergeant Martin, of the Auckland Water Police, that Mr Martin is best remembered by old Aucklanders. For the ten years from 1873 onwards he was in charge of the little station at the head of the Queen-street wharf. At that period the water police fulfilled an important function, owing to the number of sailing vessels that traded from Auckland to the Islands, and had to be watched. Sergeant Martin and the late Constable Luke Macdonnell were the members of the smart little corps most in the public

eye. , Ex-Sergeant Carrigan, one of his predecessors in the charge of the water-front, is also still in evidence in the city. It was in 1883 that Mr Martin quitted the stir of the waterfront and was appointed to the position of comparative ease and dignity which he has since filled so admirably. Prior to his arrival in Auckland re had put in three years of field service in the Armed Constabulary.

One of Mr Martin's most interesting recollections concerns the arrest of a merchant who had made defalcations in Timaru to the extent of £iO,OOO. Advice came along that this person, after having got away to San Francisco., was coming through Auckland by the mail steamer, and Martin and Macdon nell were told off to intercept him. The steamer put in an appearance on a Sunday night, and Martin and his mate went off in their boat to meet her as she rounded North Head. Their only means of boarding her was by shinming up a rope that dangled over the side. Martin did the acrobatic performance, aaid in the turmoil of preparation for disembarking sought out and found his quarry amongst the pasengers. On being arrested, the prisoner handed over to his captor a loaded revolver, and then accompanied him over the bulwarks and into the police boat, where the waiting Macdonnell was knocked overboard by the prisoner's clumsy descent. As it happened, the case never came to trial. On the day appointed for the Supreme Court sitting, New Zealand was startled with the news that Martin's capture had shot himself through the head with the very weapon he had produced on the mailboat.

In the course of his speech at the Lib. -Lab. presentation to Harle Giles, P. J. Nerheny was guilty of a' grave sin of omission. P.J. was enumerating the names of past members of the Lib. -Labs, who had received public a.^-ointments and who had proved brilliajit successes. Yet he never mentioned Thomas Gresham I And Thomas, of course, has been the most brilliant success of the lot. It is now up to P.J. to retrieve his error, and that right speedily, else a fearful fate will surely overtakehim.

iieports i-t the South persistently credit the Hon . Dr. Find lay with tie intention of taking the Chief Justice-' ship in case Sir Robert Stout resigns. In doing so he would only be following the traditions of his position. It is the recognised privilege of the At-torney-General to accede to any vacancy on the Bench that occurs during his term of office. New Zealand's last Chief Justice, Sir James Prendergast, received his appointment in this very same manner, and the late Sir Patrick Buckley's elevation was another illustration of the custom. More unlikely things may happen than that indicated in the rumour.

By the way, in the careers of Sir Robert Stout aaid Dr. Findlay there is a singular parallel. Both are Scots (Dr. Findlay by parentage, Sir Robert as to birthplace), both were students at Otago University, aaid both became law lecturers to the University, they practised in partnership till Sir Robert went upon the Bench, both have been in Parliament, a.nd both have held the At-torney-Gen eraJ's portfolio. If the parallel should continue further it would hardly be surprising.

The most conspicuous feature of the cricket match between the Bland Holt company and the Licensed Victuallers' Association was the heroic batting of George Hume. George's anpearaaioe at the wickets caused consternation to pervade the ranks of the Bland Holtians, because George, like W. G. Grace, carries all before him, and when, with bat in hand, he made ready to repel the onslaught of the thespians' bowler th«> said bowler was much discomfited at finding that George's manly corporation totally eclipsed the wickets. The only thing to be done was to bowl at the corporation, but the corporation didn't budge an inch. George went out for a duck's egg, but he was caught out, not bowled, and he retired with, a sweet smile, eloquent of duty done. What the opposing team and the spectators chiefly admired was Qeprge's style in running. It was unique.. „ - ■ ■;...,.

The selection of T. H. Hamer, Under-Secretary of Mines c as the new secretary to the High Commissioner, is a happy decision on the part of the Government. It is doubtful if any other man in the New Zealand civil service -could fill tKe berthVmore satisfactorily. Mr Hamer' s long association with the late Mr Seddon as his principal private secretary will have put him in touch with the questions with which the London office has to deal. As to his other qualifications, he is one of the best-informed public servants in the Dominion, one of the least bound by official red-tape, and one who in his dealings with the public never puts on an atom of "side." With both a High Commissioner and his secretary fresh from the colony, New Zealanders at Home should have no more ground for complaint that the office is not up to date.

In the course' of the hearing of the Stirling diyoroe case, Lord Guthrie, the presiding judge, said that he could not understand the attitude of the public in the case. He thought it was indecent. It would be interesting to learn the judge's opinion on the action of the Auckland dailies in publishing every nauseating detail of the case.

Satisfactory to have Sir Joseph Ward's assurance that his holiday at Rotorua has set him up in health, and that he is again as fit as the proverbial fiddle. The statement was made for the purpose of negativing an idea which he believed to be current that he was physically not all he should be, and that his retirement was on the cards. But Sir Joseph hardly hit the popular feeling that has caused uneasiness on his behalf. That feeling is, not that anything is actually' the matter with him, but that with the accumulation of responsibility upon his shoulders he is running needless risks of overwork. At present he has a greater number of important departments under his control than any man van manage without danger or harm to his physical condition. New Zealand has seen Premiers sacrifice themselves to their work before now, and has no wish that the popular Sir Joseph should be added to the list.

J. Vigor Brown, M.P. and mayor of Napier, has just had an interesting experience. Recently there settled in. Napier a Rev. J. B. Morton Barnes, B. A. (Cantab.), who describes himself as a Universalist minister^ but has not" found .that a new " fancy religion" catches on to any extent in New Zealand. Consequently the Rev. Barnes finds himself stranded. In his strait he wrote to Mr Brown appealing for assistance. It is the modest terms of the appeal that arrest attention. Mr Barnes estimates that he is £150 out of pocket through coming to New Zealand, and he plainly states to Mr Brown that a matter of £150 would be " a mere fleabite for you to give me or to obtain for me by ' your personal influence." His object in seeking the money was to get away to America, where he considers that he will 1 find better prospects.

Small wonder that Mr Brown was astonished at the boldness of the request. He had, by the way, already assisted the minister's household with goods from his store, but had naturally objected on finding that under his order goods were being obtained which he considered luxuries. In his reply to the letter, Mr Brown politely suggested that whatever assistance Mr Barnes was entitled to should come from his fellow clergyman. Then the Universalist showed his claws. In another letter he stigmatised Mr Brown's refusal as being "characteristic of the general meanness of New Zealanders, and of licensed victuallers in particular" — Mr Brown happens to be interested in a Napier brewery. Further, the worthy minister threatened to ' ' expose the meanness of -the ' trade ' if you decline to befriend me and find me the necessary means to leave this country. lam a good hand at writing letters to the Press, and shall not fail to "oirifc out the weakness of the L.V.A. is their meanness towa/rds those men of education and ability who have risked much ,to defend their interests." The final shot was a promise to put the whole matter before the public. To this Mr Brown's answer has been the publication of the correspondence on his own account. The incident speaks for itself.

Andrew Farmer visited his old haunts at Te Aroha last week, and was hailed by the local press as a benefactor to the district, inasmuch as it was his enterprise that had out ur> certain blocks of land near the torn and attracted settlers to them from distant places. It is noted that land sold by Mr Farmer at £1 as bo £3 an acre is now bringing as much b& £10 to £15. Which will probably cause Andrew to reflect that he might have been more of a benefactor to himself if he had waited a little longer.

In the light of this week's developments with regard to the Ferro-Con-crete Company, the irony of the Harbour Board's preference of the Australian conoern to the solid McLean firm when letting the contract for th« Queen-street wharf stands out more startlingly than ever. The McLeans' tender for the work was th« lowest, and yet they were passed ovor on the plea that they had had no experience in ferro - concrete work. But while the Board set aside the tender of one of the most practical firms in the Dominion, who had made a success of every job they had undertaken, other ports deem they quite worthy of being entrusted with even the mysterious concrete works. The State Government, too, has given them the biggest contract in tunnelling it has ev«r let. To-day, the McLeans are th« biggest contracting employers in the Dominion, while the rivals who were preferred before them are proposing to wind up for want of sufficient capita].

The vast and important metropolis of Putaruru was visibly agitated and exhilarated last week, and the cause of bhe agitation and exhilaration was Charlie Philpot. A few years ago, Charlie, who owns a farm at Putaru-_.*-u, took unto, himself a wife, and just recently Charles and his spouse disappeared foom their, domicile far a space. "The Putarurumans were jußt beginning to fear that their Charles had deserted them , fox ever., when news was received from Auckland tna.t he was returning with a son and heir. Such, a ' momentous event could not be allowed to . pass unnoticed. Putaruru turned out en masse to meet the train, and Claries, proudly bearing his unconscious offspring, marched proudly through the city, , escorted by a procession consisting of the entire population* The procession brought up

at George Main's hostelry, where ceremony of " wetting the baby's head " was solemnly gone through. What the Putaruruffians now want to know is when George himself — but that's another story.

It is pretty clear from his evidence at the Addington workshops inquiry that there was ground for the report that the Hon. J. E. Jenkinson was the expert whose criticism of the " Government stroke" methods pursued in the shops gave occasion for the inquiry. Mr Jenkinson ' would not admit before the Commission that he was the oritdc in question, but on the other hand would not deny it. The inference is obvious.

The lot of higlily-paid officials employed by the Harbour Board appears to be an enviable one. It is only a short time since Engineer Hamer returned from a trip to the Old Country. Secretary Brigham has had more than one trip Home at the expense of the Board, or rather, of the public. And now Assistant Engineer Powell has _ • been granted leave of absence for eight months on half pay, in order that he may visit Europe. But why on half pay ? Why not give him full pay and a bonus ? Hang the expense !

John Henry Hannan's philanthropic feelings have been hurt by Arthur Rosser's recent assertion that four-roomed houses oould not be obtained in. Auckland at a lower rent than £1 a week, and John Henry goes into lengthy details to prove that, whatever other landlords may do, he has a tender regard for the welfare of his tenants, although, alas 1 John Henry's tenants do not have the same regard for the feelingis of their tender-hearted landlord. Further, John Henry complains that he has been " traduced by the gutter press of the city." Alack and well-a-day ! "Wicked gutter press to traduce the noble-minded John H. We always suspected that John Henry was a philanthropist. Since reading his touohing and tearful letter we are afire of it. He must be a philanthropist indeed, to still hang on to his chateaux in, view of the martyrdom that he has undergone at the hands of some of his tenants and the, " gutter press." Anyßbdy but philanthrdpisfc "■, would have^'got out of the business long ; ago. Joh, why aren't there. more 'pebble like John Henry Haniian in this city P