The Wairarapa Daily. THURSDAY, MARCH 21, 1881

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume 3, Issue 725, 24 March 1881, Page 2

The Wairarapa Daily. THURSDAY, MARCH 21, 1881

Major Atkinson addressed his constituents on Monday last, He claimed that when the Hall Ministry came into office there was a deficiency of nearly a million, and that in the face of bad times it had been made good, He also expressed an opinion that tho Government had effected retrenchment to the amount of £252,000, On the question of local solf-govern-ment lie indicated no very clear opinion. Ratepayers had it in their hands, he said, to merge. Road Boards into Counties, or amalgamate Counties, but lie expressed no conviction as to which alternative was tlie better one, or whether it would not be wise to retain Road Boards as well as Counties, He was not far off the mark when he said that it was want of money rather than the form of Government, that was the real difficulty. If, however, during the past two years Major Atkinson has, through a period of depression, made good a deficiency of nearly a million, he ought in the coming year to have a handsome sum available for assisting local bodies. On the land question he had a very satisfactory report to make, his colleague, Mr Rolleston, having opened up 242,000 acres, of which 186,000 had been sold on deferred payments under the homestead system, or for cash. He expressed an opinion that the nominated system of immigration must be again resorted to, in order to relieve the colony in bearing its present burden, It may, perhaps, be said that the bulk of the immigrants sent out under the old regulations increased tlie burthen of the country, and 1 it is to be hoped that any money spent on future arrivals will be more'judiciously expended than former votes have been. We quite agree with Major Atkinson in- his declaration at the close of his address that the country required careful administration and very little legislation. It may be fairly anticipated that in the coming session the amount of talk will be as great, and the amount of work done as little as in the late one. Perhaps the postscript of the Major's speech, in whioh he replied to questions, will be regarded by many as the most important point in it, viz,, the expression of his opinion that in oureducational system there shouldbe a special concession to the Catholics. This, following on the Hon Walter Johnston's appointment, commits the Ministry to an indiscretion.; The Maior's speech was a gopd one, but; probably

by. this little. acltlentlum ilie /has done himself and his party fail injury for which no amount of declamation on other subjects will compensate. .On the whole the speech was a'little disappointing. There was nothing very new in it ; no Cabinet secrets leaked out It was simply MajoYAtkiiisoii on things iii general and nothing in particular. If either , the Ministry. or the Opposition have a policy they keep it in reserve. As far as we can see the Ministry will continue to adminster the Government of the colony as economically as possible, and will be lead by the House as to any 'political changes which may be desired, The House will probably' relegate this responsibly to 'the people, and nothing very material in the way of new legislation mil be acconiplislied-till after the next general election, It is a matter of congratulation that. the colony is now financially solvent, and for this blessing it is mainly indebted to Major Atkinson. As fur as his speech went he gave his constituents full. measure. ' He provided, as it were, a good many courses, and if some of the meats were a little overdone, and others a little underdone there was plenty for all, and if the-electors of Egmont carried home a tithe of what lie told them they will be politicians for the rest of their natural lives 11 .

F. H, Wood &00, will sell household furniture and general merchandise, after their proporty sale on Saturday next, The outgoing San Francisco mail closes at Masterton on the 26th instate. 30,, a.m.

The usual fortnightly sitting of the R.M., court at Masterton, takes place today,

Spofforth the celebrated cricketer has been offered a position in the Union Bank at Ohristchurch. The Mormon elders attended the Orakei Parliament and attempted unsuccessfully to proselytise the natives. Wool after being firm for some time, has gone up a penny a pound in the London market, This is good news for the Wairarapa.

Tasmania has been declared free from scab, The New Zealand Government should buy up the Chief Inspector of that colony at any price. A complimentary dinner was given last evening at the Prince of Wales Hotel by the officers and members of the Masterton Rifle Volunteers to Sergeant Henry, prior to his departure from this district. Mr F. W. Green occupied the chair. The usual loyal toasts were drank, and the best wishes of one and all expressed for the future prosperity of the Wairarapa drill instructor.

We understand that' a David in this neighborhood has refused to pay more than nino out of the twelve months property tax demanded by the Government Goliath, His stone is that the land tax covered three months of the year for which property tax is claimed. Whether he will be able to sling it successfully remains to be seen. . We are glad to learn that after many days the Manawatu ferry dispute is arranged. A short time ago it was put into the hands of Mr Maunsell the resident native commissioner, nnd he has agreed to pay the Maori potentate a hundred pounds for an acre of land at the ferry. Possession of the land and ferry is to be given within three weeks from the present date. It has transpired that Sir Arthur Gordon and Commodore Wilsone have communicated with the Secretary of State for the Colonies regarding the report of the Intercolonial Conference on the subject of the South Sea Islands massacres, and the powers of the High Commissioner for the Western Pacific. Their letters reply warmly to the comments of the report, which Commodore Wilson characterises as a scumllous libel.'

■ A correspondent of the N.Z, Times writing of Mr Henry Anderson saysl should like to correct what I regard aa an erroneous account of attempted suicide by Mr Anderson, I saw the gentleman in question walk in a dazed sort of manner towards the end of the wharf, apparently not noticing where he was going. On arriving at the plank which is placed at the extreme end, he struck it with his feet and toppled into the water; he did not appear to deliberately jump in, as asserted, for, on descending, ho caught the Wanaka's bow-line, which had tho effect of letting him down on his feet, when he afterwards fell on his back, and laid there motionless .until I.caught him by the collar of his coat, and then put a line-under him, and with some others hauled him on to the wharf. I don't think the above circumstances lead one to conclude that suicide was attempted, but rather that the falling into the water was a mere accident.

A special meeting of the stewards of the late Taratahi-Oarterton race meeting took place at Ray's Hotel on Tuesday evening last, Messrs A, Armstrong, J, Smith, H. H, Wolters, and Dr Watts being present. The meeting was convened for the purpose of deciding in how much the present committee should assist the old Taratahi-Oarterton Club in the payment of its debts. Mr Wolters produced a printed statement which he had received from Mr Thomas Bennett. This statement was signed by Mr Thomas Ray, as treasurer ; Mr Thomas Bennett, as a steward; and Mr E. E, Edmunds, as acting secretary; and purported to show as assets, (1) recoverable subscriptions, £36 4s Gd; (2) balance due by gatekeepers, £6; (3)olub properties, £lßl3s 3d; and balance in bank, £1 12s Idtotal £62 9s lOd. The liabilities were stated to be—Thos. Bennett, for erecting grand stand and printing, £l6 10s; Mr Ray, for Desmond's winnings, £2O; Mr Wliyte, for sundries, £2 0s 4d; and sundry stakes and labor, £23 19s Gd—total, £62 9s. lOd, It was understood that Mr Whyte's account had been paid subsequent to the publication of the statement referred to, It was then resolved on the motion of Mr A. Armstrong, seconded by Mr Wolters, that the sundry stakes and labor, amounting to £23 19s Gd, and due to Messrs Macara, Oockery, Tilson, Bannnister, Witt, and Campion respectively, be paid out of the funds of the existing committee, who have a balance of nearly £4O in hand. Some discussion then ensued on the desirability of forming a properly organised racing club, but aa the attendance was not lftrae the matter was allowed to stand over till some future occasion,

We hear'from reliable authority thaf; it is the intention of Messrs (Schroder, Hooper & Co. to make their first grand display of Autumn and Winter Millinery, Drapery, and Clothing at the Hall of Commerce, on Saturday, March 19th, consisting of VI packages and bales. As the bulk of their magnificient stock has been imported direct from the-manufac-turers, the public can rely upon obtaining all the latest fashions and designs of the season at; extremely low prices,; We would advise all purchasers and lovers of. fashion to make an- early call at the Hall of Commerce and inspect their stock. Thoir advertisement will be found on the' front page of this paper.—[Advt].

' v The nomination for the Oaatlepoint, Rabbit-Trustees annual olection is fixed ■ forjthe 31st inst; - V reyentie of the Dominion of Canada during the five months ending in November last- was 12,000,000 dole., and ..the expenditure 9,114,000 dols. ■ The the United States on unsettled ' land,- ia stated to be abou; 2000 miles long by 350 miles in width) and '-ifc-reaches from- the Rio' Grande to .Manitoba in Canada; -

Mr George' Williamson- informs th» Poverty Bay Standard"that .'lie has. discovered a most effective but attho'samo time very-simple, euro for. blight.. After trying all sorts of thinga/ 'heby accideilt; found that cold 'tea leaves'thrown'at.the] roots of trees, successfully combated : with the disease, and in a very-short space of' time caused the trees'to become perfectly clean.- Are-we to understand tliat this is-a specifio against all kinds of blight ] In a table attached to the last report on lunatic asylums, the consumption of wines'and spirits in the Wellington Asylum was 10s 9d per head; in that of Auckland Is 3d. , A contemporary says—Why lunnatics 1 ' in - Welllington. should require eight times as much alcohol as in Auckland is not clear,. Was it given to them at all 1 It is within tlfe bounds'of possibility that some of thestrange occurrences in that, institution may be traceable to an unequal distribution of exhilarating fluids. The Te Aroha correspondent of the Waikato Times says, " The excitement concerning the murder has cooled down somewhat, and work, which has been almost suspended in some of the claims has been resumed, The natives have held a great tangi over the'remains of the .unfortunate Native at thoNgatihoko pahfat which a great quantity of kai was consumed and the usual quantity of talk indulged in. This appears to have acted as a vent for the excitement, and they are now again visiting the township in consideiable numbers, always clearing out, however, before sunset,,as nothing would induce them to pass the spot where the murder was committed after dark. They have also tabooed the creek which runs past O'Halloran's hotel, on account of water from it being used to wash the body of the murdered man, and, are very particular in seeing that the water they drink, even in the hotel, does not come from that source."

A singular though very American experiment (says the Pall Mall Gazette) has just been tried at Philadelphia, reminding us somewhat of Jules Verne's famous expedient of firing his exploring party to the moon'by means of a monster projectile. So many accidents have happened through the faulty construction of elevators from the breakage of ropes and other mischances, that an inventor named Ellithorpe has introduced a safety aircushion to break the fall should an accident occur, the cushon consisting of the elevator shaft being made air-tight for a space of 20ft from the bottom.; To test the invention it was arranged that the elevator of a certain dry goods store should be made to fall from the fourth to the first floor, a height of about 75ft. So satisfied was Mr Ellithorpe, or rather his son, that the cushion would do its work properly, that he consented to be shut up in the cage during the fall, and in this experiment the inevitable reporter was bold enough to share. A box. half filled with nails was placed upon the floor of the chamber, and four eggs laid upon the nails, while several tumblers of water, brimful, were also carefully deposited, .The two men then'entered the chamber, the door of which was then closed, completing the air-tightness at the bottom of the shaft, and it was drawn up to the fourth floor, At a given signal the rope was cut, and the whole thing fell to the bottom like a flash of lightning; but before the lookers-on could make up their minds to seek for what they dreaded, the door was opened, and the occupants Btepped briskly out, having never felt the shock in the least, The eggs were not cracked, neither was a drop of water spilt, So successful was the experiment that we may expect this new kind of " tobogging" to become the latest form, of sensational amusement.

In an address to the Indiana SheepGrowers' Association, Mr B. F. Masee held the following There is one thing about pasturing sheep that lias been overlooked, viz,, the damage done to the qrass by being run over by the flock, While, I believe, one acre of good grass would keep five, or may be eight sheep well, Ido not believe 100 acres would keep 500 sheep. Five sheep would probably do but little damage to one acre, even though they were confined to it, they would make but few tracks over it in a day, and would fcasily find fresh grass every day. But suppose we put 500 sheep in a 100 acre lot, if each five sheep would cdnfine themselves to thoir own particular acre, they probably would do well in summer, But they will not do this, and hero is where theory and practice part company, Our five sheep start out to graze, and the 495 go along with them, Now, a sheep is a dainty creature, aud likes clean food, So the hindermost part of the flock keep pushing ahead, paying little or no attention to what has been already run over, and being in each other's way, each would go over ten times as much ground, before it filled, as it ought. Going over the trial too frequently, and picking about dung and urine for grass, is doubtless, what makes large flocks so liable to disease."

Two mormon elders, John P, Sorenson and John S. Ferris, endeavored to hold a meeting at Terrace End, Palmerston North, on Sunday week, but their efforts, judging from a somewhat singular effusion written by Sorenson to the Manawatu Standard, do not appear to have been very kindly received The following is an extract (verbatim et literatim) from the elder's doleful [narrative:—" At the first Meeting four Women and a Crowd of Men praps fifty or more Gathered the First halve hour all went along smothly but then the Row commence, after several attemp's to be heard, wich was answered by yelling and hooting and the Argument of Boiled Potatoes, Rotten Squash and Green Peaches wich was pelted after the Elders Heads in a Pall Mall manner the meeting was closed with a few Words of Prayer by Elder Ferris, when the Elders left under a shower of abuse and Kitchen. Refuse' from the Crowd, who mostly adjorned to the Nearest Pub for Refreshment after their ardeous Labours,"

Sir Evelyn Wood, speaking atabanat Grocers' Hall recently, said he was aware that certain reforms were necessary in the army. Against one, : however, he must protest; and that was the abolition of regimental colors, It was said tliat valuable lives were sacrificed in endeavoring to save a mere rag, but that rag was the emblem of honor, around which all rallied in the hour of danger. It was the soldier's star and the consecrated emblem of his devotion. It was true that recently in Afghanistan many, valuable lives were lost at Maiwand, and that in one.regiment alone 2% fell round colors. Colonel Galbraith, when last seen on his bended knee, still grasped the colors of his corps, and "beside him fell many whose names wpuld live for ever in the hearts of all who served in the 66th, The colors were, the standards around which fugitives would rally and bravo men,'and it would be about as wise to take away, the regimental colors as it would be to abolish the Union jack in the navy.

Mr W, T. Ohapman, of Ngahauranga, authorises Mr W; J. Saunders to ■ take charge of his Greenwood estate, and abate the rabbit; nuisance thereon. Messrs J. Irons & Co., will sell at their auction rooms on Saturday next furniture, flour, bacon, sundries, and. uncleared 'linen;:;

and'expenditure of the Cashpoint -rabbit district, for the past year are published in another fiolumn.. ,• There is a Mr J. Livingstone whois wont to come into - Maste'rton occasionally, get on the Bpree, and become a sort of terror! to the peaceable inhabitants of -the town. ,He is now in the lock-up, and we only .express the sentiments of the public wtan we'say that the .time has arrived when this sort of thing should be suppressed)' and that men and women should be freed from insult .and' annoyance. For the,, last two days, people have been getting ont of his read, and it was expected that some one would suffer. Mrs Jones, of .the well-known fish and fruit store, has proved to be the victim. Mr Livingstone entered her ahop, and after doing considerable damage to the stock, assaulted her in a rough,and brutal manner. Mr Jones, who is still an invalid, and has but one arm, came in while, this was taking place, and protected his wife as well as he was able, but was thrown into the street by the agressor, who then, hearing that the. police were' after him, left the shop, mounted hU horse and made off. The police, however, managed to intercept him, and he was arrested and lodged in the lock-up. He will be brought before Mr Wardell,j|R,M., today.

The Leader is informed that on at least one run in the neighborhood of Tapanui, the proprietor charges £1 a week per man for the privilege of killing rabbits on his property. Rabbiting says our contemporary, would thus seem to be a very profitable occupation in some quarters, and it is little to be wondered at that large land owners have an objection to exterpating the " pest" at the bidding of the Rabbit Trustees. It has been suggested that in the case of some runs the breeding of rabbits and wild pigs may shortly become more remunerative than sheep have hitherto proved.