The Waikato Times AND THAMES VALLEY GAZETTE.

Waikato Times, Volume XVI, Issue 1364, 29 March 1881, Page 2

The Waikato Times AND THAMES VALLEY GAZETTE.

Equal and exact justice to all men, Of whatever state or persuasion, religious or political. Here shall the Press the People's right maintain Unawcd by influence and unbribed by gain.

TUESDAY, MARCH 29, 1881.

We are indebted to Captain McPherson for the copy of a very important circular issued by the Manawatu County Council, the terms of which we reprint in another column. The circular has been sent to all County Councils, Borough Councils, and Highway Boards, with the request to co-operate in " bringing influence to bear on the members representing the various districts in Parliament, or on candidates offering themselves for election at the pending general election, to obtain a pledge from such member, or candidate, that they will do their utmost to compel any Government that may hold the reins of power to assist the local bodies in opening up the country by subsidy, land fund, or endowment, as may be most applicable to each special case, thereby promoting the settlement of the colony." The Manawatu Council expresses the belief that the pi'oposals contained in the circular will meet the case of the local bodies throughout New Zealand, and that their character is such as to provide a platform upon which concerted action t may be • taken. They point out that the responsibilities of local bodies are being increased by the thrusting of large blocks of Government land into the market without adequate provision for roads, and venture to think that the proposals submitted by them will, if adopted, meet the requirements of the case. The subject is one which just now possesses very considerable interest to all local bodies, in view of the probable stoppage of the system of paying subsidies, and we trust they will accord to it that amount of t consideration which its importance calls for. The matter treated of in the first clause of the terms, touches Waikato and Waipa very lightly, because the> area of Government land in these counties is very small. It is necessary however, that, in regard to the little that remains, that something like the course suggested in in the circular should bd followed out. In the Taupiri district, some 10,000 acres of land, including a coal reserve of 700 acres -will shortly be offered for tiile dn[ lease, and so far as we, know no provision has been made for roads at all* Before this land shall have passed out of the hands of the'Goyernment provision should be made, for the construction at any rate, of the necessary hig3£way& /-But if the settlers in Waikato -propep have, no particular concern in this matter, those' in ''the 'districts l 'surrounjjffiag are different!/ situated. We r will instance Raglan. In this district a considerable quantity of land yet remain^ ib iHe hatidfc- 6f &M CJovernj ment or is held under the deferred! payment System,* and' one 1 tfeedWonlyj to pay a flying' visit ;to,.,t|ie %sgpbourhood in order to arrive ikt a tonelusion respecting the 'J^ate/" ot ;;the. roads or the' cost of thielr;:6oris^ruption. To expect , themselves „• out • of the , ordinaryj revenue, accruing from **;>< 'jNite* to make and/," maintain ',(§ffi^|enfc thoro^gnfareV ?'. is * os^ jpj: ' question; \ , Vnowtoere is j.jt, mote

necfeMßpy/ that the Government .shower give substantial aid to the locat authorities. The same would apply with much force to manyother districts in the Colony. But "Itfe ilSipl v^ntc^tiior^ direjitly^on,diuisiuVan<f stic&,,cfisti'ifttB as those we havenamed is^No. 2j, that which deals witK the question oFtfieT subsidies,,, canfeo t t,be denied that-; the-oTd' %steiii of & fbr ! £ Bntackefl 1 founded as itruppratrently" was on the principle thatj Prqvidencje.. helps him who helps himself.' As-* . jiwdjs- indi y.y jMiKpfl .px&pjpje, ,qan^ well be mqre^ wholesome, but we have long questioned its justice when in relation .to;communities, more especially in a new country such as this.' 3?or this reason, we hailed -with satisfaction *^he t appearance of the Local rublic Works Bill. A .moment's consideration, will suffice to convince anyone of the unfairtiess l of treating towns like Dunedin and Auckland, we will .say, and the thiclcly settled districts in their vicinity in the same manner as sparsely populated district's like' Waikato or Piako, and others ,' r of,, giving Xfor ;Supon thousands collected by the first named classj and nothing more upon the hundreds raised in the latter. XTp- country settlers have innumerable, difficulties to contend with, in the shape of increased freight, distance from a market, and so on, and no additional burden should be cast upon them if it can be reasonably witheld. It is in this unequal devision that the main defect of the £ for £ system lies, and we shall not be sorry to. see the last of it, if only it be succeeded by something like that shadowed forth in the circular before us. Of the alternative proposals .contained in clause 2, we hardly know which to prefer. Each appears to have teen framed to meet , par ticular circumstances, and their relative value can be better determined at a conference of delegates from the various local Bodies than by any other means. The more advanced districts would lean to the first, while the laggards would cieave to the last. . Be this as it may, it is clear that the exercise of the principle involved is sorely needed. At the present we can see that it requires a, - struggle to maintain any decent roads in this part of the . Colony, and , the prospect of our position were the subsidies to fail us is one which few care to look forward to. It is easy to say that the local bodies should get increased powers of taxation, but the settlers are, as we have said, handicapped enough already, and cannot be expected to bear any fresh burdens/ Moreover, it is grossly unfair to charge them with the duty of opening up the interior of the country, and so perform a work in which all j classes are interested, and to which all should contribute. In no other way can the whole community be made to pay a just share in the expenditure in this direction, than by the payment of subsidies to local i governing bodies out of the general revenue of the country. We do not go so far as to say that Municipalities should receive absolutely np as- j sistance, 1 but as the conditions or the two are totally different, let them be provided f ©r on a scale different from i that adopted in^the,case of, scattered country districts. The objection, which will most naturally, be raised to these proposals, is to" be found in the impoverished state of the Colony's finances, and the hard necessity for retrenching. .. Clause 3, *wjbichf deals' lightly with the question of ways and means, certainly offers a solution of this difficulty, but at the same time opens up large questions, questions which in the limited space of one article. 'we will not attempt to examine very closely. We may however say here generally, that there is an air* of reasonableness about* the suggestions which incline us favourably to them. The reduction of the duties upon tea and sugar has not, we believe, cheapened to any appreciable extent the morning meal of the great body of the tax-payers, but has merely enabled the trading classes to realise a higher profit. As regards the .reduction of the exemption on the Property Tax, we confess we see nothing very wrong about it. The reduction would certainly be general in its effect, and would not hurt one class, to the^ exclusion v of another. The ' l Edu(4iioii question 'is that about .which the greatest ,diflference of opinion will be s found< to exist, It is however undeniable that there is, ambhg'l'fA large section 'pi \ the people, a growing feeling of distaste to the present system : ; a change of some* sort il inevitable, Wd ( if must take/the fornvof making education, to soWe ex&fat-at least^elfcsUpporting. %s We hopato s,ee the invrf&tion dfcthkMan&watu Cpuncll widely accepted, and the proposals', wnijc^ do liqt pt^tendftojpe morel than tive in thei^ character,, exhaustively and earnestly discussed., .Inrthe meantime^' we'trust the local bodies to whom the .feircular has iconsideratiom „ ' -t _- H : . M I- /i ,o i' '•) T' i ft ! ' ■' ' *■' ■■■ "'- n ' "

The iinoid6nt*luto (aftvappast few weeks a goodly asso^tpa^t of addr^ses^jwiß'beeiDde-! livered — one or ,twp of the jiutotorj h©the^S[ij«oi h >»?g»ft • pj^W%W§w% ! syj mWhe 'burden 1 ; of ;7thc&ie : niirrativfeV'li&f Beeh^H;fnHporteSit,! extent, y^MMtolk .«s,;/jreßpects , tlie|

has been observed, 'we have been* told by the Colonial Treasurer that the retrenchment schemes of the €^eimHi|«|rjfave Oa t?een "Kntneufjv elude that his Bud^^^teinent_wil^ '^liccee*d"nn™ l^i6wmg such an adjust ftnen£ t of $ie finances jas. will contaas]tf 'vividly' 1 VitH the 1 pre- r exMin<s statJe' -tsf'his^cccrantsritfr^Bryice^Tesig'nav •tion -has, alfso been in %erms wind* *gd to 1 ' 'prove* that' the been taught.-. the Colonial Treasurer's version of this defection and that rendered by Mr Bryce himself," there "exists" thai striking unanimity down to the most minute detail which has given the opponents of the Government the slightest possible colour for assuming that, in agreeing to differ, they have, at least, been ; to ', ssink' all minor differences of opinion. Whether these suspicions, are, or are not well grounded, it is immaterial to inquire. Mr- Bryce still remains a Government adherent^ and as such, he is riot " likely^ to commit Himself unnecessarily .or in such a , >way as would tend to disturb existing relations. With respect to the immediate future, or to use a more specific term, the outcome of the approaching session, we are left in a great measure to speculate upon probabilities. It may be taken for granted that the session will open in about a couple of months, and that the fragmentary opposition of last session, " primed to the muzzle" with petty personal carpings, will again make its appearance. So far as the Opposition, organised on such a basis is concerned, but little need be said. The purpose served would be little more than merely to give zest to the proceedings and prevent them sinking in public estimation to a level beneath that of public notice. Another and a more formidable difficulty is likely to be created — a difficulty, we are inclined to think, that will operate more principally in shaping the destinies of the session than any other event at all likely to occur. Readjustment of the representation is a measure which has been before Parliament for the last two sessions. Hitherto, Government has succeeded in keeping it dangling amongst the orders of the day, and then at the last moment, on some more or less specious plea, getting' it shelved under a distinct promise that it would ,be brought up again next year. Forraing,as~readjustment does, a cardinal point in their policy, the Government cannot drop it altogether, and still there are good grounds for believing that, while they themselves are not 'enairiouredof it,alarge proportion of their followers are deadly opposed to it. Next session, being the last of the present .parliament, government will be' boun<l to have this measure disposed of in one way or another. In justice to their own avowed policy they cannot drop it. Its further adjournment on the eve of a general election would be equally impolitic, and as for commanding a , majority sufficient to carry it, problematical as that may have been in the past, in a House about to go back to the country, the thing becomes highly improbable if not utterly impossible. In that dilemma it seems not at all unlikely Government will, if not court defeat, at all events be 1 quite prepared for it, trusting its issues upon a dissolution being granted by the Govefnor. J Presuming, for argument sake, that this is.pne of the likelihoods of the session, the question will next 'be asked: 1 What probability is there of ,such a dissolution being granted ? Virtually the ParJiament will have expired, and, looked at in that light alone, we should say the chances in favour of a dissolution being got are very strong indeed. It 'would only be precipitating matters by a few weeks' time, and on that plea alone we should think His Excellency would be the more readily reconciled to such a proposal. In that case we opine the session of 1881 will be in many respects a repetition of that of 1879, and that the general elections are much closer at hand than some would suppose.

Mr Superintendent Bell Thompson and'Mr BrGokfield, CJrowh Prosecutor, passed through Hamilton en route to Te Arohk' via Cambridge on Saturday afternoon last. The object of their visit to Te Aroha, was that Mr IJrookfielid should 'p&r^onally inspect' 'the- scefte of the-Mte murder, there, j to , enable him to form from personal observation an i^ea off, the ' features of the scene,, Mr "Superintendent fThpmpsoii ongin^llyr intended proceeding .1 /direct < irom 'Hamilton to Te Ar/ih^ j.b^t.^pnor^ing our Reading article on ,th^ late police cases «,$ CJambipi(3g^ ( in \ , Tnursda'y 's issue, decided to go on to Cambridge and enquire into the conduct of the poli#,' in corihection with the cases t W(B animad^er^e^^ppi^,,; "\^e arejin a position, to ,state .that i Mr . Thompson •ileldtayprbal'enqufey of 'sdme'thred hour's duration^ f tihd! expressed disr satisfactioh-at'^e; actioiS of th^ 'Onmbridge^fipolice. " ~ :3Da(jurq[enta- an connection-'^ithS -th(3^bove matilrs are in the ]P<aice"OnlqQ, Auckland,' and wiU receive the. Superintendents ffi?mgp|i#|| o a|ten|ion,. mU)JI! 1 ,(u, (u » cM

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was a^pteajljtiie su|a|being |||$10sJ||6r, tenons, MrTEHibtt, £10 l§i/beiug?t&fe successful tenderer. We would again draw the attention of sheep-breeders to the important OT"§rTjheep tfftSftiflSrGgr TSlS^u^pnd to*b« r sold at We regret to record the sadden I demise- "or *Mw Berin.-^lie" 'respected .hostess of the Commercial Hotel, Te Awamutu. < ; Tlhe ' funeral lijake^ "pi acef to- • I day, at' 3 o'clock. ' ' ' - thriate Mr "Cvd -~ WQrth^ oi ,JCambridge, who died from the effects of injuries rpcejved from falling o|F a ladder, took place on Saturday, and <»wa«'largely f attended,"- * *** -^' -*"•* " We are informed that Mr Vickerman will, immediately on the completion of the survey, oi ,the f extension of the ThameaValley railway tVPiako, proceed to lay off the proposed Cambridge Branch line.r \l j •' .\ )' l , | t * \ A' social gathering of the ' Good Templars Hamilton Lodge, will be held this evenitfg in their new hall, Hamilton East, upon the occasion of the Anniversary of the Lodge. "' ' Two horses belonging to Mr Strange, Waitoa, w^re seriously hurt on Saturday. They were ploughing and, one of the animals shying, the team' bolted, and one of the houses w.as, very badly injured. No other damage was done, Mr Edwards, photographer, of Auckland, has been engaged during the past week in taking gome oi the many beitutiful views obtainable in the Piako and Thames Valleys. The manager of the Waikato Land Association ie at' present engaged m removing his head quarters from Eureka to , Woodlands, which will now become the • principal station. Mr A Bruce-Suttor takes possesion of the Eureka estate this wee>. We were shown yesterday a very find specimen of the " Solway " (late) peach grown in Mr. W. M. Hay's orchard Hamilton West It weighed just seven ounces and possessed a most delicious flavour. Through the carelessness of some person who set fire to the furze in ,the vicinity, the Tamahere bridge had a narrow escape from destruction on Sunday. Owing to the exertions of two or three people who were passing, however, such a contingency was avoided. The portion of the Thames-Wa-kato railway from the termination of Messrs llunt i and /White's ; contact i,o Blorrinsville Has been pegged but by Mr Vickerman, the Government Engineer, who is now taking sections to complete contract plans. Tenders for the formation are to be called forthwith. We learn that some sugar beet roots, forwarded td Mr Potfdj f^r analysis' by Mr Wation of , Pufceritatf, gave |a better percentage of sugar than even those submitted by Mr Lewis O'Neill. The yield from the roots sent by Mr Watson was as high as 15£ > per cent. This is a very encouraging return. The function of laying the foundation stone of the Masonic Lodge, Prince's street, Auckland, to-morrow, will be of an imposing character. The Thames Lodges, ever foremost in matters pertaining to the Craft, have issued circulars to brethren requesting their attendance, and the country lodges generally will be amply represented, and the function will probaoly b* the most imposing of the kind s eyer witnessed in New Zealand, [ t?h ! c business people' of '<Waihou, if they have not reaped so rich a harvest from Te Aroha as they were led toexpeot, are likely to have an increase in their trade shortly, owing to the commencement of operations on the extensive swamp property of Messrs Maclean and Co. on the Waitoa. The enginee6r for the' drainage works has a staff of about a dozen men on the ground, engaged in laying off the work, &c. We understand that tenders will be called for a portion of the work in about a week. The Panmure Races come off on Saturday last. There was a good attendance, but a disorderly scene occurred in consequence of "dark riding" on" the part of Golden Crown's jockey, who deliberately pulled his horae up to a walking pace in the Panmure Handicap/ to allow Magician to pass him. It was with difficulty that the police were able to keep the crowd from roughly handling the boy. The Panmure Hurdles and the Ladies' Purse, fell to Mountain Deer, the Maiden Plate to Matai, and Magician won the Panmure Handicap and Handicap Hurdle Kace.

It is intended to open the Whatawhata Bridge with a befitting ceremony. Steps have already been taken to form a committee of gentlemen from different parts of the district. A circular has been issued to a number of settlers, asking them to meet at Whatawhata on Saturday next to decide in what manner it should- be carried out. 'We ; learn in- . vitatiohs have been issued to people living in Raglanj Tuhikaramea, Alexandra, and Hamilton, and we expect from the interest taken in this work that a large gathering of people may be expected to take part in the ceremony. r We referred, some days ago^ to the request made liy the Hamilton East School Committee to the Board of Education to transfer one of the teachers of the West school, Miss Williams, to the school on the East side. The matter was referred by the Board to the Hamilton West School Committee, wh,p replied, declining to sanction the transfer, on the grounds that it would be prejudicial to < either to remove teachers from £ast to West,or vice versa, and that, as the parents of children are well satisfied with Miss Williams her removal would, in all probability, result in a number of the children following her. They also added that the present daily attendance at r the school is 1751 ' The Secretary to fhe Board writes in reply to this, that no action will, be taken in the matter. It is a mistake to suppose that the process of freezing destroys the cohesion of the tissue of .meat, and that the meat when- thawed shows a tendency to decompose rapidly. Mr Larnaon referring to the subject in addressing the 'Dunedin Chamber of Commerce, said, f'l can tell you one fact in opposition to that theory. A friend 1 of mino in London recently purchased a quarter of the frpßep. beef on its arrival there, and sent it up to the North of Scotland as a present to a small , family. The gopd Lady of the .household 'afraid' foi consume the wholeas. fresh meat, lost no time in salting dowti the greater part of ifc,and I have been t assured,on indisputable authority) that thfrresulf 1 Was most satisfactory. In short. Australian fresh beef, sent by chance ro the north of Scotland to be salted and oured,proved an unqualified saoeesf." } JDMkj^bbiJß, ' thy' J&flnier- for Totara addressed his constitufcents at Ross on^Ss.turday evening/. to the native aifncuty, he agreed with the policy qf^ther Gqy.ernment in^ striving to, refaiti peace mtK f the natives, but he, considered much time and great expense .might have been flared^to. the_ colony _ifi thejrJiad tw r elYe ) month ago-.»nanged for and hew ■ JW®sfflffiffi^Op, the edu- 3 ' cation questibn/lw wttd there" was greaif likelihood of, the.p?esent syitemlireakingi itfonal iwb^oojs B|ioMTU;BuWd|iBd 604

fto thotcojpition of Jppection and c- Governmifdfc jastrMjfcioiis. Regard- j tfiVferindal' difficulty, he considered it had been caused by several consecutive Governments. To extricate tho colony the Government had adopted two wrong eourBg»|2-I)yjf^pi|fgl taxatjSn" To* "££e ,, nepeBBatca'gfj Ufe ami by intto.clucing' the* pr6perfylfa3C." m Jßfe condemned fiuTuiethod of .departmental-retrenchment which had been adopted. .We Ajelieye the KfriMriroa Boad Board have two' men constantly employed in-repairing the main roads 'throughout' the large and important district which the Boatd has in its care. We would beg to suggest that as soon as a favourable opportunity .arrives, .the labour of- .theses daymen should be utilised in the direction of repairing the road leading through Hinton'a Gully, which is just now in a' very } indifferent, state, -there are five or six very disagreeable holes in the road which,- especiany; after dark, canliardly be avoided, and m the case of wheeled traffic we heed hardly say they are extremely dangerous. The repairs, if executed early can be effected for a^ trifling expenditure,* and on that accoßnt alone the Board would do well to look after them at once. A judicious mixture of pipeclay with the loose sand in the cutting on Hinton's side of the gully, would greatly improve the road- way. The " Waikato Times " states that Mr Iveso purposes starting a paper in j Tauranga, in opposition to the Bay of Plenty Times. We do not know what authority our contemporary has for this assertion, but for our part we have no objection to see a co-worker in the field of journalism take up his quarters here. We hardly think the result of Mr Ivess's last venture in Waikato was so encouraging as to lead him to embark in a similar enterprise on the East Coaot, but, if he has plenty of money at command, there is an excellent opening here for sinking it in a speculation of this kind. The proprietor of the Bay of Plenty limes has spared no expense in endeavouring to make hia journal a first-class vehicle of news, and with the additions au,d other improvements which are contemplated, he hopes that it will still continue to merit the confidence and support of the inhabitants of Tauranga and qi the East Coa6t generally. — Bfiy of Plenty Times.

A meeting of the shareholders in the Moonlight Quartz , Claim will be held to-morrow evening 1 , at half-p.u.t 7 o'clock, a.t the Hot I Springs Hotel, Te Aroha. | The 'office of the W.S.N. is removed | ' from Fort-Street, Auckland, to Ngarudwahui. Tenders' are itivited for a fourteen year improving lease of the Wesleyan Mission Station, at Raglahi Mr J. S. Buekland will sell by auction on > Thursday, 21st April, at Cambridge, the township of Oxford, in £ acre allotments. Forty horses have left Poverty Bay overland for Waikato, and will be sold by public auction at Cambridge, on Saturday, gth April, by Mr J. S. Buekland. Autumn show is now on at Kent House Hamilton East. Thomas Baker of Te Awamutu, oarrior, has filed a declaration of his inability to meet his engagements with his creditors. Mr Gresham u solicitor for the debtor. Mr T. C, Hammond has ceased to represent the Waikato Timbs .it Te Aroha in any capacity. The new pure cash system now being initiated by G. and C. will certainly prove a benefit to the public. It has been a great success in Sydney and Melbourne, and when strictly ' carried out the customer who buys at an establishment where the goods arc marked low to ensure a rapid sale must be a great gainer. G, and C. sell their drapery millinary, and clothing at such prices for cash as gives the buyer the advantages of a shareholder in a co-operative Society, without the risk of being called upon to bearaportionoftheloss should the year's business prove unsatisfactory. Garhck and Cranwell will aim to retain the confidence which the public have hitherto shown them, and are determined to give the pure cash system a fair trial ; whether they gain or lose the first year. Country buyers on remitting cash with order will be supplied with goods at co-operative prices ; just the same as though they made a. personal selection. Furnishing goods, such as carpets, floor cloths, bedsteads, bedding, and general house furniture, the largest portion of which is turned out at our own factory, will be marked at the lowest remunerative prices, and a discount ot five per cent, will be allowed to those who pay af the time of purchase. G. te. C. having realised the entire •value of their stock during 1 their late cash sale, the present stock is new and cheaply bought. An inspection is invited. — Garlick and Cranwell, City Hall Furnishing Arcade Queenstreet, Auckland.