After Dinner Gossip and Echoes of the Week.

New Zealand Graphic, Volume XXXII, Issue XII, 19 March 1904, Page 16

After Dinner Gossip and Echoes of the Week.

IT-iuty Kail way Journey*. Owing to the dreary country through wbi .: ti.r .tie pM>sc> the journey trout Auckland to Rotorua or. in fact, anywhvre up that way, is not a very fascu&aung experience under the most favourable cir cum Mances, but in dry, h< weather, the dot makes train travt '’.ng in the<e parts simply unbearable. As swu as the volcanic country round Auckland is le-i the material used in ballasting tie line is pumice gravel full cf very fine .d. which envelopes the train a:ui ituiuuates itself into every cunur and crevice—closed doors aixi windows notwithstanding. Before the jcumey is half-completed the tired passinger is coated with a layer of gritty d’>t from het: J to foot. It gets in his hair, ears, nose and mouth and collects in little heaps i.i the folds of his clothing. Everything he touches, seats, win-dow-M'is, purer la. and even the paper er magazine he is reading is dusty and gritty, and there is so escape from the torment- Several hours of this son of th?ng get \ery mcnotonous. Even a Xi. fk fap’ey would surely find some <r ’ ty in being -perky’ when travelier—or rather in—such a cloud. A > be i.d manage to bear up chaeriully in his dusty carri age his o -wage w • uid «r.rely Mil him when he walked through tv the dining-ear and found that tke fiend hsd penetrated even that ear* filly guarded spot and hid settled visibly anti palpably cn the bu' zer and R'armaUde. Ac. ..-rding to the old adage one n .ist eat a peek of dirt in his lifetime, but it i- rather disconcerting to have t take in one short railway k rrey the ■_-riant:’y apportioned for natural life. The Railway Departhas «-f Ute years been showing that it t meet the people’s convenience —w > k ..•’’er all is what we ratepayers ; . . r— * iag has apparently •'i'd towards abating this • u- r yr.:on •*. In America they have K n meeting: with a go* <1 deal of su> in ikying dust by the use of crude yetr». ’ :i_ on r*xud>s and railway lines, and there s no reason why the goahead Department of this rt- T '-V sht.-’id not espenment in this d ’i'."- For the man who can sobre • ' •■ -.- ) a y ’he dust rhe - - .• • : -v r -south of Auckland there a 'k-r’-.rue immortality. In • *» ■• - mr « t' trie lie per taient fainEg to e i - I 'J ufoi suggest a remedy, that to h.-ve rke earriage-i dusted s’ - ; ” ink! n and 11 rrinsn He . me- - As e.xpipss train seldom has than half-a-dozen ears, and ■ « r - : - very -i> rt while, and the benefit to weary travellers would be rr*--■ • • To be without dust Mr n - -. • ■rt a tirre wcuid be a reiresh- £&•_” reiser.

AnctlseT R ?gret tdi’ole Xacsdent h.'-'i r - tem-ip r. or displayed a a”. 1 ?■ v--’l » ar*d tm<E ipyr- ■/. >1 of either the umcf * J t2»r- -» rJiint** w-.-re dtly n* ’><drd »« regrettable ka- sresa xpre—-M its disapproval cd - - and pointed ■• ■'i: Iw*w »eriousRr SLe er-r. In •bort th-we cw**r._ * wext

very thoroughly an.l very deservedly lectured, similarly on such occasions when some player loses his temper in the football field the fact is invariably recorded. the affair is animadverted upon in the stro«ge-t possible terms, aud one Leers a vast amount of iudi«maut cenrment from the man in the street. Luckily, in the fooball field it is possible to make an example of any particular flagrant case, and as we all know several offending players have from time to time been warned off for various periods, and it has been generally made clear that if a man cannot keep his temper he will not be allowed to play. These being the games to which the masses are for obvious reasons more devoted, the severest comments have net infrequently come from "the classes" who are devotees of more expensive, and, therefore, more exclusive amusements. A recent occurrence shows, however, that shameful loss of temper is eonfined. unhappily, to no came, and it is not I mired to any section of the community. It is currently reported that dirrinj- the recent polo tournament, in a match between Auckland and Manawatn B team, there occurred an incident, for which the conventional term, ‘‘regretable'* is altogether hopelessly inadequate. 3t an exciting stage of the game there wt s one of those unavoidable collisions or cannons, of which three must always be a proportion, and cne of the Manawatu players was thrown from his pony, and it is stated that, with an aeeess of fury worthy of an Nero, he lifted his heavy polo club, and dealt the p-ony of one of the opposing team a blow which necessitated the unfcrtttimte beast having to be immediately retired from the game. Now. if a man wilfully ssscults another in the heat cf a hotly-contested football match, lie is promptly (as has been said) warned off. One has never heard of a man wilfully striking another at eri. kcteifher with bat or ba!!, but if there have been such cw .rrrences, they have doubtless been properly punished. To lose one's temper and hit an opponent is bad enough, but to violently assault an anoffendissg dumb animal is worse. But this is not all. The fact that the affair was even mentioned in the press has been warmly resented s certain quarters, as if the fact of the game being “Polo,'* and therefore fairly well confined, to the wealthier section of the community, gave the offender privileges, dtnied the footboiler. and rendering him immune from tire consequences of a sh-.•eking exhibition oi temper. Now. this is a very wrong p» si r- a to take no. It matters ik c whether an act of vicienci is committed on the hoekey, tootball, or polo grounds, is is fguaiiy reprehensible and equally deserving of warm condemnation. In fart, the pol> incident is far worse, for it o»xurs v ith persons who are in postions of greater social advantages. and vs ho ought to consider them-seh--s bound to set an example of higher thing*—N-. '-s«e oblige aooiies. It is to be hoped the Polo Associatfttn will take Kite notice ci the matter, - . a S nffairs tins nvt be allowed to pass wnnotieed if nolo is to oertipy the high ptaee it ha- hitherto eo well deserved.

V< hi -'ll is the Better Uffay ? There w. nbi probably be little profit, and eert.'rn*y no pleasure, in discussing ti-t- ;; bi ... which is cn everybody's t -g .e, and a ith widi the e.dumrts of the daily press absolutely teem —the fsSjig Hr rate cne alludes to, of course —but a side issue concerning or.e of the ca-iees—‘he increased love of luxury and desire for wealth—suggests a few idea* worth following up. Thare ■ar be no daoht very unselfish motives underlie the d-sue of every parent to

leave his children either as well off as themselves ar better. With those who have -got on” and have acquired the good things of this life this desire in probably particularly strong, aad the one object of existence with these is to furnish for their children every desirable thing denied their own yon th, and which may seem to minister to their present and future happiness and advantage. But. as a matter of fact, ia this the best thing to do. and is this the right way to seenre the happiness for one's offspring? Take the case of a man who from the smallest beginning has built himself up a fortune. His son. to his idea, has to have everything provided for him—any other course would seem unnatural. Yet it is not certain it is right. Suppose from the very beginning you made it clear that your wealth would buy nothing for him but mere food and clothes, and these only up till the time when the children of hardworking parents have to start out and earn something for themselves. You would have to impress the fact that alt your possessions, your garden, your luxurious furnishings, your horses, etc-, were all acquired by sheer hard work, and tint if he wanted similar agreeable? for himself he must start out and got them. Tou would send him only to the publie school, and would just let hint push, for a stool in an office or start as boy in any profession or trade just as you did yourself. Unnatural would, as has been said, be the term applied to your conduct. “That is carrying the thing too far* would be the general verdict and perhaps it would be right. Few would certainly have the strength of character (and lack of tenderness) to carry out so severe a course of training, but there is no saying it would not make happier and very probably more useful men and women of them than the usual method. Take any rich men of your acquaintance —a man who has made his money in his own life time, and had nothing to start with. When in re mi nicer t mood, is it not the joys of the old days when the battle was still being fought that he looks back to! Do the sons who eome after him and have the spending of the wealth enjoy that privilege, as he did the acquiring, and even if they are good felic.ws themselves, is it certain they would not have been better, and oerttpied even higher positions bad they had to battle for themselves! * + * What the St. Tanis Exposition Celebrates. It is a thousand pities that the Government only decided to send an exhibit to St. Louis for the Great World's Fair at positively the eleveiith hour, for it is scarcely likely there will, or can be, much response to the advertisement now appearing and offering to take charge of exhibits which have to be in St. Louis by April 31st. JJr Donne has to be advised as to the nature and size of the exhibit, it has to be packed, shipped, landed and sent half across the American Continent in just about a month and a-hali—an impossibility to all intents and purposes. It is therefore certain that the New Zealand exhibit win scarcely be what it might have been had due attention been given to the first offers of Consul-General Dillingham on behalf of the World’s Fair Commission. However, if is no use moral-

ising over what might have been. We ean but wish the Exhibition every success, and resolve to be more wide awake on a future occaatua. The object of the present paragraph is to answer a query put several times during the last few weeks as to whst it is the World's Fair celebrates, and why it is «neh an invasion for sueh national rejoicing. Most well-informed persons will tell you that it is to celebrate the centenary of the purchase of Louisiana from France, but few remember how extraordinary was the bargain, and how it came to be formed. Louisiana belonged at first to the Spanish! At the time when Napoleon was First Consul of France his ambitions led him to look to a means of re-establishing the French Colonial Empire in America. A little bribery and corruption was all that was nrces.-qtry to induce the Bourbon King of Spain to cede the territory coveted, under the express promise that it was on no ioudition whatever to be ceded to anv other Power. The feeling in America was intense. Louisiana had long been coveted, and to see the prize snatched awav in front of their eyes, and seized bv a neighbour whose presence was sueh a menace was terrible indeed. War was talked of, but the prudent Jefferson made every effort to secure the territory by negotiations for purchase. At first every effort was baffled. Napoleon was temporarily at peace, and was determined to satisfy his ambition. X it the trend of events favoured the wait-

ing game of the American statesma a. Napoleon was soon in difficulties agaia. The attitude of England and Austria

gtt daily more hostile, and he felt he could net afford to saddle himself with a distant province in the midst of a houile people who would seize the opportunity of any embarrassment on his part to acquire the territory by force. Moreover, he required money for the struggle on which he was just enterhog with the allies. So. after some chaffering. Louisiana was sold a second time—despite Spanish protests—and for the sum of fifteen millions of dollars. The treaty was signed on April 30th. Extraordinary as it may aimear now. the ratification of the 'treaty brought on some very sharp debates" in Congress. The people of the I nited States were warned that they were mcorpaeating into their number men who were wholly alien in every respect, and who could never be assimilated. They were warned that when they thus added to their empire they merely rendered it unwieldy and assured its being split into

two or more confederacies at no distant day. Fortunately, however, talk of this kind did not affect the majority; the treaty was ratified and Louisiana became part c f the United State*