News of the Dominion.

New Zealand Graphic, Volume XLIII, Issue 13, 29 September 1909, Page 4

News of the Dominion.

OUR WELLINGTON LETTER. The Rangltikei By-election. September 23. IT is gratifying to the Liberal Party that their man won so substantially at Rangitikei, and it is gratifying to your humble servant that he prophesied that the Liberal majority would be probably less than 700. The Second Ballot has proved itself a good court of electoral appeal. After the issue was made dear by reduction of the candidates to two, this court heard the arguments on both sides and gave judgment for the Government. The court was in good odour with the Liberals last week; I leave you to guess what is the odour now. Wellington admires the pluck of the Opposition leader without doubt. We are good “sports” after all, and when a man does a good sprint, even though we are not barracking him, we give him a vigorous hand. By going into the heart of the enemy’s country and fighting for hours on all the platforms he could get to, Mr. Massey played' the game for all it was worth. He did not win, but he put up a good fight, and the man who does that is always respected. What has struck judges of fighting quality more is the calm courage and the prompt unobtrusive energy exhibited by the Acting-Premier. “Comes of a fighting race all right,” is the comment of the average politician. His friends congratulated him on having held the fort so well in this the first fight of the new Cabinet since the General Election.

Mr. Millar’s bulldog tenacity and' Mr. Mackenzie’s vigorous readiness are also the talk of the town, helping men to the declaration that this Cabinet is not going to take everything in Parliament lying down; and Mr. Fowlds, speaking at Wanganui, taking a long shot at the ■Rangitikei in passing, has strengthened the good impression. On the whole, the general idea is that when Sir Joseph arrives he will be in a position to be heartily congratulated on the consolidated fighting power of his Cabinet, as well as the victory of his party. There is, of course, much talk in Opposition circles of the tremendous time they are going to give the Government. But if they do nc better during the session than they did at Rangitikei the party will have to quote the Jackdaw of Rheims about a certain terrible curse.

In all this turmoil of talking there are good men and true who do not forget to mention that Mr. Hockly took his gruel like a. man. Some of us say that he deserved to win, but that we are very glad he didn’t.

Feats of the Hustings. What has struck a great many of us queerly is the statement of the Hon. Thomas that everything went off without a single unfair comment, or a single drop of bad blood. It looks as if he meant to say that the Opposition never really brought any charges of corruption, and that the Government men knew it all along. The whole thing, according to him, was a sham fight, in which, for want of real powder, both sides made a prodigious use of blank. It may be another way of saying that the Government refuted every charge to the satisfaction of the electors in particular, and the public in general. But it is rather too optimistic a view to take. The charges were, all but two, too vague for thought, and the two were too small for words. The vague ones need not be referred to, as the Opposition did not detail them. Of the two that were not vague, the first (that Smith had promised to vote for the Opposition) broke down as soon as Mr. Smith was confronted on the public platform with six accusers, whom he turned inside out “in a brace of shakes” (as an eyewitness told me). The report of it certainly reads like one of the prize feats of the hustings. The other charge that the Cabinet had bribed the electors with an offer of land to be shortly opened, disappeared in the first ray of light poured on it by the Acting-Premier, who showed that there was nothing but the ordinary answer to an ordinary question

about some land which had been under offer without avail for some years, and would be under offer again on the same terms shortly. A harmless coincidence in a matter which could not by any sort of possibility become a bribe anyhow—no wonder the electors laughed and voted for the Government man! If Mr. McKenzie, in view of these things, was indulging in a little good-natured chaff, when he implied that the Opposition never really made any charges at all, and that the Government knew it all along, as they professed to reply, he could scarcely have taken a better way of showing how very poor the charges really were, and how completely they had broken down. Anyhow, the charges were made with all the vehemence that belongs to attacks on Tammany rings, and they have been repelled with absolute completeness. And that is the moral of the Rangitikei election. It has cleared the air.

After all, how could the district, which has so many settlers who owe their prosperity to the policy of the Government, have gone against the Government? And how could men who know that the Liberal party has had to fight hard for everything it has got on to the Statute Book, vote to place this policy in the hands of the men who have fought a lifelong fight to keep it off the Statute Book, and would be very sure they never tried to add to the number of the laws on that'handsome index? The victory at Rangitikei was not personal. It was a party victory in the very essential sense of the word. It was a trial of political strength, and the Liberal side won.

A Newspaper’s Discovery. It has been reserved for a journal published several hundred miles from the scene of the fighting to discover that the Ministers who followed Massey into the fighting line made all sorts of bribe offers and improper promises. Distance in politics appears to lend, not enchantment, but ingenuity to the view. To those who were nearer the scene it appeared as if all the time of the Ministers had been taken up in replying to charges of corruption, not in making new corrupting offers. But the “Otago Daily Times” has taken to foaming at the mouth, declaring horribly against the bribery tactics of these Ministers. They were, it seems, almost too horrible for discussion and quite too terrible for any record of which we have any cognisance in this country. We are wondering how this kind of thing is done. Luckily it is not necessary to have another election to prove that it is as wrong as all the predecessors in infamy. Politics are easy just now. While Ministers are resting after the fray, there is a mild discussion of a proposal made to the Mayor to preside over some attempt to get up a welcome to the Prime Minister when he arrives here in due course. There will not be much difficulty. Returning Prime Ministers are always well received. It is the law of the Medes and Persians.

The Harbour Boards’ Conference. One turns to another of those conferences which have so taken the fancy of our philosophical Chief Magistrate. This is the conference of the harbour boards, which appeared to have met for the main purpose of considering the bill the Government has up its sleeve for the improvement (or otherwise) of the status of the harbour boards constituting our amphibious department of local government. But as the bill remained, so fat! as the public is concerned, up the Ministerial sleeve, no one knows, so far as the main purpose of the conference goes, what the conference did. There is much indignation. We are demanding why, in this matter, which concerns us all so nearly, there should be such secrecy and want of confidence. We are beginning to be afraid that the bill will slip through on some terrible all-night sitting (devoted to something else altogether), put through in some freak moment of adjournment, the possibility of which is only understood by the very cleverest experts in political manoeuvring. I don’t believe there will be anything of the sort. But the bill that gets into sleeves and remains there makes tongues wag. Of course, the Conference passed a

resolution calling for the exclusive right of election of members by the ratepayers under local government, and throwing the Government representation to the winds. There is, perhaps, very good reason why this should be so. Much was said during the discussion about the many Boards and Councils which derive monies from Government and allow in return nothing but the interest and sinking fund required by law, ignoring all right of the Government to -any other consideration whatever. But there is a great ingredient of suspicion in the Parliamentary mind, and therefore it is greatly improbable that the resolution will be Parliamentarily regarded as anything more than waste paper.

Returned Citizens. Some returned citizens are welcome. Amongst them Mr. Gresley Lukin, who comes back from the Press Conference proud that they did not commit themselves to Imperial- preference of the Unionist order, and with a feeling of revenge against the awful Engl sir climate. There is also the Hon. Dr. Collins, who tells of the great change wrought during the last thirty years in the Babylon of long ago. He has been pumped by the inevitable reporter, but he has not committed himself to anything very deadly about the Budget and little things like that. He was more philosophic than Mr. Lukin about the English summer, having known the jade years ago, and found her in no way improved. But of the spring he said a most refreshing thing and a most illuminating. Ah! He had found the spring delicious. He had during his years of absence “almost forgotten all about it.” The sight of it delighted him beyond measure. It is a reminder that in this part of the world there is no such thing as the spring which is sung by all the poets of all the nations, singing from the year One to this present Annus Mirabilis, 1009. If this one returned colonist tells us how he had nearly forgotten that spring after thirty years, what are we to say of the thousands of colonials who have never heard of it, except in the books of the poets aforesaid, but that they will never understand that poetry; that they will ever regard it as an exaggerated collection of sentimental gush. With regard to our future literature this is rather an important reflection. One often wonders why the poets of Australia have so little of the joy of life. This man who says he had almost forgotten the spring so vaunted and loved, admired and worshipped, has supplied material for an an-

swer of some strength. Australasia will never be able to go into ecstacies about Proud-pied April in all his trim, who puts a spirit of youth into everything. It is a matter we ehall have to reckon with one day when we are squarring the literary yards.

The Cockney Barracker. The doctor tells a good story, by the way. He was looking on at a big cricket match —as a matter of fact watching his son bowling, rather anxious, if the truth must be told, about the boy’s performance and the honour of the Dominion trusted to the nervous, capable hands of the youngster. Suddenly the batsman, seeing a chance, hit the ball to the Limbo where runs are scored in great batches. The father felt as if that ball had hit him in a vital part. Before he could think, a voice at his elbow roared a delighted comment, “Hit him to New Zealand! Hurray!” Here was a cockney barracker who knew his geography, and knew the ins and outs of the game he was looking at. He was looking at a young gentleman from the country of the Dread, nought offers, ana he was not going to barrack one jot less for his side for all that. That for Number one. Number two reflection is of the smallness of the world in which fathers and sons and barrackers from far-off different places get mixed up like that on a London holiday.

The Cremation Regulations. The regulations for the crematorium are out. It is pleasant to reflect that they provide that there shall be no cremation without either very carefully made certificate of death, or official approval after very careful inquiry. It reconciles the nervous ones somewhat. Deep down in the popular heart there is a feeling that cremation may be productive in conceivable cases of dangerous temptation. Balzac once asked if ths killing of a mandarin of great wealth in China could be managed by the pressing of a button in Paris, with two accompanying certainties, of perfecty impunity and absolute and immediate passing of the rich mandarin’s property to the but-ton-presser. How many men in the gay city would refrain from pressing hard on that button? We seem to see a sort of answer in these regulations.

Northern Express Delayed. The Main Trunk express which was due at Wellington at 4.25 p.m. on Tuesday, the 21st, arrived ovee three hours late owing to a slip on the line at Erua. A mass of earth was

iMsened as the train approached, and fell In froat and at the side of the engine. The cowcatcher was hackled under the engine, and the mail van was damaged, While the steps of one or two carriages were bent. On arrival of the train at Marton a further delay of half an hour arose through the necessity for transferring the mails to a new postal car. It is reported that several passengers sustained trifling injuries. A Good Sign. The telegraph business of the Dominion for August last shows a substantial increase, as compared with the figures for the corresponding month last year. Last month 590,910 telegrams were handed in for dispatch, the net revenue being £18,828 7/6. In August of last year the 569,629 telegrams handed in produced a net revenue of £17,927 8/5. The percentage of increase works out at 3.74 as regards the number of telegrams handled, and 5.03 in respect of revenue. [For the purposes of comparison it should be noted that the increased business usually obtained during the Parliamentary session, and forming part of the revenue for August, 1908, is shown, but not for last month, so the figures are all the more satisfactory. The English Mail. The English and Australian mails, via Suez, arrived in Wellington on Wednesday, after the departure of the Main Trunk express, but owing to a very smart piece of work at Wellington, the Postal Department were able to overtake the express by a special train. A large staff was sent to the ship’s side, the whole of the Auckland mail was picked out smartly, and by means of the new motor-lorry, it w’as conveyed to the railway station, with the result that the special train got away twentyeight minutes after the first bag was landed on the wharf. The mail reached Auckland by the Main Trunk express on Thursday morning. The “New Zealand Times,” referring to the motor lorry now used by the Wellington post office, says:—“lt is believed that the more up-to-date and speedy vehicle will save a great deal Of time in the work, enabling mails to close a little nearer the actual time of departure of the train or steamer than can be permitted when horse-driven vehicles are used. The lorry has been imported from the Albion Coimpany, of Glasgow, and can carry one and. a-half tons at a speed of 12 miles an hour. It is of a type similar to that successfully used by the Federal Post Office in Melbourne. The motive power is a twin-cylinder petrol engine of 20 horsepower, fitted with a reliable magneto ignition, and powerful spring drive, which effectively takes up the shock when the engine is thrown into gear. A Dangerous Prank. A dangerous prank was played by a band of boys at Holloway-road, Wellington, recently. The irresponsible youngsters threw a piece of copper wire over an electric light high-tension main, and when it became fixed they tethered the loose end to a tree alongside the road. An alarmed citizen communicated with the City Electrical Department, and informed tnem that the tree was giving off sparks. On investigations being made it was found that the wire put up by the boys had eaten through the insulation of the high-ten-sion main, and an electro-motive force of 2000 volts was operating through the wire, and thence into the ground through the tree. The danger of the action does not need emphasising. “ Persecuting the Prophets.” A bad name for “persecuting the prophets” was imputed to Wellington by the Kev. A. Dewdney in welcoming the Rev. B. Hutson, a new Presbyterian minister at Brooklyn, one of the suburbs of the capital city, says the “Dominion.” “I have no hesitation in saying,” said Mr. Dewdney, “that Wellington stands easily first for its great difficulty in connection with church work. There is no community in this whole Dominion, and I have had some experience, except perh p* Borne few backblacks towns, which is so intensely secular; no community, I thtak, which has such a strange notion of what is called a ‘parson,’ and takes such a pleasure in parson-baiting, as this city of Wellington. What the reason f<* it is I do not know, but I am inclined to think the parsons may have been a little to blame in that there has been too much parson and too little man sometime*.

I hold that, first and foremost, *we want on the part of a minister that he should also be a man. The office is a great one, but the men who hold it must show that they are men amongst men; they must assume no airs because they were called to this high and honourable position, taking to themselves no special elaim to either reverence or esteem, ibut winning their way for their worth’s sake and their work’s sake, and not for the sake of any title they may have or any office they might fill. And I believe that any minister who shows himself to be a man, and a man of worth, will win, even from minds and lives that are adverse to the truths that he proclaims, that respect which any man has a right to expect from his fellows. 1 * A Profitable Earthquake. Most people in Wellington were surprised to hear, on the authority of Dr. Bell, director of the Geological Survey, that the raising of the land by the earthquake of ’55 had been of great value to the Dominion capital. In his lecture at the Town Hall last week, Dr. Bell said that in some places the land had risen five feet, in others more, In others less, but the general effect had been to raise the coast line right round to Terawhiti and Porirua. In the south of England and in Holland, and indeed in many parts of the world, land was being lost to the sea, but New Zealand had been fortunate enough to recover much. The remarkable change was demonstrated by the faet that in the days before the earthquake a man-o'-war’s boat had ascended the Pahautanui river. It could not do so now; so, too, with the land on which the city was built. The earthquake had been a blessing in disguise. Harbours' Association. The annual conference of the Harbours Association was held at Wellington during last week. Among the resolutions passed was one urging upon the Government the desirability of exempting Harbour Boards from the provisions of the Industrial, Conciliation and Arbitration Act. Strong objection was taken to the conditions upon which insurances were accepted over the property of the HarBoards, especially the matter of reinstatement, and it was resolved that provision should be made for arbitration in the event of any dispute arising. It was further resolved that the executive be instructed to report to the next conference on the expediency of establishing a joint insurance reserve fund, and that, if necessary, legislation be obtained in an amending bill to enable such a fund to be established. Motions were passed* affirming that all wharves should be controlled by boards (in some cases at present they are controlled by the Government) ; that native lands should ba subject to rating for harbour purposes j that the Government be requested to continue to supply local bodies with valuation rolls; and that the Government be urged to establish a central wireless receiving station. The question of the constitution of harbour boards was discussed at some length. A proposal to exclude Government nomination was carried by 17 to 11, and a motion that members of harbour boards be elected by electors of loeal bodies was carried. Crematorium Charges. The City Council last week adopted regulations for the use of the crematorium, recently erected in Karori cemetery, which is now ready for use. The charges were fixed as follows:—To residents of Wellington: Week days, £2 10/C; Sundays, £3 3/-. Non-residents: £4 4/-. These charges include the use of the chapel and all attendance after the body had been placed on the bier inside the chapel. Cook Islands. An address to the people of Rarotonga appears in the “Cook Island Gazette” under the instructions of Lieut.Col. W. G. Gudgeon, C.M.G. (late Resident Commissioner of the Cook Islands), who desired same to be published after his departure. The writer says that in leaving the Islands, after a residence of eleven years, he expresses pleasure in knowing that he “is on terms of friendship with all those Maoris and Europeans whose opinion is worth having.” He had seen many changes, the people had greatly improved, and there was a better feeling among sections of the people than there was in 1898. It had been represented to him that when he

had left the Islands the Ngati-Urita.ua were to be reduced to the position of vassal*. There never eould be vassals under British rule. There could be neither slaves nor vassals in the British Empire. “You are a self-governing community,” continued Lieut.-Col. Gudgeon, “far removed from New Zealand, and you will never lose the privilege of self government so long as you deal justly with your people; but do not forget that they are subjects of King Edward, and under his protection; therefore you must be guided by bis representative here. You will have a right to demand his protection, but he will certainly demand your obedience to the law. I ask you to show the same kindly spirit to my successor that you have shown to me, and do not forget that Makea is the last of your old Arikis. Karika, Ngamaru, Tinomana, and Maretu have passed away.” Referring to Makea Daniela, Lieut.-Col. Gudgeon charged him with having caused much of the recent trouble, and warned him that the new Resident was not a man to be trifled with. Captain J. Ewan Smith is at present visiting the outside islands—Aitutaki, Atiu, and Mangaia. Mr. Percy Brown, the new Resident-Agent at Aitutaki, accompanied Captain Smith as far as Aitutaki. In accordance with the decision of the Rarotongan Council, which decision was confirmed by the Resident Commissioner and by Lord Plunk'et (the Governor of New Zealand), Tinomana Pirangi was installed as Ariki of Arorangi on August 4th, 1909. A Government Victory. The Rangitikei by-election was completed on Thursday, when the second ballot was taken between Mr. F. R. Hockley, the Opposition candidate, who headed the poll at the first ballot, but did not secure an absolute majority, and Mr. R. W. Smith, the Government candidate, who was second on the list. The polling resulted in an easy victory for the Government candidate, who polled four hundred votes more than his rival, the totals, with two returns to come, being— R. W. Smith (Gevernmen| 2404 F. R. Hockly (Opposition) 2005 Interest in the election was very keen throughout the electorate, and the polling was heavier than at the first ballot, the number going to the poll, 4409, being 230 more than on the first ballot. Several Ministers visited the electorate in support of Mr. Smith’s candidature, while Mr. Massey assisted Mr. Hockly’s campaign, and the presence of the party leaders kept interest at fever heat. Mr. Smith, with the followers of two other Government candidates to draw from, increased his vote from 1055 to 2404, an increase of 1349, while Mr. Hockly, who had no opposition from his own side at the first ballot, increased from 1548 to 2005, a gain of 457. The other candidates who went to the poll a week ago polled as follows: —W. Meldrum (G.), 903; Jas. Georgetti (I.), 340; R. E. Hornblow (Lib. and Lab.), 333. “ A True Party Fight.” The Acting-Prime Minister (Hon. Jas. Carroll), who left Hunterville during t ( he afternoon, stayed on Thursday at Palmerston North, was interviewed by a Manawatu “ Times ” representative on the result of the election. “ The fight is over,” said Mr. Carroll. “It was a true party Struggle. The real fighting was carried out by the several candidates in the first ballot, who in the second ballot stood faithfully to the Liberal cause. The presence of Ministers in the second stage of the contest was to impress it with the significance of party, and to place their case before the electors. We accept their verdict.”

The Minister for Agriculture (Hon. T. Mackenzie), ”ho had come to meet Mrs. Mackenzie at Palmerston earlier in the afternoon, on her return from England, was also interviewed. “ I cannot help being pleased with the result,” he said. “Although the fight has been a strenuous one, it has been conducted on the most honourable lines on both sides. I attribute the victory largely to a recognition on the part of the electors that the Government is honestly striving to do its very best in the interests of the country. We are attacking large and difficult problems, and the encouragement we have received will stimulate us in our efforts. I am particularly pleased with the support we have received from farmers, because I take it as

a recognition, among other things, of th* work of the Agricultural Department, We are striving on practical lines to advance their interests not only in the Dominion, but also in the marketing of their produets in other lands. “From a Parliamentary point of view,'’ Mr. Mackenzie added, “ it is also gratifying to know that the candidates who stood were all men of high character, capacity, and ability." Mormonism and the Maoris. Dr. Pomare, who sees a great deal of life amongst the Maoris, says there is no doubt that the Mormon religion is spreading amongst the Natives. The main reason, to his mind, is that the Mormon elders identify themselves entirely with Maori life, living amongst and nursing the Natives when they are sick. Art Exhibition. The annual exhibition of the Academy of Fine Arts opened on Saturday afternoon and attracted a large attendance of members. Water colours, although not so numerous, seem to occupy more space this year than last. There are some works of more than ordinary character among them, and there are some others that would not be missed. The oils are numerous, and some are important for the size of the exhibition. Portraits are fairly plentiful, but landscapes and seascapes predominate in both water and oils. Still life and flower subjects do not make a large showing. Mujh attention is given to marine studies, and genre subjects, as is usual at such exhibitions, are not conspicuously abundant. There is a small display of some beautiful jewellery, a few exquisite miniatures, a collection of fine painted china, some architectural drawings, and excellent student work