OUR WELLINGTON LETTER.

New Zealand Graphic, Volume XLIV, Issue 1, 5 January 1910, Page 4

OUR WELLINGTON LETTER.

January 1, 1910. The End of the Session. THIS time the end of the session lias come in earnest. It had a curious prelude. Christmas descended dull and dark upon a sparse house and empty lobbies. The holidays were Idled with the stories of mariners w ho had had narrow escapes from the sea, and talked of the worst weather of their lives. It seemed figurative of the slate of politics. Prophecies of dire eventualities began to circulate. As members crowded buck to Wellington, the man in the street was talking of the resignation of the Government with the alternative of a dissolution. When the House assembled again all was serene. So content was everybody that a veteran humoroist thought it right to chaff one of the prominent land leaseholders with the consoling statement that there would be ample time to go on with the Land Bill. When the House met there were full galleries, a crowded floor, and a great deal of expectation. Judge the disappointment when the case of Motorman Barton was brought up by the chairman of the inquiring committee, and kept possession for an hour of the perfervid tension of the time “A Black Crime.” Then a wonderful thing happened. The Prime Minister found himself bound to a struggle like unto that between the celebrated Tweedledum and the not less famous Tweedledee. Mr. Massey had raised a point of order. It Was, he said, shameful to bring forward again anything east out by the House, but it was sometimes neeessary to do so for obvious reasons. The only question was how to do it. For his part, he thought it could only be done by recommittal of the original estimates. As for the method adopted, that of putting the item into the Supplementaries, that was the blackest of all possible political erimes. How black any crime could be I had no idea until 1 heard Mr. Massey on the point. The Prime Minister quoted precedents to show that this way had actually been adopted once, at all events, wholly and once as to a part of the amount cut out by the House. Mr. Massey replied gravely that the part is a very different thing to the whole, the one being a virtue and the other a erime, and that as to the other case the point had never been raised that it was wrong, and that, therefore, it must be wrong. Most people seem to think that such a thing is proof of universal recognition of the correctness, but political leaders making points are ijot like many people, let alone most. A long discussion ensued, filled with much learning, and some very tall assumptions indeed. At last the proper authorities gave their verdict. First the Chairman of Committees decided that the right thing had been done in the course adopted, and the Opposition promptly appealed to the Speaker, and that authority sustained the Chairman’s decision. All was still in a moment, and there will ire no more fights about the difference between Tweedledum and Tweedledee in relation to the procedure proper for the mending of limbs broken during committee fights. Tor Much of a Joke. Then the fight for the item itself began to rage, and lasted all night long in a manner too sickening to describe. One wondered how sensible men could talk aueli trash. One also wondered how straight men could so abuse the forms of the House. When the minority had hel l up the majority all night, and breakfast began to loom near, the idea .of a truce got round. It was evident that the stonewall was going to collapse, or the Government would not have let them off to go to bed ami refreshment. So it proved. And would you believe it. the explanation with which the Opposition confessed themselves satisfied was the same that the Prime Minister had made twice, if not more often, before the House dispersed for the Christmas holidays, and once more after the stonewall got set. The explanation was that the question of the appointment would be left till next session, the liabilities of

the office being paid for the present, according to agreement between the parties. It was amusing to hear the Oppositon Leader labouring to prove that the explanation now was very different from the explanation then. That added the necessary touch of burlesque to the opera of Tweedledum and Tweedledee. But when burlesque stops the way of a session, and brings back all the members to Wellington, after they had comfortably separated for the recess, and causes some thousands of pounds of waste, the thing is too much of a joke. Burlesque ought to be made impossible for evermore. The plain moral of the session is that the Standing Orders ought to be amended by the addition of some provision for the" closure. The case is irrefragable. A minority has openly defied Parliament imposing its will after all reasonable discussion, and on the face of repeated and most sufficient explanation for all possible purposes. All other legislatures have long possessed this weapon against the tyranny of minorities. It is wonderful that this one keeps on trying to do business without it. The Coming of "Wireless.” Since the close, which was not long delayed after the minority condescended to allow business to proceed, the bright event has been the announcement of the establishment of wireless. It gave us something to talk about, to relieve the gloom of empty halls, peopled by memories of faces, and the recollection of fleeting forms, and enlivened with the laughter and jibes of a stonewall in full cry. A State-owned and State-controlled system of wireless meets the general approval. We note that it has full power for the long distances, and it is, of course, well known that the shipping companies are ready to instal wireless. When Captain Walker, the representative of the Marconi Company, was here two years ago asking for concessions, most people were inclined to feel angry with Sir Joseph for not closing gladly with the offers. But Sir Joseph knew what was in the wind in the way of improvements, and, besides, he was anxious to conserve the State ownership principle. In this there was some opposition, the Old Country not being prepared to go so far and Australia being indifferent. But things ha ve changed, as was seen clearly enough the other day, when it was announced that the Imperial Government had acquired all the Marconi rights and all the Marconi plants. That seems to have cleared the way for State ownership. It is strange that we are not informed what system of wireless, has been picked, if any, and it is good news that one system (Tesla’s) is safe against all interference and interruptions so fatal to the well-being of any wireless system. Sir Joseph also quoted Tesla to the effect that soon he expects to ’phone without wires as far as he ean telegraph; also that he can almost see his way to send wireless pictures the same distance with something after the Koru method. People are in consequence of these quotations beginning to imagine that the Tesla, system is not going to be found a thousand miles away when the wireless comes to be installed among us. That the new telegraphy . with all its posibilities and dazzling probabilities is going to be very cheap in the working is one of the finest points about it. Colonel Gorton's Death. The death of Colonel Gorton saddens all of ns who remember the brave days of old. for he was one of the men who came to the front in the days when we established the policy of self-reli-aflte, the first of any colony of the Empire to take that line. He was in command of the Wanganui and Wairarapa districts when the Hau Hau rebellion broke out, and very soon he was acting as commissariat officer to C-olonel Whitmore in his remarkable defence of the West Coast against Titokowaru. It was well understood at the time that without his hardy, exploits in getting food and ammunition to the front at the right moment in the right quantities, the campaign of Whitmore would not have ended perhaps quite so successfully. Looking liaek at these times, no one has glimpses of old-time honoured faces. Item:—On arrival of Gorton at New Plymouth, aftei’ a solitary ride through the enemy* country from

Wanganui, he was met by Major Atkinson, then Defence Minister. It was the first appearance of Sir Harry in Ministerial capacity. It was after his great successes in the bush with the “Rangers,” the never-to-be-forgotten regiment of his raising and leading—a leading distinguished for pluck, originality and sound capacity for tactics, and, above all things, for his great qualities of leadership. To see his name on reading the old story of the exploit of Gorton sends a shock through all those who knew and admired Sir Harry as he deserved. It lights up also the dark places of that campaign forgotten by so many, and, above all things, it takes us along through the rest of the great career of Sir Harry, who next mounted into the seat of the Colonial Treasurer, and proved himself as good a financier as he had ever been a soldier. Ah, me! ’tis pathetic to remember the hard struggles, the long hours of ceaseless work, the agony of the retrenchment days, and the final sudden collapse, worn out, ready for his marching orders, and cheerfully resigned as ever. Sir Harry always knew a good man when he saw him. Of course, therefore, he annexed Gorton as soon as the war was over, making him head of the Stores Department. He had discovered that in the management of the comissariat department Gorton had kept his head level and the public purse-strings closed up fairly tight. Nor was his confidence misplaced. Gorton proved a most efficient storekeeper, looking after the public property with the keenest vigilance. In this connection every Government office in the Dominion was once honeycombed with stories of the colonel’s sharpness, more or less amusing. He had lists of every table and ehair and paper-weight, and used to know them and the penholders by sight, and he always inquired a bom them on his annual visits, never forgetting any of his old friends, even down to the oldest and most broken down of coalscuttles. Many a bad quarter of an hour has been spent by men unable to account for the dilapidated and the old and the worn-out. In Gorton’s creed there was no such thing as lost, stolen, or strayed, or used up. Everything must be at muster and in the pink of condition, or he would know the reason why. After some years of much economy to the service, Gorton went off to the Rangitikei, where he speedily became one of the leading business men. It was the district for which he had done so much in war, ami it is said the district reciprocated by -doing something for Gorton in peace. At all events, it gave him wide respect and veneration and a feeling of affection which has turned to deepest regret in the hour of his death. He was not an old man as old men sometimes go in the Dominion—not more than 73. But he was over the “allotted span,” and therefore must be said to have had a fairly long innings. The Gladstone Centenary. All men are talking about the centenary of Gladstone. They all miss the point, which is that Gladstone was a force essentially of preparation for the

«»n!ng * rather vast struggle rather than for the leadership of een in th* successful ronfiiet with vested interests, such as has just begun in earnest. H > organised and prepared the Liberal party for the struggle, and without hit example, bis speech, his strenuous fights, and the franchises which he won, the Liberal leaders would not now be in the fine condition of hope in which they find themselves, nor W’ould they have such power behind them as they have. I find that this is New Year’s Day. I have therefore nothing to do in concluding this letter' but to wish my readers, one and all, - • A HAPPY NEW YEAR. Wireless Telegraphy. Sir Joseph! Ward stated to a “New Zealand Times'’ representatives last week that the New Zealand Government ha I. agreed to the recommendations of thr conference held in Melbourne recently on wireless telegraphy. He received cn December 2.3 the resolution by cable from Mr. Deakin, Commonwealth Prime Minister, and as an outline of theee had already been cabled, he was at liberty to make the full details public. The resolutions were:— (1) That high-power wireless stations be provided, maintained, and adopted at or near Sydney, Doubtless Bay’ (New Zealand), and Suva (Fiji). (2) That it is desirable that a system of wireless telegraphy be established to connect the groups of islands under British protection with the Commonwealth of Australia, the Dominion of New Zealand, and the headquarters of the High Commissioner for the Western Pacific at Fiji, and that for this purpose it is desirable that, in addition to those named in resolution No. 1, wireless stations be established at Tillage (Solomon Islands), Ocean Island, and Vila (New Hebrides). (3) That, having heard the representative of the Radio-Telegraph Company in regard to his proposals, the conference does not feel justified in recommending the Governments concerned that the concessions asked for be granted. (4) That it is desirable that any service of wireless telegraphy established to serve the requirements of the British Western Pacific be established and maintained under direct State control or through a State agency. (b) That the high-power stations recommended be of such a capacity that the station at Sydney- be capable of communicating with Doubtless Bay, and, Doubtless Bay capable of communicating with Fiji; that they shall he able to receive and transmit waves up to 6000 ft., in addition to ordinary commercial waves. (6) That medium-power stations be established at Vila (New Hebrides) and at Tulagi (Solomon Islands), the cost of the establishment at those places to be borne at proportion of two-thirds by the Imperial Government and one-third by the Commonwealth of Australia; the losses on working expenses and other annual charges to be met by the Governments named in the

Same proportion; the question of cooperation by the French Government in the establishment of the New Hebrides station to be left for consideration and action by the Imperial Government. (7) The cost of the establishment of the high-power station at Fiji to be iborne in the following proportions: — Imperial Government one-third, Australia one-fourth, New Zealand onesixth, Fiji one-fourth, and that any loss on the working expenses and other annual charges be borne by the respective Governments in the same proportion, subject to an additional contribution being made by the Government of Fiji, if the station is used in connection with the local Fiji system. (8) That a station be established at Oeean Island capable of continuous communication with Fiji, and that its cost be borne in the following proportions: —Imperial Government, twothirds; Commonwealth Government, one-third. The establishment of this station to be subject to the Pacific Phosphates Company guaranteeing the contributors against loss on working expenses, and all other annual charges, including sinking fund. (9) That the scheme of wireless telegraphy in the islands of the Western Pacific, as recommended by the Confference, be embodied in an agreement to be arrived at by the Governments desiring to take part therein, and that the agreement should provide for the executive control and management of such work by the High Commissioner and the Government of Fiji. Under the complete scheme as proposed and outlined in these resolutions, the financial obligations for capital expenditure would be distributed as follows:—lmperial Government, for stations at Suva, Oeean Island, New Hebrides, and Solomon Islands, •£21,332; Commonwealth Government, for same stations. £11,666; Fiji, for station at Suva only, £3,000; New Zealand, for station at Suva only, £2.000; total capital expenditure, £37,932. POSSIBILITIES OF THE FUTURE. Reviewing the scheme, outlined above, the Prime Minister drew an interesting picture of the tremendous possibilities of the near future with wireless telegraphy in operation throughout the Pacific. He remarked that he would have made a full explanation to Parliament but for the fact that the communications at the time were confidential, and only made public by Mr. Deokm since the House rose. “I think,” said Sir Joseph, “the proposals, on the whole, are exceedingly satisfactory. First of all, the whole wireless system of Fiji, Australia, New Zealand, and the Islands, is to be State-owned and controlled, and this is one of the terms Which I have personally contended for from the commencement. We have provided by Act this session for the compulsory wireless equipment of passenger steamers plying off the coast of New Zealand, and the creation of a wireless system on land would, of course, bring this clause of the Shipping and Seamen Act into operation. I know from statements that have already been made to me by Sir James Mills, chairman of directors of the Union Steam Ship Company, that he has been looking forward without any need for legislative compulsion of any kind, to the equipment of the passenger steamers of his company, and I have no doubt whatever that the Hud-dart-Parker and other companies trading to and from New Zealand, will not only, in the interest’s of the travelling public, but for their own benefit, be willing to adopt this modern system of communicating through the air with their steamers.” “Will the Government set' the example by equipping its own steamers with the wireless apparatus!” Sir Joseph Ward ■was asked. “As soon as ever the system is established,” replied Sir Joseph, “we will, of course, apply it to the Government steamers.” “And will the Post Office accept' messages from intercolonial steamers for delivery in New Zealand!” “Certainly; we would work in the same •way with the delivery of wireless messages as we do with the sixpenny telegram.” Reverting to the subject of improvements in apparatus, Sir Joseph said he had recently talked with two of the foremost authorities in the world—Tesla and. Marconi—and both assured him that during this year there would be great advances in wireless achievements. He quoted a remarkable prophecy by Tesla. “When I was in New York,” said the Prime Minister, “Tesla informed me he

expected that he would be able from a station he was erecting not far from New York to send messages to New Zealand, which could not be intercepted, and he expressed a very pronounced opinion that before a year or two he would be able to telephone over the sanlt distance. It may sound like a dream to those who are not behind the scenes,” added Sir Joseph, “but when you find recognised scientists expressing pronounced and definite opinion in this direction, and you think of what they have already personally achieved, it makes one realise that the possibilities of communication over long distances are beyond our conception.” A Christmas Experience. A lonely island, a tempest, a “sleep out,” and anxiety for parents, are all involved in a Christmas box sent out by two Petone young men, Messrs. V. Rowe and L. King. On Saturday week, heedless of the threatening sky and the warning words of the weather prophet, they set out in a half-decked boat for Rona Bay, on a camping expedition. They arrived all well at a little island, off Somes Island, and decided to stay there for the night. In the gloaming, however, came the fury of the southerly, and presently the half-decker had no deck at all. The boat was smashed up, and the mariners found themselves on a desert island. Still, they were not reduced to eating raw shellfish or sampling the seaweed. They had food with them, but were not eager to stay any longer than they could help in their splendid isolation. On Sunday they got a box from their camping outfit, put in a message addressed to Mr. Rowe’s father, and cast their hope of rescue upon the waters. The wind drove the Christmas box ashore at Petone, a few hours after it had been set adrift, and its mission was not in vain. The plea for aid brought out Mr. Keir at dawn next day, and the adventurous pair were carried safely to the mainland. The rescue would have been attempted earlier, but it was known that the young men were not in desperate plight. Christmas at the Post Office. The official return of the Christmas postal and telegraphic business shows that on the mail side last year’s figures have been generally surpassed, but in the telegraphic department the two years are about on a parity. The appended table shows the postal activity for the period, December 17 to 24, and telegraphic from December 21 to 24, 1909: —Stamps sold, £6,293; bags, etc., forwarded and received, 12,649; letters, etc., delivered by carriers, 450,567; telegrams forwarded, 21,672; telegrams received, 20,201; telegrams transmitted, 27,090. 1908: Stamps, £6,021; bags forwarded and received, 12,251; letters delivered, 391,122; telegrams forwarded, 20,952; telegrams received, 20.781; telegrams transmitted, 28,605, The following is a return of the telegraph business at Auckland during the four days (before Christmas:—-Decem-ber 21, forwarded 2,347, received 2,895, transmitted 3,476; December 22, forwarded 2,414, received 3,224, transmitted 4,189; December 23, forwarded 2,811, received 3,902, transmitted 5,077; December 24, forwarded 6,316, received 7,440, transmitted 7,937. Peculiar Poisoning. A peculiar poisoning case is reported from Raetihi. Amongst a company of volunteers in camp, during the absence of the cook scones were made by three volunteers, who used what they took to be baking powder, but which turned out to be boraeic acid. Before anyone had finished eating a scone, all began to twrtch all over and lost the power of speech. One man fell powerless to the ground. After a few hours the effects of the poisoning wore off. Fortunately the effects were produced almost instantaneously after eating, otherwise the results would have been more serious, as more scones would have been consumed. National Bank. Cable advice has been received from London tnat the board of directors of the National Bank of New Zealand, Limited, has resolved to make an issue of 50,000 of the unissued shares of £7 0/ each, in the capital of the bank. The shares will be issued to existing shareholders in the proportion of one new share for every three shares now hedd at £3 15/ per

share, of which £2 10/ will be capital and £1 5/ premium. Full particulars will be supplied to shareholders by circular, to be issued early in March. The Work of the Session. The public Acts passed during the recent session of Parliament were as fol low:—Aid to Public Works and Land Settlement; Appropriation; Coal Mines Amendment; Customs Duties Amendment; Death Duties; Defence; Designation of Districts Amendment; Friendly Societies; Gold Duty Amendment; Hospitals and Charitable Institutions; Industrial Schools Amendment; Inferior Courts Procedure; King Country Licenses; Land for Settlement Administration; Land Settlement Finance; Land Tax and Income Tax; Magistrate’s Courts Amendment; Masterton Trusts Land Exchange; Native Land; Naval Defence; New Zealand Society of Accountants Amendment'; New Zealand State-guaran-teed Advances; Old Age Pensions Amendment; Public Service Classification and Superannuation Amendment; Public Works Amendment; Race Meetings; Railways Authorisation; Reformatory Institutions; Rotoiti Validation; Stamp Duties Amendment; Urewera District Native Reserve Amendment; Wanganui School Sites; Workers’ Compensation Amendment; The Shipping and Seamen Act is reserved for Royal assent. “ Stonewall ” in Parliament. Parliament prorogued on Wednesday night, the stonewall which the Opposition had set up on the Reeves vote of £4OO then coming to an end. It was originally intended that Parliament should have finished the business of the session on Friday night, but when the Supplementary Estimates came down at midday on Friday, Mr. Massey took a violent objection to the reinstatement of the vote of £ 400 to Mr. W. P. Reeves as Financial Adviser in London. The Prime Minister explained that the money was owing to Mr. Reeeves, and promised to give the House the opportunity in June next of deciding whether the appointment shall be reconfirmed. Mr. Massey refused to accept this assurance, taking up the position that the vote, having been struck off the main Estimates, had no right to be re-instated on the Supplementary Estimates. The stonewall continued until Wednesday night, and a full House then having decided on the allocation of the money for the purpose named, the matter was finally dropped. The passing of the usual Appropriation Bill concluded the business of the session.