Echoes of the Week.

New Zealand Illustrated Sporting & Dramatic Review, Volume IX, Issue 678, 5 March 1903, Page 15

Echoes of the Week.

A Waikato correspondent, who enjoyed a wet haymakaing and harvesting season, and who has begun to wonder if our summers are leaving us, says the old description of the British climate as recorded in verse will soon apply to ours. It runs “ Dirty days has September, April, June, and November; from January, up to May, the rain it raineth every day ; all the rest have thirty-one, without a blessed gleam of sun; and if any of them had two and thirty, they’d be just as wet and twice as dirty.” Marvellous indeed is the homing instinct in all the pigeon tribe (says the Melbourne “Sportsman”). We have just heard that a certain Malvern fancier gave away three eggs from a prize strain to a fellow-breeder living at Essendon. Two days after the young pigeons were hatched they entered the home loft at Ma I .'ern, having flown about eleven miles. Which uminds us that we were once invited io enter for a fish-story competition, and'did so. Next day the secretary of the affair came along wittti —“ Well, you won that prize.” “ But,” said our editor in surprise, “we Haven’t told our story.” “ Never mind,” replied the secretary, “ you’ve had a walk-over. When the other, fellows heard you’d entered, they all scratched.” This is a Scotch agricultural journal’s idea of a funny story “ A farmer was selling his wool to a Visiting buyer, and after weighing it went into the house to make out an invoice. Coming back he missed a cheese, which had been standing on a, shelf behind the door, and, glancing at the bale of wool, observed that it had suddenly increased in size. ‘ Man,’ he said, ‘ I hae clean forgotten the weight o’ that wool, let’s pit it on the scales again.’ Being duly re-weighed, the wool was found to be heavier by the weight of the cheese inside. A new invoice was made out, and the woolbuyer went away. The wife rushed out to her husband, saying that a cheese had been stolen. ‘ Na, na, Meg,’ was the reply, ‘ I hae just selt the cheese at the rate of twa shullin’s and saxpence the pund.’ ” A somewhat unusual case came before Mr Haselden at the Auckland Police Court on Friday. A man named Watkins pleaded guilty through his solicitor, Mr Alexander, to a charge of being iovnd on licensed premises during the currency of a prohibition order issued against him. Counsel explained that the order had been granted on the defendant’s own application, and what he was in tt>e hotel, not for the puirpose of getting a drink, but to see another poison on business. Accused had observed the terms of the order, and counsel thought that the necessities of the case would be met with a. caution. Mr Haselden said the business of the Court would sink into confu'sion if Mr. Alexander’s application were granted. The Police Sergeant said ho was prepared with evidence to show that if the accused did not obtain liquor in the particular house referred to in the information, he had procured it somewhere else, as he was jn a state of semi-drunkeness. The bench inflicted a. fine of £1 with 19s cost, and gave defendent a week in which to pay. As a result of deliberations amongst those who desire to see “ the drink traffic restricted and kept in order a ticket has been selected for the Wellington Licensing Committee election. In the choice of candidates efforts have been made to secure moderate men who, while they are not wholly Prohibitionists, will endeavour sincerely to restrict the traffic. The platform of the party will include ten o’clock licenses, in the belief that it is between ten cynrl eleven o’clock at night that drunkards are made, and that while the earlier hour of closing may cause a little inconvenience to some people, it will be compensated for in other ways'. The nominees' are as follows Dr. Chapple, Rev. W. A. Evans, A. Hoby, J. Smith, jun., and R. A. Wright. ‘ * * * •» Encouraged by their success at the local option poll in November last, the Prohibition leaders are acti. My on the warpath, in view of next month’s Licensing* Committee elections (observes the Wellington correspondent of the Dunedin “ Star). They are goaing to bring out a strong ticket, which they are confident will triumph over the othet side. There is no denying that the administration of the Act by the present committee has given dire offence to the temperance section, as well as to plenty of moderates, and for this reason, I expect to see a radical alteration in the constitution of the new committee. Indeed, it would hot be surprising were .the whole of the present carar mittee cast aside on polling day. It is likely, however, that at least two members will not again come before the electWß.

I The Gainsborough magistrates very properly censured the police for following a drunken man to the Sun and Anchor in that town, and not only refraining from warning the landlady, but summoning her for permitting him to be served —the policeman admitting that his object was to “ catch ” the landlady. It was shown that the landlady’s younger sister supplied the drink, but the defendant, her sister, the man, and a number of others swore that there was nothing in his appearance to show that he was drunk. The Chairman said there was nothing to show Morris’s drunken condition when he entered the house. He was- not sufficiently versed in police ethics to know how far a constable should encouragei crime in order 'to secure a conviction, but his mind re- , volted at the manner in which the constable had tempted young people—the landlady and her sister —to commit a i breach of the licensing laws.. There was no evidence to show that either the landlady or her sister were aware of the man’s condition, and the case would be dismissed.

The ordinary citizen, who has all his life endeavoured to observe and uphold the law, is asking how long we are to be burdened with a judge who plays with the said law very much as one plays with skittles ? He ia led to put this pertinent question, not for the first time, by a perusal of the report of a certain case in the local Divorce Court last week. We do not pretend to be in sympathy with some of the means resorted to by the petitioner in that action, but it cannot be said that the artifice was in the remotest sense an incitement to the commission of the offence upon which the petitioner relied in order to obtain his freedom from what must be an odious state of. bondage to both man and wife. The method was essentially the antithesis of the measures resorted to by the common informer in slygrog cases; where the offender is deliberately induced to break the law. Yet, whereas the Stipendiary Magistrates—with the honourable exception of Mr Haselden and some othersi—convict on the testimony of the informer, Judge Canolly refused to give judgment because the evidence had been obtained by the only possible way. The duty of the judge, we take it, is to interpret the law, and not to act as censor morum, and in the clear absence of any evidence of, collusion he should have granted a decree in the case under notice.

In a leaflet in the form qf a newspaper, issued by the protagonist of the prohibitionists in this part of the colony, Mr William Richardson, there is a letter containing a series of the most abominable charges against an hotelkeeper. As an epistle is likely to form the subject of an action at law, we are precluded from commenting upon it, but we cannot refrain from expressing our astonishment that the publisher of such a leaflet should be supported by the coppers of people who are in the habit of repeating the the eighth commandment. The eleventh annual sale of the Te Mahanga yearlings will take place at Beecroft’s Repository, Hastings, on March * 19 v th, the day following the Hawke’s Bay J.C. Autumn Meeting. The sires represented are Mahaki, Torpedo, Quilt, and Gold Reef. There are ten fillies and six geldings on the list. The brood mares, H.M.s. Pinafore, Lady’s Maid and Aio are also to be submitted. The New Zealand Loan and Mercantile Agency Company at Napier will supply catalogues on application. * ♦ * * The object of the Master Plumbers’ Association is to improve the standard of workmanship, and also to produce a friendly feeling amongst the members as well as all those connected with the trade. The master plumbers trade picnic was originated some years ago solely by the master plumbers. The picnic, following on the lines of last year, promises to again be a huge success, and is to be held at Home Bay, Motutapu (with Mr Reid’s kind permission), on Saturday, March 14.‘ Mr C. A. Peace’is hon. secretary, and may be relied upon to doing everything possible for the comfort cf those who make the trip to the island. By reference to the legal notices in these columns is will be seen that Mr William Alfred Styak, of Auckland, Solicitor, is commencing peactice in his profession as a solicitor on the 9th March inst., at Old Mill Chambers . (Smeeton’s Buildings)/ 7*7, Queen-street, Auckland. Mr Styak is the grandson of the late John Styak, J.P., of Green Mount, East Tamaki, and son of W. 5."5 Styak, Esq., of Thames, Mining and Estate Agent? and nephew of Charles Hugh Lushington, Esq., of Rodmersham, Mahurangi Heads, and has been for the past fourteen years in the office of W’" Coleman, Esq., Barrister, Solicitor, and Notary Public, of 109, Queen-street, Auckland, with whose office he is now severing ’ his connection, to commence, practice on his own behalf as above.

x Visitors to the Thames and those {travelling through en route to the Upper fTnames and Te Aroha districts will find the Governor Bowen Hotel both central and well appointed. Mr J. S. Shanks, under whose capable management the hotel is gaining in popularity, is ever on She alert to do his best to secure to his patrons the utmost comfort and civility, and those who give this hotel a trial will find everything to their liking.

Thr “ Melbourne Punch ” says Jaques Inaudi, the “ mental marvel,” who has been arousing great interest in Sydney at ehe Tivoli Theatre, is an Italian, being a native of Beziers, where he Started life as a shepherd boy. His great gift of calculation was first discovered during a row between ewo cattle dealers, who came to blows during an argument over Some sums of money ■that were to be paid. The disputants were taken before a magistrate who, Whilst considering his judgment, was startled and surprised by the young Inaudi, who had forced his way into the Court, and insisted on pointing out the man who was in the right and by calculations proving the correctness of his judgment. Amongst scientific men the youngster with the unique gift attracted much notice and caused discussion, and hat alwavs continued to do so, his faculty for figures being so extraordinarily abnormal as to perpetually be a puzzle to scientific and unscientific folk alike. Dr. Charcot, an eminent French brain specialist, . holds that Inaudi has two brains.

The Broughs, by latest advices, were finishing a season in Calcutta, after which they go on to Hong Kong, pia Rangoon. The tour closes on the 28th April.