The Ashburton Guardian. Magna est Veritas et Prævalebit. MONDAY, MARCH 12, 1888. NOTES OF THE DAY.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume VII, Issue 1787, 12 March 1888, Page 2

The Ashburton Guardian. Magna est Veritas et Prævalebit. MONDAY, MARCH 12, 1888. NOTES OF THE DAY.

The devotion of the members of the Roman Catholic Church to those who are charged with their spiritual oversight has been abundantly evidenced by the loving and enthusiastic reception accrued m all parts of the diocese which he has yet visited to the npwlycreated Bishop of Chnstchurcn. Everywhere the heartß of I atholics have been lifted np at the presence among them of a Chief Pastor, bringing with him a special message direct from the Chair of K. Peter, and it is not surprising that the visit of the Right Rev Dr. Grimes has been regarded everywhere as an occasion of general rejoicing by the members of hia flock. Protestants <.nrBelves, we fhould of course like to 6ee everybody else Protestants, but wo do not expect this ever to come about ; indeed, it is impossible that all men should see eye to eye, and we are not of those narrow-minded people who think membership of what we have been taught to regard as the Reformed Church a matter vital to salvation. On the contrary, we have the wider faith that the doors of heaven will open to the good Catholic and the good Protestant alike. We, therefore, see no inconsistency m congratulating our Konian Catholic friends on the creation oi the new tSee, and upon the presence m their midst of the first Roman Catholic Bishop of Christchurch. They do well to rejoice, and all liberal-minded Christians will rejoice with them. Dr. Grimes is an able scholarly man, a worthy colleague of his mitred brethren, and hie eloqne/.ce as a preacher will render it an especial privilege to listen to his ministrations.

We are generally believers m! the sound common sense which is usually to be found enshrined m those popular proverbß which are the crystallised essence of the wisdom and experience of generations, but here and there may be found an instance of the fact that these ancient saws are not always and m

fallibly sound. For example, we take leave to question whether it be rea'ly trne, as proverbially alleged, that " a lame excuse is better than none," indeed, for our pait, we should rather bo inclined to 6 ay that "no excuse at all is better than a lame one." A case m point occurs m the reply received from Mi C. J A. Ha6elden to the letter of the Ashburton folicitors re the proposed change m connection with the local Heeidei.t Magistrate's Court ( : <U J," by-the-bye, doesn't stand for Chief Justice m the present instance, being merely part of the initials of the Undersecretary of the Department of Justice.) Jn the reply referred to the signatories of the letter of protest against the annexation of Ashburton to the Ticaaru Kesident Magis rate's district are m formed that " the proposed re-arrangemont is m the direction of eepnomy, and that as Captain Wray (the locum tenens of Mr Beswick'e Beat at Tiraara) will be reJtend of #p duty of ffiftipgr t* W»iipftt9

he will have plenty of time to devote to Aehburtou." jl\ow, we venture to think that a more miserably lame explanation or excuse was never uie.ie. In ■ lie first place the statement that Captain v\ ray will bo able to no duty at J Ashburton because he will be relieved of Waimate, ignores the fact that whereas the train from limaru to Waimate arrives at 9.30 a.m and returns at 5.50 p.m., that from Timaru to Aeh barion arrives at 10.40 a.m. and returns at 4.45 p.m., so that the day at Ashburton : gives iwo hours and a quarter less time for the transaction ot a much larger amount of business than the day at W aimate. But the richest part of the whole thing is that it is alleged that the change is "m the direction of economy." This is equivalent to assert- ' mg that it is possible to get the i work done for less than nothing, for as Mr Ullivier'B services are given without pay the ouly way m which the Department can make a saving ia by getting Captain Wray to pay a bonus tor the privilege ot sitting at Ashburton, which we should think hardly within the uoundß of probability. '1 he story won't w. »h, aud we h )uld Tory much like to tuiuw what is the real not, the ostensible reason of Mr Ol ivier's proposed removal. We doubt if Mr Fergus himself knows it, but possibly Mr daselden might be able to throw some light upon tbe matter.

Talking, or rather writing about Resident Magistrates, brings to mind that our late K.M. Mr riaddeley, it» apparently going m for Draconian practice m the Auckland Court. Several times have the Auckland papers complained of what certainly Beem to be un i usually and unnecessarily severe sen tences, and m almost the latest issue oi tbe "Bell" to hand we find another protest against Mr Baddeley's conduct. The " Bell" quotes the following instances m point : " Tbis morning a first offender was fined 20s and costs for drunkenness, and a similar sum for knocking the arresting constable's shako off. The accused, a man of excellent character, took a little drop too much on Saturday night, and so became a victim of the new regulations and Mr Baddeley's bile. he shako most probably fell off ; but as it was an old odo, and useful only for night duty, the Magistrate further mulcted the accused m the sum of ss, to go towards the purchase of a new one. Another unfortunate, a seafaring man, for a second offence, was sent to gaol for fourteen days without the option of a fine ; while two other second offenders were fined £3 each, with the alternative of seven days.'' Uur contemporary regards these sentences as far too severe, and jocularly suggests that "_ Mr Baddeley evidently means to test the carrying capacity of Mount Eden gaol," adding, however, that " the unfortunate part of the business is that the taxpayers will be called upon to pay for the magisterial whim."