OUR MELBOURNE LETTER.

Evening Star, Issue 4079, 23 March 1876, Page 2

OUR MELBOURNE LETTER.

March IS. My dear Mr Editor, what a charming disposition you have got I I see in a late number of the Stab that you rescued from obscurity some news,sent to the * Daily Times * by its correspondent here. Of course it was done in pure chanty-i-we all know that—newspapers never take any notice of one another, unless it is to do kind-hearted things. But really the ‘Daily Times’ man is an ungrateful sort of being, both to his own editor and (perhaps less consciously to you. To go and tell you such a big tale as that “that the drought has broken up I” why it was all the time becoming drier and drier, till Saturday night, when a heavy thunderstorm did really break it up, and the shrubs, &»., which were perishing literally -by hundreds, began.to-look jw aga'n. But after a few showers on Sunday, it all cleared off, and Monday and yesterday were fearfully oppressive, for moisture is added to the heat. Reports still come down from the " hack country ” of disastrous results to the flocks. On some runs it is hardly expected to save one sheep in ton. Mr M'Kean’s case has turned out amusingly. I wrote to you in my last that that be was ordered to appear in his place “on Tuesday next.” Ontl&t day accordingly the business came . on, -but M’Koan was not there, end Berry talked against time till five o'clock, when the Government business must come 'on. The motion of course went OTOrjto next day: but as it happened nobody thougatsof altering the word Tuesday to Wednesday, Boat was argued that the whole matter had fallen through, and that M'Eean could not bo arretted. However, arrested be was. For-on Wednesday night, though he did appear, it was Oidy to tosnlb the House furtheh. The Speaker still refrained from issuing his warrant so as to give M'Sean a locus pentlenti®, hut so much consideration was thrown away. M'Kean fras on the raoe-oonrso on Thuisd >y morning, bragging largely* he waa not a* home, however, when the sergeant went to look fpt him, and during the afternoon he Was taken. . Thu papers represent him as taking kindly to his imprisonment, but I was informed on Friday thatJthiß was not at all so on that dayj; that infect the mte* trions captive’s groans, Sobs, and loud lamentatidhs couldbeheardin the lobbies and passages of the Assembly on the floor beneath his "dungeon.** The "dungeon** is a very comfortable-room-on-the floor above the Legislative Chambers,- the prisoner has his choice between two beds* and w live in solitary luxury at a rate .not exceeding L 5 per diem, which bum ho has to pay to the jcant-at-Arms for “sustenance."' Tty ljtoep fees areLSOfor the.oriest, and LSO for the,warrant>j-a round sum that constitutes the sting of'th&puUijmment, pattteu'arly if the detettwebas nbt much money to spare. - This port of tbepenaltyfewnd to Ml with peculiar severity on the culpnt tn tMe present case. ■ Whether or not that-fegtvcamjS strongly and ‘ sruMonly upon his Unind* or fcn Saturday lost is nutter on jwU&Ws sever he enlightened* hut,p«ri»p* ttifltoti U sg|*

gestive in regard to it.. : On that day special precautions wore taken to keep'toedoors locked and to hare a strong staff of attendants about them, whoon beiogquegtioned said that their captive had talked so earnestly about his intention to break out that they felt it their dirty to be particularly watchful. . Yesterday a Gipps Land deputation waited on tne prisoner to.tell him that Gipps Land considered the 1 proceedings ntterly irregular, and to offer to pay his expenses. M'Kean accepted the opinion bnt refused tlie cash—ft om which facts I leave your readers to draw their own conclusions as to his intellectual powers. . The Opposition take care to visit him constantly, and to keep bis spirit constantly up to martyrdom pitch. Tf he to stay tht*e till the prorogation, it would be all the better for their purpose—the loss of a vote is of no consequence, for they would be as certainly beaten with it as without it; but the gain of being victimised is in their idea very considerable. It is wonderful how they contrive to fool even their own supporters. They succeeded even, to a considerable extent, with Lalor; but be shirked when it came to the crucial point. M‘Keau, however, seems to be more gullible. Last night the ij onsoadjourned out of respect to Mr Bicbardsou’s memory—member for Wesfc Geelong — and though Mv Casey and Mr Murray Smith tried to get ftl‘Kean's case under notice, the idea was not responded to, and the adjournment took place at once, so the “long” member must wait a little longer—even till this evening. To see the House meet and adjourn without a quarrel was so unwonted a sight chat that..mere foot was to a habitue of the gallery much mure impressive than even the solemn reason that occasioned it. Another epidemic of scarlet fever is upon ns. The Hon. F. T. Sargood lost one of his sous early this morning by this disease. The Kew Akylnm investigation is becoming a bore and a mischievous one. Having set all sorts of cabals a-going among the attendants, the Board have further amused themselves by examining numbers of Innatics. The result is worth exactly os much as any sane man could have foretold. The case for the aggrieved officers against B. B. Smyth, the Secretary for Mines, closed yesterday, and Smyth Commenced his defence. Judging from its opening and the general style adopted both by himself and his counsel, it promises to be the most tame and lame affair. Practically, the most serious allegations are passed over in silence. Some matters, bis knowledge of which was most conclusively proved, he merely denies that ho km w, and the few points to which he seems to confine himself are that ho had to teach the officers that they were very stupid pupils, did him very little credit and vexed him very much. How he will explain away his notorious habit of using abusive language is a matter of considerable speculation. The very little legislation that is going on is being done by the Upper Honse. What trifles are passed by the Lower are merely to gratify the whims of some pragmatical supporter in toe Assembly, and ore allowed to ran through in order to satisfy him, in toe certainty that no harm will be done, because the Council will sea to their being properly disposed of. An example fairly illustrating this may be found in Mr Coppin’s Legal Professions Amalgamation Bill, which nobody wanted—not oven too “Artful Dodger" himself; but which served to put him prominently forwaid to the gaping mob as a Reformer (with a big Eof course). The Council quietly did with it just what everybody hoped would be done —rejected it. Wonderful that the Lower House do not see that they are strengthening the Council above what coaid be done in any other way by thus abdicating t' eir legislative functions for the more exciting occupation of mutual abuse. The Press —the ‘Argns' especially—is becoming awakened to various immoralities amongst ns. Chinese gambling-houses were the subject of a very excellent report by an eye-witness in the leading journal one day last week, and the ‘Age’ has some letters on the same subject. Other forms of vice are being attacked by the police, and if only one could hope for a permanent state of activity on the Sort of the authorities, one would feel somewhat 383 despondent about these things than I, at any rate, do. Unfortunately these activities are mostly spasmodic, and we axe too much in the hands of brewers, spirit dealers, and publicans to hope for any real benefit so long as those pests of society are permitted, not merely to' carry on their trade in a legitimate way, but to force it into unnatural proportions as they now do.