Out and About

Feilding Star, Volume XI, Issue 115, 22 March 1890, Page 3

Out and About

(By ** Mbrcator.^') n 51» grumblers, the prognosticates of evil, and the wise iaen of this our land, kav«aU been '* struck of aheap." The coantay wbieh was Agoing to the dogs " ■on account of the dry weather, has turned •around on these "dogs of evil omen " ; ■and showed them that they are not prophets of honor. The scriptures saith £' a prophet is not withont honor save in Jbis ofca " country." "Honor to whomionor is. due" is another adage. How touch honor is due to th& grumblers and jnrognojstioators of* -evil ? Writing of dogs— l mean four legged dogs— a fellow was nicely caught lately. ■** Speak tt« tenth. ancLshame the devil "is * saying often given expression to ; but I jfear there is not much of the shaming ! jfeiniiiuiiii Hone. A collector of the Bog xsx— « nkan, by the way, who is dreaded as much as a book or an insurance agent -^dulv registered ** Boxer," color Hack -and -tan, sheep dog, No. 382. '"Now," says the collector, "Mr Sheepside, have you no other, dogs but Boxer to register?" "Oh no," says Mr S. The Collector is something like myeslf, rather sceptical about the statements of some people, so fee takes the first opportunity to visit Mr Sheepsides estate, and finds 4kree others of the canine race whose Barnes were not " duly registered," The <Jollector, of course, bails Mr Sheepside up, but did not question him as to whether 4here was such an individual as the Devil or whether he had ever experienced such ; ■a-senßation as shame, but went straight ifor bis, and succeeded in extracting a few snore " colonial Roberts " from the pockets -of Mx S^ much to 4he chagrin of that in- ; •dividual. Moral— Owaers of more than; ■one 4eg, doa't forget to register the lot as names may not only appear under ibis headiag, but under the beading of the = jtolioe court news. . .^ I was riding the other day through : >some of the magnificent scenery by which i are surrounded in the bush country, XVhen along flame one of my own country- : Amen whefß the following eonvecsation was ; entered m-.t *' 6rood aay." " Good day, j jsur, aPs wry 'dhry weather." "Yes, but ] I presume 3t must be beneficial for .you i tush settlers as you want to turn .your : %U8h»" ""Oh.yis,bu* we want rain very ' bad sure. Sy the way, oime on very on- ; £>lisent 'bigness. ' Oime very muoh troubled : xvith feßdnaiburs. They have done me a ; lotof iigtiry and oime going to have satis- " Well, my friend, my advice : 4o you is /don't have anythiog to do with Jfche 3aw to. settle your grievances. My' litfle experience of the law has taught me less one has to do with it the better."' *' By gad I think your light, but sure the ; woman is very bad. Whin I wint to get any goods she struck, at me wid a billet of wood, but I warded the blow off, and thin ; whe wanted to «ay I struck her, sure and ; 2 would like to have satisfaction if it cost - me £5." I farther reasoned with him and, I believe, convinced him of the folly ; »f going to law, because he afterwards; feturaed to -his dweiUng with a determin- : «tion to try and live peaceably with his neighbors. I am pleased to find in my! tumbles that the settlers are, -as a role, ! 'very neighbourly and assist one another. \ 'This- is as it should be,- and I am sure ; that every -one will feel the better. I re- ' member -seeing ooe of those picturesque .1 .■almanacks somewhere "which should be in ■ the house of every settler, tat perhaps xay • '"legal and learned friends" would mot' appreciate.' I refer to a picture which: a &naaer holding ©a, to the ! boras of -a cow and another oaeut the tail, : 3)oth haukng away whilst our "learned! friend " is milking the cow, with a broad «f satisfaction 'on his oountenonce. ' The moral, of course, is to leave the law ; «lone, and settle our grievances between ; •ourselves. Gf course 1 don't disparage - the "limbs of the law." They are, no '■ doubt, .very iQecesary individuals (don't; print M evils " please) this side of the ; gray*, I don't know what their, employ- ; ment will be on the other side. ; It is very evident, from the number ; of business premises and stocks des- : *royed ty fire from time to tia ;, ; that there are very suspicious circum- '■ stances connected with such fires, but it ; is very difficult in any case to sheet it] iiome to th« guilty party. In some few ' instances the evidence has proved who the guilty parties were, and they have met their deserts ; but in the majority of cases the scoundrels escape. Fure Insurance Companies like the bankruptcy laws are also a convenience and a refuge for rogues as a means of pr-ofiton the one hand, and avoidance of payment of just debts on the other. It is very necessary that tradesmen should insure against loss by fire; but it is very galling to persons who are careful, aiid also to the shareholders of Insurance Companies, that designing men stiall manage to get policies on stocks and premises for far beyond their marketable value, and then a " mysterious " fire <oonsume3 the tot, and the companies have to " stump up." The question is often asked, " Why are such things permitted." There is no doubtthe Insurance Companies are somewhat to blame for fire raising. There are so many in existence, all <eagerly anxious to do business, that they can not at all limes use proper discretion in taking risks. The companies are too indiscriminating in their appointment of agents, and very often inexperienced agents take risks on the proposer's own valuation without examining or enquiring whether such risk is -good or the reverse. What I advocate is the appointment of only thoroughly good, conscientious, business men as agents for insurance companies, and let such men be paid by salaries—not commission— and let thorough ©xaminaii ms be made of all stocks and premises before risks ate accepted, then, and then only, will the records cease of ■"large and destructive fire at Timbuctoo, estimated loss Jt'so,ooo, covered by insurance." ■ -