The Gisborne Times. PUBLISHED EVERY MORNING. GISBORNE, APRIL 2, 1901.

Gisborne Times, Volume V, Issue 74, 2 April 1901, Page 2

The Gisborne Times. PUBLISHED EVERY MORNING. GISBORNE, APRIL 2, 1901.

THE INSURANCE IMPOST. Tue people of Gisborne ought to take immediate action to protest against the proposed enormous incroase in the insurance premiums. The Borough Council meets to-night, and should adopt a resolution on a subject which so much concerns the business men and residents of the place. The Chamber of Commerce shoo'd also liso to the occasion, and adopt a strong resoultion bearing on tho subject. It may not be too late to do something in the matter,but if the increase is meekly submitted to by those concerned they will tliomselves be largely to blame. It will moan a serious thing for people to have to pay a fourth more on their insurance premiums, and it will be too late to cry out when the shoe begins to pinch. By their combination the companies can array a strong force to confront the uncombined policy-holders, but the latter can at least show that they will not be overridden with impurity, and that if the combination does secure a temporary victory, it may not be converted into a permanent one. DREDGING SPECULATION. Tn Christchurch Press, in view of the unsatisfactory development of some of .the newer dredging companies, especially on the West Coast, gives a word of warning to those w r ho contemplate investing money. The Press states that in the case of nearly every claim which has fallen below expectation the fadu-e has been duo to Wc?nt of prospecting. Take a recent case, for instance, in which it was stated that the directors now find that the ladders are too short to reach the bottom of tho claim. Surely this is a most unbusinesslike excuse. It would seem only common sense to suppose that before building an expensive drodge, costing several thousand pounds, some effort would be made to find out if it would be suitable for the claim to be worked. The length of ladder required could have been ascertained at a cost of a hundred pounds or so, and yet we find the dredge built on the mere chance that it would suit. As a consequence, we now see it laid up idle, while tests are being carried out which should have been made before designing the dredge. The evil of forming companies to work unprospected claims cannot be too much emphasised. In ordinary business a man would not buy an article without full enquiry, nor would a seller expect him to do so. But when it comes to mining we find that a large proportion of claims that have been floated have had little real prospecting, and sometimes none at all. The vendor, through a clever broker, frequently disposes of a property to a credulous public on the ground that someone states that he got gold there or thereabouts some yoars ago ; or that some dredge has got a good return in the “ neighbourhood.” We see, too, opinions of experts who have made a superficial inspection, and have, by judicious wording, made their reports mean really nothing at all. Nearly all such reports, unless based on actual prospecting, are vague “ nothings,” and if the extraneous matter were doleted little would remain. Does it not stand to reason that no man, however clever, can tell what a claim is • worth from merely going over the ground without proper prospecting not mere superficial prospecting, but prospecting in bulk ? It usually takes weeks to find out, even approximately, what a claim is worth, and yet some reports are written by experts after a visit of a day or perhaps two days. Of course, so long as people aro to be found who will go into mining blindfold so long will claims be floated, with more regard to spoils to tho vendor and broker than to their legitimate value of mining ventures.

Gisborne continues to get more than a fair share of rain. Tuesday, the 9tli of April, has been appointed a special bank holiday. Elaborate preparations arc being made for the Poverty Bay Bowing Club’s social on Easter Monday evening. A advertisement regarding a number of small grazing runs, which arc being opened for selections, appears in this issue. • Mr E. Robeitson is opening up his winter stock of drapery, and draws the attention of the public to a number of special lines. Visitors to Auckland arc rem'nded that excellent accommodation can be obtained at Endean’s Waitemata Hotel, which is handy to wharf and railway station. Mr W. Bailey, of the Tatapouri Hotel, notifies that a draught mare has been trespassing on his property since February Ist. It will be sold within 14 days unless claimed and expenses paid. Arrangements in connection with the concert to be held by the Mutual Improvement Society on April loth are well in hand, and there is every promise of the being highly-'Successful. The question has been asked us by several residents as to who is the Inspector of Weights and Measures for Gisborne. As far as we can learn, there is no such officer in the district, for since the death of Mr Faram no one has been appointed to the position. Perhaps the Borough Council at their meeting this evening will explain the reason why,

Dr Pom tire visited the Murewai Native meeting yesterday.

A meeting o£ the Borough Council takes place to-night. We regret to learn that a case of scarlet fever is reported in Gisborne. A money order and savings bank office lias been opened at at To Karaka. A reward is offered for a parrot lost by Mr H. Saudlaut. Mr Geo. Smith invites tenders for the delivery of 100 straight manuka rails.

The B.M'.S. Sierra made the passage from Auckland to Sydney in 3 days 3 hours 37 minutes.

The Borough elections are to take place on April 4. All the present Councillors retire.

Sergeant Tombleson’s trophy will be tired for on Easter Monday by the East Coast Mounted Rifles. The Hunt Club meets at Murewai on Thursday morning at 11.80, for the opening run of the season.

Messrs Ward and Co. have an advertisement in this issue with regard to their celebrated ales.

Captain Edwin wired at noon yesterday : “ Moderate to strong southerly winds ; glass rise ; tides good ; sea decrease.

The Library Committee has been advised of the grant of a Government subsidy of <£lS 19s 7d for the purchase of books.

Mr J. M. Cumurng advertises for sale a dwelling and ton acres of land, situated within seven miles of Gisborne. Easy terms arc offered. Messrs Peckover and Co. have a cen-trally-situated boardinghouse for sale on most reasonable terms. It is a really good opening for a suitable person. Mr J. A. Harding requests that all accounts due by the Masonic Hotel should be rendered at once, it being his halfyearly balance.

The Patutahi Road Board call for tenders for : —l. Cutting new dram at Mr Kirkpatrick’s (12 chains 60 links) ; 2, widening and deepening 33 chains of drain, near Mr J. Ferguson’s. The heads of families had a lively time on Sunday night in filling in census returns. It is recorded of one family that the responsible person stayed at home all day wrestling with the return, and then forgot to put in his own name. The many friends of Mr and Mrs P. Maher will regret to learn of their bereavement by the death of their only child, which died at 5.30 last night, notwithstanding the efforts of Drs. Craig and Cole to save the infant. Much sympathy is felt for the parents. The following is a list of letters from places beyond the colony, received at the Post-ofiico, Gisborne, during the month of January and unclaimed on April Ist: —W. Barrett, T. A. Bauer, Miss Brander, Win. C. Fraser, Ralph Fuller, John Stalker Fyfc, and Herr Karl Ivarlsson.

Dr. Pomere did not deliver an address to the natives at Muenvai yesterday, but will do so to-day, when he will speak on the subject of “ Sanitation and the sources of disease.” His remarks will have special reference to the kind of clothes worn by the natives, the houses they occupy, and the food they cat. He will also refer to the subjects of drainage, ventilation, and sundry other matters affecting the health of the natives. The address will be the first of a series.

There have been signs throughout the colony of recent years of a serious increase of dishonesty, especially in persons occupying subordinate positions of trust. No one who reads carefully- the reports of Court proceedings, both here and in the other centres, can fail to be struck by the frequency of that class of offences described in our Criminal Code as “ crimes involving dishonesty.” And it is to be feared that the number of cases that come before the Courts, large as that is, represents only a minority of the cases that actually occur. Forging and uttering cheques to hotel and storekeepers was for many years the offence that came most frequently before the higher Courts.—Lyttelton Times. The steamer Gulf of Taranto, which is to take the Seventh Contingent to the front, had her abilities for withstanding the warring of the elements tested on her run out to Australia. She made ah in-

auspicious start from Liverpool, strong gales with mountainous seas assailing her, with the consequence that deck fittings received some damage. For a period of five days, tho vessel was continuously engaged in violent combat with tho elements. Heavy soas thundered upon her docks, and the officers and crew moved about only at their peril. The Gulf of Taranto, however, proved equal to the emergency, and finally came out of the fierce engagement with a minimum of danger. Captain T. Linklater, formerly of the steamer Gulf of Venice, is in command.

Mr W. J. McLean, agent in Palmerston North for the Rudge-Whitworth bicycle, arrives in Gisborne iu the course of a few clays. The machine which he is agent for is claimed to be the best in the market, and he has had a large sale of the bicycles wherever he has visited. One machine in particular, the No. 23 “ Special ” RudgeWhitworth lady’s bicycle, is one of the most popular lady’s cycles on the market, and is unequalled in do sign, finish, and appearance. Its elegant appearance and easy running qualities have gained for it a very wide appreciation, especially among ladies who have become expert cyclists. The weight is low, but so cut down as not to sacrifice its strength or rigidity; and all its fittings, such as’dress-guards, mudguards, brake, etc., are practical and efficient.

A ,year or two ago Mr Charles Rooking Carter, after whom Carterton is called, died. He was a generous public-spirited man, of distinctly peculiar views, and left a large property. He ordered by his will that an Old Men’s Home should be built, but he had hedged the occupancy of the said Home round with such a variety of conditions that none but wingless angels need apply. No person can gain admission unless ho is 65, has been for five years a resident of good repute, never bankrupt, and never drunk. As all Carterton citizens are of good repute and well-to-do, there is a spectacle of a beautifully-built, wellfurnished, and nicely equipped home, plus a well-paid, well-accredited brace of caretakers,' but without a single occupant. The body of the late Mr Carter lies in the Clarevihe cemetery, without a headstone to mark the place.

A meeting of the committee appointed by the Chamber of Commerce, the Borough Council, and County Council to interview

the Minister of Lands when he visited Gisborne with regard to the requirements of the ’ district was held last evening. Amongst those present were Messrs Morgan, Macfarlanc, Whinray, Matthews, and To-.ynley. Various matters were discussed, and the most pressing wants of the district were set down. The

immediate prosecution of the railway to Motu was deemed to be the most urgent work, and it was decided to bring this under the attention of the Minister and get him to do w’hat he could to push the lino on. Mr Macfarlane spoke in favor of the construction of a number of bridges on the Coastal road and elsewhere, and urged that the Minister should be urged to do something with regard to bridging the Uawa River at Tolago Bay, also thcPakarae and Pouawa Rivers. He also advanced the claim of the Coastal road, especially between PakaracandPuatae and the Tapuae rocks. It was resolved to bring all these matters under the attention of the Minister. Mr Macfarlane also referred to the necessity of drawing the Minister’s attention to the fact that Government grants, to be of any assistance to settlers or the local bodies of the district, should be available in the early summer. Under the present system the grants are mostly available during the winter. This is particularly the case, as recent grants have carried with them the stipulation that only 10 per cent, of the amount might be spent before March 31st. A number of other works throughout the district were mentioned by members, and the Minister of Lands should have quite a formidable list presented to him when he arrives in Gisborne. Let us hope that he will see his way to grant all the requests that are made to him.

Crs Hutchiuson (Waikohu riding) and Jox-Blakc (Arai riding) have furnished the Comity Clerk with lists of the requirements of their respective ridings, which will be considered among the list of requirements to which tho attention of the Minister of Lauds will be drawn qh the occasion of his forthcoming visit. Cr Jcx-Blake’s list is : Gisborne-Wairoa road-Hangaroa deviation, LI,500; Gentle Annie, metalling, L 500; Gisborno-Mahia formation, L 750 ; two bridges, Maraetalia, LISOO ; Arai-Tokouui bridge, at Rcay’s crossing, LSOO ; Arai bridgeTokonui telephone communication ; Wae-renga-o-kuri, Tiniroto, and Wairoa (via Hangaroa) telephone communication. Cr Hutchinson tables : Ngatapa-Motu road, LIOOO ; Motu road, LIOOO ; Mangatu road, LIOOO ; Inland Waiapu road, L 500; deviation on Karaka cutting, L 200; bridge over Waipaoa river, Inland Waiapu road, say, L2OO, £ for £ subsidy.

In the course of the hearing of an application for re-trial of the Stychc case a discussion ensued as to the fall of the

typewriting-machine. A member of the Bench asked whether any experiment had been made to ascertain how a typewriter would be injured by a fall from a table. Mr Joynt : That would have been rather expensive. Mr Justice Denniston said lie did not think so, considering what was at stake. At a quarter past eleven a breathless constable carried a large case into Court. Mr Justice Denniston : There is your machine. Mr Joynt : It is not my machino; I disown it altogether. (Laughter) The constable was directed to open the case, and after Mr Joynt had finished his reply, tho machine, which had been sent up from Christchurch, was placed on one of the bar tables. The Bench asked questions as to how the accident to the machine was described by Stycho. Mr Stringer asked if their Honors wished to have an experiment made of knocking the machiue off a table, the Crown’ had no objection. Mr Joynt said tho accessories wore not present. Mr Justice Denniston : Perhaps Mr Rhodes’s consent might have

to be got. Tho Match Committee of the East Coast Mounted Rifles held a meeting last night, Scrgt.-Major Beere presiding. It was decided to present a gold medal, to be called the Easter Trophy, to be fired for on each Easter Monday. The trophy to be competed for next Monday is being provided for out of a donation by Sorgt. Tombloson, and seven cash prizes, from 5s to £l, to be fired for on Monday in the same match, arc also being provided for by Scrgt. Tombleson’s donation. It was decided to ask tho Gisborne Rifles to appoint delegates to confer with delegates from the Mounted Rifles as to matters concerning both corps in regard to the range and shooting. Delegates were appointed to represent the Mounted Rifles, being Corporal Pirie and Trooper Hamilton. Members are notified that entries for the shooting on Monday closo with Lieutenant Millor at 8 pan. on Saturday next. A match will be fired off on Monday between teams representing the Whataupoko Band and the Gisborne Rifles, and it has been so arranged that the Mounted Rifles shooting will go on simultaneously with that of the Gisborne Rifles. •