NEW ZEALAND.

Gisborne Times, Volume VIII, Issue 547, 17 October 1902, Page 4

NEW ZEALAND.

BRIDGE MAINTENANCE'. By telegraph—Press Association—- , PALMERSTON N., last night. A Commission to apportion the cost of a traffic bridge to he constructed over the Manawatu river, near Shannon. commenced its sitting at Foxton thvs morning. The local -bodip* interested are the Ilorowhenua and Manawalu County Councils and Foxton Borough Council, the latter being the objecting body. RAILWAY STATION. FEILDING, last night. A deputation from the Chamber of Commerce waited on Sir Joseph Ward yesterday in regard to affording greater facilities for the public at the Feilding railway station. lie promised to consider the requests. MAIN TRUNK LINE. MANGAWEKA, last night. It is expected that the section ol the North Island Main Trunk Line between Mangaonoho and Mangaweka will he opened about November Ist. Goods trains have lieen tunning on the line for some time, but the line has not been taken over by the Railway Department. THEFTS FROM LETTERS. Complaints are made that on six occasions during the past two or three mouths money has been abstracted from letters sent by post unregistered. r lhe matter is in the hands of the police. A SHOCKING CASE. ASHBURTON, last night. At the Magistrate’s'Court Andrew Sturgeon, of Tinwald, was .charged with committing 'incest on iiis daughter, Elizabeth Sturgeon, aged twelve, on September lfltli. I-le was committed for trial at the next sitting of the Supreme Court at Christchurch.

THE GENERAL ELECTIONS

THE CANDIDATES

(Per Press Associatiou.) WELLINGTON, last night. Mr Aitkin, Mayor of Wellington, has decided to offer himself as a candidate for one of the City seats at the general election.

TIMARU, last night. Mr W. S. Maslin, a candidate for Geraldine, in opposition to Mr Flatman, opened the political campaign at Temuka last night, when he addressed a large audienctA. He was accorded' a good hearing, though the meeting at times was somewhat rowdy. Tie declared himself opposed to the present Government, and said that though at one time a believer in their so-called Liberalism, he had received a rudo awakening. Tie roundly condemned the present Government for their extravagant borrowing, predicting financial disaster and a time of depression, if prudent men were not placed at the head of affairs to remedy the existing evils. He claimed that the Sedrioq Government were not the fount, anil, source of Liberal legislation! ohr political liberties beiiig laid by Sir John Hall, when Mr Seddon played a small part in colonial politics. The Hon, Mr Rolleston was the first to provide land for people of limited means. The system of lease in perpetuity was creating a form of absentee landlordism, which must be prejudicial to settles of the colony. During the r i b,f. r al narty’s term -f omce t j ley j ncrcaSec i pa y. ments to themselves and members of the Government by about £23,000. New Zealand was now the most heavily taxed of the Australian colonies, with one exception. The public debt was assuming large proportions, and had been increased since 1900 by the sum of £6,(157,5.71. In the face of

this they had an alarming! shrinkage or trade, the buoyancy of the consolidated revenue being due to the large amount of borrowed moneys. Parliament abrogated its functions in surrendering control of the public works expenditure, and reduced Parliamentary government to a farce. Matters went more smoothly last session owing to Uic absence of the- Premier and to the lietter methods of Sir Joseph Ward. As regards land settlement be believed in both the freehold and leasehold, but thought that settlers should be given the right to purchase. DUNEDIN, last night. Mr Alex. Marshal, a member of the Education Board, contests Taieri seat in the Ministerial interests.

The co-operative dairies of Denmark are societies, from which each member re-

ceives a dividend proportionate to the

quantity of milk delivered, less a deduction for working expenses. The first of these

was founded in 1882, and there are now 1040 in operation, converting about 4,000,000,0001bs of milk per annum, equivalent to a value of £7, 112,000. Not only do these co-operative dairies produce butter of a uniform quality, but the best results are obtained from each cow, by observing what foods are best suited for her; while in other respects every attention is paid to both quantity and quality. One of these dairy farms alone possesses over6ooo cows, producing 31,000,000 lb of milk annually.— Manawatu Daily Times. Electric lighting will ultimately supersede gas in Masterton. All well-informed people know this! It may come within live years, it may eomo within ten years, but come it will. This being so, it is difficult to see why the Borough Council should not take the question into consideration before determining the future of the gas works. If electric lighting supersedes gas within the next five years, as it ought to do, an expenditure of £'ooCo at the present time would be a had *”**estment. In five years’ time the existing gas loan runs out, aud fresh financial arrangements must necessarily be made. We venture to predict that the new financial arrangements will be in the direction of providing electric lights in place of gas. —Wairarapa Times.

The official report of the Imperial Commission on Education in Russia states that the great majority of State school teachers in Russia receive a salary of less than per annum. Some 45 per cent, of them receive assistance from their friends and relatives, and the rest are dependent n the charity ot their pupils’ parents. Within the Colony the farmers are having a good time, for prices generally are high. Locally sheep sold recently up to 19s 3d, and at Hokitika bullocks sold up to £ 19. On the West Coast of this Island the timber industry is active, and during the last eight months no less than twelve and a half million feet of sawn timber have been shipped at Greymouth. —Nelson Colonist.

An the result of a collision between a spring-dray and a hawker's van, on the South Road. Adelaide, Florence Margaret Skinner was thrown out and killed.

The revenue oi South Australia for the quarter ended September 30 shows a decrease as compared with the corresponding period last- year q{ &17/Jo(y