HAPPENINGS IN THE CAPITAL

Gisborne Times, Volume XXV, Issue 2063, 25 April 1907, Page 1

HAPPENINGS IN THE CAPITAL

By “Penelope.” Wellington. THE DOMESTIC DIFFICULTY.

There was another conference between employers and tho Workers’ Union this week, but nothing satisfactory was arrived at. Indeed, had the Employers’ Association not agreed at the last conference to another meeting, it is probable they would not have consented to further discuss the matter with the workers, whose tone at 1 the last conference —of course struck by Mr. Westbrook, the Union secretary—was regrettably aggressive. There is a general belief among housewives that the Domestic Workers’ Union is illegal. This is said by persons very important in the legal world, and by some who are close to the ear of the Government. However, one hears there will be a test case shortly before the Arbitration Court, and a decision will then he arrived at. As a postscript to this comes the news that ladies are not only bringing maids with them from Home, but sending for them, and are delighted with their ventures. It is possible, I believe, to import a maid for £lO. A Wellington man and his wife just returned from England brought four, and one quite fascinating German girl, who is well connected, but desires to travel and see the world and learn English in return for such domestic services as the German Hausfrau teaches her daughters so efficiently. SOCIAL NOTES. Mr. and Mrs. Piatts-Mills left by the Sydney boat last week for a tour round the world, and Miss Payne, the lady superintendent of our hospital, goes Home shortly for some months. Among the various race visitors, including Mr. and Mrs. Lowrie and Mrs. Balfour-Ivinnear, from Hawke’s Bay, and the Walter Cliffords from Blenheim, there are Sir William Bussell, his wife and daughters, guests of Mrs. Grace, who gives a dance this week. Mrs. Thos. Young has gone to Palmerston North to visit her brother, Mr. Gerald Tolhnrst. Mrs. Stott is also away, taking a change of air after her illness. She and Mr. Stott

will probably visit Rotorua. Dr. and Mrs. Chappie hare returned, but their plans arc quite unsettled. In the meantime they have gone to Makerua, where tho doctor lias property. The house of Mr. Robert Levin, tlie

big red and white residence that is seen so prominently (in Hobson street) by travellers in the train, lias been sold to Mi'. lan Plinpuji. A peculiarity about the li.ouse is that it lias no fire-places, except in the kitchen. It is warmed by ail elaborate hot-air system. Miss Malcolm, whose house on the Terrace as a boarding establishment is almost as well known in London as in Wellington, was married last wee'k to Mr. Cruickshank, of Masterton. It is universally admitted—that—there—is no place like “Miss Malcolm’s” to stop in all New Zealand —indeed, in Australasia, so that it will be a 'great loss to the travelling public if the institution is given up. It was Sir Walter Bullcr’s bouse. I hear the tea kiosk at the top of the Kelburno tramway is changing hands. The Misses GibsonSmith, from Balelutha, have managed it lately, and it lias been well known for its delightful teas and lunches. But the very sad and sudden death of one of the Miss Gibson-Smitlis has made them resolve to leave, and a Dunedin lady, it is said one who already lias “run” a most successful tea-room, is to take over the Kiosk. HOUSE DECORATION.

At this season of tho year the painter and paperlianger is übiquitous. Even Parliament is going in for its autumn clean, this year on an extensive scale, for the huge mass of buildings is to be painted. It is reckoned the job will cost £BOO, for there is a perfect wilderness of roof and a great extent of fence, all_ of which is to be done. Some tiling was spent over the renovation of tli® very hideous statue of Mr. Ballance that disfigures the lawn ill front. For a day wild hopes were entertained by those who suffer artistically front it that it had been permanently injured, for it got a jaundiced air. This was owing to some acid put on to remove tho green mould, and was temporary. Now it looks “as if it were new.” There is much competition here among house-owners to hit upon a novel form of wall decoration. One energetic person painted her own frieze, using stencil, and working only in greys and flame-color, and black, The ground paper was primrose, and formed, by leaving it, any high lights in the design. The panels each had a different subject treated in a bold manner, and the result, which could be gained by anyone with a little artistic taste and considerable industry, was admirable, and had the advantage of being unusual. A bought frieze one is likely to come across anywhere. Mrs. Stanton Harcourt. who lias one of the most artistic houses in "Wellington, has sapphireblue canvas on her dining-room walls. The woodwork is all white, A very

charming liowly-decnrutcd room I tools, tea ill the other day was sagegreen up to about four fret of tho top, and then was mot by a paper with clusters of roses and foliage on an ivyry ground. A white moulding separated the two. There is a revulsion now against many diajieries about rooms, and in some houses there are ito curtains except the double easement curtains that run on brass rods on each sash of tho window. Chintz is largely" used, and ugly chairs—the stuffed variety covered with moreen or even horsehair—can lie made charming with loose covers of this material or printed linen. An excellent idea is a fenderstool that encircles the fender. Blit care must he taken of fire, and it would he well to have tho cushion

removable, so that if no one was to he left in the room it could he lifted off. Linen curtains seem likely to take tho place, even in winter, of other materials. These are often hemstitched and decorated with linen appliques. A very protty pair got in Melbourne had the appliques in chestnut brown linen, button-holed coarsely with cream, the-curtains being deep ecru tint and widely hem-slit,-bed.

A WELL-KNOWN PARLIAMENTARY FIGURE.

Probably everyone who frequented the galleries in the House knew the lale .Mr. i‘l. M. Smith, member for New Plymouth. This last year,, however, his voice was not heard at all. and he sat on his bench in silence and meloneholy. 'The vivacity and buoyancy that wore salient features of the member for New Plymouth had deparled, and a stranger would never have imagined that he was the man who, not so long before, used to make

the House hold its sides with mirth. His tremendous opinion of his district made him give vent to the most extravagant praise of it. and to countless invitations to come and see it From him extended to any member who expressed any interest, for or igainst, in his remarks. In his as-rakhan-eollared and cuffed overcoat, lis white, waistcoat, and his perpetual nitton-hnle, he was always a figure hat demanded a name to strangers n the gallery, it was the end of lis speeches that always caused the, icnsation. lie invariably concluded >y bursting into poetry, if not original. at all events in collaboration vifh some other poet. This was

given with tremendous emphasis and gesture, and Mr. E. M. Smith often finished up h.v slapping his chest; with his hand, and exclaiming “That’s me!” as ho took his seat. He praised New Plymouth and Taranaki in season and out of season. In his palmy days there was no topic discussed that lie did not seize an opportunity of lauding his province. I remember seeing him walking into the chamber with a Ijirge Maori kit, and producing a variety of products of Taranaki from it—tomatoes, a-- los, and potatoes among them. This was to illustrate the speech lie intended to make. His wife, a stout comely woman, was a constant occupant of a front seat in the gallery. AN IRISH ACTOR.

Air. Andrew Mack finished his season here last Saturday, and takes away a good deal of money with him. Even if some of liis pieces are difficult to place—a queer medley of melodrama, tragedy, and low comedy —he himself is a breezy actor with

a positively charming voice, which lie knows how to use to perfection. If an Irishman does not feel a choking in the throat when he listens to Mack’s singing of “Love’s Young Dream,” lie must he the degenerate scion of a noble race. The actorsinger did a graceful and kindly net the other day. The mother of a friend of his was very ill indeed, dying. Mr. Alack went up and sang to her, the songs the old Irish lady loved. The little incident says a good deal for his kind heart. THE RACES. Trcmtham—where our new racecourse lies—is about eighteen miles from here, and consequently a wet morning in Wellington is a serious deterrent to a large feminine attendance. On Wednesday, however, though it poured here, it was quite fine on the racecourse, and those women who enjoyed the day chuckled over their more timid friends who had perforce to stay in for the rain while they never put up an umbrella. Saturday was an ideal day, and some smart frocks were worn, nearly all of cloth, heavy or light face cloth with a satin surface. A very handsome woman wore a pale sage-green cloth and a hat wreathed with crimson roses and pale-blue - ribbon. Another notable gown was of heliotrope cloth, and a third of navy blue, with a little embroidery in emerald green on the bodice. Tartan—though the shops are full of it—is being worn very unobtrusively in ties, hat-piblinns, qud hells. It may appear in chiffon”’in one of the ball dresses at the Club hall next week, hut it is hardly likely, though tartan chiffon is to he had, and there is no accounting for some people’s tastes. Rumors of most fascinating frocks to he worn at this function are abroad. It takes place on the 2nd of Mav. ENCOURAGING BUSINESS EDUCATION. CHAMBER- OF COMMERCE PRIZES, A group of happy school children sat in the Chamber of Commerce yesterday afternoon (says tho Evening Post of April 17th), with their eyes furtively glancing at a table laden with white packages. They were listening with all possible grace to the speeches, but were anxious for toe business end of the proceedings, I be distribution of the books purchased with the chamber’s grant of £25 for prizes in arithmetic, writing and English composition, for competition among the primary scholars of "Wellington The chairman (Air J. G. Harkness) gave a brief address on education. There was a lot of humbug ip the world, lie added. All wu/Snipped at the shrine of wealth, all wore apt to bow the knee to power and place, hut right down to the core o' I ! c work! was a belief that chafactjr was tho thing that counted. Cliar.utor moulded by. education was the. lu.isj: ' idii; ablc thing that children if>"l(i pissoss; if not, there was no hope for democracy. Mr. G. Shirtcliife said it had been felt by business men generally that in the three principal sub [nets in which proficiency was required by boys and girls contemplating a business career there was room for considerable improvement. He did not think there was any suggsufi.io:i in the minds .of members of_Oia chamber that teachers were at the slightest fault in the results they had achieved. If there was any body of men' and women who deserved the . utmost; praise for what they, did,_ and flic sympathy for the disabilities under which they worked, it was the teaching profession of New Zealand. He thought the inspectors had hit the nail upon the head in their reference to the largeness of the classes and the range of subjects, ydiieh would prevent any special proficiency in any particular subject. The inspectors acknowledged that in mental arithmetic considerable improvement was desirable, apologised for the defective writing, and indicated that an improvement could be affected in composition. The prizes- were offered not only as .a reward for the winners, but as an incentive to others. The council had decided to contipup (he allocation of the same amount for ■ the current year. He hoped that the examination would be conducted at tlie end of the year, so that the prizes could be distributed before tbp schools broke up. Air. It. Lee, chairman of the Wellington Education Board, speaking for that body, expressed thanks for the prizes. He was of opinion that the grant was fraught with great possibilities in the way of furthering education generally. He was convinced that the chamber was doing good, useful public work. He thought there was another kind of composition which should be encouraged, and that was oral composition. With regard to the arithmetic, some people considered that too much time was given to arithmetic, and he thought so too. There was great room for improvement iti method. The best arithmetic that could be taught was the readiest arithmetic, which for the most part could be done in the head. Time could be saved without reducing the amount of instruction. Afr. Flux, headmaster of the South Wellington (fierhampore) sphooi, said that he was trying an experiment in writing this year. In the past there had been too many mechanical aids Ho was now having blank books entirely in the ujjper standards, and if the children could 'be got away from ■ the old slow laborious style of \yrit-

intS, a good effect could be gained. The teachers were much obliged for the chamber’s practical help. Usually they received plenty of criticism, but very little practical assistance. WEALTH OF THE EMPIRE. Few people (says the London Daily Mail) are able t'o realise the minimise wealth which is every year produced from the 11,314,000 square miles which comprise the British Empire. Some remarkable figures, from which some idea of this can lie obtained, are to be found in tho “Statistical Abstract of the British Empire,” issued ill the form of a Yellow-book. Calculations from the figures contained therein show that within the past ten years tho Empire lias yielded to its inhabitants the following: £ Coal 970,000,000 Diamonds 55,000,000 Gold 288,000,000 Silver 10,000,000 Copper 28,000,000 Tin 04,000,000 In addition to these little items, which represent a total wealth of £l- - the Empiro lias also provided within tlie ten years the following valuable products:— Iron ore (tons) 115,000,000 J.’ig iron (tons) ' 95,000,000 Wheat- (bushels! 4,850,000,000 Bariev (bushels) 970,000,000 Oats '(bushels) 3,400,000,000 Maize (bushels) 370,000,000 (Vine (gallons) 1 110,000,000 Tea (ibst) 3,600,000,000 Coffee (lbs.) 420,000,000 Raw sugar (cwts.) 560,000,000 Rubber (lbs.) ••• 103,000,000 Cotton (lbs.) ... 12,000,000,000 This by no means exhausts the wealth that is produced from and on the land of the' Empire. Among it's other possessions are Horses ... 7,000,000

Horned cattle 119,400,000 apoup 152,000,000 it is interesting to. note that the ■Sheep produce between thorn 872,0000001 hs. of wool every year.

At Yc ri\\aiu;it:i, lu:ji week, Kin ivflia, a duel ol: vile rNgaumamapolo triUe, came as a r.iaori deputation oi .inc to tile Lion. It. Aloisuo, on the raubit question. tie was invited to sit down, but declined. "1 am a JUICI, ami i stand up to speak, ' lie explained. “Salutations to you all,” ,ie continued. “No good the rabbit poison; pay threepenny again; that's all: kia ora.” The speaker emphasised hs brief utterance by prelacing yfic phrase “rabbit poison ' with a sanguinary adjective. This deputation was unique in Mr. McNab’s experience.