THE PUBLICANS' PETITIONS.

Hawke's Bay Times, Volume 13, Issue 653, 4 February 1869, Page 4

THE PUBLICANS' PETITIONS.

(To the Editor of the Daily Southern Cross.) Sir, —In the debate on the publicans' two petitions there were some things said worthy of particular notice. IVlr Wynn wondered how the commissioner of P.olice could write a letter -disapproving of the movement in favor of opening public houses on Sundays. To judge from the style of Mr Wynn's observations on this act of the com missioncr, one is led to suppose that he disapproved of his conduct in writing such a letter, and would censure him for it. But surely no one is more competent to give a trustworthy opinion on such a point than the Commissioner. He must know better than anyone else, the public evils arising from the sale of liquor on Sundays. .Mr Wynn is surprised to hear so much aversion expressed to the sale of drink on the Lord's Day." "Is not every day the Lord's Day," he asks, " seeing the Lord made all days ?" He contends that whatever may be innocently or lawfully done on a week-day may be done on a Sunday, or the Lord's Day, without any offence to religion or morals so far as the keepers of pub lie-houses were concerned in their trade. He thinks there is no medium between the present licensing system and a Maine liquor law—an Act which he knows well would never go down here, and the very idea of which is enough to terrify all except out-and-out teetotalers. This seems an attempt to ward off any attack on the existing Licensing Act, and a very in genious attempt to. Mr Wynn repeats the oft-repeated remark, that you " cannot make men virtuous by Act of Parliament"; and that you may control but cannnot check some public vices by legislative remedies. This sweeping dictum, like many others of its kind, is partially true and partially false. There are Acts of Parliament made for the purpose of checking, not controlling, but checking or extirpating public vices, and they succeed, if not perfectly, yet to a great extent. To say that no Acts of Parliament should be made in the interests of religion and morality because the per versity of man's nature will seek to defeat them, and to some extent succeed in doing so, is a strange mode of reasoning. Mr Wynn labors to convince us that there is no medium between the present Licensing Act and the Maine Liquor Law. But there is a middle course, The Permissive Bil is neither a Maine Liquor Law, noi an English Licensing Act as it now exists. A majority of the people in deed might, if they chose, make the Permissive Bill serve the purpose of a Maine Liquor Law. But why not, if such be the will of the sovereign people ? Even then they would not be so unjust and despotic as to interfere '•with Mr Freer in the private gratifi cation of his palate, or dictate to him what he should eat or drink. They would merely forbid him to sell drinks to others as hurtful to the public. Mr Wynn argues that the trade in liquor would come into the hands of disre putable people, illicit dealers in short, if any restrictions on it were intro duced. But when the pec pie—the great majority of the people—are eager to uphold any law, its evasion "becomes difficult, if the police do their duty with common fidelity and diligence. If the majority of the people of this province be not now sufficiently advanced in intelligence and virtue to wish a Permissive Bill, of course they will not ask it, and do not deserve it. That remains to be seen. It is very generally believed that if the police were to make more frequently unexpected visits to the public houses on Sundays by the private doors it would be found that the liquor trade is not confined to week-days only.

One hon. Councillor, who seems to have made social science his anxious study, particularly as regards the cause of so much female profligacy in Auckland, thinks that the publicans are innocent in that respect; it is the pas sion for dress that leads so many of of the Auckland daughters of Eve to surrender«their virtue, and not the love of drink at all, or dissipated company. But the truth is, all these causes and others also combine to do this. It is in the vicinity of publichouses and theatres too that "unfortu Bate women" are mostly to be seen. Surely this hon. Councillor went ton far when he said "that 99 out of every'

100 young females in Auckland would go on the pave rather than to service. It is to be hoped he has been raisreported. The statement seems incredible and cruel. Jltrue, ijt, betrays a most deplorable state of things in the capital of our virtuous infant province. The social evil, a 8 it is called, and the liqu:r trade, stand on a very differenr footing. The former cannot be made the subject of legislation in a moral point of view; the latter may be so with perfect propriety. The testimony of clergy, judges, magistrates, medical men, and other competent witnesses goes to prove that crime and vices of the worst kind, as well as disease are associated with the operation of the present licensing system and that almost invariably so, at least, among the humbler classes.

The Suuday, or Lord's Day, is not the Sabbath, nor is there any warrant to observe it, with a Sabbatical rigor, still its sanctity ought, when necessary, to bo guarded by special legislative enactments, both on religious and moral considerations. The public sale of liquor is not compatible with the sanctity of the Sunday. On that day men have much spare time and money on their hands, and, if at all inclined to drink jovially, have special temptations to do so to excess on that day in public houses, particularly in the winter evenings,—l am, &c, J. Wood. Papakura, January 16, 1869.

The New American President.—General Grant, now President of the United States, only ton years ago sold wood, cut by himself, by the cart-load in the streets of St Louis. Even the life of Abraham Lincoln contained no such rapid transition from the humblest pursuits"to the highest public stations. On the memorable 13ih of April, 18.6.1, still an obscure clerk in a leather store at the modest salary of S3OO a year ; and but two years later the most successful general on the loyal side ! The first Napoleon himself climbed the ladder of fame no faster. The following description of the new President is given by an Amercan paper:—A plain, medium-sized, middle-aged gentleman —who may be seen any day galloping rapidly along the wide and muddy streets of Washington, or quietly strolling down the Avenue smoking his cigar (an able correspondent once detected him eating peaches, and made the act historical), not a man to astonish you, but seemingly intent upon minding his own business, and permitting other men to mind theirs. Look into his face —it gives the impression of reserved and subdued strength—a temper under perfect control His hands and feet are small, which in noient times would have been said to >how gentle blood. A quiet, admirablypoised man, without velvet or tinsel, per sistent without brilliancy, going steadily oi to his conclusion, sometimes slow, but never erratic, with a nature that rises to crery emergency, long enduring, as in the Vicksburg siege, quick as lightening to sieze those moments which may be called inspiration of victory, as at Fort Ponelson — : when he ordered General Smith to advance, as at Mission Eidge, -when he sent Sherman and Thomas and Sheridan surg ing over the mountain ridge. A gentleman in tho fullest sense of that fine word—not the gentleman of the nercer and haberdasher, anointed and perfumed, and rippling with small talk, but considerate, patient, gentle, forgiving, believing that human nature is honest, and that the world is full of justice and charity—a gentleman of the Lincoln school, such a one as in some respects we found in Louis Phillippe—above scandal, kind to subordinates, making all burdens gentle, claiming no honors but what he has fairly won, fond of his friends, and constant in his friendships, the same at all times and under all circumstances —even-minded, not given to profanity, and shrinking with womanly modesty from all things vulgar, not a bookman —a steady plodder at West Point, who did his work rersonably well, and made little impression on his tutors. A nature of slow and patient growth, its fullness coming late, not adolescent too early, a boy until the last hour of boyhood, and then a fresh, lusty, much enduring man. Reported Murder.—By the last mail from Auckland wo learn that a native policeman known as " Peter," had arrived in town from Waiheki, with a report thai a Maori named Heteretia had been murdered by another Maori named Rutu. It is said that there was an ill-feeling between them, and Eutu came behind Heteretia urn xpectedly and severed his head from his body with a tomahawk. The information was given to "Peter," the native constable, who has been searching over the island, but has been unable to find Eutu, who is supposed to have made his way to Auckland.

A Proveeb Extended.—l copied the following bit of wit some time ago from an American comic magazine. It is not bad : —'<' San.bo! my massa always travel; yours ebor stay at home.' ' Dat bery true, Jim ; but you know what de proverb say, " rollin' stone gadder no moss."' 'No, Sambo, but it gadder polish I and dat'ere's a qualification your niasaa stan' bery much in need ob!' "—-8. J., in Notes and Queries,

Modeen Cavalry.—Of the many problems to be solved by the student of the modern art of war, none are more open to debate than thope relating ■ to cavalry. While artillery and infantry have progressed with rapid strides, the cavalry of European armies remains as it was at the beginning of the century. Depending for its success in battle, not on the perfection in; flre-arms, but on the impetus of its charge, it has fallen back in the struggle for superiority. The horse can gallop no faster, and the swordsman can strike no harder now than when Ney's splendid squadrons were shattered to pieces against the British squares on the plains of Waterloo ; but the flashes of flame that then heralded the tatal storm of bullets, now burst forth with five-fold rapidity from the faces of the infantry squares. Young troops may still bo dismayed by the thunder of the advancing horsemen, but if once the footsoldier lias learned what his breech-loading rifle can do, the powerful moral effect of cavalry charges must surely bo destroyed. The withering fire which a line of infantry can now pour forth would seem to makecharges against troops in formation almost an impossibility ; at all events, a rash enterprise in which success is nearly hopeless. But even if cavalry has lost its place in battle —if it dare no longer rush on the serried rarfks of the enemy's infantry—it has uses of its own from which neither jnfantry nor artillery can divorce it; and it is as. essential to a general now as it was in the days of Nnpoleon. It may possibly be, though we dare offer no such prediction, heavy cavalry, designed to break the enemy's ranks by its force, may disappear gradually from the rolls of armies ; but it is highly probable that in its place will spring up a light active force, powerful enough to roll up the enemy's flank by its well directed charge, and yet fitted to perform those duties of outlook and intelligence to, which a mounted man is alone equal. Speculation, however, is at fault; predictions in 'military art are not unsafe ; it is wiser to see what has been done by cavalry in recent campaigns, and from the past to draw lessons for the future. —Atheneeum. Captuke 03? a Rebel Spy at Opotiki. —Tho cutter Woodstock, Captain Baker, whicy arrived in harbor yesterday from Opotiki, reports that one of the rebels belonging to Te Kooti's party, named Nata, formerly employed in a schooner called the Queen, belong to Capt. Read, walked deliberately into the blockhouse at Opotiki, gun on shoulder, the day after Dr Pollen left, without being observed by the sentry on guard His reasons for so doing was because tho friendly natives would not allow him to proceed to Poverty Bay, and his only chance was to get to Opotiki He was taken into custody, and orders were given by the commanding officer that he should be carefully looked after. As soon as tho Resident Magistrate, Mr Mair, who is now at Whakatane, returns, the prisoner will be brought up and examined. Several fires have been seen ia close proximity to Opotiki, supposed to be lighted j by rebels. Te Xooti is said to be near tluborders of the Avavva country. —Weekly News, 27th Jan. The "Bunyip."—Mr J. S. Calvert, of Yass, writes to the Australasian: —The last two or throe years we have hand some wonderful accounts of the "bunyip" in the Murrumbidgeo River, in this imme-

diale neighborhoood. On last Saturday evening, the 14th Nov., I was on my return home from Yuss, and when crossing the river at Sappling Faint into our own paddock, about half-way over I saw a strong ripple or mark in the water. Thinkink it might be a largo codfish a little aick from the water being very muddy, as we had a fresh from rains, I pushed my | horse ahead of it into deeper water, half up my saddle flap, and soon found it was a large dark brown or sable'colored animal. As you may suppose, 1 became deeply interested in the hunt. I tried to drive the thing down stream to a shallow part, but altera struggle for about half an-hour in trying to tramp it down with ray horse's feet, I had to give up the contest, as 1 often got both fore feet of my horse on the back of the animal, which only resulted in my horse being thrown off his legs, and getting a ducking. At last it became so unpleasant to myself—as I was not very dry during all this—-and the poor nag showing signs of distress, that I gave it up as a very bad job. Now, Sir, as well as I could make the animal out, it must be a largo otter; but it is all nonsense about its being a savage sort of brute, as it never left a mark on my horse, and it was nearly all the time under his feet. Thinking this may be interesting to others who are, like myself, fond of natural history, I send particulars to you, as I know few people believe in their being any such creature.

Vagary of a Whirlwind. —The Wagga Wagga Advertiser tells a story of how " Mr Betts the surveyor had a narrow escape of being blown away. The other day, on his return from the field, and while he was quietly smoking a pipe of repose in his tent, a mighty wind arose, which tore the tent from its fastenings and scattered its contents, owner included, in all directions. Two theodolites which were standing near the tent were blown down and rollod along the ground for some distance with the most disreputable disregard of the interests of science; some logarithm books heavily-bound had their leaves torn bodily out, as if by the hand of some gigantic baby, while an eddy of all imaginable articles, from a tent-fly to a toothbrush, whirled gracefully, but most inconveniently, heavenwards. Happily for Mr Betts, ho was able to prevent his own translation to a higher sphere by holding on vigorously to a sapling, or we might have had to announce the apotheosis of our friend in a soaring cloud of leaved and logarithms,"