The Kumara Times. Published Every Evening. SATURDAY, MARCH 18, 1882.

Kumara Times, Issue 1706, 18 March 1882, Page 2

The Kumara Times. Published Every Evening. SATURDAY, MARCH 18, 1882.

Tt is satisfactory to know that the struggle is being carried manfully by the miners against the bitter injustice which is sought to be inflicted upon them by some miserable jack-iu-office, who bo long as he draws his salary, and can live like a swell thereon, careß not a brass farthing if hundreds of hardworking men with their wives and families are by his act, reduced to a Htate of destitution. From the first establishment of the Public Works Department, its ranks have invariably been recruited from among those most hopelessly ignorant of all pertaining to public woiks. There is not a corner of the colony, however obscure, but contains its record of the folly and stupidity of this wonderful department. Those who wish 10 know what has become of Sir Julius Vogel'a millions, can easily obtain the information. A large proportion of the money has gone in utterly useless experiments in works which any party of old miners would have Completed at a tenth of the cost, and without a blunder. Emboldened by their long uninterrupted career of mischief, the department now steps off its heaten path s and endeavours to lay down the most arbitrary laws, apparently for the purpose of hunting the miners out of the country. Some of these remarkably smart men appear to lose eight of the fact that if they wore allowed to work out their own wicked way, there would be such a collapse in mining matters, as would necesitate the weeding out of some of these wonderful engineers who have so long had it all their own way, Can anything be more absurd than the manner in which their appointments were made? One man for instance, is made a Resident Engineer for tire sole reason that he could sharpen picks tolerably we'l in his little diggings smithy, while others again have had similar appointments given them because tbey bad been tried

in every other .department in the civil service, and-found useless in each and all. We all know the old proverb about putting a beggar on horseback and the result which is said to follow the experiment. Those who have watched (and who has not?) the vagaries of some of our highly paid officials, must in reason admit that a parallel is to be found in many instances in the public service.

v The miners of the Kumara district are to be congratulated npon the gallant stand they are now making against the outrageous proposal to force them to pay in advance for water, and for running tailings into the Government sludge-channel ; and it must not be lost sight of that they are fighiug not only their own battle, but that of every miner in New Zealand, lor most assuredly if the conditions now sought to be imposed, are enforced, then a tyranny of the worst kind will be established, and the endurance of the miners here would be quoted elsewhere to show that nothing in the form of opposition must be offered to any proposition, however monstrous, emanating from Government officials. Those who have read the petition (a copy of which appeared in our Wednesday's issue) to be forwarded to the Minister of Mines will at once see that a very large amount of care and attention has been bestowed upon it. It is perhaps somewhat long, and might here and there be a little condensed, but it sets forth the real facts and merits of the case, not only clearly and distinctly, but correctly. It is to be presumed that the petition will be adopted at the next public meeting, and that no time will be lost in forwarding it to its destination. That it will carry due weight with the head of the Mines Department, we cannot for a moment doubt, and the principal thing to be done now is to obtain such an array of signatures us will be convincing proof that the whole community, as one man, solemnly protest against the course which is being pursued against the miners.