CURRENT TOPICS OF THE DAY

Kaipara and Waitemata Echo, 6 November 1914, Page 5

CURRENT TOPICS OF THE DAY

(krom various sources")

Always Ready to Hit Back

Sir Joseph Ward turned an interjection tc his own favour very neatly in the House the other afternoon. The leader of the Opposition was speaking vigorously in disfavour of the " Reformers' " reckless financial, methods, and had raised his voice in emphatic denunciation of the Government. The Prime Minister entered" the chamber just at the conclusion of the speech and perpetrated a road board joke. " There is a crowd outside wanting to know what all the noise is about," he said to the Leader of the Opposition. "Is that so ?" promptly responded Sir Joseph. " I suggest you go out and address them, and see if you can get a vote of confidence. You won't!" (Laughter). -

Our Fisheries

An examination of the toheroa beds on the West Coast, from the South Kaipara Head to a point 25 miles to the south, has been carried out by the chief inspector of fisheries, Mr L. F. Ayson. He stated that beds existed along the whole range of the coast examined; but they were not nearly so heavily stocked as those on the coast extending north to Maunganui Bluff. The beds on the latter stretch of coast were particularly well stocked, and two small canneries had been operating successfully for a number Sf years. So far this work had had no appreciable effect upon the beds, except that in some cases beds which had been in constant use foi\a number of years were not producing toheroas of such a large size as other beds. The oyster beds examined by Mr Ayson during his visit were looking well. . Most of them were heavily stocked, but the shellfish were somewhat smaller than those to be found at Waiheke and other, parts of the Hauraki Gulf. He bslieyed that a number of the beds inspected would be producing good marketable oysters next season.

South v. North

It is weary work protesting, as we do each year, against the flagrant injustice with which the South Island Main Trunk line is treated. The Massey Government is, in this respect, perhaps no worse than its predecessors have been; but it comes ill indeed from Ministers who, when in Opposition, professed that parochialism and '' log-rolling " would give way to a broader, more statesmanlike policy of railway construction, that these same gentlemen should, now they are comfortably settled on the Government benches, play the same game as their predecessors^ the game of so arranging the Public Works Fund expenditure as best to catch votes. —Marlborough " Express."

The Mangakahia Bone

Three of the Northern Wairoa local bodies —the Hobson CountyCouncil, the Dargaville Borough Council, and Kaipara Chamber of Commerce—have united to secure direct communication between Northern Wairoa' and the Mangakahia district by endeavouring to obtain an outlet road for that district. By- that means most of the Mangakahia trade will be diverted towards Tangowahine, w-here there is. deepwater communication. For years the Mangakahia settlers have waited in yam for proper eonv munication w/ith Whangarei, but as yet nothing better than a. mudtrack has been provided, and this, in winter time, is barely negotiable with a pack-horse.

A Slight lyUgtjtkft The f^efopra administration in S^amoa seems most satisfactory to the New Zealand Government, Colonel Logan no douht having cho ; sen the administrate ye ptaijf on account qf "the worth of individuals, and not for their political '•' colour-."* There is no suggestion, of course^ th.aj; the pick of the appointments were decided by Cabinet, By- the way, Mr Robert Logan, one of the boat-building and house-building family, who possess a large footing in Auckland, was lately seea in Queen Street by a friend, " Hello, Bob!" he said, " back' again ?" " What do you m.e^i *« asked Robert. •' J haven't been away "^ " W'el-1/ 1 continued the other, v I knew there was a lot of secrecy being observed, but what is the use of pretendi^ * When dld TO get V.ekfroni'Samoa?" I*otoi\* gravely said he hadn't got back from Samoa or an^ other place. . The citizen had made the yoi'y natural mistake, of ecm fusing the builder with the colonel, for, as he said afterwards, "A P:hp,£.pan be a fishmonger to-day and a major tomorrow."—" Obseryei\ n