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TOPICS OF TALK.

. The love of liberty in a man must be very strong when we find the murderer , .Sullivan unceasingly petitioning the Government for his deliberation, until, wearied out by his importunity, it is granted him. An old man—-over sixty yearsofage—unable to work (unless, in deed, to rnlce the flower-beds and gra- , Vel walks around the gaoler's house), well fed, comfortably clothed and housed—yet counts this certain comfort and protection, as nothing in comparison with a life of freedom, of pover;fy and destitution—prefers rather to go forth, with Cain's brand on his brow, to be hunted of men, to; be a wanderer and a vagabond upon the '• •earth.

. How very unpleasant is the task of submitting to the'.insinuating inof the cold water pourers: How the drops sink in and chill. A ,sharp, strong-pressured douche is refreshing and productive of vigor; but the' other—hrtw it creeps and excites. A strong, vigorous demand has been •made . for .land, for settlement in the Maniototo, Plaiiv--not for Naseby Only, but centrally, for Hamilton and Sowburn'as *yell ; . What can be done? Our pouring' apparatus is getting disjointed and rusty for want of use. Oh! we/have it. A gross injustice is being about to be committed—the miner is to be interfered with. No land within

'four ttiiles of Nnaeby shall be opened . .to impede, and embarrass , the. gold.miner. A petition ia necessary to this .effect, quite regardless that that point has been settled long ago—regardless, v too, that no 'one is asking for land "/within that radius, and quite regardless that a mist ,of apparently Conflicting interests may be raised about such ■a, petition to impede; the legitimate settlement on. the . land centrally situated on'the Mnniototo Plain, in a locality where no known auriferous land can 1 possibly be interfered with, even by a stoppage of outlet—land, too, which, if not ispeeaily settled on by a number of independent farmers, will assuredly find its way into the insatiable grasp of the capitalist freeholder. With soil oj; a first-class description, .• and.a climate that has been proved to ripen the grape elsewhere, intending settlers be foolish to give their labor and money, on. a large scalp, -to the .. land immediately adjoining Naseby, while the far better lies only a little way off unoccupied. Every acre will, in the - course of time, be put toits legitimate purpose—but that time is not yet. • The rich, though dry, alluvial valleys of the-Plain will first be taken up, and made, by culture and irrigation, to yield sustenance for men.

.vll' the land on the Plain is totally unfit for settlement, why oppose the , getting it proclaimed as open for such purpose. < If it is unfit, the proclama- - tiori will simply remain a dead letter, . for men will not be so foolish as to take it up. Or, is it that men bred on : larms-—who know what struggling on a poor farm at high rents means—neeil protection against themselves: that they, from mere earth hunger, will take up land to their own ruin P The- opponents to agricultural settlement, if they were honest to their ex- ' pr esse J assertion th at; there is no land .. fit for settlement, would simply not ■attempt to interfere with the expression of the public in favor df land being opened—for, upon proclamation, they will be proved right,, as no one , will fake up and pay for what is worth nothing.

■ At Timaru they seem to understand .better what is needed to carry on successfully a public reading room. The Mechanics' Institute in that town appears to be in a very healthy condition, having £3OO to spa/e, which, by resolution, we observe, at a late meeting, was to be invested in a Building Society. The reading room is supplied with comfortable settees, chess is encouraged, and arrangements are made for the arrival of regular shipments of new, books. At a committee meeting of this institute held there lately, the following suggestive paragraph from the proceedings is reported in th* newspapers : journed to the chess room; in order to ascertain the requisites to render the room comfortable during the winter evenings." The £3OO spare cash looks as if the Committee's efforts to obtain comfort for members were profitably rewarded. '

Am. exponents of free thought, as opposed to revealed Christianity, unite in the bravery of liberty of opinion. There is nothing servile or ©lavish, they eay, about the followers of theirschool, and yet every one of them, with hardly an exception, clings to the rags and tatters of their abandoned faith, npd evince the greatest indignation if accused of unchristianity. They accept the cloak of respectability the name and formalistic practices of Christianity supply them with, and then, under that cloak, by every means, direct and indirect, endeavor to bring contempt upon and gradually to .abolish the living body they meanwhile shelter under the habiliments of. A strange boast, then, is this of the excessive boldness of the believers in a liberty of disbelief.

Mistaken' , identity as to live goods

is rather a dangerous pursuit at the Wairoa. An old settler was accused there, before the Resident Magistrate, of stealing a ' pig, value 14s. The charge was declared proved, and the accused sentenced to two years' imprisonment. We are not sorry to learn that, on bis road to gaol, the lover of pork managed to escape and, according to the latest Napier papers, is not likely to be captured. The ways of Magistrates are sometimes inscrutable. At Timaru, lately, a resident at the Waitalu was had up before a Justice -charged with sly grog selling. An uncertificated medical practitioner was sent or went to his house for whiskey. No payment was proved—on the contrary, a refusal to take payment was shown by the evidence. A fine of £SO was imposed, when the ! following scene is reported to have taken place between the Bench and the prisoner's counsel. -His.Worship: I consider^the case sufficiciently proved, and I'fine the defendant £SO. Mr. O'Meagher:, I give notice of appeal. His Worship: Is the defendant going to pay.the.fine? Mr. O'Meagher: Certainly not whilst the appeal is pending. His Worship (to defendant): Then you must give notice of appeal in writing at once, and enter into, a• recognizance ito prosecute the appeal. . , • Mr. O'Meagher: I have seven days to consider,the grounds of appeal, and I advise the defendant not to do either.

His Worship: Then I will issue a distress warrant, and Keep the defendant here until a'return'is made. • - ,

Mr., O'Meagher: Your Worship will then do something rather perilous to yourself; •I- j His ; Worship: I don't care for that; I'll do my duty. Mr. O'Meagher: In issuing a distress warrant now you will be exceeding it. His (to defendant): I detain you in Court till the Court rises, and then I'll see what I'll do with you. : -Defendant, was. .accordingly; detained in Court two hours, although no warrant had been issued for his arrest.

Ultimately defendant entered into a recognisance to appear in Timaru before the Court in eleven days.

Permanent link to this item
Hononga pūmau ki tēnei tūemi

https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/MIC18740228.2.7

Bibliographic details
Ngā taipitopito pukapuka

Mount Ida Chronicle, Volume V, Issue 260, 28 February 1874, Page 3

Word count
Tapeke kupu
1,167

TOPICS OF TALK. Mount Ida Chronicle, Volume V, Issue 260, 28 February 1874, Page 3

TOPICS OF TALK. Mount Ida Chronicle, Volume V, Issue 260, 28 February 1874, Page 3

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