THE WEEK.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume VII, Issue 244, 12 October 1872, Page 2

THE WEEK.

lam puzzled; The political situation is a mystery to me, and yet nobody at : tlte present moment will listen tp or read anyA thing that does not bear upon the " political situation.'-' Last week I ventured to predict that the Stafford Ministry would prof, bably hold its owd, and I did, so on. what , I believed to be really good authority, but,, it so happened that just at the moment. I was, writing Messrs. Shephard and Jparata were' crossing "'the' floor of ' the';H6uß^ to"- --•! vote .with,, the .Opposition, I bad not pal-, :culated' on this. >, My experience ' of the ' tortuous paths of politics is so limited that I was foolish enough to suppose that ' if a man were to vote7oDe ; way to-day, he would a ;prpbably; act in precisely .thevsame , direction ;toeA^eeks; W e V " .replied a friend to- whom T niade, this "re-.. ' '/markrasday^Jb;rJ^O'.,agb^ ::i^andiAis^h.ot; ; Shis! precisely what& Jtf r#;!^ the/: Maori did dp ;; &dn^ the Government out in the; beginning of September*^ ; A/beginni^^^

be admitted that it is all* very coniusiDg. We have had two Ministries thiSs.sesßib^s' a'tfMow^we have two, or,g_at| least, one^Bn^-tfrKalli|inorp. Wo are||tq| hiivie one-Jor tine session, and half another! for the recess, that is to say if pledges are to be kept, but- then nobody expects that nowadays. Mr. Waterhouse only pledges himself to,be:a-ses t sional Premier,, -, so f that, a recessional Prime' Minister rriay' 6e { looked for. But on the other hand, Mr. Waterhouse does^not'seena^tojknow what he is going, to be. or . do. It will be precisely one calendar month to-morrow since he eagerly availed himself of an opportunity .of publicly /staling -that lie meant to aid Mr. Stafford, as far/as lay in bis power, inn cany tag biff measures through the Legislative Gouncii-, and-fur-ther, that;. " no ; consideration/^ whatever' could induce hinVto identify '"himself {'W\% any administration in New .Zealand." Tpf day he is. the Prinie Minister -in Mr. Vogel's" new' administration: More i: and f more confusing.'. ' The, Pub] ie Work's Minister" is an important member of the Cabinet, but who" fills', or is : to fill, this office ? The Superintendent of Hawke's Bay seems to be the show MinisteV put up for the session, but as soon os members turn their hacks- oo7Wellington; be too, it appears, is going to run away, and hand over his portfolio .to, Mr.E. Ricbardspp, who is patiently waiting to step into his shoes. People say tbesnew. Ministry in duplicate will prove a strong one, but I have had quite enough, of .prophecies, , and do not mean to enter, into that business again. How do I know but that by this time Mr, Stafford has carried another nocoDfidence vote, and been" sent for"? I arn.goiug to take' a long leap — g.eo?. graphically speaking that is — from the House. of Representatives to the ? Nelson Lunatic Asylum, in.couueclion with which Ibave heard a. good stqry that; is worth repeating, none the jess sa-that-.I am, prepared to vouch for its general accuracy.* The Committee appointed. to, msp.ect,, this institution paid their periodical; visit c-the. other day, and on ;going thei grounds, they found one of the inmates pacing up and.; down the ;yard, who to all appearances was, at the time, in full possessions of- his reason, the only symptom of- insanity [that heiexhibited beipg.tbat amusing', himself by reading the'FinancialSta,te for 1872— one of the Financial Statements I should perhaps say. His perusal, of the;, interesting work was i.nterrupteid?) by the approach of the visitprs, . whom; _he instantaneously walked up to, and selecting one, of > them, who, -he ; had reason. -.to* believe,, was in some, way connected.: wftb7 the G.oyernment,,..he addressed Jiim ,a.s follows :—*' Sir, I have -beetf carSf utty' studying this Statement, and I: find that New Zealand has borrowed' nine millions of money; now, Sir. I want to know what she: ! has 'done? .with; lit:" A l The gentleman he addressed,uot having received notice that . such „a; question would 6e; putto him, replied that lie really was not prepared 'to give, a satisfactory ; answer. "No prevarication, Sir, I must receive a reply. What has been- : dbne with it?' Nine millions of money ! How has it been spent ? " I believe that we can^all of its sympathise wjth;'the7i e fe tlem^i° aci " dressed, when he Vas* once again compelled to admit that really he didn't .know.; The ; questioner, grew, angry. .Savagely muttering some . unparliamentary remarks, he tucked the Statement under his arm and marched pfTr to ; his ■ pell. .And,- for, the moment, r and on tfcis'~particular subject; the lunatic and.the sane man could meet, on terms of equality. Neither of them knew "what had been done with it." How many ? residents -outside a^, Lunatic Asylum could Wpply the information for which thejpoor maniac craved ? ; w The busy season among hop-growers has set in, and tlie ''garden's "have within the last fortnight assumed a very different aspect to that j which they presented d oping. . the winter months, the,, b>are poles, which in the course of a few weeks will be entwined |in ; fth,e! ( loving? caresses -pf^ t |hfr profitable plant j having been W up in air directions, and theilabor .that ■wi!l ; ,be j( required from this time until the harvest will form no inconsiderable jiteW in Atbe* expenses of the proprietors. The cultivation of the hop is 'grieatly on lthel increase , in this province, and in the country dislricts,-eßpecially in Waimea West, it is being entered upon, individually in a small, but collectively, in a large ? way. Within the town boundaries^ considerable amount of ground J is- Sevo^ed-td thilf ShUustry, there being no less than 7thirty-four acres planted m v^^nV , #dad ;i al6tie,)a'na 'to* 'give some idea of the labor it employs,! may state that for the nex.t ? tjwee^ months at „leßit».'nieii/,wiii^e''foanliV*V. work in the. gardens^ nearly of poles 7alone -for'the'area menUo sno leWltb^rrf2qJOO<7 It^f^^ffi^^ Vei#%o^ 'butW miss a, :Huow-'WtningA77^7 gently assert" that of the plant «erfi -tP make a material diffetißneeto the pockets

The Diocesar^jSynod has commenced its annual session djlring^he wsekJshd' acon- '. sjtgfcble I%un| of|isin^f^an impofta^t nlMßre lias Men gll'tlffbugh. It I spi^'^V^^nt^t^e> in Church matters, that so large^ number of members from -all parts of this and the neighboring Provinces of Marlborough can be found to assemble together for the purpose of discuseing matters pertaining to the welfare of the Church in the 'dioc^se.j^j^;^-.-^-^^ :7AAn', a A Q