THE WEEK.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume VIII, Issue 59, 8 March 1873, Page 4

THE WEEK.

Should my weekly communication be saturated with: matters pertaining to prize firing, it ia not much to be wondered at. Rifle shots and bugle calls ring in my ears, my eyes grow weary, and my brain is in a whirl with the constant waving of discs, white, 1 blue, and parti- colored. I take up * a newspaper by way of relief, and there I find nothing but tall columns built up of - oughts, twos, threes, fours, andr's. I go for,, an parly, morning walk through the streets,- and the "assembly " sounds, and, like rabbits popping out of their burrows, riflemen in "blue, grey, and scarlet emerge from every other, house,, and, are seen flocking towards one common centre. A , long row of carriages winds its way round the Church Hill, and I think"/ that for a time, at' least 'jl can rid my mind of everything connected with volunteering, but in an hour or two I am beset with enquiries regarding this, thai, or the other match, while somebody who from his manner, has,,: I suspect, drawn some. name or anpther; in ; a sweepstake, wanti 'to . know if :I can telVhim'who.isthe champion; Confound the champion ! TWbat have I done 7 that he is .to. haunt a peaceable individual like myself who 'foiildxfti 1 .hit a target if .it were as big as Christ Church -h. Bu Rafter all, this little excitement that has come'ppon us is a change, and breaks the monotony: of^our 'lives so th^t ; l am I ,' "not" 'sore/'jihatiitj is not good for us. It is a matter of the : most perfect indifference to ine who hits a black spot on a white ground the greatest number of times, but I do likef. to 863. the esprit depcovps evinced- by ..our visitors from the No'rthj r each 'bY'wnoni seems to: care littie aoput his own individual . score excepting "lid so far as it tends to redound to the crldit .of the district?, he; represents. I'have got into a habit, of quietly watch-ingthelittlehy-plays that take place on any occasion when t a;number of| people are gathered together, and I mult say that I like^tpsee i how ßobinsoh'whb comes frotn, I will : say thp shot,^ ;7;;:Stoii^ 7the . :; 7iresult pfeM informs hiarhow be* aimed; and. where he ;/s'tru£k^ fltruotion, and in consequence of it brings ■ 7t:y7.7-3yv [ M-7m^?ii7^ \7:'':os7yy7777 ]

out . th^ red- andr-white, 7whereasi: with- '• out' " such a hint as bad been conveyed torbito" hV wl^ulcl protb^l^ have seen oniy.\tiielJatter .ofl t hose -tw(i>7 . colors. X took occasion the other day to remark that if the people of Nelson would unita a little more than they dc— not in rifle shooting, that is only a pastime — they might make greater .progress than they dp|now, aind L would Suggest to them.tbat a visit, toj'tbe rangeßf might afford them some 'Valuable hints. They would there, if they, kept f heir eyes open, see the advan'ige of working together. Mr. Waterhouse has had his revenge. f -' The would;! not;, give him^h •a] 3 dischargeji"|nd; iujreturn he Wuld Jnot^l;! the Governor go7~ I likethe idea of Her Majesty's Representative being compelled to remain in Wellington because the Premier would not let him have the Luna to take^a trip ,to Auck'and'. Even if If had refused^b 7acfi~ejp (office *f : .undsr ; any ,: circumstances-whatever," I think tbat the prospect of Having it h my power to keep the Governor a prisoner would induce me to determine that when I said *• any cir-7 cumsfances,'' I had n S taken into consideration one that might possibly arise. And Mr. Waterhouse B airied his point too, When he "put the' screw on," bis Excellency had to succumb, and the result of this m hanical process, with which some of us are not altogether unfamiliar, .though not perhaps in :|he7«a"rae 'se^se,: was. tbati. the resignation of the Premier was after all accepted. Sir George Bowen wanted, to go to Auckland, Mr. Waterhouse wanted to be off to the Wairarapa; Sir George Bowen said, I shall: start 1 for Auckland ,* but you sba'ht go , where"" you want to. Mr Waterhouse replied, I am anxiouß to leave Wellington, but if ypu: do not give me permission I will take cr "6 that you do not depart either.?; ; Sir George Bowen re-considered his position ,' and the result was that both of them went, whereas if neither of them bad given way, both would have staid where .they were. For all this, I don't think the Tate Premier has made ; a hi ', He thought he had scored a bull's eye,; instead of which he only kicked up J a dust and no flag whatever waves in his honor in any part of the colony; In rifle shooting and politics alike there is a glorious uncertainty, ypu / think you are - '-dead on," but the event shows how greviously you were mistaken. „-'; /- ." : , ' a.--- \ :,' I daresay the volunteers don't want rain, but from what little, they have seen of the parched fields and dusty hedges, I have no doubt they will agree with me in saying that the farmers do. Such a sermon was never before known. Months have passed over our heads without bringing one single shower that could possibly be of any service. There is nothing I should like better than to hear our visitors complaining that the climate bf Nelson was the wettest they had ever experienced; but I am afraid they will go away and grumble —for riflemen must grumble at something — at tbe fierce glr "6 of the pitiless sun that has not had the modesty to veil his face from us for so many hot, dusty, weary weeks. I am told that the. San Francisco mail has arrived in New Zealand since le ">t I [ \ wrote. This is a yeipy creditable perform- ) ance on the part of Mr Webb's steamer, seeing that she 'was only due ; u Auck'and last Monday week. How to catch troiit.^— ln the old country *he stupid, practice is adopted of going out with a rod and. line,.. whipr ping the stream for hours together with a long stick, bit of twine, and a sham fly, and returning home with perhaps a miserable little fieh or two in your basket. . We have been taught to go: a-head in this colony, and not to waste any time in getting what we want, so tbat when we feel a craving for a fine fat trout- for breakfast, we le id a thirsty horse into the river, apd. forthwith he treads upon a fish, brands it with a hpr&eshpe, and there ,it is ;at pur: mercy. Such at least was the case yesterday, and irom the Mai'^i there was taken a trout, caught in this way," «'iat turned the 1 scr'es at lOlbs. "."The' ; _ P icf etary of our Acclimatigatrbn Society is grieved at hearing df;:U:ie. ; mnrder o~fr:such a noble fellowi hut glad to ', findT tha t > the- fish her turned but haveA7dorie- : sb7.7Well7for "^iemselvei;? No wonder.) He hatched -them^nursed them,^ trained them up ih the way- they should 1 /go, and.:.^it; (: tnrned.v;tMinir:o.at.,;ipn- -.the .i!Jrorld T with.his bk hjlessng has prov^ F.