THE WEEK.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume VIII, Issue 124, 24 May 1873, Page 2

THE WEEK.

I c>on't like Vhe look of this new column at all. It certainly- is a precious long way from, the top: to : : the bottom,- and: when I look afc'U andHhinlcHha^lhaVenotfll it letter by letter, nnd : word ; by word, from the capital " T." at the commencement to the " F, " at the .c.nd,..1 , do pot view the , taßk^be(ore]me;W,itl^;that^ is esseutial to lively writing. However, I have had greater "difficulties to ronteod against. befo^e.-andj : ..daresay I shall not find this one insuperable. The Council has done more work 'this past week than in all those which preceded it, and wba&is: even imoVe. 1 acceptable tp those who have to rbe there, nigtjt after night, there has been far thore life ih.^ithe proceedings. All the fan, and the sparring, and the -back-handed bits eeem.to have Keen . reserved for the .'discussion of the Estimates, and r while they are under consideration those of the genernl public who take 1 ariy s6 : ch'ma'tters may spend a very pleasant hour in the Hall. Over the Superintendent's salary there was a great talk, and first there was an at-

tempt to make that officer pay his own travelling expenses, ;and, failing that, an endeavor to reduce his salary. Now, when the Council acknowledges that it is too poor to pay the expenses incurred by the chief officer in travelling about the country and ascertaining the wants of the settlers, I thfofe it; is time to put up the Bh'utters, but although the paper for which I write these weekly letters has before this made some few "depreciatory remarks" upon the state of Nelson generally, I do not think we have gone to th,e bad to such an extent as i'tKat, and with all due respect to our financial reformers, I do not believe that they would take upon themselves to recommend anything bo suicidal if they found, that, instead of having to examine only. the One bill for, the Superintendent's annual trip to the Coast, they had several more placed' before them, affording proof that he had been in all parts 1 of the country during the year. Perhaps I may hold peculiar views on this subject, but I should like to > -feel:: that, if I wanted to see the Superintendent, about the last place in ■which I should be likely to find him would be in his office, and if I chanced to be travelling through the interior and happened to, meet him there with his swag on his. ba9k ? I dp not think that my opinion of him would be lowered .in the smaltest. degree.. At all events, if be did tti& of personally examining what waß going on in the out districts, and obtaining a sound practical knowledge of the wants of the settlers, I am sure he would never hear a single growl from me iabo.ut :his travelling expenses. But what is the use of my wandering on in this manner ? lam not a Councillor, and have no say in passing the Appropriation 'Act, or perhaps my ideas might undergo an entire change. .War. Yes","- 1. sadly, fear- that this ' lemhie little' word describes the state in which, the colony will find itself in- the course of a very few weeks, if not days. But it is hot going to be the long protracted vyarof.the olden times. We know a little more about Maori tactics vow, and ifc ; ia not likely tbafc our experience in these matters is going to be thrown away Besides, this, we have the satisfaction of knowing that the number of 1 sulky savages who will not see what is good for them is not very large, while the friendlies who 'are willing to fight, for us form a formidable force. Still, war means a vast amount of miseryto those who are immediately, affected by it. We read even now of, the out-settlers and women and children coming in to the towns, and ■deserting their homesteads which are no longer safe for them to occupy. Perhaps '■we* scarcely think seriously 'e'ribu'gh about such mattei's, but no doubt mauy of the Waimea farmers, as they read the news that reaches. us daily from the disturbed districts, ponder over these things .aud wonder to themselves what their condition would be were they driven to desert the farms from which they derive their living, and, with their wives and little ones, compelled to tnke. cefuge in the town. We can with: difficulty realise the. position of those Waikato settlers, but we can imagine that as they, assemble io tlie churches to,mor.«vw ? 'there will Joe no want of: fervency or- earnestness in the prayer they breathe —-" Give peace in pur time, O ! Lord." ' As a rule, Ido not believe in what are called public' demonstrations. I think there is .very often, a good deal of humbug . about them, but fhe occasion has arisen when : one , is called? for in.NelsoD. . The members of the deputation sent to Canterbury' torid Wellington by the Inland Communication Committee have returned, and although : they were not yevy .successful in. the . former, they certainly f ? have been in the! latter place, ' sTnce'^h&y'bave contrived to interest the General Government in bur railway .schemer s.P, far as to secure a probability of : their: taking, it inland. as one of the great colonial works. Such a -service calls for some 'recognition at 1 the hands of the people,;, a"nd I would take, upon myself to prop'oßO'that : a" public meeting be called .for, the purpose of passing a vote of thanks to (hose who have advocated co well the cause w,e\all"ihaYe at; heart. • I think this would do r good "in- xnore ways than one. It would afford the public an opportunity of teh Wing that they • can appreciate the efforts of those who work ia their behalf, and, 1 w^a|:iß:!qij;ite:;as.,rmportant, it' would Ifavehh'e' effecfc 1 of snowing the Government that this is no- backdoor scheme got up by some; 1 tjW ; o: or threejntei'ested individual, but that ifc is a thoroughly popular wqrk, r approved o o.f, and . desired by the proyince. Sojne, , ..may t argue that this 'wotjid'haye'-no effect,' but r say 'it is 'of the utmost 'importance fehould show thaj; ourjhqaTts-a^aln thp mattery that we have' made,, jap ,our mjnds that the railway to* the* Coast is ' ittie great undert&king VHat is* wanting to insure the pros-? perity of the province, and ; that we ; have determined that in some 'way' or another it is to^'be accomplished. ' When 1 tlrt subject -waif ; first mooted it. was said that there was no chance oL: the. General Govern.ment taking ifc . In hand, f . and those who Wguecßhijs were' perfectly honest in their convictions, aud what is more, at the' time they were right. If the Committee had at We fir^t outset gone; to. the Government and. asked them to take {he work in band, they would undoubtedly have been quietly sn übbed., r . Put ...they d f id nothing. of the kinav : ' Ttiey .accepted" tW re^pobsibility themselves, they- determined to use their own endeavors, and the 1 has been that 1 the:, Government, seeing that ; the people and the Committee whd represented them were in earnest-, have suggested that the work shbuld-'be transferred from the shoulders of private individuals to those -of the cblony. Once again, I propose that we show our appreciation of* the value of the offer, f; by. ; giving:; a : cpubiic vote of, thanks^ta Ihose^TvrhoJiay.Q.bTQVipKt fy about, : an<l %q '$p that has displayed an ificlihatibri to assist us. The more the people stir in the matter, the greater are our chances of ultimate success. - F.