THE WEEK.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XIII, Issue 124, 25 May 1878, Page 2

THE WEEK.

The events of last week were not at all in nay Hue. Thuiider; lightning, rain; snow, hail and wind are not pleasant topics to touch upon, indeed they speak for themselves in so very plain aud public a manner that they leave little for the journalist to say about them but what is generally known long before he puts pea to paper. To use a sporting phrasej which about race time is quite allowables. I felt that last week I was quite " out of the running." Capttiin Edwin and his superiors and subordinates' : ,had it all their own way, and to them and them alone was it fitting to leave the task of recording and commenting upon the events of one of the most abominably unpleasant weeks that I have experienced, during a long sojourn in Nevy Zealand. Bui b'ad\.as the weatjnr was j during that period iri Heladn; we hiid.one source of consolation— poor though it might be— open to us, namely, that iu matters meteorological we were not half so badly off | as our neighbors Sheets of iron did not fly about at a venture in Nelson, uor did tons of bricks tumble about our ears as they did elsewhere. Nevertheless it was altogether ' too Horrible a we*ik to write about. Some three thousand years ago it was written "Put not your trust "in princes." The Psalmist who gave this excellent advice could boast of considerable experience, and was oue who had plenty of opportunities of studying men's characters, but had he lived in the present time instead of at that far away date he would have Gxteuded (he category of those upon whom no reliability was to be placed. For instance, I thinkjand t believe most people will agree with me, that in issuing his warning "about individuals not to be trusted he might have iucludcd Premiers and Ministers of Public Works. If these titles had been known in those clays, I feel quite sure that King David would have felt it incumbent upon him to caution too credulous persons noL to attach the slightest importance to any promises that might emanate from those who owned them. I don't think I ueed say why, because my. reasons must be aa patent to everybody who has read the Nelson papers during the last few days as they are clear to myself. My friend Tomkins has of late been devoting a good deal of time aud attention to the study of political econouvy,and thinking that what held good in polities ought, if essentially correct, to be equally applicable to social matters, he determined the other day to put his recently acquired knowledge to the test, and to try whether what he had been learning was of any practical value, or if it was purely and solely theoretical, and unequal to such a strain as he proposed to put upon it. Briefly stated, the result of his studies had been to prove to him that if you only promised enough, aud with such apparent earnestness as to make people believe that you really meant what you said, you could always make your way through the world without ever being called upon to fulfil any one of those promises of which you had been so lavish, and if you should chauce to be driven into a corner, that it was alwaj's open to you to wriggle out of it by offering some specious and plausible excuse for breaking your word. .So much by way of preface. Now to go back to Toinkins. He is fond of dress, and will always come out in a new suit so long as he can get a tailor to trust him. lie did at last find one who, although a little coy at first, ultimately became a thorough believer in Tomkins, aud was perfectly satisfied to supply him with any quantity of clothes upon his simple promise to pay. Sometimes he asked for payment, but was always met with so gentlemanly, so courteous, and so apparently honest an assurance that he should receive that which was due to him at an early period that he was perfectly content with the promise aud did not insist upon the hard cash. But eventually he became weary of this perpetual postponement and procrastination, so he sent in his bill with a reminder that it must be paid, and that shortly, otherwise unpleasant consequences would follow. Then did Tomkins rise to the occasion, and determine to bring his knowledge of how politics are managed to bear upon his own private affairs. So he went to his tailor, aud with a countenauce brimful of impudence and selfassurance, he thus addressed him:— "Mr Snip, ar, I have received your little account, but, ar, my deah fellah I regret to say that, ar, owing to the very threateniug attitude of, ar, European affairs, I am not in a position to, ar, pay you that small amount which is justly your due, and which I have, ar, repeatedly promised'to hand over to you. I do, ar, trust, my good man, that you will consider this a sufficient reason for a further postponement of the settlement of your account. Talk about the " threatening attitude " of European affairs! You should have seen the " threatening attitude " assumed by Snip as he shouldered his shears and weufc for Tomkins, who bolted wildly down the street shouting " Murder," while the tantalised tailor gave vent to his feelings in words that don't look well in print. Tomkins is going to give up the study of political economy, and thinks that as a "Minister he would not be a success, but he says that he means to go to the meeting on Monday night and see how broken pledges are treated there. ' F.