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Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XIII, Issue 223, 29 October 1878, Page 2

To the Editor op the 'Evening Mail.'

Sir,— During the late Russo-Turkish war I heard of a Pasha engaging a more powerful army of the Russiaus in some part of the northern portion of the Turkish dominions, when, after a severe struggle, the Turks obtained a complete victory, driving the Russians off the field with great loss and in utter confusion. The Pasha had won the victory; and thought he had nothing more to do thau sleep himself and banquet im soldiers. But the Russians took advantage of this indolence, reorganised their scattered forces, surprised their conquerors, and nearly annihilated tbe Turkish arn.y, thus losing what they had won by not following up their victory. Here is a lesson for our provincial members of Parliament. They have obtained a victory at great cost, but there is no time yet for banqueting; they must follow up the victory. They have won; but the Government takes the victory as an idle schoolboy takes a lesson from his master, a loathsome burden, nothing but an incumbrauce without utility, a disgusting task, nor will he attempt to learn it but by threat of punishment. If our members should relax in their energy, the work will be put aside until other parts of the colony are served; for by experience we know that the Minister for Works would rather see a railroad laid down to every farm house and sheep station in Otago than ten miles of railroad in the province of Nelson. I am, &c. Prompter. October 28, 1878.

In the House the other day the Hon. the Minister of Justice stated that the Licensing Bill, which had been drafted for introduction this session, was abandoned because on reflection he considered it unfair that any legislation on this subject should he framed on the assumption that licensed victuallers were all rogues. He would not promise to draft another bill, but if he did he would take care that it should be circulated during the recess. Publican's licenses now formed part of the revenue of local bodies, and consequently any reduction of those fees would result in a demand for compensation from tho3e local bodies whose revenues would be reduced thereby. The solution of the difficulty in his opinion would be to give the local bodies discretionary powers as to the amount of licensing fees to be charged. The Tablet publishes a sort of hlack li3fc of the names of the thirty-eight members who voted against Mr Curtis's Education Bill, j and recommends the Catholics to place a copy of it in the most frequented parts of their houses, lest they should forget or | mistake their enemies. A Thames paper romances as follows on a somewhat interesting subject :— " Mrs Hall gave birth to a girl, passing the Bay of Plenty, in the steamer Pretty Jane. The mother and daughter are doing well. No baby linen was on board, so the child was wrapped in Captain Amodeo's sea togs. The mother says she will christen it ' Pretty Jace.' " The Rev. Mr Batty, the rector of Delvin, Do. Westmeath, a disestablished clergyman of some eighty winters, is about to lead to the hymeneal altar the lady's-maid of his daughter-in-law.