AUSTRALIAN.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XV, Issue 59, 9 March 1880, Page 2

AUSTRALIAN.

[Per Ringarooma at the Bluff"!. Melbourne. The Victorian elections have resulted in a complete reversal of the verdict pronounced on May llth, 1877, the constitulional party having secured 49 seats in the new Parliament and the Ministerialists 37. There were several curious surprises. Munro aud Casey, two of the leaders of the Corner Party, were defeated, the former by a young man only known as captain of one of, fche leading metropolitan Football Clubs. Mr Casey was defeated by a barrister named Fisher, who is Vice - President of the Central Reform League. Fourteen districts, which formerly returned Ministerialists, were won by the Opposition, who only lost four of their old seats. Sir Brian O'Loughlan, AttorneyGeneral, was defeated, and Messrs Grant and Longmore, two other Ministers, had a very close contest. The voting throughout was very close. The large towns and mining districts as a rule, supported Mr Berry, the Ballarat district going almost entirely for him, but Sandhurst district went for the Opposition, and at Geelong Mr Berry only got 53 votes. Messrs Grant and Andrews, Oppositionists, are likely to petition against the return of Patterson and Pearson for Castlemaine on the ground of bribery, and other seats will be petitioned against by the defeated Oppositionists. It is rumored that a Ministerial member is likely to forfeit his seat through insolvency proceedings, when Sir Brian O'Loughlan will try for ifc. An analysis of the opinions of members of the new Parliament shows that 40 are in favor of payment of members, five support ifc in a modified form, and 41 are against payment. Mr Berry's Reform scheme, pure and simple, haa ouly 32 absolute supporters, and four would only vote for parts of it, the plebiscite by itself, or the sixth clause by itself, but not for both. For Mr Service's scheme there are 44 declared votes, and fire members who appear to favor tbe scheme, but have not definitely said that they will vote for ifc. There are one or two members favorable only to an alteration of the constitution of the Council, but nofc the joint vote and double dissolution. Of the 33 supporters of Mr Berry's scheme there is one (Mr D. M. Davies) who said that if the Miuistry were defeated he would hold bimself free to vote for any other plan by which deadlocks could be stopped for the future. The great majority of members on b )th sides are committed to the Education Act as ifc stands, and are also either strong protectionists, or moderate protectionists, or free traders pledged not to effect any alteration of the tariff which would injure protected industries. Already more than one member of the defeated Ministerial party has expressed a determination to accept the new situation, and assist in carrying the new reform scheme, and Mr Service is likely to bave a much larger majority than that shown above. A romantic case of suicide has occurred in Melbourne. A steady young man named Walter Henry Brace, aged 15, conceived a strong affection for a girl named Rosa Cootes, 12 years of age. Recentty, they quarrelled, and she told the lad, no doubt in jest, to go and poison himself. On Sunday evening, February 29, he obtained some cyanide of potaisium from a photographer's, where he was employed, aud poisoned himself. On his dead body was found a letter to Miss Cootes, saying thafc he had faithfully obeyed her demand thafc he should kill himself. It is probable that there will be about 1100 applications by Victorians for space in the Melbourne Exhibition for about 12,000 square feet of space, including floor and walls. The prize list of the Melbourne Juvenile Exhibition will shortly be issued. With 3,546 entries, Melbourne and tbe Suburbs obtain 66 gold and 203 silver medals. For 82 entries New South Wales obtains 4 9ilver medals ; South Australia, 1 gold medal and 2 silver for 22 entries ; Tasmania 3 Bilver for 32 • Fiji 1 silver medal for 5 entries ; and New Zealand 19 silver medals for 102 entries.