SOME THOUGHTS ON ELECTIONS.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XVI, Issue 288, 3 December 1881, Page 4

SOME THOUGHTS ON ELECTIONS.

The electoral reform of (he future Will (ir.yg " fiv-fs " in ihr Ofngo " Wifceop," h« a h*? e»f>kin{» i* felony to <''. livr nn emotion ?ri?ep.h, Rod eapitil p«n'!»hrh(?nt to pvb'ish if. Election conf?s ! * v»<-v 1-e infpresMn^ to ?Le cardiijrJea who pr£a£<? in (h'm, hot to the newrrnnrr-re^ircr public fh*y rrr en orprrsrion nr,d <j rii^res*. The papers jU5t ROT? a IV Stuff-d ntit'r, fiftb.rstf. po-litir-a? por m nn.« which an evil cus<ot. oblier? outers to print, an -3 the lonpsofrrin? public to buy. Does ai.JhoHy rp'fl fbFge dreory haraDgoc?" ? Thf: c:jn.=i<lfiteß dn no .'ouUf, piob-^bly their wirfp. poMihly rlso the f-iniihlr-en»h'J«rns'? who form thf-mselves into "e!?ct>~n mmmittres" Outsile t! h Belrc! n'relo rohc.f-y fnros in the If- s; for Mr A's H-rnr? of tbe M ori question, f'O!" Mr Bs r>r urreoia for IbtBiMe in Npno'-]^ nr.r for a detailed nc coun* of Mr C's> our.innn on the Liceceine B ; 'l, rur for Mr D's on Protection and Frop-trr, ■>*>. We s'ivjl! have to votfor or acaiosf fhpse men, no d.-.uhf, auo) oUi>hi to knmv what thpir political nction* ore iikp ; hot hnlf-a-dczen Udp? in nn qapfrtisempnt would do thnt. All thr\ rest h bb fmoka in thf eyes, ami cc vicejinr io the teeth, in revenge for whirh oep is ieropt.9" to com up the whole duty of en elector in a sicjjte propogi'ir.r, — ihe whole doty of sn eiftcfor U to vote for thr ncaa who melees, (he fewest and th^ shortest spppchre. A. paesege of Mftcaulgj's conspp to try mind in this connexion. "Comparer] wiih flip labour of r^fidine throuph thfse soiunv s [speeeber] M 1 other 1-ihour, the khooi of thieves on {he freo^miil, of children in fso.'.rri.p, of r^pro<s in sugar p!&ntatiocs, is an »-ereo&b':e rfcrration 'ihvrr wae, it i« paid, a crirnioal ip I»>lr, who was Ptff;rei! to moke } is choice belwe< n Giiuehrdini and tb* gellejß. Hcchose the LUlciy. But, the w&r of Piaa wss too rruch for him. Hh cban?ed his unod, cud went to the oar." This pleasant ex-pgetaiion expresses my sentiments on the present epidemic of elfeMon addrossfs. Our politics now-a-dnys ore too hamdruro, oar elections too deaily respectable, for noy human ioterest to attach to tlem. The good old times ere tone. We have cow do gquiba, do earicafuree, no libels, co free public houeee, no brass bands, no window amtshing, co special cocstablep, to reading of the Riot Act (except for Mactis studying their Bibles) co nothiDg. We hsve merely Mr A. on Freetrnde, Mr B. on thf Maori Q.jcsUon, Mr C. en the Licensing Bill, enr] Mr D. on the Bible in Schools ! 0 for s day of Wilkcs and the Middlesex election !

Thb Ycektown Celebration. — The Aojericfiu people for cix yearß psßt hsve Led a series of centenary celebrations naarkiD? the one hundre<?th arniverfary of each of the principei events of the War cf the Revolution. Tbio serie?, wbish bepan v?i»h the ncBiverpnrv of the bcitle of Lexi^gtor. in 1875. and tLe e<l:-bre:ioo3 ai Pbilactipliia, culminating 00 Ju!y 4h, j 1876, Iks now c'o?ed wilb thfj ennivereary of the York'own Eurrender. Ac mectioned id cur h-st tsail eoasoisrv, { tbe preparations were very el borat*' end tha fcHowins yarficulars of the event just cr-mEfmcrsfed rney rrovf inferi-sticg: — Ycrk(OT?n sfeuf'fi m <hf York River, in Pn-t^-Eastern Virginia, j la AuL'usf, 1781, Lord Corowallie estabiieiiPd bircpplf there in n ftrotp dtrfensihFe poeitiot?, with his whole army of 8000 EtD, purported by «rv?rei frigfiie? OD(i stsallfr veesels ancborer in York Biver. Kp ftrcEglv fortifieJ the plscp, and also Gloucestrr Point, on tie opposite aide of the rivor. Ir the letter part of .September tbe cor,-.-biced Araerioan end French forcep, coder Washington and Lafayette.' m&rchcd from Williemeburg to bf^ipoe Yoiktotvo. They nurahpre.-J 16 000 men, of whom 7000 were French. O--their epproEch ihy Briish aVandoncd tbe ciit»eorkp, and on SepttDjfaer 30il the iovtstment oi the town waa complete. The firct parallel waß Ve^n'v October 6th, s nd was establiehed October 9-b, and ctxt day heavy batteries opened with effected upon the British works scd vessels, a frigate anr! several traosports being destroyed 00 tbe night of tbe lOib. The second parellel wae opened on the 11th, and oc the 14 h the besiegers attacked tn! CBptnred two redoubts, which were iteluded in the pan.llei. A French fide; of thirty-eevec v^-sela, under Corou de Grctse, cv; rff a!i chance of reiuforcemect by see, ond Cornwa'lio's pesition becfitre cri!ics.l. He ct;sde a Borti:on the ]6-h. v;hicb wss a failure, snrf on the 19h l:e sect out a flag of truce, proposing er»r.itu!a:ior. Tho term;beioK Rrranped, Corcwbllif, 01 Oclohcr 19 Is, 1781, fturrf-cdered Ms entire forr«of 7247 re?u!arp, 840 g»i!ore, and 100 guce. The British loss during the Bie.e ua9 about 350. The surrender decided the revoluiiouary war and the icdf-pppdpHPe of the Ucited Hfafes. A Christchurcb. telegram of Wednesday last says : — A case in which considerable interest has been taken latety was settled at tbe Eesident Magistrate's Court, Eangiora, to-day. It was an action to recover some £20 for fees pain to Dr McCarthy by one W. Weir, and expenses incurred through neglect of attendance on bis daughter. The child bad met -with an accident and broken her leg, and it was contended that Dr Ovenden had, in setting her leg, got it out of proper position, whereby it had to be broken again and re-set and it was stated that a shortening of the leg took place. A largo amount of evidence was taken, and the case had been adjourned of several occasions for consideration on several points raised. The Magistrate, in giving judgment said Mr McCarthy's contending that the displacement was caused, by a badly made bed and tbe interference of the father was not at all borne out by tbe evidence, as Dr Ovenden had afterwards successfully treated tbe case with the same bed and means. Judgment was given for £20 and three guineas professional fee. Notice of appeal was given. Tbe TJtiiieation of Niagara. In an addreßS lately delivered before tbe Bankers' Convention of Kew York au eetimate was made of the large au^aiA of hoiw'power obtained hy damming

up tbe followinff rivers— viz, the Passaic at Paterson, 1000 boree power ; the Merrimae at Lowell. 10 000 ; the Mohawk at Coh" P p, 14,000 ; tbe Connecticut at Hard!ey, 17.000 ; tbe Mississippi at tbe Falls of* St. Aivhc-ny lfi,ooo ; the Adroseoggia at Lewiston, 11000; the Housatonic at Canaan Falls, 3000; and tbe CWe,'O at Oswe.ffo, 4000. The sum total of tbese is 75,000 horse power, as estimated at o given point in e«ch river. Bat tln'3 is used over a«iiin on anay-rage not hrn than three times, showing a largo toial of 225,000 hora<-power. There aro also many smaller streams in all the hill sections of the country which ara ultiiised, and would furnish sn acrrreijate equal to the last Darned ficure. This great force of water power is likely to be thrown altogether in the shade by tlio proposed plan to utilise Niagara, by placing thr* e turbines, 4ffc in diameter with 80ft of head, fed by a tube 7ft in diameter, each turbine giving 1 000 horse-power, with the whole strength of the great lakes and the Kiao'apa river to reinforce them. The average flow of the river above the falls is 10,000,000 cubic feet per minute. Converting this into horse power under a head of 20ft, n grand segregate is obtained of 3,000,000 horse-power— a mighty force suifieienfc to f-upply the economic wants <>t 200,010,000 people. A correspondent from the country writes to the Sydney Bulletin to say that tbe doctor up his way (who is also the visiting surgeon of the gaol) has never been sober within the memory of the oldest inhabitant, If called to see a patient, he gives them the choice between blnck draught and camphor-julep, which are all the drags lie possesses. Usually., before administering the dose, he stealthily tosses up a half-permy — heads for " black strap," and tails for the julep. The last surgical operation he performed with a hand-saw and an oyster- knife ; and when be was recently called in to bleed a man, commenced to bore a hole in tbe upper part of his arm with a, pair of scissors. It is said he has no diploma, but when taunted with not possessing tbe necessary authority to practise, he produces two documents — one of which is a sailor's discbarge, and tbe other an old publican's license. It is hardly needful to state that tbe health of the prisoners at the gaol, of which Ye is the medical officer, is excellent. None of them ever by any chance send for the doctor ! Cheek. — " JNo, my eon, cheek is not better than wisdom ; it is not belter ihan modesty; it; h not better than anything. Don't li&len to the siren who tells you to blow ycur own horn or it; will never be tooted upon. The world is not to be deceived by cheek, and it does search for merit, aDd when it finds it merit is rewarded. Cheek never deceives tie world, my son. It appears to do so to the cheeky man, but he is the one who is deceived. Do you know one cheeky man, in all your acquaintance, who is not reviled for his fheek the moment his back is turned ? Is net the world continually drawing distinctions between cheek and merit ? Almost everybody bates a cheeky man, my son. Society tires at the brassy glare of his face, the n.-.iey iiesumption of his forwardness. The triumphs of cheek are only apparent He bores his way along through the world, end frequently better people give w^y to him. But; so they give way, my boy, for a man with a paint pot in each hand. .Not because they respect the man with the paint pot particularly, but because they want to take care of their clothe?. Tou sell goods without it, and your customers won't run and hide in the cellar when tbev tea you coming. The man who correctly dreamed the winner of the Derby, and told all about it (afterwards) (says " iEgles" in the Australasian), has turned up as usual. As 30 or 40 men inteiestcd in the subject dreamt of other winners, it is not, perhaps, so very wonderful after all that one out of tbe lot turned out to be right. Within my own knowledge, about a month before a Melbourne Cup, a good many years ago, a man dreamed that Golden Fleece shares, then at 30s each, where at £0 per share, and that a mave called Arumawon the Cup. He bought a thousand Golden Fleece shares at aboui 325, and he backed Aruma. Golden Fleece sha-es did rise to £5 and Aurma did not win the Cup. So that the dream isn't to be relied upon invariably. It appears that the American lawyers shrink from undertaking the defence of Guiieau, the assassin of President Garfleld. On this point the San Francisco News Letter remarks:—'' The majority of sensible people who believed that there was no case a lawyer would not undertake under the influence of a retainer, will do well to note that the glibbest toDgue that ever wagged in legal jaws is dumb when afked to defend the slayer of tbe late President It argues better for the octopus gr*p of an average attorney than the world gives the-, profession credit for, and it indicates that for once the better nature of a lawyer has prevailed, and that bis repugnance to defending Guiteau is as intense as is his fear of being mobbed and lesing bis practice if be undertook \h>. job " The French papers publish an account, derived from a gentleman who lias just arrived from Mexico, of the terrible railway accident shich was announced by telegram a short time since. The accident occured at a spot near Mexico where the line after a steep descent, crosses a deep ravine. The train which consisted of two cars hiden with petroleum and carriages containing 300 soldiers and fifty passengers, and was provided with an engine fore and aft, reached the bridge across the ravine, when the driver of Ihe aft engine suddenly observed that the carriages were disappearing one after another bexond it. He tightened the brake and, with a French engineer who was with him jumped off. They now heard a sharp firing in the direction of the ravine, and came to the conclusion that the bridge bad been cut by brigands. Scon, however, they re-narked an intense^ light procerding from the ravine. The firing had stopped. It was now night! They ventured closer and saw, to their horror, that the whole wreck of the train was in flarres. The bridge had given way under the weight of tbe first engine, which bad dragged the whole train after it. The barrels containing the petroleum bad been broken in, and only oue or two travellers, dreadfully burrt, had escaped from the fire. The shooting bad been produced by tbe explosion of the unfortunate soldier's cartridges The one or two persons who had crept away from the fire died within an hour after the French egineer arrived at the scene. Great txi-.uetiK-nt has b: en I:3 use. din Perth (VVestern Au^ralis), by the trial of Juha O'Giv-dy, capmin of tbe schoooer Clarence Packet, for the n urdor of a Chinaman, wfcom he forced to work at :he pumps when sink. The Chinaman broke down, whereupon O'Grady pulled him about the deck by his pigtail, kicking him severely. A kick in the groin finally disabled the Chinaman, who lay on the deck struggling for a iVw minutes and then died. O'Graiiy iheu took him v:> a;id pifched him overboard Tbe jury were occupied nil night and till 2 o'clock in the morning cousidering their veidic?, whi-h w*s given as one of manslaughter, with a strong recommendation to mercy. The judge im- ; poßed r sentence of 20 yo ■.»•?,' ppnfi! p^ryiiudH 'evitl..n.!y having vrrv'-;; ; o wi,i the jury's recommenuauion.

In addressing a meeting of electors the other night Dr Buller urged that the natives should be treated with kindness but firmness. As showing the value of the latter, he instanced a case where 500 natives came down the Waitemata Harbour to avenge tbo disgrace of a chief who had been fined for stealing a pair of boots. Saveral of the influential chiefs went to Government House and represented their case to Colonel TVynyarcl. He received them kindly, but told tbem tkat if within an hour they were not all gone from the harbour, the guns of Forfc Britomart would fire on them. Tho deputation left, and another one immediately after visited Government House and asked for another hour's delay. " No," was the reply, " begone within the hour or we fire on you," and the 500 natives disappeared without delay. The tribe was, said the doctor, ever afterwards our friends and allies, but bad they not been firmly dealt with they would probably have sacked the city of Auckland. As showing their extreme selfishness, he stated that when he was commissioner at Foxton, carrying out the "flour and sugar policy," a native came to him and said he was starving. Dr Buller went to the store and ordered a bag of sugar and a bag of flour, when the Maori looked at him and asked, " Well, but who's to pay me for taking tbem home ?" Iloyalty has its drawbacks. A abort time ago a baronet, representing an important constituency near London, was interested in the annual dinner of a big society, and asked the Prince of Wales to take tho chair thereat. He received a very courteous reply, setting forth how greatly the heir apparent was interested io the society, but stating that every day for the nest two years had already been booked, and that something po9sibly could be done in the third. It ia not likely that the society will forego its annual dinner for two or possibly three years, but the incident goes to show that the impression which prevails that Princes have a royal time and that they can go a fishing whenever they please, is erroneous. Sir Robert Lord-Lindsay, in a magazine article says: " A small, well-trained body of 50 raeu, placed under cover, can easily fire 3,000 shots in a quarter of an hour (each man firing at the rate of four shots ppr minute), and can place every sbofc at 800 yards into a space no larger than an ordinary sized room. At thi3 rate, a battalion of 800 men could in half sn hour ponr 80,000 or 90,000 bullets iulo an enemy advancing Rgainst them, thus producing a shower of lead under which no troops could stand, muob less advance."-—" Court Journal."