Mustard and Cress.

Northland Age, Volume 1, Issue 12, 1 November 1904, Page 3

Mustard and Cress.

Tha dttiuon of our lcgiriatom to treat "Ballamy’i” (thrir own club) in the HUM manner u other clube of the Colony •howt honeaty of purpoac. That cluba of * any description would have preference ever hoteli in reward to the ealc of liquor, | at other than the etatutory hours, is " absurd. The publican makes his living £rom the sale of liquors, but the olubv ■ uM'tequently only belongs to his club “ tor the purpose of obtaining refreshments on Sundays and at other unusual hours. That the Colony will decline to endorse tbe opinion of the Minister of Justice, in regard to procured information in sly grog telling cases, we feel assured. Undoubtedly the police have great difficulty in obtaining conviotions in tbit connection, but, however much sly grog selling may thrive, there can be no justification lor the spy system, which tends of itself to create breaches of the law and in our opinion ia frequently the cause of criminal action*. The police officers cannot be blamed for the system, as these prosecutions are forced by the prohibition party, and we reoognise that it would be difficult to find any honor in this party when tbe interests of icatrr are at stake. As ire notice, each month, the increased quantity of standing timber sold by the various Crown Lands Boards of the Colony to saw-millers, we wonder more and more what compensation the country district* will receive for the denuding of ♦Mr forest*. In many instances, in the f Korth, the removal of the timber means the total spoliation of the land. The local bodies receive no benefit from the •ale of this timber, and roads and bridges are being starved, while a source of revenue, ‘which should be maintaining • these works, is being appropriated for the J purpose of swelling a so-called annual surplus. • • • We have a dim recollection of the election of a Scheol Committee for Mangonui District last April, but it is only a memory, and we doubt whether such Committee does exist. Has the Qommitee ever met for the purpose of transacting business ? We know that there is very little school business requiring public attention, but, as we understand that the attendance of the Mangonui school has been falling off seriously of late, and that the school is threatened with the loss of its assistant teacher, jerhops it might be well for the Committee to prove that it has existence.

The prices ruling for cattle at the last . Oruru sales, were anything but encouraging to breeders, but, looking over the mob submitted to buyers, we could only conclude that fanners are not breeding for export and find that the local market fake# all the best of their produce. Naturally calves suffer when deprived of their natural sustenance, but the daily fanner look;s to the dairy in order to pay bis A stores bills, etc., and not, as heretofore, to the jsale of cattle to outside buyers. On the phole buyers from the South did not n akje such a bad trip, as with the supJort j from PHrcnga a goes! sale cun always be arranged, and with prices on the down v we need not fear the cancclincnt of thcMe sales. To the average rniplovcr of labor (locally) it must frequently ccme ns a surprise, to find how wanting in consideration for his master's interest is the laboring man. The working man thinks of his own pocket first, and, if pnid by the d»y, how many men are there, iu this district, who can be trusts to work without supervision ? But and tbe worst featuie of the local workman is the determination to work only when convenient to himself—contracts may be broken, work stopped indefinitely, other men delayed, but if the laborer so desires nothing w'ill keep him from taking a holiday, at any conceivable moment, no matter what effect such a course may have on his master’s business. frit We understand that quite a number of r Cases will be heard at the next sitting of the S.M. Court here. We have not the list before us, but what a number of Mangonui people are charged with allowing cattle to stray on to the township roads! and the cases against unregistered Hnk dogs are numerous, while breaches of should, taken altogether, give Mr. Florence some work. We trust our readers will note that we commenced this paragraph with the words “we understand,” and that we do not vouch for the accuracy of the information. It is evidently the intention of Russia to embroil the British Empire in war, and one would imagine that such dastardly action as that of firing on a fishing fleet would be an excuse for any reprisals taken by the British navy. If Britain declares war in this instance we cannot find any for any other of the great {lowers interfering on Russia’s behalf. That the Russiun Baltic squudron has committed an act of piracy must be admitted, and should the British navy of the water such a course would have the approval of the whole of the British Empire, if not of all the nations of the At the least the responsible officers -of the Baltic squadron which committed the outrage should be hanged as pirates. We are enjoying immunity from the tongue of tfie wife of our bosom at present, as the annual Spring cleaning is Jn operation. The wife is tired and wsary and actually cannot talk. We wish, however, that wc could get a good square meal, but dare not visit either of the hotels just now, as we know that, the Spring cleaning over, the wife’s pent-up language must find outlet, wherefore wc are on our best behaviour, hoping N - that the wrath to come may fall on our progeny —who can bear it better—rather than on ourselves. m SIDNEY HERBERT. ■ ggr. —==========