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Oamaru Mail, Volume IV, Issue 1243, 12 April 1880, Page 2

The members of the Civil Service Commission, namely, Sir K. Douglas, Bart., Mr. T. Kelly, M.H.R. for New Plymouth, Mr. A. Saunders, M.H.R. for Cheviot, and Mr. C. Pharnzyn, arrived by the express train to-day. As their stay here must be very short, they began work at once in Mr. Loring's office at the railway station, Mr. W. Hannay, the Traffic Manager of this section of the line, was examined at some length before lunch, and in the afternoon Mr. Parker, R.M., was before the Commissioners. Several other Government officials have been summoned to appear before the Commissioners, who, we understand, will probably sit until late this evening. They will proceed to Timaru by train to-morrow morning, and will remain at that place until the following morning. They then go to As'nburton, and proceed thence to Christchurch, taking evidence at each place tliey stop at. After leaving Christchurch they go on to Wellington, and thence to Napier, Auckland, New Plymouth, Wanganui, and Nelson. We understand that the Commissioners are gaininga considerable quantity of information in their travels, which we Hope will be of much use to them in framing their report. An item of intelligence reaches us from Wellington that will prove highly acceptable

to all who are compelled to transact business under the Property Tax Act. We are told that Mr. Crombie, the Commissioner, has issued a guide to the Act. That some such guide was necessary all who have attempted to unravel the mysteries of the Act will readily admit. So far we have not met a single person, however well versed in ordinary Acts or Parliament, capable of thoroughly understanding the meaning, or explaining the working, of the Act. If Mr. Crombie has succeeded in giving an explanation of the Act thatwill assist ordinary mortals to understand the law, he will have done good service, and his wcrk will be received with satisfaction.by the Sub-Commissioners, who, from what we can learn, are equally as much puzzled as the general public. We have in fact heard it said that some of them declare that another Act of Parliament is necessary to explain the meaning of the Property Tax Act prepared by the present Ministry and so loudly praised by their followers. To say the least of it, the Act bears no comparison with the Laud Tax Act of the Grey Government, for whatever were the demerits of that Act, it was a miracle of clear and concise legislation as compared with the intricate, confusing, and mazeike Property Tax Act.

In the course of the Rev. Mr. Gilford's yesterday morning's sermon, at St. Luke's, he animadverted on the position of the finances of the cliuj-ch, and remarked that if themembers had been an liberal in making their donations to the vestry fund 4s they were on Easter Sunday in contributing to the support of their minister, the position would have been far more satisfactory." He exhorted fchem to extend their liberality according to their means to assist in liquidating tijc debt, wbi.eh, the treasurer informs us is L2G2, in addition, to a liability of LIOOO which has been borrowed on mortgage and debentures. i

No message lias yet been received by the i members for tliis district in reply to the telegram which they forwarded to the Government anent the unemployed of the Windsor-Livingstone Railway, and they have to-day sent a second message to the Government on the same matter. Instead of treating communications from representatives so contemptuously, tho Government should be grateful for information op a matter which so intimately concerns them, and reply with becoming promptitude. We baye littje hope, however, that such an administration as the present will feel the necessity that exists for coming tv .S'ime decision regarding the railway, and making that decision known to the 150 anxious men which have been induced by them to congregate in this district. Representative Government is daily growing a greater sham, and is fast being superseded by an autocracy compared with which all past legislation pajes. The resignation by Sub-Lieutenant Holdsworth of his commission in the Oaniaru Artillery has been gazetted. Mr. George Brownlee has been gazetted as Examiner jn Music for tjie Waitaki district.

The weather on Saturday night was the most extraordinary that has been experienced in Oamarn for a long time. Captain Edwin had, by his weather forecast, prepared us for squalls, but we scarcely expected to be treated to so strong a proof of Captain Edwin's ability to forot.elj what the weather is likely to be. Within a few minutes we were treated to wind, liail, rain, thunder, and lightning, and if: certainly appeared that the elements were at war with each other. As if to add to the general effect, an earthquake' occurred at about nine o'clock, but it was not of a severe nature. As one of the results of the heavy downpour of rain, the streets and gutters received a much.-required cleansing, and are now freer from dirt and offensive spieljs than they have been for some time past,

TJhe usual monftjty mgeting Wfi-Tyne-sttejet, Members of No. 1 Company's Band; :are reminded ithat the; regular. practices wills be resumMto-morrowevening, at eight o'clock' sharp. - - V

Mr. R. Davies, until lately one of our most respected citizens, and for years managing clerk for Messrs; Lees and Moore/ has established himself as' an. auctioneer at South Rakaia. His first sale,_ which ;was, held on Friday last, we are informed by the Ashburton : "paper, passed off - -satisfactorily. The numerous friends of Mr. Dai vies will be glad to hear of his success.

Considerable misapprehension appears to exist as to the exact positions of the Land Tax and Property Tax. The Post, a paper that has superior opportunities for acquiring information regarding such matters, makes the following remarks on this subject:— Both the Land Tax and the Property Tax will have to be paid for the current quarter. The former is collected for the financial year under the old system, ending on the 30th of June, while the latter is levied for the new financial year, which begins on the Ist April. It follows, consequently, that the two periods overlap, and that persons who have paid their Land Tax up to 30th June next are not thereby exempted from having to pay Property Tax on the same landed property for the whole of the current financial year, including the quarter which commenced on the Ist instant. This will not be very pleasing news to those fortunate persons whose large possessions cause them to contribute rather heavily towards the public burdens; but it is undoubtedly the law, and will be carried out unless Parliament should interfere to prevent it, and in the present state of the colonial finances it is possible that so acceptable a "haul" will not be relinquished. It is calculated that the extra sum yielded by the simultaneous collection of both taxes, notwithstanding that the one was supposed to repeal the other, will be some L 20,000 or L 30,000. The country will gain and the land-owners and property men have only to "pay and look pleasant." Doubtless tliey ■will be compelled to do the former, but we fear that all compulsion will prove vain to produce an agreeable expression of countenance under the extra wrench.

The first monthly meeting cf the Waitaki branch of the Educational Institute of Otago was held on Saturday afternoon. Mr. Peattie occupied the chair. There was only a moderate attendance owing to the inclement weather. Mr. G. Brownlee was elected a member. Mr. A. Stewart, of Dunedin, was re-elected representative of the branch to the General Committee of Management. At the request of Mr. Brownlee, the Institute proceeded to fix the fees for the course of music lessons which he proposed to give. The fees for the twelve weekly lessons were fixed at LI for teachers and 10s for pupil teachers. The Secretary was instructed to write to Professor Black asking if he could deliver a short course of lectures in Oamaru.

Earthquake phenomena have been the subject of much scientific speculation, out of which nothing more satisfactory has arisen than an expression of differences of opinion amongst scientists akin to those of lawyers and doctors. This unsatisfactory result may be due to the plethoric learnedness of the savants of natural science, who, in making their investigations, overshoot the mark and leave that for which they are searching far behind them. We have before us what we consider to be some proof of this hypothesis. The morning Herald tells us that " the shock was felt at, the various telegraph stations," thus implying that it was not felt elsewhere. It would appear, therefore, that there were numerous shocks, and that our telegraph system has something to do with the disturbance of the earth's equanimity. It may be that the Herald is right in the conjecture which it • has so cautiously advanced. Unshackled, by ponderous theories, and with a mind, like a sheet of white paper, capable of receiving any impression, it is quite possible that the writer has tackled his subject in a somewhat intelligent though heterodox manner. But what we would like to know is whether the wires or the operators are responsible for an occurrence which has shaken our almost inassailable norvps most terribly,-

At St. Luke's Church yesterday special services were held as thanksgivings for the bountiful harvest. The Rev. Mr. Giffoi'd preached from the texts 21 Genesis, verse 22, in the morning, and G St. John, verse 12, in the evening, to good congregations. The anthem was, "0, Lord,, how manifold are thy works." Perhaps on no previous occasion has such a lavish.. display of earth's kindly yield been seen in any church in Oamaru,' Beginning at the north door, the font, edged with a deep fringe of wheat and i barley lace, and Growned with an exceptionally elegant centrepiece of fruit and flowers, first arrested attention, festoons of oats being pendant between the pillars, which were also ornamented with grain and leaves. Texts in keeping, of rich and varied designs were distributed round the building, and enriched the cjjancel particularly. The pulpit aiid lectern were re? lieypfj by devices original and tasteful, and the altar supported .a supreb pile of grapes, apples, pears, and .other fruits, ij.ere and there flowers being interspersed to higlit.en the general effect. The western V#}l sus.tained one text only, which was, however, charming in conception and character. Nearly all the ideas were of a kind different from those exhibited in the church at any former time, and the adyantage of much new help, kindly given by various ladies, was clearly manifested.

A correspondent writes to us as follows, from Livingstone : —A very sharp shock of earthquake was felt here on Saturday morning, a few minutes before 10 o'clock. It was accompanied by a loud noise, and lasted fully 30 seconds. On Thursday last Mr. John Cook, a miner, had a very narrow escape of losing his life. While at work in his claim, a very heavy fall of earth completely buried him, and, but for his mate, who succeeded in extricating him from his perilous position, he must have been suffocated. I am glad to that, beyond a few bruises, he has sustained no injury. J The London correspondent of the Dublin Freeman says " Struck with the desolated condition of vast districts ip Ireland, the Baroness Burdett-Coutts is aboijt to devote I the sum of LoOO.OiiO (half a million sterling) for the amelioration of the Irish farmers. Before deciding on this step, it is well known that the benevolent lady referred to caused the most careful enquiries to be "made by her agents so as to satisfy herself thoroughly as to the reality of the distress." If this lady, who is as careful as she is charitable, after instituting a strict investigation into the condition of the Irish sufferers, deemed it necessary that she should perform towards them perhaps the most munificent act on record, surely the unkindly references which have been so ..plentifully made to the unworthinesa of their cause have been gross

'"*•< i I ? calumnies. "We think that BaronfsSi^a^dett^ •Contts'"action-will satisfy thfosle srfSi>j sol^; ascribed to.t&e fund that' they-werlPiiot mis-: led. ' ' —'' ""V • The annual general meeting of the^Oamaru Mutual Benefit. Building Society will take place to-morrow eyening, at eight o'clock.

Among the questions in the Chnstchurch pupil-teacher examination papers is, " What plan- for teaching the alphabet is adopted in your school ?", to which one of the candidates replied, ".None, as our master does not approve of its .being taught." The Sydney Telegraph says that it is rumored that the Government of New South Wales have made, or intend to make, Dr. Hector an offer under which his services would be retained by that colony. The Wellington Post says that Dr. Hector knows nothing of such an offer.

The Lancet remarks that the vagaries of i feminine taste in the matter of dress are traditionally and essentially fearful and inexplicable ; but that is no reason why they should be allowed to play wanton havoc with health. At the present moment women go about hobbled after the fashion adopted by our forefathers to prevent the straying of our horses and asses when turned out to grass. Bonds encircle the legs and knegg, and, besides preventing a decent gait] expose the wearers of such ridiculous gear to the risk of falling, particularly when hurrying across a crowded thoroughfare or even stepping upon a curbstone. This is sufficiently monstrous ; but even worse, because persistent mischief is done by the practice of binding a veil tightly round the face in such a way that not only is the sight obscured, but the eyes are mechanically irritated by the fabric clouding them, Cases of something worse than mental annoyance and "nervousness," distinctly traceable to this cause, are falling under the observation of practitioners, and when the practice is denounced, "fashion " is pleaded as its excuse. We are not disposed to waste words in remonstrance ; but it is simple duty to point out that if women please, in defiance of common sense, to resort to these practices, they must take the consequences. The veils worn by our mothers and sisters of the last generation hung freely at a reasonable distance from the eyes, and could be thrown back. Those of to-day are semi-transparent eye-bandages, and must tend to disturb the vision, as well as to set up irritation in the eyelids. If the women who dabble in.medicine would devote any information they may happen to have acquired to the correction of their sex, they might do some service.

Lord Derby, in a speeoh delivered before the Huddersfield Chamber of Commerce on the Bth of January last, uttered the following remarkable sentences : —"Do you think that emperora, and grand-dukes, and archdukes, field-marshals, and tremendous personages of that sort, really want the manufacturing industries of their empires to be developed ? Do you suppose it would suit them to have to do -with an intelligent; keenwitted, active, well-to-do population, such as our northern towns in England contain ? They are not such fools. They know their business better. What they want is something quite different —a peasantry hungry enough at home to find the ordinary life of a private soldier rather agreeable than otherwise, and submissive enough to shoot their own brothers, if ordered, without asking why."

The Sydney Morning Herald writes " The letter of our Tasmania correspondent published in the Herald of Saturday last, gives an interesting sketch of the way in which the Legislature has dealt with the financial difficulty. For a long time past successive Governments have endeavored to introduce some system of direct taxation; but there were so many theoretical objections to every proposal that was made, and and so much interested opposition, that nothing was done, and the Government was reduced to the necessity of staving off an immediate deficit by an issue of Treasury bills. At last, however, a tax upon real and personal property of ninepence in the pound has been acquiesced in by both Houses, together with a further tax upon dividends and mortgages. The scheme as framed is open to several minor objections, but the great point to be noticed is that direct property taxation has become an integral" part of the fiscarsystepi pf Tasmania. Tlie scheme is not like Mr. Berry's, simply a tax on ope form of property, and" even. then only on the possessors of a large quantity. It is an. attempt to tax property generally, and the working of the scheme will be watched with interest in the other Colonies. Another point not less interesting to us is that the Tasmanian Treasurer imitated Mr. Watson, by proposing an exgise on Colonial beer, and, more fortunate than Mr. Watson, he sucr ceeded in carrying it. There seems to have been more gopd sense in the Tasmanian Parr lianient than in that which sits in Sydney. Perhaps in another session our legislators may re - consider the matter ina more patriotic spirit; In the Mother Country beer is taxed by the malt tax,' which yields a revenue of five millions a year, and there is no sound reason why this particular beverage should not contribute; to the revenue in this colony. We must con : gi'atulate our Tasmanian neighbors on having dealt courageously, with the financial sitnatjpji, and sre' have no. doubt that the CQiirs.e . they haye pursued yill £ayop&b}y effect their negotiations for their propose/i loan."