PUBLIC OPINION.

Patea Mail, 24 October 1881, Page 3

PUBLIC OPINION.

Contributions, Letters, Inquiries and Answers thereto, are invited on Farming, Commerce, Politics, and matters of interest to the Patea district. Names of writers need hot be printed. THE NATIVE QUESTION AND THE MAJOR. The act of the Ministry in publicly eating the leek and taking Mr.Bryce back, is the most heroic thing. they could have done, although it means for the most of them political suicide. It is. a conclusive censure on themselves, and most of all on the member of the Ministry who deserted Mr Bryce last year. The justification of Mr Bryce is the condemnation of Major Atkinson. Our member has postponed his visit. Let the electors think over this in the interval : the more they think of it, the more they will be confirmed in their distrust of Major Atkinson.—l am, &c., An Elector. 22nd Oct.

PATE A .INSTITUTE.: On October sth, I wrote a letter re the Institute, which I followed up with another headed “ Dry Rot.” Since then a Committee meeting has been held, and I purpose showing how far I was right. Re the filing of papers, the energetic manager reported that the order had been given to Mr Warren in February last, but he had been too busy to attend to it. Re the hours, the fact of these being altered (with which I quite agree) is in my favor, as Mr Harris said at the meeting that if the hours were to be rigidly adhered to, he would have' to resign. Re the untidiness of the place, of course a great deal has been done since my first letter, in straightening it up. Re the new books, it was discovered that not only are there no new books ordered, but there is a very poor prospect of anything new for 12 months. The reason will appear further down. The catalogue and system of issuing are, I believe, still the same. Now for the finances —and if my letter on “ Dry Rot ” is not borne out by facts, I will relinquish my pen. It transpired at the meeting that the Institute was £56 in debt, against which is to be placed a doubtful £ls worth of arrears. The numbers had fallen down to 80, and our business-like manager said that 27 of them had left the district. Probably so, but surely more than that number have come amongst us in the same time. Want of energy, Mr H.—no interest in your work. On the liabilities being added up by a member, and the real state of affairs shown,- he asked how the deficit was to be met, and was answered :■** People .ought to subscribe to the Institute (of course they ought) ; and the time had passed when the Institute could be rammed down people’s throats.” Then a grand scheme was thrown out —of leasing the piece of ground between the Institute* and Mr Warren’s.

Who will now question my statement that the place is eaten- up with “dry rot?” In fact it is nearly tumbling to pieces ; and it only remains now* for the subscribers to say whether they are willing to demolish the old structure, and build a new one ; or whether they are willing that this go to the-dust and not be replaced. In other words, would it not be better to' sell all the books, and start afresh ? Institute.

Te Whiti.— -A Hawkes Bay journal iearns privately from the West Coast that it is a common' report that the natives have resolved to' destroy the life of Te Whiti in the event of his hilling into the hands of the Government by arrest. Te Whiti’s body is tapu, and it is held by his Maori disciples that it would be better that he should be killed by the faithful than that he should suffer sacrilege at the hands of the infidel pakeha. Mr J. Anderson has got the contract for furnishing the new Municipal Offices at Wanganui; about £3OO. Woodville. —It is said our Fungus Minstrels are going to perform in the Thrush’s nest, a few miles from Woodville, the proceeds to go for children’s prizes. A great event, you’ll see. Pace cards—Photographic portraits. Nursing is becoming a profession in England. Schools for nurses are daily growing into favor, and during the past seven years 120 nurses have graduated from “The Training School for Nurses.” . „ Dress shoes are very much decorated with huge bows of ribbon, real flowers, and metal effigies of every description. Among the favorite - zoological specimens elephants at present rank first.