South Canterbury Times, SATURDAY, JANUARY 7, 1882.

South Canterbury Times, Issue 2743, 7 January 1882, Page 2

South Canterbury Times, SATURDAY, JANUARY 7, 1882.

We some time ago suggested that, seeing the harbor works cannot be fully utilised until the “ turn” is made, or the “ range ” of southerly swells inside otherwise destroyed, a temporary floating Breakwater arm might be constructed. The short discussion which took place at the Harbor Board on Thursday, regarding the City of Cashmere having to lie out in the roadstead, and the Harbor Master’s statement of his reasons for declining to bring her in, and her captain’s endorsement or those reasons, induces us to again refer to the subject. We would suggest that the Board instruct their engineer to make inquiries as to the possibility of providing a temporary structure at a moderate cost, which should effect the desired purpose, viz., to prevent swells from the southward affecting the water immediately alongside the wharf. We have no doubt that with a little trouble he would be able to hunt up accounts of various plans that have been devised of temporary breakwaters, and his professional knowledge would enable him to decide whether any of them would be suitable for the purpose in view. Possibly Mr Goodall might himself devise a good scheme, or might improve on some other of which he should obtain information. Then it would be for the Board to decide whether the cost of such a structure would bo repaid by the extra safety and facilities the use of it would afford. A considerable time must necessarily elapse before a permanent arm can be constructed, and in the meantime quite a number of largo vessels will have to be loaded at the port. It would make a vast difference to the. trade of the place, and add much to its good report, if those ships could be

brought alongside the wharf to load. It appears that unless some special provision is made to destroy the range that the grain ships of this season, probably also of next season, will have to remain at anchor in the roadstead as heretofore ; it were surely worth while making some attempt to save the great extra labor that fact implies. We confideutally commend the suggestion we have made to the consideration of the Harbor Board.

“ A Chinaman appears to be the bete “ noir of the genus larrikin. Yesler- “ day a number of young blackguards “ assailed a Celestial on the sports “ ground, and buffeted him about a “ good deal; but the cowards beat a li hasty retreat upon the appearance of “ Sergeant Beatty, who quickly put “ them to rout. It would have been “ pleasing to respectable people to “ have seen some of the young rascals “ inarched otto* limbo ’and treated to “ a free application of the birch.” The foregoing paragraph appears in a recent Camara paper, a perusal of it suggests to us that the “ respectable people,” alluded to would have pleased other respectable people more it they had themselves put the young larrikins to rout, and it suggests also a probable cause for larrikinism being so common a source of complaint as it. This is that we have learned to look to the policeman for protection against all annoyances and injuries to such an extent that people will stand by and see a brutal wrong inflicted by one person upon another and will not interfere if there is a policeman really or nominally in the neighborhood. The larrikins know this, and consider themselves safe, and with good reason, in carrying on their pranks so long as they keep clear of the official guardian of the peace and good order of the neighborhood. They will run fast enough from a respectable man if he wears a uniform, but for the ordinary respectable man they care not a jot. If people have reason to complain they have themselves to blaffie for it to a very great extent. It is all very well to have a police force, and we have a most admirable police force in this colony, but we cannot afford to maintain a force so large as to preserve perfect order. They do relieve the community of an immense amount of trouble, but they are too few in number to be fairly expected to relieve it of all trouble in the maintenance of order. This ought to be recognised, and though worse complications would probably follow if every man were to play the part of amateur constable, we should not stand idly by and see wrongs committed, and excuse our selfishness, or whatever it may be, with the plea, that there is a policeman somewhere about.