Current Comment.

Southern Cross, Volume 1, Issue 7, 13 May 1893, Page 12

Current Comment.

(By Touchstone.) It is a far cry from London to Invercargill, and yet both,places are, it would appear, suffering from the same trouble. The Pall Mall Gazette latety devoted considerable space to ventilating the grievances of people who had been injured or annoyed, through the not-observance of the rule of the road, “ Keep to the right,” and now our worthy Mayor has found it necessary to ask the citizens to keep to the right when the streets are crowded. This may be accepted as another evidence of the prosperity of the town. The genial and witty Tom Bracken once explained the width of our streets to be due to a desire to prevent the people on opposite sides from quarrelling. Ve can forgive him that little joke at our expense now that we have something in common with London. We are catching up, slowly it may be, but surely, to the great metropolis. At the meeting’ held in the Hedgehope district the other night re the extension of the Hokonui railway, it was suggested that the Hon. G. P. .Richardson should be asked to give his assistance in the work, which will be in his electoral district. “ But,” explained one of the company, “you can’t expect him to do much, seeing that he only got three votes here last election.’ ( “ Oh, well,” cheerful^ responded another settler, “ that’s all the more reason why the present Government should do something’ for us.”

The Rev. L. M. Isitt’s tour in the prohibitionist interest appears to be too much for the equanimity of some of the Northern journals. Even such an imposing - luminary as the New Zealand Times, in its eagerness to to score a point against him, goes woefully wide of the mark. In a recent issue, it gravely informed its readers that Mr isitt, on arriving at Fielding, was not welcomed by a single prohibitionist. The paragraph has been copied by several of the smaller newspaper fry, but it never seems to have occurred to any of these sapient retailers of the item that it is just possible the reason why Mr Isitt was not welcomed by a single prohibitionist was simply because there was not a single prohibitionist in Fielding. The fact that the meeting was crowded, proves that there was no lack of interest in the visitor or his mission. Mr Isitt must smile at these puny efforts at belittlement, and long for foremen worthy of his steel. Mr W. Todd is an invaluable man at a public meeting. He throws an amount of “go ” into the proceedings that carries all before it. He was strongly in evidence at the annual meeting of the Southland Building Society on Wednesday night, and fairly revelled in metaphors, all taken, by the way, from nautical life. The Society was compared to a fine large steamer, only wanting a captain, and after this post had been filled by the re-election of Mr J. W. Bain, who will complete a quarter of a century of office at the end of this term, Mr Todd again took the helm, metaphorically of course, and compared the Society to the Eddy stone lighthouse for stability. The felicity of the simile was promptly recognised by the shareholders, for the Society is one of the few local institutions that has surmounted the vicissitudes apt. to befall colonial financial concerns. Under wise and prudent management it has done good service to the community, and while t; hanks may come and banks may go,” especially in Australia, it bids fair to go on for ever.