A HARDSHIP. (TO THE EDITOR).

Te Aroha News, Volume VI, Issue 303, 29 September 1888, Page 2

A HARDSHIP. (TO THE EDITOR).

Sir, — As a rule buildings occupied by Government officials in small townships can readily be picked out, having an air of officialdom, neatness, and compactness, unlike their general neighbours. There is always a freshness about the paint, and a corresponding tidiness about the garden and approaches ; the latter being the results of industry ; begotten presumably through a lengthy career of studying the straight lines and the narrow limits of the red-tape system. And the habit of keeping"things neat and tidy is a good and commendable one ; even as a man is known by the company he keeps, so the character of a man can be reckoned by his home. The late retrenchment racket of the Government, I notice, has been the cause of breaking up many old ties and happy associations, which is to be regretted. A case in point has lately come under my apprehension. For some reasons, which it is not my business to enquire into, Mr Vause, postmaster, has been transferred from here to Te Awamutu, and Mr Olough, from that place, appointed to Te Aroha. lam informed that Mr Olough has for the past twelve years been vosident postmaster at Te Awamutu, and naturally enough had come to look upon it as his permanent home. From all accounts he has expended a considerable amount of labour and time (which is equal to money) in making the postmaster's abode at Te Awamutu second to none of its class in the Colony. Its garden is well stocked with fruit and other trees, and altogether in excellent order, with the promise of a great fruit yield. I cannot exactly entertain a feeling of congratulation towards Mr Olough's successor, but I trust that after inspecting his new home, Mr Vause will have been taught more than one lesson. The exchange which has been forced upon Mr Clough in this respect is not a happy one, although the outside appearance of the Te Aroha postmaster's residence is of fair average, alas the garden I Where flourished the rose tree, and fruit trees generally, now yawn deep holes, and the place appears to have been regularly stripped of everything in the shape of fruit trees and flowers. It is stated Mr Vause sold as many as he could of the fruit trees, etc., dug up the remainder, and turned in his cow to complete the j work of devastation prior to his leaving. His action in so doing needs no oniiuent and speaks volumns with respect to the general character of the man. I fail to see any reason why Mr Yause should thus make matters so uncomfortable for his successor (who would much have preferred remaining at Te Awamutu), even though he may be a Government official and had planted with his own official hands, It seems to me in Mr Olough's case one of hardship, that for no assignable reason, the fruits of his twelve years careful labour (he having left everything in apple pie order) should be handed over to a stranger, whilst he has to take possession of a wilderness, unless the Government grants him good compensation, or if they will not do this, to follow the letrenchment mania, deduct tho full value of Mr Clough's plantings and improvements from Mr Vause's salary, I remain, etc., Fair Play. Te Aroha, Sept. 20th, 1888.