MELBOURNE NOTES. Melbourne, Sept. 20.

Te Aroha News, Volume VI, Issue 305, 6 October 1888, Page 6

MELBOURNE NOTES. Melbourne, Sept. 20.

DEFEAT OF THE GOVERNMENT. I gavk it as my opinion some few weeks ago that ib ' was both unjust and unjustifiable for the Government to. try to pass the new tariff prior to the Electoral Bill. The latter deals /with ,the redistribution of seats oh tKe plea that the country is not properly represented in Parliament, and' it wasH only .common sense to say, " Get the colony properly represented first, and then put forth the alterations of duties." Government, however, didn't see ib in this light, and the consequence has been a bad defeat on their Budget proposals, followed by the withdrawal of same. I am glad they drew in their horns, for looking impartially at the Opposition, I really do nob see how they could form a better Ministry than our present Gillies-Deakin one. The Slock tax (particulars of which are no doubt known no all my readers) was the most dangerous rock ahead 1'ok bhe Government, and the one that held them back. As pointed out by my friend Patterson, the member for Castlemaine, an increase of stock duties in Victoria clearly raises the Federal question, and it is but right that so momentous a subject should be submitted to the community for its approval ; therefore i ,-*ay to both sides of bhe House, "Gentlemen, hurry up the Electoral Bill, so that the true feeliners of the country mav be made known."

THE WEATHER. I don't know why Parliament should remind me of the weather, but it does. Perhaps because in both cases, as Mr Elton says in " Dorot'hy " — ' "Whether it's cold, or whether it's 'oL, We've got to weather it whether or not." The real reason, however, now I come to think of it, is because I went one day last week straight from Parliament House to the Observatory, in order to have a chat with my friend, Mr Mcerlin, our esteemed " clerk of the weather.' I went to see what kind of a winter we had been having, now that spring — jocund, smiling spring— is upon us once again. I found my friend deepen the dreadful mysteries of preparing a weather chart, but he dropped his pen at my request and fell into conversation. " It's been the driest, mildest winter we've had for ten years," said he. " There has been two inches less rain dm-ing our three months of winter than has been the average for eight or nine years. The average rainfall during a Victorian winter is 5*52 ; the fall during last was only 3*70 — almost a couple of inches less than the average. The temperature has been higher, too. The average was 49*7, whilst the general average is only 49*1." A mild winter generally means a hot summer here in Melbourne, so I am afraid this summer we shall get it hot and strong:. Just now, however, things are at their best in Melbourne, and the weather is most enjoyable, though changeable. Swallows, sunflowers, and scarlet are all coming on at the same time— thefirstin the air, the second in the garden, and the third on our womenfolks. The flower-shops begin to make a brave .show, what with camellias, narcissus, jonquils, marigolds, lovely white lilies, and others of our early flowers : whilst every jack-a-dandy about town wears a sprig of boronia, that sweetest of all sweet-smelling flowerets. Certainly the spring-time in this city of ours is lovely ; but I shudder when I think of the coming snmmer, with its sinister attendant train of typhoid, diphtheria, scarlet fever, and other zymotic horrors of the kind.

THE FISH SUPPLY. " I would them were'b so honest a man, ' said Hamlet to Polonius, speaking: of fishermen ; but our experience in Melbourne teaches us differently from that of the noble Dane, for all have good cause of complaint enough against those pois&oviera who supply our city with, fish. To say that it is aljvays , dear and, bad and meagre is not to do full justice to the subject, ior it is worse than that, and if.it were not for the Chinamen half the people would not get a taste of this wholesome diet. It is high time something was done, for surely no other big city in the world is so badly supplied as ours. Our coast swarms with plenty of good edible fish, and yet the price is so high here and in the country generally, that practically it is, quite out of the reach of the working man and the poorer classes altogether. However, a step in the right direction has been taken at last, and I hope for all our sakes that something will come of it. A large public meeting was held last week by some influential gentlemen, at which it was proposed to float a large company for the proper carrying out of the industry. The company is to be on the mutual principle, so that everybody connected with it should benefit — producers, consumers, and the public generally. It is an excellent idea, and I hope in time will herald a new era in our fish supply. Id is something wretched as things are now, that fish should be considered quite as a luxury. With a climate , such as ours, half' the year at least it should be our staple diet.

.COLONIAL REPRESENTATION IN ENGLAND. There is little doubt that the presence of a' few intelligent .and energetic Victorians in the British House of Commons would constitute a more efficient safeguard of our interests than the official, and therefore, necessarily guarded representation of half-a-dozen Agents-General. It is, then, most gratifying to read that the annual meeting of the "West Denbighshire Liberal Association " unanimously.accepted the decision of the Council in selecting M r V G. W. Taylor as the Liberal candidate. So unvarying has been the political allegiance of this constituency, that Mr Taylor's election may be regarded as a foregone conclusion, and Melbourne may look forward with satisfaction to having a shrewd and vigilant champion in the Supreme Council of the Empire. v

MEAT DIET AND LARRIKINISMIt is our meat diet — according to Dr. Usher — which matures our youth so rapidly, makes their passions so headstrong, and, in a word, turns out the colonial "larrikin." His brutal conduct and language, his leaning towards crime and violence,, and his hatred of all restraint — according to our authority — arises from his overdue indulgence in a meat diet. Therefore from a moral point of view I wish the new fish enterprise every success, more especially after a conversation I had with a certain police magistrate, whose house 1 am fond of visiting. "The spread of juvenile crime in Melbourne is increasing fearfully," he said to me 'one evening last week over a post - prandial cigar. " Look here. Here is a list of cases tried on Tuesday last. Let me pick out those applying to young| people. See — here's a lad of eleven had up at the Richmond -Police Court for lobbing aVdrunken man ; two. girls at Williamsfcown for being engaged in a stand-up fight ; a youth of sixteen at North Melbourne for habitual drunkenness ; two lads of eleven at Hawthorn charged wifch.housebreakihg ; arid all these in ' a single day. Lord ! ' Isn't" it awful? What must we do to stop it?' I'm sure I couldn't answer my friend. Let those who care for the national health study the causes and the. remedies— it is beyond me. As for the meat;' diet; it'cer4 ■> « - 1

tainly'may ' help \orr;t6>excesses;> but ■I^am -: afraid we must'go deeper for "the true cause ' of all thi8 juvenile crime in our midst). Werausb attack the mind/ 'the heart and the ' intelligence. , - ' ' "-

LIGHTER TOPICS. , I am afraid my letter breathes " dismal deeds and things to dread " this week, so I must try to conclude with' a lighter paragraph by way of more cheerful adieu. The theatres ! No; ; I have nothing to say about them, for there is nothing particularly call ingf or notice. TheExhibition ! Also no; for having steered my.epistolary bark clear of it for the last week or two, I will leave mention of it until next week, when I can devote lengthier space to it. 'The coal strike, the land boom— no, I have dealt' with them both, 1 will no more of them. So let me tell you a story pour dire, adieu — a true one, mind — told me. by the Inspector of State Schools, a gentleman of my acquaintance who fills a post worth £l,000a-year. For the ptory, then. Scene : State school number 1,000. Visiting inspector examiningchildreii of lowest class. Inspector, genially : "Now, then, first boy, what is an animal ?' "A — a — beast, sir." 'Inspector, somewhat doubtfully : " Well, I .suppose an animal is a beast. Now, next boy give me the name of an animal." Hesitation on boy's part, followed by triumphant yell from next boy — ''A worm, sir." "Quite right. A worm is an animal. Now. then, give me the name of another animal." Smallest and tiniest boy in the class: "Anover worm, sir.' A a-ood story, is it not ?"

• BOGUS SWEEPS, I would like to warn my readers, if ib would not be thought outside my prerogative as causeur, anent a coming evil. The ' time is now on for the " Melbourne' Cup Consultation " swindles, andas usual at this time of the year Melbourne, Victoria, indeed the whole of the colonies, are being flooded with circulars concerning the bogus sweeps being promoted. Thank heaven ! we haven't the consultation swindles this sideof the Murray, as they were banished by legislators, but their prospectuses come over from Sydney in shoals. I have received no less .than five myself. I suppose the promoters think all pressmen must be gamblers, but, fortunately for my pocket, I am not. One sweep promoted by a certain "James Wallace" I know to be a downright swindle. 1 daresay some ot my readers have received this creature's cir-, cular, and my advice to them is — keep your money in your pocket and tear the prospectus up. Talking of racing (apart from swindling) I have just had the u Victoria Racing Club Calendar" sent me. Having the iifctle pciznphlet in my pocket in the train, I passed the time by making a calculation. I find that during the ensuing year there will be no less than two hundred and twenty-nine days racing within fifty miles of the Melbourne Post Office. Who will say we are nob a sporting community after that? This week I find there are six meetings near Melbourne. Fancy that. No wonder oookmakers thrive and gi-ow fat. They have more opportunities for doing so here than in any other part of the world.

ELECTRIC LIGHTING. I am something more than pleased to see there seems to be a good chance of our having electric lighting in railway carriages, now. The thing so far has been a disgrace, and the oil lamps now in use are so fearfully bad, it is next to' impossible to read one's paper by their light. To us suburbans the quarter of an hour or so'a training in the evening is a welcome interval for scannings the paper; therefore you can imagine' how hard it is when --' one has to give up this little luxury for want of light.' Three evenings ago there w#s a public tVial of electric lighting, and it was most satisfactory. The light was excellent, and everyone (I among the number) voted it a perfect success. I hope the railway people will take it up now altogether, lor it will be a great boon to everyone, especially those, who have to travel daily. Strange to say, the medium used is liquid, something li£e water. It can be used in a lamp just the same as kerosene, and requires no battery, no wires, oils, or anything. Here is a way out of the coal strike difficulty. - -We don't, , want fires now, it is too warm. And-as for gas, the new liquid electric light' is good and simple, and cheap enough to supersede ' it altogether. " Star Correspondent."