"A MARE'S NEST."

Te Aroha News, Volume VII, Issue 387, 24 July 1889, Page 4

"A MARE'S NEST."

For a real good "fairy tale" commend me to the following from "Spectator's" notes in last week's issue of the %t Weekly Press :" — Rumour with her busy tongue has been at work all the week, and it has come to be accepted as a fact in some quarters that the Hon. W. Robinson and Mr G. G. Stead had decided to amalgamate their forces, and that Dick Mason was to leave by first opportunity in charge of Maxim, Chain Shot and Merrle England for Australia. I was first told the story last week, bub not before promising that I would not retail it in the same confidential manner to my readers. Uext I was told that all the nccessai'y feed for the campaign had been forwarded on, and so many seemed to have the story thab I tried my best to find out how the news became known. All I could elicit was that the Hon. W. Robinson had been seen by Brown of late going in and out of Mr Stead's office, and that Jones had frequently seen him walk through the street in which Mr Stead's place of business is situated, and that some hay had been sent by Dick Mason from Lyttelton to Melbourne, and thab a commission had been worked to a good old tune on behalf of the confederacy. I don't like to question owners on mattei's of this kind, but I mentioned to Mr Stead on Tuesday that such rumour 3 were about, and that gentleman very emphatically denied that he kad made any such arrangement, and, moreover, informed me that at that moment h8 had no intention of sending Maxim to Australia, and had no knowledge of what Mr Robinson intended doing with his beam. Mr Mason, I believe, did send some hay to Australia a week or two since, to i\ trainer who preferred New Zealand hay to the local-grown article. How quick folk, and especially .sporting folk, are to put this and that together. Evidently Rumour is the untruthful jade she has &o often been represented.