GENERAL NEWS.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LI, Issue 212, 1 September 1908, Page 4

GENERAL NEWS.

l)r Chappie intends to move a scries of amendments to the Second Ballot Hill, their effect 'being to combine in one incisure the principles of the Bill under notice and those of the absolute majority system associated with lie name of the Hon. 1!. MeXab. Dr. Chapnlc's scheme is that the voter shall be allowed to indicate Ilia order of preference of the various candidates by placing numerals opposite their names. The voces will lie counted by tJie returning officer and transferred from candidate to candidate according to 'the principles of prcferenLi.l voting until one has an absolute majority. Only in the event ol an ;;lisolutc majority not being obtainable by this means will be a second ballol. as provided for by 'he Prime Minister's Bill, be .taken. The object of the amendment appears to be twofold, viz., io obviate the holding of a great many second ballots and to meet the contention that preferential voting has lieen found ineffective owing to the electors failing io .record their second and third votes. tic-cent letters received from South Africa give a doleful account of the state of affairs prevailing in that country. Business all over Africa is stagnant. Johannesburg, tne cjotwhile city of gold, is now a city of. starving men. Kimberley, whioh, until a few months ago, was considered proof against serious depression, is now, owing to a big slump iu tile diamond market, in almost as bad a state as Johannesburg. Many of the big diamond mines have ceased operations, others are being worked halftime; an all-round reduction of wages has taken place, and 'thousands of employees, both while and black, have been dismissed. Much suffering, however, has been prevented by tihe generous action of JJit Beers Consolidated -Mining Company, Limited, iu granting free passages to any part of the world to the retrenched men and their families. A Kimberley resident, writing to a member of the X.Z. Tinw. .stall', say* that so great has been the exodus that hundreds of houses are now IcunutleSs, and that it is cheap:.'r to buy furniture for firing purpostjs than firewood, which is ratiher sctuce on the diamond liclds.

Says the Sydney Newsletter: "It, is said that a grave scandal occurred in Auckland at the landing of the American officers. Admiral Sperry was introduced to Mahuta, the very last of the Maori kings, and after friendly greetings, the King whispered to the Admiral, 'You haven't a bob on you, Cap, have you.' A dead block to 'the, proceedings was prevented by the Governor diplomatically interfering and giving the Maori chieftain a t]iiiil of tobacco.' Commenting on this, I lie Manawatu Times says: imagine the Hon. and dignified Mr Mahuta and hi? still more impressive Prime Minister Kaihau, who formed a picturesque, feature of the Auckland ceremonies, described as a sort of King Billy ol) liooligal—the only sort of nafive potentate the Sydney . scribbler would know. An incident of the Government reception to the Admirals was film calling up of the two chiefs by Sir Joseph Ward to take their place on the dais. They had handsome mala over their stalwart well tailored forms and liuia feathers in their tall hats, and with Uiem was Mrs Mahuta, a handsome half-caste girl. The trio frequently drove through the streets in an open carriage, were cheered in the procession and were seen at- each of the receptions and the Government House Ball and on the ships. And then to be branded round the worid as "Gib it tikpranv" Australian blacks!