THE Wairarapa Age MORNING DAILY. MONDAY, FEBRUARY 5, 1906.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXVIII, Issue 7956, 5 February 1906, Page 4

THE Wairarapa Age MORNING DAILY. MONDAY, FEBRUARY 5, 1906.

There is a saying that "the unexpected of tens happens," and had the self-interested persons who convened the meeting in Johannesburg (the acoouut of which is given in a recent cable), to protest against the 'slanders in England in regard to the Transvaal community, keenly appreciated the' possibility of failure, there is no question but that tbey would have refrained from attempting to hood-wink the British public and the world at large. Happily, however, the meeting was called, and the result, though unexpected, most satisfactory. The meeting that was intended to gloss over the soandals concluded after urging the Motherland to appoint a Royal Commission to enquire into the conditions of Chinese labour on the Rand. We have beard, from various sources, some of which were, perhaps, open to doubt,} a good deal in regard to the cruelty to the Chinese on the Rand, and it is really beyond question that the coolies are, practically, slaves, but the statements have been as vigorously refuted as they were made. however—from tbe N "seat of

war" itself—we bear the verdict o ' three thousand people in Johannesburg—and let it be emphasised that the meeting was called to obtain a totally different result—that the ill-usage of the Chinese coolies calls for the interference of the Mother land. The incident emphasises the disgraceful conduct of toe present Bri ish Government in their attempt to shuffle out of a responsibility that was pre-eminently theirs, and one which any political party, with a proper sense of honour, would have taken over without question. From a party, and from a leader, who has behaved as Sir Henry Camp-bell-Bannerman has done throughout the whole time that the Transvaal question has been before the public, it wculd be absurd to expect that the appeal of humanitarians in 'Jonannesurg that the Chinese should be released from the thraldom and oruelty of the "Randiords" will be in the least availing. • But, at the same time, it is clearly the duty of the British Government, before granting either representative or responsible Government to the Transvaal, to deal with labour question in a manner consonant with the dignity of the Ern- ' pire, and with that freedom of which we, as a people, are justly proud. There appears to be a good opening for New Zealand timber in South. Africa for mining and building purposes. Seeing, however, that the life of kauri is limited, that the butter trade has special claims on white pine, and that New Zealand has an export duty on both these timbers, their use in South Africa is hardly likely to be encouraged. But with other timbers in this colony it is different, and it is important to note that a high opinion is expressed of the adaptability for mining purpose of the birch, which though plentiful, well-diffused and easily milled, has been hitherto a neglected timber. A profitable export of birch would become a source of considerable wealth. 1 Birch is a flrst-olasa mining timber, and very powerful, possesses a great resisting side or top-breaking strain, and grows from 6in to 3ft in diametei, and is as straight in the barrel as a gun or any of the tallgrowing forest trees. Of all the timbers in this colony the birch could be supplied oheaper and more readily than any of our other wellknpwn timbers. For minine purposes in South Africa a tough, hard timber, that will wear and bend before it will break or splinter, is required. Besides birch, there are, also, other native timbers suitable for the purpose, viz., puriri, silverbirch, nmo, rata or maire.