TOPICAL READING.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXIX, Issue 8307, 10 December 1906, Page 4

TOPICAL READING.

Wellington people are setting heartily sick of the continued irregularity of the San Francisco mail steamers. The late arrival of the mail at Auckland has again caused inconvenience to business people. Had tbe mail arrived up to time answers tu Home letters could have been despatched by tbe steamer Warrimoo, which left Wellington for Sydney ou Friday, a day earlier, so as to connect with the Suez mail. The New Zealand boat which was to carry the : replies to the letters by the incoming San Francisco mail had put out to'sea before the said letters bad got even as far as Auckland.

Speaking at the opening of the Awahou Bridge, the Premier said that the pioneers who were goiug out to tbe back-blocks deserved every consideration at the bands of the Government, tie pointed out that the Government, was now spending at the rate of £2,500,000 a year ou public works—such aa roads, railways, public buildings,— and was borrowing at tho rate of £1,000,000 a year for publio works, and if asked for more it might make the position of the country finan-

olally anything bat pleasant to the people. Therefore people shoald take a broad view of tbe matter. Ho and bis colleagues andgevery member of Parliament, were anxious to assist the settlers, aud be advised them, if anyone should aay that tbe Government was not anxious to help the farmers, or would do anything to hurt tbem, or that its policy was Inimical to tbe best interests of tbe farmers, to aooept his statement that this was entirely contrary to the wishes and aspirationa of tbe mem* bers of the Ministry, and be for one would not be a party to anything of the kind.

Tbe English paper at tbe matriculation examination now being held by the New Zealand University has raised a few smiles. for tbe first time in the history of examinations in New Zealand an examiner comes with a gleam of originality in his eye. One question roads: "Write a paragraph of ten lines on tbe familiar subject 'The Weather.' Ba buoaorou-i if you can: foe commonplace if'you but bo accurate is composition." Also, b« is up todate in his composition themes, and be does not expect the candidates to write essays on "James Watt and thejsteam engine" or any of tbe hoary old subjoots. The subjects of which he expects tbem to know something are:—(l) Richard John Seddon, (2) the "AllBlacks'" tour, or (3) the International Exhibition.

Speaking to a S;ar representative Mr T. H. Race, one of tbe Canadian Commissioners at the Exhibition, said that he bad had enquiries from vaiious parts of New Zealand about the free farms which tbe Dominion Government «re givng away in tbe Western Provinces. Some of these enquiries bad ooroe from Dunedin. It was not the desire of the Dominion to encourage emigration from New Zealand, since it would be better for both countries if they had larger populations. What Canada wanted was not New Zealand people, but New Zealand trade. That trade was growing. Ilia associate Com* misaioner, Mr Burns, bad solid evidence that tbe Exhibition was going to increase it largely, but there was one thing that New Zealand wanted badly. It wanned a population of 2,000,000. . The Commissioner was not much in love with our labour legislation, inasmuch as it greatly restricted the colony's output.