AUSTRALIAN NEWS.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXIX, Issue 8378, 12 March 1907, Page 5

AUSTRALIAN NEWS.

ARMY MEAT SUPPLIES.

Received March 11, 10.11 a.m. ADELAIDE, March 11. Major Long, who is to inspect Australasian meat works on behalf of the War Office, has arrived. He will visit New Zealand first.

LIGHTNING FIRES A MINING PLANT.

Received March 11, 10.11 a.m. PERTH, March 11

A flash of lightning set five to an ore-reducing plant belonging to the Gold Link Mining Company. Several thousand pounds' worth of damage was done.

THE CROZET ISLAND i CASTAWAYS. I

Received March 11, 9.50 a.m. MELBOURNE, March 11

Mr Bull, who was leader of the expedition of the sealer Catherine, belongs to Victoria, and was a member of the Antarctic expedition in 1892. He says he was glad to get away from the Crozet Islands, where the Catherine was wrecked, as it was a very monotonous existence there. Still, the island is full of interest, especially to him, for he is a naturalist, and had splendi'd opportunities of watching and studying the abundant life on the Islands. There were seals, sea lions, and birds of all sorts. They caught 60 albatrosses and tied to ( their legs, with wire, sealed up cartridge cases, in which were messages telling of the plight of the castaways. These birds will be of great scientific interest now, because the question of how long an albatross lives is an, interesting one, and the finding of one of these birds 100 or 150 years hence will have an important bearing on the question. Adventures were numerous. He is going to write a book on them when he reaches London.

NARROW ESCAPE FROM A SERIOUS ACCIDENT.

Received March 11, 11.40 p.m. SYDNEY, March 11. The Governor-General A (Sir H. H. Rawson) had a narrow escape from a serious accident while his carriage was descending the Big Jack Mountain, near Bombala. ' , The horses became restive and started to bolt down the hill. The driver was thrown out of his seat, but retained the reins until mounted troopers were able to get hold of the horses and stop their flight.

SHIPPING

Received March 11, 11.53 p.m

SYDNEY, March 11. Arrived- Senorita, from Whangape.

QUEENSLAND POLITIC^

POLICY OF THE OPPOSITION

Received March 11, 11.53 p.m. BRISBANE, March 11

Mr R. Philp, Leader of the Opposition.senunciated the Opposition policy in a speech at Maryborough. The broad of the policy,£said Mr Philp, were unfettered opening of lands for settlement, a bold programme of progressive railway construction, vigorous and systematic introduction of the right class of immigrants, consolidation and extension of the mining laws giving reasonable security to the tenure of lessees while conserving the rights of miners on private property, construction of railways to mining fields, and of members to fifty coupled with an equable re-distribu-tion of the seats. Touching on the reform of the Council, the speaker said the State could be subdivided into Council electorates to which the present member; could be appointed, a vacancy as it occurred to c be filled by election or Government nomination limited to a certain number of years. Income tax should be arranged so that the tax was only levied when required. Failing the abolition of the tax, the exemption should be extended. He favoured a Wages Board to settle industrial disputes. Pending Federal old-age pensions, the State should continue the present system with increased allowances and more generous administration. He favoured the abolition of Sunday liquor trading. The question of Bible reading in schools should be submitted to a referendum. He would establish a University in Queensland. He would not support a tax on land values, and would resist further encroachment on State rights by the Federation. He would also oppose any scheme of unifying the States.

A SHAM FIJIAN PRINCE,

Received March 11, 11.40 p.m. SYDNEY March 11. During the discussion at the Methodist Conference on the recommendations of the recent Commission to Fiji recommending the admission of natives as representatives to the Fiji Sydnod, the Rev. Burgess of Fiji, said that the Fijian was not capable of dealing with matters that would come before that body. He stated that recently a man had been sent to Australia, who made the people here the laughing stock of Fiji. That man was Nico Ranuku, who was known in Australia as Ratu Nico Rabuku. In Fijian "ratu" meant prince, but the man had no princely blood in his veins. The title was tacked on for the trip. He was only an ordinary member of a tribe, but had been lauded and feted in Australia by people not knowing him. He had only just been admitted to the membership of the Church. The story of the sham Fijian prince produced considerable disorder, [attempts being made to suppress the matter.

Eventually the other business was proceeded with.

CABLE NEWS.

By Telegraph—Press Association—Copyright