The Waikato Argus GEORGE EDGEGUMBE Proprietor. THURSDAY, JULY 15, 1597.

Waikato Argus, Volume III, Issue 157, 15 July 1897, Page 2

The Waikato Argus GEORGE EDGEGUMBE Proprietor. THURSDAY, JULY 15, 1597.

The gift of the Cape Colony of a battleship to the Nation will meet with the eordial approval of the Empire. The monetary sacrifice is considerable to the colony and the gift will be proportionately appraised and appreciated. The Australasian colonies have contributed, but they have lessened, both the sentimental and monetary value of the gift, by restricting the power of the Admiral, under whose flag the subsidised vessels sail, to deal with them in the event of war, in the manner he might deem most advisable in the interests of the whole nation. They insist that these vessels shall be kept in the immediate neighbourhood of their ports, which might by some chance be subjected to attack. This proviso in the. first place is a display of selfishness, and in the second is a lessening of the value of the money granted, for the reason that to restrict the action of an Admiral is to very possibly render his knowledge of naval tactics of less value than would be the case were he allowed a free hand. Again the knowledge that lie was so restricted would enable a foreign Admiral to take full advantage of the fact. The Cape, as the Times is reported to have written, has realised that the only sound theory in naval warfare is that the central authority should be unfettered in its operations. Mr Reid, the Premier of .New South Wales, has not lost an opportunity since he went to London of evidencing a huckstering spirit when dealing with the relations between the colonies and the Mother Country. It was ungenerous on his part when noticing the action of the Cape to have discounted her liberality by pointing out that " the Cape had given all the trouble to .Britain, and that the Australasian colonies had given none/' lie furgot when he made this remark, that it was the fact of the; British licet beiiiy at the back of diplomatists that restricted the action of France and Germany in the Pacific in directions inimical to the interests of Australasia, or calculated to be a danger to her commerce. He might with equal justice have thrown out the same taunt with regard to New Zealand. A\" e n . u | ;l native population Lo deal with, and had to ask- the assistance of the Imperial Government to make our position secure. That this was the case was our misfortune, not our fault.

There was a smart shock of earthquake at Napier at 9 35 on Tucs clay morning.

What promises to We a rather entertaining breach of promise ease is to be brought by a Wellington young lady, claiming £SOO from a member of the poliee force in Christehuruh. 'I be ease will be lieard in Wellington.

The approaching dairying season has caused a sharp rise in dairy cows at profit. At Mr Hunter's Ohanpo sale on Tuesday Mr 1). McLaren's fine herd of cows brought together a lot of buyers, and keen competition ensued, prices reaching A'(i lis. Springing heifers also brought good prices. For the Queen's Prize at LMsley, a hundred colonial riile shols have entered, including fifteen New Zeulanders. In connection with the con.petitions, twelve commemoration prizes have been offered, for which Indiana and colonials may compete, with au aggre gate value of £IOO.

At the meeting of the Hamilton Borough Council on Tuesday evening, (Jr. Sandes drew attention to the fact that an alleged mangy horse was at large in Hamilton, and he thought that the case should be looked into. The Town Clerk was instructed to refer the matter to Mr Ro=s, Inspector of the Stock Department.

Edward John Arlow, at the Magistrate's Court, Christchurch, has boon lined £5, or in default three months' imprisonment, for purchasing brandy while prohibited. A case against Edward Hiorns, licensee of the Central Hotel, for supplying Allow with liquor, was dismissed, as the police were unable to prove knowledge.

Mr Hall, who recently purchase:! the farm on the Ohanpo Road known as " Hibbs,' " has already made some noticeable improvements on the road line. The fences have been straightened up and the furze and other- noxious weeds growing on the road have been grubbed. This, with considerable areas of worked land visible from the road, makes a favourable impression upon passers by.

We regret to learn that sheepworrying dogs were at work in Tuhikatamea last Saturday night, Mr W. Livingstone's flock of breeding ewes being badly knocked about. Two sheep were killed and several wounded,, while a number are missing. The occurrence is particularly unfortunate at the present time as the ewes are close to lambing, and the full extent of the damage done is yet to to ascertained

The .Shakespear Hotel, Napier, was broken into on Monday night or early on Tuesday morning, and about £.">o in notes and silver abstracted from the till. Two men have been _ arrested at Hastings on suspicion of being concerned in the affair. This is the second burglary within a few days, the Shamrock Hotel having been" entered on Saturday night, but the robbers only succeeded in getting a number of cheques. District Judge Kettle asked a bankrupt at Mastertuii the other morning, " Wlu's master of the situation ; who rules in your household —yourself or your wife ?" The bankrupt hesitated and scratched his head, eventually remat king, " Well, I haven't got much say." His Honor smiled and said, " You don't put your foot down then ?" to which the debtor replied, amidst laughter, ''Perhaps it would not be much use trying !"

Early lambs arc coining forward on the kukuhia Estate, and .it is to be hoped that the timely death of three or four sheep " worriers " effected during the past lew weeks will have checked the serious loss to sheep-owners too often recorded at this season in past years. Whilst on this subject we learn that the names of the owners of the dogs recently poisoned at The Lake, Hamilton, have been ascertained, and step* arc about to lie taken tor the recovery of the value of the sheep destroyed and otherwise maimed.

The selection committee of the Janterbury Amateur Athletic Club have chosen the following to go into training for the Australasian meeting. The trials take place on August '2otb, after which the best men wlil be recommended to rhc association to go to Sydney : Spiints, YV. Bulclie, A. Clark, J. H. Hempton, A. Robinson, and W. Hayward ; quarter-mile flat, H. M. Reeves ; high and long jump, P. J. Brown and 11. H. Picrev ; long distance events. C. C. Cox, W. J. Pearey, and \V. F. Simpson (Kirwee) ; hurdles, J. Moir and J. Shirley ; walking, 11. Goodman ; weight and hammer throwing, C. Louisson.

A very serious tramway accident occurred in Sydney on Sunday last. It appears that a loaded tram from Waverley was standing at the foot of a steep hill in Oxford-street, when another loaded train collided with the rear. This did not residt in serious damage. Before, however, the two trams could get out of the way, another with two heavily-laden cars came at full speed down the hill, All efforts to_ stop it weie unavailing, and it crushed into the two trams --»t the bottom of the incline. Several people were injure'!. On an examination of the last two trams, it was found that a stone had been carefully fitted into the nozzle of each of the airbrakes, the work, no doubt, of some utterly unscrupulous scoundrel. Within the last two months (writes our Ohinpo eorrespondent)sevcral consignments of young trout try have been sent up and distributed into several of the many streams running into the Waipa. Many years ago brown trout were put in some of those stiearns, but they all disappeared. It is to be hoped the rainbow will be more successful. Mr McQuiik has applied for 1000 young fish to be liberated in the Ifarapipi stream. This is a real good stream and ought to suit trout well. Mr Ellis, of Otorohanga, also got a consignment, which weie liberated in some of the stony cricks in that district. I noticed in the Raglan district several good streams that would he very suitable for the purpose. It is to be hoped they will take advantage of the chances now offered of stocking their streams with a good edible li.-h.

Hamilton is not the only place in which it is assorted Lluit irregular petitions are concocted. The New Zealand Herald, alluding to the petition to the Mayor of Auckland in reference to the Military Tournament Fund, writes : " Jn the first place, it is not one but several petitions, though all the lists of names have beeL carefully gummed to as to form one lonu array. But l".y holding before a light many of tin: places where the sheets have been joined it is plainly .seen that scores have signed not out of dissatisfaction, but " to request ;he Mayov to call a monster meeting re children's hospital,'' to " decide what is to be done with the proceeds of the military tournament ' ; that '" we, the undersigned, are in favour of the military tournament being applied to building a children's hospital " ; to call a meeting " Tournament money : Statue v. children's bosP'bd : ' ; that " we believe the Queen's iceord reign should be commemorated by a children's hospital." In no single instance, except in the first sheet, is there a word winch would tell those signing the sheets that the citizens had already decided upon the matter ; evidently that has been kept completely in the background.