The Waikato Argus GEORGE EDGECUMBE, Proprietor. THURSDAY, APRIL 28, 1895.

Waikato Argus, Volume IV, Issue 280, 28 April 1898, Page 2

The Waikato Argus GEORGE EDGECUMBE, Proprietor. THURSDAY, APRIL 28, 1895.

The evidence taken by the Police Commission pretty conclusively proves that to the direct interference of Ministers with details is due the disorganised state in which it is admitted the force stands to-day. It has been asserted by many witnesses that appointments and promotions have mainly fallen to the lot of these who have been able to bring political influence to bear upon Ministers. The evidence of Colonel Hume establishes that when he was the chief executive officer he was not consulted as to the making of appointments to the force or the promotion of its members ; neither was he consulted as to the shifting of constables from station to station. In no other force in the world, naval, military or police, we venture to say, does the political head of a department appoint men or promote them without consulting the executive officers. But in no other country is every department of the Government service run for all it is worth as a political lever. We are confident that we echo the opinion of nine-tenths of the members of the police force when we write that they would much prefer that they had no vote for the election of members to the House, and this feeling is by no means confined to this branch of the public service. Aside altogether from the personal feelings of Government officials, there is the temptation held out to Ministers to grant, or promise to grant, concessions to civil servants on the eve of an election in order to secure the votes of those interested. It has been frequently stated that this country is to a very large extent governed by the permanent heads of departments. This is necessarily the case. Ministers are appointed for political reasons, and unless very strong men and exceptionally gifted, are to a large extent guided by the opinions of the men who are well versed in all the intricacies of the business of the departments over which, in consequence of a political accident, they are called upon to preside. This evil, if it be one, is largely accentuated by the whole of the staffs serving under the permanent heads having power through the ballot-box. In Wellington, for instance, the members of the civil service hold the balance of power and their votes, cast either one way or the other, decide as to who shall represent the city. The late election went against the Government, no doubt very largely by the vote of the civil servants, who took this mode of damaging a Government that has subjected them to espionage and tyranny such as never before existed in this colony, and is never likely to do again after an indignant country has sent Mr Seddon and his colleagues about their business. In conclusion we repeat that the great majority of the civil servants would vote tomorrow that their names should not appear on the electoral rolls. For our part we are confident that if this were the case the country would benefit in a very high degree.

A meeting of the Waipa Rugby Union is convened for to morrow evening, to arrange fixtures for the coining season. A meeting of the members of the Pukekura Road Board will be held at the ante-room of Oddfellow's Hall, Cambridge, next Saturday, the 30th April, at 3.30 p.m. A meeting of the members and adherents of the Presbyterian Church in the Waikato West charge is convened to be held in the Te Awamutn Church on Monday next, to consider the question of giving a call to a minister. The Most llev., the Primate, will hold a confirmation at St. Andrew's, Cambridge, next Sunday morning. He will also hold a confirmation at St. Stephen's, Tamahere, but the date of the Tamahere confirmation has been altered from Monday evening next to the following Sunday afternoon.

The Executive has finally decided that the sentence of death on Enoko, the Taranaki murderer, shall be carried out. The election of a councillor for the Karioi Riding, Raglan County, resulted in the return of Mr W. J. Smith. The concert and entertainment advertised to be given in the Volunteer Hall, Hamilton, this evening, by Mrs Whitaker and friends, has been postponed until further notice. In the Rev. Father Luck's parish on Sunday uext the only services will be : Mass at Kihikihi at 11 a.m., with evening devotions in the same church at 7 p.m. Bishop Lenihan will be in Kihikihi on that day. We were sorry to hear late last night that Mr Thos. Walter, of The Lake, Hamilton, had the misfortune to break a small bone of his foot. ,How the accident happened we were unable to learn with any degree of certainly, but it is understood that his horse rolled on him, crushing his foot and injuring him as above. There is a gang of burglars in active work in Christchurch. St. Mary's Roman Catholic Church has been broken into, and thecoutenrs of the contribution boxes and the sacramental vessels stolen. Within a week two hotels and the Catholic pro-cathedral have been eutered, also the house of Mr Watkin, the principal of the Mormal School. A proposed acquisition by the Government, in terms of the Land for Settlements Act, which is now under consideration by Cabinet, is of moment, particularly to South Canterbury, and also to the colony generally. The property is well-known as the Waikakahi Estate, long occupied and owned by Mr Allan McLean. It comprises 48,000 acres of freehold, 40,000 acres of which have been ploughed and laid down in suitable grasses. At the inquest at Masterton, on the body of the late Mrs John Cros3, the evidence showed that she was prescribed opium pills some time ago for an internal complaint, and that she took a quantity on Sunday last without the knowledge of her present medical attendant. The jury, without retiring, returned a verdict to the effect that deceased met her death by misadventure, though an overdose of opium pills, and that no blame was attachable to any person. This has been a good season for road work (writes our Ohaupo correspondent). The coarse gravel now laid for a considerable distance past the sale yards is settiug well and is a gooi job, and although expensive at first will be cheaper in the end. The gravel came down by traia from Otorohanga, and makes excellent road metal. I hear several complaints of the gorse and brambles overgrowing the road leading from the Ngaroto Station on towards Paterangi. In some places, I am told, there is hardly room for two vehicles to pass. Evidently the member for the riding wants waking up a bit. Taingakawa, King Mahuta's private secretary, and a son of the famous Thompson Te Waharoa, arrived at Rotorua on Friday last, and was present at a big meeting in Tama te Kapua on the following day. The new Native Land Bill was the principal matter discussed, but nothing definite was expressed, the natives preferring to wait till the Wairarapa meeting takes place. From the tone of the meeting, however, it is evident that the Bill is not favourably regarded by the natives, in spite of what the Premier said wheu here, about its having been favourably received at Huntly. A boat race (writes our Ngaruawahia correspondent), which arose out of a dispute at the last trial fours, and which aroused a considerable amount of interest in the township, was rowed on Monday, 25th inst. The competing crews were : Marshall (stroke), Terawhiti (3), Kay (21, and Gillander (1), and Paynter (stroke), Snelling (3), Bailey (2), and Simmelhag (1). Marshall and his crew drew away at the start and soon led by a length, but oq entering the Waipa Paynter not only had caught his opponents but succeeded in taking the lead. At this point Marshall spurted and soon reduced the lead to nothing, eventually winning by half-a-length. This reversed the positions which these two crews held in the trial fours on Wednesday last. A trio of Wellington johnnies followed three girls—total strangers to them—home from church the other Sun day evening, and made insulting re marks to them. One of the girls turned npon the cads and gave them a bit of her mind—a good sized bit. Just then a local preacher came by, and learning that the johnnies had grossly insulted the young ladies, he put down his Bible on the footpath, pulled off his coat and put it alongside the Bible, and tackling the biggest of the blackguards gave him a hammering he won't forget for a year. The other fellows made their escape. That's the brand of local preacher we admire. The story reminds us of one told about the first Bishop Selwyn who was attacked by a " rough" in the street on one occasion and literally " turned the other cheek " to his aggressor when that worthy smote it a resounding blow. " Now," said the Bishop, " I have done my duty to God and I am going to do it by my neighbour," and with that he waded into the astonished rough until he howled for mercy.---Spectator. Mr R. W. Harvey, of Invercargill, has shown the News a letter from his nephew, who resides in British North America, which should act as a warning to any who meditate a journey to the Frozan North in search of the precious metal. He saya: " I don't think you hear of cases of starvation in the newspapers—they carefully avoid any reference to that. There are several cities on Pugut Sound doing a land office business and outfitting people to Alaska, and the more who come the better lor them. They are careful to avoid soaring anyone away. I see the steamship companies are booming Clondyke—the greatest fraud on earth—in New Zealand. They are enticing men to go into a country 400 miles from the coast to perish of cold or hunger when their funds give out. I have some friends up in that country, and they tell me in their letters that from the time they lefc the lakes till they landed in Dawson City the country win just one huge graveyard. You do not hear that spoken of, though. Those New Zealanders who go there will bitterly repent it when they get on the lay of the country. A parliamentary return showing the taxes and imposts on intoxicating liquors, and the traffic for the year ended March 31st, 1890, would at first sight appear to indicate an increase of the habit of drinking among the population with a decrease in the number of licenses. According to the analysis of the return, the number of licensed brewers has fallen from 13,799 in 1885 to 8305 in 1897, while the gross number of barrels of beer which paid excise duty has t'one up from, in the same period, to 34,203,049. The total number of proof gallons of spirits (home and foreign) has risen from 37,516,987 in 1885 to 41,232,632 in 1897. Yet the whole number of retail licenses has diminished from 173,795 in 1882 to 169,011 in 1897. Curious to relate, the total gross receipts of revenue from the liquor traffic have, though there was a decrease in 1886 and 1887, mounted up from £30,770,161 in 1885 to £36,662.142 in 1897, a rise of over £5,891,000. The natural conclusion is that more business is done under each license, probably from increased accommodation.—British Medical Journal.

The lion. G. F. Richardson's creditors have resolved that the bankruptcy be annulled immediately, conditionally on his son abandoning his claim in the estate, and agreeing to hand over the sum of £2OO odd in the hands of Mr Findlay. No doubt this will be done, and it is not improbable th.;t Mr Richardson will contest the Mataura seat, rendered vacant by the bankruptcy Mr Richardson has asked the advice of the Governor whether his bankruptcy affects his title of Honourable conferred on him by the Queen. The bankrupt was subjected to a long cross-examina-tion. He declared it was a mistake his enuring Parliament and accepting a portfolio, as his business went to pieces. Our Kihikihi correspondent writes :—I beg to call the atteution of the Waipa County Council to the dangerous state of the Orakau Road adjoining Mr Hutchinson's farm, just at the junction of the Rangiaohia Road (commonly known as the " Swamp Road ") with the county road. On Friday night last a someivhat serious accident happened here to Mr Gorrie and a party of four ladies, who were returning in a double buggy from the Cambridge Chrysanthemum Show ; owing to the dark, they were unable to keep to the narrow track where the roads join, and a capsize resulted ; luckily no one was apparently very seriously hurt, though several of the ladies were severely shaken and much bruised, and oue of them has been laid up ever since. My informant tells me that the place in question has been more than once reported or pointed out to members of the Council as being very dangerous ; and although only a small expenditure would be necessary to leve' down the ridges, some of which, are two to three feet high, nothing has yet been done.