The Premier.

Waipawa Mail, Volume XXI, Issue 3901, 23 May 1899, Page 3

The Premier.

(by telegraph; (Own Correspondent.) Napier, This day The Premier left this morning for Hastings and proceeds farther south by the later train to day.

An Invercargill property at the oorner of Spey and Levin streets was su'd a few days ago at auction for £BOO Abont 15 years ago, it is stated £3OOO was offered for it. Mr Alexander Fraser, of Clark's Flat, will stand for Taapeka in the Government interest against all comers, Mr James Bennett, chairman of the Taapeka County Council, is also mentioned as a likely can didate. The Christchurch Moat Company approves of the action of the Agrioultnral Department in regard to the inspection of stock intended for human consumption, and has asked that a Government veterin arian should examine all the animals killed at its works at Timaru. An officer will be selected for the daty as soon as arrangements oan be made. Nelson people have been much stirred for months past upon tbe question whether the ina*ter of the Boys’ Central School w«s jQßtified in the aotion he took some months ago in pottiDg back a boy into a lower Standard class than that with which he bad been working. The Now Zealand Educational Institute took tho matter up, end obtained the opinion of Messrs Bell, Gully and Bell, which upheld tho action of the master, bnt pointed ont that the interpretation of any part of tho regulations was absolutely in the hands of the Minister of Education. Now the Minister ha* finally decided that by the terms of clause 4 the master was quite justified in aotiog as he did. Says the Post The price of sheep in this province is still advancing, and prime wetbora are now said to be worth 14s delivered on the hid. This is a big jump from tho rates ruling three months ago, and there haß been a strong hardening of prices with each succeeding week for the paat three weeks. There is some controversy as to the causes of the eujianoed values, but in tbe main they are upnn the *urf>ce. Frozen mutton is at top prices in the Old Country, and the local market naturally responds, and there is a shortage io Canterbury, where to keep tbe freezing works going sheep moet be drawo from beyond that province.

Mr H. C. Cameron, tbe New Zealand Government Inspector of Prodace in Lon* don, in bis last report to the Agricultural Department refers to the increase that has taken place in England of tbe sale and conanmption of margarine. This com poand has been the medium for carrying out a regular system of fraud. Numbers of unscrupulous tradesmen, while profess ing to sell pure butter, have substituted instead mixtures which contain only from 25 to 40 per cent of butter and are worth but half the prioo charged for them. This dishonesty, points out Mr CameroD, has been found to be seriously injuring hooest traders who naturally cannot obtain either ready sale or fair prices for their butter. Prosecutions have been fre quent, bnt it has been found that the profits of traders carrying on this fraud are so enormous that the penalties io force are not sufficiently heavy. Mr Cameron states that be recently accompa nied a deputation to tbe House of Com mons, and gave an assurance that the Government of the colony was in entire sympathy with tbe movement to stamp out fraud in tbe dairy produce trade, and of its hearty Bupport io any step that might be taken to improve the trade generally.