The Wairarapa Daily MONDAY, AUGUST 2, 1880.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume 2, Issue 531, 2 August 1880, Page 2

The Wairarapa Daily MONDAY, AUGUST 2, 1880.

Two out of the three journals published in Wellington are sore on the subject of Government by Royal Commissions,' < a« they term it.' New Zealand liaa, ] .however, but little else to be grateful ' for in the way of political mercies. Our. 1 Royal Commissions have been wont of ] late to speak plain, unvarnished, and unpalatable truths. Ministers cannot do this, because by so doing they offend, their supporters, and do not conciliate their enemies, The Native Commission; the Civil Service, Commission, and the Railway Commission have not been fettered by obligations t« friends or fear of enemies, and in . their reports ve get .the truth, the

gent and trustworthy men to give it. It is a- singular fact that the Civil Service Commission: kcl the Bail way Commission both "went over the same field in their labors, with much the same results. The former directed its attention specially to the question of official administration, while the latter took a somewhat wider scope. The conclusions of these two independent investigations are wonderfully harmonious. The Railway Commissioners' report confirms emphatically the recommendations of tho Civil Service report, and the Civil Service report strengthens that of the Railway Commissioners'., Both reports strongly appeal to the Government and the couutry to conduct public undertakings on strict commercial principles, aud to do away with log-rolling and red-tapeism. The Minister for Public Works has evoked precisely similar evidence from two impartial witnesses. Had their statements varied he could, with some show of reaso'u, have distrusted their testimony, and taken a line of his own. As matters now stand he cannot well swerve to the right or to the left, and though every iufluonce is being brought to bear in Wellington to force on to the Government that gross political job, the Wellingfcon-Foxtou .railway, it is evident that it will be unsuccessful, The report of the Railway Commission proves that all we have said in the past against this pet project was the simple truth. We look forward with confidence to the Public Works Statement, believing that it will be a thoroughly honest document, thanks to the influence brought to bear upon it by our Roy.nl Commissions. Of the many hundreds of thousands of pounds which have, as it were, been hitherto thrown into the gutters in New Zealand, under the authority of previous Public Works Statements, it is now useless to speak,, For many a year to come we shall be taxed to pay for money that has been absolutely squandered, but we have the satisfaction of knowing that no more millions, or even hundreds, are to be knocked down anyhow or any way in the future. The purging of the public administration will for a season depress the Colony, and till the process is accomplished we can hardly look for that revival of national prosperity for which we hare been so long waiting: The disease proves to have been more severe than even alarmists declared it to be, and we are not surprised that the evil days still cling to us. Months ago we stated that in our opinion the existing depression was lifting, and that the dark cloud that overshadowed the land was breaking up. We were partly wrohg in our surmise, because the Colony had not realised, and we ourselves had failed to understand the extent to which public money in the Colony had been squandered and wasted. The revelations of the Royal Commissions have brought into light a spectre of corruption, which still keeps the dark cloud over us. It will be mauy months yet before our paths will be pleasant and profitable in New Zealand, and those who wait for the turn of the tide, instead of battling with the adverse waves, will find that there are worse days before them yet than those which they have passed through. The Masterton Youths' Football Olub meet for practice to-morrow afternoon at 3.30. The FeathorstonlMutual Improvement and Debating Society meets to-morrow evening. The regular monthly meeting of the North Wairarapa Benevolent Society takes place this afternoon. We hear on good authority that J. 'N. Owen, late landlord of the Melbourne Hotel, Wellington, is about to fill the same capacity in the Tenui Hotel. • Mr Hutchison has withdrawn his Chinese Prohibition Bill, as the Government is conferring with other colonies in the Australian group with a view to joint action, It will be seen by our telegrams that the Greytown team was beaten at football in Wellington on Saturday last, Our representatives are none the less a credit to the district in being able to make a good stand against the elite of the Empire City. The match at Masterton which had been arranged for the same day had to succumb to bad weather. Pity our poor farmers! They wore recently called together to get up a ploughing match for their ploughmen, and they did not respond to the summons. In an advertisement which appears in another column, the ploughmen and farm laborers are requested to meet to arrange a match for their employers, We underitand that the ploughmen intend to offer a really valuable prize to the best ploughing farmer n the proposed competition. The Greytown Boys' Football Olub met a team at Morison's Bush on Friday, and although the match was drawn, it was decidedly in favor of the Greytown boys, who kept the ball constantly near their opponent's goal and compelled them to force down fourteen times. One try was made by the Greytownites, but was disputed and given against them. Mr Maguire umpired for the visitors and Mr A. Hirschberg for the Kaitara boys. The return match will probably be more evenly contested. The concert in aid of the Greytown Private Band was given on Friday evening, but was not so well attended as the company as a body'deserved. We have before remarked that the members have been to the fore whenever asked to assist in anything'pertaining to good objects and the amusement of the public, but the public have hardly returned the compliment as they should have done,. We think the outside amount netted will not exceed L 9. For the concert itself, we can say that all those who were not pretent lost a treat that is seldom offered in amateur entertainments. In the glee "The Bells of St Michael's Tower," the comiosong "The Babies of our Block," by Mr Palmer, and a comic by Mr Brownj who responded to an aneore with' a parody on "Just before the Battle, Mother "Ye Shepherds Tell Me," by Messrs Palmer, Wickerson,and Ronaldson, a solo " Dreamland," by Miss Spratt, and the trio, " Little Farm," by Messrs 0, Bollard, H," Udy, aiid'G, Say well, the: last being redemanded. The instrumental pieces were wellVgivan , and. appreciated. The. entertainment' wound up with an amusing farce, " A.; Martyr to Science," in whioh Messrs Webster and Avery sustained/the principal characters,.Mr Web- • atfer being particularly happy in his cast of Humphrey Davy, a scientific lecturer on magnetico photographico biology, but evidently disappointed in his sherry. We hope the band will., not be long" in again .bringing^an;.entertainment; and

The Public Works Statement is expected i to be made this evening. r Latest advices from London report the f tone of the wool market to be quiet. c Business has been quiet during the past j week. In the Wairarapa it-has been c almost stagnant. ] The 3rd of April, 1881,- is, the date fixed ■<! for the n«t census, The first of that i month has been avoided for an obvious > reason. f In moving the second reading the 8 Babbit Nuisance Bill no Friday last, the 1 Premier said that 500,000 acres of land 1 had been abandoned by settlers from this 1 cause. c e Messrs W. and M. Leahy, Lambton Y Quay, Wellington,[announce in our front page column a genuine clearing sale of c £SOO worth of boots and shoes. | We lmve received a letter from Messrs c F, G. Moore, and D. McGregor, re the c proposed Waipoua toll gate, which is of 1 special interest in view of the Borough | Council meeting to-morrow evening. We > are however compelled by pressure on 1 our space to hold it over for our issue of c to-morrow. a The following rabbit skins have been • purchased in Masterton during the past ( week—R. Brown & Co., 123 dozen; j Vile & D'Arcy, 83 dozen. ■: ( Oats are quoted in Wellington now at i from 2s to 2s 3d. There is a decided up- \ ward tendency in the market for them, i As there are heavy stocks of last seasons 1 crop in the Wairarapa, the change in < value will be appreciated here. i At a meeting of the Education Board, ( held on Friday last, a letter was received 1 from the Under-Secretary of the Educa- ' tiou Department, informing the Board that, as Parliament had reduced the vote - for educational purposes by L 30,000, the 1 capitation allowance for the year would ' be reduced from L 3 IBs to L 3 ss. It was resolvedjthat all teacher s and committees ! be informed that the Government having ' decided to reduce the grant payable to the Board by 10s per head on the average 1 attendance, it will be necessary to make ' reductions in expenditure in proportion. That the Board will, therefore, be com- 1 polled to readjust-the scale of payments to teachers and committees, and gives this notice to prepare them for the change, . The funeral of the late Mr John Kelleher, licensed surveyor (says the Evening Telegraph, Timaru), took place yesterday afternoon. The deceased had been for thirteen years a prominent member of the Maßonio fraternity—had served as Master —and as a mark of respect upwards of 100 of the brethren, representing various lodges in this district, attended the obsequies as "friends." A number of surveyor and about 200 persons who had been intimately acquainted with the deceased joined in,the cortege. The coffin, which bore the deceased's apron and a wreath of evergreens, left the Timaru Hospital at 4 o'olock, and was borne by Messrs T. Turnbull, O.fPalliser, 0. E. Whitcombe, F. W. Stubbs, T. G. Rowley, E. Jones, O. F. Hallam, T. Oharteris, W. A. Ford, D. M. Ross, P. Sinclair, J. Jones, Fry, B. W. Potter, and W.f'Elliott, and, on reaching the Timaru Cemetery was met by the Rev L. L. Brown, 8.A., a Church of England i Clergyman, who, in the absence of the Incumbent, kindly diasharged the last sad ■ rites at the grave. We learn that it is the intention of the craft, as a mark of esteem to a true-hearted and faithful brother in adversity, to raise a fund for the support 1 and education of his two orphan children, • who are now at Masterton residing with some relations, and that the lodge of St. John, E.G., Timaru, after their meeting on Friday evening promptly remitted a small sum to them as a temporary relief, The other Lodges will doubtless consider the case at their next meeting, and from our knowledge of the benevolence and charity which characterise the fraternity, a large sum should be forthcoming. We are informed that the deceased had some time since effected an insurance upon his life for the sum of £SOO, but in consequence of severe domestic affliction and misfortune, was compelled to discontinue his payments, and the policy fell through in December last.