The Wairarapa Daily. SATURDAY, APRIL 2, 1881

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume 3, Issue 733, 2 April 1881, Page 2

The Wairarapa Daily. SATURDAY, APRIL 2, 1881

At Taranaki, Major Atkinson endeavored to show that the Property Tax was infinitely superior to an Income Tax, in a colony like New Zealand, and as a Colonial Treasurer he was undoubtedly right in giving the former a preference. It is very easy for a colonist to declare tfiat lie has no income, and very hard to prove that he has, There can be no doubt that a Property Tax yields the larger revenue, because a man who possesses property cannot very well declare that he lias it not, and if he does he is obliged to state to whom it does belong, At the same time it may.be said that it is easy in many instances to defraud the Government under the Property Tax Act, but with a margin allowed' for deductions of this character there remains a. substantial area of taxable property, The Act has been framed in such a manner that the department can take one interpretation of value and an

owner of stock or land anotliev j ajid the difference, has practically ijjedn' reconciled by- the department yielding oil almost all moot points. The oflicei'3 of it have, indeed) exercised so much moderation and such a wise discretion in collecting the tax that the popular prejudice against it has been all but disarmed,. We fear that the tax, having been collected with sucli a measure of success will be a permanent institution in New Zealand., No Colonial Treasurer can very well afford to abandon the power -which it places in liis hands. If lie wants an extra hundred thousand pounds a farthing or sq added to the Tax will give it to him. If lie, on the other hand, has a surplus, he can, by knocking off a farthing or a half-penny, make both ends meet. Financial statements have been wont to be so complicated that they have been unintelligible to experts, and simply torture to neophytes. This has arisen in a measure from the necessity of Colonial Treasurers disguising from inquisitive M.H.R's the mysteries of their exchequers. Just as language can be made to conceal thoughts so can figures be made to hide the ideas of a Colonial Treasurer. The Property Tax, however, gives a fixed amount of revenue, which should enable a Colonial Treasurer to run into his accounts straight, and abandon the complication of advances, withdrawals and transfers which have shrouded so many past statements. A colony, however, less then half a century in age has no businear with either a Property or an Income Tux. They are the wrinkles which are essential, if not becoming, to older countries, and here they are the indication of fast living, and must be regardpd in the light of a penance. Perhaps some day a Colonial Treasurer may arise who will free New Zealand from the burden, but just at present the tax is such a comfortable thing for any Government that the prospect of getting rid of it is all but hopeless.

Nominations for the Wanpanui Derby 1884, close' to-day, Bishop Redwood is expected to reach Wellington on Tuesday next. Captain Edwin, the meteorologist, says there are strong indications of heavy rain 'Tenders are invited for deepening and widening a drain near the Taratahi Hotel. Messrs Murray, Roberts & Co. advertise some splendid samples of grass seed in another column. It is stated that Sir George Grey will shortly address the Thames electors and the leading constituencies of the colony. Messrs Seed and Batkin have completed their inspectorial tour of the Civil Service in the North Island, and are now about to go South. The water supply in Wellington is now reduced to two hours por diem- from 11 to 1 p ,m, Those who nro wont to indulge in early baths must suffer. £IOO,OOO is said to have been spent by the Baroness Burdett-Coutts in aiding fishermen throughout the United Kingdom who have boon proved to be in bad circumstances, and deserving of aid. According to the Hawke's Bay Herald, the expenses of the Governor's late trip through the North Island were paid by himself, and wero not made a public charge, On April Ist the Colonial Treasurer entered upon a new financial year. It is rather a peculiar day to make a fresh start on. " April Pools' Day" is certainly the corner stone of our financial structures in New Zealand. Inspector W, A. P, Sutton, from Blenheim Subdivision, Marlborough District, is gazetted to take charge of the North and South Wairarapa Sub divisions, vice Inspectors T. Telford and J. Drummond, who remain Sheep Inspectors, Mr Sutton is also appointed Ranger of Crown Lands for Wellington Land District,

It has been suggested that prayers (or rain should be offered in the Wellington Churches, A late incumbant of a Ohurch in this district on one occasion proposed this expedient, but did not receive much encouragement from his flock to try the experiment, excepting from one ardent member, who suggested to him that, while he was about the business, he might as well throw the Church dobt into the special petition, In Greytown there are some wicked people who take advantage of the fact that the Government has withdrawn the local, constable, by playing practical jokes, The last one on record is " the mysterious knocks.". A family in the main street was recently appalled by an irregular succession of knocks on the front door through a considerable part of one dark night, Subsequent investigation proved that one end-of a ropo had been tied to the knocker, and the other end had been attached to the neck of a stray calf, A challenge has been sent by the Masterton Volunteer Rifles to the Carterton aiid Kaiwarra Rifles to fire a friendly match on the 6th of April, Carterton to fire at Masterton, and Kaiwarra on their own ground, In the event of the match coming off, the following team will represent the . Masterton Leiut. Donald, Sei*p[t, Girdlestone, Sergt, Wilton, Yol, W, Kibblewhite, C. Bentley, G. Bentley, T. Jaines, A. Matthews, and Wood, Emergency—W. McLaohlan, J, Bentley. Firing to commence at 9 a.m. The New Zealand Gazette contains tho

following announcement The following localities are proclaimed as places where sheep may be crossed on the boundaries between Wellington, Napier, and Auckland sheep districts: In the township of Woodville, Provincial District of Hawko's Bay, at the junction of the main road from Masterton with the main road from Manawatu Gorge to Napier, 'At Te Reinga, on the boundary between tho Napier and the Auckland Sheep Districts, Where the main road from Napier to Taupo crosses the boundary of the Napier and the Auckland Sheep Districts. A meeting of the Masterton Cemetery Trust was held yesterday, PresentMessrs Payton (in the chair), Perry, Hare, and Kelleher. The Treasurer reported a balance in hand of L3O 9s sd. The following accounts were passed for payment :-Ingram, L3l4s; R, Nicholls, L3l3s; Jago, LI Is; Ohincheri, 4s 6d; Paytou & Co., 15s; Bowry& King, 2s 6d j and J, Brown, 10s Gd. Tho Secretary reported that all the graves had been numbered, and the plans of the cemetery marked with the numbers; also, that proper certificates had been prepared for personfl who had taken spaces in the cemetery,

It is stated that 30001bs of oleomargine are daily manufactured in Chicago, A newspaper representative who went on an investigating tour some time ago discovered 15 butter factories in full working order, The" butter" made in these con-, cerns is a compound of soapstone, lard, tallow, and fatty substances; in some cases the material ÜBed being vile beyond belief. Cheese is also adulterated with the same villainous matter. This is a nice state of things for the public to contemplate. ■

•. Sergeantßezar, the ner/ drill instructor for the Wairarapa, arrived in Maste'rion last evening. : '/' At the marriage of Miss Sharon, daugh-; ter of San Francisco's wealthiest banker, with Sir Thomas Fermoy Hesketh, Bart., the bride wore £40,000 worth of diamonds. Special trains were laid on at the father's expense" from San Francisco to the township nearest to his magnificent villa, to convey, the : wedding guests, At the wedding feast the most costly, wines were "swilled" in barbaric profusion, the consumption of champagne alone reaching 1500 large bottles. The bride's dowry is £IO,OOO a-year. A description of the, wedding festivities occupied nearly 16 columns of the San Francisco Post.

If the present wholesale slaughter o! buffalo in the Northwest continues, it will not be many years before the species will become extinct Some idea of the magnitude of the hunt now going on may be formed from a statement in a Miles City (Montana) paper, that over 100,000 hides-will be marketed in that camp this winter. It is safe to say that not onetenth part of all the hides secured will be taken to Miles City, hence it is found, that'.nearly 1,000,000 of these noble animals will be sacrificed this season to satisfy man's greed for wealth. The wrongfulness of the slaughter becomes more conspicuous when it is understoodthat 2.50 dols is the highest price paid for hides, and the average will not exceed 1.25' dols. *

There died recently at Bayview Asylum, New York, one of the most singular persons that has ever lived-a female with a woman's head and the body and arms of a child. Her name was Katie Dashields, She was received in the old country almshouse m 1832 with her mother, During all the time she was in the institution her head grew with eaoh day and year, until it became the head of a woman, but below the neck nature was at a stand-still, She occupied to the day of her death the child's chair she occupied in 1832, when three years old, and slept in the same cradle. Her arms and hand?-were beautiful, and she would show them with great pride to each visitor. This vaiiity was about the only womanly trait sheexhibited and with the exception of being alive to remarks complimentary to the whiteness and perfection of her hands and arms, she seemed to be insensible to all else passing around her. This singular creature was subject to epilepsy, and this is what caused her wonderful condition. She ate and slept well and seemed in her usual health up to fifteen minutes before her death, when she was seized with an epileptic fit, from which she never recovered, Ratio was 48 years of age at the time of her death,

Prom New Caledonia to Queensland coast," says the Brisbane Courier, " is nearly 1000 miles, a journey of sufficient magnitude to demand seaworthiness in the craft attempting it.; yet here is a description of the boat in which the five escapees made the passage. Mr Hamilton sent his son and a South Sea Islander to recover the boat, if possible, and the following telegram from Duiiwicli describes its condition Donald reports boat, probably a condemned man-of-war's cutter, of pine, about 28ft, copper bottomed; mast, tea-tree sapling, cut by themselves, about 6in through, Sails, pieces of old awnings. Oars broken and spliced, Noxt to miracle they lauded safely. Most narrow escape of boat going dead on to rocks in darkness. Boat stove by rock on port side. Side split open and thwart carried away by leverage of mast in rolling over. Boat not worth troubling about in any way."

. Here is a heavy indictment against the swrows, published by. an indignant citizen in the Auckland Herald" I had a few choice strawberry plants, which fruited well, and the fruit was remarkably fine; but unfortunately these birds thought so too, and I only got three undamaged strawberries altogether. I also had a row of a particular kind of pearly maize, which I was growing to send the seed to a friend in the country, but I did not got one ripe cob; the sparrows ate them all when they were green. I also had a few dozen peaches (which were all that the spring frosts and the bud-picking sparrows had left me), They were eaten into holes by these feathered vermin, aud rotted on the trees before they wore ripe, These birds also eat holes into the top of my carrots, and destroyed many of my young marrows by picking at them while they were just forming, and' causing them to rot or to grow deformed. Lastly I had about 50 sunflowers, tlio seed of which Iliad promised to a poor woman for her to sow next year for feed for her fowls; but I shall not be ablo to get one seed ripe, as those wretched sparrows eat the seeds as fast as they form. I send two or three heads to you with the seed just forming, yet nearly all the seed is already eaten out. I would like to know if there is no remedy at law against the introducers of these pests 1"

We hear from reliable authority that it is the intention of Messrs Schroder, Hooper & Co. to make their first grand display of Autumn and Winter Millinery, Drapery, and Clothing at the Hall'of Commerce, on Saturday, March 19th, consisting of 71 packages and bales. As the bulk of their magnifioient stock has been imported direct from tho manufacturers, the public can rely upon obtaining all the latest fashions and designs of the season at_ extremely low prices, We would advise all purchasers and lovers of fashion to make an early call at,the Hall of' Commerce and inspect their stock. Their advertisement will be found on the front page of this paper.—[Advtl.