The Wairarapa Daily. THURSDAY, AUGUST 25, 1881.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume 3, Issue 855, 25 August 1881, Page 2

The Wairarapa Daily. THURSDAY, AUGUST 25, 1881.

The Bec/jnd reading of the Bail way Construction and Land Bill has been carried by 31 ( vofes to 5 in the House of Representatives, and yet it is one which no Statesman in the Assembly can back with a clear conscience. It has <betm forced on an unwilling Ministry by Wellington and Otago members, The Cabinet has in this matter, yielded to temptation. An abje and au impartial Royal Commission two years ago .condemned both the Otago Central lino and the- <Wel-lington-Poxton line as unprofitabj.e speculations. Everybody knows that these lines won't pay, though the advocates of them put on a bold face and say that tliey will • and it is certain that if they are constructed someone will lose heavily by them, The Government very properly refused to take the responsibility of making them and adding a few more millions to our national debt without any prospect of having money available for the annual interest, It was felt that the English moneylender would also fight shy of these bad speculations, 30 a bait in the shape of a Government grant of land is held out to him with a view to induce him to take the risk. Even wis this additional attraction it ; is just possible that the London ln.oneylender will fight shy of those unprofit* abje IJnes, The Premier has said that the problom the Government had to jßolye was Jo open up new country without increasing ,our indebtedness, hut as in any case the lines will be constructed out of borrowed money, tfjur indebtedness \viM be increased! all the flame, .excepting that the increase will be more pf a private than of a pubjic character; If it Jje admitted that money is to be borrowed for further railway worts, it is oyioleni; that the break of 215 mile? in the North Island main line and the I|o miles incomplete in the Southern railway chain are the works which should have # decided preference. On all' principles of public policy these arterial ]>nes are the only ones which the Government can assist. Log-rolling, however, i? too strong in the House for even the Hall Ministry to withstand, and indebtedness for railways is to be increased for works which have been condemned by practical men, while, the works which the same men. pressed on the colony as necessary are shoved into the background, It is

painful to see the length to which the Government lias had to go "to meet the wishes of their supporters.: In America railways have been, constructed' by private companies-.;on' grants from the Government of blocks of 'tho*land through which they pare Our Government take up this principle, but are met with the difficulty that along I the West' Coast of this province the Government have'no blocks, to give away, so drawing a pen right through tho principle on which their scheme is based, they introduce a clause to give land somewhere else. In the American principle there is some protection for public interests, but where are we to stop when tho, lines are to be put in one place and the blocks of land in another. We may yet see a block of land in the Wairarapa County given to the promoters of tho Wellington and Foxton JRailway. We do not object to the principle of giving, alternate blocks through which any line may pass, but we protest against the adoption of this principle and exemptions from its operation in the Bill now before the House. Mr Macanshew has declared in Parliament that not a single mile of railway will be made under the present Bill, and we hope that he will prove a truo prophet. Sooner or later radway construction will be again proceeded with in New Zealand, but we hope it will not be suddenly galvanised into activity by the demands of one or two- small cliques in the House, without a due regard to the interests of the colony as a whole. If passed this session, the Railway Construction and Land Bill would be a Gaming and Lotteries encouragement measure, It is in the interests of the colony that it should be postponed.

Cheap freight kd tlio effect some time ngo of. flooding the Wairarapa with Canterbury produce and ruining many of ourfanners. It does not, however, follow that because the immediate result of a reduction of carrying charges depressed farming interests that the permanent effect of it will be injurious. A fair competition is ii) the long run beneficial to any industry, and though Wairarapa farmers may have suffered from it a temporary reverse, they will yet be stimulated by it to renewed efforts. Tho railway tariff meeting yesterday was in our opinion very useful in eliciting some discussion on an important question of this oharacter, and in revealing the fact that after all there is surplus produce in the district which reqnjres an outside market. Independently of any direct result that may be obtainable from the late meeting, the movement is of value as tending to show that tho settlers in the town and neighborhood arc alivo to the advantages of co-oporating to promote the interests of the district. If the promoters of tho late meeting went a stop furthor and organised a trade and farming union, the members of which might hold monthly meetings for flje discussion of commercial and industrial questions, thpy would we believe materially assist the progress of the town and district, In the special question submitted to the late meeting, one memorial will scarcely prove adequate to attain tho objects sought lp bp ae'epmplished, It, hpwever, 'there were an organisation of a permanent character, such as the one we suggest, trade questions might be thought out carefully,'and when once any particular requirement was deemed to bo necessary nndpracticable a standjfjg committee could, in season and'ontofi?easn|i ; press it on the powers that bo till it was Such, a coniUitfio top, could, by cooperation with .ptiier local bodjes. otyajn results which no one town single-handed cpuji} ppct to realise,

Kip Honor Judge Shaw holds an adjourned sitting at the District Court at Masterton to-morrow.

The Premier Jias stated that Sir Arthur Gordon's visit to Fiji' will necessitate his absence fur six weeks or two months from the colony. . Mi- T. Tunibull, arebitQct to the Wellington Education Board, is now in Masterton inspecting the progress of the new school buildings. A requisition is being numerously signed' arising Mr T. E. Price to come forward as a wuldjijajo for the Borough Council.

At a meeting of the Commissioners of the Education reserves, held at Wellington on the 12th inst., it wiib decided that Mr Walter Mnrison, of Manaia, retain possession of sections 9 and 14, Miiuaia block, dijring t))e period of tho existing lease, which terminates Ist October, 1894, subject to the original rent of ?s pd per acre.

We beg to remind our Greytown readers of the last of the series of Winter Evening Entertainments to bo given at the' Town Hall this evening. A capital programme has been prepared so we hope tfcere will bo a full house,

Greytpwn has presented quite a busy appearance for the JasJ few days as the Contractors for'the Borough. Works are jn full swing and the day laborer's under Cr, Haigh are pushing on with the regravelling of the footpaths. When the works are completed tjip Township will present a very creditable appearance besides being muoh more comfortable for pe.lestrians. The Masterton Amateur Dramatic. Olub entertain the public this evening with Tom Taylor's great drama " The Ticket of Leave man." The care tho members of the Club have taken in putting this piece on the stage, and their well-known histrionic capabilities, should secure them a larger audience this evenim; than they have obtained on any previous occasion. Their former appearances bayp always been attended with success, but to-night's programme will, we venture to say,- be a triumph.

There was & first class muster of the Greyto'wn Volunteers on Tuesday evening notwithstanding the boisterous state of the weather. ■Drill-Instructor Bezar put them through their drill, at which they acquitted themselves very creditably. Tlie Quadrille Assembly was as well patronized as ever, about ladies being present. Dancing was kepi" up with great spirit till eleven o'cldck, the' music being supplied by tho Baiid till 'o.Bo' arid after that by Messrs Maxton and Ronaldson.

A cleric in the Napier Post Office named Rendell lias been arrested on 'charges of wholesale robbery. No one' suspected hiip; but his 'wife informed the police, saying that shop.ould no hingef rest under the knowledge of his robberjej. According to her account, he has systematically opened letters in the office and abstracted sums of money, varying from £lO downwards. When arrested, he was engaged in opening Puketapu letters, and in his possession were found thirty skeleton keys, with which his wife 'states ha has been in the habit of entering shops in the town and taking out goods he happened to want. Dinwiddie, Walker and 0» are said to be. the heaviost sufferers in this way." He will be 'brought up before the Resident Magistrate to-morrow. :.

On Saturday night a sbecial' train will leave Maslerto'n at ; midnight to convey visitors from other'townships, who are expected in' : considerable 'numbers that day, back to their homes.-■•'/ j

_ gergt.,MqArdle - acting ; -iinder instructions has been, collecting samplos of the spirituous-liquors vended-'in Mastorton. Tho intention is to send them down to the Government analyst at Wellington who will examine them in accordance with tho Adulteration of Food's Prevention Act.- Bread will-probably also.be sent down for this purpose.

The Masterton-'Eifle Volunteers and Cadets assembled for company drill last evening but the' rain. prevented any exercise and the corps, simply fell in and were dismissed; : .:,,. : .-.-- ..•

William Phillpot was arrosted last ovening at Carterton by, Constable Evan's on the charge of embezzling monoy from the Heart-of Oak Oddfellow's Lodge, to the amount of nearly one hundred pounds. He has been acting as Secretary since the foundation of the Lodge, and is charged that instead of banking* the contributions of members, he has lived on the money. He'will be brought up before a J.P. to-day and remanded to Featherston,

Dkar' Snv,4-Some time ago your valuable paper announced that it was within the range of possibility; that we should have a woollen factory started in this district. The sooner this is done the better for all classes, Then Messrs Rapp & Hare, of the Emporium, Queen-street, will not have to send cash to Mosgiel or Kaiapoi for their'tweeds, But keep the money in the district, which all well-wißhera of th« future of the. Wairarapa should do.— [Advt.] . Good morning Mr Gardener I I have travelled a long way to get to your store. Tou are the best friend the public ever had, for since you have been in Carterton you have always sold goods cheaper and better than any other storekeeper, You have caused other storekeepers to lower their exorbitant prices; but still they will have to lower them more yet to compete with your firm, for,on comparing the other's price list I find (not only one), but every single article on your firm's list is at the very least from 25 to 50 per cent cheaper. How is it that you can sell so cheap ] Why, madam, the reason is simply this: We are satisfied with moderate profits; wo pay cash for all our goods; and send home for them ourselves, Then again, we have an agent in England who knows when and where to buy. By doing this we save fully 25 to 50 per cent, and we give our customers the benefit. Moral—Send for B. A. Gardener & Son's price list, Their address is Criterion Store, Carterton.—fAdvt.l