Our Wellington Watchman.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume IX, Issue 2871, 12 April 1888, Page 2

Our Wellington Watchman.

Whether the prayers of those Invercargillites have been of any avail, I know not; certain it is that until Tuesday last we have had some beautiful weather in Wellington, and that, I think, is an event remarkable enough to chronicle. The air Ims been balmy, though deliciously cool, the sky of deepest cerulean, and the poetical Wellingtoman might during the last few days have been able to form some conception of Word worth's

" Light that never was on sea or land," For there lias been an exquisite coloring over everything, peculiar to New Zealand, and to New Zealand only, (luring a fine autumnal season. Monday brought with it the usual earthquake, and Tuesday the accustomed tornado, with cold from the southern ice keen as a razor's edge, and to-day, though the sun is bright o'er head, the harmless necessary tram driver goes past my window muffled up to the nose like an Esquimaux.

Talking about earthquakes, we have bad two shocks, on Monday and Tuesday respectively, The first was the most severe I have felt in New Zealand. Dear old grandma of the N.Z. Times has to-day a most remarkable article on the earthquakes aud the reported volcanic disturbance at Keri Keri. "Gentlemen of the jury," summed up the judge in that celebrated case, Bardell v Pickwick, " if Mrs Bardell be right, it is perfectly clear that Mr Pickwick must be wrong, and if you think the evidence of Mrs Cluppins worthy of credence, you will of course believe it, and if you don't you won't." On somewhat similar lines Granny-dear sums up the recent earthquakes and "volcanic eruption," leaving us in dire perplexity as to whether everything underground is just as it should be, or whether we may expect at any moment Rangitoto to rage and Rimutaka to roar. The dear old lady has managed to leave the matter so as she'll shine as a moderately good prophetess in either eventuality. She has a very pretty knack of this kind of thing. For mv own part, I think New Zealand came out of the sea and will go back there. I should be sorry if she slithered into the foam in granny's time, because we should sorely miss the leader she would, had circumstances permitted, have written on the calamity. That there is some uncanny activity knocking around is evidenced not only by the disturbances just alluded to, but by several tidal irregularities which have been noted round our coasts. Not long ago there was a very high tide-almost approaching

the dignity of a tidal-wave—afc Weland ever since I have been calculating the distance from my' lean-to to the nearest foot-hills, because another foot or two of water would lmve flooded our part of the town. ■ This reminds me the only visit I ever paid to Riverton in the. South Island, I observed, when walking the main street, and gazing down one of the. streets that run at right angles to it and tho sea, that • the ocean appeared almost on a level with my eyes. This, doubtless, was an optical delusion; nevertheless, Riverton lies very low, or Riverton sea-level is rather high, I could not help fancying the uucomfortable position the inhabitants would be in, if at any time old oceanin his vagaries rolled in a ten foot tidal-wave. I mentioned the matter to the Catholic priest, a charming, scholarly old gentleman, with an eye that betokened that a life-time of wrestling with thei\ "Old Serpent" hadnot quenched the mild humor of his nature. " Yes," he said," Riverton lies very low; I think someday the inhabitants may be • drowned. But," he added thoughtfully, " water is not the element. I ' dread most for the people of this ■wickedtown." "But, for yourself, Father, have you no fear of drowning?" I asked. "My son,"he saidj "jleath has no fears for tho He added thoughtfully : "Besides; I have built on the hill." So he had, fifty feet at least above high water mark.

I cannot give you any news about Ministers, because, like their predecessors, whom they reprobated, they are engaged waltzing round the land, making themselves acquainted with the people-at the people's expense. ''our George" is supposed to be visiting the public schools in the Auckland district, Mr Mitchelson is sundowning in the King Country, and the others * are backing and filling about the earth £ like a tin pot in a tideway, The same ■ old game! As soon as a Ministry has spent its thousands in travelling round to make itself acquainted witli the ' great heart of the people,' it is kicked out of Eden into thak howling Sahara where travelling expenses and 'perks' are unknown, and another virtuous Ministry comes in, and in its turn spends thousands in going <wer the same old highways and byewML

Tho English Conservatives liave quite adjusted the Irish question, law and order are restored, and the new golden era has dawned. We know this is so because the genteel Puff says so. At the same time, the police and cavalry vary the monotony of peace by sabreing the peasantry, and denying them the right of public meetings. ' One of the latest telegrams must have slipped through unobserved by the Tory censor, because it admits that people reluming from a meeting (not attending a meeting) were charged by ** the police. How much longer will Ireland, how much longer will England, tolerate these beer and bible butchers? Not long now, I think, The soughing of the storm grows louder and yet more loud for those who have ears to hear.