GREYTOWN.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume X, Issue 3148, 8 March 1889, Page 2

GREYTOWN.

(From Our Own Correspondent.) With the exception of a heat shower of rain on Monday, we have enjoyed for the past week beautiful Autumn weather, calm, clear sunshine by day, and clear starlight by night, Wi Malmpuku, who, it will be remembered about three weeks ago met with an accident by being thrown from and then rolled upon by his horse, and was reported to be lying dangerously ill at Long Bush, was coiiypyod •to Greytown yesterday mffiiing, He has taken a house at the north end of tho town where he is attended by his tribe and friends, and it is hoped that being near to proper medical attendance and with good linrsinghewill eventually recover his wonted health and vigor, It is rumoured that the Greytown Lodge Ancient Order of Druide Benefit Society are steadily increasing the numbor upon the mombers roll.

There was a magnificent wedding cake on show in Mr A. Grigg's confectionery shop window durinp this week, causing muoli'speculative whispering amongst the young moil and maidens hero as to " who it was for?" The very latest news, re said cake is that it has been taken away to Masterton, from whence doubtless its distribution in infinitesmal ■ portions (according to the rules .which govern " Etiquette") to all and Sundry friends, will answer their anxious enquiries.

Fatal Riot in Alabama, The details of a startling crime and of mob violence following thereupon, resulting in the loss of many lives, bave just been received 1 from the mining town of Birmingham, in the State of Alabama. A women named Hftwes and her two children were murdored,.aud the husband of the woman was arrested on suspicion of having committed the crime. The body of the woman was found at the bottom of a lake, with her head cut open, as if with an axe, and iron weights" amounting to 2001b, bad been tied to her bead and feet. The evidence against the husband was strong, and all the statements he made were proved to be uitiruo, and it was believed that he had committed the orime with the intention of marrying again. Consequently, a a keen feeling was aroused. agoiußt him throughout the community, and many threats were made'to■ lynoh him. . The gaol in' which he was confined was, therefore, doubly guarded, About 12 o'clock on Saturday night a mob went to the gaol, howling and demanding the release of Ham Tho officers refused to give up their prisoner, and commanded tho mob to halt. This order they failed to obey, and the officers fired on thorn with rifles and pistols, i'he shots weru returned, and the firing continued from both sides for from fifteon minutes to half an hour.' None of tho officers were injured, but over twenty of tho mob were either lulled or wounded, The Bheriffa guard is now in possession of all the streets leading to tho'gaol. The sheriff gave the orders to firo, and it is said he turned a Gatling gitn on tho *mob. The. postmaster oi the town, a man named Throckmorton, who was endpavoring to calm the mob, is reported to. be among the killed. ; • :

Press Gang and CrueltyIn connection with the ramming I by a United States steamer of two of the schooners belonging, to tho j piratical oyster dredgers in Cbcsapeko Bay,"i some - details -are published of] the of'; pirSti^al

" Blavers." past they havo- defiedv.tlieMntfsofjaja Maijland, and by the most brutal methods of the press gang have ut recruited their-ranks. : are compelled by tho work night and day, 'and when they from exhaustion they are; flogged, :•<; kicked,' and maltreated > t until. are released by death, many, being thrown overboard, Their masters, however, are so and wield suoh influence that they have generally escaped justice.. Poor., . German immigrants formed; the; majority of tho captured and:all: treated, and eventually a German^.v.; society was formed to prosecute the. villiaus, whenever the evidence,? against Gem justified. It ever, difjfilt to obtain trustworthy • testimony against them. Neveithe-. .. . less; two of the deluded Germans.' • managed in 1884 to elude the clutch of their captor, and a, man ■ nauiedis Williams, who subsequenty was junnv.> down in a swamp- aud sentenced .to.. - ■ 15 years in a Penitentiary. Since then a law has been passed dealing specially; with these dredglKtessels, , ■ " and recently there havo b9: many -: ..if. desertions from them. -Almost'' every day soino half-starved and beaten dredger, who : had been im- * pressed into" service, asks for admission to the Baltimore City Hospital. The chances taken by these people to get away from their oppressors --j would deter any one from making the; attempt except' in cases of ' extreme necessity, They-say that they have been beaten, and otherwise brutally ilUreated and defrauded of the money due to them. One of the escaped men 'says that while, dredg- 1 ing ,pn forbidden grounds the vessel giounded, and 'tile captain came oil deck with a gun'and a revolver, aud made the men work all night to get, r the hoat off J so as to prevent the < State police from capturing her. - He threatened to sboflfctty man -. if he failed to obey. We still at work the steamer Governor Thomas v: oame up and,captured them, w

A Judtfe on Bank Management. ' Mr Justice Wiliiairs, in sentencing William Cazally to two years' , imprisonment for embezzling £IOO, from the Ballarat brancjW tbeksa Colonial Bank last weelty made remarks of a character which are very seldom heard from the judicial I Bench. The prisoner, on being asked J if lie bad .anything 10 say on his ' behalf, statec that whenlie confessed, 'v. his guilt to the Manager and Inspeotor of the Bank they/entered into negotiations with him for.a settle- .if ment. His Honor thereupon said:—; 1 " The remarks just made by you with reference .to the action : of the -I bank in reference to the have urged and impelled me.to make certain remarks with regard. to' the : conduct of banks—not this, bank in * i particular, but banks 111 general—as J regards embezalements committed , I upon their funds. WbaLyou havesaid tallies entirely wi®ny own 1 experience of the conduct of banks. ' lbave unfortunately bad lo try num- -tj| bera-of these charges against, bank clerks in .Melbourne, Sandhurst, 5 Ballarat, and other places, and I > almost invariably find that if the ! banks can succeed in wringing from' : the relatives of the criminal clerk— • ■ ' if they can succeed, under - pressure ' of a prosecution in wringing from tbe relatives sufficient to cover their monetary loss, they hold outehe hope to the criminal that tk Avill not 1 prosecute, or what is equally futile, that they will do their best to get ft, ( ■ light sentence for biin. I do not r hesitate to characterise - nbt ' bank in particular, for most banks do it—such conduct as scandalous in * the extreme. The banks are committing crime in so doing'; they are' ;' compounding a felony,"or they pretend that thoy will compound'felony | if the ioss of their itflky is made 1 1 good. They undertakeTiot to press tbe offence against the criminal so 1 long as they are recouped their money s 1 loss, and they make promises they' know they cannot fulfil—childish 1 promises—in their endeavor to extort' j | from the relatives of the orimiual 1 ' clerk tho equivalent of they money loss. They lmoiv that once a prose- , cution is in the hands of the Crown ; they cannot atop it, and they com-. Mit cruel misrepresentation upon the ' matter. . And if a bank, knowing ' ' that a crime has been committed, promises that if the money is refunded they will not place the matter in the ■■ hands of the officers of justice, they commit the crime of compounding a felony, and the bank manager ought to be prosecuted, It is just as well ' that every bank clerk in this colony, and every bank manager shtf/linow that these felonies cannot to com- ■ pounded, and that, nogjatter what ■■■' reparation is made, thcfltank mananers and oflicers of tho bank have no more power-to get the offender off than the crier of the Court has. Let that be known to every bank maua- * ger and bank clerk in this colony., I 5 must say that, although I cannot agree with all that has been said by ;■ the learned counsel for the. defence, I agree with a great portion of.it. : .1 feel that the clorks of every bank in ' this. Colony are.most inadequately and wretchedly paid. They are ■ expected to dress as gentlemen, conduct themselves as gentlemen, and they are paid in a way that is a , disgrace to the institutions to which | they belong. And. I "say that the : j same miserable economy-the same-. | miserable, oruel economy, which / prompts them to pay. starvation : wages to the gentlemen they take ~ into their employment as bank clerks —is the same miserable, impolitic, 1 oruel economy that causes the careless supervision they have over their' -' clerk's work, in order that tliey may bo able to return bettor Qjafits to tho 1 directors and shareholdenf Ido not hesitate to say, from m> .eiewienca . • of tbe banks of tho. I ' would sooner.put ut Bon of mine to breakstones on tho road than maliaofhimabankcl|k,"

The Up-Country Rajah Trick. ' The West may still learn something from tlm East in the ait of swindling. For audacity it would be j difficult to find anything to exooj 'what, for want of a distinctive nanio, may be called the up-country Bajuli • ; trick. Tlio modus .operandi varies considerably, but generally it ib as followsA responsible looking native arrives in towu, representing -: himself to he' the gomasbtah or agent of a very rich Bajah fiom a, ! distant part of the north, south,' east,' or west. He takes a largo house and, goes the round of the bazaar''.singing: the 'praises of his \ master, telling ; of. his fabulous wealth, and informing tho merchants, tradesmen, jewellers, and so forth of tho day his Highness will arrive, and what his requirements Alikoly to be. True*;to his prcdioGon, on tho _J ■' appointed day the Hajah arrives with >'j 1 a sufficient ragtag and bobtail, and *', enough pomp and circumstance to' givo color to the statements thai ; have tiwlfaii,

> ing his rank ami position, Tho g eat man has no sooner settled him- ■ fl it in his quarters: than his doors nrebese'g.'d by the mercalmnts and a •tr-i"e mon who have .been warned of his admit,,bringing with thorn their must costly wares, their ricliost brocade b, and thoir mosS precious •' - gems, in the hope tlmt tho grent king, the possessor of fabulous wealth may deign to shower his benign ' . favour upon them to such an extent as to make a fow purchasjs. Yield. 1 iiig.to pcessura, the Uuzoor makes soma very heavy purchases, and gives .orders to his Prirao Minister to pay ; for them instantly. The Prime , Minister is, of course, equal to the j ; ooasion. He informs tbo merchants I and fradeiaen that tho Treasury of i His HigKs was not, as they might 1 imagine, a few boxes of rupees; it 1 ,\ws contained in numerous heavy ( iron safes, ono of which had unfortunately boon damaged by falling off a oarael, and the Kuzancbi had remained behind at a town, which is mentioned, to be repaired, and could not arrive before the next day. Of ciurso tho goods are retained and when the tradesmon return for payment next day no Rajah, no Goniashtali, nor Mg, tag, and bobtail arc anywhere to be found, and strango to say, tho rich brocades, jewels, and gems have disappeared with them.