Commercial.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume X, Issue 3380, 7 December 1889, Page 2

Commercial.

Leary and Go. report prices for the past week as follows Potatoes, 80s to 50s, according to qualitynew potatoes, £4 10a to £5; onions, lsd; oats, 2s 5d to 2s 7d;. pollard, 75s to 85s; bran, 70s to 70s; oaten sheaf chaff, 85s to 100s;, straw chaff, 60s; oatmeal, £11; maize, 8s to Bs'4d, nominal'; wheat, 3s to 3s 8d; fowls' wheat, 2s Cd to 3s; malting barley, 8s to 8s Gd; beans, 8s 2d to 8s fid; [ peas, 3s to 3s Cdpearl barfey, £18;

fllour, 4!9 10s to £10; bacon, Dimock's cure, 7d; hams, 9d; outsido euro hams and bacon, Id lower; cheese, BJd to 4d for large size; loaf cheese, 5d to 5Jd; fresh butter, Gil; salt ditto, 7il, nominal; eggs, lid; turkeys, Gs Gd; geese, Gs; ducks, 8s 9d; fowls, 2s 9d to 9s per pair; apples, 12s; oranges, fls to lis; lemons, 15s; cocksfoot, grass setid, 2Pi rye grass seed, 2s fid to 8s Cd ; pines, 4s 6d to Gs.

Mastertou Town Lands Trust. The ordinary monthly meeting of tlie Trust was bold last night. Present Messrs W. Lowes (chairman) McEwen, Eton, Perry, Eonall and Graham. The minutes of the previous meeting were read and confirmed, and the Treasurer reported a credit balance of .£43 8s 7d, The Secretary submitted an amendod statement of tlie picnic fund. The allocation would be:— Masterton school £sl; Fornndge school £7 73; St Patricks school fo ss. The Chairman said tlio error was an unfortunate one, but it was a pure mistako, and tho only thing to be done was to. communicate, with the various School Committees, and forward the Secretary's apology with the amended allocation.

An application was made by Mr' 6. Foy, secretary of tho Voluntoer Fire Brigade, for payment of the sum of £lO for a now lioso reel, already granted. An'account from J.Payton & Co, advertising, £2 lis 9d, was presented.. Both accounts wero ordered to be paid vhon funds permit,

It was resolved that ono, quarter's yrant, amounting to ss, to the committee of the School of Design be paid. Applications wero made for new leases under the compensation clauses of tho new Act by Messrs A.Cocltbum and M.'' Caselberg.

Tho Chairman said a former body of Trustees lmd decided that hew leases should bo granted to lessees, with compensation clauses,, on application. His opinion was that their 1 action was not binding on the present Trustees, and that the Trustees had not the - powor to accept a surrender of leases and. grant 'new leases for twontyone years to the same lessee. They would'first have to be submitted to auction.' The present applications would liaye to he very carefully considered, as they .would form' a precedent, and numberless applications would be made on the samo grounds, They would also have to consider whether it would:be just to those who bad competed for tho leases to reduco the, rents. If they terminated the present. leases and gavo new ones with compensation clauses, that would increase the rentals. In Mr Caselberg's case, a building on ono of tho soctions, known as the Waipoua brewery, had bocn burnt down and tho lessee had received the' insurance' money and bad not yet re-erected tbe buildings destroyed by fire. Ho was not tho original lesgep. . . ■ : Mr fieiiall Vajjl if they did what Mr Caselberg ■ asked they Avquld fofiii a bad precedent, He agreed with tlio Chairman's remarks, If they accepted a surrender when times wore bad, they would, when the leases were put up to auction realise considerably less than they ought. The Trustces'bad no power to lease for a longer period than 21 years, and could not accept a aurrbndor ao4 l'tpw fotljesame lessee for 21 years in addition to the time expired in the original lease,

That would' 1 create 'a perpetual tenancy. , Tl)(9 Cliftirmiin sftid thp Trustees had the power under tho now Apt to accept a surrenderpf a lease or reduce tho amount of rent for the balance of the term by special resolution, but to do so for {he reasoiv given by 'Sit Casplberg, becpsfj times were bad, would be to estabM a very bud precedent He thought a special mooting of the Trustecc should bo hold for the purposo of considering tho present applications with a viow to establishing a basis for futuro ijofion.. . •' "It : 1 was resolved that a special meeting 1 lie 'iM fov : tto jjtnpdft

specified 011 Monday, DecomberVlOtli, at 7.80 p.m. :■ Mi" Eton asked why tbo Question was postponed. ;He thought a refusal sliould'he sent forthwith to the.&ppli- | cants. \ The Cliairman said what they did now would be binding on them in dealing with future applications. He thought they should only take action after very careful consideration of tho Act, They must do nothing huradly' or with harshness to, anyone,antLthe. importance of the question warranted a special meeting.

After somo further discussion the next business was proceeded with.

Mr Eton suggested that as it was fubilee year the Trustees should sub-

Bcribe eomcthing towards giving the children of the Public Schools a treat. The chairman said the only fund

they liatl available was the picnic fund, which had already been allocated to the public schools. He

would take a notice of motion if Mr Eton wished, and it bould be considered at the special meeting on Monday next. Mr Eton gave notice of motion that the Trustees supplement by £ls any funds raised for a jubilee celebra-

tion for the children of this district. The Secretary nas instructed to obtain copies of the new Trust Act, aud Public Powsrs Act for each of

the Trustees. The list of routs in arrear was read, and in two cases the Secretary was instructed to apply to the mortgagees for payment of the arrears.': A weeks grace was given in another case, and an immediate demand to be made' in tho fourth, ' This concluded the business.

Greytown Horticultural and Poultry Society.

llib spring show of the'above 1 society was held in tho Paluce Hall, f Greytown, yesterday. Krora early iu c the morning up to 10 o'clock a steady I stream of exhibits came pouring in, t and by mid-day the large hull pre- c eented a gay and interesting appear- t ance. Tho staging in every class was i all that could he desired, and the ; valuable acquisition of Mr Vernon as i secretary to the society was fully i appreciated by all parties interested, i There was a moderate attendance of visitors in the afternoon, but in the evening the hall was literally packed, which augurs well for tho show being a success financially as well aa otherwise, The show of pot plants was moderate in quantity but above the average in. quality. •'The.principal prize-takers were Mr N. King, Mr U. Pharazyn, Mrs Haigli, Mr G. Wilkie, Miss TJdy, Mrs Maunsell, Miss' Terry, and Miss E,Jackson. Cutflowers were, as usual, quite an attraction, but, as was anticipated, on account of the show being held so late in the season, i tliei'6 was ft noticeable want of rosos. ) The oxbibits in fruit were exceptionally | ; good, and the temptation this clsssj f presented was more than the people

could stand, for by ten o'clock, tho ] time at which the show closed, there was scarcely any fruit left on the tables, This is to be regretted, as the fruit had been presented to the hospital for .the use of patients. The Com-. mitteo arc determined to put a slop

to this pilfering in the future. Ail oxbibit by Mr H. H. Jackson, of four boautiful ripe oranges, fully as large as the average Island oranges, which

mvo been grown on a tree about six

feet high, in the-open, fully demonstrates that orange culture can to successfully pursued in South Waira-

rapa. The exhibit was garnished by ornuge twigs aud sprays of bloom. In vegetable! Mr 0. Plwrazyn, T, Kempton, and York and Terry wero to tho fore, The show ol potatoes was one of the features of the Exhi-

bition, Mr J. Cutdy and Mr A. Moody being the principal exhibitors. There was an excellent show of local produce, Several exhibits of earth butter attracted considerable attention, and they wero considered qiiito equal to-chum ; made butter, Mr H, McMnsters being the first prize winner, ' Mr 0. Phillips exhibited a bag of' homo grown hops which were- very favourably commented on by tlioso who are supposed to know, Two tables the length of the hall and the whole of the walls wero utilised for showing off the home and fancy work, One of tho most noticeable exhibit's was a stocking darned by 13ertlia Spackwan, a hole about three inches in diameter being so cleverly darned that, but for the different color of the wool, it would be almost impossible to detect tho darned piece from the original knitting. Pen- 1 manship bronght forth a great number of competitors and gave tho judges a considerable amount of trouble,it being very difficult" to detenuino which should bo first.,. Mr Porritt of tho Featherston School deserves great credit.for. marshalling sucli a number

of competitors in the writing, fancy work, and drawing classes, be having the whole of the latter class from his schools. , The poultry made a sorry bliow, at which one is not to be surprised as it is rather an absurdity.to hold a poultry show at this time of the year, Mr Elkins,the judge, had little trouble in making his awards, •Mr fi. McMastera and Mr F, Hawko were the leading prize-winners, There was a grand collection of Maori carving and weapons of war exhibited, and prizes were, awarded to S. Mahapuku for a large greenstone mere and a korowai, Maro te Mairi secured a prize for a keti, and ICerim Wh'atahoro for a collection of greenstone. A collection of drawings for exhibition, only executed by Master Chisholm,.a child of seven years, at once dubs tho child a genius, and redounds great credit to his instructress Miss Holmes, of the Masterton School of Design, under whose tuition he has been for. a quarter and a half, Mr A, Chisolm exhibited a larqe oil painting of Lake Wakatipu, which possesses considerably moro than ordinary merit as a work of art, He also' showed two oilpainted framed panels and two ingeniously contracted modern firescreens, which werp beautifully and and artistically decorfttedjalso a smoketable, which the exhibitor calls- the poets (able. It has three books painted upon it, representing Byron, Milton, and Jiuriis; tho latter being open, discloses a facsimile autograph'of its famous author,

Mussulman Secret Societies-: la the so-called enomy in the ftoudan quite annihilated, or is lie simply scotphed i It must bonder* stood that ■ throughout, the entire length, from east to west, of the littoraj of North Africa there.are well established opcult means of oouiuiuni■cation between tho different tribes of tho Mahomedan population, This sjpjieral aouord is attained by tlie action of religious brotherhoods, who huve their formnliiieß of initiation, tbeir degrees of affiliation, and their special signs, passwords,'and positive modes of recognition, To us Europeans, tho antics of the Arab danwrs

auil jugglers in llie Moorish cutis appear an nothing mom important than a curious and absurd pastime,

but beneath the surface there is a deop political and rftligioiissigniGcanoo which is an open text-book to those who have the key, If the Arab tribes of North Africa seem at present apathetic, or, at most, siuiply 'convulsively- impatient undor foreign sway, they are nevertheless at . all times ready to assist, at any given . ! point,..those,, of their co-religionists W who may happen to be (it war With ,a" Christian power. ( An Arab traveller I makes; his appearauco >at ooc,| of' tho " Moorish cafk Sitting "with'; his legs,; erased under )|ij> it ,lw ' begins telling stories', while tha " taarf/e thef coffee -house keeper. —with' a Jessamine 1 flowef slack behind hisear, pours out from a highly polished copper coffee-pot with a long handle the hot, liquid into small China cups. :Th(j 'story-teller. ;' relateii'.tlio mai'vejlous ad ventures .'o ( f one or the other of the saintly Mussulman warriors. Even W Europeans who understand the Arab language can discern nothing in the Reeraingly iunocent stories of a Rig-' < niticantly dangerous character.. But- ■ the Araks who remain on the premisea' after the shutters have been closed, and wlio have recognised 1 in the traveller an affiliated brother, are enlightened by the receipt of inform#* 1 tion and instructions which he brings thorn;from the Mahoinedaii,religious •; ! houses in 'the' remotest corners -jt '■ Morocco, Tripolis, Egypt, and Arabia i He is simply an agent of one of tho

secret societies whose business it is to collect donations" arid •■'tosecure partisans for some secret enterprise. He finds ready listeners wherever he

goes, and is respected nnd assisted by all to whom lie appeals. ,! ; The chiefs of these secret societies know how to excite in the affiliated 1 a feeling of passionate fanactism. A certain prayer has to : ba learned by heart and repeated several hundred times consecutively, tlio consequence of this constant repetition being a

strong mental excitement, a kind of monomania, beneath the influence of which the powers ol reasoning will J entirely disappear, A postulant who * is ambitious of obtaining superior rank in these societies has to servo a novitiate of a thousand days, during which in order that his will may bo made thoroughly subservient, lie is subjected to the unpleasantness of having to perform the moat dis agreeable domestic duties. Then, his probationary having come to an end, the himself shaves his head, and ratifies his engagement as an affiliated agent who may bo trusted with important

missions. : A distinguished French officer, who is a member of the Society: Geographique, and an intrepid explorer, M. Napoleon Ney, a descendant of the famous marshal of that name, lias just given some interesting details of the organisation of those Mussulman secret societies, He says,'for oxomple, that a Tunisian aud a Moor, although separated by a continent, may be bound by a common interest through tho action of'• these societies.; : Again, for instance, two Mussulmans happen to meet, fbe one takes particular notice of tlie of the oilier, and recites with prescribed intonation th» first words of a verse in the Koran.

Should the other complete the verse, observing the orthodox formula), they | recognise each other and .join hands !

by interlacing one another's fingers. This shows they are both members,of the samo society.' This cbaVaoterunr formula is styled tho "dekcr." They 1 ! also exchange a mystical question and jansvver. " What rose wearest thou ft usks the one; such or such a rose, answers tho other, This is the " qui ' va lai".of the society.' \ ; t \. ' Here are two of the crucial ques- I tions ; by which: the chiefs. of. these . societies test the goed faith of the affiliated. ho are thy witnesses," asks tho,Sheik, "My right liiind'' and my left," is tho answer,'' ''They" will bear testmony on tho day when we 'shall. all havo to render an account," The seoo'nd question asked ' ", ! is: "Which is the houso without a j door?" Then conies the answer: "The house without a door is the earth, i from which illusary hopes cannot : escape." Tripoli i? the principal, hot-bed of Mussulman fanaticism, : There is the "Zaou'ia" headquarters of tho Seuoussite brotherhood, and there one must ; look to find tho initiative and. direction of important events now occurring in the East; <The ■ hand of .tlfc ' brotherhood ofSenoussites of Tripolinf ■ is constantly seen in the ,of European travellers in Africa. Tho " chief at the bead .of this bothcrhood is a sort of Mahomedan pope.' He disposes of a legion of agents, who. scour the laud from,the lted ■ Sea'"'to Benogal, it is calculated there tiro at least one hundred centres of action in communication with the ''Zouia' 1 at Tripolis. , The Maiiomodans live in the oxpeetation of a portentous event, It is prophesied that the advent of an Islam Saviour will happen in the year 1890. and we all have heard of the fatalism 1 of Oriental populations. Who knows how soon the banner of tho Prophot may not be unfurled ?

Sham JesuitsA swindling firm of shaui Josuitu has lately been brought to Justice at Le Mans, These sharpers were six | in number, including the wife of ,tb organiser anil manager of tho " p&ambulating monastery," a fellow called TModore Frcville, Theodore give himself out as a ll Jesuit Father" who had unbounded influence at the, Vatican, and. was the v agent Superior General of the Society in France. His wifo was passed off as a" Holy Sister," and their'companions were all represented as Jesuits in minor orders, but great men in their Society. Funds poured in for church building and other objects, and the coffers of tho sham soulsavers were replete. ■ From an oit| priest—who at leiwi ought to have known belter than to believe theiv tales—tlwy obtaintul la,ooQff (or ■EGOO); while, : by promising to get name of an honest bucolic bonkommo named Joubert on the " Golden Book" kept by Pope Leo the Tenth in the Vatican, they received from this person a round sum of money, After having raised their funds, 'the firm established a peculiar business, which was compounded of Mysticism and Immorality, Piety and PornograplijL They stocked their shop-window with prayer-books, beads, scapulars, crucifixes, and statuettds of sacred -personages, while insldo they kept tho latest novels by.; .;Bouvget; and Maupassant ' and' • the " vilest of the literary productions which omanato from' the Paris 'printing press. This traffic was soon discoved, ami the sham Jesuits wore arrested, Truville, the leader of tho gang, and his chief accomplice were condemned t to five years',penal.servitude; the A others, iuoludiiig the " Holy Sister," received shorter terms of ymprieon* me'nt.