OUR WELLINGTON LETTER.
\Froin Our Own Correspondent.) Wellington, Wednesday. You may expect tueetings in connection with the projected Co-rpera-tive Association ahd Farmers' Alliance soon, Mr Jardine, tho secretary, accompanied by Mr T. Kennedy Maodor.ald (the latter in his capacity of sharebroker to the Company) have mapped out a tour of the districts interested, and in conjunction with the resident provisional directors of each locality they' will summon gatherings of the residents for the purpose of discussing the constitution ".and objects of the j Association and : for imparting information whicli will bo of benefit to those taking,hp shares; They start at Paloieraton, where -/ty meeting will, be held on Tuesday, 26th May. Then after Peilding, Oaiupbelltowa, and Sandon have been visited in turn, the j Wairarapa is taken, the dates for which are : Greytown, Monday, Ist June; MastertoD, Tuesday, 2nd June; Pahiatua, Wednesday, 3rd June; Woodville, Thursday, 4th June. Bo much.has the absence ofa Farmer's and Co-operative Association been felt, and so imperative has been recognised its necessity, Uiat the promoting directors feel sanguine of a hearty reception and an encouraging success. ' The cost of producing " lolanthe" for the present Wellington season is estimated by the Amateur . Operatic, Society at slightly over three hundred pounds (£300). An impudent and ingenious theft came under my notice a few days ago. It illustrates the precocity and unbounded resource of the Colonial species of young male child, to use the terra of >yl}'-cl) scientists denote the common boy, A friend of tpine living on Wellington Terrace found in the monthly account rendered by her grocer certain items which were certainly unauthorised, and which referred to articles uever received. Enquiry followed, and it transpired that a youngster had watched the grocer's csrt stop at the house. Then, after making himself familiar with the Qan)e of the resident, be made his way to the shop of the grocer. There, he I plausibly represented that Mrs A. had sent him for some sardines, some eggs, some biscuits, and some figs, nnd that they were to be put down to her account. The mission was a succ.-ss, and the boy departed with the spoils of hip raid. Nemesis, however, was in his wake and justice overtook him. and finally tLe matter was adjusted, at the pleading of the lad s mother, by the administration qf a severe reprimand. It turned out thaj; the boy hac} been to Island IJay with some other boys, aqd that the proyisiqps had formed the staple items in tl}e bill of fare of if gorgeous (in more wavs than one) young picture.
I heard a bandy little phonograph at Mr J. ifi. Fayes' shop on Lainbton Quay a week or two ago. It in called the New York Graphiphone. It xa a very simple contrivance, although its mechanism is perfect in its way. Unlike Edison's machine, the motive power for propelling the cylinders is by hand and not by electricity. The results were y?ry fair, and as the cost oE the graphiphone i§ only that of the phonegraph doll, yiz., three pounds, it shQuld be popular as <>n .amusing, interesting, and uspful appliance. Thepe is, however, not much chance of more of those machines Reaching Mr Hayes, as the patent rights of the appliance have, I understand, been embodied in those of the Edison Phonograph Company. We have great heed in Wellington of some effectual and operative byelaw which will lessen the great, nuisance of over-crowded tramcars and omnibuses. At certain hours of the day the traffic simply swamps these vehicles, and people get on at all points, no matter how over-crowded the far may already be. Ladies, of pourse, are the c>iiaf offenders, although I cQrtainly haye known some of them considerate enough to wait for a second car., The matter is effectively dealt with in London and in older towns. There each vehicle is licensed to carry a certain number of passengers, who must bp seated
If a condu Jtor lias more 'thaai the authorised number on boa«jf the fact ' is speedily detected , by a policeman ■ *nd down goes hi* number. The ( next, morning lie has a'fin« to pay of j sjvei'rtl .shillings for each passenger ( Hhove his limit. As a consequence < of this strict rule, no one thinks of hailing a 'bus whi'ih is full, an>l if a < passenger does manage to get on ' under such circumstances, the vehicle ' is stepped until he gets off again. If a gentleman wishes to give his seat to , a lady he must relinquish his drive altogether as far as , that particular 'bus is concerned. : Needless to say men are not frequently i cJled upon to make such sacrifices and i they can"retain lheir seats free from feelings of compunction. Much complaint has been made at 1 various times about the discomfort of the carriages on the Wairarapa line. It will not be ever thus, I am pleased to tell you, and as soon as the present carriage stock needs renewing it will be replaced with cars of a more modern type and with some pretention to comfort and ease. Possibly the "bird cage" style of car, with the platform along the side of the vehicle will be introduced, or at any rate the cross seated American carnage will be. There are several American cars oa the line now, but their skylights, which are above the height of the English pattern of carriage, afford too much obstruction to the wind to enable them to be regarded as safe, and they are also rather too wide in comparison with their «?hcel base to be stable in high winds without excessive weighting with iron. It may be some time, however, before you get the new care, as economic administration demands the wearing out of the old ones first. - In a private letter received from Dunedin to-day, I learn that a friend there has had an article accepted, by the Londoa Art Journal. The subject is " Mountains and Mountaineers in New Zealand," and it will appear in next month's issue. The writer is a man of consideiable liter <vy ability, and as in addition the article will be illustrated with engravings from photographs by Wheeler and Son, of Christchurch, its appearance will, I am certain, be provocative of considerable interest among alpine people at Home, and it will also in a general way be of considerable service to New Zealand in publishing through; an autnoritative and competent medium, a worthy sketch of 6onxe of our grandest scenery. "Zephyr."
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Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume XII, Issue 3816, 21 May 1891, Page 2
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1,081OUR WELLINGTON LETTER. Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume XII, Issue 3816, 21 May 1891, Page 2
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