WELLINGTON LETTER.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume XIII, Issue 4076, 30 March 1892, Page 2

WELLINGTON LETTER.

(From Our OiimCormpond&U,)

Wellington; Tuesday. "The rain,it raineth everyday," which, »s far as Wellington is con* cerned, is perfectly true, for we hare had over a week's steady rain on end, Everybody has, iu consequence, been "hipped" and out of humour with everything generally, and no wonder |witli this continuous downpour, slushy, muddy street, had business and uttor stagnation so far as outdoor exercise is concerned, Fortunately it has now cleared up, but the wind is still very cold and it really looks like as if the summer had fled and the keen, biting, southerly blasts of winter weie in a harry to rush in and finish the work already commenced by the ravages of summer typhoid, by carrying people off with coughs, colds, influenza and the hundred other complaints accessory to the "softsouthern breeze" (save the mark I) of winter, At any rate let us be thankful for small meroies, Our sewers have been thoroughly flushed, and this will do us meanwhile, Perhaps by the time the next heavy rain sets in, we shall have a drainage system.

A certain section of this town and district is now highly indignant because a fresh rate of 2ld in the I is proposed by tho Hospital and Charitable Aid Board, in order to build a new wing to tho Hospital. That this is a matter of pressing and urgent necessity {here can be no doubt. The Hospital is already crowded, almost to the very doors, and common humanity demands that an extension should be made at once. I understand that Messrs Clere and Richmond, the wellknown architects, have already prepared the plans, and that the work willbeputinhaudalmostimmediately, The poor, and the sick also, we have always with us, and notwithstanding the protests of some indignant City Couucillurs and members of the Charitable Aid Board, it is apparent that immediate effort must be made to relieve this pressure on the Hospital accommodation : If we won't drain our cities we must extend our Hospitals, one follows as a natural corollary of the other. Of two evils the Wellington people are unfortunately forced into tho position of chosing the worst.

The action of tho Eoraau Catholics & of Wellington in erecting the splendid Ci new orphanage attached to the Con- f 0 vent in Hill Street is worthy of all f e praise and speaks volumes for their large-heartedness and generosity in ft] the sacred causo of Charity. Would f 0 that other denominations were as w ready to put their hands into their a pockets tor such worthy objects. The «, orphanage, which is a substantial 3 ( three story building of brick, has tesn tt erected in the convent grounds, facing t( Hawkestone street, a position which r < is one of tlis healthiest and most (J pleasant iu Wellington. fhn edifice ti has been most carefully and faithfully p built, and is replote with comtorts and f, oonvenianiences not usually found [] in a building of this nature. The n institution is open on certain days for v inspection and tho Sisters in Charge £ are only too pleased to show visitors B round. I hear also (hat it is proposed r very shortly to considerably enlarge \ and improve the Eoman Catholic a Cathedral in Hill Street. Designs j are now being prepared for submis* ( | sion to the Cathedral authorities, and 8 it is expected that a very handsome s and striking edifice will be the result, t The position of the Cathedral is un- l vailed, and if the proposed alteraons and additions are given effect to, i will lorm a very distinct gain to the l sclestastical architecture of the city. e i i It was stated the other day at a | leeting of the Melrose Borough ; Council that no less tbnn 12,000 rations i >er month are gren away to the in- | ligent population of this city. These i igures have been verified by tho 1 Secretary of tho Benevolent insiitu« ' ion and certainly form a startling aveletion as to the numbers of the ioor in our midst. It is also affirmed hat 90 per cent of the cases, in which elief is administered, is caused by nternperance. This is really a shocking ucord and leads one to reflect diat there must be something radically vrong with our system of Charitablo iid, That in spite of labour bureaus, !0-operative railway works, and inllisiriftl farms, so much destitution should exist is inexplicable, The juestion immediately arises, have all these cases been enquired into, and also does not our present system of indiscriminate aid rather tend to aggravate than relieve the evil. Mr Duthie, M.H.R,, who has jnst returned from a visit to the Old Country has of course been interviewed by the übiquitous reporter. In the course of his remarks as to the affright of capital owing to the taxation proposals of the present Government, Mr Duthie ii> reported to have said " The gentleman with whom I spoke even went further than that, He &ajd that the London people are driven to the conclusion that New Zealand having passed the line would have no compunction in becoming a defaulter, if circumstances arose. New Zealand is in fact an unsafe country for invest' ment.' 1 Now )t seems the height of folly to publish siioh statements as these, for Mr Duthio and the paper whose reporter interviewed him must know that such a state of affairs is never likely or even possible to come to pas*, no matter whit Government is iu power. New Zealand would have far rame' to lose by repudiation than would even the bondholders. The pepi'le in thiscountry would nut permit for one instant the question of repudiation to bp raised setting aside the fact that th" resourpes and assets of Now Zealand are a more than sufficient guarantee against our ever being compelled to " liloour schedule" and repudiate all liabilities. Such a statu of affairs as happened in South' America, can not from the very nature of tho circumstanceSibappen in New Zealand, and therefore 1 think it is idlo and foolish to discuss the question seriously. If Air Duthie is the levelheaded,, capable, shrewd man of busier (less wo take him to bf: he no doubt completely pulverised thjs London gentleman's views of colonial flnanoial morality pretty completely, : But I am afraid there is a little too much of the astute politician about the whole affair to make either Mr Duthie or the newspaper in question' very keen oljampions of the colony in this jnstapce.

The financial year is nojy draying jftpidly tp, a close, and that there will be a surplus in the Revenue is notf I thinjjt beyond the shadow: of a doubt. When the Government render; an account of their stewardship to Parliament ft wi|l bp pen whether they have acted lip to tbfiir'prptesl;q,tiong of the urgent necessity fqt economy or not, Personally I think they have, although at times the question of travelling I expenses has not troiiblf d them tpucb,

The crucial test; has, however, to ooibe at the close of the next financial year, t At present there is no doubt the I Government are reaping the harvest a sown by their predecessors in office, a r sowing which is likely to yield tairly good returns. I j What with keeping an oyo on the affairs of State, running newspapers, t Conducting large grain and freezing t works, farming, and indulging in f legal pursuits of an extensive nature, j the members of the present Ministry must have a pretty busy timo of it. i The wonder is that they can find so i muoh time to devote to their country's cause. One membei of the Ministry having charge of. a most important i and by far the largest department i of the Public. Service has not been I in Wellington for the last two months, and I hear is not likely to gracß his town witk'kis presence until Parliament opens in June. His business i affairs in tho extreme South occupy his time so fully as • to render his : presence there essential. Tho fair inference is that the public business would suffer owing to the difficulty in communicating with the Minister in question; but that appears to be -a secondary consideration. One's lines are cast in pleasant places if one happens to bo a favored member of a Liberal Ministry, Te draw one's salary as Minister and attend to private business is all that appears to bo_ necessary, The worst of it is the 1 Minister referred 'to happens to he 1 one of the most capable administrations of the Government and it seems 1 hard that this suffering country should bo denied so often the benefit of his 1 services, An agitation is being got up bore 1 to change the Wellington Agricul. ; tural and Pastoral Association's show • grounds from the Hutt to some place 1 more in the vicinity of the city, How > this will suit the country people I ' don't know, but I take it that it won't ■ make much difference to them, As » itia at present there ia a long drive ' from the Hutt railway station to the 1 course, and stock-owners anyhow 1 wherever the ground goes to cannot " possibly bo put to more inconvenience " than they are at present, It is hoped, 9 however, that by securing a ground 1 near tho city they will not be put to e any extra trouble or expense at all, because means will be taken to run

stock and other, exhibits right on to the ground by rail or tram. MrH.D. Crawford, of Miramar, has come forward with an idea that loob feasible. Ee proposes to let the Association have fifty acres of the Miramar Estate at a low rental, and form a show ground there, The railway will shortly be extended to Te Aro; that will take passengers and goods to Cuba street; from Cuba street the tramway runs up to the Newtpwn Hotel; from the Newtown Hotel down the Kilbimie road to the proposed ground Mr Crawford suggests ' that ■ a etcam tramway should be laid ; all this will put people on the show ground in a few minutes, Mr Crawford estimates that if the show were held at Kilbirnie from 15,000 to 20,000 people] would be present. Thero is no doubt that the trip to the Hutt is 100 expensive and debars the great mass of people from attending, bat situated as Wellington is, it is a matter of great difficulty to obtain a suitable site. Mr Crawford has obtained eight hundred signatures in support of his soheme, and it only remains to be seen what the public meeting which is to be held next Tuesday evening will bavo to say on the matter,

The outorv th.it has been raised ' lately about the iniquitous system of j espionage which is supposed to exist i in the public service, is totally uncal- ■ led for. No such system exists, nor nave Civil Servants generally anything to fear from the consequences, even if oertain individuals did consti. tute themselves informers, The howl about men of the " right colour" being appointed to temporary "billets " as spys on the doings of the rest of the Civil Servants who are doubtful in their political opinions or who have openly avowed themselves opposed to the Government, is ridiculous in the extreme. From what I know ot the members of this Ministry they would, ho the last to lend themselves to such despicable trioks, I may not think alto* gether the same way as the pre sent Ministry, but I am perfectly assured of their innocence in this respect. 1 do not believe in joining vociferously in the cry of" What good cometh out of Nazareth I" I havo my fads from leading Civil Servants, so I know what I am talking about, and need not fear contradiction. As to the system of " private and confidential " reports on the police force, which Mr Seddon is said to have swept away. Well, 1 believo also in i.lna case that a " mountain libb been made out of a mole hill," for I am told on good authority that the position as to the system lately in vogue has boen very much overstated. ■ However, no one can blame the Liberals for making a little political! capital out of the incident. Let ■ thera " lay the flattering unction to their soulb " that thank God they i are not a,s other men are, and if they i only not up to it we on the other side i won't mind.

Wellington is apparently in for a gay and festive time during the winter so far as theatrical entertainments are concerned, I hear that the Opera House will be continuously engaged from April next till the end of September. . The earlier arrivals will comprise Myra Kemble's Comedy Company ,Mr Rna?elle,lhe Monoloque entertainer, and the Montague-Turner Opera Company. I must not forget to mention that the great Wirths are making stupendous preparations .for their advent in this town, by building an enormouß circular wooden wall, some thirty feet high, in which will bo placed their tents. No doubt the Messrs Wirth have reason to remember the onslaught 1 made on : their canvas by tho gentlo zephyrs of] " Windy Wellington " on the occasion of former visits, . ; : ' Kosmos.