JOTTINGS from WELLINGTON.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume XV, Issue 4715, 10 May 1894, Page 3

JOTTINGS from WELLINGTON.

(By Our' Own Correspondent,) Tuesday. Eard lim s and fins. Wilt it affect Wellington!—Tk unompbyitl tnvtih; Tk (rWnmenflflMfc to cope with tk diftcidty.—Tk right of mslenee. —Wltaith WeHinglonpecjile aredoing. —Homing the Labour Bureau.—Vk adveHhing nutmnce: How it affects tk pMc.-Th prlfolio railimy tieht system:! Its inventor.-Tk B . Cabinet and the Charwoman.—Beadle- | dom eclipsed.-llowjoreign capitalis I king frightened.-Tk Haces: What \thepcople say.-A Temperance Paper. -ViVo Birthday Ba.ll.~ik Fox Com*

mssion: Perhaps he "Gould a tate ' mfold," on' k wmdd I . j It is an axiom wilh insurance com- i paniea that when times are hard fires ] are frequent, This fact is being am- I plj borno out by the number of small i fcMjjliich are occurring in other ( HHkkdony where the pinch i most sofelt; 'Wellington on tho other hand, Mere times have been i fairly good up to a short timo ngo, i fires have been very infrequent. In i fact the insurance companies have i been congratulating thems Ives upon the wonderful immunity from losses i they have experienced in ibis city, i This is the more romarkahln from the fact that owing to tho cons'ruution of the baildiogs, Wellington has hitherto been regarded by insurance companies as the most dangerous town in the colony, and premiums are in consequence at least 25 por cent, higher here than elsewhere, and yei despite .the danger thui e. ore fewer fires, and for a considerable time past there has been no fire of any great importance. However, as times are distinctly ge>ting harder it stands to reason, from the insurance manager's point of view, that we cannot expect this immunity to continue much longer, If the immunity does continue wo must assume that the morale of the Wollingtonian, who may be hard is superior-Jo that possessed in other communities^^

I notice that Tilaslerton is being very extensively advertised just now by the indefatigable coriesuondent of the "Now Zealand Times," who never appears to let slip an opportunity for recording the doing's, and the coining and going of eveiybody and everything in the district, The Wairarapa has acquired the reputation recently of being one of the most prosperous districts in the colony, and tbe complete and careful manner in which it is kept before the eyes of the Wellington people should do v.ry much for you from, a conimeioial point of view.

The unemployed difficulty is'as- c euming more alarming dimensions U every day. and it would really appear 1 that tho Government, having got to s the end of their resources in tbe I diiectiou of providing labour for the t men out of work, is now in a very ( tight corner. Every day of ( 20 or 30 men may be seen standing { round the doors of tho Labour Bureau ' Raiting to hear of a chance of employ- i Hfcrtlany of thesu men ate cleanly ' is really pitiable to observe the ; anxious careworn expressions of the men, and it is oven more distressing when one thinks that many ol them have wives and families dependent on them for the daily bread | whieh they are without the means of j obtaining. Not the less bard is the lot of '.he siogle men, who appear to be in the majority just now, for they, like their married mates, must live also. Small wonder and small blame to them if they are somewhat urgent in their appeals to the Government for snrely the instinots of common humanity demand that they should, at least, have the means of subsis •fence. The marvellous thing about it all is that there ahould be so much patience shown,and so great a respect paid to the observance of the law as there is, Want and hunger must render men desperate, and that they are bo law-abiding and so orderly speaks volumes for tho working men of New Zealand,

I am glad to Bee tbat a meeting Las been called by the Social Reform League, for the purpose of taking into consid(*,tion the beat means of affording relief for the unemployed. Tbere is no doubt that to obtain work at the present moment in town is almost an impossibility, but, at least.we can and must give out lellow creatures food and shelter. The Premier, has at last, been forced to see this, and I bear that it is ptopossd to convert a portion of the A.O. Depot on Mt. Cook into a kind of temporary night shelter for these unfortuuates. An effort will bo made by private means to supply rations, so it is reasonably to be hoped that ere long the reproach of having amongst us those wanting shelter and food will be wiped out. [Since writing the above it has been announced that the Harbour Board has placed one of their

large sbeda at the disposal 01 me uo» ( varnraent' foe the busing of the unemployed, and that several generous offers of food and bedding have been made by citizens. The Benevolent Society will also possibly accommodate some of the men in the Homo at f* - Tho Labour Bureau has resiulely decided to prevent, if possible, work hpinv obtained bv false represents j

tions. The Bureau has been pretty f ec severelySlotimised in the past by kj applicants for Employment, but it will be no easy matter to stop this an sort of thing. For instance, I have & heard of a case in which a man tb registering under a different name fi, upon each occasion has been sent up aI country three or four times, This ai gentleman, finding the work was not i„ to his liking, or that it required too 0 , much sticking to, to make wages at, „ promptly threw up the job and n journeyed to town again, once more j, appealing at the Bureau as an appli- ti cant, and eo this went on three or 0 four times, and each time he appeared t as a different man. It is a matter of e impossibility for the Bureau officials [ to remember the lacea of all the men g who came before them. Yery often. c indeed, they never appear at all per- , Bonally, but form themselves into , small gangs and select one of their , number as the leader, and this man j does and actaas ] a ,K>kesma7for bis mates. The identity of the artful one may thus be concealed in this manner. Now, having grown wiser by experience the ofljcials question each man, and anyone found imposing on the Bureau will be promptly punished. I have heard a good deal of complaint about this newsyßtem of advertising » D conneotion with Bailway • Reason tickets. As no doubt you are W gre'« email portfolio or wallet is

jssuod to ticket lioldeiß. contuimng inside a small shoot upon which the advertisements are printed. The portfolio itself perforated into spaces representing the tickets, and of ooui'fo it is these'spaces whicii are turn off as required. Now ninny people would quite riiiudly suppose _ that the tickota were coniained inside the portfolio Mid thereto hastily leariug oil tho cover they throw it away, only to find thoy have thrown aside their tickets anilk<|>ttheadvertisement, In' some cases the tickeis have been lost to tho wrath and disgust of the purchasers. The attention of purchasers of theso portfolio ticket should be drawn to the fact most particularly that the tickets are otusidenot insido, or bettor still tho tickets should be placed in the portfolio and the advertisements piinted on the exterior, if the Commissioners must raite an extra revenue in this manner. As it is at present revenue is not only raised from the advertising but the uninitiated purobaser runs the risk oi being obliged to pay twice over for his railway journey,

This portfolio sjßtom of advertisinj is largely used in Australia on 11) railway, 'bus, und tram si'mccs. I is tbo invention of a Mr Victor Car wdini, a son, I believe, of the tot Madame Oarandini, tbo w.-11-lmowt ingor, who lias Hosted several sraal orapunies on the other aide to exploi lis invention. The idea is ingenious >ut tu the unsophisticated travelling mhlic ol ibis Colony, who are unusei o the »iles af advertising, it is, as 1 .hyo pointed out, some times verj imoying, Mr Cacandini was. ovei ere on a visit some months ago, ant brieve told bis patent rights in the RWitiop. for New Zealand torn well :nnwn firm of advertising agents ir Veiling'on. The tickets are eitluu itintid and supplied by the ndvertißr.g coiitrautora upon condi'ion thai hey are nllowcd the advertising ights, or else thoy pay a subsidy to he Commissioners for permission to dvertise on the sheet contained in ho portfolio. The same enterprising ontraetors also hold the right to dvertise on postage stamps and t4eraph forms. It will thus be seen hat the general public of New Zeaihu o#es much to these enterprising ;ent!omen, who have made their lives niseraWe by the difficulties of writ-

ing on a telegraph form indented all over by advertising blocks, or of absorbing poison into their systems by licking off nasty printers' ink when placing stamps on letters. To these tortures must now be added tbe inconveniences of the Portfolio Railway tickets. Truly 'tis a big reckoning,

T!>.e Achievements of Beadledom ! palo into insignificance compared to ' some of the notions oi tbe Government. The Cabinet now appoint the cbirivomen who clean out the Public offices and the Parliament Buildings, but they are very carelul whom they select for this important office. None but women guaranteed of the right colour are admissible for employment. Those whoso political principles are doubtful are gradually being got rid of, and women whose views aro either known or vouched for by supporters are alone to be engaged in luture. One poor old dame who has " charred" the Government Buildings for twenty years past has received notice of dismissal for no apparent reason. These appointments used to be loft to cbief messengers and custodians to make in the past, but apparently now no position is so obscure, or the duties 1 so humble as to bo beyond the patronage of the Ministry.

It is frequently denied that foreign . companies doing business in New , Zealand show any distrust in the . colony, or are averse in l any way to investing their funds here. 1 recently received proof, however, that there is a certain amount of distrust felt, although I am not prepared to say that there is any justification for it. Still, i he fact remains, as tbe following will show, that one company at least regards with suspicion the trend of legislation out bote, and for all I know there may bo many other Conservative English Companies of the same way of thinking—tbeyareaftaid in fact to risk anything, even with ample security and a high rate of interest. Recently conversing with a friend, who is pjent for a large English Insurance Company on this topic.

he informed me that his company never allowed him to accumulate more than a thousand pounds of the company's funds at the Bank, nor to invest a sixpence. As soon as his 1 agency credit reached £I,OOO his I orders were to remit the amount Home : at once, The explanation given by 1 tbe head offico in London being to the ■ effect that they distrusted the legislaI tion of the Government so much that

1 they wore unwilling toinvestanymoney B in New Zealand. When losses were | 1 made they were cabled Home, and] • the oompiny's bankers were adyistd 0 by table to honour the agency cheque 6 for the amount, • This seems rather e a ridiculous way of doing business, e hut I am assured that such is the

case. Of course, this js a display of j. over-caulitm, which is entirely unwarranted, but it only shows how some people at Home regard the state { of affairs out here. ( Thank goodness the races are over t at last. For the last month no ono v has done anything else but talk " horse" until thesubjeptbecame absolutely nauseating. Now wo may j. hope for a little change from theater-

1 ml racing jargon, which seeniß to infect the community at race time. Tie lat« races (Wellington Racing Obi's Autumn and Steeplechase raecljng ] anil the United Hunt Club's anaual , gathering) were notable for two things. First of all these wen the Bret race meetings in the colony of any importance to be run on temper) ance lines. The absence of the.iltmki ing booths was a great over the old state of affairs, There was no rowdyisnj and no drunkenness, and the attendance was )iol in any way arTeotecl by the fuel that liquor could not be purchased' on tho conrso, Secondly, although (be fields were large, and the horses etigiged of top quality, it cannot honestly.be said that the raoing was gopd. Everything appeared to be

conducted on a mpst peculiar system, r so much bo that at last tho publis did not know what to back, for it really appeared a? if owners, trainers, and jockeys had conspired together to keep everybody in the dark as to their intentions, More particularly was this strange state of affairs visible at the Hunt Olub'a meeting on f Saturday, when great dissatisfaction was openly expressed at the peculiar running some of the horses, One would hw thought at least that this state p'f. affairs .cpu|f> t • not have been 'possible ivere , • meeting where tl\>'d run by { f supposed to be ownettiabovo the ( 3 gentlemen would bV JJnfpr--3 Woftrying how nqjpfo^B

tunatoly, however, this was not so, ami though, of cow-ho, it is hard 10 sheet home iinytliing where jockeys »nd trainers aro mixed up in the racing, yet the uncomplimentary illusions which everybody freely indulged in when describing the dij's racing would argue that somebody needed boing dealt with by the Stewards in an oxemplary manner.

I understand there is absolutely no truth in tho tumour- that the Temperance p irty, supported by Mr H, 1) Bell, M.H.K., intend to establish another newspaper in Wellington to champion the piohibitionand temperance cause gonerally. The "Evening Press," with which Mr Bell and other leading members of the Temperance party are connected, already supplies all requirements in this direction. 1 believe, howover, that much dissatisfaction is expressed at the fact that the temperance people m not supporting the paper as thoy should, It is even rumoured that the Directors contemplate eliminating a good deal of the Temperanco elemeut from its columns with ft view of making the scope of the paper wider. Some people even go as far as to say that, ere long the " Press". will no longer appear as an evening but as a morning paper, to be run on Opposition lines in contradistinction to the prciont morning journal.

Considerable disappointment is felt in Wellington at the announcement that there will bo no birthday hall in Wellington tin's year, owing to the Gevemor'a abeinco from the seat ol Government. The Aucklanders are, I believe, to bo favoured with the annual gubernatorial function on this occasion, and the Wellington people ftel themselves quite aggrieved, because, for years past, it has been the custom to hold the ball and levee here. Why, I kuow not, as it seems only right and proper that any other part of the colony, if the Governor happens to be residing there at the timo, should occasionally benefit bv the function. It is absurd to suppose

that the Governor should especially journey down lo Wellington tor tbe sole purpose of holding the bull in the capital, It would be a different' hing if there was only a Government, boiw) in Wellington, but as there also happens to be one in Auokland, there is

no reason *liy it should not be made use of for a loyal festivity of this kind, Besides, the Government House here smells horribly of paint just now, and will be barely habitable by the time the House meets,

The Fox Commission is draggioj its weary length along.and everybody from Cabinet Ministers down to mes scngershus been examined uswilnosaei Tho proceedings are, of courspjsecret but something must leak out, and il is whispared that nothina of any im aortanee has, been discovered yet. 01 jourSß, the niysleiy could bo easil) inraveiled if tlißcditor of the' Evening ?ost' and his chief reporter would ionsent to examination, but, as tboj iavo very promptly awl firmly refused 0 attend, it is hardly likely that the ruth can be got at, I bolieve, that n refusing to attend the Commission s witnesses, the ' Evening Post's' ditor and reporter render themselves iablo by a fine c: £2O each for conerupt, and that this fine can be enarced if thought proper, I expect, oweyer, that the fine will be paid if eceasavy. People will tulk, and very body is remarking how Btrange t is that a certain Minister should belle wed to deport to Rotorua for the lenelit of bis health, when all the ilier Ministers) with the exception f the Minister for Education, who as been away from Wellington for reeks past and therefore could not now anything about the matter.bave eon examined in regard to what they now of the aflmr. The Minister in iieation was in Wellington when the ext of the letter appeared in the Post, 1 and his evidence would poaibly be of much value.