SECOND EDITION Wairarapa Daily Times. [Established 1878.] MONDAY, AUGUST 6, 1894. A TEMPEST IN OUR TEA-POT

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume XV, Issue 4792, 6 August 1894, Page 2

SECOND EDITION Wairarapa Daily Times. [Established 1878.] MONDAY, AUGUST 6, 1894. A TEMPEST IN OUR TEA-POT

Cirix,\ is still the principal tea-pot of tlio British Race, and when a tern, pest occurs there the average Englishman is interested. His first thought, perhaps, is, as to whether the war, which has broken, out be.tween it a»d the neighbouring country of Japan, will interfere with the British trade, and raise tip price of tea. The question of whether a few hundred thousand Ohinkies and Japs will be slain in battle, is one of 1 (secondary consideration. In China, especially, human life is held much more cheaply than among European nations, and if a considerable slaughter does take place, it will probably be borne with considerable fortitude, The conflict, so far, is confined to the Corea, a peninsula situated midway , betwecnChinaand Japan, and within a day or two by steam of either country. Corea, itself, is a big country, containing nearly ten; millions of barbarians, who have yet to make their mark on the world's history. Nominally, it.is a dependency of China, but its trado and sympathies aro in the main iwith Japan. It has now become the battle ground between two great'nations who have hitherto not been much given to fighting. If the present combat means a fight to a finish, Japan, however, game, must ultimately succumb, as it can only boast a population of forty millions of souls, aganet China's four hundred millions, But probably therg; w jll be no fighting to a finish, for both China and Japan liavo a considerable respect and a wliolesomo fear of England, America, and Enssia. 'J.'lieee three countries are their best customers, tutd j/j. the past they have, at least in the case of .Chip, shown that at a pinch thoy can be' " 'ugly customers." The trade of these three countries will be disturbed and disLu'rajigfid by the Corean war, and if 'they 'should dfipi()e to take point ,action to stjo'p it' frjlf jso,pn jje 'terminated. ; CJiipa pot, and it is very possible that t£ey may determine to 'disallow my pity longed tenjpost within >t.

_ The finajioial dobate in tlio Houso ifi great nonsense. Thoro are not half-a-dozen members competent to review the balance-sheet of tlio Colony. .Tbreo or four members of the opposition can add up figures arid on the Government side there is Mr Ward as solo guide, pliilosopher,and exponent of ouv Colonial arithmetic. Poor Mr Ward reminds us of an Irish Pilot who was conducting a man-of-war- into port. The captain inquired if the sagacious pilot kuew all the rocks in the channel. ". Every one of them," promptly replied the trusty navigator. At" that instant the vesselstruck and tlio pilot, proud of his superior knowledge, cried out " that's one of. them;!!' ;In lmioh the same way Pilot Ward whoii' he fouled the B.N.Z. reef; must have said " that's ono of them," and again when ho found: that he had no inonoy to meet his London engagements ho possibly exclaimed " that's another!"