JOTTINGS from WELLINGTON

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume XV, Issue 4883, 22 November 1894, Page 3

JOTTINGS from WELLINGTON

(By Our Own Correspondent)

Tuesday, Mr Frcyberg's Mission and tb Timber Troik—A Ent for the Wairarapa.—The Show Summednp.-The Town Hall Question.—Puhlic Gymnasiums ami Physical Culture.—A few ' Words on Snakes.—Why do we Buy Horses from Australia.—Sir llobert Stout Bums his Boats.—Our Cafe Inspector.-- On Dog Fancying.—A Pathticlncidait.

Iu view of tho recent "boom" which has been given to New Zealand timber in London by Mr Prey, berg, of Wellington, tho oxpert, whose passago to England and oxponses wero paid by tho Government of this Colony, it would ho woll if sawmill-owners and others in your district,intercsted in tho timber trade, woro to communicato with the Department of Industrieswitha viow

to being roprcseutod in tho trial shipmont which the Government to sond Homo under their (pispices. There is just a chanco that a very valuable trado may bo opened up with Now Zoaland in timber, and although perhaps thero is at prosont moro "boom ' about tho matter than business, it is just as woll not to lose any opportunity, I had some slight knowledgo of Mr Froyborg when he was in Wellington last, and I certainly understood him to say that there was a chance of finding a market in tho old country, not so much for building timber, as for ornamental woods suitablo for furniture and cabinet-making purposes, However, now ho seems to have taken the English and Continental fancy with our more useful and moi'3 plentiful kinds of timber, Rirau and other timbers if once taken up for street paving purposes will of course mean the rapid development of a large and ever increasing trade, Itis universally admitted that for beauty of grain, New Zealand woods cannot easily be beaten anywhere, and 1 had always understood that Mr Froyberg's chief object was to open up a trade in this class of woods, more especially as he took with him some beautiful sped-

mens of " parquotte " flooring of which he was the patentee. I also thought Mr Frey berg's chief object ingoing Home was to boom his own patent flooring, However, as he

seems to have done tho Stato somo sorvico also, I suppose wo cannot grumble even if ho did obtain a oheap trip.

A specimen of Mr Freyberg's parquetto flooring may bo seon in tho main entrance hall of the Wellington Public Library. Tho woods aro divided into tesselated patterns by a very ingenious process, and the floor, when well laid and polished, would have a very handsome appearance. Such a flooring is, however, notsuitable for a building liko tho Public Library,wherethe traffic is so heavy, and where it is impossible to lay an interdiction against hob-nailed boots. On the Continent of Europe, and indeed,in many placesin Great Britain now, parqnette flooring is almost universally used, Here there would be an opening on a large scale for ornamental woods of a durable nature, As an example of what can bo dono with New Zealand woods in the manufacture of fc/nittirclwould recommend any of your readers who

may bo visiting Wellington to inspect I inMossrs Scoullar&Chisholm's warefW ft 0 " 56 e ma o ]Uncen '' bed-room jßp'-'iito recently manufactured by tho entirely of red pino aud honeyBuckle. The f urnituvo which is now on exhibition in the largo show windows iB the admiration of everybody who stops to examine. A more beautiful piece of furnituro than tho wardrobecouldnotbeseonanywhere.

Sir Robert Stout is coming up to Wellington at last to resido permanently. People were wondering when he would make up his mind to this coarse, for it is manifestly absurd that our senior member should reside moro than half his time out of Wellington, Naturally there is an objection to absentee representatives, and it is just as well for him that he has at last determined to sever his'connection with the Southern City, which *";... has been the scene of so many of his victories, and also on one memorablo occasion of his signal dofeat, Otago v has been good to Sir Robert altogether, and ho has been for long dovoted to her, but it is in the nature of men to desire a change occasionally, Wellington just now appears to have considerable magnetic influence, for it is drawing all sorts and conditions to its shores from other parts of the Colony, Statesmen, bankers, merchants, manufacturers, all seek refuge in the Empire City, Wo have even captured lately what is reputed to bo a real live American millionaire, whom report sayß has como here solely for tho fishing which the Wainui-o-mata stream affords him, Ido not think, however, that if I woro a millionaire I would come to Wellington to fish, there is no ac/counting for tastes, however. / Wo have got one vory sharp man iin Wellington and thatman is Mr Doyle, the Inspector of Nuisancos. j Amongstthenumerousappointments ( which Mr Doyle holds from the CorsWi Now, as I have said, Mr Doylo is «L cute, and a sharper man . nMßgArreting outanunplcaßantbackJHPt'd odour or chasing a stray JfP T ' pup in the hope of capturing the owner for a collar in tho long run, it would bo difficulttoproduce throughout the length and breadth of the land. During the recent Dog Show, however, a brilliant idea, a positive stroko of genius, occurred to the Inspecter. Sallying forth one fine • afternoon ho arrived at the Show, paid for his admission and bought a cataloguo just like any ordinary common place individual, and proceeded to enjoy himself, not like any ordinary visitor, however. Oh dear no, Taking careful note of the visiting dogs, the Inspector hunted around amongst the local aninials.on exhibition, and discovered a whole host, of them without that vory necessary civic permit for a poor dog's existence—a registered collar! Promply the Inspector jotted down ■ -.,' the names of tho owners, and promptly he informed thorn that if they did not speedily pay up tho necessary ■ fee Lo would be pain- ' fully compelled to institute pro-] ,/> ceedings. Thus the wily Inspector en-; 'fr joyed the Dog Show, and augmented the city funds at the samotime, Now it must bo admitted that it was ' pretty smart to think of a dog show as a happy hunting ground for unpaid dog taxes, '. One would have supposed that' tho first thing the owner of a valuable dog would do, they musthavo been.all fairly, valu^ "' able animalß to liavo been deemed worthy of showing at all, would bo < •to have his dog: registered. The : idi()cy or of tlia lowl de«.

faulting dog fanciers was therefore vory properly circumvented' by tbo outoneas of tlio Inspector.

I do not think I shouldlike to be a dog fancier, There is too much anxiety and too much worry and responsibility attaching to tbo position for my fancy. A friend of mino lias a couple of fox terriers—to the uninitiated very ordinary looking animals— which aro respectively valued at fifty and sixty guineas each, for in their voins runs the bluest blood of the champion strains of England. The poor man's life is a perfect misery to him whon he takes thosoaristocraticlittle canines outfor exercise owing to the predeliction thoy have for getting under cart wheels, and snapping nt horsos hoofs, to say nothing of their numerous and fierce encounters with vnlgar dogs of tho mongrel species who arc no respecters of rnnk and breeding, and who would tako a keen delight in "llattcning-out" the thoroughbreds should they get tho chance, To lose sixty guineas at one fell swoop is no joke, mid personally 1 feci that tho money might he bettor and more safely invested than in a (log's carcase, but then,of courne,ns I am not a dog fancier, and haven't many guinoas to spare I may bo prejudiced, There is another gentleman I am acquainted with who is the proud possessor of a collio, an exceedingly handsome animal, worth about £BO, The other day that dog was run over, and the gentleman suffered acute anguish until ho had ascertained that no great damngo was dono. He now leads that dog about on a chain, and tries to look happy and contented, but I am euro he isn't,

Tlio public turned out in great > 1 crowds to the Wellington A. and P. j ( Show on Thursday, mid it is contid- j < cntly anticipated that,thanks to line ] 1 weather and liberal patronage, the 11 Wellingtou Association is now out 11 of deep water and stoering straight |' and fast to the haven of prosperity, \ ( There were very many Wairarapa; ] I visitors at the Show, and in this ( respect the settlers in your dis-' I trict showed an excellent oxamplo! to those in the Manawatu district , who, wore neither very much! en evidence as oxhibitors or | visitors. Tho Show was run on' strictly teetotal principles, to tho j great disappointment of many who had forgotten that it was being held; ( within the confines of that model'j tempemnco borough—Petono. In ( fact as I heard a thirsty looking in- ( dividual romark it was" a—■ dry Show altogether." Tho general public would have liked more sido shows it is'said, but they appeared to me to enjoy thomselvca remarkably well looking at tho borses f and admiring tho jumping, Afow more" sido Shows" would certainly mako tho gathering more attractive to the generality of people. Perhaps the executive will be able to amend this on future occasions. Notwithstanding all the drawbacks and dis- ] advantages under which the Wei- [ lingtouAssooiationlabourainholding ( its Shows so far away from town, 1 they have reason to congratulate t themselves heartily that 1 thanks to i the splendid exhibits,the lino weather ] and the big crowd, their 1894 Show ( has been an unqualified success iu j every way. ,

Tho City Council have dono well in deciding not to make any altera-1 tions to the Corporation ofiices just at present, for two very good reasons. First, there is a possibility of! ! parting with this admirable site to one of the large financial institutions which will shortly make Wellington its head-quarters. The institution in question, it is said, is the Bank of New Zealand (head offico) which, together with its parasite,the Assets Company, ronsfc secure permanent accommodation somewhere sooner or later. Secondly, the money which it was proposod to spend in altering the present structure will be much better applied if put into a Town Hall, tho necessity for which becomes more and more apparent every day, M would be sheer waste of monoy«b enlarge the present building, for the expenditure would nover bo recouped when the offices aro sold, which they are sura to bo very shortly,

I am'glad to learn that a large public gymnasium is at last within tho bounds of possibility in Wellington, It is an institution which has been urgently required for years past. It is true that most of the football clubs havesmallgymnasiums hut unless you are a footballer you cannot uso them,and even if you were, thcro are no competent instructors. A Mr Matthews, an American, and a noted athlete, hns recently arrived in Wellington,bringiiig with him all tho latest apparatus for a first rate and completely fitted gymnasium, and aliould he receive sulhciont support, ho will secure a large hall,possibly tho skating rink, and proceed to lit it up accordingly. The gymnasium will be conducted on the American or German "turn veroin " principle and a thorough system of physical onlturo taught on scientific methods. There aro hundreds of young men in Wellington who cannot afford the time or who are not adapted for cricket, rowing or football, to whom such an institution would be a great boon. Tho intellectual Germans have long recognised tho fact that physical culture is just as important as mental culture, and so do we also to a large extent, but our field sports do not altogether, admirable as tlicy are, quite supply what is required. Mr Matthews has (received already vory encouraging promises of support, and I hope very shortly to see our Wellington " turn vorein " an accomplished fact, The public displays of gymnastic skill, which are givon periodically in tho largo American, German, and English town 6, where theso " turn yerein " exists aro very interesting aj/d instructive sights, and I have no doubt, they will form one of tho leading features of tho Wellington institution.

Now Zealand like Ireland is popularly supposed to be free from snakes, but if wo do not exercise more care in future it is quite possiblo that this happy state of affairs may pass away. There, is great danger in the importation of bananas from the Islands and from Queensland, as it frequently happens a snako is found peacefully coiled up in the hunches and not discovered until the fruit is taken off tho stem ; Tho other day a good sized snake was found in a Wellington Chinaman's f rait shop and, over and <ovor again they are discovered when 'tho bunches of bananas are being landed on tho Wharf from the Island steamers." Someof these unwokome immigrants may escape and increase and,multiply, and as we*do hot want any.of these "scrpohts" in our , of. Edon, it would be well,; that; the Island fruit, when landed, ebould, bo eubpiittetl to a.

rigid inspection,. It is a little thing, but it may become annoying,

. Judging by tlio splendid collection of horsos at the Show last week I shonldjiave thought that Now Zoaland would not require to import from-Australia, I must be wrong, however, for very frequently shiploads of horses are brought here from Sydney for sale. We used at ono time to have a reputation for breeding fine horses, from a racer down to adraußflit horso,but recently it would appear that the local breeders are not able to supply the demand, or wo would not boo light j draughts and hacks from Australia! commanding a ready sale and bring, ing remunerative prices in Wellington,' Only last Saturday a large shipmont from Sydney" was sold by a local firm of Auctioneers, and further drafts are to follow. Did we not supply Australia at one time with curtain classos of horses, and havo wo riot sent largo drafts to India at various times ? Surely thero must bo something wro ng somewhere, for bringing Horses to Now Zealand seems almost liko Bonding ooals to Newcastle. Tlio matter is worthy of attention by horsebreeders.

The facta concerning the death of the old man namea> Loekyer, who died last weok, are rather pathetic, The old man was formerly tho owner of a tumble-down shanty in Mul-grave-street, noxt to St. Paul's Church, which the Corporation recently demolished owing to its unsightly and insanitary condition, It is said that the old man, who has been living on charity for some timo past, was so alfeeted by tho demoliturn of the building that it preyed on \ his mind and he fretted himself to j death, The old fellow, who was j over seventy years of age, it is only | fair to state, however, was in feeble [ health and had been failing for some j time past. The unsightly building, i which has long been an eyesore, was I over fifty years old, and some of the ; Loekyer family have until quite recently, lived in it ever since it was built,