JOTTINGS from WELLINGTON.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume XVI, Issue 4045, 7 February 1895, Page 3

JOTTINGS from WELLINGTON.

(By Out 0™ Correspondent), Tuesday. Tks Proliner and the Agent-General-ship,—Tariff Reform. The Royal Commission. —/tit Obliyinij o||icid, — Pickpockets Abroad. More 'lVimlPass Naval Officer etc."—Money to Wicni - Sir Robert. Shut. - y" Stranded."—A Miserable End.

It is still persistently rumoured that the Premier will go Homo at the ond of the present year as Agent-General, as lie finds the cares •ind labours of oQicc too much for him. Air Seddon, it is still said, has long cherished the idea that the Agent Generalship woutd bo asnug retiring billet, and with this contingency in new, Sir Westby Perceval was only re-appointed for one year more of office, Tho wise-acres declare that •bis is an absolute fact, but as the end of tho year draws nigh we will see for ourselves. Personally lam inclined to credit the l'lUllOUl'l *'or several reasons, I hear thero is some difficulty about witnesses for the Tariff Commission, which has now commenced its sittings, A few, a very few experts, have volunteered evidence up to the present. The majority of p3oplo who wish to come before the f 'ommission, are either cranks who ave some particular fad io run, or axe to grind. The Typographical Society, for instance, 1 see, has applied to be heard before the Com-; mission, with the view of recom-j mending that ft heavy import duty I should be placed on stereo-blocks i and matrices. This, bccauso much matter is printed by certain weekly newspapers, from these blocks, which are imported ready for the printing press, into the Coiony, thus obviating the necessity, of course, for compositors. Naturally this practice has caused much complaint for sometime past, and with not an-) due reason, I think, so now, it is' proposed to ask the Commission to! recommend a prohibitive duty in j order, if possible, to prevent the! practice.

Rather a good story is being told regarding a well-known passeugeragent in the U.S.S. Co's service in this port which will, I think, tend to raise a smile for a moment. The mssenger-agenfc in question is noted Hjr his urbane and obliging disposition. He lays himself out to oblige passengers, in fact many people travel when they don't want to, for the entire reason that Jlr will bo there to attend to them and to put them on to the best cabin in the ship, and to afford an immense amount of information in the most bonhomie style, which a ticket-agent on a Yankee railroad would give his " Soulcase " to climb within hail of. Everyone who is attended to by Mr —, tho popular passenger-agent, feels a sort of conscious pride. He or she thinks that they have been treated in tho most exceptional manner. That they have got the best cabinobtainable, although everybodyelsoisscrambling fora berth, and that they have obtained all these concessions and alterations 011 account of their obvious superiority over every one else, Mr notes the flush

of gratified pride on the cheeks of his clients as he bows them out and mills himself together for the purwse of eicercisinghisblandishments Tru the next. Ladies, and particularly old ladies, have a great weakness for Jlr —. An old lady came in the other day, who wanted to go down South. The old lady was procured the best cabin on the steamer, of course, and otherwise posted up to date with the latest information regarding time of sailing, and the hundred and ono other particulars which ladies require to know before they set out on a voyage, The old lady went out well satisfied, Mr thought he had seen the last of her, but before the afternoon she came bustling in again, and stated she could not. possibly catch the boat, j as she had so much shopping to get through, What was she to. do as she wanted so particularly to get away that day. Jlr scratched bis head thoughtfully and asked the old lady to excuse him a moment while heconsulted themanagerabout hercase, Promptly returning he informed our simple old dame that the manager had decided to put off the steamer's departure for a couple of hours, and that TOiereforo she need not be in a hurry, Dut could proceed with her shopping at leisure. The wily Jlr had, however, carefully omitted to inform our guileless old lady that the steamer had been put off some time before he saw her again, On the other hand he very skilfully insinuated that the delay had taken place entirely to suit the old lady's con-

venience, and she believed it too, for when a friend of mine went down to the steamer to see her off, he found the amiable old dame in the midst of an admiring throng explaining how the U.S.S. Co bad delayed the boat's departure entirely to allow her to finish her shopping.

On£ would not expect to have oße's pocket picked at a mmion held for tho purpose of welcoming a Bishop. Yet at the new Bishop s public reception at the Drill Hall the other night by the church people of Wellington, a lady of whom I heard of had her poeket most neatly and artistically picked, losing therefrom a purse with a considerable sum of money init.TheDrillHall was full of JKishops and parsons, the Premier was yso there, as were many othei distinguished people. Notwithstanding this distingue gathering, the purse whs stolen right enough, for the pocket was turned inside out, and in the presß of the crowd the thief slipped away, and no doubt the next moment was hobnobbing with a Bishop-jMiMuaie.

I even heard that some ladies lost their purses and pocket handker* chiefs, in the crush at the Church, when'coming away from the consecration ceremony. This, however, seems hard to believe, for it is scarcely likely that the enterprising pickpocket, whether male or female, would sit out three mortal hours of a consecration ceremony for tho purpose of picking up plunder in thismartner. As admission to the Church was by ticket, too, it would imply that .some of the acquaintances of the Church goers, if tho •Jpiy is true, were certainly not of most select. A Wairarapa lady WM however, robbed at the station of her purse which contained amongst other things, some tickets for ihe ceremony, so it is just possible that admission'was obtained by the use of these tickets. -. If this sort of thing is to continue, we shall have l a || ' , ' aeo3 public iu other 'eowtries. '.' Beware of

The usufil blow set in last week, ns might be expected from the presence of the man-of-war in port. It may bo reckoned upon as a dead certainty, that ut man-of-war will bring wind. We regularly expect it, and last week's experience proved the correctness of the rule, for after weeks of calm weather, a furious gale suddenly set in, which vcii-

dered existence in town, a curse. As usual, of course, i he street watering carts were conspicuous by their absence, and all day long, one fought one's way through clouds of suffocating dust. What a blessing it will be, when the Corporation decide In pave the streets with wooden blocks. At least one of the disadvantages of living in Wellington, will bo mitigated by such a procedure. At present, Wellington enjoys the unenviable repataiion of being the worst roaded town in the Colony, although, goodness knows, large sums are, annually inelfectually spent in trying lo improve the streets. Wooden street-paving has its disadvantages in wet or frosty weather, for it. is difficult for horses to stand up on the slippery blocks; but anything would be preferable, even the risk of a broken neck, to tho dust and jolting which a drive through the Wellington streets moans at present.

Why do man-of-war's men, I am referring now more particularly to the officers, for the men now-a-days are generally a well-behaved steady lot, behave like lunatics when they get ashore? Do they think it unnecessary to place any restraint upon themselves, according to 'lie oldaccepted notion that when once a man was an officer in Ilcr Majesty's service he was thereforeagentleinan ? Apparently the modern naval officer, on this stniion at anyrato, thinks he can do as ho likes with impunity. Why should a naval officer make night hideous and annoy the police, when a landsman, for half tho provocation, would promptly be treated to the cold comfort of a cell in the police station, and an interview with the Alagistnite in the morning.

It. whs stilled timt Mr T. Kennedy Macdonakl, when lie was appointed valuer for the district under tlio Advances to Settlers Act, would not be at liberty to engage in the pursuit of his private business. Apparently there was some misunderstanding, for Jlr Jlacdonald, although now a public servant, is slill conducting liis auctioneering business, and with considerable success, as bis achievements at recent land sales amply testifies. It is usual for an oflicer of the public service drawing pay from the Colonial Treasury to give his whole time to the duties of his position. Perhaps it is intended to place the valuers in the same position as Crown prosecutors, medical ollicers and others, where private practice is allowed, but it was distinctly stated to thecontrary when MrMacdonald's appointment, was ttrst announced. As ;i matter of fact, however, 1 be- j lievo there is very little for the: valuer to do at present, nniil the j Board has made a selection of pro- j perties 011 which advances are to be! made.

Solicitors, Public Companies, and I Financial Agents are complaining 1 bitterly of tho difficulty which exists at present in obtaining securities for the investment, of money on mortgage in country lands, pending the decision of tho Board under the Advances to Settlers' Act, regarding the many properties now under offer to them. No doubt, when the Board has made its Hrst selection and weeded out a considerable portion, investment will be easier. Just now, however, so far as settlers' mortgages are concerned, there is comcomplete stagnation. Cheap money may be dear money in the end if the struggling settler has to wait an unconscionable time for his advances, and he will perforce be obliged to go elsewhere if a little more expedition is not shown in attending to what is in many instances a matter of extreme urgency. In the meantime there is plenty of private capital seeking investment, which is obtainable almost at once, provided the security is good enough.

Sir Robert Stout baa now nmyed in Wellington to permanently take up his residence here, and to com-1 mence the practice of his profession A branch of his firm has been opened here for ?ome time past, under the charge of Dr. JTindlay, the junior partner. Yesterday Sir Itobert made his tirst appearance in the Magistrate's Court as solicitor for his old friend, Mr Walter Bentley, who was joined in an action with Mr Manfred Rose,the theatrical manager,brought against them by Mr Flockton, the well-know furniture dealer. Sir Robert was successful in his defence, and Mr Bentley was absolved from liability under the claim in question,

The whole of the Walter Bontley Dramatic Company, after playing all through the colony for months past, now lind themselves stranded high and dry in Wellington. Truly a pitiable state of affairs for these poor players to find themselves in, [ landed in a strange town, far | from their homes, without money and without credit, waiting for something to turn up before they can extricate themselves from their difficulty. Poor business seems to have been the main cause of the trouble, although mismanagement was no doubt also one of the factors. It is the old story over again that Shakespeare spells ruin, and that melo-drama has had its day so far as this colony is concerned. "Up to date " comedies, plays of "The second Mrs Tanqueray " type, burlesques, and comie opera companies are the only playable things now-a-days. Mr Walter Bentley undoubtedly possesses exceptional powers as an actor, but the public is fickle, it must have new faces, and above all new plays. A " star" whose lustre is dimming, and a stock company picked up in Melbourne, will always find it a hard job to play to payable busipess in the large towns, " The ghost will not walk" so easily on Monday morning as it would in the old days before our tastes were depraved by Messrs Brough and Boucicault, or Messrs Williamson and Musgrovo, We require moro for our money now and wo must have noyelty, However,ono is always sorry to find talent ill requited, and I for one heartily wishMrßentloy q,nd his company 'a. speedy relief from their difficulties.

Mr J. P. Maxwell, late' Railway Commissioner, has, I hear, been appointed Managing Director of the •N.Z. Electrical Syndicate. Mr Suck-ling-Baron will retain executive i chargo as formerlyandMrMaxwell's well-known organising powers and business acumen should be of great assistance in conducting tho affairs of \vhat, i$ a yery large and growiogcoccpoi- '

An old couple, by name Williams, were taken to the Benovolent Home the other day by the police, because they wore unable to properly attend to themselves. Tho old people lived at Makara, about eight miles from town, and were tho possessors of a very nice little farm, and considerable money in the I3ank, yet they lived in such it state of neglect and squalid wretchedness that at last the police intervened. After being in the Home for about a fortnight, the husband died from sheer senile decay, death being, no doubt, hastened bv neglect and want of proper food. The old lady still remains atthe Home, paying for her board and residence. These old people, posessing ample means and living- in a well-settled and prosperous district, it seems almost incredible, that they should voluntarily have existed in a state of such parsimonious neglect, only eventually to end their days in a charitable institution when, by a moderate expenditure of their savings, I hey could easily have lived in comfort their alloted span, which in the case of one of tliero, had but a brief space to run, by their own firesides.