SIR J. P ABBOTT ON NEW Zealand.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume XVI, Issue 4958, 22 February 1895, Page 3

SIR J. P ABBOTT ON NEW Zealand.

(Received November 21, noon.) Sydney, February 21. Sir J. P. Abbott, speaker of the . Logislutivo Assembly, who lms just A returned from a visit to New Zoaland, lias communicated bis impressions to a reporter of iv local paper. He said so far as lie could gather from a general view, affairs were somewhat gloomy, and tho future of the Colony was looked to with a good deal of anxiety. The low prices ruling for wool and other . products were the chief causeof the depression. He was not favorably impressed with the working of tho prohibition regulations in the colony, total prohibition seemed a failure. He recounted how he went to a race

meeting in a certain town where t hero was a liberal display of teetotal V drinks for sale in charge of Hie booths, but they were mostly whiied sepulchres. Acting ou the advice of a friend, he went to the booth and asked for ginger wine "From the right bottle," when be was supplied with a glass of excellent whiskey. He afterwards met a police sergeant and asked him if it was possible to get any intoxicating drink on the course, but was informed that only those known to the booth keepers V could hope to do so. When the women gained the Franchise they made a great descent on the sale of liquor, hence all this sly drinking. On the question of woman's .siill'ruge, a prominent lady told him that as tho women had the suffrage they supposed they must make some sort of use of it, but he did not know exactly what the general idea seemed l» be. He had been informed on good authority that the village settlements intjiecolony were mostly failures. He considered that the scheme of lending cheap money to farmers should be amended. There was considerable danger and he could not see how the government could protect itself against collision with dishonest valuations, and political pressure, it looked as if there were only two classes in the community, the borrower and the taxpayer. He should say taxpayers would suffer. He was favourably impressed with the public buildings, parliamentary procedure, and the economy in the public service.