TOLD ON LAMBTON QUAY.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume XVI, Issue 5080, 18 July 1895, Page 2

TOLD ON LAMBTON QUAY.

[By The Akoiesi Mariner.]

" And thus spah on that undent mm, The bright-eyed mariner."— Coleridge.

' Wellington, Tuesday. INCIDENTAL. , The Ward ieception and m "Buller Gorge "still afford the dSjr iron plenty of amusement: everyone seemingly has some incident torelate or a joke to explode. Tketickets for the banquet" went off" remarkably well, and it would bo surprising if it were otherwise, as not a few, of the tickets were given away. One individual had no less than four opportunities given him of attending the banquet, but his fastidious" stummick " revolted against a cold collation and he refused the freo passes. The incidents during tho feed and after, as related by some of the wags£ about town are excruciatingly funny. One or two whole - hearted, full-blooded,andenthusiasticliberals, thought it absolutely necessary to give an exhibition of swordswallowing, and their efforts to poke table knives down their throats, are spoken of as being very amusing, Another of [ the right-colour, who took avory ' keen interest in the reception and banquet, performed with much distinction; tho speeches took*m fancy, and each point scored was signal for very hearty applause and hand-clapping. In the early part of the evening ho was very demoni strative, but the toasts followed ono , iinother with such rapidity; [ " bumpers" were raised to his lips in honor of such important party toasts, that his internal capacity was totally unequal to the heavy demands made upon it. Yigorous handclapping and loud " hear, hears!" gave place to husky applause and table clapping, with an occasional • "hear, hear" in a guttural tone, till r at last two sympathetic waiters 1 steered him out of tho room. Ho 3 wishes now that he had never been (o "Buller's Gorge," and would even "cut" the Liberal Party altogether, but the prospects—which all true Liberals look for—are too good to be thrown away.

IXSIDB AXD OUTSIDE. Last Friday evening the House presented a very animated appearance, and the proceedings wr?ro lively indeed. Bluff, misrep'rese*tion, truth and falsehood got\ft much mixed, but the diginlied speaker managed to smooth matters, The firing on both sides was heavy, but tho Government, as usual, l whipped up a majority in tlio division. Politics and politicians are very funny, and we in Wellington probably see more of the game than anyone else. Listening to some of the debates one would imagine there were no such gentlemenin thecountry asourmembersofParliament Courteous and polite,aimb]e and kind,thoy would pass muster in any crowd. Politicians, however, play a double role, and it is outside the House that > we get to know what they are. There is a startling incident related of a member of the Ministry and a Government supporter. The debato was a tedious one and was irritating to the member, who, without arranging with the Government whip, "moved the adjournment," and when asked by the Minister in the lobby why k did so, politely told him to go fir —. The Minister has notaccertoc < to the request, but intends to keep the matter steadily in view—a fiery prospect, no doubt, but the incident serves to illustrate the lax discipline that is maintained in the Ministerial camp.

MATCH GIRIS. Wellington is tlieonly place inNew Zealand that can boast of having match girls, and this is due to the enterprise of Messrs It. Bell & Co., '

of London, who havo, at considerable expense, established a match factory in Adelaide Road. On Monday last the Premier paid a visit to tlio factory, and was highly pleased, not only with the arrangements of the establishment, but also with the quality of the champagne with which the event was honored, The factory is—aecordingtq Mr Bell, one of the principals of the firm—the finest in the world; tho sanitary arrangements are not excelled anywhere, and every little detail that conduces to the comfort of the employees, has received specif, attention. Already, seventy hanom are at work, and it is intended fir increase the number to 120, almost immediately. The work is done mostly by girls, anil the employ-

meiit of so large a number, at such a time, is most opportuno. What to do with our girls, is as serious a matter as the disposal of our boys, Sewing is cut to the very finest point, at anyrate I should think so, when seamstresses are obliged to hire themselves out at eighteeu-pence a day, for private sewing. The washtub is the special claim of widows, and work in tho laundries is limited,

Dressmaking and millinery, except to a fortunate few, is but genteel poverty, and slaveyism is repugnant to the average Colonial girl. Tho avenues of employment for our girls, are limited, and the match factory is therefore welcome. Pell's factory is hard at work, turning out a good, [saleable article, and the firm is said

to be doing very nearly two-thirds of the New Zealand trade. It is quite pleasant to seo the familiar yellow-coloured tin match-boxes, bearing the name of the Colony as the place of manufacture. . -jh cnt'Arat jioxev, f[ I The times are hard, and the demands of the usurer are harder. I still. The civilised money-lender, I when ho can obtain a fair margin of .security, is disposed to lend at a reasonable rate, from 5j per cent, to Gi per cent., but the barbarous, hungry wretches who fatten on the necessities of the poor and needy, demand from 20 per cent, to 30 per cent., indeed some of them think 50 per cent, a poor rate. The depression has thrown many a family . into straits, and to tide over what is hoped to be a temporary matter, the goods and chattels are pawned for a small sum, and here comes in the opportunity of the fifty per center. I have heardof a case where, a boarding-house keeper obtained a loan of £3O, on the furniture together with the guarantee of a friend in fair circumstances, and for this modest loan which lias to be repaid at tftjk rate of £5 per month, the sum of £j|, was demanded for the interest, equal to about 30 per cent, per annum. In another case £6 was borrowed, for which the borrower has to pay £2, themohey being repayable by weekly instalments of fen shillings. This, is very nearly cent, per cent, per annum. There is a great gulf between the "current rates "which figure in advertisements, and tie rates demanded by the class of thieving

choicefor the borrower who must go to' the one or thd'other if he wants money. It is wlien'-cases of this . kind come to our knowledge that we think State interference should be invoked, and there is no doubt State pawnshops would do well if their management could bo trusted. - It is a wondor to me that the charit■ibly inclined have not banded "ogotlior to lighten the burdens of the borrower; there is plenty of scope for a venture on business lines and for profit earning at intermediate rates of interest. WRECKAGE AT POXGAKOA. No lives lost; tlio crew in a perilous position! Pongaroa is a little placo, inland on the Alfredton- Weber road, whero the Government Cooperative boat is aground. Tlio unfortunato co-operative labourers who compose the crew aro in an unenviable position, moro particular by the married men whose wives and families aro with them. They aro surrounded by a sea of liquid mud, the roads being practically impassable. Provisions in consequence are at famine prices, Hour is quoted at twenty shillings per hundred lbs, potatoes sixteen shillings per cwt, and everything elso proportionately high, How the co-operative family man is to survive these hardships, with wages restricted to thirtyiivo shillings per week, passes Hbmprelionsion, All the co-operative "abourers aro not "new-chums" at navvy work, many of them are oxpertSjWhoinotherdayscomniandcd their ten and twelve shillings a day and are still capable of earning the current rate of wages if given the opportunity, but there comes the rah. Tlio Government intermittent system forbids a married man whose wife and children are with him, earning more than thirty-five shillings, no matter how efficient a workman he may be. These married men are expected, however, to maintain themselves and families on this restricted wage and with the price of provisions at an extraordinarily high figure, Tbo workmen are in a perilous position in the bogs of ( Pongaroa, but they have managed to have their complaints made known ' to Parliament. But the Pongaroa ■ co-operative labourers are not the , only ones in such a sad plight, the , complaint is general with the cooperative workmen throughout the Colony, and their condition is not , itlculated to encourage seltlementof • laud on the Ministerial plan. I'OOR PLAYERS. ,

The working classes are not the only ones that are sore beset by the hardtimes, there are others who feel the pinch of Colonial depression notably the smiling baud of players. Never, perhaps, in the history of Wellington have there been so many theatrical companies, good, bad, and indifferent, playing at the same time in the City, and never have amusements been so sparsely attended as this winter, If I am correctly informed, more than one company has come to grief within the past few weeks; still the competition keeps strong, while the attractions on the whole are better than we have bad in years past. The professionals are not only obliged to face competition among themselves but also from amateurs, who have been taxed considerably this year, to augment the charity funds,, The theatre-boom appears also to be in its infancy, and Mr weeks tocome,we are promised all •wis of attractions. Pictorial placards ■mve made their appearance in the windows of shops, and are alleged to be scenes in the new play, "The Land of the Moa," and " If. I only had a bun," I would fling it at' George Leitch, for slandering the r.oble moa. The pictorial placard gives this gigantic bird a yellow tail, which I am sure is enough to cause Sir Walter Buller to disgorge his proportion of the " Buller Gorge." George Leiteh's play, however, is well boomed, and the Wellington syndicate who are supposed to be backing the show, expect to mako a good profit out of the venture,

LONDON MADE. The Hon. Joseph has many friends inside and outside the House, for his amiable qualities are such that everyone who comes in contact with him, is enchanted. Ho is suave, polite and obliging, and rightly or wrongly you like the man. But Ward has been to London, and while there, appears to have contracted fme bad habits. His temper is said be London made, restless and :evish, while the man himself has altered for the worse in his style. Ho has acquired the" Yas! Deali boy" business, and cannot stand being worried. I believe he is very much annoyed at the turn of | political events, and the severe I criticism he has been subjected to since his return to the Colony, has j caused him grave anxiety. If, was so different in London, where he was the honored guest of Lord this and Sir something elso. If the Nelsons' Colonial Co-operative Produce Company pans out alright,. and the Hon, Joseph has already got a fine fat billet in the concern, it is not improbable that he will chuck politics, and stick to commerce. A t anyrate, his London trip has thoroughly spoiled him for politics. I FEARIX'O A FLOOD.

Members of Parliament were not I moved by any feelings of virtue, when they killed the Lottery Bill of' the Bank of New Zealand Estates Company; they were stricken by the fear of a Hood of lotteries. All the « Companies, such as Insurance, Loan and Mortgage Companies, with mullocky assets, threatened to sue for the same privileges, and the danger of demoralising the morals of the community, with a plethora of lotteries, steadied the voting; the House declined to discuss the Estates Company's Bill, but it was fear that prompted them to action, What is to become of the assets? is a question that is agitating the minds of not a few members; in the lobby, the opinion is freely expressed, that the Govern-, Mment should take over, under the ™Lands for Settlement' Act, such of the Estates Company's properties as would come under the provisions of the Act. It is estimated that this would relieve the Company of about £600,000 or £700,000 worth of at present unsaleable land, Thoro are many members who voted against

the Lottery Bill who would support

suck a scheme, it beiug less objectable while at thoßamo time it is an opportunity of making a or settlement of the land, Bankiug legislation is expected this session, and the air is still pregnant with rumours of amalgamation, An, Act passed last year expressly forbids the Bank of New Zealand from absorbing any other institution', but the legislation of this session will rescind that clauso of the Act, and amalgamation will be brought about during the recess, If one could only make sure of this, Colonial Bank *' Bbaws ■ would to worth buying at

I preset prices. Last year, on the sti;eViefth of the proposed amalgamation, the shares advanced in a fow days from 20s to 30s, and there is no doubt they would do the same again under like circumstances. IX THE LOBIIY. i You see and boar some funny tilings in the lobby of the House. I am assured that within the next few weeks there will bo storms blowing'; the debate of last Friday on the famous circular of the Agent-General being but tlio precursor of a series of sultry debates. The Financial Statement, the Tariff Bill, the Banking legislation are nil irons in firo mid will be used for branding the Government. The members of the Opposition have beeu storing up their war material until the return of the wandering Treasurer, and now that he is in his seat in the House fchore is to be some bard fighting. One particularly warm debate is on the tapis, but just exactly what it is about I cannot learn, possibly the three million, unpledged or plcdgable securities of the Colonial Treasurer are to bo sot up like " Aunt Sallv "to be pelted.