TOLD ON LAMBTON QUAY.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume XVI, Issue 5128, 12 September 1895, Page 3

TOLD ON LAMBTON QUAY.

[By The Axciesv Marixer.] "And thm spake on thai ancient man, The brirfht-ci/cil marine):"— Coleridge. Wumxctox Tuesday. A. SOME SACRED BEAXS. "Necessity is the mother of invention," is 'a very old proverb, and how often have we proved its correctness. The need for money is probably tlio most cruel kind of necessity, and when one is required to havo money or burst, all his wits are at work to find a convenient ' loopholo of escnpo from bursting. /' A gentleman with very highly- - developed commercial instincts, and a flexible moral code, was not very long ago stranded in the City. His condition was critical; anil that commercial disruption which is sigt uificantly termed" bursting," stared r . him steadily in the face. It was a tight fix, the necessity was great, but tbo power of invention was greater, and was applied in this case with romarkablo effects, The impecunious party sent across to Melbourne and procured a lutlf-lmndred-weiglit of areca nuts, these, together with a dozen or more bottles of assorted scents, were manipulated in secret, i t with tlio result that after being JHfteeped for two days in Jockey Club, Oppopanax, Frangipani, etc, each areca nnt gavo out a delicate perfume of a rare and agreeable quality. The nnls wore by this simple process turned into beans, " the Sacred Beans from tbo Maharajah of Oodepore." Hero was wealth won from the wit of a workless wretch; but he was a commercial man with highlydeveloped business talent, One quiet evening, be took his stand at a convenient point in a muchfrequented street, and by dint of eloquence and full-Hedged falsehoods, thoso beans were bartered for " bawbees." " These sacred beans, " I may say gentlemen, come from 1 " India, where they are held in great " veneration. It is held as an article

"of faith amongst the Indians, that "to carry one of these sacred beans "about, istoeusuro perpetual good "luck. Good health is also sup- " posed lo be conferral upon the " owner of a snered bean, and many " are the stories told of the longevity "of the bean-worshipping Indians. "These sacred beans are held in esteem by the Queen and the r Royal Family, and by the British "Peerage. This is the first time " these beans have been seen in New " Zealand, and I am ottering them "at three for one shilling." The man was rushed by eager purchaser!;, and tho ingenious trader left the street, richer' by £ls. He did not hurst, but booked for Australia. There must be many of the beanbuyers still in the City, but 1 warrant few of them know how tho sacred beans were faked. This is a true story, for I obtained (he details from a confederate, THE COL-.VIKSS IS COMIXG! We are iudebted to tho muchtravelled Smy the for introductions to several old-world celebrities, and the latest of the group of great person-, ages, Mr Frederic Villiers, the heroof nine campaigns, is still in the Colony, delighting the people with his lec- . turns on the great wars of recent times. To Mr Smytho we owe the « visit to these Colonies of that notable and singular personage, Mrs Besant, whose life's history is a mixture of fact and fiction. Mrs Besant first introduced to us the occult doctrine of Theosophy, and for a time after her visit esoteric Buddhism flourished in tho city, and adherents were plentiful. Likeall new crazes, Theosophy has almost died out in Wellington, but a stimulant is to bo given to these good people who affect the latest craze, The Countess is coming, and thopresenceof the Countess will have great interest for all ardent Theosophists. The Countess Wachtmeister is a loading light in the highest circles of Europe, a distinguished personage in, her own country, and takes high rank in the domains of

Theosophy. There was a time when the lady eschowed all side doctrines, but in those days the Count held an important post in the Diplomatic service, aud was, I believe, ambassador at tho Court of St, James. The Count is dead, and that the Countess is a widow is self-evident. The Countess Wachtmeister is coming to New Zealand, and in anticipation of Aihe event, the Johnnies that flutter •fl|n tho top circles of society, are preparing their patent leather pumps, cravats and dress togs to be in readiness to stand by the great society Madame, at whose receptions they will gorge tho season's delicacies and wash down the same with a thimblefull of champagne. The Countess is coming! Vke la Theosophy, esoteric Buddhism, and the other frantic freaks of insatiable creed-hunters, A HEAVY 111 1,1, OK COSTS, What is to be the future of Wellington ? According to some who in their own estimation are very astute, Wellington is to be the" hub of tho universe." Others again insist that in ten years tho population of the City will double itself, while tho pessimists snarl and say " the bottom will drop out of the place." Yankee-headed commercial travellers credit Wellington with being the business centre of New Zealand, but—and they butt with force here—there is no enterprise in the place. Wellington has forged ahead in spite of the apathy (of her commercial men, if that is so, £' it, 1 ask, would have been the dilion of tho City if moro enterprise wero exhibited ? Much of the' growth of tho city is due to outsiders, and in matters commercial, the desire of all large companies, banks and business bouses to ha,ve their headquarters in Wellington, lias vastly improved onr position. Wholesalo houses haye been res'ponsible for the expenditure of a very large sum of money in our midst, and in new buildings alone the bill oncosts is a heavy one. In conversation with an expert I discovered that on tho Heolaimed Land tho monoy exponded in new prem- '■ ises together with the cost of tho buildings now in course of erection, amounts to no less than £52,000. That is to say within tho last three years the bulk of this huge sum has been spent in bricks and mortar, and mostly by business firms, who have recently invaded the City. Honey has been laid out in other jaarts'of the City, and in LambtonJbay, Willis-street, and Mannersstreet evidence of this is to be seen. Thero is thus manifest confidence in tho future of Wellington, aud that the Empiro City will be, if she is not I already, the chief commercial and distributing centre of the colony, is tho' opinion p;f many competent judges!' 'More now buildings are promised, and the latest announcement is from the Etaiimj Fast, the proprietors of which have just let a . contract for iicw printing offices in tyifetrcet which will cost'£6.oo

or more. This building is to be up-to-date, I can well belicvo it, and I shall bo glad to seethe paper brought up to tlio same period, and take the place it should occupy, that of the leading newspaper in the Colony. The reading public will be grateful for a little mora general news, and be pleased to pay a penny for a newspaper on a Saturday and not bo forced to buy as hitherto—a rag. Wellington is the " bub of the universe," and the Evening Post is its oraclo. inn'TAXXER-'DID THE THICK. Tho Prohibition Party is watching Parliament as closely and as tenderly as a mothor watches kor infant, Tho Temperance baby is up for its christening, and the House is engaged in the job now. What sort of a name will they give the youngster ? Will it please the Prohibitionists, or will it be in the interests of Barrel and Bung ? Whatever may be tho result, the Temperance people aro full of enthusiasm and excitement; one ovor-zealous member of the "Coldstream Guards" was very nicely " had " the other day by a working-man, and the story is so good that Inm tempted to tell it, The worker went down as usual in tho morning with his kit, containing his frugal lunch and a black bottle of cold tea. Ho was early at the wharf, but his luck was out, and al'lor waiting several hours, he decided to go home. It was about mid-day, Wellington's most furious wind was blowing, and on the Reclaimed Land it was difficult fo keep one's feet, The wharf-lumper was walking up this street as soberly as one could, but the wind prevented that steadiness of gait which sober people indulge in ; coming towards the lumper was a Prohibitionist, fairly saturated with Temperance principles, and at tho time actually seeking tor material with which to embellish a lecture. He saw the wharf-lumper, and his eagle eye detected, or seemed to detect, the unsteady walk of the "tank,'' tho snout of the black bottle peeped out from the kit, it was a clear case. Stopping the man, he admonished him for giving way to drink, pleaded with him to reform, and finally asked him to throw away the black bottle, promising him sixpence if he did so. The" tanner" did the trick, the man parted with tho bottle with great willingness, and took the sixpence with profuse tlianks,inntteriug as he left the Temperance reformer, "a pint of beer isalways better than a bottle of cold tea." The sixpence and the lumper pulled up at the first " pub," where the two parted company, and when the man did get home, his wife was amazed to see her good man "jolly tight," The Temperance sixpence was joined by others, and playcd-up with the unlucky wharf-lumper. THE I'.EIOX OF GOLD. Gold—"The thirst for gold hath made men demons.'' There is no deny ■ ing that we havo developed a fierce thirst for gold, but as yet no one is prepared lo admit the effect of the thirst. There are no demons about, hut every other individual one meets has the latest tip about some new gold mine in the Auckland district, and the" good things" arc as plentiful as leaves in autumn, The gold fever is running through nil grades of the community like the influenza, and if rumour is correct, not a few of the people in the Wairaiapa have hud a touch of tho disease. Mining is being well boomed in the City, for almost everyone that has dabbled in scrip lias come out on top, and the successes of individuals spread like wild-lire, drawing others into the illumes. It is interesting to watch the clerks, warehousemen, counterjumpers, bald-headed sinners in belltoppers, and even ladies conning tho latest quotations at tho various brokers' establishments, " What are Kapai-Vermonts this morning '(" —"Grace Uarlingsare a sure thing," -" The Ivarangaliapes aro bound to turnup trumps."—" Uniteds are good goods."—" Wiiilii extenders Imvc dropped."—" Victors are vising again" arc the scraps of conversation one hears from the group of excited mining speculators. It would, 1 think, startle tho crowd to know the amount of money that has been invested in mining scrip within the last two or three months, The ; brokers are having a merry time, but with some of them the pleasure is , mixed with a good deal of anxiety, as many speculators are forcing upon brokers the responsibility of making the investments for them, "Hero is a cheque for £SO, lay it out in the shares you consider safest for a rise," and the broker has to dive into the pool and make tho best of it for his client, fortunately there is no sign i of the boom bursting, on the contrary, the prospects are in favour of ; it continuing for mouths to come, and with the aid of foreign capital, it may keep warm for years, In the meantime we are going it very strong, determined to make the most of the reign of gold. The servant girls are being drawn into the game, and many are investing their savings as well as tho knowledge and ■ intelligence of their male friends will admit Sooner of later the mining cholera must spread to the country, and my advice, if I may be permitted to give advice to would-be speculators is, select the most reliable broker to transact your business, don't tie him down too tightly, and answer all communications promptly and by wire, above'all sell out when you can get a profit of say 50 to 100 per cent. Coolgardie is not in the running with the Thames and Coromandel Districts. IIIE I'ROItAIILE I'AKSIKG OUT. At first thero was a disposition on the part of speculators tp snap up Colonial Bank shares, which quickly mounted up from 16s 6d to 21s, even touching 245. This happened when the Bank Bill passed the Legislative Council, and the ratification of the terms of purchase were left to the Govcrnor-jn-Counoil, but when the ratification was made subject to tho approval of Parliament, the speculative spirit almost vanished. Shrowd men can see "nothing in it" at anything over 20s, for they hold the view that tho price will be equal to about 30s per share in the Colonial Bank, but as the Bank of New Zealand will decline to buy nuy of the donbtfnl assets, the liquidation of these on the part of the Colonial Bank will probably mean a loss which may amount to any sum from 5s to 10s per share. This deducted 'from the prico paid by the Bank of Now Zealand, will giye tho shareholders of tlio Colonial Bank from 20s to 25s per share, so that to buy the shares at moro than 20s each is highly speculative. ' \\ the transaction'realises tho amount estimated, it will be quite good enough for the shareholders, for up to the time of the Banking legislation the shares wore very flat, boing unsaleable at more than 16s 6d to 17s. Tlio Colonial Bank has hurried through its balance-sheet, and tho terms "of the purchase wjtl hi) 'laid before j

Parliament in the courso of a few days, It must be admitted that tho time in which tlio Colonial Bank has balanced its accounts and prepared itself for extinction, shows a smartness that is not displayed by tlio officers of any otlior Bank, but cynics will not admit there is any smartness in the business, but persist in believing that the wholo thing has been cut and dried fdr montlis past, The sooner the amalgamation takes placo and banking affairs recede from the public gaze, the better for the colony,

Baukor's lives do all remind us Lying is an art sublime I Tlio rest will bo found in an all-tion-tk-luxe of Longfellow.