SATURDAY, II BRUAIiY 14, 1874

Waikato Times, Volume V, Issue 275, 14 February 1874, Page 2

SATURDAY, II BRUAIiY 14, 1874

L : Y totasfr;'" 1 ! <*c Irurn fiat tlio Dritiah "Parliament 11 dicsolvwd, and (he writs rfturned at the lufafit date gave twonty-beven buata to the ConK^rvatives twfjrjiy to tbe Libei-ala, the former having

gaiu»<l eight scits funneily heui by li.b.r optimums. All who Imve •.v.c.jljod t ; ip c >ur-»cu' Jjnfnli jmli 10-. siuoe IR.B, when Mr fJ'ad«tJne t >->k office, cannot foil to have foreseen that a strong reaction of feeling was certitin to ensue consequent on tho tiuckling of the Government (o thw extreme sections ot their at home, and iv an equal degree to the foreign powers w<th whom complications have arisen. The system of Government has been one of expediemy, and it is difficult in the present day to conceive the pnssibilihfcy of a Liberal Government holding office on any other terras. The great body is composed of a heterogeneous mttss or rather mixture of small sections- So long as Mr Gladstone was enabled to play o>ie party against the other he commanded large majorities ; he could only do this so long as the differeut sections had not gained by reason of Government support some consideration by Purliament of their own particular hobby. It is well perhaps that in every Houseof Commons are to be found bodies of members banded together for the attainment of some particular objects, inasmuch us by their meaus important questions thai oiheiwi n e would be shirked are forced upon the consideration of the Legislature, The system, however, often I'tia the effect of maintaining in power a Govern-int-nt wkose policy is detrimental to the Empire, iiinl we believe that this has been very much the ( Hoe with the Gladstone Ministry. The re-eoustruc-tion'of the liihh Lund Laws and tin- disestablishment of the Church in Ireland Mti-hVI a large Hection of ihe f rish constituencies ii urn t.ieir representatives, who doubt less con'dfore-r • tli. i' no matter how great the concession, the heetl'ing ol the Irish pot of discontent would not cea>e h-v was state!, and no doubt hoped by those wh » devoted their eloquence and recorded their vori-s 10 carry the measures. '] he result has already ,-liown itself; ti).' elamorers for reform ate not h;Ui.-qVil, and the Liberal party has made enemies of tuo large sections of tho people: Thu landlords, bivause the} look upon the Land Act as a delil onto robbery of their class, and the members of the Clmivh of England because they tvel that the digest vbhshment of the Chnrch it* equally a robbeiy of the institntion to which they belong The ballot— for which tho Liberal party struggled, nominally in order that each man should vote according to his conscience (a very ptoper sentment) but really because they belioved that ie-!ort to secret voting would give them many victories, ou the principle that the majority <>f thoste coerced were Liberals. — bus !'e«n passed ; their owu weapon, like a rocket bmUv h.indleii, has turned upon them and spread <'isn»ay in their vanka l'eceut events go far to pr >ye that a greater amount of undue influence was bi ought to bear Hid corruption practiced by the Liberals than r»y their oppo lents, as senta are n >w held by Conwvatires to hold which for many yours it would have been hopeless for O'ie of that, ere d to aspire. The o|ening of oommi«s'ons in our army to public oonipotitiou h>ta c«i ranged many Irom the Liberal fMutv who lu>ul the opidion that, the new sybtem, 11 addition to lmverimr tru* Btandnnl in the eves of so- it ty, of its officers, will also lessen its efficiency .n time of war. Wheihvr the Ut:e- will be the ea««» (n»n of oonr*j only He matter for pnrmiaft. but flint the funne' ia nlrPudy on accOmpli-ihevi fact- is indisputable. That vrbich is of mo-o imniKli.vte interest to uu — the Oioninl |>o!ioy ->f the Liberals — hns V>een calculated f-> ly>«<>n the t'es> which bind '-Jr-out Britain to her nVnendenHp*. Wa should be moie rorrecr perhatifl if we said that fbe utterances of some »f the leaders of the party h »vo irritated 'or a time 'he tamper of thotsn oo'onialt who feel rhat they contribute not a little to the wealth and pro«,p<rity of the Empire, and a"ie ther«?fo"e ent ; tled to every consideration at the hands of the Imperial Parliament and Government. It was owing to ill — considered remarks by Ministers thu'. the very slight murmur for independence whs henrd in instrnlasia. The Education Act, has earned the Gladstone Ministry no few enemies; although, in common with the majority, we agree with the main features of the Act. there are a fevr objectionable olaoses, with which nearly all d.sagree. Mr Bright even has characterised it as the worst Education Act that has ever been passed. The Geneva arbitration i« not likely to be soon forgotten by the English people; they are essentially prond. and a mnn must indeed be thickskinned who does not feel that the consent to arbitration lowered his nation; and the manner in which our representatives were afterwards cnjoled by the t.nscrupu'.ous mouthpieces of an unscrupulous government as to the terms on which it should be conducted, can only be characterised as disgraceful. We believe that the best interests of Great Britain and her colonies demand tlmt the party of "progress," which may be iuterprtsied to mean change at any price, should be ou-ted from office. We feel tolerably cortain that the good sense of the people will send the leaders of the Conservative party a good working majority. Even the Liberals themselves admit that tho inarch towards demo, eracy has rather frightened them. From small things greater wise; the constant triving way to the prejudices of the unthinking portons of the community h.ts led to a section avow my themselves in favor of liepublic.mNm In theory a Republic is the most perfect form of (.^eminent, but experience has or should have taught us that it is the very worst in practice. We must first establish a higher code of political morality, and educate the people to know what are their interests, and when we have clone this it will be quite time to try a Republic as an experiment. 'ihe Liberal policy has always been one of expediency, and we have had a Liberal Government so long in office that we are actually beginning to believu that we h.ive degenerated as a race, as the constant practice of expediency by the rulers of a people catiiiot fail to make them believe that they are nob able to cope wuh difficulties that would arUe were they to pursue an houost, straightforward and (liirmfied conrse. A brighter da}' is dawning, i'iiflre is some probability at last of Great Britain »iram at>Mjruiiig the puoitiou bho orce held — that of arbitoi of tho fate of Europe equally respected and tearw'l bv all.

Thfl mipoits of fie colony for I lie quirter ?ncled Slut Deoeinhfr las,t (imount to £7,134,605, being an increase of U-'^'j,!''* on t 1 c vjiu<' o r the nnj irtntions for t'le corrosjioiuliiib i')3\trr in 1872, fqiiul fo an iuer«aM of nrj

uonuy 10 per cent on tho quart or. Tie figure* showing the i. ijjo-t mi I efjW,. ti-* l.« of t'm tolouy foi tha y»'", nr.- not If • siliifictory bul,h in b iens<h( < "i 1 .v, s'lo.unur t'».-prcji-Bs nude thcoug .out t'.e tear Tie fallowing figures ,-iiow tho imports and export* for the two past roars, with the mere** during 1873 — Inn. l>rU— lB72 £5 14,2,d51 ; 187^. £6,462.951 ; incremo m 1873 £1,320,030. Exports— 1872, £5,190 665; 1873, £5 610 371: increase in 1873, 4i19 70t). Total trade — 1872, €10,33^616 ; 1874, £12,073,353 Inereasee in 1873 £1,739 736. T nere van increase in the imports for the nbmr year -if upwards* f 23 per ivnt ; on the esuortii, of nearly 9 per cent; ; while the total l.nport and export trade of tho polony last. year show* an increase of n millon and throe quarters sterling — equivalent tj an improvement of 17 per cent. Almost even day, tayi-the Cross, some additional item comes to hand ret»peeting-ih^ recent gnie. It Appears that the family of Mr Kelmsleji of Poplir Farm, about a mile and a holf Sejond Hendenon'a Mill, hud a very narrow LMcipe During tho progress of considerable alteration in thmr resideiico, the family 'vreie temporarily occupyins; a large shed about 60lt by 20ft, with a hnight of about 20ft. The family hivi retire^ to i^bt for some time but had not slept tor a wuile owing to the unsn made by the wind. About 11 o'clock Mr Kelmsley auw the roof of the house op.-ii »t the ridge, and in an instant one side of the roof, from the ridge to the eaves, for about 4l)ft in length, wont by the board. Several of (he members of the f mily had nai row tseapes irom receiving serious injuries b$ the fulling debris The only Uoor m the builrtniv was fn'ring the gale, ii nil of course it could not bo opened to innku their exit by it. Having gathered lvi family together into wlmt a b i euro oonior, Mr £e'nidley obtained a brick, and by means of it knocked off two weatherboards on the lee side of the building, through ninuh they aii eoonpeu One of the children, about four yeurs of u^c «ium <* i ,mclg was caught up by the wind, and lifted >i 'iutance of 20ft before he reached terra fir,na again At the time there was a Tory Ueswy sliower of hail, and some of the chil lr n were cut and bruised a good deal by the sharp pieces of ice with winch they were battered, lumig no protecting clothing on save their night drc»«f>h. Tliot obtained shelter until morning in an adjoining building, s wher« better arrangements were mndo for their comfort and mfety. ]t is purposed to hold the following religious services in the Waikalo to-monow: — Church of England — Alexand>a 11 a in. ; Hamilton 11 a.m. ; Ngarimwahia, 6HO p.m ; IV Amamutn, 3 pm. Catholic — Cambridge, 11 a.m. ; Hamilton, 630 p.m. Presbyterian— Cambridge, 11 a.m. i Hamilton, Kmt, 3 p.m. Wecle\an Methodist — Cambridge, 11am.; Pukerimu, 2.30 p.m. ; Hamilton, 630 'p.m. United Presb)tp v ian and Congregational — To Axvamutu, 3 p.m. An extraordinary yield of oa/s is reported by the Lyttleton 'Times to have been obtained by Mr J. Riekus, a lsrme.* at Woodend, Canterbury. Tlftrfj-eix aci-es of first clhss onts when thrashed out, yielded a total of 3.216 bushels, or rather over an average of 89 bushels per acre. Nearly the whole of tho parcel, it is added, has been sold and dehvere 1 for shipment at n good paying |*ice. We understand that Tawhtac has. been visiting at Kawhui accompanied by some 300 folliwers, the object of the vmti being to fetch some fish gnen by the Knwlna people a» lood for the contemplated 'meeting. Mtpposed to tdke place a! Kuiti, at the end of Murcli next, at which it is sum that both Europeans and Maoris ari :o meet, if they de-ir<> Shoul the chiefs prove undivided in their councils ft definite understanding between Tawhiao and the Government will be Hrrived at. We learn that the tribes of the West Coast have again invited His Excellency to visit ti.ein at. Raglan. ■<■ .. -