The Waikato Times.

Waikato Times, Volume XV, Issue 1276, 2 September 1880, Page 2

The Waikato Times.

Equ.il inrl c\M t justice to all men, Of wh-itrMT st.ito or pc-ibu.ision, religious or polltK ill. Here sh.ill the Press the People s npht m.untain Un.uved by lnflueiu c and unbi ibcd by g.un.

THURSDAY, SEP. 2, 1880.

Two unusually instructive occurrences have lately taken place in Great Britain. Unusual occurrences often take place in that part of the world, wo know, but the two to which we specially refer rise like Alpine summits and catch the eye oi the most remote spectator. They are landmarks that show how prejudice still wars against reasonableness, and how the latter, as it is meet it sjhould,cventuallybeconiesconriueror.

W#Crefer Jj| tl^j&se Jjtoo||gfc>r Church of "Scotland, and of Mr Bradlaugh, M.P. for Northampton. To those who are interested in the progress of human society these cases are probably more interesting and instructive than anything else that has been prominently before the British public dtfringthe present decade. * In the first case the Rev Robertson Smith, -a prominent ■clergyman and- professor i^tJieJFree Church of Scotland,, V9%placed upon his trial for heresy. He had contributed an analytical article on the Bible to, a .critical publication. In tjfat article ho challenged the alleged historical character arid inspiration fof Deuteronomy. Tlie* ' maitiei" was brought before the Free Church Assembly, and there debate^, on with no less acrimony f^an ability, In due course the Presbytery ot 'Aberdeen, within wJio!je4)o^HKls -Mr Smith held his office, was ordered to proceed against the-writer-pf the article for libel, which the Assembly 'nad in the first instance found a relevant charge. The Presbytery refused after deliberation to proceed as directed by the Assembly, which then went on to dispose of the case in, its own Court. Many propositions were put forward. Some were in favor of expelling Mr Smith from his Chair, some of excluding him altogether from the pale of the Church, some of temporarily suspending him from his office, and some of admonishment and re-in-st'atement. On the 25th, 26th, and 27t£ May of the present year, the Assembly" was • engaged on this matter. All Scotland %Vas convulsed by the proceedings, which created great interest also in Ireland and England. At this we cannot wonder, for the question to be settled was, whether a learned divine could or could not write according to his judgment where that judgment was at variance with the standards of his Church, On th Q> third day there were four propositions 'before the Assembly— one by Dr ' Begg for proceeding with the libel ; one by Sir Henry Moncrieff, for. expelling Professor Smith from his Chair without depriving him of his. Status as a plei-gyraan of the Church ; and one by Dr Laidlaw to pass from the libel and re-instate Mr Smith in his chair with a solemn admonition. The fourth proposition was by Dr Beith, one of .the patriarchs of the Church. It was to the effect that the libel should be withdrawn, as no ground sufficient to justify a process of heresy against Professor Smith had been found ; that Mr Smith should be admonished to be more careful in future, inasmuch ,as he was blameworthy for the unguarded and incomplete statements of his articles ; and that the Church in thus deciding the matter did not commit itself to any opinion in favor of the views expounded by Mr Smith. This resolution was carried by a considerable majority, and we are told that "the final result was announced in the midst of the wildest excitement. After silence was obv tamed the cheering burst forth again and again, and there did' not seem to be a lady in the house wlio did not wave her handkerchief or a gentleman who did not wave his hat." Not of less irrtereHb" afe 4eatKtig ,to show the growth of -'reasonableness in England is the otfier case to which we have referred. , When Mr Bradlaugh as one of the lately elected members for Northampton went up to take his seat in the House of Commons, he refused to take the usual oath, as an oath, he alleged, was not binding on his conscience. He plainly stated that he was an atheist, and claimed to make an affirmation under the Evidence Amendment Acts, 1869 and 1870. A committee was appointed to investigate the matter and in due course the members reported that in their opinion persons in Mr Bradlaugh's position " could not be admitted to make an affirmation or declaration instead of an oath in the House of Commons." After this Mr Bradlaugh presented himself at the table of ihe House to make and subscribe the statutory oath. Eventually another committee was appointed, and in due course it advised in substance " that should Mr Bradlaugh again claim to make an affirmation he should not be prevented doing so, as it would be possible, by means of an action brought in the High Court of Justice, to test his legal right to make such an affirmation." Notwithstanding this, on the 22nd of June the House of Commons resolved, by a largo majority, that Mr Bradlaugh should not be permitted to take the oath or make the affirmation. He insisted on his legal right to take his seat as a duly and legally elected member for Northampton, and at last the Holise, in order to assert its authority and enforce its own resolution, ordered him to be placed in custody in the Clock Tower. A few days subsequently he was released by order of the House, and, on the motion of the Premier (Mr Gladstone), he was allowed to take -his seat on making an affirmation ; and the right of { members to affirm instead of taking the prescribed oath was made a standing ovder- of the House. There can be no doubt that the opposition to Mr Bradlaugh arose from a prejudice, which, in averting itself, rohs a man of his rights as a citizen because of his convictions as an individual. In the case of Mr Robertson Smith, a section of the Free Church Assembly of Scotland wished to say that a ' pastor of that Church must not freely exercise his critical judgment, or if so he must

cjvit; the wxw&fe' the Church ; and in th'^f(imgiP^t'Bradlaugh the House of Commons affirmed, but afterwards recanted its affirmation, that a citizen who entertains and professes views antagonistic to the conventional faith of the nation, cannot be allowed to enjoy the rights of his citizenship. The history of both "cisses- shoots* hirv^rmttiy»4>her-e>aFe-~y£t., even in England and the nineteenth century who wish to int6rfsr& tyrAnnic.alJy.jfts between the individual and his conscience^ but "the" sequels also show that reasonableness jis styongjer .^an, prejudice — that ! the t k&fai&X «^l^ fft;f liigh^ value on the freedom or criticism' ' than 1 on the enforce ineht'6f " do^nta, and Value more highly the rights of frge citizenship than the traditional !sa£redilessr of parliamentary formu 7 laries. - , „

\Tiie untoward fate of the Cambridge Railwa^ Bijl jfs jnatiu|aliy Sinotfgli regarded in Cambridge with ' feelings of deep cU£appointrnen,t.-a;id disgust. The claim of that pari of the colony to a share-in the expenditure upon- public works, and the, reasonableness of the claim {itself upon purely public grounds ought to exclude all objections. People in Cambridge had come to look upon the matter as finally settled, and their calm pon,viobion was; v.cry rudely disturbed when they 'heard that the measure which was, to lead to the establishment of railway communication was to be opposed by the members for our: neighbor, ! constituencies. Now the session is over and there is no longer anyd,cuibt on the subject, the ' Bill is finally disposed of for this year, and, so far as Government aid is concerned, the residents, of the Cambridge dit/brtW^ffl/'as Btfreftrfjbjfe, have to depend on the road and river transit. It will avail us nothing : iiow to again dilate on the many and varied advantages which would I have accrgedj; typ* this district and t the provincial district had the railway proposal been accepted by the I House ; thisjris ,a matter .which jwe ( can well afford to defer until the season again arrives, if it ever does, when Parlia-* ment will be asked for its assent ; because were the line to be undertaken "by private individuals, or even by a joint stock company, sufficient is known already to lead to the adoption of a decided course of action. Nor would any advantage bo derived by condemning che action of those who frustrated the carrying of the bill. Perhaps the members for the Thames can find justification for the line they adopted in setting a railway practically laid aside, against one which might have been authorised. We cannot, however, help remarking on the anomolous position which these gentlemen occupy who voted against the construction of a work near their own doors, while Southern members who have little or no interest in the affair voted for it. They may say they were actuated by a love of principle, and we hope they were ; they were certainly stimulated by no intense love for their neighbors. What tinder present circumstances will be done it is hard to conjecture, but it is evident that Cambridge has set its heart on- a- railway ; her people,are not the sort to be daunted by'difficulty and defeat ; if there is a reasonable chance of obtaining anything calculated to push the town and district ahead we may be sure they will seize it, ,and turn it to good use.

A football match between the station hands of Fen Court, near Cambridge, and Gorton near Cambridge, takes place on Saturday at Mr Stiarp's paddock, near Cambridge. The ball will be kicked off at 2 o'clock in the afternoon. This contest is Exciting great interest in the district, and will beja keen one.

Mr A, A. Fantham, of Gwynnlands, Cambridge, has just received a very valuable addition to his herd of pure-bred shorthorns. On the 27th of August, the cow Sunset cah-ed a red heifer ; on the 30th Grand Duchess of Halcombe, a white, and on the same day 1 Rosebud a white heifer. All the calves are by Lord Darlington 2nd. Grand Duchess is by the celebrated Bates bull, Bth Duke of York, whose American family were sold lately at an aveiage of 4')00 guineas each. He was bred, by Col. Grantor, llo^ebud's dam is Moss Rose by Omar Pasbia. Mr Fantham sustained a serious loss a few days ago in the death of ' Belle of Spraydon, she having accidently fallen into a ditch when within about five weeks of calving.

Mr Wright, builder, cf Cambridge, who has secured the contract for the blacksmiths shop to be erected for Messrs Parker and Goodman, oh an allotment on the Narrows road adjoining the site of Mr Camp's now hotel, will commence operations in a few days. The forge M'iU be 24 feet by 1G feet, and will be fitted up with all the requisites for carrying on a business suitable to that rapidly improving district. ' ~

The road through the Kihikihi bush is in a very bad state just at present, though infinitely better that it was some months ago. What is wanted to make it a really good thoroughfare is a pretty good layer of clay oVer the fascine-. , At present the ti-tree is covered flic soil' obtained from the cVtch, but thi*. being: naturally of a b.i i*., u^ Li, ici.i trodden down so i' 3 t<< La/, th? ~\^zi calmost ba c, and ve:y <l * _ ~ <-'_-! -.n_ j they are when leu in a s:a'-, '--x few pounds judici ua v e^3 d=d u.,rl. 4 the ensuing suminei' v\ ill d cl. ii. is 1. - Ctssary at present, \VhiL- s_j-. .. _ 0. .. 3 road, we would ch^Vazi; u. 5^ to olid fact that the bridge clod ly 1 uu Mang&hoi, is in a .-oinev, h\<, iLujuauki^ state. One end appeal to ii v c. >jbt.lv-il down, and money migh* be fc^vi d we^ it looked to ar once. \Ve l.a\e ale«l c« v wrjtten about the want oi" a mvud-raii iiid whole le?>grb oi''-tbe bridge.

Oaasideriug tlw to 9 ?f? f year, ttis Swamp road between Pukeyinju gnd Ktigiawhiaißin very good conditiors.^ tn , opver«al places, owing to there not bein^ ;i i (sufficiently thick covering of earth, tlrcr-5 ape dangerous boles, but if ordinary cp ' c be exercised, tke'road is a perfectly safe one. We would, however, suggest to the authorities, that the safety of travellers

would belyter iilnred. vpftjje- the«s?qssinga over WQjffljjj^hiinsJmced. ou^iher , side. Suca^BF^moauS ols^recaTS|sjji jg^ rendered the more necessary on accoi'mt; of the crossings being so narrow. On that portion near the Monavale Station, whore gravel has been laid, the road'is^rts^gpod as any in the district. '- ' "

The following suggestive advertisement appears in a southern contemporary ;^-" If'tho yqunrginaii who residas _S£m.ejvher.e between Oamaru and Malieno, and who is desperately enamored of a"° «y«ung Jady in^town '^vpuld^Qnly fpv tlie egg» wher'switK h©\ briboa the tlgo'oa graces of his probable future mother-in-ifffiV BTetSHiaiiare" theiin, • and 'a- bwket to - carry them in, so that the dhafofcHof another hmahh-up in his pockets would be guarded Totara please copy. " - r

i, The article by our correspondent Cincitmatus on Bee' Keeping appraiing in the WAiKAToJUJtSBSiii-epiMisheJ jii '„the : Bee Keepew -MAga'^'inc rot* ./July ' Jniblished in New York.

Jihe Star says;— "Th6 Wa'tkato Tidies advertises the Waikato Mad and gives it a local into the bargain. Can Christiaitt charity goiui'ther than this.

At the Hamilton Police Court on Tuesday, be 'ore B. C. Beale, Esq, J.P. t John Dougle pleaded guilty to having been drunk and. disorderly, was fined 10a and costs, in default 48' hours imprisonment.

Another large mob of store cattle (some 200 head) passed through Hamilton on Monday evening, for the Lpckerby Estate. Messrs, Morrin and Studhojme, in charge of Mr Payne.

The Hamilton Cricketers are allowing good weather to pass away if they think of doing anything towards making a ground on Sydney ' Square, this season. As the turf for the pitch will have to be laid, they must not allow the dry weather ,to set in before entering 1 upon the work. The ground -will require fencing, but this need not 'be a very expensive job if they uae the barbed fencing wire. Three or .four posts to the chain and three wires twQuld be found protection enough.

The body of the unfortunate young in an George Barker, >vha wab drowned in the Waipa just throe weeks ago, was picked up a httlebelow,Ngiruaw,ahia, ou Tuesday afternoon. The fireman of the steamer Delta, then lying at the Eailw ay Wharf, first noticed an object floating past, but some distance away, and c tiled attentipn to it. Two of 'the crew put off in a boat and proceeded down tW river, they found it was the body of the missing 1 mau, and after making it fast to the bank, about a mile below the township, returned and reported the matter to Const ible Haddock, who at once procured a boat and brought the body up to Ngaruawahia to await the inquest.

The Auckland Stud Company , are again to be congratulated upon the success their valuable thoroughbred horse Musket is proving himself at the stud through his progeny, not only at the late July meeting at the head-quarters of i racing, Newmarket, England, but also in j the sale-yard. At the .sale of Her Majesty's yearlings at Hampton Park, a colt by Musket, dam Lands End by Trumpeter, sold for 350 guineas, while j another of his sons, dam Oruhester, realised 2-40 guineas ; and as the average price of the 25 sold was 143 guineas, it shows the value attached to his blood in I England, as compared with other sires. They appear to have used him very freely in the Royal Stud, as there were no less than five of his progeny sold, a number only equalled by Prince Charlie, &aid to have been in his day ' ' the handsomest horse that ever stripjoedon a racecourse." His highest priced colt, however, did not realise within 100 guineas of the value brought by Musket's, while three of Musket's realised exactly the same as five of Prince Charlie's. . At the Newmarket J.uly meeting a filly, Carbine, by Musket, won the Selling Stakes; the next race, the Maiden Plate, being won by Musketry, also one of his daughters, beating nine others. She was bought in by her owner (Mr R. C. Naylor) for 450 guineas. She is highly spoken of by the Londoji sporting jiapers. It is only repeating a thrice told tale to remind our sporting readers of Petronei's victory for the 2000 guineas, but the moral of the story is that those who have not thoroughbred mares should hasten to get them, as it is quite on the cards that the Stud Company may receive at any time such a tempting offer for his return to England as would make it unwise for them 'to refuse it, and then those who have not taken advantage of his presence here will be left lamenting. — Herald.

The contract (labor only) for building the Good Templars' Hall, Hamilton East, has been let to Mr F. Booth, and will be completed in five weeks. It is intended to form a library and to hold a Chess Club in connection with the Lodge, a very commendable feature and creditable to the promoters, and should add very much to the popularity of this> institution,

A lithograph copy of the original Treaty of Waitangi has been kindly loft at onv office by Mv W. M. Hay, and can be seen by anyone interested. The Revs>. Archdeacon Maunsell and B. Y. Ashwell are witnesses to many of the signatures which were obtained in the year 1840. Most of the other witnesses and makers of the Treaty have long since passed from amongst us.

We have received the first number of t\vsM«il, published at Cambridge.

A letter from the member for Waipa has been lreoeheil by the Chairman of a late meeting at Ngaruawahia of the ratepayers of the Newcastle district to condemn the action ot certain parties for their conduct at the annual meeting of ratepayers of that district held at Whatawhata on the 30th July, the particulars of which are fresh in the memory of our readers. The resolutions had been handed to- the Minister of Justice, with the request that he would be good enough to give it his immediate and careful consideration.;

The namos of trustees, fnnceMcwers, and auditors of the Alexandra Township District are gazetted. A Ligertwood, Esq., Chairman Mangapiko Highway District, and N. T. Naunder, Esq., Secretary of the said distric make important announcement in our gazette columns. The Light Infantry, with their Rand, will parade this afternoon at 2 o'clock on Sulney Square, to take part in the funeial of the Lite Mr Gcqrgc Barker, who was a member of the their band. Although the notice is short a good mnster of the members may bo looked for. Henry Reynolds, Esq., Chairman of thcTamahcre Highway District notifies that a meeting of ratepajcrs to decide on <i proposal made to stop certain roads in that district, will be held at the residence ot Patrick Leslie, Esq., at 2 p.m. oa Wednesday, 15th September' The Waikato Steam Na\igation Company in\ite tenders for discharging trom vessels and for delivering goodb, lenders to be sent to the Ng.uuawahra office by Tuesday next. The Town Clerk notifies certain amendments to By-law No 2 of the Borough of Hamilton. The first meeting of creditors in the bankruptcy estate ot Charles Kay, bricklayer, of Hamilton, takes place on Monday ue.\t, at ? p,m., in the Court House, Hamilton. The manager of the W.S.N. Company notifies an alteration in their time table. The steamer Delta now leaves half an hour earlier from each township, starting from Cambridge at 10 a.m., m time for passengers to catch, the 12.27 train. Messrs Hunter and Xt>tar> hoiii an c\tcns)vc •ale of caltje at Ohaupo on Thursday, 16th Septcmbu. T)?pjr Cambridge cattle sale to be held on 23rd September, An error crept into a local in Tuesday's issue regarding theclosing.of Kent House, Hamilton East. Mr Chitty will re-open his establishment to-morrow at noon, and not on Monday, as stated in the local.