THURSDAY, SEPT. 1, 1881.

Waikato Times, Volume XVII, Issue 1430, 1 September 1881, Page 2

THURSDAY, SEPT. 1, 1881.

Tub " cloture" proposals lias provoked a considerable amount of comment, and, as may be rpadily supposed, opinion differs widely on the question of its propriety. A considerable proportion would seem to look upon it as an extreme measure which should not. have been resorted to excepting under a cor2*espondingly extreme emergency. They argue that as the Imperial Parliament is given forth as the precedent upon which the proposal is based, there ought to have existed more "community of interest" in

the \ surrounding ' circumstances under which it was, or rather is proposed to be called into requisition. That its equivalent does not exist we freely adimts" The. circunistancps under whielithe -Imperial authorities brought the •' cloture" into operation on the memorable 28th February, 1880, were of a more pressing character as regards the protection of both life and property, consequent upon the lawless state of affairs prevailing in Ireland. No such emergency can be said to call for its intervention in New Zealand, and on that ground opponents argue that it ought not to have been brought forward. To some extent these arguments seem to weigh with Government, as it now appears the whole question has been formally remitted to be dealt with by the Standing I )rders Committee. We are not prepared co say that things were ripe and ready for the extreme measures proposed in the " cloture." The right of debate is a sacred prerogative which ought not to be lightly interfered with, and we can easily understand the "cloture" in its strict application might be rendered a crushing engine in that direction. On the other hand many good and valid reasons can be adduced for the adoption of at least a milder form of coercion. The geographical position of the colony is such that a large amount of public business must be compressed within a comparatively short space of time. In the neighboring colonies the legislature can well afford to sit from six to nine months in the year, without, to any great extent, interfering with the " vested i interests " of members. In these colonies members reach their homes, however remotely situated from the seat of Government, within a few hours, so that by judicious employ ment of " off," or non-sitting days, together with casual observation when unimportant business is on the tapis, they are enabled to give tolerably close attention to their own affairs, without in the slightest degree neglecting Parliamentary duties. In that respect alone the condition of affairs in N r ew Zealand continues to be exceptional. A more complete system of railway communication will no doubt tend to lessen the difficulty; still the difficulty, even under tho most favorable circumstance must continue to exist in a greater or lesser degree. Such being the case, members attending to their legislative duties in New Zp.il.ukl must isolate themselves from their homes during the entire length of the session, and to men engaged, as the majority of our Parliamentary representatives are, in the prosecution of industrial pursuit?, an isolation of this kind becomes a serious mattpr. Reckless dissipation of time, such as we have lately seen added to this emergency, renders the thing unbearable, and unless a " high hand" be adopted for putting a stop to it, the outcome will become incalculable as an evil active, and intelligent men will be driven away from Parliament by force of circumstances, and the legislature left a prey for the idle and disorderly. Under these circumstances we contend the " cloture" in some form or other is an absolute necessity— a species of self-preservation, which, by universal consent, is admitted to be the first law of nature. In other respects the " cloture" is an essentiality. It spphis absiu-d to say that a body of men should be entrusted with the government of the nation, who lack thp moans for governing themselves.

Sometime ago wo drew the attention of the Hail way Department to a gross injustice which had been inflicted on a settler in this district, Mr J. J. Bauuoii, of War tie, Tamahere, in the matter of the carriage of a quantity of manure from Auckland to Hamilton. We pointed out that while power was given to the local authorities to refund moneys where an overcharge had been made, they were prevented from remedying any error of classification into which they might have fallen. The guano brought up by Mr Barugii was classed under the wrong head and charged for accordingly, and although that gentleman made repeated application for a refund, he got nothing. Since attention has been drawn to the grievance in such a public manner, however, the Department has seen lit to make reparation, and Mr Barugii has had returned to him a sum amounting to the differrence between the amount paid by him and that which ought to have been charged. Why a simple act of justice should have required such a course of red-tapeism we cannot understand, but we trust that the regulations will be so altered as to place sufficient discretionary power in the hands of the district officials to enable them to deal with such cases as the one under notice when they ai'ise, and so save the annoyance and expense entailed by following the practice at present in existence.

The concluding portion of the article on the New Zealand Refrigerating Company and other interesting matter will be found on the fourth page of this issue. The Customs duties at Wellington for the month of August amounted to £20,000. The vital statistics for Wellington for August are na follows : — Births 100 ; Marriages 16 ; Deaths 31. The ship Loch Dee^ which 1 jlaft Auckland on the 24th May, has arrived in Loudon.

The hom&wsfrd Australian and New Zealand r mails, via Suez am! Brindisi, which left Melbourne on July 20, were delivered in London on the 2!) tli inst. Thfe usuakweekly practice CunbridgeChmul Union," was, held at" the Towr Board Rooms on Mondaj eveumg la-*t, when theie wiH A good7rtt(jnd:uice of member*. The social gathering in <Jdnnectj6p} with tho opening ot' the New Angli'""! Church at Cambridge," will behfild'ftiu evening at h.df past six o,' clock. Public meetings stilllcontinue to be held m the Nelson districts to protesc against the Representation Bill, and to urge their member* to offer every oppor sition to the measure. The ladies of the^ Hamilton Presbyteiian Chuwh intend holding » bazaar at the beginning of the New Year for the purpose of liquidating the debt, rem.iiniug in thech.urch;buildiu£. ' t Commander Edwin telegraphed last evening aa follows :—": — " Expect bad weather between west and south. Glass rise again soon. Gale will be heavy f'.otn southward aud weather exception illy cold." The gallant conimandor'n predictiond seetn to have been verified. The weather last night was particularly boisterous. We are requested to state |that the Rev. William Calder will not be able •to officiate at Te Aroha, Waihou and Piako on Sunday, 4th inst., but will be at the above-mentioned places on the 11th inst. The Venerable Archdeacon Pritt will preach at S. Peter's, Hamilton, and the Rev. William Calder will preaoh at S. Andrew's, Cambridge, on Sunday evening. Electioneering agents have been very busy in the districts of Waikato and Waipa during the past few months, their exertions being directed principally to securing the registration of electors. The supplementary rolls for both electorates have now assumed very bulky proportions, and appear to contain as many names as the original printed rolls. Rumours were current in Cambridge a few days back thit the natives were interrupting the Stubbing -Survey party in the smvey of the Whakamaru block. Mr Moon has just returned from the survey camp where the supposed disturbances were said to be exstant, and informs us that beyond the usual tribal disputes, (civil), indispensible to the burv.'y of native lands, there is nothing whatever to justify the rumour, that the oiirvey party have been interfered with. A correspondent writes from Cambridge : — I see by the Herald of Monday last, that the Wdikato correspondent informs the readers of that journal, that the Catholic Concert which is to take place in Cambridge on the sth inst. is to assist in repairing the presbytery. This is wrong. The concert is to provide funds for the furnishing of the presbytery now in course of erection, not to repair an old one, which has not hitherto existed. The now celebrated Vogel letter, which was leturned to the writer by the Government, has arrived in the colony and h<ifa been published. It contains some strong expressions on the subject of the ton per cent, reductions, which Sir Julius considers was unnecessary, as the deficiency might have been met by the reimposition of the tea and sugar duties. The tone of the letter is arrogant and insulting 1 throughout, but there is very little in it beyond what is referred to above. An inquest on the remains of the late Mis Liuhr>>, found on the bank of the Waikato river on Monday last, was held at the Royal Mail Hotel, Ngaruawahia, on Tuesday morning 1 , before Dr Beale, District Coroner, and a jury of twelve, of which Mr Burnett was chosen foreman. The testimony of Mr Luhrs who identified the body and gave evidence regarding deceased's state of mind at the time she left home, and Mr Jukes and Constable Hammond as to the finding the body, was taken, and the jury after a short deliberation returned a verdict of "found drowned." The remains wore conveyed to Hamilton by the mid-day train and inteired in the cemetery at Hamilton East, a number of the friends of the decensed attending. The service at the grave was performed by the Rev. William Calder, Incumbent of S. Peter's church. If a combination of talent is to be accepted as an indication of a successful and enjoyable entertainment, the concert which is announced to take place at Cambridge on Monday evening next, to assist in furnishing the new Roman Catholic Presbytery there, is certain to be very successful. Since the idea of having a concert for this object was first mooted, every step has been taken by the committee to ensure success by securing the best procurable amateur talent in the district. By referring to the programme, which appears in another column, our readers will see that it contains some very enticing items, both vocal and instrumental. A lady amateur well known in Auckland circles, has consented to contribute to the programme, as well as other lady amateurs from Alexandra and Hamilton, and the amateur talent of Cambridge. The entertainment will terminate with a dance, to which holders of front seat tickets will be admitted, when an excellent lunch will be provided by the ladies' committee. There was a better attendance at Lieut Herman's enteitaiuraent at Le Quesne's Hall, Hamilton East on Tuesday night, and the audieiiCB went away thoroughly delighted. The first part of the programme consisted of a number of conjuring tricks by Professor Logan, but it cannot be said they were of a very bright order, and indeed they contributed but little to the value of the entertainment, which depends for its success upon the clever ventriloquial performances of Lieut Herman. Mr Herman has been known for many years as a promising ventriloquist in connection with Thompson's Diorama of the American War, but he has greatly improved of late, and intends shortly to visit the Old Country, where his peculiar talent will have freer scope. A fair estimate of hfe powers may be formed when we say ha surpasses Professor Davis, and is fully the equal of Val Vosa. The figures which the ventriloquist calls into being, are admirable of their kind, and were imported from America specially for Mr Herman. They include a negro, a Chinaman, an old lady, an Irish lad, a Highlander, and the inevitable Joe, who sits on the professor's knee and amuses the audience by his local and personal allusions. We can confidently recommend Mr Herman to our readers as a provider of genuine amuse- j ment. At the close of the entertainment on Tuesday night a lot of valuable prizes were given ,away, ; and' again last night. Yesterday afternoon there was a performance for the children attending the public schools, for whose benefit the committees gave a half-holiday. There was a large attendance,' 'and it is needless to say the little ones came away thoroughly delighted, each having'received a present of some description. To-night Mr Herman appears in Hamilton for the last time,' the prices of admission being reduced. 1 To-morrow he will visit Te Awauiutu, and on, the following night will open at Alexandra. ' ' " q ./, , „ > < !• ' ti t 'i ■'« ■• <»U ■; u i The annual meeting 1 of the Hamilton Lawn Tennis Club will take place on the Lawn *t 3 p.m. ta»dayi