AND THAMES VALLEY GAZETTE.

Waikato Times, Volume XXI, Issue 1752, 27 September 1883, Page 2

AND THAMES VALLE Y GAZETTE.

Equal and exact justice to all men, Of whatsoever state or persuasion, relitjioui or political. Here shall the Press the People's right maintain, Unawed bv influence and unbribed by gain.

THURSDAY, SEPT, 27, 1883.

Lakd nationalisation » is still only intermittently discussed It does not seem yet to have fully asserted its claim to practicability , though it is undeniably gaining ground in that direction. It is- a noticeable circumstance that many who unsparingly condemn the confiscation policy of Mr Henry i( Georgo, recognise the .justness, ol Jlijf, pHiSPH ■whioh' uncLerlift .Ji^vJpm^J^i^j

book. . Criticism of tbe theory is directed less and less to prove its utter unsounduess, and rather aims at suggesting such m6difications as avo uocessury in order to avoid any serious disturbance of society. But suppose the doctrine of land nationnlieation to bo generally accepted, where is the money to oome from to buy the land ? We are leaving out of the case Mr George's plan, which, as it provides for the wholesale seizuro of all land, has little b.it its simplicity to recommend it. It lias, wo think, been abundantly shown that to repurchase the land already sold in this colony is out of our yyowev at the present, just as it is beyond the moans of the people of England to secure the fee-simple of all the estates in tbe Mother country. But even allowing that the purchase of the land could be accomplished, fresh difficulties crowd upon us. On this very point a great deal has been written, but little that is more conclusive than the following extract from an article contributed by Professor Fawcett to the July number of JMaemillan :—": — " When the State has become the possessor of the land, what is going to be done with it ? What principles are to regulate the rent to be charged ? j Who is to decide the particular plots | of land that should be alloted to those who apply for them ? If the rent charged is to be determined by competition in the open market, in what respect would a cultivator be better off, if he paid a competition rent to the State instead of a private individual ? And if the market price is not to be charged, who is to bear tho loss ? From what fund is the deficiency to he made good ? There is only one answer to the question, It must be made good from the general increased taxation of the country ; and increased taxation means still more taken from the hardwon wages of the people." These aye strong objections. They are raised, moreover, by a man who is as eager as Henry George himself to improve the condition of tho masses. In tho face of such opposition, advocates of land nationalisation may fall back upon the more rational scheme of occupying ownership, propounded by Alfred Kus.sel Wallace. Mr Wallace's proposal is to constitute the State owner of the (irouml, i.e., the land, minus tho improvements, the latter to become by purchase the property of the occupier, and to be transferable. Mr Wallace quotes numerous authorities, all tending to prove the superiority of the system he advocates over any other involving the private ownership of land. The testimony he cites relates to the^ condition of the peasant farmers of Switzerland, the Engadino, of Norway, of Germany, and of France, contrasting their happy state with that of the peasants of Ireland, Italy, and Spain, who are under a •system of landlordism. AYe have not room to reproduce in this place even the shortest of these quotations, all of which are full of materials for thought. We can strongly recommend Mr, Wallace's book, " Land Nationalisation." It is a valuable contribution to our stock of knowledge concerning one of the chief, if not the chief question of the day.

A strong sense of the duty we, as public journalists, owe to the general body of our readers demands that something more than a passing reference should be made to the case Winter v. Hutchings, heard at the R.M. Court, Hamilton, on Monday. The subject is a very painful one, and under ordinary circumstances it ought not to be dragged into promi- ! nence. Nor, indeed, is it our purpose now to dwell upon the cause of action, but rather to direct attention to those phases of the case which, it seems to us, are of peculiar interest to a large proportion of the population. The defendant, Hutchings, gained his case, certainly, but this result was due to a happy combination of circumstancps, such as can hardly be expected to exist in the majority of cases. The nature of the danger out of which he escaped is clearly laid down in the sixth section of the Destitute Persons Act, 1887, under which lie was charged. The section provides that the defendant, on conviction, maybe ordered to pay any sum. between 4s and 20s per week for 1 4 years, the expenses incidental to the birth, and the costs incurred in obtaining the order. He may also be ordered to pay an additional sum of not more than £20; and further, the putative father may be called upon to find sureties for the due payment of such orders, failing which he may be imprisoned for six months with or without hard labour. Of the injury done to the reputation we say nothing, because that is an item of damage variously estimated, but in all cases it is serious. Now when a charge involving such heavy penalties as this is preferred it is clearly the duty of the administrators of the law to do two things. In the first place, they should closely scrutinise the testimony of the complainant, and, unless backed up by substantial corroborative evidence, receive it with the utmost caution. In the second place, they should afford the utmost facilities to the defendant to prove his innocence. If this course be not followed undeviatingly a miscarriage of justice is certain to follow in the greater number of cases. In the present instance we are bound to admit that the defendant has not been fairly treated. Hutchings was served with a summons on the 18th inst., at Kotorangi, where he was working, to appear, at the Hamilton Court, 24: miles distant, at 11 a.m. on the following day. As a^matter of course, he was bound to put in an appearance, bufc as he was totally unprepared to, defend himself then, his solicitor applied for an adjournment. He represen : ted that he had 12 or 14 witnesses £o,saU,laJnd tl)(Si),in f( the v B}}Ort-^imd i\im bin* thfi i»4 m^min 'j^d&j

summons them, or even to lay fiis case before fhis counsel. Now, although it is laid down in Johnston's „" Justice of the Peace" that '• the snmmpris ought r ' to give the person charged reasonable .time to come with his witnesses to answer," the Magistrate refused to grant the adjournment without costs, £3 7s 6d, which defendant had to pay. It is true that Mr Northcroft urged, as against granting the adjournment without costs, the circumstance that defendant had received a letter a week before, threatening him with legal proceedings ; but on the other hand, defendant's counsel said lawyei*'s letters were often sent with the object of bouncing people, and seldom succeeded in their ol>j»ct. Oe this as it may, it is quite clear that defendant was prejudiced, and cast in expenses which the issue plainly shows he should not have been called on to bear. At the adjourned hearing on the 2-1 th, plaintiff's case completely broke down through its inherent want of strength and truth. The complainant was flatly contradicted, not only by defendant's witnesses, butby her own. She stands convicted, on theclearestevidence, of perjury. But what happens ? The case is dismissed ; the defendant's character is cleared ; but, notwithstandingthis, he leaves the court a heavy loser. Not only does he not get the £3 7s 6d, costs, refunded, but the bench makes no order for costs against the complainant, (who is under 21, and penniless) as it would be useless to do so. The result is that the defendant has to pay over .£3O to provo his innocence, while the girl who has slandered his character goes off scot free ! She is not even rebuked, mildly or otherwise, and the bench utters no expression of regret that the defendant should have been put to s>uch loss and inconvenience in fighting a false charge. No man, in cases of this kind, can withhold his sympathy from the unfortunate woman, who, whether by her weakness, or her own wilful carelessness, has lost her passport to the respect of the world ; but it is time that at least some portion of this sympathy were devoted to those placed in the position of Hu tchings. An accused person, such as he was, need not trouble himself to deny the charge, he stands convict )d in public opinion until he bus cleared himself — good character avails him nothing. Every atom of sympathy is reserved for his accuser. It is true that the 1-iw requires that the complainant's evidence should be corroborated on some material point, but the least particle of such evidence often suffices, and such testimony is easily manufactured. In the case under notice the evidence was that the parties were merely seen together — not even seen together under peculiar or suspicious circumstances. If people would consider that thcee charges are easily made, that they are believed without enquiry, that the accused person's denial is laughed to scorn, and that no matter how innocent he may be, he has a hard row to hoe in order to clear himself, some little particle of the general commiseration would perhaps be felt for him. To return for a moment to the financial aspect of the case, it is imperative, in view' of Hutcbings' experience, that some alteration should lie made in the law. There is something rotten in a system which condemns an innocent person to bear the entire load of expense necessary to prove that he is not guilty. Leaving out of the question the costs of the adjournment, which form an element peculiar to this case, some provision ought to bo made, whereby the nearest male relative of the complainant, say, should become liable, or she should be required to find sureties for the payment of the costs. In this way, and in this way only, can justice be i meted out to both parties.

From information which we publish elsewhere, it will be been that Mr Butler has visited Kawhia, and plainly indicated the course Mr Bryce intends to follow. If his advice be not taken, the Native Minister will in all probability come up to Kawhia himself, and speedily set matters to rights. The little trouble at Waotu appears to be growing in importance, and this also may ere lolig demand the presence of Mr Bryce on the scene of action.

An attempt is being made to get up a programme of athletic sports in Cambridge on November Oth, Prmce of Wales' Birthday.

The Cambridge Cricket Club have already commenced preparing their pitch in the Government paddock. Practice will commence immediately. A scratch match will be played on the ground on Saturday evening.

No word has as yet been received regarding the destination of the Armed Constabulary stationed in Waikato during the summer months.

The Cambridge - Oxford road, which a few weel>s ago was altogether impassable for heavy traffic, is now in excellent condition.

Mr D. Fallon. contractor, has been to Oxford, looking over the country through which the Oxford-Lichfield branch of the Thames Valley railway is to pass. He is at present making arrangements to commence work, the weather and roads being favourable.

The Rev H. R. Dewsbury will shortly deliver his popular lecture on " Tom Hood," poet and humourist, in Hamilton, particulars of which will appear in a future advertisement. , The lecture is a thoroughly interesting one, and ought to draw a large house.

A public meeting of the rateEayers of the Pukekura Boad District was eld on Monday, to conHider the desii'bility of closing the road adverti&ed on the 3rd July. On tho proposition of Mr Gane, secouded by Mr Grice, it was resolved that the Ohaupo-Te Rore road be closed in terms of the advertised notice.

The Ministry has been recon- 1 structed without adding to its numerical strength, Mr 1 Oliver filling up the gap caused by the retirement of Mr Whitaker, by taking a Auckland people are exercised in their minds because an Auckland member has not been admitted into the Cabinet, and,;accqrdingto our correspondent, they are about to take steps to bring their views 'under the notice of Government, * <"*■

Travelers 'taking the' low .road thrbughlto Bb'torua from': Cambridge have", often complained that Mr A. Isaacs Waofcu Hotel- should *ha>e been deprived .'of its license byjhe Taupo.beuchjCo^siderin^the "exertion's put"fortli.By tKenrbafie propnet^r, bv&imßix a^afflmo'dioi^h^lteln^/ The!

larger district. Mr Isaacs has 'recently ejected a fine large stable,' which should be source of attraction to the hotel.

Particulars of a very flagrant piece of negligence, on the part of some of the railway 'officials at Auckland, have bsen laid, before ua, and should receive the attention of the manager, Mr John Knox ordered certain goods from Auckland, and the packages were left at the railway station, and booked on the 12th inst. The goods train the following day brought one of these, but the others did not turn up until the 18th, causing considerable iuconvenience to the consignee. A whole week was consumed in the transit of the goods, for what reason it is hard to determine, if it be not lrom carelessness.

In another column appears an advertisement of the '* Royal Path of Life." The testimonials appended are in themselves .sufficient to give a character to the book, and so far as we are able to judge from a somewhat hasty perusal of its contents, the praise bestowed uponitis notundesorvcd. It is full of good, healthy, readable matter, and is, moreover, gotten up in the best style of the printer's and bookbinder's art. The illustrations are particularly well executed. Wo consider it well suited for the use of young people.

Mr Harry Symonds is erecting extensive additions to his hotel at Waotu in the shape of a ne\v wing containing eight rooms and a bar. The contractors are busy at work, but expect to be delayed, through the native difficulty, in getting a supply of timber from the bush. The Patatere Hotel will, when completed, be a very extensive one, consisting of about fifteen rooina, and should eiibure sufficient accomodation for the travelling public in that quarter.

The usual weekly meeting of the Cambridge Mutual Improvement Association was lield at the Court-hou&e on Tuesday evening last, when there was an unusually large attendance of members and the public. Mr J. P. Campbell, vice-presi-dent, occupied the chair. The matter discussed during the evening was, " The proper conduct of public moetkig," the subject being brought forward by the Venerable Archdeacon Willis. The discussion was a very interesting one, and excited considerable debate.

The following "specials " to the Press Association, dated London September 28th, have boon published in the N. Z. Herald : — The official enquiry into the sinking of the steamer Austial in Sydney harbour Ins commenced, mid evidence pet taming to the structure of the vessel has been taken. The defence of the officers will be that the ship was unstable.— The ship Loch Tyne, winch left Lyttelton for London on May 14th, has not yet arrived, at her destination, and fears are entei tamed for her safety.

The Piriri bridge, on the Cara-bridge-Waotu road, near Paeroa, is at present in an exceedingly dangerous condition ; indeed, fit for traffic of no description whatever. The Piako County Council have received a communication from the Government to the effect that a .sum lias been placed on the E&tiinates for the renewal of the stiucture, and we think the sooner work its btarted the better. Should work not be commenced immediately, a few weeks, probably days, will see the place without a bridge of any description.

In reply to " One who was there,'" and the iem.uk& of oui Alo\.<uidu\, ounev pondent, " Old Footballer" wiites, hUting that what he &aid regarding Mr HalK having made a boast of having boen the cau»e of Mr Hardy's fall has not as yet been contradicted. If Mr Halls did not causo the accident, he certainly took credit for it, and this fact can be testified to by two very reliable witnesses, Mr Halls giving as his reason for so doing that he believed Mr Hardy endeavoured to hurt him.

A correspondent of the Wellington Thncb .state* that in New South Wales alone there are 200 clergymen who aie Orangeman, Again, the Oiange Society is generally considered an iri&h one, wheieas while in Irelanrl there aie 500,000 Orangemen ; in England there are 1)50,000, ; in Scotland, 90,000 ; in Canada, 17)0,000, ; in New South Wale, 20,000. Besides this, there are m Victoria, Queensland, South Australia, and Tasmania 13G Orange Lodges, in New Zealand 84, and in other paits of the woild 1000.

Acesecaine before the Resident Magistrate at Dunedm on Friday m which Wiight, piopiietor of the Austuiluin and A mmiccui Directory, -sued a customer foi £2 2s, price of the woik. Tlie defence was that the information in the work had been collected in 1879, and thus rendoiing the diiecfcory coinp.u.xtivoly valueless, and that a fal.se label, bearing the date 1883-84, had been pasted over the figuies 1882 onghially piiuted on the cover. The Resident Magistrate .said the tinny was a gross deceit, and gave judgment for defendant.

With reference to Lord Wolseley's evidence on the Channel Tunnel Committee, and that of other military men, Truth d'uecta attention to the following obseivation of Buckle in hii> "Histoiy of Civilisation" :—lt: — It ih notorious.— and the evidence of it stands 1 ecorded in our parliamentary debates— that every great measme winch wa-> carried, every great improvement, every great btep in refoim, evciy concession to the popular viisheb, was strenuously opposed by the Duke of Wellington, but became law, in spite of his opposition, and after his mournful declarations that by such means the security of England would be seriou&ly imperilled. '

A point much disputed by historians was raised in connection with a lecture on " William of Orange," at the Kochabite Hall, Wellington, a few day.-, ago. Mr Mackintosh asked the lecturer to say whether he belie\ ed that William signed the older, and so was personally cognisant of the infamous militaiy treachery known as the massacre of Glencoe. The Rev. P. N. Hunter refrained from a positive opinion ; but Mr Carson stated decisively that late historic researches showed that William's habit was to sign Ordera-iu-Council in blank form, to bo filled up by the different heads of depaitments in his Government, and that theie was every leason to believe the .Earl of Stair .filled up the particular order, in his zeal to subjugate lawless clans in the Scottish Highland-).

In the "Field" of June 9th, Mr Hugh Wyndham, taking up the correspondence a>s to the propoition of dead weight to be expected, gives the following instances as having been within his own knowledge. A Hereford bull, 2 years 7 months old, weighed 17921b alive and 11201b dead, giving (52.5 per cent of carcase. A Hereford cow weighed alive 18541b, dead 10801b, or 58-7 of caicase. A younger bull weighed alive 14841b, and dead 8301b, or 55.9 per cent. The two fir&t-named seem to have been exhibition animals, avid their weights may be profitably compared with Mr Shrhnpton's shorthorn bull and oow of similar stamp, whose woights were recorded here. These were the bull (a pedigree animal and not fat) gave 68.2, and a heifer (of the same breed, but fat) G0. 5. 0f carcase.

The Morning Post gives the following details of the new transportation scheme adopter] jby Prance at the expense of the South Pacific : " The new Habitual Criminals Bill, which has passed the Chamber of Deputies, and which is shortly to be discussed by the Senate, condemns every criminal who has been twice convicted of a grave offence within a certain period of years, or who has been more frequently convicted of offence 3 less grave within the same period, to transportation for life, or, as it is called, ' relegation' to a French colony beyond the seas ; aud in the schedule of the Bill the territories marked out as the residence of the convicts are, with the exception of French Guinea in South America, all situated in the islands of the Pacifio Ocean ; New Caledonia naturally heading the list. As this scheme amounts to nothing less than a vast plan of criminal colonisation, and as it is recognised that such settlers must be very unwelcome neighbors for colonists of an ordinary character, it is impossible that the French naval authorities have received instructions to occupy fresh territories which could be devoted exclusively to the residence of French criminals. This plan of clearing French cities and towns of the dangerous scum of the male and female population is due to the initiative of the late M. Garnbetta, but it bat beeu'tukenup with zeal by his lieutenants, and we believe that - the ' calculations* of the French Government reckon upon a transported population' of 40,000 or 50,000' criminals of both sexes within • a few years. If, however, this is an, evident convenience ,to -the French Government and people in cai ting, out' >the..-refuso i o! their criminals classes upon ,tho .distant' islai}dipf'.th©rPacific,dt may; be. reason-" ably .^suspected that the I Australian,

I 'transportation from among themselves, will regard with honor, not nnminqled with alarm, the prospect of the establishment of a va9t republic of criminals in those legions."

In his last • letter in the Australasian, the " Vagabond '* writes thus bitterly of the people of Otago>: — " I did not write it at the time, but now; that the bitterness is past, I mint place it on record that, as a rule, nowhere in the colonies have I met with such a lack of hospitality, such a generally cold community, arid such a grasping greediness to get every cent and dollar out of the stranger as in the province of Otago. I havo done every credit to the beauties of Dunedin, to the pushing enterprise of its merchants, and to the kindnesses received from old Victorians and others who had known me beyond the seas. But for the rest of Otago — I suppose that if a man lives there 20 years, and that he is known to have a good bank balance, thu people will thaw to him. When I left Dunedin for a trip through the southern lake district a gentleman, to whom I am under great obligations for courtesies which have made my path pleasant in New Zealand, kindly interested himself to obtain me letters of introduction to stationholdeis and managers. In any other part of the world I should consider the manner in which these letters were oftun received an insult both to the introducer and myself. The secret was let out by one squatter, who gave me a kind and cordial reception, but said, ' We don t want you heie writing about the country. We don't want travellers, nor tourists, nor settlers here. We just want to be left alone. ' This is the spirit of the ' old identity' of which I have heard, but thought it was long since extinct. They want to be left alone with the rabbits ! I for one will gladly so leave them. However, I determined never to present another letter of introduction in New Zealand. How different here in Canterbury ! With the exception of the knight of the scales, I did not know a soul here. Yet friends spring up on every side. The people here are spontaneous. They warm to j'ou, and you to them Everywhere I receive big, hearty welcomes, all the moie striking after the social chillings of Ot.vgo. Dunedin is a beautiful city. Its people are wideawake, .uul know how to make money. But I would prefer to pass my days in the English city, Chnstchuich, by thu Avon."

Speaking on the Pacific Islands Annexation question, the San Francisco News Letter say.s : — Beyond the fact that L >rd Derby had disappioved of the annexation of New Guinea, by Queensland, we have hitherto received no details of the con espondence between the home Government; and Australia. At last, however, the text of Lord Derby's reply is before us, and it stales with much force and clearness the reason* that prompted the Government to refuse to sanction the scheme. The needlessne&s of the .steps taken by the Queensland authorities it. first dwelt upon. If, says the document, there had been any evidence of the intention which is said to have been apprehended of a foieign power to take possession of any pait of New Guinea, the views and proposals of the Colonial Government could have been placed before Her Majesty's Government by telegraph, and if the circumstances had justified immediate action, it could have been taken without a delay of more than a very few horns. But there was and is no evidence ot such intention, and even if there were, it would not be necessaiy, in order to protect Bi itish interests, to annex the whole vast territory, to which the pioclamations of the Queensland Government purpoits to apjxly. Nothing but necessity ould justify such an extension of its possessions by a country ahcady ovei burdened by its colonial lespon&ibility. This is an argument to which the people of Queensland, in their happy in experience of the cares of Empire, may not attach much impoitance, but it cannot fail to weigh heavily upon those upon whom the burden of the neAv possession would inevitably fall. But although Loid Derby declines to sanction " large annexations of temtoiy adjacent to Australia in the absence of sufficient proof of the necessity of such mea.sui es, " lie is willing to meet the colonists half way about the protection and control of the seas and islands adjoining their country. " The powers of the High Commissioner for the Western Pacific, ' he says, " extend to New Guinea, and if the colony of Queensland, with or without assistance from other colonies, is prepared to provide a leasonable annual sum to meet the cost of placing one or two deputies of the High Commissionei on the coast, Her Majesty's Go\ eminent will be willing to take steps for strengthening the naval force on the Austialian station. A piotectorate thus gradually established ovei the coast tribes would be cap able of meeting the piincipal requirements of the case for some time to come." All of which appears reasonable and sensible enough, though whether the Australians, who seem to have set their hearts on the annexation, will be satisfied with the arrangement is rather a doubtful matter. The latent news from Austialia indicates that some of Lord Derby's objections have been anticipated by the colonists, especially the one in regard to expense, they being willing to bear the cost. They claim that they have as much light to protect themselves, by taking possession of dangerous outlasts, as England has to own and occupy Cypius, Malta and Gibraltar.