ECHOES FROM THE CAFE.

Waikato Times, Volume XXI, Issue 1788, 20 December 1883, Page 4

ECHOES FROM THE CAFE.

Thk wreck of the "Triumph " is still the all-absorbing topic of conversation, Imt people hu\e given up proposing plans l>y which the vessel may be got off the rocks of Tiritiri. Indeed, as you probably alruurly know, (ill hopes of doing ho have been abandoned, and it is not improbable that, bjfi te thiwi words appear in print, the ship will havcgiiiK 1 to pmew. It it uselosn now o lament thin .sad o.it.istiophe, by which a -.ploudid vuii-i'l li.in bm»u literally throw i nvrtv. The o »ly giati'.icatton \\u lm\ul.u>in the f.ict that the casualty occurred after, not befme, her arrival huio. Ha t a " Trinni|jh " b>'.j'i wrecked while cotni.it here, with all hor paHsongers on board, it i>extremely pi obable that loss of life wot Id i.i vis otNiiod, and oven ninn> ])robable th.i a poitim of the Auckbuid c.ugo won d .1.1.0 Deen loht or damaged past lecovmy. riuit Ciiigo was not merely iiitriu»«ica'l f i \ahiiible, but, had it been lost, it would h.iu* c.iu^o'l him ion-, delay to two impoit.uit undeitaki.igs, for among it were the boileis for the sugar company's uoiks, and a large quantity of eminent and plant for our city and Mibmhan tramways. By the way, 1 quite incidentally canio across the origin of the word "tramwny," It seems that an ancestor of Sir James Outtani, the distinguished general, took a leading pait in extending hnrse railroads for drawing coal, &c, and his roads were called "Outraniways." The name was soon found too long for ordinary use, and so the nriat syllable was dropped, and we got the word " tramways."

ft The Waikato Timks lias evidently a large circulation, and the " Echoes from the Cafe " heem to be widely read. This is proved by the fact that the Annexation aud Federation Conference has taken up the suggestion made by me a few week*) ago— that a submarine telegraph cable bhonld bo laid between New Zealand and America. Of coui>e, it if po*Mble, nay probable, that the idea had been formed by bomeone olho before mo, but I had not scon tho proposal in print, and, until it is proved that wo have no right to it, T»B W.viK.vro Timkn and I will take to ourselves the honour and glory of originating tho scheme. Tho matter was brought before the Conference by the Postina.stoi*(4etiural (piemnnably of New South Wales), but In* distances do not agieo with mine. He gives tho distance from San Francisco to Auckland an 0,."i00 inileh, wheiensl tftko the distance as given in the Sui Fuuic'ihco mail service timetable, which $<•. 5,!)25 miles. Deducting 225 milett, which is Homewhoie about the distance from hero to tho extreme 1101 th of Now Zealand for which an ordinal y land line would be available, I make the length of cable required n,700 miles. Allowing that I aw 300 miles out in my calculations, which its a good margin, the distance from Han Viancwco to New Zealand is (5000 miles. The VoHtmt'Htor-tjeneinl in queH« tion stated the dthtanco to Aiwtrullti .»h 0S.")8 tnileH, and tho cost i\n and tho dtatttuco to Auckland as onoo milos, co-sting £1,<.).")0,000. If this is n simple suni in proportion there \« a glaring mistake in it, us the cast would bo uudei £1,1)00,000, while if the distance is only 0000 mill I*-,1 *-, and the ptopoition the same, the co.>t would be under -t'],7-")0,000. A difference of a quaiter of a million m -the co^t would be «i •>tiong leasi.n for biingiug tho Anu>iican cable to New Zealand instead of to Au^tr.ilia. J-fowcver, tliosc aie nwttors which will doubtli'-^ bo fully and fail ly con-sidt'iL-d bofoie any definite .iction is taken.

Tlic f.uinm-» W.iu'ik'Y Hotel license case again came befoie fclio City Kasfc Licensing Committee on Wednesday, and was decided :is f.u .\s that hench is cnncerned by the tiansfei <>f tlio license to the building known as Powells dining looms. ()t couise it i-> not intended that this shall be tlie peimanent hotel, but the Couit of Appeal having decided that a tempoiaiy iuino\,il of a licence cannot bo granted while the new hotel h being built, the only couise left was to tiansfer it to ;iif(>ther bulking "permanently," and when the new building is elected to ti.nisfei it to that. Theio is an o\idenfc ojuission in the piesent Licencing At t, Avhieh pioudes foi a tempoiaiy transfe,^ only in ease of the licensed h-nise bprhg deployed by "the, tempest, or .soni}? other cause b»yond the contiol of the licensee," and no piovisimi is made for a totnpoiaiy transfei in the event of the heeded house being pulled down foi the puiurt.se of now piemise-. being elected, even tliougli the old building has been deuu^tChud by oulu of the licen-ing com mittee. Tlicio was a \eiy absiud anomaly 111 the opposition to the tiansfev wf the Wa\eily luense in the hhape of an unholy alliance between the teet'it.dlei's and a number of tho-e niteie^ted in the liquoi tiaflic. The leal opp'isiti(m emanated fioni the licensees of the Thames and Waitemata Hotels, and the lneweis and wine and spnit nieich.\nts mteu'sted in those hotels. They piouded the "'sinews of war," and paid the sohiitois who .ippu<ii('d in nuppoit of the petitions gut up by the toctotalleis. How the Hei aid was induced to lend its columns to the objectois to the license 1 cannot say, but 1 do think that the Heiald acted unf.'ihly in coinn-enting as it did on the matter while it w.is sub judice.

At tlic .same meeting of the City East Licensing Bench another nititt'-r ciopped up. In June the committee condemned a numbei of hotels iii unfit to bo licenced, and •said that they would would withdraw the licenses unlu^s alterations and improvements weie made iv sonic cates, and now building* weie elected in others!. In the latter category was the Nottingham Castle Hotel, a wi etched .shanty in Abercrombiehtieet, which provided practically no accouicdation for the public. At a subsequent meeting of the committee, plans of a new house weie submitted and approved, but nothing fuither has been done in the way of erecting a new building. It has now tiansphed that the propiietor does not intend to re-build on the pie->ent site, but to build a commodious family hotel at Kniily Place, or i.itlier on the low level "■ hoi c Emily Place now X after tho hill lia-i been cut away to piovide eaith fir tin* fiee/.ing company'.s reclamation. This will be a .-.plendid site foi an hotel, as it will bo clo><3 to the railway .station and the wham's, and there will be no bar-trade, winch is tho objectionable fcatuio in oui pie->ent hotels.

A \ei v choice specimen of humanity has been living in Auckland for tome time, luuiug been eiupliiyed in one of our leading ch apery establishments as " nian-dress-m.ikei. ' He made pf 1 eat professions of pietj', woio the blue nbl)on on his breast, and, on the strength of his piety and blue libbowsin, managed to get credit to a con-s-idem ble extent. He has lately been found out as an impudent imposter and consummate rascal. It seems that he came heie after having " done" the Australian colonies. At one time he lived in Hobait, where he gained the reputation of being a very good young man. On the stiength of that leputation he manged to get into debt to the pvteut of between £200 and £300. Finding that Hobart would soon be " too hot'" foi him, he stated that a foituue had been left to him in Melbourne, and that he wat going theie to receh c it. .Shortly aftei hisaimalin Melbourne he wrote to his l.mdlady in Hobait, .stating that he had not lece'ncd his fortune, and that hi- health was failing. Follow ing his letter he sent her a telegram, signed with a false name, announcing his death. He also inserted ;< notice of his death in the Argus, and had a copy of the paper sent to his landlady and each of his principal creditors. They made empmies, but could find no trace of then " minting friend," who had changed hiname. So far as T can learn, there is proof that he died on four different occasions, and in four diffei-eiit places.

Tlio threatened row between the Bonrd of Education and the Governor*, of the Grammar School, over thu election of Mr J. M. Clark to the heat in tlio litter body, lendeml \acantbyhhe lesignation of Mr K. Luishley, ex chairman of Board of Education, ban' boon settled without bloodshed. Tlio Board of Governors found that thej' had acted illegally in electing Mr Clark, ho bsing already a member of the board, by virtue of hi*' office a* Mayor ; and w>, the so.it being still vacant, they elected Mi ft. Hfibbh, the present chairman of the Board of Education. I consider that they_ acted in a very gracious manner in «o doinpr, as, by defenhi}? the election till next meeting, when Mr Claik would have- ceased to be Mayor, and consequently, ceased to be a member of their body, they could have elected him, despite the protests of the Boaul of Education. By .refraining from doing- so, they have shown that they had no intention to slight either the, Board of Education or its chairman, but simply wished to retain the services of a valued colleague. St. Mungo.