ECHOES FROM THE CAFE.

Waikato Times, Volume XXII, Issue 1845, 3 May 1884, Page 3

ECHOES FROM THE CAFE.

Tim annual exhibition of the Auckland Art Society (I am not quite sine whether this is the correct designation of the society, but you know what I lnean, so it does not really matter vciy much), was opened on Tluusday last by His Excel lency, who made a vciy yood speech, which was the nioie suipiisin^ since lie had ju&t come down fiom Kaipaia by tiaiu, and we know that ti.ivelling on a New Zealand railway is not the best prepai ation in this woikl for the delivery of a speech. On the contiary, we mi^ht fairly expect that the speech made under the ciicumstances would be of a very jerky nature. That the Governor's address was not so is one proof that lie is a fit and pioper peison to lepicsent Her Majesty in the colony of New Zealand. I am not going to gi\ c you the catalogue of exhibits in cxtemo. but will content myself with remaiking that the works of art were as a rule very satisfactory, as giving evidence of impiovement during the past year, and promise ot better things in the future, and there were not many concerning which it was necessary to consult the catalogue to ascertain what they were intended to represent. One thing was made manifest by the exhibition, and that was the necessity for a proper Art Gallery, as there were a number of oil paintings, &c, which could not be properly seen, on account of the defective lighting of tho Choral Hall, in which the exhibition is being held. By the bye, I wonder if the city council will have power to grant the Art Society the necessary authority to charge for admission to the Art Gallery when they are using it, or whether the interesting lariikia will be able to demand free admission. * * "Whether or not they approve of his

speech ana his policy, nil must admire tlie pluck of Major Atkinson in going down to Chiisteliuich to give an account of the misdeeds ot the Ministry, aml all must eondcnn the stupidity ot that portion of ln-> audience who lefused to give him a fair hearing. Though we in Auckland have suffered moie at the hands of the C«ov eminent than the Canteibury people have, in regaid to the railwuy tai ill, 1 feel quite sine that when Majoi Atkinson comes hcie lie will receive a fair and nnpai lial healing At the same time L do hope that attei lie has had his s,i\ he v\ill be told distinctly that v\e aie not satisfied with the laihvay tauif, and that he vv ill be shown w heie it pi esses unf.inly. Then I believe we may fail ly expect h.i\ o justice done to us, instead of ieecu ing an emphatic lefusal as the Cauteibuiy people 1 did, and as they liehly meiited foi their unseemly behaviour. We are often taunted with hung a mongtcl lot in Auckland, different f i oin the Canterbuiy people, who aie essentially English, but if Major Atkinson's tieatment is a fair sample of Knghsh inanneis I am glad that I belong to the mongiel community. However, I have no hesitation in saying that is not a fail sample, but meiely a stupid ebullition ot bad tempei. 7 — ■> "I do wish that we could get evenhanded justice cai tied out in oui couits." Such is the beginning of a letter written by Mi Joseph New mm, the leader of the teetotal pait} in Auckland, with reference to a ehaige of Sunday tiading bi ought against a publican. Tlnee chaiges weie laid. To the fust that was called the publican pleaded guilty and was fined "J0& and costs. The other ehaiges were uithdiaun, because they wcie committed on the Mine day as the fiitt. Mi Xlw man's kttoi is wuttcii foi the purpose of condemning the bench foi allowing the two ehaiges to be vviihdiawn, ,uid in that I quite concur with him. \\ hat I do object to is the beginning of his lettci, because he and his colleagues, the Licencing C'ommissioneis of Cit_\ East, have •ivowed then intention of leliiMiig the licences of two of the hotels in the distiict How can they, by aiij possibility, dispense even handed )ii-tice when they have decided two cases befoie the} have heaid the evidence to he olleied and befoie the cases have even been luouiflit befoie them oiheially. I believe that Ah Newman means well and that he will do what lie believes to be nnht, but I w oul'l if mind him that those v\ ho In c in L;lass liousi b should not tin ov\ stones, and, though Loid Dundreaiy objected to the pioveib on the giound that people did not Inc in glass houses, and that it was the naughty boys w ho had never seen the Ciystal I'ilace who thiew stones, it is a good piowih notwithstanding, and woirh lemcinbeimg. Mi Moss has b"en addi easing Ills con stitueuts and has leccivcd lum those piesent .i vote ot conlidt nee, whatevei that may be woitii. Ife has come to tlie conclusion that the times aic out of joint and that Ins duty to his constituency in.i\ compel bun to l enounce hi-, allegiance to Si (Jioitie (Jiev, If, as seems jnobable, an.ilhince w ill be foi mcd between C.niteibuiy and Utago ioi the pmpo«e of ousting the piesent (Joy eminent, ,unl leplacingit with one which enuch those two distiicts and cont( l exceptional advaiitaues on them at the expense of the icst of tlie colony, it will be the bounden duty of .Mi Mos-, ami eveiv other Auckland lepiesentativo to do all in his powu to keep the piesent Ministiy in oiticc. We know by expenenoe how badly we weie tieatcd when the Uicy (io\ eminent, in w Inch Otagan influence piedoiiiinated, so y e must see that we aie not subjected to a lcpctition ot that tic.itiiicnt In speaking ot reticnchmeiit, Mi Moss said that membeis should begin w itn themselves by icdiuing their own niMiibiia iiom a humliid and foi ty to ■ vi'tiU, In that he said wisely, but he did not "M} enoiiL'h. Not onl\ should tin nuinbu ol munbu-. l)e l educed bv one half, but the hoiioi.rium should b' -lnnlaily leduced 'I lie pusent honoi •uin tn ot two hundied I'uiiua^ is at least twici as huge aa it should he 'I he ob ji i t (at any l ite the .ivowed object) of the liouoiaiiuui is to enable constituencies to elect pool men ,h lepiesentativ es, and sinclv ,i bundled guiucis would Ijc aui])le tn jt.i\ a pool man s expenses foi thiec nuiiiths As a mat lei ot fact, pool men ,u< nut c lected, so that the money spent on meinbeis honoiaiium is simply wasted, aid th it waste 1 would like to see stopped, oi at least < in tailed. Talking about member, it i-, said that one of them has played his constituents a mean tuck. Mi Allan McDonald was elccte d to lepiesent the Easb Coast as one of the celebiated "Auckland phalanx," foi no paiticuku meuts ot his own, but simply because ho promised to be a follow ci ol Sn (Jeoigc Ct l c\ . At the last geueial election he was letuimd iigun, but since then he has not been in " sympathetic aceoid 'with the electois. He has now lett the colony to go to England, and, it is alleged, he has not lcsigned his seat, though he has no intention of letuining to New Zealand befoio the next session of l'ailiamcnt, his object being to "s| itc his constituents ' A inoie pitiful exhibition of small mineledncss could haidlj' be imagined. As a mattei of fact, his constituency has not lost much, as theii meinbei was of veiy little use. fie was not a good speakei, he was of no meat value on committees, and the only place wheie he appealed to advantage was on the tennis law n He has gone, and the electoi s w ill not gi iev c much attci him. Sr. llrvco.