The Waikato Times AND THAMES VALLEY GAZETTE.

Waikato Times, Volume XXVII, Issue 2245, 27 November 1886, Page 2

The Waikato Times AND THAMES VALLEY GAZETTE.

Kqurtl and exact justice to all men, Ot whatsoever state or persuasion, religious or political.

SATURDAY, NOV. 2? \ 1886.

When the Freezing Company was floated great thiugs were promised and expected of it. The farmers looked forward to a change in their condition, and as a necessary consequence a change in the condition of the whole community, for prosperity or depression among the agriculturists means precisely the same state of affairs for business people in general. Great things have certainly been done by the company They have erected great buildings, made a great show at the start, and last year made a great loss of .£150,000. A change has also been made in the condition of the farmers, but a decided change for the worse. Beef, already too low in price, has been made to go lower still ; and butter, which at certain seasons of the year was, if good, sure to command a high figure, scarcely paid for making last winter, for the company which was to help us on the road to prosperity flooded the market with their supplies, which they had stored from the previous summer. In order to retrieve some of their losses —or make a bigger one, which is it? — this philanthropise ring have raised the price of their compressed corned beef. It was put upon the market, found to be of excellent quality, and took well with the public who bought large quantities. Last year it could be bought retail at Is 3d a tin at the co-operative stores ; for though that was nominally the company's wholesale price, they allowed a discount of 10 per cent., which allowed the association to sell it at Is 3d for cash. But the latest move of the company is to stop the 10 per cent, discount. Retail dealers consequently cannot sell for less than Is 6d, and, as each tin contains only two pounds, it is quite evident the meat can only be seen on the tables of persons who are well off and can afford to pay ninepence a pound for their beef. To be sure all bone is removed, and the meat is cooked and ready for table, but, none the less, is it a fact that the beef is too high by 3d a pound. To be a regular article of food, such a price should be put on it as would bring it within the reach of all. The company will freeze meat and send it home and get only 4£ a pound, and out of this they must pay commission, freight, insurance, &c, but if any one in the colony, where the beef is grown, wants to buy their compressed beef, he must pay just double the sum for it. Their patriotism begins at home, the home that is 16,000 miles away, and it is likely to end there too. Any business man of ordinary capacity knows very well that if he wants to sell Jus goods he must put a price upon them that is not prohibitive. Not so with the company, whose only capacity appears to he one for bungling. The promoters, however, did not show much of this quality when wheedling the money for shares out of the unfortunate farmers. Promises were made which were never intended to be fulfilled, money was wanted to start the company, and the promoters drew sucli beautiful pictures of the brilliant future for the rural community that a good many shares were taken up. We all know the result, disappointing alike to country shareholders and the clique who intended to make money out of them. With all their big buildings and plant, the Tongariro had to go away from Auckland a few days ago without a single carcase, and so it will be as long as the company can buy meat on the West Coast for little or nothing, and auction it off in joints at their stores Those at the head of this concern care as little for the farmers as they do for the residents of Timbuctoo. While the poor devil of a shareholder has beer, paying his calls and trying to look pleasant, the friends of the directors got large salaries for buying cattle to bring into the market to compete with

the very men whose money helped to start the company, and whose only consolation — a very poor one — is, that the greater the number of shares held by the city men the greater their loss. Their unfair treatment of the farmers has reacted upon themselves, and if the business is to be kept out of liquidation these fat salaries and sinecures will have to be reduced and done away with.

The Rev. J. S. Boyd is announced to lecture at the Presbyterian Church, Hamilton, to-monow morning, at 11 a.m., on " Hard times—thoughts suggested by the present depression."

A few more acres of the remaining lands in the Hamilton domain land-, will bo offered to-day by Mr J. Knnx at his mart, the price being fixod at 5s per acre per annum with improved condition*.

The first meeting of the Waikato Hospital Board will be held at Hamilton on Wednesday next, for the purpose of electing a chairman. The Mayor of Hamilton will preside.

The Paeroa " saurian " has turned out to be a grey seal, about seven feet in length. The animal was caught alive on Thursday evening at Gibbon's mill. It is said that another .species is yet at large in tire VVaihou river.

The Trinity Church Band of Hope, held their u^ual fortnightly meeting in the Pi e>by terian Church, Cambridge, (in Wednesday evening. The Roy. W. Evans occupied the chiir and a very pleasing and successful programme was gone through.

Garden robbing has commenced again in Cambridge. Early yesteidny morning Mr John Doodathe librarian had a consider Able quantity of strawberries taken. The culprits got over the fence at the back of Mr Russell's premises. They not only took the fruit but damaged the plantn.

The nomination of candidates for the Western Maori District will take place at the Courthouse, Wlunganui, on Thursday, December 2nd, and the noil, if necessary, will take place on Thursday, the 23rd of the same month. A list of the polling places will be found in our advertisement column.

A meeting of the general committee of the Hamilton sports will be held in Mr T. G. S.mdea' office at Thk Waikato Times Buildings on Monday next, the 29th inst. Th°i business is important, including the receipt of the reports of the programme and ground sub-committees, and therefore a full attendance of members is urgently requested.

Bishop Cowie has sent a circular letter to the clergy of the diocese recommending that Sunday, November 28th (tomorrow), be observed as a day for special intercession for missions to the heathen and to others who are ignorant of the (Jospel of Jesus Christ, or who are negligent of their duty to God.

Mr William Higginson writes to the Editor as follows: -Sir,— Will you kindly allow me to ask Mr T. B. Hill, through the medium of your columns, how it is that he now advises people to takt up and farm land in a district whore ho himself failed to make it pay ? We all know that Mr Hill selected the be*t land, and that he had the command of capital, and yet he could not .succeed. How then does ho expect poor men to make the thing gee ?

We have bBen requested to state that on Tuesday next being S. Andrew's Day, there will be choral Evensong at S. Andrew's Church, Cambridge, at 8 o'clock. The clery of the Archdeacuncy have accepted invitations to be present. The sermon is to be preached by the Rev. R. G. Boler of Te Awamutu. The churchwardens and other lay officers have hien invited to meet the clergy at conference to be held in the schoolroom at 4 p.m.

For the information of intending competitors at the Hamilton Christinas sports, we are requested to state that the 100, 120 and 150 yards courses are now pegged off down the straight, and the 200, 300 and 440 yards round the oval. The \ mile starts from 12 yards behind tho 300 yards starting post, and the mile is 3 tunes round, plus 50 yards. Competitors are anxiously looking for the publication of the programme.

We are pleased to notice that several of the Cambridge pupils were successful competitors at the Sunday Scholars Industrial Exhibition, opened by Bidhop Cowie in the Drill Shod Auckland, on Tuesday last. The MNses Minnie, Sarah and Prudence Morrison took the honors for the Wesleyans, the two former taking firsts and the latter a second. The Presbyterians are successful with Mi*s Carry E. Nixon, who taken a special, and Miss May Keats and Master James Jones, who botli take second piues.

Shade of the immortal and hitherto unparalleled Baron Munchausen (exclaims " iEgles," in the Australasian), pardon the clumsy essays of modern imitators, envious of thy just fame ! The Scottish News (August 27) describing the Indian and Colonial vi&it to Glasgow, mentions only Mr John Tait, Mr Buchanan, and a third distinguished Australian, in these words :—": — " Among the more notable colonials is Mr It. H. D. Whyte, the chief financier in New South Wales, who is a Justice of the Peace of three colonies, and some time ago received the thanks of the Government of that colony for tho spirited inauiuu 1 in which he defended the bank against an inroad of bushrangers. It is said that in the cour.se of the melee he killed five of the leader* of the band." Who is this astounding person who has obviously painted his own picture for the innocent Glasgow reporters? When and how did he outshine Sir Henry Parkes or Mr Dibbs as the chief financier of New South Wales ? Is he a bank clerk, or how else came he to defend a bank against such a horde af bushrangers as would require five leaders— all of whom were slain by the heroic Whyte? How is it that his fellow-colonists have remained so long in ignorance of the fighting and financial qualification* of this extraordinary man. After all, who is he ?

The cable message relating to the launching of new Australian mining companies which have reached us from time to time have failed to arouse any great degree of public interest in thft novel development, but when the figures are collated (say-, the Ota go Daily Tunes) it is seen that a stupandous amount of speculative investiment has taken place, and still money appears to bo forthcoming 1 for additional ventures. Within the past three mnnth-> no fewer than twelve companies ha\e been placed upon the London market. Of Queensland mines there are the Day Dawn and Wyndham, with a capital of £400,000 ; the Bonnie Dundee, £120,000 ; the Cumberland, £180,000 ; the Canadian, £70,700 ; the Ktberidge, £70,000; the Livingstone. £7o,000; the Klektron, £70,000 ; the Kaboonga, £250,000 ; The Mount Morgan West, £200,000 ; and the Charters Timers, £7"),000. The Coromandel Company, in New Zealand, has been launched with a capital of £80,000 and £120,000 has been subscribed to work the Bncknall estate, near Clunes, in Victoria. Then there is the Quicksilver Estates Company of Queensland, with a capital of £100,000, of which the remaining £45,000 has just been called up. Altogether, therefore, £2, 17!), 000 oi Biitish capital has been invested in colonial mining ventures.

Referring to the probable departure from the colony of Sir J. yon Haast, the Wellington Post has the following :—: — "Dr. yon rlaast has been a distinct success in England. He has been received with open arms by the scientific societies. He has g.vined a handle to his name and good- »' *-< knows how many letters after it, and he was ono of the first, if not the first, to start the idea which has led to theeht.ibliih iiiC'iit of tha Imperial Institute. It is now announced that he is to remain in charge of the Institute until June next, when e.ich colony will have to appoint a permanent curator. Of course, it might naturally be supposed that Sir Julius yon Hanst would receive the appointment from New Zealand, but we doubt whether he would •■accept it. Each colony may indeed have its own curator, but there will require to bo some one greater than these to exercise a general supervision and control. Who is fit to fill the position as the titled scientist, who not only originated the Institute, but has acted as its nurse in earliest infancy? Wo imagine that Sir Julius yon Haast will aspire to, and also attain a higher position in regard to the Imperial Institute than that of the mere representative of one small colony. Few people in New Zealand will grudge him hi.s piomotion, although many will regret his continued absence from the colony." See Co-operative Association* new advertisement re this season's tin nip heeds, manures, etc., etc.