The Waikato Times AND THAMES VALLEY GAZETTE. SATURDAY, 21 MARCH 19, 1887.

Waikato Times, Volume XXVIII, Issue 2292, 19 March 1887, Page 2

The Waikato Times AND THAMES VALLEY GAZETTE.

SATURDAY, 21 MARCH 19, 1887.

Equal and cxact justice to all men, Of whatsoever state oi persuasion, religious or political.

The Farmers' Co-operative Association is dead, and nothing remains to be done but to give it decent burial. The subject is perhaps one which " silence suiteth best." It summons too many painful reflections to admit of our dwelling long upon it. But it is fitting that we, who assisted dt its birth and watched its first infant struggles, should figuratively shed a tear over its untimely death. ' .

Our sorrow is real. No human being ever entered upon the race of life with richer promise of ultimate success than dicl the now defunct association ; no youth ever chose a career with more confidence than the shareholders of this concern felt when they filled up the share list, and no human hope was ever blasted more completely. The Association has not died from inanition; its vitality was patent to the dullest intellect. It would indeed be pleasant to think that it owed its dissolution to neglect. But those who watched the closing hours of its existence are haunted with a suspicion that the end was hastened, and that poison was in the cup which, should have contained medicine. Of course these suspicions are quite absurd —too absurd almost to repeat, "but that is the very reason, perhaps, why they are so perversely obtrusive and will not be kept down. In any event, one fact stands out j in clear relief, and that is this : If we seek protection from the Auckland middleman it is not the wisest thing in the world to rush into his arms. -It is easy enough to prophesy after the event, and many of those who now bewail the loss of the association are loud in asserting that the management should never have gone from Waikato. Nevertheless it was allowed to go, and we can see the result. In this column, at the time, we urged again and again that the control should be retained in the hands of the class which looked for the benefits, but other councils prevailed and—well perhaps recriminations are out of place. The best to be done now is to let the dead past bury its dead. The farmers have learned a lesson, a lesson dearly paid for, and one they are not likely soon to forget. If at some future time the spirit of cooperation should again fill the atmosphere, the people of Waikato will, we think, be able to turn it to useful account.

The very severe frost experienced yesterday morning played sad havoc with the melon family and every other green thing which is usually affected by it. An Assessment Court was held at Cambridge yesterday, at which the only business was one transfer. The R.M. having signed the books, and tho court closed. At the Assesment Court for the Borough of Hamilton, held before Capt. Jackson R.M., oil Wednesday, only a few I small reductions in the valuations were wade. The ordinary monthly meeting of the Piako County Council will be held in the borough chambers, Hamilton, to-day. The meeting begins at 10.15 a.m. The Rev. J. J. Brown is announced to deliver a lecture in the Public Hall. Cambridge, on Friday, 25th March, on "The world's biggest things, or 48,000 miles by land and sea."' Mr P. Missen desires us to state that he never signed the petitiou against the erection of the abbattoirs, not did he authorise any one to do so on his behalf. His sympathies are entirely with the council's scheme. A destructive fire occurred at Ponsotiby, Auckland, on Thursday night. Three shops, known as Porter's, were burned down. The damage is estimated at £1000, and tho insurances at £700. Amongst the exhibits at the Te Awainutu show were six splendid swede turnips grown by Mr Robert Noble, of Kaiiiwhaniwha, and sent in too late for competition. They were much larger than any of the exhibits which competed. They wero grown from Webb's Imperial. Mr Noble also exhibited some fine specimens of maize in the cob.

It is surmised that Mr Levy, the Wellington J.P., whose mysterious disappearance created so much comment about a year ago, was kept a prisoner in a den in Sydney, established for such purposes, and that he was only liberated when payment for his maintenance ceased. His captor is said to be some one who resented his opposition to the licensed victuallers' of Wellington.

Anyone running down the columns of the Press must be struck by the number of accidents which occur daily, and in nine cases out of ten the bread-winner is the sufferer. Mr M. C. Hickey, the agent for the New Zealand Accident Insurance Company, is at present in Hamilton, and all those whose avocations expose them to danger ought to at once placethemselves in his protecting arms. The anniversary ball in connection with the Hamilton Branch of the H.A.C.B. Society took place in the Oddfellows Hall on St. Patrick's night. About fifty couples were present, and dancing was kept up until an early hour yesterday morning. The music was supplied by Mr Greenwood, and the refreshments by Mr Black. It is needless to say that both gave the utmost satisfaction. At the Assessment Court, held in Cambridge yesterday, there was not a single objection to the valuation list as prepared by the assessor, Mr J. P.Thomson. About 4!)0 valuations have to be made in Cambridge, and it reflects the greatest credit upon Mr Thomson that he has evidently managed to please everyone. Wo know that he looks at the matter from an owner's point of view—and, if necessary, consults them —as well as with his official eyes, hence a clean sheet, and a lot of trouble and annoyance saved to the public. Mr W. S. Stewart, the headmaster of tho Cambridge District High School, has been suffering from a severe attack of poisoning, through eating what were supposed to be mushrooms. On Tuesday evening he partook of a hearty meal of what, he had no doubt, were luscious fungi, as they resembled them in every particular, and the flavour, he thought, was exceptionally good. _ After the meal he felt in better spirits than usual, and went for a walk before retiring, but about 1 a.m. on Wednesday morning lie woke with violent trembling and sickness, and upon attempting to walk he found his legs refused to sustain him. Dr. Waddington was promptly fetched, and took such measures to counteract the poison that Mr Stewart was able to resume his duty yesterday. The Cambridge scholars will no doubt, at an early date, receive a lesson on edible fungi.

Thechildren'attending the Roman Catholic Sunday School at Hamilton en-, joyed their annual picnic on Thursday, (fc>. Patrick's Day). To the number of about 100, and accompanied by parents and friends, who numbered nearly as many as the children, they were conveyed to the farm of Mr Crosby, Kirikiriro.i, which had been very generously placed at their disposal. Mr'Crosbv further gave up the use of his house, and garden, and the_ dairy for the

oecasion became public property. Numeious games of the customary type were indulged in, and ample provisions were provided" Altogether a very happy day was spent, leather Pox desires us on his behalf to specially thank Messrs Crosby, Kelly, Deegan and Leas, who kindly provided conveyances for the children, with additional thanks to the first named gentleman for so kindly granting the use of his farm. The statistics of the colony of (Queensland for 1.885, which have just he>n published by the Registrar-General's Department, show the results of the drought in a rather unexpected manner—that is, if the returns of live stock can be depended

on. In 1881 we had 12,042,893 sheep, and oil the 31st December, 1885, we had only 3,993,322, a decrease of over 3,000,000 iu the four years; though during the year 1885 itself we lost only 314,589. But judging from the accounts we received during the perio 1 of drought from our pastoral districts the loss of cattle ought to have been proportionately greater. We heard of large herds being almost totally destroyed, and in the settled districts the evidences of a great mortality amongst the cattle were only too perceptible to everyone. Yet in 1881 we had only 4,334,937 cattle—the highest number we ever reached in Queensland —and at the end of 1885 we still had 4,102,652 reinain-

When the lowa prohibitory law was framed it recognised the right of distilleries to manufacture alcohol for export beyond the borders of the State for commercial, medical, and scientific purposes, but which were not to be used as beverages. There is a large distillery in Des Moines, the capital of the State (a city of 40,000 inhabitants), without a single open saloon. The friends of temperance attempted to close the distillery under the law by injunction. The judge of the Circuit Court has rendered a decision refusing the injunction, holding that the law protects the distilleries in the manufacture of liquors for export to other states, limited only by the law in the states where they are sold. This is probably a correct and sensible interpretation of the law; but it places the advocates of prohibition in the state of lowa in the anomalous position of refusing to drink intoxicating drinks but for permitting them to be manufactured for the residents of other states to drink.

The horticultural show at Te Awamutu on Thursday last was, taken altosrerher, an undoubted success, the attendance during the afternoon being very large. The judges' awards, it was agreed by all, were given impartially, and the utmost fairness characterised their decisions. As was to be expected, most of the prizes for pot plants were taken by competitors living in the near vicinity, Mr Moody and Major Jackson securing nearly all of these. In fruit, however, Hamilton and Cambridge showed up well, carrying off the majority of the prizes. Mr George Mason, of the Claudelands Nursery, obtained first prize or the best collection of apples, Alt' Sharp, of Cambridge, however, running him very closely. Mr Hugh Ross, of Waitoa, and Mr James Keeley also scored well in the All Comers' Class. In the Amateurs' Class, the prizes were pretty evenly distributed, Mr Geo. Edgecumb'e, however, headingthe list. Mr .John Ohye took the prize in this class for the best collection of apples. Mr Joseph Mayo had a nice collection of pears and quinces (including Raes' Mammoth quince, a beautiful fruit), staged for exhibition only, and these attracted a great deal of attention during the day. A full report and the prize list appears in another column.