MELBOURNE ITEMS. [By TELEPHONES.]

Waikato Times, Volume XXXVII, Issue 2966, 18 July 1891, Page 4

MELBOURNE ITEMS. [By TELEPHONES.]

Mrcr.BoiriiXK, June "0. It is not too much to say that t!ie Conservative parly here .wo aghast at the successes of the Labour candidates in the New South Wales elections. They hail looked upon th'! wmkiurii as so utterly defeated and demoralised in tin: recent struggles between employers and employed that they never reckoned upon their rallying and uniting their forces to meet their opponents upon another battlefield. It is (juite pitiable to see the lorn.' and laboured arguments by which tin: Conservative journals try to prove that a barrister, a shopkeeper, an attorney, a doctor, a farmer, a professional politician, or even the nominee of a wealthy newspaper proprietor, will make an admirable repri-cntvive for any constituency, whether ho lie Protectionist or I'YcctiadiT, Uit that the. Labour can<liil.it.■ man cannot b... wo: thy of a place in Parliament. As a matter, of fact, the Labour e>u lid:,l- will, of course, bo very I'.'-.eli like every other candidate, lie ■•■. iiiatleud to his own interests first, just a.: every other member of Parliament dees, lie will attend to those of his family next, and find places for all of them if he can. The interests of his class will then have a show, just as those of the lawyers do ; and then if he has any time to spare they will be given to those of his country. A pise of pockets and a tongue are the chief requisites of a member of Parliament, who fill the run by wagging the other-, and will do so till 1 iee- rhall lie no more. There are rumours of scandals and dis- ::.;,! V-merits ai. (loverninent House, which ,",ie causing great concern in the minds of tho-a: who consider what goes on in the big c-tablishment south of the Yam .should be, under any circumstances, the lie wie of public comm-nt. It is under ."I.mil that the conditions of life under Mi.ii (liguilieil roof arc anything but comb'lliblc; and ceitainly wlem its occupants appeal' in public they generally do so separately, and both look about, as miserable! iis people with permanent dyspepsia. l.icneral Tnll.iel: is at his wits end concerning (he (lissad'ection in the forces. The llillarat incident is only an active internal sign of an incessant conflict between the new not ions entertained by the men ami the inllated ideas of their own importance, or.tcrtaiiied by the ollieci's. In the liriHsh army l.h- ilillicully of .-.citing recruits, tic ' abolition of purchase and the consequent, fact that the prepiratirm for a military career is now ei.i.Hv' educational, hare'led to a great mo iili.'itioii hi the n.'ls.tive feelmgsof the mm ~ml olii,- is for <ae! other. Here I 1:, ollieen, aie apt to claim an cxagge. rated uiilcrei.ee. and the men arc loth to yield any dillerencc at all. The mm c muni' sloU'.'l ullieeisare n it considered .!■• :ti.y ol' . upcrvi-'ioh by the olliccrs and cone ijuenlly do as they lik.: with the i.ioii, mid the result is a very unpleasant ..n.I dangerous stat" of irritation. Of i:.:irv t he-re are .'omc olliccrs übo do l.e-ir duly and some mm who endure a ",I'eit d'-.-il of imp-oper u -age with fortitud", but there is lif-ially, always some little t-o:ib!c or o'.ie-r in our miniature ani'.y which i-i n.o-tly fuss and feathers at the top with a g0.,,1 deal of absolute lii-allcctinu at the bottom. Half the men look as though they continually asked, "Who the Devil is lie? " and half the otlicei-H look as though they imagined tli'-y bad just dropped from the moon. Mr MHiiro ia jubilant for lie sees a good

(•!>:,,„:,; of st.iying in i>lh"<: Until I'arlia-ini-iit <\\pirr-> l>y the tllliixion (if time. The OpiKi-itlun have no programme hut i„,i,ly wait, "ii events and he is a pretty .ji .(,,1 moth-inn, better perhaps than any 7,1 them 'inite imagine. He has the pulilie with him in his determination to J lirinj the railway eoinmisMoncrs to subj..ctiMU. ll.' has immensely gratified the Civil .Service, now a power ill the State, L by directing that the order for retirement f at sixty years of aue shall be strictly enforced ami junior officers trained to fill the vacancies created, thus quickening promotion and he has set all the local optionists, advocates of women's suffrage and other persons with particular questions to push hoping that he will pull their pet theories through, consequently he has concentrated many interests behind him that their impulsive force can hardly fail to propel him through the session. . Notwithstanding the strength ot the local option party in the Assembly, a very strong effort is to he made during the session to pass an amending Licensing Act whereby the Governor-m-Coiin-cil could he given the power (which he has not at present) to declare special licensing districts so that the two great cofl'ee palaces which now are so depreciated in value may be turned into hotels, They are only sham temperance houses now. Drink is openly consumed in almost every room in each of them. The servants have to go to other hotels to bring it for the coffee palaces guests, and so the companies have all the trouble of the drink trade and none of the profit. A leading capitalist who has a very large share in both establishments was trying to engineer the Bill last year, but was astounded at the sum a confidential agent told him it would cost for what Sir Leceister Dedlock calls "unnecessary expenses." This »ood gentleman has, it is said, thought better of it now, and indeed wishes he had spent the money last year, and so realised a better interest on his shares. The one person to whom it matters most is the landlord of a big hotel next door to one of these caravanseries. He has made a fortune in the five years or so that he has supplied the temperance house with alcoholic liquors, and does not like relinquishing their custom. Perhaps he will spend a little money the other way,