DEATH.

Church.-On 10th October, at Moore street, Ashburton, Eliza Evelyn; » beloved daughter of Duncan McDonald and Florence Church, aged 1 year and 9 months.

The Ashburton Guardian. Magna est Veritas et Prævalebit. FRIDAY, OCTOBER 10, 1890. LOCAL AND GENERAL

In the United! States only a fifth of the lawyers have re jcived a university educa tion. '' ' '■ The Christcleurch grocers have expressed themselves m favour of a Thursday half holiday m eaclr. week if the movement be comes general. Memorial aeirvicea id connection with the decease of Mrst General Booth will be held at all the Salva lion Army Barracks through out the, colonj r on Sunday evening next, October !2tL ; It is stated that at Palmerston North dissension has arisen m the ranks of Wirth's Wild West Show, and that at Giaborne some i of the Indiana and cowboys centemplate giving perform Alices on their own account. The Railwasr Commissioners, m accordant with ,the regulnti.pns, declined to allow M 1" Garstin to accept > the purse of sovereigns pre sented to him bj' the citizens of Christchurch on' his removal to Invercargill, and the money has been returned to the subscribers. The Duk* ot "Fife is one of four partners m the banking firm of Sir Samuel Scott, Bart., and Co. According to the Bankers' returns, published m a supplement to the " London Gaadcte," the firm consists of Lady Scott, the Dnk« > of Fife, Mr Horace Farqu har and Mr Flra ncis Hoare. The Hon Mr. Mitchelson stated to a depu tation the otha r day that during this year 364,000 acres- land continguous to the Auckland maim railway line will be open for selection at 15s; ;per acre. The country from Marton north wards, he said, was good, suitable for sroio.ll holdings, and would sup port" a popuL iktion aa large as that of the whole province. Mr John Tli lonipson, the well-known sur veyor, has bet m m Timaru a few divya en. deavouring (; md successfully) to 'interest some of the bi isiness men there m the opening up of a coal n< jam on the Waihao river, near the Forks Ho t«l. Mr Thompson informs the local paper tl rat the seam m question ia 12 feet m thicki less m an exposed face, and boring put d< >wn by Mr Douglas 'some dis tance away rent through the seam where it is three times that thickness i Mr W. C. Walker, one of the candidates for the repr«H9nta.tidn of Aahburton. m the Hous % e of RepfeMentatives, addressed the electors at the Oddfellows' Hall last evening. The meetrag \cas a, very full one, and the speaker \ra,s listened to most attentively during the cr nirse of a very lengthy and ex haustive ad'iress. At the conclusion of the address, a • number of questions were replied to, and a ) .iearty vote of tlianks was passed to Mr Walk er for his past services m the House. A leugbf ny summary of the proceedings appears elsewhere. Rath* -r an uncommon banking arrangement is earn ed on m the Manawattt district (says the "' VVeliington Post"). It may be des cribed as a kind of portable teller's office. On o» »rtain days of tlie Week a clerk from: one a f the Palmerston banks travels up'and* doviTi the railway line from ■ Palmerßton to Ot »k i, transacting the drdinary business of th c bank en route. Laden with a satchel con to jni ng his supply of cash, and provided Avith j a tel ler's usual precaution agaipst tlapger of ! r.-obb>ery, lie makes the carriage his head quarters, and there receives visits from customers $at the way stations, changing cheques or taking deposits as occasion may require. This plan must bring a good share ot' grist to the bank's lriillj and prove very convenient to settlers, who are saved ail the trouble of journeying to town to relieve themselves of surplus money. The "Economist" thus summarises Dr '.Bakewell's recent libellous article m the "Nineteenth Century " :—" Mr Bakewell's estimate of the ' The Loyalty of the tlolbnies' is not encouraging. In any case, if he is to be trusted, the loyalty of New Zealand would seem to be a minii3 quantity, for, he says that if a, plebiscite were taken, there would not be a thousand votes against annexation to t'-ie United States. Ye irs ago Bai'on Hubner, m his * Travels through the Briatish Empire,' pronounced New Zealand tb be the most ultra-democratic of all our colonies. But these antipodean democrats appear to have token deadly umbrage at the policy of their venerable leader m England. Up to the sup pression' of tlic Indian Mutiny wlien, they say, the last spark of English spirit flashed out, they were proud to be counted British subjects; but they have no sympathy with' a nation that leaves uh&veuged such a defeat as Maju'ba Hill—that yields all to violence, truckles to the strong, and bullies the weak. We. do but summarise Mr Bakewell's Words." The average everyday Englishman is at heart as much a snob now as lie was m the day a when Thackeray held him np to the rjrlicule of the worm. Therp is no son of John Bull who is not susceptible to the in fluence of rank, and perhaps the best illus tration that can be given thereof is the mention of the fact that the Reverend Lord Normanby has been obliged to resign the r. "sctorship of his parish at Worsley owing to th c influx of corpses. Since the excellent pai'son's succession to his father's title three years ago, everybody that could possibly afford it m the neighbouring towns and districts seem to have given directions be fore dying that their funeral, should take place at Worsley, so that they Jri'ight enjoy the post mortem satisfaction of" haying a real Marquis read the burial service over their bodies. As long as sentiments such as these prevail m England the clays of re publicanism are iar off. ■ It is bad enough to live a snob, but it is surely infinitely worse to die one. The total revenue cf the colony from all sources for the six mouths ending September 30th, is £1,687,479, and the Colonial Treasurer's estimate for the year ending 31st March, 1891, is £3,814,000. The actual ex penditure for the six months ending Sept ember 30th was £1,934,249, and the estimate for the year i 3 £4,125,502. The property tax is being collected m November and Feb ruary. With respect to the amount included under Registration and other fees, it should be noted that sheep registration, estimated at £11,600, is payable m September and will be brought to credit m the current half year under the heading. Depasturing leases, etc., are not included. They are payable m March and are estimated at £3000. The revenue represents moneys brought to credit by the Treasurey within the period, but the actual collections are of course greater, be cause the amounts can only.be dealt with when receivers' accounts reach the Treasury, and these are m many cases from seven to ten days m arrear. The second half year is always much larger than.the first. In connection with the coming census a correspondent reminds the" Times." of India of an old story which went the round of the last census* period. During the taking of the censuss of 1881, m a district of the Central provinces, some of the tribes took fright and ran away. The district oflicer finally induced their head men to listen to explanations. Relying on the fact that wagers of various kinds figure extensively m Indian folklore, he solemnly assured them '. that tine Queen of England and the Empress of Russ;a> having quarrelled as to which ruled over the most subjects, had laid a big bet on the/po:ut. He went on to explain that the census nW being taken m order to settle the bet, and .he warned his hearers m a spirited peroration that if they stayed m the jungle and refused to* be counted, the Queen would lose her money, and they would be disgraced for ever as fcwtors t« feeir salt. The story served its purpose, ana the tribes came m.

la the District Court to-day his Honor ;, Judge Ward gave judgment for plaintiff for £100 and costs in' the case Zander v Clark, a claim for a breadh pf agreement. Mr Frazer, solicitor, of Dunedin, whose advice, it is said, lias some weight with leaders of Trades Unions, suggests that, m order to bring about a settlement of the strike m New Zealand, the teamen, coal miners, and wharf laborers should tempo-, rarily disband their unions, and amalga mate with non-unionists at present employed. Good luck attend the promoters of "corners" and "syndicates!" We used to deplore their doings, says the "London Weekly Times." but we hail them now as I helpers of the Social Revolution. The latest I combination of the kind aims at the acquisi of all the anthracite collieries m South Wales. The landlords have got the surface of ■' England; you are taking all there ia underneath it; and by the time you have exploited the 3ea that washes our shores and Hie air we breathe—or as mnch of it as the smoke you make, will let us—we shall be about ripe for the great change. Your object is aimply filthy gain, but you are teaching us splendid lessons on the marvel ous power of combination ; and one of these fine days the nation will step m and lay I its hands on your pile and invite you to \ blend yourselves into one great national I syndicate and go on for the benefit of the people at large. And five years after you will gratefully acknowledge the lenity of the masses that contented themselves with a punishment which was really your enfranch isement. ■ In the [far south there'is a vast unknown country designated on the maps as Fiord county, lying westward of the Waiau, one of the greatest of New Zealand rivers, and which may be said to be the boundary of civilisation, stretching to the coast line. The coast line itself has been pretty extensively explored,'for Milford and the no less beauti ful sounds that lie m that quarter of the colony have long been world renowned places of interest. But beyond a few daring spirits who have forced a passage to the sea and stray prospectors after minerals, the greater part of the country described has not been trodden-by man. Moat of the country is densely wooded, bat there is no reason to .doubt: that some of the open land is of the ' most fertile description, and it should be satisfactory to know that the Government are taking steps to have this unknown portion of Otago throughly explored. Mr John Hay, one of the most accomplished sur veyors m the service of the colony, is now engaged laying off a road m the Fiord country,. starting from near Orepuki, the present terminus of the Hurunui-Bluff rail way, with the intention of finishing up at Preservation at the south-west corner of the island, forming an outlet to the Coal Island diggings. Mr Hay has previously made a flying tour through the Fiord country, but his next report on the district cannot fail to be an interesting one.—Exchange.

TO-DAY'S TELEGRAMS

fPER PIIKSS ASSOCIATION!

Mwlddv.

Chmstchurch, October 10. A. young man named W. Pomeroy Vcrnon, committed suicide about noon to-day by shooting himself under the right ear. Death must have been instan taneous. "Vernon, who was well con nected came hero from Dunedin, and was m the employ of Nigram Bros., maltsters. He has been suffering from insomnia, and taking laudanum, and probably under the influence of this drug committed the deed

Peculiar Case.

A rather unusual case came before District Judge Broad at Nelson on the 26th ult.. when Margaret Hose, a domestic servant, sought to recovci. £50 damages from Elizabeth Martin for slander. It was alleged that de fendant, on 17th July, falsely and maliciously spoke and published of the plaintiff the following words concerning her as a domestic servant:—" You have .caken £2 oxit of my cash box;" and also, "Its no use denying it, I would n.qt believe a word you say; you have taken the money,'' meaning that p'laintift" had stolen and taken away the money. From the evidence it appeared that Miss Martin, m whose father's service plaintiff' was, missed £2 from a cash box, and pro ceeding to the kitchen accused plaintiff. The defence was that there was no publication, inasmuch as the words had not been heard by anyone m the house. Mr Pitt, for plain tiff, contended that there was proof of publication, as a Mr Greenwood was told by Miss Martin that she had lost the money and was going to accuse the plaintiff, and it wag admitted that he heard the accusation being made. He said the action .was brought to clear the girl's character, as Miss Martin declined to apologise. Judge Broad said the law was that it was not sufficient speaking, and for publication it was necessary that some of the words or material words were not only spoken, but published. Though some charge, substantially the same m character, may at some other time have been made by defendant to Mi Greenwood, the proof seemed to fail that any of the very words set out were published to him at any time. Of course it was a very technical point, but he was bound to treat it so. Mr Greenwood's evidence was that he did not hear any of the words spoken. He thought the technical proof re quisite for slander failed, and non suited the plaintiff, with costs £3 16s.

Terrible Tragedy at an Italian Convent.

The Rome correspondent of the " Standard" states that a horrible murder has been committed near Narni, m Unibria. About twelve miles from the city of Narni, on the side of a mountain, is an ancient convent, called Lo Speco. It was m the woods nea? it that St. Francis of Assissi used sometimes to wander a,bout m contem plation. The convent, however, was only inhabited by five friars, who were much respected by the people m Narni for the great good which they were always doing. On Sunday morning two of them went off to celebrate mass m a village near by, it being the feast of St Lawrence. The other three, towards twelve o'clock, went as usual to their dinner m the refectory. Whilst; they were eating they were surprised by four individuals with their faces masked, and armed with long knives and sticks, with which they attacked the poor friars. A terrible fight ensued, with the result, that one of the friars was beaten to death, another was killed by having his throat cut, and the third was stabbed. A boy of fifteen yeai's of age, who also lived m the .convent, ran down to the cellar to hide, but he was followed and beaten to death. The sight that presented itself to the other two friars on their return m the evening was a dreadful one. No reason at all can be given for this atrocious crime, as the assassins did not steal anything from the con vent or from the church-but it is thought that ; their intention was to though perhaps they were too liigjat^ned to do; soi'after having inurderedi j%e friars; The police are hunting all over tfye place, but have furt any of the assassins yet,

THE ELECTIONS.

MR W. C. WALKER AT THE ODDFELLOWS' HALL.

Mr W. O. Walker- addressed the electors of the Ashburton electorate m the Oddfellows' Hall last night. There were over 300 people m the Hall, every seat being occupied. The Mayor (Mr David Thomas), presided, and m introducing the candi date said Mr Walker was there that night to give an account of his steward ship during the time he Jbid been a mem ber- of the last- Parliament and to enunciate the views he hold on political questions at present occupying the public mind,. Mr., Walfefir,,was iiq, stranger 'to them and had been their representative for five or six years (applause). • Mr Walker said he had great pleasure m -meeting them that night to address them on the subjects indicated by the Chairman. They had returned him to the hst Parliament and to the Parliament before that, und he trusted they would place confidence m him for another term. RETROSPECTIVE. As regarded the last Parliament he would 6nly treat it m so far as it threw light on the present and future, and as it would be wearying to go into details of its history, he would only touch, on those points that were of most interest. There were but few apparent results to note m the Work of the last Parliament and this was expected to, be the fcase when they were called together, even Ministers themselves being aware, of this. '.Sir Harry Atkinson was unable to be present,; except m spirit, at any of the debates, owingto severe illness, and thus the; House was deprived of his commanding influence, and his followers of his leading and uniting power. Nbnoof his colleagues! were able to fill his shoes, so that much time was lost that might have been saved. The question had been asked w}io was to blame for this ? He asked them not to believe the many newspapers} m the colony whp laid the blame upon the. Opposition, The f Opposition were m no way to blame for what had occurred, during the last session. The results m the shape of Bills, from a Ministerial point of view were very few, and those promised m the Governor's speech had been but a barren crop' when one looked, for the results m the list of measures that had passed into law. Simi larly the proposals m the Financial State ment had failed to catch the approval of the House, not because the Opposition had determined not to carry them,—-the Opposition were m a minority of thir teen or fourteen, and were powerlesß to prevent their passage.— out, be cause they were nob popular even with Ministers' own supporters. If they had read the reports of the debates m the House, they would have found. that the severest critics of the financial proposals of the Government were merilbers—and leading members too—who composed the Government patty. The general policy of the Government was hot supported because it was not believed m by Ministers' own followers, j The Financial Statement was not believed; m because of its rotten finance, .because of it»i delusive; figures, and because of its reputed surplus that was non-existent. The Statement generally was not satisfactory. vMuoh had been made of the alleged surplus. Its discovery had been triuiipeted all over this and the neighboring colonies, and he supposed it had been cabled, too, m hob haste to the Old Country. But when it came to be analysed, what did they find 1 They found the surplus set down at £115,674, which by deduction of the balance due 6h primiige duty, left £36,569. Against this wajb to be placed the Land Fund deficiency of £45,716, which left a total deficiency for the year of £9147. After referring to the fact that for years the land fund had, been looked upon by law as a part of the Con? solidated Revenue, Mr Walker went on to say the Treasurer had no right to treat the Land Fund m the way he did, and he (Mr Walker) could quote, if he chose, the Treasurer's own words m years gone by for treating it as a part of the consolidated revenue. He quoted those figures to show that the Financial Statement was founded on misapplied figures and; adroit book keeping, and there was hardly a member m the House who would accept the Statement m the way the Treasurer wished it to be accepted. A Voice.—ls the colony solvent then? Mr Walker : I have hot the slightest doubt of that. It had often been said that a country was m the best condition when there was a slight deficit, because when there was a deficit the country was stirred up t« look after the finances At this moment, the last thins? m his mind was to attack the solvency of the colony. (Applause). Mr Walker went on to say that the borrowing proposals contained m the Statement also proved unacceptable as the purposes, though some of them were legitimate, all rested on wrong founda tions, and meant involved and expensive finance. The Primageduty was originally imposed to pay off a portion of the 1887 deficiency, and had fulfilled its mission. In the Financial Statement it was pro posed,'however, to epjitinue the duty for, the purpose of erecting school buildings— virtually a proposal for fresh taxation. This also was unacceptable to the House, and at all events before accepting it members were determined to ascertain if no further economies could be practised. The great difficulty the country now labored under was the large amount of money that annually went away to pay interest on loans contracted. If our ex penditure was to be increased, itcould only be met by increased taxation, and the settlers had on their shoulders at this moment as much of that as they had a right to bear. Three years ago the cry was "Economy, with remission of taxa tion." We had got a certain measure of economy, but we had obtained that mea sure at the expense of the remission of taxation that was to have come had economy not been entered upon. It ought therefore to be the object of any Government thafc came into power to maintain the practice of this economy ana* to secure the remission of taxation that had been asked for. Our expenditure,l instead of being gradually reduced —as was a part of the bargain—and as we had hoped for, was creeping ap< In 1888-9 it was ... ... £1,923,313 In 1889-90 £1,959,354 In 1890-91 (estimated) .;. £1,983,334 Those figures represented the annual ex penditure for the thirteen departments of the Government—a fair test of the mea sure of expenditure, and ■ excluding all classes where special circumstances might vary from year to year. During these same years the amount due for interest on loans was as follows :— 1888-9 £1,833,494 1889-0 ... ... ... 1.897,602 1890-1 1,875,622 And the total revenue for the current year is only estimated at £4,243,974. In view of those figures he could not help feel ing that thepositionpf thecountry'sfinance required the greatest amount of care. So long as this heavy load rested upon the shoulders of the people ; so long as this heavy outgo of interest/continued; so long as the revenue of the colony was so little m excess of the money sent put of it, there existed a special reason for care and caution on the part of whoever had con trol of the public purse. Not even m the Railways" and Customs, tlte two largest sources of revenue, wasi there much elasticity. Our population py' an,average for the last five years had only increased by about 12,0 0 pej: annum, or equivalent to the excess of bi~hs over deaths. The Property Tax Commissioners reported that last yew thtre was a falling pff oj XOOO

t persons who had previously paid property ! tax, so that m the currer.fjr of the last Parliament we had had but xittle progress to flatter ourselves upon. The Primage "Duty had only been imposed by Act for two years and the collection of it should have ceased m June 30th of this year In .spite of the Government wishing to continue ibs collection indefinitely, they were forced to. discontinue it oh Septem ber 30. It was first proposed by the Opposition to strike off £00,000 from the Estimates, referring them back to Govern ment for that purpose. That, however, being defeated, a member o£ the Govern ment party got them to agree to reduce the Estimates by £50,000 —Government t© make the reductions to that amount to suit themselves. The House insisted'on exercising its privilege of dealing with the Estimates m detail, the result being that £44,000 was knocked off the Estimates—some oft' salaries, and some off services that could be dispensed with— Government promising to make a further reduction of £6000 of their own motion. THE CIVIL SERVICE. It ought to impress itself upon the Government and the whole colony that there was great necessity for watching the Civil Service to koep it from growing to unduly expensive.proportions. Year by year it was creej>ing up, and adding to the bulk of the Estimates, and the in crease had been going on more practieu larly during the last three years. The Opposition had determined to teach the Government that this increase was not to proceed. They had not intended by the pruning of the Estimates to inflict indi vidual hardship, and had avoided doing so as far as possible; but much could be done for econoiry m the way of amalga gamating offices, and pruning away services for which the financial position of the colony was not ripe enough. It had been the object of the Opposition, and others outside of it, to impress upon Go vernment the necessity that existed for classifying the Civil Service. This would be satisfactory to the Civil Servants themselves, as it would adjust the proportions of salaries, secure the men's promotion consequent upon good behaviour and merit, and place them altogether beyond and outside the effect rof influence and patronage. Three years I ago Government had promised some such measure as this, and he was happy to say that they had now promised, after the elections, to set up a Royal Commission, upon whose report ho trusted soon to see the Civil Service put upon a pruper foot-ing. A Bill had been brought down last year and passed, but it dealt only with the Post and Telegraph departments. That measure might not be perfect, might not be wholly satisfactory m its details to the servants whom it affected, but it was a step m the right direction, and he trusted that it was only the forerunner of a measure that would improve the position of every Civil Servant m the colony. He had endeavored to draw attention to this because it was a question the colony ought to keep steadily m view. There had. been discussions m the House that were to be regretted, but he would make no reference' to them just then. He would pass over such episodes as the grave charges brought against Ministers by Mr Hutchison, and that other incident m connection with Judge Edwards' appointment, and pass on to matters more closely interesting to the colony m the present election. LAND SETTLEMENT. Among these matters might be men tioned the question of land settlement. Although m this district there was little or no land left for small settlement,' m the North Island some very large tracts still remained m; Government hands, available for such purposes, so that ho trusted no one m this district would think it useless going into the question. ..Settlement m the North Island was going on very rapidly, and the applications were greatly m excess of the acreages put up. The question of land settlement h:id last session been very prominently before the House, and the Waste Lands Committee to which the (subject of what was known as " Dummyism " was referred had sat and taken voluminous evidence. That Committee had reported that amendments were necessary upon the Land Act, and the House would have been perfectly willing to devote a few days longer of the already long session to con sider the pioppsed: amendment, but Government did not think fit to go on with it. The Committee reported that much false declaration had been going on. Thisjwas to be regretted, tu.dumniyism not only defeated settlement, but would gradually accustom the people to breaking the law. There had been a certain amount of opinion expressed that all cash sales should be abolished, and that land should be dealt with by Government only by perpetual lease or on deferred payment. Others went so far as, to say that all land should be held by lease only from the Crown, It was too late now to think of dealing with the latter opinion, as a minority of the holders would im mediately become tenants of the Crown and they would soon begin to agitate for commuting their lease holds into freeholds us had been the case with perpetual leaseholders m several instances already. The whole habits of the British people were m favor of freeholds,.and it was useless to try to get British people, with all their habits and traditions upon them, to believe m the superiority of leasehold over freehold. Had the colony started at the beginning on the lines of land nationalisation, and parted with no freehold at all, and all occupiers of the soil had been tenants of the Crown, die idea might have become practical, because we would SOon have become accustomed to the equal tenure that all would have possessed, but to introduce the idea now was, lie thought, not likely to prove conducive to tlio best interests of the colony. LAND V, PROPERTY-TAX. The Property-tax; at the present moment made a very substantial addition to tho revenue of the colony, and as our finances as between revenue and expenditure were very nicely adjusted, it would be hazardous. indeed to introduce any 'change that might be prejudicial to that balance; ■■ It would be a risky thing to throw away a revenue producing tax like the property tax, unless they were to be fully satisfied, that the substi tute for it? would satisfactorily supply its place, i The Land Tax, so much asked for .by-certain people, was not such a sound tax as its supporters appeared to think. In America, thef property tax was the prevailing means of raising revenue, and much more use was made of it than m New Zealand. The Americans made theiwroads with it, built their schools with it, and to the district m which a man lived went all the taxation levied upon his personal property. The charges of fraud, etc., that were so frequently laid against the collection of the property tax might, with equal justice, be brought against the income tax, and it seemed to him that m a large country like America, where the property tax was so extensively used, and the people appeared to be content with it, there was ample evidence that it was the mere preferable means of imposing taxation; but here the cry appeared to be at present for a land tax—. at, all events m certain quarters. They should want a very heavy tax on land to fill up the place of the property tax, but amendments might be made upon the latter that might very greatly lessen any objectionable features it might have. Government had. proposed m the session before last; to- exempt certain; classes,. of machinery to a very small extent- front itlie operation of the tax, but the proposal was withdrawn n consequence of the fivrs of thc|3oTern me.nfc that larger exemptions would ■be forced upon them* for himself, he

favored the exemption of machinery and agricultural implements up to a certain figure, and then he thought the tax would work more easily than itdid now, and would assimulate itself to one of the principles of the land tax. The claes who escaped altogether from the operation of the tax were people who enjoyed fixed incomes, and he would bring under the operation of the tax fixed incomes over a certain amount. There were anomalies under the tax that he would like to see rectified. For instance private railway companies wero taxed on the capital value «f their , rolling stock *nd roads, >while steamships .companies went.free. If it was sound. i policy to tax a public carrier by land, it was equally sound policy to tax a public carrier by ■sea: His thought a land tax would press too hardly on agriculture, and that under it the agricultural com munities would suffer while the large towns would go virtually free. It had been a fact that the loudest cry against the property tax had come from Auckland, yet during the imposition .;of the land tax Auckland yielded scarcely any revenue under it. He had heard a progressive land tax spoken off but taxes of this kind had not commended .themselves elsewhere. In Victoria the land- was supposed to lie, classified for taxation according to its value, and it was quite true of course that •ne acre paid more' than another, but then the progression was only from £1 to £4, so that the highest taxed land only paid four times more than the lowest, while here our knd was taxed up to its full value. A Voice—No. Mr Walkek—Well, it ought to be, and ' if it was not that was no fault of the principle of the tax. The valuations, ho went on to sa^, could not be expected to to be uniform where the districts were parcelled out to half a dozen different valuators. The inequalities of valuation, need not occur if .the work were done on a proper system, and he trusted Government would see to the work being done, so that these inequalities would be done away with. , LABOR. The labor question,had been and was now occupying very much of the attention of the people of New Zealand. To a very large portion of the colonists—namely, that great division of the population who had to earn its bread by hard toil with its hands-r-;this was the all-engros sing topic of the day,,,and very natur ally it was. so. .. Government had appointed a Commission to en quire into the truth of certain strong and alarming representations that had been made to it, and that Commission ' had been known as the Sweating Com mission. Impelled by the etidence taken before that Commission, j and the report the Commission itself had made, certain Bills had been introduced m the Lower House which dealt specially with matters affecting labor. They were known as the Labor Bills,' and the readiness and hearti ness with which the House had dealt with them showed that the people's representa tives at least ,wer.e alive to the people's interest. These Labor Bills were put m charge of a Committee, amended and passed. But when ,they reached the Upper Chamber, they! were dropped, and so did not pass into law, bub their failure to do so lay- wholly at the door of the Upper Chamber* He believed, however, that this would m the end be betler for the Bills. They would now go out into the Colony and be subjected to the close and leisurely scrutiny and consideration of the .vast number of men m whose eyes they were all important; their weaknesses, defects, and anomalies, if any existed, would be pointed out, and when they came to be veintroduced and reconsidered by the new Parliament—sent to Wellington m the choice of the men most interested m these Bills for they•• formed the majority of the population of thecoiony—those Bills would come before that Parliament m, very probably, a greatly improved condition. Matters affecting labor had been engross ing the mind of every settler for weeks back, and m making reference to these he would take occasion to remark that we were here so to speak at the end of the world. We were largely dependant for our existence upon the abundant products which we sent to the Home market, and upon the adjustment of the cost of pro ducing, preparing, and carriage of these products depended the profit arising from them. Every interference with the balance of that adjustment was a matter of anxiety to every settler, as the result of it maiy be a very great loss to the colony. But the question was really out aide the range of politics, and was rather one for settlement between the two classes of associations who had more directly to face its settlement, viz., the Associations composed of labor, and those composed of labor's employers. He had only men tinned the question now, because it was interesting ,to all at present, and because it had been called up by the Bills he had referred to. The State really had little to do with the question, and was only involved m it because it was m one sense an employer of labor by being the owner of the railways, of the colony. The State had placed its railways wholly m the hands of the RAILWAY; COMMISSIONERS, ' but behind these -Commissioners stood the House of Representatives and the public of the colony, and the two tribunals would see. that the Oommissieners did their duty by the great estate the colony owned m its railways, by the public m relation to the working of its traffic, and by the men who worked that trafno m their relations with the Commissioners. It was not for him to say a word at the present crisis that might prejudice the Commissioners m whose hands lay a difficult, and delicate charge ; but he could say that the great Court of Ap peal that would always see any wrongs righted under which the men labored would be the public and the parliament. Personally, he had always been m favor of placing tht railways. m favor of a non political Board,' and however much he mightdiffer from the detailsof the Commis sioners' working,, be still believed the railways ought to be m the hands of a Board. If the working of them were not satisfactory, then they had either not got therightmen, or themenweremakinggreat mistakes.-—(Applause.)' EDtTCATIONi * He would not like to see our system of education altered. It was now m full working order, and m return for the taxation we underwent for it, we were able to give our children an education as liberal and as thorough as was given m any country m the world.; He would be sorry to see it attacked and crippled. One attack was now being made upen it by denominatioiialism m • the shape of . the Private Schools Bill. The denom inations who • would profit by the success of'this/attack" were the large ones m the large centres, but the small, denominations m the small centres would be unable to take any advantage of it whatever. He admired the self-sacrifice of his Catholic friends, and their, loyalty to principle m having for so long borne the expense of their own schools rather than accept the secular principle of the.State system, but he could still pee no reason why the excellent system of education the colony possessed should be spoiled. For the same reason he was not with the ,Bibl«-in-Schools party, who sought to attack the system from another point. Under the present Act, all .they asked for could be obtained, for it was possible to have the Bible read m schools bofore or after •the usual school hojtts if such were desired, and he would like to see this have a fair tidal. It was done, he believed across the river at Tinwald, and m other parts o.f Canterbury. AGRICULTURE, &C, 1 After advocating the establishment of.

THE ASHBUBTON ffiIAJEEJPIAN, FRIDAY, QGTOBEB 10, 1890.



As the wheel of time has again ushered m the busy spring, and to be prepared to supply the requirements of Nature and ot their numerous patron^ Messrs J. Scaly and Co. fe*ve completed their of seeds, which a«J of the choicest nances obtainable, and wljiek include clovers, ;tu*spips, man golds, carrots, rape, perennial ,TOraBS» cocksfoot, elephant swede, garden and H<W seeds m endless variety, and garden requv sites of every description. For, the conve nience of patrons wi» cannot make their purchases during the d*y the premises wrtl L open to nine p.m. on Saturday evenings and »ftwthel6tb Augurt^Aavt,) ih



Wanted. I CASH Advertisements under this headins not exce'edin SIXTEEN WORDS 1/-. Addresses may be left at this Office. TT7 ANT^~3~Flax-cutters~an'dT"2 VV - boys.--Apply H. G. Mooke, Tinwaid Flaic_ Mill. 10 68 : TTTANTEDIfnowu -Ladies Stockings VV with Silk Toes and Heels lni black and colors. Is 6d per pah*.—W. H. Collier. ANTED Known—The " Stronj? wealp" Boot is the best for Men, Ladies and Children.—W. H/Cojitiau.. T3IANOS" PI ANOS~Splend id^vTilue XT now m Stock from £38 10a .Sold on easy terms.—H. M. Jones. W" ANT.ED~Grrizing for"Fiveliorses —Apply Mail. IOtGO "DOOTS, BOOTS. "Keep your feet JD Dry and aave Doctor's Bills. . have a splendid Stock m now. Try ny Double-soled Shooters. Every pair Guaranteed. Robert Alcorx, Ashbur ton Clothinsr Mart, Saunders' Buildings. i irANTED Known.-' For Dress Stuife, W Prints, <fcc M Trimmings to match go to Melford House. Best value m town.—H. C. Segeks. ■TITANTED Known.—For Sheetings VV Tablings, Calicoes, Quilts, Towels, Table Napkins, Tray Cloths, D'Oyleys, &c, go to Melford House.—H. C. Segers. ANTMD eveiy man m the County to have a suit of the Ashbiirton Tweeds.-—Robert Aicorn, Ashburton Clothing Mart, Saunder's Buildings. ANTED Known.—For first-class Millinery and Drapery (marked cheap) go to Melford House. New Goods just opened.—H. C. Skgers. STOP That Cough—Flower's Cough Drops are thebest—see that the name is stamped on every one. H. G. Flower, Confectioner, East street. ANTED Known"— The Chelipest Shop to buy Tinware and Gal vanised Iron goods m Ashbarton, is at W. F. Hannafori/s, Burnett Street. A arge stock kept on. hand. Tin and Iron ware goods made and repaired with dcs patch. a _______^__^_ m _______ m _^__ x-upile Notices. , ASHBURTON COAL & FIREWOOD DEPOT. K. S. BEAN Has secured some of the celebrated , KAITANGATA AND SHAG POINT COALSr Cheaper and cleaner than Newcastle. R. S. BEAN, 1(U West Street. iHEIRY. ZANDER". I HAVE just landed ex " Doric "my season's supply of the finest TUr^ISTII 3 SEEDS Consisting of— grfien top yellow aberdeen, purple top yellow aberdeen purple top Mammoth, WHITE STONE STUBBLE, PURPLE TOP SWEDE, DEVONSHIRE GREYSTONE, YELLOW TANKARD, Etc, Etc. 5 ■ ~ -I •«wp> > * ! . »Hh wo ; iq tef & o fi H ' » ! -'« ©-^ a o H I M ■*» c ° A A, Z m V A < ' ■ " H m Z ■< A P « -IB FH. 11—1 ■ . A ■' » ■ 1 '■ All of the purest quality, fiad tests oan. be seen at; my office. SHEEP QHEAP.S. HEEP OHEA 7tlß. SHEEP QHEARS. JIEEP OHEARS. ! All the favor' ite Brands. WASD awi> PAT NE'S, WAS ,D and PAYNE'S, BURGON ANB P .ALLS', BUR QON and BALLS', Turkey and Wash" |ta OILSTONES, Boiled and # aw LINSEED OILS, Ground and l^iv> t p RADDLE, Red anr\ Bi'ick Branding OIL, L^.fPBLA,CK, etc. V/oolpaeks. Woolpaeks. Fullsiz«fllid full weight. I have al»!o m stock,— GALVArVISED IROJV (Lysaj,iht fs Orb). In all lengths ; and 'can supply the trade as well ■ w farmers. Cement, Cement Stakes, Firsts* Rails, I Fencing: aitd Barbed Wire, RANSOME'S and HOR^SBY'S PLOUGHSHARBS. General Ironcmong'ery AND Groceries, WINES and SPIRITS, ALES and STOUT. 3Vew Season^ Teas. 1 MAURITIUS SUGARS, etc., etc., etc. HEN RYAZAN DER _AGENT FOR— Sun Fir-e Insurance Company, Canton Marine Insurance Company, National Mutual Life Association of 11 Sf" I*l,l*l J AMSE.'srpiAlN AND SpKS 9, St. Mary A^e, E.O ; , and 21, Walworth Road, S.E. WHOLESAI .F. AND EXPORT FIRE WORK MANUFACTURERS. Shippers supj died on the most reasonable terms. ' >. LlO, 1/15, L 20 K . and L 25 Cases suitable . for «JYQry Mpirkefc. The Large st W Tiolcsale House m the. World II ustr^ :edjl )'ice List on application.



Public Notices. Wool fvool Wool T IBERAL CASH ADVANCES ±J . ■■ .'.; ■■■' ■ : ■ Made on the ensuing. WOOL CLIPS At the Lowest Current Rates of Interest. george"jameson, Ashburton and Rakaia. ____tm9 - fi:rst display OF■ , ■ . Spring Goods. ANDREW ARR ndrew {Jam "TS now showing a Beautiful Selection of MILLINERY, MANTLES, PRINTS, GINGHAMS, NEW DRESS GOODS' BEIGE'S FRENCH CHECKS, RIBBONS, FLOWERS, ETC. O CASES of Ladies' French BOOTS 4J and SHOES Direct from France. ANDREW ORR. FISHING SEASON, 18 90 FISHING TACKLE. F| s L E I G 1890 N G TA 1891 TUST arrived, ex " DORIC " from.best ti English and American Manufac turers a large and well assorted stock of all Fishing requisites. Rods, Lines, Reels, Minnows, Fives, Gaff Hooks, single, double and treble, Mountings, assorted Hooks; Waterproof Stockings, India Rubber crack proof Gum Boots, water proof Fish Bacfs In'sjreat variety, including latest "pat terns. 35very article of the season at lowest prices. Fishing Licenses can now be obtained from me. ALSO.—New Stock of CRICKETING and TENNIS MATERIALS. W. ZANDER, Direct Importer Fishing Tackle. Tobbacconist and Fancy Goods. Ladies and Gentlemen's Hairdmming Saloon MEN m charge of Threshing Machines experience great difficulty m dressing clean without a considerable portion of the grain being blown away with the chaff. This difficulty can be effectually overcome by using FLAVALL'S PATENT DRESSING BOARD. —ALSO— TFK 12ft SPRING SHAKERS, AtfD NEW BOTTOM DRESSING APPARATUS, AND New top or SECOND DRESSER with 3ft riddles. These make the old Threshing Machines do the threshing and dressing equal* to new machines. Ashburton, 30th Sept., 1890. MR F. FLAVALL, Dear Sir, —I am quite pleased with the Alterations and Improvements you made to my Threshing Machine last year, arid with your Patent Dressing Board I can get through more work _ and dress clean without blowing the pram or grass seeds into the chaff. Yours truly, John Henderson, Ashburton. F. FLAVALL, Peter Strket, 4.SHBURTON TIMBEE MERCHANT, HAVELOCK STREET, Opposite Hakrisox s Auctio*^ Mart TJAS IN STOCK Largo 'Supplies of- Building Timber, Stakes and Posts, Galvanised Corr jgated Iron, Builders Ironmon'serv Turnery Furniture, ar.d° ' Fancy Goods IN ENDLESS VARIETY. FURNITURE MADE TO ORDER IN A2SY DESIGN AT SHORTEST NOTICE. Reliable Seeds. /"I ENUINE Farm Seeds for sale at VJT J. SEALY & CO.'S. Genuine Garden Seedtf at J. SEALY ifeCO. S. Genuine Flower Seeds afc J. SEALY fc CO.'S. Blue' Prussian Peas afc JJ. SEALY & CO.'S. Golden Tares ut J, SEALY & CO.'S. New Turnip Seecs *it J. SEALY & CO.'S. Farm Seeds at J SEALY & CO. S. None but Carter and Co.'a choica Seeds m stocky J. SEALY fc CO.



Fublio Notices TTORSE CARDS printed with de spatch, m rarious styles, at Mail and Guardian Office. ADDFELLO.WS 1 TTALL, ASHBURTON. THE J. L. Toole Season Commencing THURSDAY, October-IG. MESSRS Williamson, Garner and Co. have much pleasure to announce the First Appearance m Ashburton oi England's greatest Comedian, wi M !.f J. 1/ TQOLE , Who will appear on the above date, and for positively JKF ONE NIGHT ONLY "CS The Box Plain is now open at W. Zander's, whore seats may be secured. Orchestra stalls, 5s ; Second stalls, 3s ; Back seats, 2s. Manager, 10 61 MR J. E. MOORE. TrafflcT~Bridge Hotel, RANGITATA. rpHIS Hotel is situated on the South X Bank of the Rangitata at the Traffic Bridge, and there ar« good paddocks and yards for all classes of travelling stock, with go3d stabling. The Hotol stands m the centre of the best hfishing district m Canterbury. The Rangitata, Orari, Waihi, and Cooper's Creek are all within easy distance, and they teem with splendid trout. The tables kept can compare with any Hotel m Canterbury, and every accommo dation is available for visitors and fami lies. All liquors are of the best brands pro curable. Wm. WHEELBAND, 10 37 Proprietor. 'SPRING FASHIONS. New Millinery. WE have now opened the latest novel ties for the season m Ladies' Hats and Bonnets, m the most Fashionable shapes and Superior Quality, together With the choicest Ribbons, Flowers, Feathers. Ac, procurable. Now Jackets, New Mantles, New Dust - loaks, Now Bordered Costumes, New Checked Dress Goods, New Plain Dress Goods, New Ginghanwand Zephyrs, NeAv Prints and Sateens, New* Flannelettes and SEW GOODS m Every DEPARTMENT CALL EAR LV. AND INSPECT THEM AT S. W, ALGORN & Co., EAST STREET 10_ MR S. B. SEYMOUR, SURGEON-DENTIST CHRIBTCHURCII, WILL VISIT ASHBURTO N Ml dftles to be announced, and may be | Consulted nb MR. CAMBRIDGE'S, CHEMIST. 10 17 *~ o 'J 1 Kr M i<:, JN s {>X v a OTE PII ENS 13 RO S, MARKET HOUSE AS coming events cast their shadows „ before, and knowing this to be the C»«e ( wo havo iust landed a nice assort ment of DAIRYING UTENSILS, in cluding— MILK SKIMMERS, MILK STRAINERS, MILK BUCKETS, 1 BUTTER PATS, BUTTER PRINTS, MILK PANS, CHURJNS, •fee, &c. In Household Requisites We have Saucepans, Kettles, Pots, Pans, Tubs, Buckets, Baths, Clocks, Watches, &c, &c. g-a^^eSt tools Spades, Forks, Rakes, Hoes (American and Dutch), Spade Handles, Fork Handles, Rake Handles, and a large Variety of other goods m every-day use, much as BRUSHES SCRUB, SHOE, BLACKLEAD. BROOMS HAIR, BASS, CANE, CORN, &c. ALL ORDERS, by Post or otherwise^, executed at once, and delivered promptly. Customers m town waited upon if re quested. Every effort to give GOOD VALUE and satisfaction. STEPHENS BROS. MAEKFT HOUSE ASHBURTON SPiciAL_ NOTICE CALL AND SEE THE GRAND DISPLAY OF BOYS YOUTHS, AND MEN S CLOTHING MERCERY, HOSIERY, BLANKETS, RUGS, FLANNELS, HATS, AND CAPS, Ac. >TPHE largest and best assorted Stock m 1 the District to select from, which for Value, Variety, and excellence of Manu cture, we stand unrivalled. TV It EASURE TVEPARTMENTS M EASURE 1/EPARTMENTB NEW TWEEDS AND COATINGS For the approaching Season To Hand. SOLE AGENTS for Wertheim's latest and improved HAND and TREADLE SEWING MACHINES. NEWZEAIAND CLOTHM FACTORY •JY. H WEBBER, Manager