The Ashburton Guardian. Magna est Veritas et Prævalebit. SATURDAY, OCTOBER 4, 1890. FARMERS POLTICAL PLATFORM.

In. Otago an organisation has re cently sprung into existence, which m known by the title of the Farmers' Union of New Zealand. We are not aware whether this body has been authorised to become the mouthpiece of the farmers of the colony m political matters, or whether the organisation is known or acknowledged beyond the borders of the city where it first emerged from obscurity into local prominence ; but we observs that the executive of the Union has taken upon itself to lay down a political platform supposed to embrace all the desires and aspirations of the New Zealand agri cultural and pastoral farmer. These desires and aspirations are surainonrd up to be (1) Tlio reduction and amendment of the Custom:) tariff so an to make it a tariff for revenue purposew only ; (2) Intercolonial Froctrade as regards the natural products and the manufactures of the Colonies; (3) T\w reduction of railway charges, rates of freight, ami fares for wool, produce, l'Are and dead stock, nici-cliandi.se and paHsenyors, and the abolition of diifurential rated ; (4) The retention of the management and working of the railways by the .State ; and (o) Federation with Australia, .suliject to the reservation of absolute uelf-govennnont m all internal aflairs. From the foregoing it will be seen that all the farmer wants to make him contented and happy is to abolish Customs d uti oa, inatigu rate intercolonial frectrade, cheap railway carriage, andari intercolonial federation of a novel kind which will allow New Zealunri to brt come a part and parcel of the Aus tralian continent wicrhoutpennittingthe I said continent to have any say m New Zealand affairs. The " platform "■ is a. taking one, and if there existed the re motest chance of its being carried out we should bo glad to do our utmost to assist m the good cause. Unfortu nately there iuv insurmountable diffi culties m the way of securing all these advantages to the farmer. The first is ■ that the Customs tarif!:' m force m New Zealand is essentially a revenue-raising piece of machinery which, during the past throe years, \v*s btMu<;hfc into t!i<: State cot'ers something lilr; a million and a-half per an lum. From this it will be seen tliat, while the tarilf is Protectionist m some few respects, it is at the same time a convenient menus of imposing revenue, ior State pur poses. Any wholesale reductions, therefore, which may be eileotod by reducing-Customs revenue, on what ever pretext, will rojv«sent a corres ponding los.s of revenue which must bo made up from somewhere ; but from whence the originators of the farmers' platform do not say. The next diffi culty is that if the railways are to carry trie farmer's products at very ■much less than the present rates, the railways, under present management, will not pay, and any deficit must be met by tne imposition of taxation m some other direction. And a difficulty also lies m the way uf carrying out intercolonial reciprocity m tho fact that this colony raises considerable revenue through Customs duties on Australian products. Thus, if the political pro gramme of the Southern Fanners Union were to be carried out, the loss to the revenue would be of such mag nitude that taxation would either have to be imposed m some other direction, m which the farmer would have to take his share, or the cost of Government would require to be considerably reduced. The weakness of the platform is therefore, that, while it provides for very considerably reducing the revenue, no provision is suggested whereby the deficiency may be made good. The missing plank is the absence of any provision for a change m the incidence of taxation whereby land, property, and income shall be saddled with the burden taken from the fanners' shoulders. ~No class of persons m the colony are more directly interested m laud than the farmers and graziers, and one would think that tho first plank m their political platform would be a clear and distinct line as to State land disposal, progressive land taxation, and the equal apportionment of necessary taxation between property, jjß/;ome, and laud. *Yet this most es sential plank is* entirely ignored, and from its absence we can only conclude that the originators of the manifesto either do not understand tho relation of the farmers to the State, or they are wilfully trying to lead them astray. We incline to the latter opinion, as we observe that the " Farmers Union of New Zealand " sprang into existence m a large city (Dimedin) and numbers amongst its members more shippers, merchants, commission agents, et hoc genus omnr, than bona fide farmers. A Farmers Political Union for the whole of the colony is one of the pressing wants of the day, but we must decline to acknowledge that the recently- , formed " Farmers Union" either re presents the farmers or their views.

LOCAL AND GENERAL

Tlic Licenseil Victuallers have decided to establish a Licensed Victuallers Association, with j|{Mrt-(jilartorfl at Wellington, and briuieljes of itlj. |))C other centres. Mr 'James Briown, }yakanui, announces himself as a ciindulate ' tyv itW-'Ashliurton Electoral.District, and publisliQs >if ai^tfioi? column a manifesto to the electors. :~'Actjk>fi Jjaw been taken by the authorities :to M ; ippr,yt;ti giwu^ljng m Mclboufiie, and Bttni.uioyses hfliye he.eii'i^U(?il jj-gaiujst' several 'fetors of bettiujj 81j,9»3 umJQi| t]}<i JJst ting JJo|i!*B JS»pjpr€s»j«» Mi,

Gold has been discovered at n, depth of 70 feet m Nelson. The Timaru Gas Company have lately received a truck load of kcrsoen« shale from Orepuki, on Tcwaiwai Bay, Southland. The \ shale has been found to yield a large quantity of excellent Ras, the. only draw back to its use on a large scale being ithe eo3t A gentleman who has been over ;the Orepuki district informs thn " Timaru [Herald "that there are large quantities of the shale. There has been a mysterious robbery at the Bank of Nova Scotia, m .Woodstock. Forty thousand dollars wers taken from the vault, and the accountant of the bank, Robert G/Sanders, has been locked up iind 'charged with the theft. Ono morning Sannders Wiis found lying on the floor of the vault unconscious, with the vault floor wide open. When bo c«inc to his senses he siiicl that he hud been instructed to go to the bank early hi the morning to get some money out of the vault and send it away by express on the 7.30 o'clock train. As ha entered the vault he was struck from behind and fell unconscious without seeing his assailant. No one living m the vicinity of the bank saw anybody enter or depart therefrom. The Salvation Army havn now divided the colony into six dirisiomn, the .northern divirion, with the war office at Auck land, includes ivll corps North of Gis ■ borne ; the central division all corps m the North Island South of New Plymouth, and Napier, with Blenheim and Nelson: the eastern division extends from Oxford to Waimate; the southern division from Oamaru to Riverton, with "Major" RoWe m command at Dunedin ; and the western division takes m the west coast of the South Island, the Maori corps being a separate, division. Last night the usual weekly rehearsal of •" Patience " by the Ashburton Amateur Operatic Company was held at the Odd fellows' Hall, and was very successful, all the principals and soloists have their parts well m mind, and being m good voice last night gave an excellent exposition of the Opera. The chorusr« of maidens and dragoons were well represented and the various mem bers sung strongly and well. The orchestra, under the leadership of Mr Wood of Throru, is a strong one and will be quite a feature of the performance. The date for the elections having been de finitely fixed.for the sth December, the writs may now be issued at any moment. After the writs have been issued no further appli cations will be entertained for enrolment on the supplementary roll, and those who have not registered themselves as electors should not loso a moment mdc ing so. Persona who' have been resident m the district for one calendar month, and whose names are on the roll, under " residential" qualification, for some other electoral district, may have themselves transferred to the Ashburton roll on application to the registrar, who will supply all necessary information. A fire occurred on the Mnnawatu clown train on Monday and resulted m the total destruction of fourteen bales of flax which ' were coming to Wellington, consigned -to-! Messrs Levin and' Co., from Carnavon, near Foxton. It appciirs that when the train was between Paikakariki and Pukerua the tfaggon which was conveying the flax was discovered to be on.lire, and on arrival at the first water tank a flow of water was turned on to the burning material and the fire sub dued. It way too late, however, to savefthe flax, all of which was practically destroyed.; It is not known what caused the fire, but it is supposed that a spark from the engine funnel dropped into tho flax. The bales wore marked JBP, and the loss was about £50. A large number of town sections at South Rakaia will be submitted to public auction at the Courthouse, Rakaia, on Friday, 17th October, 1890, at 2 p.m. The sale will be conducted by the Commissioner of Crown Lands, ,'vnd the upset price will be £7 10s per quarter acre. At the same time and place reserves ]«.")(;, 1(559, Ki6o, 16(il. and 106.1, and a number of sections, will bo sub mitted for lc?iso for cmzinjj; purposes only, .on a yearly tenancy, renewable for seven yeirs, uuloas the laud is required by Government for: any other purpose. ) ■

THE ELECTIONS.

Throe labor candidate!* will be brought put; .for Auckliiml city at the .en.suing elections.' one for Newton, one for Edeti, an:l ono for Painell 'j.'ho Auckland Trades and Labor Coun cil have itticidud to establish a nowsp/iper, to be run m tho l>bor interest. Siv George Grey has declined nt present to aUto hi.s intentions' with regard to the electoral cunp.-iign.

TELEGRAPHIC

HOME "Aw D "FOREIGN.

[rEX. rituss association] ATTEMPTED INCENDIARISM. Mrltjouunk, Oclober 3- Four deliberate attempts'were-made yesterday, to burn clown the Palace Hotel. A commercial traveller, named Kii'nber, was arrested for being illegally on the promises. Despite the statement cf the man that he entered the building where he was found m an intoxicated state, the Magistrate sentenced him to a year's imprisonment. . Notice of appeal was given. London, October 2. "Jack the Hipper" has repeated his warnings. The Dublin Court refused the application for an injunction to restrain ! the Tipperary Magistrate* from hear ing the charges against' the M.P.'s, lately arrested, on the ground of pre judice. The cases have been adjourned till Friday. Paris, October 2. Alphonse Karr, the well-known novelist, is dead. Aden, October 2. Cholera has broken our here. St. Petersburg, October 3. The students of a University m St. Petersburg conspired clrectly it was re-opened. Fourteen arrests -were made. Zanzibar, October 2. Tho agent of the British East African Company has been deposed for insulting the German flag at Vatu. Sir F. de Winton, the Governor, apologised for the behaviour of the ugent, and it was accepted by the German authorities. ' Wakhixgtos, October 2. Congress Ims requested the Presi dent to negotiate with England and Mexico for the exclusion of Chinese.

Second Edition

THE MARKETS

[I'EK PIIE.S)* ASSOCIATION.]

London, October 2. New' Zealand hemp is m poor de mand. One hundred and forty bales have been sold at a decline of 10s per ton. At the wool sales bidding is spirited. Crossbred and clothing merinos are very firm. Faulty sorts are irregular. The present series close on the 10th inst. The price of frozen meat remains unchanged. (Received October 4, 10.20 a.m.) London, October 3. New Zealand 4 per cent inscribed stock, 103 ; three and a-half per cent ditto, 94^. A cargo of Australian wheat has ljeen sold at 35s 3d; Adelaide wheat' 37s 6d, but market is flat; Victorian ditto 375, business restricted. Kew, Zealand Jong-berriec} cUttp cJG^ Gd ; market al^o llat. I TUre@ wuuths biih 0 per v«ut,

TO-DAY'S TELEGRAMS

[PEK'PEESS ASSOCIATION, J ltnl'wu.r »«»*;#««••. Wellinoton» October 4. Revenue for half-year is with in £4000 of tlie estimate. The .GomniisSiqners anticipate, if not effected by the strike to*, much, that the eiiHiiitig. half-year, which is tho best for railway traffic, will fully come up to ex pectations. W«lllnpfon Holla. It is anticipated that the supplementary roll will eon tain 2000, names, being a total, for.Wollingtoiiof 9000 electors.

Corn Exchange Report.

l. The following is the Corn Exchange Report for the week ending .Friday, October 13rd, 1890 -.— The market for all cereals is quiet. Wheat is taken at quotations, but the enquiry is somewhat limited. Oats con tinue difficult to place; local requirements would appear to be filled as there is a slight demand for small parcels of feeding ; oaia. Barley—The season may be said to ', be over; few transactions have taken place. Beans and Peas.—A few lines for export of tho former have changed hands, whilst the letter are neglected, an occasional sale for seed purposes* being the excep tion. Potatoes are being sold a$ almost any figure, The market is evidently over for this season. Dairy Produce shows -but little alteration. Our quotations are as follows■:-*-■ Wheat.—Tuscan, 3s 6cl: Pearl, 3s 4d; Hunters, 3.s 3d. ■ OA«s.-r-Milling, Is ?d ; short heavy feed, Is 5d to Is 6d ; long and inferior, Is 3d to Is 4d. . Barley.—Prime Malting, 3s 3d ; feed, Is 6d to Is 9d. Beans xnd Peas.—Prussian blues, hand threshed, 3s to 3s 3d ; feed sorts, 2s 4d to 2s 6d, Grass Seed.—Rye grass, machine dressed, 6s to 5s 6d. , Cocksfoot, 4|d to 4^d. Potatoes.—Derwents, 15a to 20a at country stations within' a radius of 12 miles. Dairy Produce, unaltered. The above prices are those paid to farmers "for delivery f.o.b. Lyttelton. Sacks extra.

South Rakaia Road Board Meeting.

The usualmeeting of the above was held on Thursday. Present—Messrs Coster (chairman), Lyttelton, iStringfellow, Mc- Lean, and Vuc^ich. The minutes of last meeting being confirmed, the Clerk re ported that he had seen the Commissioner of Crown Lands r; stopping road, and he had no objection, but certain "red tape " forms must be gone through. Plantations had been thinned, and saplings luvd fetched a fair price to-day. Contractors generally had done the work well, but some had not nearly finished, and it would be advisable to hold over the cheques till the work was done.—The Clerk was in structed to hold over all contract cheques till the work was satisfactorily finished. Messrs McLean, Stringfellow, and Vucetich undertook to go over the roads m their respective districts with the Clerk before final payment was made. Mr McLean reported on the footpaths m the township, and stated that the foot paths m some parts are many feet on pri vate property, and to make good work a deal of expense must be incurred, and a number or feet taken from the roadway and a deep drain made. He thought that it the tussocks were removed from the roid and some levelling done it would meet all requirements. Mr Stringfellow agreed with the report, and it was ro solved to act on it. Mr Foloy applied for permission to run water from a race down the side of tins Chertsey Road. He had already received permission for a pond service from the County Council. The application was granted, subject to. ,tho approval of Mr Makeig after examining, and provided the work was done without danger to the public. The Chairman stated that he had inter viewed the Commissioner of Crown Land;? on the question of refund on sale of Village Settlement sections. The Chairman and Messrs Stringfellow and Lyttelton were appointed a com mittee to look up the Village Settlement accounts and report to the next meeting. The Commissioner of Crown lands wrote r« road-forming m the Village Settlements and asking if home estimates of the works required for at least twelve months could be forwarded as this would save much work to the department and no money could bo expended under the Act without the Land Department's sanc tion It was resolved that the Settlement roads be inspected and notes made of what is necessary; the settlers to give their approval of the works to be asked for before replying to the Commissioner. Messrs Stringfellow, Lyttelton and the Chairman to be a committee to enquire into the matter of requirements. Petitioners asked at last meeting for a considerable portion of the Bushy Park road to be mecalled (s^rue 5 miles), Mr Vucetich moved that three miles be metalled and blended, seconded by Mr McLean pro forma. Mr Stringfellow moved as an amend ment that only two miles be metalled.— No seconder. On the motion being put it was lost. Be roads m the township of Chertsey, the clerk reported that a title could be obtained for the sum of £4 4s.—Resolved that the work be done. An act on registration of shepherd dogs at 2s (id was received. The County Council forwarded cheque £107 9s, for repairs to fords and for poisoned grain. Mr Cole wrote offering a sum for the use of a plantation on the three chain reserve. Resolved not to let the plantation reserves where planted. The County Council wrote re stopping of road. The Clerk had already reported on the matter. Mr .1. A. Smith wrote asking to be allowed to rent some of the plantation reserves m the settlement. Application refused. A number of village settlers ap plied for Uormanby road and Baker's road to be tussocked. Letter referred to the Committee for considering village so ttlem 3nt|matters Icwas resolved to have the township roads cleared of tussocks. The following tenders were accepted.— Maintenance of roads'west of the line, P. Collins £45, and meta.l at Is 3d per yard. Maintenance of Wakanui boundary road, J. D, Duncan £30, and metal ut Is 2d per yard. Maintenance of roads east of the line, James Brown £90, extra metal Is 2d per yard. Cleaning round pine trees, G. Clark and S. Stevenson 2s 9d per 100. Newtoirn roads James Brown, forming Is 3d per chain, metalling Is 3|d per yard, blinding Is per yard."" Accounts for £14(5 14s Od were passed for payment. The members met as a Cemetery Board, but the business was unimportant and the meeting adjourned.

CORRESPONDENCE.

[We do not hold ourselves responsible for the opinions expressed by our correspondents.]

THE COMING OPERA.

to thb ]si>rroi(. Sib,—Being on a visit to Ashbur ton and having an invitation to be present at a rehearsal of " Patience," which is to be given by the Ashburton Amateur Operatic Company, I think it only.just to state, that as one who has witnessed tho pertorn.' ance of this opera m several of the leading cities of New Zealand and also m England, I | was highly pleased with tho able ttnd spirited ■way m which the Ashburton amateurs per formed their parts. I consider, with the few weeks rehearsal previous to the per formance, the principal parts will be sus tained equal to anything which has been produced m the colony, and that the choruse3 will be a musical treat not often surpassed by our leading societies. The amateurs have undertaken a very pretty and enjoyable, but at the same time difficult Opera, which judgiug from their advanced stage of proficiency and with con tinued constant attendance at rehearsals will prove a great success. They are deserving of every encouragement and patronage which I sincerely hope will be freely showered upon them.^-I am, etc., H. J. Ingle.

Latest Cable News. HOME AND FOREIGN.

[TEU TKBSS ASSOCIATION J

(Received October 4, 10.50 a.m.) A PRECAUTIONARY MEASURE London, October 3. Seven hundred troops have been ordered from Chatham, and left forsome destination at present unknown. It is supposed they are to be held m readi ness to suppress an outbreak some where.

To meet the wishes or a number of friends, Mr Boothroyd has taken the shop lately Occupied by Mr Ranger, for three days only, where lie is offering a varied assortment of books, stationery jniaps, pictures, and scraps, before leaving for Thnaru, where he intends commencing business. At noon to-day a horse attached to a light vehicle took fright from some cause near the Ashburton bridge, and "bolted* up the main road- The driver, an elderly man whose name we could-not ascertain, was unable to check the runway, and when opposite Mr Tasker's was thrown out of the rehiclc, but maintained rib sefiqhs injury. Owing to the number of persons daily besieging the Ashburton Registrar's Office for voting forms, a riiiniber of these hax* been ordered from the local Printing Office, parcels containing additional supplies not having arrived. When we went to press this afternoon a well-attended meeting of farmers was being hold m the Orange Hall to protest against the action of Christchurch wool buyers m "boycotting" the Ashburton wool sales. The meeting was held at too late an hour to. permit of a report m tbis issue. This will appear on Monday. The following resolution was agreed to :—That this meet ing baring considered the correspondence which has passed between the wool buyers and the merchants of A.3hburton, is of opinion that the arguments set forth by the merchants are fair and reasonable, seeing that. Ashburton is the centre of a very large district, with a woollen mill consuming £10,000 or £12,000 worth of wool a year, and will do ita beat to maintain the auction sales at Ashburton and advises the merchants to endeavour to remedy the grievances com plained of, viz— the want of sufficient light^ and dates of sales to suit the convenience of buyers.

Labor Questions

[PJ3.a ]»B.£S3 ASSOOI^IOX.J

WkLmngtox, October 3. . The Conference was resumed this morning, when Mr Sandford, of the Can terbury Trades and Labor Council, m the course of a lengthy speech, contended tluit the Union Company deliberately, as sociated themselves with a combination m Australia, whose avowed intention it was to crush Unionism. He thought the true solution of the labor difficulty was to fede rate, so as to form a Council of two classes,' who could meet and arrive at a settlement of any disputes arising. Mr McLean defended the action of the Shipowners' Association of Australia, and said they had not lifted a finger till at tacked. He had everything to say m favor of Unionism, but m the present in stance the Unions had ridden the high horse, and gona too far.' He declared that since tho strike the Company were getting,the flower of the young men of New Zealand into tho boats. Many of the officers, cooks, and stewards were returning to the Company, and he challenged Mr Millar to take the embargo off the seamen and firemen, when most of them would'be only too glad to get back to the Company- He thought the great fault m connection with the present trouble lay m the fact that the Union Company had not been brought face to face with the difficulty before extreme measures were resorted to, as some means might have been adopted to avoid the strike. At twelve o'clock the Conference ad journed till 2.30 p.m. The Conference resumed at 2.30, when Mr Millar replied to some of Mr McLean's statements. He admitted the Union Company treated their men well, but the Company would have to look a long way , before they could get such a fine body of meu m their employ as they had before the strike commenced, so that really there was no indebtedness on either side m this rospect. As to the men going back, he (Mr Millar) could assure Mr McLean they would never go back with his sanction until a settlement of the difficulty was effected. There was no doubt as to the quantity of free laborers coming forward to assist the Union Company m the crisis, but he could not say very much for their quality. A good portion of / hose who had joined the sendee at the present juncture had previously been dismissed for drunkenness, while many of them the Company had previously refused to take on. Mr McLean positively denied this assertion. Mr Millar then touched on the question of free labor, and said members of Unions had no right to sacrifice themselves .to non.Union labor, for the latter were certainly m the minority, and they ought, therefore, to bow to the majority. He 'believed the dispute could be settled to-morroAV ; but m order to do so, the Company must admit the principle that every Society was entitled to enter into any affiliation it chose. He suggested that, m order to put matters m practical form, three or four delegates should talk over the situation with Mr McLean and see whether there was any probability of coming to a settlement. Mr McLean said he certainly could Hot concede one point raised by Mr Millar, and that was the right of the Marine Officers' Association to affiliation. After some discussion-Mr F. Meyer moved that a deputation consisting, of Messrs Winter, Brown, Sandford, Millar, Fisher, and Lomas should confer with Mr McLean for the purpose of arriving at an arrangement, and report as e^rly as possible. This was carried, and the Conference adjourned till Monday at ten a.m. ' '

Live Stock Market.

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 30, Messrs Miles and Qo,, per Mr Georgo ■Jaweaon, reports as follows :—Only a SinaJl entry of stock penned for this'igde,

comprising about 3200 sheep and 20 head of cattle. The attendance was about the average, and there are evidently many buyers for good lines of crossbred ■ hoggets, and for good sound crossbred and merino ewes m lamb and with lambs at foot, while broken-mou/hed sheep of cither sort are only saleable at prices that will not pay for the grass they hato eaten. This'is the case at every market m the spring time for successive seasons, and we can only again reiterate the hope that farmers will.take warning and sell off all old scrubbers m the autumn for boiling down purposes at the best prices that j can be obtained, sik they mast, by this ! time, have discovered that it is more pro fitable to pay a fair price for a good sound ewe that will yield a good fleece of Wool, and- rear a lamb that may .be fattened or held over with profit. The old crock gives no wool, and has not sufficient stamina to rear a lamb, while good sheep are bringing, and will continue to bring remunerative prices, and are always saleable. Our entry comprised 2400 sheep, and we sold as follows :—On account of a client, 174 fat merino wethers, at 14s 9d and 15s ; for Mr A. Willcocks, 120 store merino wethers at 7s 6d, also 32 crossbreda, mixed sexes, each 13s 9d ; for Mr J. <W. Sawle, 295 merino wethers—47 at 7s 3d,- 248 at 8s 6d each ; for Mr D. Fitzgerald, 98 fat crossbreds each 17s 3d. for Mr William Strange, 348 crossbred hoggets, each lls lid; for Mr W. H. Rule, 253 store merino wethers, each 6s 9d; for Mr Ballance, 122 cull merino ewes m lamb, each 6s ; for Messrs Fried lander Bros., 487 three-quarter-bred lioggets, each 13s lOd ; for Mr George Aston, 171 crossbred couples, 14s 5d per couple. Privately during the week wo have sold j 473 fat merino wethers at 14s each at i station yards, and 290 merino ewes with | lambs atfoot at 10s 4d for ewes, lambs, given m. \ At my first monthly sale at Rakaia on ' Friday, 2nd October, there was a large attendance of the public, and a fair entry of sundries, as well as a few head of cattle, horses, pigs, 65 fat sheep, and a quantity of bluegum. firewood. All the sundries were cleared at satisfactory prices. Cattle and horses being only second rate were hard to quit. Small pigs were m demand and sold readily. The fat crossbred sheep realised 17s each, and a small pen of merino wethers 14s. For the 50 cords of firewood.there was keen competition, every lot being sold. Should sufficient inducement offer these sales will be held m future the first Thursday m each month.

THE COMING ELECTION.

After a large amount of backing and filling the Government has it seems at last fixed the date for the forthcoming general election, and it is Tiow an nounced that the sth December will be the actual polling day. The telegraph has informed us that Ministers have consulted honorable members of the present House on the subject, arid that almost every one of those communicated with desired a different date from, that desired by anybody else; but we venture to think that the members consulted have been all or nearly all Ministerial supporters, attd that the general counsel of these has tended m the direction, of the Fabian policy of delay, and that for very sufficient reasons from a strategic and party point of view. No doubt it lias been seen that the session was a disastrous one to the political reputation of the present Government; and .that had the elections followed quickly, their defeat was certain ; and it is probably hoped that a delay of nearly threa months will weaken impressions formed so long previously on the public mind, and thus improve the chances of Ministerial candidates; If so, the anticipation is based on a correct appreciation of the character istics of human nature, and will, to some extent, bo justified by results, though we venture to think that the public memory is a little too good to allow of the manoeuvre being entirely successful. The considerations which are put forward as those which moved the Goverament to fix so late a datd, do not of course ostensibly include any such motive or calculation, the public being informed that the reason " it was found inconvenient to fix an earlier date" was "owing to the number of carnivals held m the colony during Norernber, and the necessity for revision and purging of the rolls." Now it js generally safe to be suspicious of people who urge double-barrelled reasons for any particular line of con duct. One reason is always enough, that is to say provided it be a good one, and had the delay till December been requisite to enable the rolls to be purged that would have been an unchallengeable reason for the postponement. But this dragging m of the " carnivals" (for which read agricultural shows and races) suggests that it was not so, and that the Govern ment were casting about for excuses for a line of! policy determiiieel upon for other considerations. And now as to the excuses urged. As to the " carnivals " there would have been iio difficulty m finding a day during the early part of November, which was neither a show day nor a race day, and as to the revision of the rolls, seeing that the main rolls were closed on the 29th September, had notices at once appearing stating where the rolls could be inspected,, and calling for objections to be lodged within 14 or 21 days, the revised rolls would have been ready for use by the end of the present month, and the elections might have come off' by the 14th of November, or three weeks earlier than will now be the case. The earlier date would have been an advantage m every way. It would have involved considerably less expense to candidates and others than will now be caused by the proceedings dragging over more than two months, and would have reduced the disorgani sation of business always, consequent i upon a general election, and which renders it very desirable that the excitement of a political struggle should not be unduly protracted. We therefore think that the long delay which the Government has resolved upon was not justified by the excuses they have put forward, and that they have been, actuated rather by a desire to make the game so as best to suit themselves than by a desire to consult the best interests of the Colony. Tlijat, however, is by no means surprising from a party the fir°t article of whose leader's creed is that the "■ first duty of! a Government is to, preserve its o|vn existence," By the bye it may be notfed, by those who are inclined to be super stitious, that, after all their pains, the Government have managed to light upon a Friday, the proverbially un lucky day of the weekly calendar, , Maybe it is an otuea of tfce result. '

COUNTY COUNCIL.

The following concludes our vepo:t of .yesterday's meeting :— RUAPUNA HACK. The matter of the Ruapuna race referred to m tlio Engineer's report was remitted to the Engineer to report upon again a month hence. HINDS TOWNSHIP BACK. The matter was postponed for the present. , WAKANUI WATER .SUPPLY. ' The Clmirinun and Messrs Brown and Friedlander" were appointed a .'Committee to 'ixnmino into the matlci. 1 of the para graph m the Engineer's report on the subjectcf tho Wakanui. Water Supply, and to report to nest meeting. AVATJGK SUPPLY. COMMITTEE.,,. ,„.. The Water Supply Committee brought up their report, the chief clauses of which wore a recommendation that a temporary supply from the South Branch, similar to last year's sujply, be arranged for, and that Race F be enlarged froni present intake as far as Winchmore, a«d cross connections be made'to supplement the races between Ashburton and Dromore, the Engineer to report as to cost. The report was adopted, with the addition of a chusc ftiat the Committee appointed to arrange for a temporary supply from the South Branch also negotiate for a permanent supply, and report to the Council". Tr c paragraph m regard to Race F was postponed for the present. ROAD CLOSING. The. Committee reported m favor of closing the road asked for by the Rakaia Road Board, and the report was adopted. HINDS VILLAGE SETTLEMENT RACE. Tho Engineer was instructed to prepare an estimate of cost of the entire work of providing for storm water arid road crossings, and present tho same to the petitioners. THANKS. A vote of thanks was passed to Mr E. G. Wright for discharging the duties of Chairman during the absence m Welling ton of Mr W. C. Walker. ACCOUNTS. The Usual accounts were passed for payment. IRRIGATION FARM. The Irrigation Farm Committee ob tained an extension of time for one month to lease the Irrigation Farm, and, report. HOSPITAL. The Hospital Committee made a repre* sentation, per the Chairman. *o the Jouncil anent the cost to which the county was annually put by patients being sent from the county to the Christchurch Hos pital instead of to the Asburton Hospital. A large amount of money had annually to be paid by the Ashburton County to the Christchurch Hospital Board m this con nection, and it ivs desirable that the matter-should be placed be/ore the local Boards m the county with a view to a remedy. It was decided that members of the Council represent the matter m their different ridings. RANGER. Mr C. Faivcett, ranger, wrote asking for a refund of the legal costs incurred by him m a prosecution before the R.M. of n man who had been guilty of assaulting him m the discharge of his duty. The refund was granted. WATER DEVIATION. The application of Mr Meredith Wilson, Wakanui, for a deviation of the race through his property was granted, subject to certain conditions. A similar authority was granted to Mr A. W. Smith, Alford Forest. Messrs Clothier and Clark were refused liberty to impede the flow of a race at Tin'vald by the erection of a dam to secure a side supply for watering purposes. MAVJPIELD VILLAGE SETTLK3IH.NT. In reply to a letter from the Chief Surveyor, it was decided to write that tho Council had never had the plantation reserves at Mayfield North Village Settle ment handed over to them, and thereforo knew nothing of the reserves* 11AK.UA GOUGE BRIDGE. An account of £14 for work done by the Mount Hutt Road 'Board at the Rakaia Gorge Bridge cuttings was ordered to be paid. WATER SUPPLIES. On the motion of Mr Friedlander, it was decided " That the applications of Mr McKendry and the National Mortgage Association be granted, subject to the Council reserving to itself ■ the right to shut off the water whenever they deem it necessary, and the applicants undertake to pay all contingent expenses, and their fair share of constructing main at Wmch more when called upon, and other con ditions." Several matters of routine business having been transacted, a SPECIAL MEETING was htld to make a special order levying a rate m the Ashburton Forks Protective Works District of f d m the £. The Oouncil then adjourned.

SPORTING.

A-sslitmirton Trotting C?lul>.

. The following are the handicaps for the first meeting of the Ashburton Trotting Club, which takes place on October 16th; Handicap Trot, One Mile. Semolina.... scr Home Rule... 8 sec Marengo .. 2 see Othello 9aec Magpie 2 sec Silver Bell ... 11 sec Westleigk .... 3 sco Cissy Usec Madcap . 4 sec Good Templar 12 sec Fair Nell ... 6 sec' Quail , 12 sec Miss Cave ... 6 sec Star ... \;. 15 sea Star of Honor 6 sec Selling Handicap Trot. Two Milea. Star of Honor scr Anaconda ... lgsecs Maud ... 4 sec Nelly 18 sea Grace Darling 8 sec Bonny Black Jenny..., ... 8 sec Bess 20 seo. Silver Brill ... 12>ec Darby ... ... 25 sec Handicap Trot, of 30 soys. Three miles. Potatau ... scr Kate 30 sec Marcngo ... 6 sec Silver Bell ... 34sec Magpie ... 6 sec Jenny .... ... 36 sec \Vc3fcleigh ... 10 see Good Templar 38 sec Zenobia -. 14 sec lolanthe ...45 sec Star of Honor 17 sec Chuznee ... 47 sec Home Rule... 24 sec Poppett ... 50 sea Othello ... 28 sec District Handicap Trot. Two miles. Marengo ... scr Cissy 20 see Miss Cave ... 8 sec Good Templar 20 sue Maud , 12 see Plucky 25 sec Grace Darling 16 sec Taipo ... .„ 27 sec Mount joy ... 20 sec Pofpett ...30 sec Acceptances close next Saturday, October 11th, when also entries close for the Maiden Trot.

[ran pkess AssociAtinoK.J

Cheistchurch, October 4. Training operations, m view of the Canterbury Metropolitan meeting, are becoming interesting. The New Zealand Cup candidates, Meririe England and Dudu, are doing excellent work. the. former beihg still favorite at 100 to 20. Betting is^ quiet pending the result the Napier meeting.'\ Medallion' is favorite at 6 to 4 for the HrnY 9 s Bay Guineas. ■

DESTRUCTIVE Fire in Sydney

FURTHER PARTICULARS

[PEK PRESS ASSOCIATIOK. J

[Received October 3, at 10.30 ,vbi;J Sydney, OctuW-3.' ±ive hundred persons U*v* been, thrown out of employment ty- the fire. The following risks wero ield on the principal buildings:—New Zealand 5 Insurant Company L23,300j Soutt*

THE A^HBTJBTON CTAKDIOT, SATXIBJAY, OCTOBeB 4, 1890.



As the wheel of time has again ushered m the busy spring, and to be prepared to supply the requirements of Nature and of their numerous patrons, Messrs J. ScaJy and Co. have completed their selection of seeds, which arc of the choicest samples obtainable, and which include clovers, turnips, man golds, carrots, rape, perennial ryegrass, cocksfoot, elephant swede, garden and flower seeds m endless variety, and garden requi sites of every descriptioii. Ifo} 1 thp conve nience of patrons who cann.pt malije the ; ir purchases during the day £he premises yi\\\ be pppn tpj nine p.»ji. cni Saturday evenings op »»4 ftfter the 19th Auj<«iit,-(A<.M.) ■



I Y\7 ANTED Known.—For nist-ckss VV Millinery and Drapery (marked ) cheap) go to Molford House. New Goeds \ just opened.— H. C. Seobrs^ STOP'ThariD^ghP-Flowor's c Cough Drops are the best—see that the ritimo is stempod on every one. H. G. Flowjcr, Confectioner, East street. v V ANTElFKiiown — Tho Cheapest ••■ Shop to ]>uy Tinware and Gal vnnisod Iron goods m Ashbttrton, is at [ W. F. I-TannafoutjiVi, Burnett Street. A ; aryo stock kq»i: oji hand. Tin and Tron ' ware goods made and repaired with- des pit cli. ■ ', ANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS. L SuU'CiUBKR.—The '* age of consent" was raised to 14 years, by Section 2 of '. "The Otfencas naainst the Person Act, 1890." Prior to that the -nge, undfci* the Act of ISG7, was twelve yearn.



Waated. j CASIf Ad"verMserno*?tjj u*\der this henciinc: m.t excecdin SIXTEEN \ WORDS 1/-. Ad-Jresses may bo left at this Office. T" OST —On the 3rd inst., half a brooch, J_J m hhapo of hovce collai\ Reward on returning- to thir, office. ■ 10 31 "X7"^^-^^ Lndien' Journal for October. JL Tho Squatter's Dream, South Sea Lover, Wheat and Trtren, The Tragic Muho, tho Gre^ost Tliinj{ m live World ; Dnnninond, and other now books.—H. M. Jojck:<. TTTXnTED XN tO\VN,— Thafc ; M. \ \ Roonkt liai 2or .'{ thousand Trees yet, that ho U spiling at reduced juices. - ANTED, Apprentices to the drtsa- V making. Apply Miss E. McDonnell, 10 11 Saunders' Buildings. 'POOTS, BOOIV. "Keep your feet X y Dry and Have Doctor's Bill*, have a .splendid Stock m now. Try ny Doublo-solod Shooters. Every pair Guaranteed. Roijkrx Alcoun, Ashbur ton Clothing Mart, Snunders' Buildini's. 117 ANTED Known. - For Dress Stuff*, W Prints, &c., Trimmings to match go to Melford House. Best value m town. —H. C. Seobrs. i WANTED Known.—For Sheetings Tablings, Calicoes, Quilts, Towels, Table Napkins, Tray Cloths, D'Oyleyn, &c, go to Melford House.—ll. C. Segeks. WANTED every man m the County to have a suit of the Anhburton Twoeds.—Roiseux Alcoun, Ashburton Clothing Mart, Saunder's Buildi'u^s.. FIRST DISPLAY or Spring Goods, AN KEW /^kRR NDREW ijRR TS now shoving :\ Beautiful Selection of MILLINERY, MANTLES, PRINTS, GINGHAMS, NEW DRESS GOODS BEIGE'S FRENCH CHECKS, RIBBONS, FLOWERS, ETC. 2 CASES of Ladies' French BOOTS and SHOES Direct from France. ANDREW ORR. jHesTOerT" TIMBER MERCHANT, HAVELOCK STREET, OITO SITE HaIMMHOX S AUCTION M.UIT, TXAS IN STOCK Large Supplies of— Building Timber, Stakes ami Posts, (-Jalvanised Corrugated Iron, Builders Ironmongery, Tut-nery, Furniture, and Fancy Goods IN ENDLESS VARIETY. FURNITURE MADE TO ORDER IN ANY DESIGN AT SHORTEST NOTICE. Reliable Seeds. /""I ENUINE Farm Seeds for sale at VX J- SEALY & CO.'S. Genuine Garden Seeds at J. SEALY .fc CO. S. ■■; t Genuine Flower Seeds at .T. SEALY & CO.'S. Blue Prussian Peas at J. SEALY & CO.'S. Golden Tares bt J. SEALY & CO.'S. Now Turnip Seecs at J. SEALY & CO.'S. Farm Seeds at J. SEALY & CO. S. None but Carter ano Co.'a choice Seeds m stockj J. SJ3ALY & CO. SPECIAL_ NOTICE CALL AND SEE THE GRAND DISPLAY OF BOYS' YOUTHS', AND MEN S CLOTHING MERCERY, HOSIERY, BLANKETS, RUGS, FLANNELS, HATS, AND CAPS, &c. THE largest and best assorted Stock m the District to select from, which for Value, Variety, and excellence of Manu acture, W« d'«nd unrivalled. MEASURE T\EPARTMENTS KASUR.E Lf EPARTMENTS NEW TWEEDS AND COATINGS ! For tho approaching Season To Hand. SOLE AGENTS for Werthotm's latest and improved HAND and TJW DLS SEWING MACHINES. N E W Z E A I AN D CLOTHING MORY



■ <t!*~~ -■*■■ - " -"-^ na.«aJ— DRUIDS. —Wanted every member to Attend on Monday night. Bro. Hmtm, Chf;«tchureh, will address r* Coining District Grand Lodge. 10 19 MOORE STREET, ASHBUR T O N. Hksrt Davis, P.oprictor, (late of Plough Hotel, Rungiora.) fhpHI.S Old Established «nd .favorite I Fninilv Uotpl, has good accommoda tion for fauiilifH, boarders, or commercial tmvelUjrs, with private sitting rooms and bedrooms. CHARGES TO MEET THE TIMES. Nothini; but the best; brands of Wines and Spirits, and Wak'd and Cos. celebrated Ales kept m .stock. THE PROPRIETOR, having also just erected a largo new stable with eleven stalls and two loose boxes for fche accommodation of his country customers, •wishes to inform them tha* utabling for horses is FREE, with good feeds for Is each. Special arrangements can be made for loose boxes for Entire Horses or Race Horses for the coming season. HORSES AND BUGGIES ON HIRE. ■ 9 145 Wool~~Wool Wool T IBERAL CASH ADVANCES XA Made on tho ensuing WOOL CLIPS At the Lowest Current Rates of Interest. GEORGE JAMESON, Ashburton and Rakaia. ■ :' ■ 9319 FISHING SEASON, 1890 91. FISHING TACKLE. H l CX 1890 NC TA 1891 TUST arrived, ex " DORIC " froiri.best fj English and American Manufac turers a large and avoll assorted stock of all Fishing requisites. Rods, Lines, Reels, Minnows, Flies, Gaff Hooks, single, double and treble, Mountings, assorted Hooks; Waterproof Stockings, India Rubbercmck proof 6u« Boots, water proof Fish Baga '• In great variety, including latest] pat terns. Every 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 Hairdrovring Saloon MryTalder. I HAVE just landed ex " Doric "my season's supply of the finest ttt:r,:nt:p seeds Consisting of — GREEN TOP YELLOW ABERDEEN, PURPLE TOP YELLOW ABERDEEN PURPLE TOP MAMMOTH, WHITE STONE STUBBLE, PURPLE TOP SWEDE, DEVONSHIRE GREYSTONE, YELLOW TANKARD, Etc, Etc. «£ Q Z -1 ■« c tin ™HH t 2 ° .ft H 5 I M O t, z « AU of the purest quality, and tests can be seen at my office. SHEEP OHEAPvS. HEEP OHEARS. SHEEP Q HEARS. HEEP OHEARS. All the favorite Brands. WAUD a*d PAYNE'S, WARD and PAYNE'S, BUBOON and BALLS', BURGON and BALLS', Turkey and Washito OILSTONES, Boiled and Raw LINSEED OILS, Ground and Lump RADDLE, Red and Black Branding OIL, LAMPBLACK, etc. Woolpaeks. WooJpaeks. Full size and full weight. I have also m stock, — OALTANIBED IROJV (Lysaght's Orb). In all lengths ; and can supply the trade us well as farmers. Cement, Cement makes, Posts, Rails, Fenelng and Barbed Wire, RANSOME'S ani> HORNSBY'S FLOUGHSHARIS. General Ironmongery AND Groceries, WINES -»S™^ SAM)STOOT . New Season's Teas. MAURITIUS SUGARS, etc., etc., btc. i EMRY^ZANDER --IGEN' 1 FOR— :SunFi s ; InsuKiuco Company, 'Canton » ar.no lusunsneo Company, ttatioiial Mutual Life - Assocwtwn of U^tl'»litSV.i..