The Ashburton Guardian. Magna est Veritas et Prævalebit. WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 27, 1892. FEDERATION.

One effect of the recent changes of Ministry m New South "Wales and Victoria has been to relegate the ques tion of Australian or Australasian Federation to the background, In New South Wales the Premier, whose previous attitude was one of cautious criticism, of the details rather than of the principle, has become undisguiaedly hostile to the whole scheme of Federa tion, and the leader of the Opposition has all along been virulently opposed to it. The fall of Sir Henry Parkes lost the movement its most powerful advo cate, and ro prominent politician has appeared to take his place. Id Vic toria the Constitution Bill was dis cussed by Parliament, but members' opinions were m such an unformed state on the proposal that the debate consisted of a general raising of diffi culties and objections, and as no deci sion could be arrived at upon the manner m which the opinion of the constituencies should be taken the Bill was dropped, and can scarcely be ex pected to appear again until a more active and general public interest is evinced on the question. The other Australian Colonies are sim ply looking on, and that very apathetically. They recognise that New South Wales and Victoria are the Colonies chiefly affected, and until they begin to move m earnest it is not worth the while of South Australia and Queensland to take up the ques tion. It is true that there has been no actual rejection of the Bill by any of the Colonies, except New Zealand ; the Bill is m what may be described as a state of suspended animation, but this condition may as probably end m death as, m a return to active vitality. The present position of the Federation question shows that it has not yet been the subject of intelligent public con sideration — public opinion on the subject is still vague and spasmodic. Everybody believes, theoretically, that Federation is the proper thing for Australia, but there is no enthusiasm about it, and this m itself is sufficient evidence that the time is not yet. The domestic politics of New South Wales and Victoria are as yet m opposition on crucial points. The former Colony has adopted the one man-one-vote principle, and wishes it to be applied to all elec tions to the Parliament of the Commonwealth; Victoria, by her Upper House, has rejected that principle, and resents its proposed application to Federal elections as an interference with her internal politics. Victoria makes a stand for free trade within the Commonwealth and protec tion against the rest of the world ; New South Wales regards this as an intention to force Victorian manufac tures upon the other Colonies to the detriment of manufacturing enterprise m the latter. These differences will disappear as the Colonies begin to understand each other better, but the Federation question will pro bably sleep until some stirring event occurs to arouse public feeling, or the slower process, the steady growth of opinion m its favour, brings it within the region of practical politics.

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

The appointment of Mr D. Harris as Poatmastsr at Ealing has been gazetted. A general meeting of the members of the Ashburton Cycling Club will be held at Mrs Pearson's rooms, on Thursday evening, at eight o'clock. The case of Friedlander Bros v. New Zealand Railway Commissioners, £47 8s 4d was resumed m the Christchurch R. M. Court on Tuesday. The claim was for sixty five sacks of wheat, consigned to the ship Silberhorn, at Lytteltou, m October, 1890, for which the ship refused to give a receipt, and the plaintiffs therefore claimed on the railway. Additional evidence was given that the wheat had been put on board the vessel, and judgment w»*s given for defendant with coats. At the ninth quarterly meeting of the Christchurch Working Men's Co-operative Society the report of the Committee stated that the cost of the freehold on which the building ia erected was £950. The contract for the building was £887 10s, fittings £78, other expenses £85, or a total cost of £2000 10s. The Committee congratulated the members on the position attained. The cash sales for the past quarter had been £1963 4s Bd, or an average of over £140 per week. The diviaable profit amounted to £17112s Id. "Anglo-Australian," m the "European Malt" of December 11, says:—There is quite a " boom " here m the mill-furnishing trade, owing to the great and growing demand from Australia and New Zealand for plant on the latest lines. Large quantities of machinery, ■of the most advanced and improved type, are now (joing out to Messrs Evans and Co., New Jjetfl&nd; Mr H, H&rroway, Green Island, Duneii'Oj Messrs A. Mitchell and Co., of Knapp Mills, Christchurch { Messrs Nicholas and Raymond, of Forbes, New South Wales, and others, A meeting of the Committee of the Aehburton Trotting Club was held on Tuesday night at the Central Hotel. The draft programme for the Autumn meetingi on March 9, was submitted and approved. The stakes to be given amount to £JBO, th# events being similar to those of last meeting, with an increase m the amount of some of the stakes, namely : — Maiden Handicap, 20 soys, 2 miles ; Harness Handicap, 20sovs, 2 miles; District Handicap, 20 soys, l 2 miles; Ashburton Handicap, 30 soys, 3 miles; Selling Handicap, 20 soya, 2 -niles ; j Electric Handicap, 20 soys, 1 mile. , A sub-committee was appointed to see to the track being put into good trotting order at once. The club is m a very bealthy position, and the committee are determined to deserve the support of farmers and otfrer* who are interested m the production ,of frarjpsss and saddle horses of good useful -quality, tijajfc $<? not require a long day for a short journey. The produetioß of " Hamlet ,by Mr Walter Bentley and the company supporting him may be anticipated *s a. red letter day m the annals of dramatic performance m Ashburton. Iv Dunedin Mr Ben%y has been very sueeessfoil, and the leading residents have swhscrfiierl for a valuable testimonial that was $>reae»tert by his Worship the Mayor on the st^e of : the; theatre before a crowded audience on the fosfc night of the season whe» Hamtot was .the attraction. At an " at- Ivowe " #ive*i by Mr Bentley m Dunedin the elite of itfje place crowded the large dining hall of tfce feotel, #0(1 were quite profuse m compliments V&gfifMng his artistic performances. It is fQi&jf&afas (t-)jat the actor should be so ably supported., far tlf& rank and file of the com pany i* #¥QeedjLngjly powerful, which is not always the &&*& jvijjh \ep4i;}g stars. After Friday night's periww«W& iW ,4-- sh^urtoa the company proceeds to On^sjfcchti^ch^lYjre they open at the Theatre Royal tor a weusQii | t ?ji Saturday, 30th instant. The box plan m Aij?burton is rapidly filling, and as the space of the hall is not unlimited those who are anxious to Wt/jess the performance are advised to bock early.

The Christchurch election petition is | likely to be heard early next week. The South African gold mines are now yielding at the rate of over 65,000 ouuces of gold per month. The weather m North Canterbury is ) showery; on Monday night there was heavy rain. Harvesting is being impeded by the weather. At the Police Court this marning—Major Steward on the bench—* first offender for drunkenness was convicted and dismissed with a caution. The following Zeehan telegram appears m the " Hobart Mercury ":—" Large quantities of money are arriving from New Zealand for speculation m Zeehan silver claims." Mr Napier Bell says Iliat if colonists wish to be remembered to distant ages of the future they must emulate those mighty people of the past who left imperishable records of their lives m the ruins of vast public works. A recent definition of Theosophy is "Spiritualism up to date." Another definition is "Something which is under stood by nobody, and which is only made incomprehensible by those who profess to j explain it." Mr Wltheford's proposal for the sale of the railways come up for discussion at the last meeting of the Maniototo County Council, when a resolution was carried to the effect that the council did not think it advisable for the State to part with the railways. There are m Russia many towns of large population whiph belong to private parties. The territory of such a town, and m some instances the suburban fields, woods, and rivers, are the patrimonial estate of a noble man, and he has the right to dispose of them as he pleases. The French President travels free on the railways during his official tour m France, but when the return journey is concluded his secretary calculates what it would have cost if paid for at regular rates, and this sum is handed over to be distributed among the poorest paid of the railway men. The " Otago Daily Times" says that the proposal put forth recently m its columns of sending delegates to France with a good collection of the varied products of the colony has been warmly taken up m certain quarters, and it is believed favorable repre sentations will be made shortly to the Government. Tuesday's "Otago Eaily Times" quotes the statement of the Christchurch " Press " that Mr C. J. Rae is again urging on the Hon W. P. Reeves and the Premier to appoint him to a seat m the Legislative Council. As the statement was flatly con tradicted by Mr Rae m the " Press " of the previous Saturday its reproduction by the Dunedin paper has, to say the least of it, a disingenuous appearance. The Standing Committee of the diocese of Christchurch, at a meeting held on January 19, unanimously confirmed the election of the Venerable Archdeacon Charles Oliver Mules, M.A., by the Diocesan Synod ot Nelson to the Bishop of Nelson m the stead of Dr Suter, resigned. Archdeacon Mules' state of health is such that it is feared he will be unable to discharge the duties of the see. Details of the sale of Mr August Belmont's stud of blood horses m Ntw York, where the sire St. Blaise made the unprecedented auction price of £22,000, show that the fifty brood mares realised over £40,000, 14- of them selling for prices ranging from £1000 to £4000; that 24 yearlings made £24,500, nine of them selling for sums of from £1000 to £6000 ; while 25 foals made £14,450. The total of the sale, including 29 horses m training previously sold, was about £128,000 for 129 animals. It is said that a London publisher has re ceived an order for £30,000 worth of books from a colonial bookseller. The Australians (says the " Sunday Sun,") are among the best and most constant book purchasers m the British dominions. But it adds that the Antipodean public opinion requires the hall-mark of London, and concludes :—" The reason why so many Australian authors are settled m London is that they know that the Australian public attach little or no value to what is published locally, but will buy with avidity books that are stamped with a London succes3." The interim report on the receipts and ex penditure of the last show of the Northern Agricultural and Pastoral Associationshowed that the subscriptions paid were £162, entries £212, gate money £100 10s 6d, private prizes £164 163, sale of privileges £44, and small sums bringing up the amount of receipts to £716 4s. The expenditure was estimated at £714 ISs Id, the chief item being prizes £465 12s. This left a credit of £1 12s lid. The Association is to be con gratulated upon being now m the position of having a credit balance. With reference to a statement which recently appeared m a North Island paper to the effect that the Minister for Lands has considerably exceeded for the current year the area which he is permitted to grunt to special settlers any one year, and that, although he is flooded with applications, lie can grant no more land to special settlement associations at the present time, the "Otago Daily Times" is informed by the Minister that there are two obstacles m the way of granting any further applications until the new financial year, commencing on ist April next. The first obstacle is the want of land, and the second is the doubt as to whether the Minister can legally grant applications i for an aggregate area exceeding 150,000 acres per annum. The legal question was referred to the law officers of the Crown for J consideration, prior to the Minister's departure from Wellington recently, but their opinion has not yet been received by I him. Our Melbourne correspondent writes: — Although there does not seem io be any special reason for a revival of confidence there is no doubt that a more hopeful feel ing is about. There have been movements m investment shares though at low prices, there are signs that money is coming from Europe m less time and greater quantities than was expected, and there are actually inquiries concerning real estate. This last is not a particularly hopeful feature, since earth hunger is the most contagious fever known to mankind, and m this city the most dangerous. For forty miles around Melbourne land which has beggared its new owners is lying idle waiting until those owners can revenge themselves by obtaining five pounds a foot for sites which cost them fifty or sixty or a hundred pounds an acre but will wst for ten or twelve years to come be really worth fifteen. Still motion is a sign of life and the movement is there fore welcome. Right m the thick of harvest a large attendance at an entertainment m Ashburton ca# hardly be expected. Not only are the farmers aftd the usual farm laborers busy qetfcing jn the crops, but a large number of town residents are also away harvesting, so that not many people are left m the town to patronise any entertainer who may come along, The tyuth of this was expe rienced on Tuesday evening by Mr Robert Kennedy at the Oddfellows' Hall, m which he gave his entertainment of Scottish song and story to a very small audience. The enter tainment was all that it was promised to be, notwithstanding the disheartening effect that a poor house always has upon a singer. Mr Kennedy sang his songs as few singers can sing them, showing himself at home equally with the pathetic and the humorous. Among the former may be noted as having been ctvea .wjtjj- «""h sweetness and expression Baronet Nairn's "Land o' the Leal " Following this came Jiijrns' "Scots wha hae " the same melodyjtytf with different execution. The history of each sohg given by Mr Kennedy previous to its render ing and occasion was taken by him to tell several amusing anecdotes illustrative of Scottish life and manners. Among the humorous songs sung were <-£The Laird o Cockysen." " The barrin poor dooi-, and "Alis^r MtcAljste 1 r"-all' of which were rendered m such;a as to call forth entfe«sjast{c applause. A not .by any means iwattrs.ctj.ve part of tf\v jwforroaip w,ere the sclttstirvns «}jE tijelpdies played by Mrs Ciaridge (piano) au4 i$F 5- 4- M«S (violin) at intervals tlafiag ttw evening, Mrs Ciaridge also playiwg Mr Kennedys accompaniments. Thts world is ever moving on towards p^eytion, butseldom attains it. Constant impi'ov'erwa^ is being made m every branch of industry, but m Baking Powders Perfection has been I't&tcfeed jn Warburton'e Can't P© Peab,

FARM NOTES.

The average yield of wheat per aero m New .South Wales, for the last thirty years is, as shown by a carefully compiled table recently published m the " Sydney Mail," 13.21 bushels. The lowest of any was m 1889, when it only reached 4.75 bushels. The wheat yield of Victoria shows an average per acre of 11-f bushels, or about a bushel less than last year, which was so very favourable, It is calculated there will be close on six million bushels for export. It is not expected that the average shipping value will be anything over 4s per bushel. In California steam ploughs are em ployed on the large ranches capable of turning no fewer than twenty furrows. kaoh plough is handled by thrse men, and ploughs about forty-five acres a day. The quantity of coal consumed is said to be about one ton per plough, and the other expenses are m proportion. This is steam ploughing m earnest.

I A farmer who doesn't read much says that the value of literature entirely depends on circumstances. If a book had a calfskin cover it ia valuable as a razor-strop. If it is thick, it comes m first-rate to put under the corner of the chest of drawers which has lost a leg. If it has a clasp on that will keep it closed, it cannot be eclipsed as a missile to hurl at a dog. If it ha? a large cover, like a geography, it is as good as a piece of tin nail over a broken pane of glass. If it belongs to somebody else, it is a con venient article to hold up a window. Most of the wheat and oat crops m the Bay of Plenty district have been harvested and saved m splendid order, not a drop of rain being on them. The grain is mostly fine and plump, and as a larger area than ever before has been grown there will be a large quantity to export. The quality of the Maori wheat is not up to the usual mark, consequent on their using the same seed so many years running. They have a considerable quantity of it, and if prices only hold, settlers will siake a good thing out of their wheat crops thjis year.

The " Argus" thinks the ti.ne has come when Victoria, and for the matter of that the Australasian colonies generally, must go m for industrial development, and the avenue that stands most invitingly open for exploration is the frozen meat trade. If New Zealand, with only fifteen and a half million sheep find under a million cattle, can export a million and a half carcases a year, without any prospect of a decrease, what should Australia be able to do with her eighty-eight million sheep and eight and a halt" million cattle ? The reason why Australia has not developed the trade m the same ratio as New Zea land, it is declared, is not sufficiently accounted for by the preference of the Eng lish market, for New Zealand meat. "The principal reason is that the New Zealand sheepfarmers were forced to develop this trade or perish, whilst; m Australia this stimulus of necessity has hitherto been absent. That this is now likely to be ap plied a glance at the stock markets suffices to show."

Some day or other, says the " Spec tator," commerce will acknowledge fully the truth preached by the American economist, Mr Wells, that the cost and the facility of transport have become even more important than the extent of pro duction. We shall have all Governments insisting on immense reductions, espe cially for heavy goods, and on better goods trains for the whole Continent, and pro bably offering even m England heavy bonuses for widening the railways, so as to admit of lines solely for goods traffic. The French Government has taken an immense step forward m this direction. The Budget Committee, which on finance almost governs the Chamber, has agreed to the sacrifice of a railway tax yielding annually £1,640,000, on condition that the companies shall make an equivalent reduction m their charges for carrying goods by the fast trains. This is m all but form precisely the end to which railway reformers m America are trying to force through the companies, and we see even m England the same spirit m the recent conflicts upon railway rates.

Recent Home advices tell of a new labor-saving apparatus for use m die operation of threshing grain out of the sheaf. Its utility consists m elevating the sheaves to the feeding board, and m cutting the bands while the sheaves are m the act of being elevated. The inven tion consists of a trough made of wood or any other suitable material, of a length suited to the requirement of the place or position m which the machine is to be erected. This trough is open at both ends ; its depth is about 14 inches, its .width about 16 inches. At the ends of the trough are placed rollers, the top surface of which run level with the bottom of the trough. Around the rollers is made to revolve a belt, and this, passing under and.over the bottom of the trough, constitutes the elevating medium of the invention. The cutting medium of the invention is secured by having a thin steel disc of about 22 inches m diameter revolving m the centre of the trough, about 4 fepfc from the discharge end, the Efid disc rotating on a spindle running m bearings resting on the sides of the trough. On each end of the disc spindle, which projects, is placed a pulley, and to one of these is communicated the motive power from the threshing machine. The other is used to give motion to the driv ing roller of the elevating belt. The in vention can be applied to either fixed or travelling threshing machines. The in ventor is a Mr D. E. Oarr, Berwick-on- Tweed, —This invention appears to have been anticipated some years ago m these colonies, as m 1888, Mr Quinliven's ele vator, doing exactly the same work the same way, and similarly constructed, was successfully exhibited m Ashburton.

To many people with vague ideas about our dependence upon vast flocks of sheep m purely pastoral conntries, the informa tion that Europe possesses by far the largest number of those stupid but very necessary animals will come as a surprise. It is true that New Souch Wales is mere densely crowded with sheep than any other part of the world, averaging, according to recent statistical conclusions, 149| to the square mile, and it is equally beyond doubt that the bulk of the wool supply, something over 55 per cent of the whole quantity produced, comes from Australia. But while Australia returns a stock of about 98,000,000 of sheep, Europe boasts more than 168,000,000, and South America can show over 101,000,000. North America conies next with a total of 46, GOO, 000, then Asia with 36,000,000 estimated, ?pd Africa m the rear with some'2o,^o^o,oo. The importance of the wool trade to''Great'Britain, w.h'icjh make 1' up more than three times its own supply of wool, is shown by the fact that over 40 per cent, of the whole of the woollen yarns and woollen goods under export from £,11 countries is furnished by this tight Jlitfcle island of ours, the workshop of' the: world, as Mr W. H. Smith once called ii. th Calculating £he wool crop sffiik its' :nrobabj.e course ft "is' roughjy r.eckonsi 'that, at present, lib of wool' js grown to eyery 2^lb of cotton, but that the duration or a piece of woollen cloth is more than double that of a piece of cotton. From this point, and taking into consideration the average yield of wool at bo much per head of different' breeds, there are other and more remote contingencies upon which estipwtea ar a

based, such as the comparative use of woollen goods by various peoples, and the proportion of the population of the globe who do not, and are not likely to, wear woollen materials; but such calcu lations require, of necessity, to be accepted with caution. Ff>r instance, Francois said to expend mere per head upon woollen manufactures, and Italy least of the principal nations of Europe, while, m tlu other respect, it is beiieved that nearly one-half of mankind must be set down as not wearing wool. How far ( such considerations may or must affect the ultimate future of the wool and woollen interests must be left for others t-v determine.—''Warehousemen . and Drapers' Journal."

Ashburton Rifles.

ANNUAL MEETING,

The annual general meeting of the members of the Ashburton Rifle Volun teers was held last evening m the Com pany's orderly room at the Drillshed. There were forty members present, and Captain W. E. Dolman presided. The Captain stated chat for the year the Company had earned £86 m capita tion money, and there were outstanding accounts to the amount of about £20. The balance sheets of the Company and orderly room funds were read aud adopted—both showing satisfactory credit balances. Corporal J. W. Baker read the report of the Shooting Committee, m which it was stated that three shooting matches had been held during the year, m all of which the Company had been defeated. The Committee, however, were of opinion that the shooting had very greatly im proved during the year. After some discussion on matters connected with firing affairs the report; was adopted. Among several items of business dis posed of were a resolution to procure a new bugle for the Company ; the election of Mr George Morrison as an honorary member of the Company ; a reference to j:he Committee of a recommendation to procure for the Company the new Khatkee uniform ; and the passing of a .resolution to preserve a record of all shootipg by the Company, It was also •decided to re-open the Orderly Room every evening for the use of members- The following Committees were ap pointed:— Ordevlj Room—Oorpl. Willers, and Privates Pauling, Hefford, Hughes, and Grant; Shooting—Sergeant Hefford, Corporal J. W. Baker, "and Privates Pearson, Hill, and Baker; Finance— Sergeant-Major Hayes, Color-Sergeanb McDonald, with Lieutenant A. J. Miiller (Treasurer), and Sergeant Dee (Secre tary). • The sum of £8 was voted to the Shoot ing Committee for competition and other purposes, and a levy of 6d per member per month was imposed for Orderly Room charges. Thanks were passed- to the retiring Committees, to the Treasurer and Secre tary, and to the Captain, and the meet ing closed.

TELEGRAPHIC.

HOME AND FOREIGN.

I'ER PRESS ASSOCIATION

THE IRON MARKET.

London, January 26. The Scotch iron merchants are trying to undersell the London syndicates, who are holding 500,000 tons. The market is excited. Best Scotch pig iron is quoted in Glasgow at 4k, a re duction of 3s on last quotation. WHEAT PROSPECTS. The " Standard " anticipates a rise in the price of wheat. THE ROSSENDALE ELECTION. The " Standard" admits that the result of the Rossendale election was a signal disappointment, and says that it would be folly to disguise the severity of the defeat. The Irish papers in commenting on the result of the Rossendale election, take the opportunity of pressing Mr Gladstone to reveal his policy. THE SOCIALISTS. ; Another batch of Socialists have been committed for trial for an unlaw ful assembly at Chelsea. MR SPUKGEON'S HEALTH. Latest advices from Mentone state that the condition of the Rev Mr Spurgeon is improved, DIPLOMATIC APPOINTMENT. The Hon Edwin Edgerton will be appointed to succeed Sir E. J. Morson as British Ambassador at Athens. A ROYAL QUARREL. A serious quarrel has taken place between Her Majesty the Queen of England and the Emperor William of Germany, owing to the latter's alleged want of sympathy with the Royal Family in the loss of the Duke of Clarence and Avondale. QUEENSLAND AND THE BANK OF ENGLAND.

Mr William Lidderdale, governor of the Bank of England, states that Sir Samuel Griffiths' reply in connection with the strictures passed by the Queensland Government on that insti tution, simply justifies the attack, and is entirely unsatisfactory. The bank must utterly decline to accept the ex planation offered. Mr Lidderdale points out that the bank directly and indirectly materially contributed to the final placing of the loan, and the charge is absolutely without founda tion that he left the Government in difficulty. The bank, he goss on im say, will continue to render services in connection with existing loans, because they are already in the hands of the public and cannot be interfered with, otherwise the relations between the institution and the Queensland Go vernment would be brought to a close at once. DTSEASES OF THE THROAT. Professor Anderson Stuart, of Sydney University, in the course of a paper on " Swallowing," read before the Royal Society, quoted a remark able case which had come under his notice in Sydney, where Dr McCormick, in treating a patient suffering from cancer, removed the whole lower side of the neck, and upper well of the mouth, so that the act of swallowing could be seen. The patient was still alive and doii^g well. It is considered that the paper has thrown a flood of light on the treatment of diseases of the throat.

UNITED STATES AND CHILI.

Washington, January 26. The ultimatum issued to Chili by the United States Government does not make reference tq any of the recent incidents which have tak.en place m 1 Valparaiso, It is simply a defence of Mr Egan. against the complaints made by the Chilian Government. In his Message President Harrison declares that the United States demands should be enforced, and they umst protect the

prestige and dignity of their Govern ment officials m foreign lands against insult and brutality. In New York the Message has been received with complete indifference, and nobody believes that war is possible between the two countries. The Message has been referred to the Foreign Com mittee. Stocks are not affected.

A CABMEN'S LOAN.

Paris, January 26. Fifteen hundred cabmen m this city have petitioned Parliament for a loan of 400,000 francs, with which to pur cha&e cabs. They promise to repay 10,000 of the loan annually.

NIHILISM.

St. Petersburg, January 26. The powers of Governors of Pro vinces have been increased m order to prevent the spread of Nihilism during the existence of famine.

AUSTRALIAN.

TERRIBLE EXPLOSION. - Sidney, January 25. A terrible explosion occurred op board a punt m the harbor to-day during the regatta. Two men named Tolleson and Northcote were blown to atoms, only a few scattered remains being found. The barge sank.

INTERPROVINCIAL.

ISapiek, January 26. Samuel Pinder, a fanner at Meanee, was drowned m the Tutaekuri at Wood thorpe lasc night. The river was m flood, and his companian refused to swim across, hut Pinder, who was anxious to get home, made the attempt and was drowned. The body was recovered to-diy, Wellington, January 26. XP°ntifical requiem high mass for the repose of the soul of the late Cardinal Manning, was celebrated this morning at St. Mary's Cathedral. There was a large congregation, and an attendance of more than fifty priests. Archbishop Redwood was celebrant of the mass. Thf annual report of the New Zealand Friendly Societies' Mutual Fidelity Guarantee Association, shows that the accumulated fund at the end of 1891 was £332, being an increase of £115 for the year. There are 152 lodges insured with the association, the amount of their policies aggregating £12,950. The officers for the current year are Mr S. Wacers, chairman; Mr J. Edwards, secretary ; and Mr H. Chappel, treasurer. Dukedin, January 26. I The Domain Board, which is supposed to have charge of the ocean beach and sandhills but has never been able to do anything owing to want of fands, carried a resolution to-day,' asking the Govern | ment to dissolve it, with a view of form ing another board. The Acclimatisation Society's ranger re ported that, with the Southland ranger, he had netted the Aparima to ascertain if salmon had returned from the sea. A number of fish were caught, and all but one of the returned fish bore evidence of having b^en attacked by enemies ap parently very ferocious. A smolt about 7in m length was caught. Generally the result of the observations was to show the necessity of continuing the im portation of salmon. A fish which was not returned, was examined by Professor Parker, who pronounced k not to be a salmon. At a meeting of the Cricket Association it was resolved to endeavour to raise funds to send a team of cricketers on a tour t'lr^iigh rh-». oniony n >xo session, Auckland Having thrice visited the south without any return visit having been made. Several volunteer corps m Dunedin have arranged to send to England to im port Eley's ammunition for themselves, owing to dissatisfaction with that at present m use. t Inv'ercargill, January 26. Chief Commissioner Williams stated at to-day's meeting of the Land Board that there was a great demand for land all over Southland, and the department could dispose of much more if they could only get it surveyed.

The Haldane Rent Case

I PER PRESS ASSOCIATION,]

Tnvercargill, January 26. The case of Haldane, the pastoral tenant who was fined by the Receiver of Land Revenue the maximum penalty of £1 per day for being thirty-one days late m payment of rent, was before the Land Board to-day. The Crown Solicitor's opinion was read to the effect that the penalty must be fixed and recovered through theR.M. Court, but the members expressed the opinion that it was the intention of Parliament that the board should assess the fine. Mr Haldane wrote admitting his fault, and stating that he had no money when the rent fell due. It was resolved to reduce the amount to one shilling per day, and the Receiver was instructed to submit future cases of a similar nature to the Board, to give them an opportunity to fix the fine. The receiver, Mr McNab, m a letter to the Board said :—-"As an accounting officer to the Treasury, I am responsible for moneys collected, and might be surcharged with any deficiency. The Act fixes the penalty at any sum not exceeding one pound a day. Having no discretionary power and the penalty being outside the jurisdiction of the Board, >I was called upon at a moment's notice to take a definite course, and I adopted the only one left to me, namely, to demand the maximum penalty, and refer the matter to the head office. The agents, instead of approaching the DepartmeHt as supplicants for favor, and requesting that their neglect be condoned, sirepiy stigmatised my action as absurd, and demanded that the penalty be remitted, without offering the least excuse for delay, TJnd.er tfop circumstances the head office instructed me to insist upon payment."

The New Agent-General.

The London correspondent of the " Otago Daily Times/ writing on Decem ber 11, says:— Mr W. B. Perceval has arrived at last, after we had almost given him up. He came by the Victoria, which landed him at Plymouth on Saturday and thence he proceeded to London. Most of us bein<* ill-informed of his movements (which was only natural, seeing that at the agency, they knew precious little of looking for him by a direc.t steamer. '3V.fr Percevaf, $ iflay rernarfc, has received con siderable attention at the hands of the press. I could not help contrasting the treatment he has received with the former neglect of matters colonial. A few years ago the arrival of the Agent-General of any colony would not have received any notice, save perhaps m the colomns of the omnivorous "Times," where it would have been dismissed m two lines. But we have changed all that, and, Mr Perceval has been lieralded. iii innumerable pars. It was an excellent peg to hang notices upon, that fact of de.sc.eni fro.m the IJqn Spencer Percival, the assassinated. Premier, and spribblers have ta^en advantage of it. Mr Perceval yesterday assumed the 1 direotion of the offloe m Victoria street so he has not lost much time. He looks well -«id m good spirits after his voyage m the Victoria, which, he Hk me, made

a splendid passage. As ho was called to j : the Bar hero m the "seventies," and has \ twice visited the Mother country since, \ he feels quite at home here, and is evidently pleased at the prospect of re siding again m London, which, he thinks, " looks smokier and duller than ever, but otherwise unchanged" since he ato his dinners at the Temple. The new Agent-General had not vory much to say of his work, as he had not yet had time to get a grip of ib. I gathered fi'om his conversation, t:x>, that the office had not been advised of his ap pointment, so that Mr Kennaway, who has been m charge since Sir Dillon Bell's departure, was not altogether prepared to hand over affairs to his new chief. In answer to my inquiry whether any changes were likely to be made m the office, Mr Perceval said that he required a little time to think about the matter. He con fessed, however, to being "not altogether phased with the arrangement of the office." One thing he would like to do is to establish i n connection with it a library and reading room, where could be kept, beside the colonial papers, all books of reference and other works relating to New Zealand, and samples of representa tive products. In this way he thinks that much time and trouble would be spared the staff, who ara continually appealed to for information on the subject, as applicants could be referred to the library to get for themselves the particulars which at pre sent have to be looked up by the clerks for each person who comes. Mr Perceval comes here with no special instructions from the Government, and certainly, as he says, with plenary powers. Indeed, I gather from our conversation that he is expected to keep m very close and inti mate communication with headquarters, as he told me that he would have to get official sanction for any new departure that he might wish to make—even for his library. He appears to have all the energj and fertility of ideas usually asso ciated with new brooms, and as I took leave expressed a wish that some of the colonists might pay a visit to the office and ccc the number of callers that besieged it, and the amount of correspondence that had to be dealt with. They would then, he thought, revise their impression that \ the Agent-General and his staff had a re markably easy time of it. At the meeting of the Royal Colonial Institute, held on December 8, m the Whitehall Rooms of the Metropole, Sir Charles Nicholson, Bart, m the chair, there was a large attendance of members and gentlemen interested m the colonies to hear Sir Edward Braddon read his paper on Australasia. Sir Edward dealt with the strictures of the Hon J. W. Forfcescue m no lame or impotent way, Why this New Zealand Colonist should have gone out of his way to " foul his own nest" it is difficult to say. Sir Edward came to no other conclusion than that he- is "a disappointed Colonist," that he was possibly one of the "gaodmen" who were turned away when New Zea land establishments were reduced during the retrenchment period of 1887-90. If this conclusiou be the correct one (says a London contemporary), it, of course, at once accounts for the acerbity of Mr Fortescue's remarks, " no one is so severe and unreasonable m his strictures upon the Colonies as the man who has at tempted m vain to make a career m them." In the course of the evening, the Agent- General for New Zealand, "Mr W. B. Perceval, made his maiden speech m London, which was as follows: —Our excellent Chairman has unexpectedly called upon me to say a few words by way of comment on the very able paper to which we have just listened. Unlike the last speaker, or.rather like him, m one respect, I am an absentee, but I am an absentee of very short duration, for 11 have been m London on the present occasion for three days only. (a.t this ! point, the audience recognised the new Agent-General for New Zealand and welcomed him.) I quite agree that absenteeism is one of the worst evils the Australians suffer from, and the Colony I have the honour to represent thinks so too, for during the last session of Parlia ment a small additional tax was imposed by way of warning to absentees. (Laughter.) Owing to my having arrived so recently, I regret to say, or, m one sense, I rather congratulate aiyself on the. fact, that I am. not so well up as many of you no doubt are on the subject of what Sir E. Braddon has called these "atrabilious and unwarrantable attacks on Australasian manners, morals and money." Nevertheless, when I got up I felt inclined to hang down my head. I am a colonist, born and bred ia New Zealand, and for the most pare educated there, and I feel I really ought almost to apologise to you, and explain that I am not a drunkard, that J do not blaspheme, and that I am not more disloyal than any other citizen of this Empire. (Laughter.) Attacks of this kinds are received m the Colonies with the scorn they deserve. (Hear, hear.) But Ido not think ib does to ignore them here. Unfortunately, people all over the world are very easily gulled, and no doubt the attacks that have been made have had some effect on the British mind. I think, therefore, the Colonies owe a great debt of gratitude to Sir Edward Braddon for his vindication, and I look upon it as an indication of the trend of public opinion that the Agent-General of one of the Colonies (the smallest of the Australasian group) should stand up m defence of Australasia as a whole. It shows, I say, the way public opinion is trending ; that we recognise that the interest of one Colony is the interest of all; and that m all parts of the Empire we should join hand m hand to defend any particular part which is attacked. (Applause.) Absurd persons talk of the Australasian Colonies collapsing, but there is no more fear of such a catastrophe coming about than there is of the British Empire tumbling to pieces. (Hear, hear.) I)o not be led away by statists, There is nothing more misleading than a com parison of the statistics of the old with statistics of the new country. The conditions are not similar, and it is quite impossible to quote statistics and compare one with the other. You would be able to prove almost anything by a comparison of Colonial with English statistics, but the figures quoted by Sir Edward Braddon are convincing to my miiid (and I think to any reasonable man) that the wealth of Australasia is enormous, and that her resources and her capacity to meet her. engagements are well m advance of. her requirements. (Applause.) Reference has been made to my own j\ttle Colony of j New Zealand. We Ir^ave gone through a troublous time, and I believe troublous times must cpme now and again fco, every Colony.' You can q ( uite understand; that the sudden stoppage offche expenditure of borrowed mon,ey is » great strain on any Colony, but the fact that a Colony can prove to the world she can do without borrowed money, that she increases her land settlement and her exports, and that, although a certain portion of $he population goes, she is still able^to,ropfc on the soil another portion, of the population —all this shows that New Zealand is made of stu^.whjcli will enable her to keep on the right track and to meet anything which is presented to her, You must reflect that the colonies are cojuposed of Englishmen, 3 tha^ th^ej; all have the' as^ pi^atio,ns o| JEniglishmen, and th,e saifle Spirit as Englishmen,, and i\\e qualities which made the British Empire wul make the Colonial Empire. We are not drunk ards < we are not blasphemous ; we fire are not disloyal. I will venture to say there mag much rejoicing to-day m Aus tralia over th« announcement of the Duke of Clarence's betrothal as is m Eng.

land. (Applause.) On behalf of my own 1 , little colony I beg to thank Sir Edward Braddon for his able vindication of Aus tralia. ; Mr Perceval sat down amidst loud and long continued applause, the New Zea landers present bbintr especially demon strative. His delivery is quiet but effective. Altogether it was a highly satisfactory and promising debut.— " Lyttelton Times " correspondent.

An Otago Central Incident.

Central Otago, like Central Africa (says " Civis"), has been repeatedly penetrated by exolorers and others. There was that historical Railway Commission of ever so many years ago, whose route, said report, could be traced for months afterwards by empty champagne bottles and ocher disjecta membra of its commissariat, men there was a later commission, which traversed the land under the auspices of Mr 1 yke ; and thereby hanes a tale. Day atterdajrthe expedition toiled onwards through dreary wastes of tussock and dust, but day after day the dinner tables were laden with the finest of fruits and flowers — 3uf fc frf>ni the neighborhood," as Mr Pyke explained. « They grow every where here, though of courso you cant expect to see 'em as jou drive along the road." And but for the veriest accident that commission might have re ported to Parliament that Central Otago, though curiously desolate and uninteresting from the road, was a veritable land of Oroshen. And the accident ? Well, at dinner on the fourth or fifth day, one of the commissioners - a bit of a gourmet m his way—was about co make incision on a luscious pineapple, when "Fine pine. that, observed Mr Pyke with studious carelessness. " Very fine ; grown m the neigh bourhood ?" asked the other; " Acres ?< em>" replied the uablusWng Vincent. Ah ! —h'm—tickets grow here too 1" queried the member "a moment later, pointing to a label tied to the tuft of the pine, and readme; with cruel distinctness, "Vincent Pyke, Esq., Clyde. From —-, fruiterer, Dunedin." Tableau ! Iv appeared that the_ patriotic Pyke with a praiseworthy desire of impressing the commission with the fertility of Central Otago, had ordered convoys of fruit, flowers, and! vegetables from Dunedin to meet the expedition at every stopping place on its route. Ihe pineapple as a special delicacy had been specially addressed, and but for the oversight m not removing the label -who knows ?_we might hate had an utago Central railway vote years and years ago. What great events from little causes spring ! ,

The Australian Wheat Harvest.

The "Australasian" of January 9, publishes its annual estimate of the Victorian wheat harvest. The average is set down at 10.73 bushels from 1,247,000 acres under crop, or a total yield of 13,387,500 bushels. Our contemporary thus sums up :—ln estimating the home consumption of the year we base our cal culations on an assumed population of 1,200,000. At the customary allowance lof five and a half bushels per head per annum, the food requirements of the colony demand the retention here of 6,600,000 bushels. Judging from the amount of mallee now being rolled down and prepared for cropping, next year will see a vast increase there, so that it is ?12S?£S» to maKe a Beedin = allowance for 1,300,000 acres of one bushel and » quarter per acre. This will require another 1,625,000 bushels, or a total home «ci n «on K ™°, f 7 >22s<°°a bushels, leaving 6,162,500 for export, a less bulk than was available for sending abroad last year. Considering the differences m the prices of wheat m favour of this year's crop, the present harvest musfc, however, be considered a better asset feo the colony. io^,fe? der>" estimates the yield at 12,785,000 or an average of 10.35 bushels from 1 230,000 acres, and puts the surplus available down at 6,l;?5,000 bushels. , In estimating the wheat production o£ New bouth Wales for this year the. bydney Mail puts the general average, at close upon fourteen bushels per »ere On 340,000 acres, the estimated area" under crop, this average will give a total yield of 4,760,000 bushels. Last year there were 333,233 acres under wheat for gram and rhe yield wafc 3,649,216 bushels, A table of the wheat production of the past thirty years, published m the same paper, shows how very slow has been the progress of N ew South Wales m agricul ***** '" lfc ls that the farms have yielded more than half the requirement* of the population.

The Charge Against Raines.

(PKR PRESS ASSOCIATION.^

w , n,, Wellington, January 26. When the Court resumed at 2.30 v m the Crown Prosec^S that the Crown had decided to drop the charge cf murder against Raines, li was considered that there was not a prime to case on the capital charge/ He therefore asked that the information, so far as fche charge of murder was con cerned, might be dismissed with a view to swearing a fresh information involving a charge of manslaughter. The Bench assented to the course, and the prisoner was replaced m the dock to answer a fresh information for manslaughter. The evidence tendered was substantially the same as that given before the coroner's [u^; * nsoner was committed for trial, bail being allowed, himself m JB2OO, and two sureties of £100 each, which ha obtained.

ROAD BOARD.

UPPER ASHBURTON".

The usual monthly meeting o f the Upper Ashburton Road Board was held m the Board's Office, West street, Ash burton, on Monday, January 25.' Pre sent—Messrs Harper, Stittand Campbell. «ORBEBPONDENOm. The following correspondence' was read; From the Ashburton County Council^ forwarding copy of a resolution passed by the Council, inspecting water supply to be paid for out of thirds accruing, as fol lows, *'That this Council proceed with the extension of water races to give per petual leaseholders, deferred payment and. village: settlers a water supply, on », guarantee from the Road Board to refttiKJi the cost, as the funds accrue, prbvi<3«d the Minister of Lands approves."—Sfcesolved on the motion of Mr Stitfc, seconded by- Mr Harper, '* That this Bjoard: will pay over to the County Cowinojl the thirds-, from Lot 37, part o£ Reserve 350, and 7 Lots 1, 7 and 8, part of Reserve 264, a& they accrue,, far the purpose of giving the settlers a water supply." IVora the Wakanui Rioad Board, r& payment of half cost; of culvert near Dry more, for providing perpetual lease and deferred. pay.m,en,b settlors with water, and referring this Board" to a previous letter. From the Commissioner of Crown Lands, stating that the thirds accrued from Lots S, 5 and 6, of Reserve 264 would bo paid over to the credit of the floaxd m respect of w«iter supply carried out for the benefit of thoso sections*— The amounts accrued from Lots 1, *J and! 8 would be held pending receipt oi pro posals for supplying those sections- ysiih water. From the Chief Survoyoi-,, refcwmug the speci il order passed by the Board consti tuting the .ffo 5 (Alhmton) and No. 6 «l" the UpptP

THE ASMtTRTW GUAftDlAtf i WIDKESDAY, JA^TTAttY '&, JBOI



WANTED Known—That you will! make no mistake for quality and variety m English and Colonial Boots, and liis highly reputed make by calling at J. -Moisox's. During coming holidays dis count for Cash. Repairs done atonco. A staff of men always kept and best material and workmanship guaranteed. SHEEP SHEARS. Having secured a Stock of the celebrated 8.8.A., and as there are very few m the Colony, Shearers are requested to call early.— Robert Alcobn, Saunders' Buildings. ALL Wool Colonial Tweed Suits to measiire; fit and workmanship guaranteed; from 50s cash. Robbm Axcorn, Ashburton Clothing Marl, Saundera' Buildings. WANTED Known.—For first-class Drapery and Millinery go to Melford House ; cheapest shop m town. (See windows.) Beautiful Xmas present s being given away.—H. C. Skgers. TO Meet the Times.—l am supplying Galvanised Iron Tanks from 30s upwards, warranted for twenty years, Force pumps, deep well cylinders of all descriptions. Inspection invited.— J. W. Harpley, Eas street. 6j!201 WANTED Known.--H. Bairstow has opened those premises m East street next J. Orr and Co., as a Furniture Warehouse. Latest designs m Vienna Chairs, and Iron Bedsteads on view. Having a good stock of well seasoned figured "Rimu and Kauri, he is prepared to take orders for Furniture to ny design. Inspection invited. Ilt6l



STOCK TAKING. SEDUCTIONS HAVE - BEEN MADE ALL DEPARTMENTS. Inspection Invited. NEW ZEALAND ClothlDg Factory. W. H. WEBBER, Manager. Thk Best Remedy fob Indigestion — Norton's Camomile Pills are confidenty recommended as a simple remedy for Indigestion, which is the cause of nearly all the diseases lo which we are subjects Norton's Pills, with justice called the •Natural Strengthener of the Human Stomach," act as a powerful tonic and gentle perient, are mild m their operation, and safe tinder any circumstances. Sold m bottles, at Is l^d, 2s 9d, Us, by all medicine vendors throughout th« world "Keatisg's Powder" destroy* Bugs, Fleas, Moths, Beetles, and all other mscetff whilst quite harmless to domestic aninrv«ts, Jn exterminating Beetles the success of this fwwder is extraordinary. It is perfectly .clean m application See the article you tourehase is " Keating**/' as imitations are oxieiifl and ineffectual. Said m Tins, 6d, Is and 2s 6d each, by all chemkts. Ninwn Hyslop aild Co.'s " In.^rial" pure Ceflor And Indian Tea? *re the bes m the marfajt.—'Adv*; Ninian Hyslopwd Co.'s " Imperial" €eylon and Ir-dian Teas are direct from



Wanted. CASH Advertisements under this heading not exceeding SIXTEEN WORDS 1/-. Addresses may be left at this Office. . •; FOUND, a quantity of Binder Twine. Owner can have same on applying to Gf. H. Bryant. 1*169 MRS V. MAKEIG resumes Lessons m Pianoforte and Singing on MONDAY, February 1, Wakanui Road West. ! 16* WANTED, by one engaged m an office, Ashburton, comfortable board and lodgings within half nn hour's walk of Post Office. Apply, P.O. Box 94 1 164 "\r/ ANIED Known.—Great Bargains W now on at Melford House. Beautiful Cashmeres at Is 6d ; usual price 3s. —H. 0. Segers- TTIHIRTY Pieces Dress Goods at 6d; 60 4- Pieces French Cashmere at Is 6d, worth 3s 6d ; 1000 Yards French Tweed double width, at Is 9d, worth 3s 9d. All Dress Goods greatly reduced.—Andrew Orr's Cheap Sale. 1 m> WANTED Known.—Great Bargains iv Ladies' Cashmere Hose, Under clothing, Pinafores, &c- Come and see them. Handsome Xmas presents now giving away.—H. C s Seoers, Melford House. ; _____ BOOTS, Boots.—lnfants Boots 9d, six Dozen Ladies' Elastic Side Boots, 5s 9d, Gents' Boots 8s 6d, Mens* Blucher Boots 5s 6d, Stanley Shoes Is lid.— Asdrkw Orr's Sale^ _JL__? W" ANTED Immediately—Cottage of four or five rooms. Send particu lars to "T.H.," " Mail " office. 1 135 T\TOTHINGwiII Cool you so quickly and i-^ invigorate the system so much as Ice Cream.—H.G. Flower, Confectioner, East Street. WANTED KNOWN, a special lot of Hearth Rugs at Is lid, 2s 6d and 2s lid ; worth about doable. W. H. Collier. T"~OWELS 6d, Gloves 6d Umbrellas Is lid, Jackets 4s lid, Hats 4d, Stays Is lid, Norfolk Bodices Is 6d, Trimmed Hats Is lid. English samples of Ladies and Childrens' Underclothing Half-prTce. Andrew Orr's Sale. _____ WAN TED Known, —At "The Corner' now selling Ladies' French Shof s. 5s lid. See them.—W. H. Collier, ANTED Known.—l have a large stock of Tin and Ironware Goods to eelfict from. Register Grates, Stoves, Portable Boilers, Spouting and Ridging kept m stock.—J. W. Hardley, Last • treet. fe +202