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NEWS OF THE DAY.
The K.M.S. Oruba arrived at Adelaide,
from London shortly before 1 p.m. yester
day. Her mulls, which were forwarded by
specinl train yesterday, will bo delivered
in Melbourne to-day.
In the Legislative Assembly this week the
Laud Bill will, be tho only Item of Govern
ment business, as this measure mnst be dis
posed of before anything else can be taken
up. The uuestlou In hand Is that of per
petual leasing its contrasted with alienation,
nnd nn nmendment lias been moved by Mr.
Walt ns a means of testing tho fecll'ug of
tlie House In tlio direction of prohibiting any
further 'alienation of the lands of the colony.
This subject was discussed last week, but
the debate Is by no means exhausted. It is
hoped, however, that members will nut '
occupy time unnecessarily, but coine to a de
cision quickly. In tlie Council there nre two
bills set down for to-morrow, the Plural
Voting Abolltlou 11111 aud the Exported
Products Bill.
The Premier has received from tho ltleh-
nlond cuuncll a request tliut there should lie
a special Inquiry into the affairs of 41, e
Metropolitan Board ot Works. Tills applica
tion Is the result of thS recent exposures
and criticisms published in "The Age." Tip.
chairman or the board has nlrcndy convoyed
to the Premier tho board's resolution court-
lug this Inquiry; but Ulehuioiid Is the only
council that has yet sent. In a dumnnil for hi-
vcstlgiitlon, though many other councils
have had the subject under dlsousslou. The
Premier points out that It Is not his function
to tnkc the lultlntlve In this matter. Tim
municipalities are tbo board's constituent.,
and It is for tlicm to formulate a request for
Inquiry. Sir George 'Turner surmises that
they will hold a. conference and decide
whether to seek Investigation, nud, If so,
whnt form the tribunal should take and the
scope of its Inquiry. If this Is done lie will
be ready to do ns tliey ask, anil appoint a
committee of investigation.
The draft ot the Mont BUI was- sub
jected to revision lust week ln the Interests -
of the Muster Butchers' Association. This
association had represented to the Premier
that tlioir Interests were not sufllclentlr
safeguarded under the incnsure. and the
Premier consequently referred tho bill back
to the metropolitan moat conference, on
whose advice Hie measure Is being pre
pared, with n request that It would dis
cuss with tho Master Butchers' Associa
tion the questions which the trade wished
to have reconsidered. A meeting between
the conference unit tho Master Butchers'
Association was hold Inst week, ut the
ofllcos of the Board of Public licnltb. The
main question under consideration was as
to tho protection of the butcher iigulnst
total .loss In case of the condemnation of
a carcase, or part of a carcase, ns being
unlit for human consumption. The butchers
represented that they bought whnt they
believed to be sound animals, judging by
the external appearance. But they had nu
specinl facilities for exmnining tho nnlninls
at the time of the sale, and considered
tlmt If any of the stuck should be con
demned, compensation should bo paid for
tbc loss tlicy sustained. They did not de
sire to put tlie whole of the expense ou
to the Government or the seller of the
stock. They would bo content with sonic
scheme of mutual Insurance. After dis
cussing the question with the representa
tives of the association, the meat con
ference agreed that the butchers were en-
titled to protection, and a recommenda
tion to tlmt effect had since been forwarded
to the Premier. The conference, however,
was not able to decide ns to the moans by
which that protection should be afforded,
though it urges that It should be cither by
n system of mutual insurance or by special
legislation, ou the Hues of a bill at present
before the Legislative Council of New South
Wales.
The rublic Service Reclassification Board
lms now completed Its examination of the
positions and duties of officers 111 the Cus
toms department. This week the board will
revise the work already done and firing Its
proceedings up to date, nud next week 11 be
ginning will be miule with the staff ot the
Post and Telegraph department.
To-morrow, at 13.30, the Railways Com
mittee -will meet at I'nrllninont House lo
further consider tlie proposed railway exten
sion lo Mllilurn. An effort Is to lie made
to decide wlilch route Is the most desirable
as the through line to the settlement.
The next meeting of tho mining accident
relief fund select committee will be held on
Wednesday, at 11 a.m., when the committee
will cxnmlue fjlr B. .Benjamin, .who, as
Mayor of Melbourne, was formerly 11 mem
ber of the trust, and Is expected to Inform
the' committee how tho fund was Invested.
Mr. Drew, tlie secretary to tho trustees, Is
also I o he exuinined.
During 1111 Interview with n deputation
Inst week the Commissioner ' of Customs
slated tlmt 1m was having 11 bill prepared
for effecting some alterations I11 the tonnnge
charges levied at the- port of Melbourne. The
draft of the bill has not yet bcefi enmpleleil.
Indued, the details of the alterations which
Mr. Best intends lo submit: to (he Coblnct
for consideration lmve not yet been forum-
lilted. lltit It Is 11 mistake lo conclude that
excessive charges are uiiide against -shipping
entering' Victorian ports. The total expense
a foreign ship lms to hear oil entering a
Victorian port does not exceed the amount
Unit would be paid ut, say. Sydney or New
castle. New South Wales lms ii lower gene
ral rate, Imt other charges to which a vessel
Is subjected after entering Port Jackson
put tlmt port An 11 boot nil equal fouling
with Port Phillip. (Julte rocotilly the ton
nage charge «" " slijp entering (he local
port In ballast lias been redueed from HJil.
per ton to Id. Tbc whole tonnage collec
tions in Victoria do not amount m- more
tluiu nlioiit £1R.00() per minimi, and I Ills Is
applied to (be maintenance of coast,
hiirbur and channel lights, and beacons and
buoys. If this £18,000, or a portion ot II.
were surrendered the suui would lmve In bo
mode up from other sources. Under the pre
sent arrangement a part of It Is provided by
the subsidised foreign shipping. It Is In the
pilotage charges of the two ports tlmt the
prluclpul disparity In Ihe expense 10 ship
ping Is 'experienced. Ships calling at l'ort
Phillip require, the services of pilots for _
some 30 or 00 miles, as against r> or U at
Sydney. But apart from the pilotage ques
tion, it appears that there are several some
what anomalous charges Iu Victoria, which
press rather heavily on certain classes of
shipping, .and the bill referred to will pro
bably be restricted to' the modification ot
these. '
Throughout Australia tlio month of Au
gust was, from tlie customs revenue point of
view, ti somewhat Interesting period. All
tlie colonies, excepting West Australia,
showed Increases us compared with tho
same month of Inst year. Victoria had the
largest Increase, tbc excess Iu Its case being'
£13, (IDS. Noutli Australia, which has lately
beeu maintaining n' stationary position,
comes next, with nu Increase of £11901. New
South Wales lmil nn Increase of £77S."> ;
Queensland an Incrouso of £015(1; nnd Tas
mania an lueraaso of £193. West Australia,
the one colony exhibiting customs retro
gression, bad 11 decrease pf £30.039. These
amounts do not include -tlie excise collec
tions, lu which Victoria had n slight decrease
of £535. All tlie other colonies bad Increases,
the respective excesses being: — Queensland, ,
£4900; New South Wales, £20S2; South Aus
tralia, £334; Tnsmnnln, £2S9; and West Aus
tralia, £275. In the case of West Australia
this is the first occasion on which excise ap
pears in tlie returns, so that the amount
gtveu us .the Increase represents the total -
excise collections. The following are the
totals of the customs anil excise for the
corresponding month of 1897 aad the month
In question:— Victoria', £187,208, £200,341:
New South Wales, £132,103, £142,030;
Queensland, £112,470, £123,595; South Aus
tralia, £43,097, £53,932; West Australia,
£107, 3G5, £77,581; Tasmania, £33,152,
£33.037.
At tlie conference of the Railway Cora-
missloncrs recently held at Sydney, and nt
which Queensland, New South Wales, South
Australia aud Victoria were represented,
It was decided thiit the question of the com
petitive border rates should be remitted to
the specinl consideration of the trafllc
tnnnagcrs of the respective departments.
The understanding was that these should
iueet at one of. the capitals at au early
date for this purpose. It was further
agreed that they should deal with the ques
tion without any reference whatever to
past correspondence or negotiations lu re
spect to It, and that tbey should endeavor
to formulate a scheme which would he ap
plicable In the event of federation bciug
soon accomplished. Indeed, the idea whs

Hint tlio whole scheme should be frnmed on
Hie view that the colonies were merely the
provinces of one aggregate State, nnd not
Indeiiemleiit and rival countries, and Mint
nil elements conducing' Mr Intercolonial fric
tion should ns.fnr.au practicable be absent
from the joint recommendations. Jt _ has
iulnii arranged that this conference shall.

lie held In Melbourne during the. present
week, the first meeting to lie lield to-mor
row. As the matters at Issue between: Vic
toria, New South Walts and Snut.li Aus
tralia do not concern Queensland, the de
portment of the last iinmed colony will .not
lie represented.
The wool .truffle on the rnllwnys last week
showed an Increase of 0(120 bales, us com
pared with the corresponding week of 181)7,
400115 bales having been delivered at the
coastal termini on tills occasion, -us against
4(1,04.1 during the snme period, of last yenr.
At Melbourne and South Kensington 2S.S00
have been received, as against 23, ltd; at
Newmarket, d-thS, lis against 2000; at Wll-
llnuistown |dcr, (HOI. as ugalust 408(1; l'oi-t
Mellaiiiriie pier, 542-1, us against 8237; uud
Do-long, 11.10, as against 10711. There was of
course also an Increase in the quantity re
ceived at the bonier stations. The excess ou
this occasion was 4400 hnles, 26,333 bales
Invlng been received last week, as agnlnst
21.803 Inst year. At Wahgtinyiih, 0380 bales
hive been loaded, InBtend of -1017; at Wo-
donga, 187, Instead of 322; at Ynrrnwongit,
237-1, Instead of 1712; and at Echucn, 21,1-12,
Instead of IS, 332.
Now that suimncr Is coming round, steps
hnre been taken by the Secretary of Educa
tion to revive the movement for
the establishment of swimming classes
In connection with the Slnlc schools.
This project was brought forwnrd ut
the end of last summer, when tlic
change of season happened to be against
Its being at once carried into .effect; but It
ought to be In full force tills scuson. Some
2-1 schools In and around Melbourne have
taken It up, uud formed swimming clubs.
The committee of teachers has been called
together for the 22ud lust., at the Education
olllces, to make arrangements for initiating
the system, and opoulug the season by sonic
kind of demonstration during November.
Mr. .1. M. Sinclair, the superintendent of
ox ports In Loudon, has forwarded a report
to the Minister of Agriculture, of an inter
view with the principal In the llrm of W.
11. Aylwia and Co., canned goods brokers,
of Leudeuhall-street, respecting trade pro
spects for Vletorlnn fruit pulp duriug the
ensiling season. Tills tlrm sold the recent
consignments of raspberry pulp ut most
satisfactory prices. The gentleman .men
tioned spoke In the highest terms of tlio ex
cellent quality of the pulp received from
Victoria m March, last. To eusuro good
prices, lie said, this standard must be nulla-
tallied. He approved of'ils being made up
In 45-lb. tins, and it should arrive In London
at the middle of .Iniumry, und then on
through February and March. Canada had
lu-guu shipping raspberry pulp, but the sup
plies would cease by January, and the Vic
torian consignments would then cuinc 111.
Satisfactory prices might he expected for the
(turning season. Apricot pulp from California
was shipped la sailing vessels, and arrived
about the beginning of January. The apricot
pulp from the South of Franco anil other
Mediterranean countries was the ruling fac
ial- In prices, ami though It was tun early to
forecast the season's crop, (lie present Indi
cations pointed to fair values fur nprleot
pulp during the early part o-f next yenr. In
reference to ennnlug plums, (be merchant
spoke of the tlotden Drop variety, which
grows well In Victoria, as a favorite with
the British public. From past results and
present Indications there appears to lie a
good prospect for Victorian pulp next seh-
son. Exporters should pay particular atten
tion to the quality and cumUthm of the pulp.
Nn Inferior or danmged fruit should he used,
and every attention should he given to the
smallest detail of preparation, tinning and
packing.
'Ilut following articles of produce were ex
ported through the Department of Agricul
tures freezing chambers. Flinders-street,
daring the past two weeks:— 27th Hepl em
ber, by Illiiinlayn, Uk". Ions butler anil 1.1
eases milk; 2Slh September, by (7 til r of Hiani,
13,1X1-! pairs rnhhlts ami 240 pairs hares; -lib
October, by Oroya, 2.1,1 Ions but I or. Tlie np-
jinulmnte value. of the above shipments :wns
/II, U00.
'I he efTcels of Saturday's gale were felt
severely In llohson's liny, where work
.unnugst shipping was materially delayed.
An evidence of the force of the wind squalls
was alTordeil at P o'clock In Llm morning,
when a number of ply trucks were set
In motion by the wind mi llm Wlllhiiiislnwn
piei, and gained such momentum that the
hindmost waggons dastied against the "dead
bend, and two of them leaped the pier end
into the sea. A slalT of men was promptly
set to work on their recovery, which was
quickly accomplished. The mischievous
uii'ildling of some small hovs, eommnnlv
known as "pier rats," who lift the brake's
mi stationary trucks "for fun." Is said to
Is the primary cause of the nilslinp.
Daring lint mouth of .September the vlold
of gold r,M- Victoria amounted to 70,(1(1,1 oz.
For the nine innuthH ending wit It September
Ihcjleld reached fillO.S-M oz., which was an
ha riase of 24.77(1 oz„ or very nearly £100,1)110
worth, on the amount won in the eorresnond-
big period of 1807.
A rations illllleulty which presented Itself
la-rote the judges at an agricultural stiow Is
reported try the WouHi Australian "Itogls-
t( i ' of Friday:— "At agricultural shows,"
sals oar contemporary, "the judges of the
Morses In action gencrullly have quite
enough to do to devide upon lire merits of
the various equities without: having to
worry themselves about tire riders. At the
SI nit h .i 11 iv ri show on Thursday, however,
in the holies' hack section tlio Judges had
In critically examine one of the equestrians.
In this particular elasa (he rule states tlls-
tlnellj, 'to be ridden by it litdv.' At tbu
tjoathern show the ladles' hacks wore rid
den totmil tbe ring, nml apparently nil the
rhhis were of the fair sex. They all wore
the recognised habit nml lint, and In i no
thirl, nn one would have had any doubts as
to their bona tides. One of the riders, how-
cier. who was somewhat ungainly, excited
suspicion. The judges had a warded the horse
second pilzc, too. Mr. Kerry Smith was
determined to critically examine "her," as
' J'1'! it. The Individual In question wore
a Hflr-k veil which coneenled the race, Imt
the hack hair looked particularly robust
and Strang. Mr, Smith discovered flint the
rider laid tweed trousers on under the habit,
.tad hci hoots looked like number It's. Mr.
"n"th pat. a question to the 'lady,' and she
answered In rather hoary tones for n fe
male. To prove. conclusively the gender of
the Interesting person Mr. Smith might
nave induced him, her or It to strike ti
match, hut he didn't. He simply asked
fm the number of tbe rider's ticket. For
getful of the obstructing skirt, the 'lady'
thoughtlessly tried to put lier hand to her
brooches poeket, and She stood revealed a
mini. The second prize was thou nwnrdod
to the next horse."
The Bishop of Melbourne, Dr. Goe, re-
turned to Melbourne on Saturday after pay
ing an episcopal vlstt to Golden Square,
I .1 rauihl Hill, Maeornn, Kernng, Koon-
drook and Gunbower. He will leave town
nunlti on the 22nd for Beecliworth nnd sur-
rounding districts, uud will consecrate a
church ut Mlltiwn.
'the following transfers of station musters
were effected Inst weekt-Mr. J. O'Sulllvan,
from Glierlnghnp-to Nyom; Mr. IV. M'Cal-
um, from Cralglebnrn to Bealibn; Mr. L. W.
Crowe, from Meredith to Cralgieburn;' Mr.
1. Ivealy. from Benllbn to Mysln; Mr. A.
Allen, from Mysia to Burrumlieet; Mr. J. D.
-Morrlman, from Itnrrumbeet to Meredith.
"Hie Fitzroy branch of the A.N. A. will hold a
fflen'S'liT' n 27'h 'nSt- in ! of 0lc
Tlio Meld Naturalists' Club hold their monthly
K ? ?nn,Va!i ¥ "to"'" exhibition at the
hoyal society's ITall tills evening.
br 1?1 1 «f ".Tempernnce Society will
ibl ?Fa Hoe Temperance Ilnll to-
prepared foriio Occasion! Programme has been
The superintendent of the Royal Victorian tn-
ri.tute for the mind begs to aoknowledge w tl,
man thanks, the receipt of a gift of 5000 lb. of
split bamboo for manufacture into brushes Ac
'm Messrs. Pfaff, Plnscliol und Co., 314 Flinders'-
br. Revan is about to deliver a course of l>.
tuns oil the Principles of Religion and Ethics Tn
Jit lodcjicndcijt Ball, Russell-street, at wlileh
ntHt lifJi'W"1 is invited. Tlie flrst, on Hie
thiJ afl' rnoi'if10"' delivered at 4 o'clock
An exhibition of living pictures, illnstratino
p'lf Alcohols Victims, the Drunkard's Home
rSJid- i',sc' Pawnbroker's Shop, Gaol, and the
SinTi"!, Te'. J),' be. given under the leader-
i Tyler, in (he Temperance Ball.
ln aid of t,lc Sa,vati0"
i„„ T,''8 Ate'101; sales will include the follow-
CotilnJ T8. ,aj,'e0 an Co-> furniture,- &c„ 325
Tra'TS 11 a',n- Atc«srs. Plcaaanoc. On-
fc P-,11' '"f'fdre, I tC" Roso of Carlton
P ?,' Psbneraton-strect, Carlton, 11 a.m. Mr.
4 p£,d't'SJUre' harnC5S' &c" CliApel-

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