Smoke-Ho June 29, 1895.

*THE WORKER*

BRISBANE, JUNE 29, 1895.

Smoke-Ho.

TWENTY-TWO Kansas newspapers are edited by women.

A MINER'S wife in Creswick (Vic.) has given birth to a quartet of children – two boys and two girls.

IT is said that kanakas were first introduced into Queensland in 1867 and employed on a Darling Downs station.

MR. W. G. Spence, secretary Shearers' Union has resigned his position as a councillor of the Creswick (Vic.) Borough Council.

WHEREVER the voice of the Mallee (Vic.) farmer is, heard he is declaring in favour of perpetual leasing under State ownership.

A SMART little Japanese doctor now practises the profession of sawbones at Thursday Island.

THE Building Committee of the new Roman Catholic Church, Murphy's Creek, has publicly thanked Mr. W. M. Lovejoy for a cask of beer. Fact.

MR. Grimes will be pained to hear that, according to Reynolds Newspaper, the Duke of York was hooted at Sheffield by a crowd of ironworkers.

OF £21,000 held in the reconstructed Colonial bank at Bendigo £10,000 belongs to the Roman Catholic church authorities and £5000 to the Miners' Association.

MICHAEL Davitt was asked to stand for Parliament by nine labour constituencies in England, and refused, preferring to fight for the people outside of parliament.

IT is rumoured that if M'Ilwraith is fit he is to be Queensland's next Agent-General in London. Gerrick is at present supposed to be keeping the seat warm for him.

THE Labour Party in Melbourne intend to invite Michael Davitt to dine with them for the purpose of honouring the great Irishman and exchanging views over Labour questions.

THE real Labour members in Victoria would seem to consist of the seven Trades Hall members, together with Hamilton of Bendigo and Dr. Maloney of West Melbourne.

THE candle manufacturers of Melbourne solemnly deny that there is a “ring” in their industry. Which is one of the principal reasons why the public believe there is. Me thinks they do protest too much!

STRONG efforts are being made by the monetary influence in Victoria to impede the progress of the local beet sugar-growing industry. Australian capitalism is pooling in the interest of slave-grown products.

A BANK director by false balance sheets robs his trusting depositor of say £1000. We will suppose that he is taking the amount home in a bag when a footpad snatches the money. Query: Which is the greater robber.

DIBBS became famous through damning Chicago; he has completely damned Parkes, and now both suffer the tortures of the damned whilst Porkopolis, looking on, chuckles to Sir Geo: Curses come home to roost, you old crower!

THE coroner of Auckland has got into hot water through being over particular whilst conducting an inquest on the body of a man who died suddenly of heart disease. He had the heart of the deceased served up on a plate for the inspection of the jurymen.

UNFORTUNATELY the present political crisis in Great Britain may have the effect of cutting short the tour of Michael Davitt in Australia. Queenslanders would like to hear a few words from him before he goes, should he have to leave in a hurry, to do battle with the enemies of Ireland.

AT a recent meeting of the Tinaroo Divisional Board one of the members moved that in future all meetings be opened with prayer. The chairman candidly admitted that he was afraid they were all too wicked to do any good in that line. The Tinaroo Board then voted that it would have nothing to do with the prayer, and it was “putt” down.

N.S.W. PREMIER Reid's anxiety for the appointment of a governor could be attributed to an intention to have a British Government nominee present in the fight which is taking place between the Assembly and Council over the land tax and Freetrade proposals. It is questionable if any of the lieutenant governors in the colonies are as liberal as the imported governors.

LAURENCE Benjamin, owner of a block of property on the corner of Elizabeth and Bourke street, Melbourne, paid income tax on £25,000 for 1894. Just think hard on the condition of a world which gives one man about £500 per week (and steadily increasing in amount) whilst there are from 10,000 to 15,000 bread winners and their families on the verge of starvation.

DR. Louis Robinson writing in “Blackwood's Magazine” on Trades and faces, and describing mouths, says that the nonconformist mouth tends to be more lax than, say, the the mouth of a High Church curate. That's all very well, but the doctor would be surprised if he had a look at the cavity under the Colonial Secretary's nose. That's the spot where there is an immensity of “laxity” if you like.

M. ALPHONSE Daudet, in speaking of London to a Daily Graphic interviewer, said: “We can show you in Lyons, Marseilles, and Roubaix much more terrible sights than I have seen in Whitechapel. One thing, however, has interested me very much. I have seen the characters of Dickens in the flesh. I have recognised them in the gamins, in the ragged girls dancing jigs to the tunes of the hurly-gurdies, in the portly and prosperous shopkeepers – even in the trim servant girls.”

AT Christie's auction mart, London, last month, says Reynolds, an enormous crowd gathered to witness the passing over by the famous pearl necklace, lately owned by the Duchess of Montrose. This necklace was sold in compliance with the will of the late Duchess, and its proceeds are to be devoted to the East end poor. The bidding commenced at £3000, speedily visiting to £7500, and competition was very keen. Mr. C.J. Hill finally purchased the bauble for the substantial sum of £11,500.

THE South Brisbane Municipal Council alleges that it has been had badly by the Victoria Bridge Board over a land booming speculation amounting to £10,000. Eager inquiries are being made for the person or persons through whom the sale was made, as it is asserted that about three times the value of the land has been paid for it. One aldermen stated that it is said the sale of the property was negotiated through J. R. Dickson and Co., and he thought Mr. Dickson should be given an opportunity to refuse the statement.

WRITES our N.Z. Special: Who says the colonial youngster neglects passing events for the career of Deadwood Dick or the Plated Pirates of the Prairie! Just read this account taken from a country paper in this colony and say whether there isn't at least one Democrat in the circle in which all are supposed to be Tory, the schoolboy: “When Mr. Hill was examining the upper standards at the Woodville school in history he asked them what the three states of the constitution were. They gave 'The Governor' and the 'House of Representatives' correctly and promptly, 'Yes,' said Mr. Hill, ' now what is the other?' 'The House of Conservatives, sir' said one bright youth. 'One of the best answers I have ever heard to the question,' said Mr. Hill.”