UNDER THE MICROSCOPE.

Manawatu Times, Volume III, Issue 12, 11 December 1878, Page 2

UNDER THE MICROSCOPE.

BY MAGGUFPIN.

o"A chiel's amang ye takin' notes, An* faith he'll prent 'em.",

Tltere are some persons who m matters of an insignificant nature are scrupulously conscientious, yet when tho interests involved are 'of any * magnitude are by no -means so very punctilious. ' A friend of mine," a "'representative of the class, was indebted to' a Boniface at a distance : to! the extent of a solitary sixpence. So heavilvj did the' weight of the obligation prey upaji his mind, that his conscience could hot be'quieted until steps had been ■ taken for its liquidation.'' With this end in" view, he daily enclosed m a' letter the amount m the' coin of the' realmA The steps taken) however, was not done quietly, as ho was not one bf those who believe m doing such actions by stealth, and tlie refunding of the tanner, was widely circulated. Amongst others I was informed, of what he was abeu'.t to dp, so IJ determined to put a very good, test to,' the bjpna] fides of my friend's boasted scrupulous 'oopspientioqsness. I, informed him that, it was. a fraud on the postal , attthorities to enclose money, as the stamp on the letter was not sufficient for., the carriage of the money inserted therein.' Strange to say, he. was unable to see the matter in 'that light, so m conformity with Mb peculiar ethics^' the' money" was despatched." The cr£a~* of the joke, however, was that the postal authorities discovered ; that the letter contained money, and it was not; paid/ to Boniface until "he' had paid over one shilling, 'claimed as ".compulsory registration.'/ I lia^e my' own opinion about such consientiousness, and anyone who was listening for about ope hour -to 'the*, creditor ; who had been so honestly paid, would nave come to the conclusion that he also hold* opinions, and. very 'strong ones^ on the subject. A ' A'"' ' '„ '■':•' --• ■'''' '' '' ■;"" I am not a, religious man ; I grieve to say so, but a respect for the truth compels me to moke the admission ;: nevertheless, I will yield to; no • man ni'- respect" for those, who are blessed with religious convictions, and being ; bo, not YiguUy ap.4 consistently up to them i and, to a very great extent, would I do vtojenaj| to, ntf, own, inclinatipiis, rather *

than outrage their sense of propriety. Notwithstanding this, however, the standard by which. I judge men's purity 19 not an ordinary one, and he who doth protest the most does not by any means stand the highest m my estimation — actions rather than allegations being the only coin which will pass current. I find that a large, portion of your columns has been devoted to a wordy warfare between the Sabbatarians and their foes, m which soaie very hard and ungenerous things have been said by the former against those who do not hold the same opinions as themselves. Amongst others who have come under the ban is Mr Halcombe, who has been denounced m strong terms for doing what, to my dull i comprehension — notwithstanding the tirade which has been written about it — still appears a generous and praiseworthy action, and one which should secure him commendar tionj rather than reprobation. Mind do nof'know whether Mr Halcombe be guilty of the crime (?) attributed tq him, but at the risk of incurring an attack, I must confess that if such be the case, Mr Halcombe has ascended a round m the ladder of my estimation. A proper observance of the Lord's Day is most commendable, but even m my limited experience I have known persons' who' would hold up their hands m pious horror at a game of cricket o.r draughts, and still have, no hesitation to sit down and quietly pick to pieces the characters oE their neighbors, after the manner of the Pharisee m the Gospel. Manly exercise is a mortal sin ; bub secret slander and brotherly backbiting, particularly if the subject be' a blaok sheep,' is a praiseworthy pastime. Of course , it will be said, m reply to this charge, that " two'blacks do not make a white, &c. " but notwithstanding those hackneyed proverbs, my experience t^as heen that those who will deny themselves outdoor' exercise on the Sabba.th, console themselves with lauding their' own virtues at the expense of their neighbors' characters. Of course I do not mean to say that all Sabbatarians are such. God forbid ; for there are some — aye even m this town — m whose sincerity I steadfastly believe, and whose goodness I heartily envy j but those are. nqt the persons who rush into print to openly denounce what their hearts, may condemn '; neither are they the persons who sit m secret judgment upon their brothers' errors.' No, they are the silent workers m the Lord's Vineyard, who*? great le.ver m the work; of Salvation is the force of their own good examples. I do not say that cricket, or foqtball, or any other kindred game, should 'be played, on Sunday ; but Ido say that a man may indulge m such pastimes and still be a worthy member of society! and whot is more, a good Christian ; while there are many who would be scandalised at such actions, and while keeping the one, break with impunity the other nine Commandment's. I speak feelingly on this point, as I have not been without my experience of a 'certain class of Sabbatarians. Perhaps the greatest rebuke I ever, received was for proposing to settle : a little business matter, on Sunday. The holy man rjead me such a lecture as covered me with shame on the Sabbath for my ungodly suggestion ; hut the holy man taught 1 me a different lesson on Monday, giving me a practical example of lying and cheating. ' An interesting' extract from a Blue Book . informs me how much the countiy has to pay for the honor of having a "Hansard" and another interesting item— not m the Blue 800k — informs nic that the same publication cannot be published because the Pre- , mier and some other orators will not return their corrected speeches. This has sot me Jto^nilosophjsA^onsiderablejOiilv to arrive at the conclusion That tlKS'slsmo - """Ilansawl "-■ is utterly worthless for the end which it is „ supposed to serve ; that its reports are cor- : rect records of what hon. members did, not say ; and, m short, that it i 3 nothing mora nor iess than "a mockery, a, delusion, and a .snare," The hon. member for Shrimptown ■ rises to support a. measure, and he doessp with most commendable brevity, a^fter the Jack-in-the-Uox style, but the hon. member has " caught the Speaker's eye," been on his legs, and asks, for a proof of his speech. . When it is returned to the printer it'contains what he would have said — had he been lable— or possibly omitting a 1 great deal of ' what he really did, say. In Dr. Johnsc'n's time the debates were' reported somewhat" differently, "and the English "Hansard" of his day owes many a' page of its reports : to tlie originality of the great lexicographer. His method, was this : he would send a messenger who would roport the subjects m debate, and give the nambs, of the • speakers, when the accommodating; Doctor would draw upon his imagination and versatility for their eloquenoe, and, as subjects were usually handled with an ability ' beyond the range of hon. members', the lijberty, was never resented, and they meekly stood sponsors for the speeches Btanding to their names.