The Minister of Public Works was guided by the opinion of the usual officers of the depart ment, which ho has stated woro confirmed by other inquiries he made; and Mr Brewer, the land purchase officer (who had only re cently arrived in the district),- was guided by the property tax valuations and we consider his conduct throughout the negotiation quite free from blame. Wo entirely acquit Heirnan of any complicity in any attempt to defraud the Government, and we consider his excessive valuation, which he expected Mr Stark to object to, was prompted by his desire to serve the interests of his department. It is impossible to forecast what might have re sulted from an appeal to the Compensation Court. Alison and Sheman applied for costs, but we declined to award costs against any party, and leave it for the Govern ment to determine whether these ollicers are entitled to compensation for thoir ex penses of attending the inquiry

"THE GREAT PINK PEARL."

Perhaps one of the most important pre-

liminaries to formiug a judgment upon the merits of a play is to consider first what the said

play is, or aims at being. We then kuow what should justly be expected of it, and are generally able to decklo pretty easily whether it is good, bad, or indifferent of its class. People who after witnessing " Saints and Sinners" leave the theatre under the impression that the piece " belongs to a class of melodramas,'' will perhaps come to the no more extraordinary conclusion that " The Great Pink Pearl" is a comic opera or a Greek tragedy. However, it is neither. It contains tho materials of a French vaudeville

ireated by English authors much after the

foreign model. It is only of recent years that the effervescent entertainment derived from such pieces as this hus been made to extend over three acts, and we have arrived as the result at the new type of stage play dubbed "farcical comedy." The increasing popularity of these productions upon the Euglish stage is obvious enough, and the article is certain to be forthcoming; in any quantities as long as there is such a ready market for it as exists at present. 