Smoko-Ho June 15, 1895.

*THE WORKER*

BRISBANE JUNE 15, 1895.

Smoko-Ho.

THE executive appointed by the Michael Davitt Reception Committee in Brisbane, in compliance with the wishes of Mr. Davitt, have written to various centres in Queensland with a view of making his lecturing tour as successful as possible.

Tom Houghton is one of the secretaries to the Michael Davitt reception committee in Sydney – a good omen for the success of the reception. The old Sydney Trades and Labour Council lost its best officer when Houghton was elected to Parliament in 1891.

IN consequence of a secret meeting of bankers having taken place in Sydney, the general public are hereby warned not to allow themselves to be again caught by the confidence trick. If there is any spare coin floating about just plank it into a State bank, where it can be found when wanted.

WHEN a motion for the suppression of gambling was being discussed before the South Brisbane Municipal Council, Alderman Heaslop very pertinently pointed out that all business was more or less a game of chance right through. Right you are, Heaslop, old boy! All private industry is indeed a huge gamble.

THE sick Children's Hospital Committee appeal to the public to give what they can towards the fund for the maintenance of the hospital. As the Sick Children's Hospital is not an institution which can be used as some other charitable institutions are – for the purpose of sweating the labour of the inmates – we have much pleasure in publishing the committee's appeal.

DENMARK has a novel way of dealing with drunks. When one is found in the streets he is rushed into a cab by a policeman and brought to the lock-up. When sober the policeman escorts him home in a cab. Then the bill is sent in for police expenses, cab fare, &c., to the public house man who sold the last glass of snake juice to the drunk. And the bill has to be paid, too!

THE hon. Colonial Secretary, in reply to a deputation of prisoners at St. Helena, re the stoppage of tobacco, told the deputation, with his usual veracity, that the ex-union prisoners were responsible for the stoppage, as they went about the country telling people that through one man giving another tobacco men lost their mitigation. “You can thank the union prisoners for the stoppage of the tobacco,” said the truthful Colonial Secretary.

IN reply to a question in the N.S.W. Assembly it was stated that the Government paid for the hire of carriages to enable barristers to attend the Governor's levee. The legalised jawsmiths get home on the public every time they have the chance, whether it is in a Robb case or securing a ride in a carriage at the expense of the tax-payer. It's all the same to the members of the honourable profession of the Devil's Brigade.

WHEN Colborne stood as Labour candidate for the Valley, in 1888, he addressed an audience in which there happened to be a powerful brewer's drayman, who had been imbibing freely during the day, and was perspiring profusely, great beads of sweat falling from his face. As Colborne came to that part of his address dealing with the sweating system, which Colborne said should be stopped, the brewer's man mopped his brow and exclaimed, “The Lord save us! Would the gentleman prevent a man from sweating?”