As a member of our staff trudged his way homewards to St Kilda at an early hour yesterday morning, he was rather surprised when he approached the engine sheds to see, in the bright moonlight, a number of young men stealing from the sheds.
Their blackened faces showed that they had been working there, and each man carried a business-looking lump of greasy waste in a strong right hand.
''There he is! Come on.'' was heard in low, laughing tones, and on looking across the road the reporter saw a man on the footpath on the Oval side, going towards Princes street south.
The ''black squad'' filed out from the engine yards in Indian file, and spread out in skirmishing order as they came ''within touch of the enemy'', who was seen to ostentatiously stoop down and pick up some road metal, in the meantime issuing a warning that the attackers ran the risk of stopping it with their heads.
There was a scramble, the pursuers were soon lost to view.
''What is the trouble?'' asked the reporter to one who early gave up the chase.
''He wouldn't sing!'' came the reply ''Wouldn't sing?'' asked the questioner in surprise.
''Yes, he wouldn't sing at supper time. He's just come on - he's a new chum.''
Enlightenment came to the reporter.
''Oh, he's getting initiated?'' he queried.
''Yes; he cleared out,'' gleefully answered the young cleaner.
''What happens to him tonight?''
''Oh, he'll get some more''
''If he sings will he be all right?'' came the next question.
''Oh, yes, he'll be all right, then!''
The incident gave rise to the thought that there is still a great deal of the primitive in man.
If a strange fowl is put into the hen-yard all the other fowls have a peck at it; if a strange animal is turned in with the rest of the bovine herd all the other cattle angrily shake their heads and give it a poke with their horns if it comes within range; and even the small schoolboy, who goes to a boarding school has to be ''ragged'' before he can be properly taken into the fold.
Darwin's theory of the evolution of man can still evidently bear a great deal more investigation.
• One of the planks of the platform of the newly formed New Zealand Natives Association (says the Dominion) is to uphold the claims of New Zealand natives for proper consideration in all spheres of life, as against the constant stream of immigrants that are pouring into the country by every steamer.
It is alleged that there are cases on record that where all else is equal the immigrant has been selected for employment when there were New Zealanders available, and in this manner certain avenues of employment are being closed to the native-born.
It is also stated that a great number of the immigrants who are assisted to come to the dominion by the Government in the belief that they on arrival will offer themselves for work on the land, congregate in the cities, and openly compete with those who may be in temporary employment, or waiting employment in certain trades.
It is the intention of the New Zealand Natives' Association to endeavour to see that the New Zealand-born shall get a ''square deal'', and when the association acquires rooms of its own, it is intended to keep an employment book, covering every avenue of employment, so that employers will not be able to say that there was no means of discriminating between the immigrant and the New Zealander. - ODT, 18.3.1914.
• COPIES OF PICTURE AVAILABLE FROM ODT FRONT OFFICE, LOWER STUART ST, OR WWW.OTAGOIMAGES.CO.NZ
