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Akaroa Mail and Banks Peninsula Advertiser, Volume 3, Issue 294, 13 May 1879, Page 2

Owing to sc-me fault' in the wires between here and Christchurch, telegraphic communication with , the rest of the eolojny has been suspended since yesterday af noon at about three . o'clock. We are therefore unable to furnish our readers with our usual. European and Australian telegrams. . , • . ~; .;

A special meeting of the Borqugh Council will be held this evening, to consider the yearly:-balancer'sheet and accounts which appear in another column. The usual fortnightly meeting of the Council takes place on the following evening. A meeting oftheAkaroia Masonic Lodge will be held this evening, at the usual time and place. The Akaroa and Wainui Road Board held its usual fortnightly meeting last evening, at the office, Duvauchelle's Bay, when a fair amount of business was transacted, but the distance from our office, and the voluminous nature of the report, taken in connection with the hour at which the meeting adjourned, precludes the possibility of. its appearing, till our Friday's issue. ' We are glad to observe that in future this will be changed, the Board reverting to its original sitting day, Saturday, as being more convenient to members, contractors, and the public, not to mention the unfortunate members of the. Press. Another improvement in the conduct of the Board's method of conducting their business is, that in future all chequos passed for payment at the Saturday meetings will be ready for delivery on the following Tuesday. Complaints have been rife on the score of people calling frequently, at great inconvenience to themselves, and their cheques not being signed. By the new arrangement we hope to hear no more of this in futtre. The .Board meets again on Saturday next, the 17th instant, at the usual hour.

The Good Templars of Pigeon Bay held their third anniversary on Thursday. There was a very large attendance. After a capital tea provided by the ladies of the Bay had been partaken of the following programme was gone through:— Address by the G.W.C.T., Bro. Innes; song, Bro. Wilkie; reading, Bra. Smith ; Song, Mr Thompson ; recitation, Bro. Pitcaithly ; song, Mies M'Kay ; reading, Mr Black; Duet by Bros. Scott and Thompson ; recitation, Bro. Newton; song, Bro. Barclay; reading, Bro. Goodwin; song, Mr Firmston ; reading, Mr. Thompson ; song, Mr Patterson; reading, Bro. G. M'Kay ; chorus, " the Emigrant Ship;" reading, Bro. Smith ; song, Bro. Thompson ; imitation, Bro. Pitcaithly ; song , , Bro. Wiikie ; reading, by Bro. Gh M'Kay. A vote of thanks to the ladies was proposed by i)rc. Robinson, and to tho visitors by Bro. Innes. The singing, of the National Anthem brought the ' proceedings to a close. The accompaniments were very nicely played by Miss Piteaithly. Aγ

usual a dance was held in the schoolroom and kept up with great spirit. A meeting of the Akaroa School Committee was to have been held last evening, but lapsed for want of a quoruai. A pressing matter, which the Committee should see to without delay, is the fencing' of the school-grotmd. The nomination of candidates for-the vacant seat." in.;the Borough Council took place yesterday, at noon. Very little interest appeared to be manifested in the event, and up to very near the hour appointed, no nominations had been received by the Returning Officer. At a low umrates before twelve a paper was. handed in signed by Messrs A. I. M'Gregor and A. Rodrigues, nominating Mr P. O'Reilly for the vacant post. No other candidate being proposed, the Returning Officer declared Mr O'Reilly duly elected. Mr O'Reilly has served before in the same capacity, and will, no doubt, prove himself a useful member of the i Council, '

A melancholy case of suicide took place on Saturday last in Christchurch. It appears that Dr Moritz Mark went to his consulting room on the morning , of that day with the avowed intention of making out some accoutits.7- -Shortly afterwards, on a ■patient callingto,see him, his wife went to the door and w.as isurprised to find it 4 locked. On looking in at the window, the doctor was observed stretched upon the floor. An entrance was effected, and Mrs Mark, under the impression that her husband, was in ;,a -fit, endeavored to restore animation liy pouring some brandy down his throat., _ Dxs Prins and Patrick arrived shortly afterwards, and pronounced. lif,e to beextincT. /Th| deceased gentleman left a letter *behirid him, in which tie states that he had taken chloral and morphia. Dr Patrick expressed the opinion that the symptoms exhibited by deceased were such as would have been caused by the use of these drugs. Dr Mark lately resigned his position on the staff of the Christchurch Hospital. Pecuniary embarassment appears to have been the* cause of the fatal act.

This is how a contemporary one aspect of the Governor's late'visit to Christchurch :—" We do not believe that Christchurch and neighborhood were lever so convulsed before by social gush j and snobbish ferment as it has been during the last few days. His Excellency Sir Hercules Robinson,.family and suite, who : must have heard ere this of the patrician "side" which certain Christchurch. folk lay claim to disport, must indeed be now fully convinced that report had not belied them. Of course we make no allusion to the honest crowds 'who,, always gla4.pl some excuse for a holiday, desired to have a peep at the Gubernatorial and take a passmgiook at "the new Governor.' It is to the shoddyism of the many parvenus who of late years have so pleasantly dazzled the" popular eye, that we make reference. The brushing up; of " store " clothes, as our American coufiins have it; the furbishing up. of those laws of social deportment read of in yellowbacked novels ; and particularly the painfully ingenious devices to procure admission within the magic circle within wlu'iih , —and no further—the aristocratic effulgence of the iioble guest radiates, made more than one heart ache and many cheeks burn. And a rather, good " yarn "is now.. mysteriously penetrating into unhallowed places. It is a true one; - we believe, and there lies its real merit, as the elements for its being based oh fact substantially exist. A certain official host of his Excellency had for some time past been looked at de trovers by a considerable section of the Christchurch j&pwjj ton. /Thesemembers of the elite, for reasons best known to themselves, had agreed to raise between him and them that filmy, yet substantial: barrier which certain adepts in rules of society do erect at times " when the wind blows not fair." The matter had long beeii settled e'etait fini. Sir Hercules/; however, also for reasons best known to himself, accepted the semi-official hospi- ; tality o£ the '■ Laird of Coventry." .„ Festi-< vitiea followed. Invitations were Here was a quandary. The temptation of basking in Gubernatorial sunshine and of participating in all the intoxicating con-, comitants which follow was very, very great. . Was the_filniy : barker to be torn down ? There was, un|or.ttjimtel|:JV9 timie

to lose—and it was cast asunder, bY one .and all, "and e^ei^Hthing«jvent oh as merrily "as 'marriage JThe4' Laird of Coventry " has ever since T?orn ajjseaceably sardonic grin although bis kri6#|edge of human nature has not increased orie bit. When the cup is fall there; is ho robih for more, i i • At the meeting of the Presbytiery of Christchurch, held on Thursday, the Bth instant, inter alia, a letter w;as read of application from the Rev. Brownfow Jas. Westbrooke, for admission into the ministry of the Presbyferiaft Church. " Certificate from brethren in . Auckland, ■. and excerpt minute containing resolution accepting his resignation from the \Primxtive Methoilist Association were* alsQ* , read. After deliberation,. Mr Ehnslie v lMoved— " Thai tho application of Mr Westbrpoke be received ; "that a committee, consisting ox the Moderator, the cierk, arid the mover bo appointed to con.for with him, and to report to next meeting, and that meanwhilo Mr V/estbrooke be employed as a preacher within the bounds of the-Pres-bytsry." Mr MKUallum seconded, and it was carried. It was further resolved that Mr Westbrooke be appointed in the meantime to labor in the Ashburton district.