The Akaroa Mail. TUESDAY, JULY 1

Akaroa Mail and Banks Peninsula Advertiser, Volume 3, Issue 308, 1 July 1879, Page 2

The Akaroa Mail. TUESDAY, JULY 1

tThe half-yearly meeting of 1 the Loyal Hand in Hand Lodge, 1.0.0.F.,M.U., was held in the Lodge-room, Little Akaloa, on Friday evening last for the election of officers and other business. The following brothers were installed as officers for the ensuing term :—W. Ashton, Grand Master; Bobert Rix, Noble Grand and Lecture Master ; C, Fitzpatrick, Vice Grand ; and W. Willis, C.S. The financial position of the lodge was considered highly satisf ac tory. The Akaroa and Wainui Road Board held a meeting on Saturday last. Owing to the severity of the weather our representative was not present, in fact we did not think that a quorum of members would put in an appearance. However the Chairman and Messrs M'Donald and Curry were at their post, despite the storm, and a considerable amount of business was transacted. A resume* of the proceedings shall appear in our next issue. Mr W. Wright, of French Farm, lost a valuable Berkshire boar on last Wednesday. It appeals that Mr J. M'Niel observed the pig asleep, and went down and got Mr Baker and scholars to go tor him, which they did, under the impression that the animal was a wild one, and succeeded in killing him. It is a great pity, as he was a splendid animal, bred by the Messrs Hay Bros., of Pigeon Bay. The incident has inspired a local poet, who indites a lay descriptive of it as follows:— WHO SHOT THE PIG. (Air—" Mulligan Guards.") Come all you Akaroaites, and a story I'll relate, That happened in a valley on the French Farm Estate; It was about the middle of a lovely winter's day, There came a gallant servant man who to his boss did say— Oh, hasten master, come with me, unto you I will show A pig the like of which you've never seen, I know. He sleeps upon the hill-side, just close to W -m W 1, So bring along your warriors bold, we'll have a gallant fight. Chorus. They shouldered guns and gaily marched away, ; From the schoolhouse right up the Bay, With their guns upon their shoulders, To show where they came from, They marched, marched, did B 's guards. Then B——r, not the Pasha though, to his army he did say— Come, let the drawing lessons rip, we'll have some sport to-day. Let Nigger loose, he'll track him quick— your guns, boys, quickly load ; Some of you take up the hill, I'll go by the road. At length they got upon the track, it was not small, I ween, They followed it for half a mile, it could be plainly seen. Then J McN—-1 he took command, he'd vowed the boar to kill- - Come, follow me my noble band, I sco him on yon hill. They shouldered guns, &c. There, sure enough, the pig was seen asleep upon the land— We'll have him, be careful, was the captain's first command. Alas ! poor Jack, he little thought his fate it was so nigh, He'd wandered rather far from home, too far away to die, No living pigs around him to soothe his aching brow, Oh, weep for him ye captain Cooks, in mourning dress his sow. The captain's gun was quickly raised, the bead true from his eye. A flash—the bullet it has sped, and Jack has got to die. They shouldered guns, &c. The dogs let loose, he rushes them, and struggles hard for home, Alas! alas! 'twas all in vain, for he has met his doom. . Fire, fire and kill him—shoot him—kill him, boys, we must; Another shot, another life, and Nigger bites the dust. There's trouble brewing now, I know, I hear the mako cry, And mourning voices seem to speak from out the cloudy sky. My dog, my dog, the captain said—alas! he's dead 1 Ho! water—water, quick my boys, bring, softly raise his head. Halloa! my hearties, what's up, Wright William he did say— " A pig hunt we've been in for, and a boomer we did slay ; He's here, just follow me, to you I'll quickly show, He's as big a one as e'er I seen "-—" Now that'll do, don't blow. That boar you've killed belongs to me, he's dead upon the ground, And for him last week I did refuse the sum of fifteen pound. Dear pork it is for you, I know—it is dear pork, I trow." Oh ! weep for him, ye captain Cooks, in mourning dress his sow. Slowly and sadly they all marched home, From the scene of this battle gory ; They spoke not a word, but carried the dog, And left the pig in his glory. MORAL. Ye sportsmen, Cockney if you are, a warning take- by me, And with tame pigs and Berkshire boars do not make too free ; For if you do you arc sura to rue, its anything but grand, • For you'll have to pay for sporting on other people's land. V, _*. i^Hapork.

We hear that the objections under tbe Land Tax Act for tho Borough of Akaroa amount to two. One of them, strange to. say, objects to his property not being valued high enough by £55. This is not one of the Valuer's usual failings andia. probably unique in the history of the Land Tax Department,•; as far as.'its present existence goes.' Iri the Akaroa and Wainui Road district there are 13 objections mostly in the shape of corrections of descriptions, &c. Strange to say the large holders'of land in Little River Valley, with all the prospects of a railway before them, depreciate the value-of/their lands to !a little over Government price.' A gentlenian whose property has been placed at the nett value of £750, claims a deduction of £750, and this result' is j arrived at by the assistance of a legal gentleman. To save the unhappy owner trouble and expense, he might as well, like the darki'e and the conundrum, " give it up." A meeting of the Mutual Improvement Association takes place to-night. The Rev. H. Stocker is to open the ball by an essay on "amusements," which will be followed by discussion. We hope to see a numerous attendance, and that the association will receive the support of everyone who has anything to learn or anything by communicating which he can benefit his fellows. ,:.'... ■..->.: . We have to record a falal accident as a result of the severe storm of Saturday night. It appears that four men were residing in Holmes' Bay,-engaged in falling bush for Mr Mackintosh. Three of them lived in one tent, and the fourth, a young man: named William Bamford, in another tent by himself. Between twelve and one of the night of Saturday, the three men were awakened by hearing a creaking noise, and jumping up, managed with considerable difficulty to. extricate themselves from the tent they occupied. On looking round they saw that the tent occupied by their unfortunate comrade had entirely disappeared under a landslip, and in a few seconds their own tent was completely swept away. The survivors proceeded at once for assistance, and on returning dugout the body of their mate, which was found to have been fearfully crushed, a large limb' of a tree being found lying across the chest. Yesterday an inquest was held on the body, at the Pigeon Bay Hotel, before J. Aylmer, Esq., Coroner, and jury, when a verdict of " Accidental Death " .was ■ returned. Deceased was a very steady young man, and his family are old residents in Lyttelton, whither the body Was removed' for interment as soon as the necessary enquiry was over. Under date Timaru, June 26, we learn that the case Court v Studholme, was unexpectedly brought to a close to-day. It has been nine days before the Court, and about sixty witnesses have been examined. There were about thirty more witnesses forihe defendant, but Mr Macassey this morning intimated that he.would close the case. Mr Macassey spoke in addressing the jury two hours, and Mr Joynt two hours and a half, the Judge spoke one hour and a half, but did not read "the evidence. The jury retired at'five o'clock. After an absence of three hours and three-qaurters, they returned, .; when tho. Foreman announced that they had agreed to a' verdict for plaintiff for £484. Mr Macassey gave notice that he would move for a nonsuit, and the date for making the motion was fixed tor the first banco sitting at' Christchurch after next circuit at Christchurch. The Court then adjourned to Tuesday, 15th August.