The Akaroa Mail. TUESDAY, JULY 15.

Akaroa Mail and Banks Peninsula Advertiser, Volume 3, Issue 312, 15 July 1879, Page 2

The Akaroa Mail. TUESDAY, JULY 15.

The fourth session of the sixth" Parlia-r mept of New Zealand was opened on Friday last. In the Legislative Council, Sir .William. Fitzherbert banded the Clerk ; his; commission as Speaker, and took the chair. The commission, appointing Sir William Fitzherbert, .the non Colonel Whitmore, the Hon Major Richmond,C. 8., and Sir F. D. Bell, Commissioners,, to open Parliament, was then read, and the House of Representives having been first summoned to attend, Sir W. Fitzherbert informed both :Houses that- His Excellency Avould on Tuesday .declare to them his rea eon for calling them together, and the members of the House of Representatives were sent back to their Chamber, with instructions to elect a Speaker. The only other business in the. Council was the swearing in of the Hon P. In the House of Representatives Major Campbell, Clerk of the House, occupied his chair-, and under a special Commission swore in Mr ■J. S. Shanks (Mataura), Mr Jackson (Hutt), and Mr D.' Goidie (Auckland' .City West).' The House then proceeded to the election of a Speaker. Sir G. Grey, in a highly eulogistic speech, proposed Mr 'G-.- M. O'Rorke. The nomination was seceonded by Major Atkinson. The motion was carried unanimously, after which Mr O'Rorke returned thanks for the honor done him, and Mr Whitaker, as the oldest the House prsent, congratulated the honorable member on his elevation to the purple. Both Houses then adjourned till this day, when they will be formally opened by commission.

Mr M'Grath'a workmen on Saturday succeeded in making an opening from Lake Ellesnicrc to the sea, and at the lime of our informant leaving on that afternoon, tho Lake was running out. It is feared, however, that the S.E. weather of Sunday, and yesterday may have again closed tho opening. This Lake is, however, not by any .means high, not anything like up to its usual winter level. Lake Forsyth, on the other hand, is lower than the oldest inhabitants car. recollect its ever being, even in summer, in fact it now stands about high water level, the lowest posssibie level it can ever attain by drainage. The operation of letting out this lake after the storm of last Saturday fortnight lias been a great success. An opening of live chains wide through, the shingle bank now connects the lake with the sea, and tho rush of the waters of the lake through the first opening are described by an eyewitness as simply grand.

A very melancholy case of death from exposure took place on the night of Friday last, near Kaituna. The particulars, as far as we have been able to gather them, are as follows ; —The victim was a man named Ernest Lewis, who was working on Mr Parkinson's station, Kaituna. He was a married man, with three children. On the day in question the children were sick, and the father started for Governor's Bay to fetch some spirits for use medicinally. In returning he had to cros3 a creek no less than seven times. The night was very inclement, and after reaching a spot within half-a-mile of the station, the unfortunate man appears to have succumbed to cold and exhaus. tion, as he was found the next morning lying dead at tho spot mentioned. The matter was at once reported to the police, and in consequence the Coroner went over to Little River yesterday. An inquest wiil be held to-day. We are informed that tho spirits which tho unfortunate man was bringing homo were found untouched in his pocket.

We understand that Mr Crawford, one of Mr Hardy Johnston's assistant's, is; pro-* gressing with the survey'of the railwaytowards Akaroa as fast as the present wintry weather will allow. We believe that Mr Johnston himself, when down on the Peninsula tho other day, fixed upon the particular gully through which the tunnel will pass. The gully selected is the middle one of the three at the top of the Little River Valley, and lies to the north of Harman's track. The particular points at which tho line will enter and come out are still, of course, matters of survey; but it is satisfactory to learn that the work is progressing. It does not do always for persons to express their ideas as to how the native difficulty should be settled. Jones, a captain of a dug out trading to the Wellington Heads for rock cod, and Robinson, the bum bailiff, were in the Queen's Hotel, Wellington, the other night laying out plans for the guidance of the Govermeut on this head. Says Jones, after taking a sip of Staples, " Look hero, it's no use sugaring and flouring the natives ; tliere is only one way to settle v/ich him, just tap him on the nose first and talk to him afttrwudo ' "Oh, no, = \s R/n c, i "do £>s I does I i-ds n i on if ' < fitbt, a d tlun til c t i i uiti UA i J ii lib i.J i Inc i i *]|J1 -*n vi 1 v luil l (. I i 0 i i v l ut, i

Wo notice from the report of the Christchurch Presbytery, of last week that the Rev. Mr Tout, formerly of the Congregational Church, has intimated his wish to study for the Ministry of the Presbyterian "Church. Thi:r'is tfie\lhifd acquisition to tl/e Presbyterian Church from other bodies" in New .Zcalaij(j!,'.\vithin thclast few weeks. ' Tho adjourned meeting of tlie' Borough Council which was to have been hiild_ bn Friday evening lapsed for want"*-of' a quorum. These- frequent failures of meetings are very annoying to those who do take the trouble to attend, and have a tendency to made it a more and, more difficult matter'to obtain a quorum, a.s councillors are always in doubt whether their attendance will secure a meeting or not. Last night another 'abortive attempt was" made to hold a meeting, with no better success than on the pfevious : "occasions. The members putting in an appearance yesterday evening were hia Worship, and Crs Meech, O'Reilly and Cullen. His .Worship; after waiting the' statutory period, adjourned the meeting until Thursday evening. . ~-,.

It has been suggested-to us-by a number of persons travelling between Akaroa and the Head, of the Bay, that the Road Board might take some steps to make" the-cross-ings belo,w the bridges in German, Robinson's, and Duvaucelle's Bays alittle mbre : passable tban-they are at present. It will no doubt be some time before the necessaryrepairs are effected on these bridges, and during the time,horsemen hav.e to.pass at all hours" and stages of the tide. After dark and at" high water the crossing in Robinson's and-Duvauchelle's Bays are especially dangerous, 'if the'stumps', and large boulders were removed, in the places indicated, -which is only the work of a few hours, the present difficult- fords would be much improved. At German Bay bridge we notice somo very clever engineering in tho way of supporting the wrecked structure, but could some-tiling not be done to improve the approaches to the creek, for " the bridge is broken, &c." .