The Akaroa Mail. TUESDAY, MARCH 1.

Akaroa Mail and Banks Peninsula Advertiser, Volume V, Issue 480, 1 March 1881, Page 2

The Akaroa Mail. TUESDAY, MARCH 1.

Owing to the departure of the Rev. W. Douglan from Akaioa, tho whole of his household furniture will be sold by auction The Bale is announced to take place at noon to-day, on the premises, the Manse, Bal guerie-street. Besides the furniture, a horse, saddle and bride will also be offered. We would remind our readers of the social gathering which is announced to tuke place on Thursday evening next, for the purpose of bidding farewell to the Rev W. Douglas, who is at>out quitting the district for another sphere of labor. A number of ministers and others are expected to address the meeting, and an attractive musical programme has been arranged, so that no doubt the expectation of the pro motors of a full attendance will be realised. Tickets may be obtained at the various stores, and at the hall on the evening of the soiree. Last season a Leeston farmer was offerered Is lid per bushel for his barley. Thinking it insufficient, he sent the barley Home, where it realised 2s 9k<l clear of all charged. Last week a genuine Chinese woman lauded on the Wellington Wharf, and attracted a gr"at deal of attention. We believe she is the first Chinese woman in the Empire City. A murder lias been committed at Tβ Aroha, near Grahamstown, of which the victim was a Maori named Uamiona Haere ProcofEy, a Russian Fin, is in custody and under examination on suspiaion of being the perpetrator of the crime. AMr Brassey is acting as legal adviser for the accused. Wβ learn that this gentleman has been threatened with violence if ho defends the prisoner. Intimation wat> conveyed to him from Pinha, the chief of the Ngahiko tribe. This circumstance reminds us of a similar one which occurred some years ago, the two tending to show that human nature is mu-.h the same whether clothed in broadcloth and fine linen, or in —nothing particular. In 1868 in Sydney an attempt was made to assassinate the Ouke of Edinburgh. Such ft reign of terror was established that no local borrisfer could be found euffi 'iently courageous to ''crept a brief on behalf of the prisoner,and Mr Aspinal! wns procured from Melbourne Por the defence. The Sydney elite, noting like the noble aavagn in the present instance, black-balled Mr Aspinall at their club, expecting no doubt effusive gratitude fruui the Duke for their suptjfine loyaltyj They iuust,however, nave felt uncommonly as if they had received morally a slap in Hie face when H.R.H. invited tho obnoxious lawyer to dinner !

It is reported by the Titnaiu Herald that Mr Franks, of Teuiuka, shipped for Sydney by the achoonor Young Dick about 1,700 bushels of locally manufactured malt, with a view of opening up a trade in this article with New South Wales. If tho venture proves a euccess,Mr Franks intends to m;ike regul r shipments.

An attempt is being made in Otago to form a special organisation for the purpose of facilitating the export of agricultural produce to the European markets. The following are suggested as the objects to he aimed at. We commend them to the attention of the newly-formed Dairy_ farmers' Association :—(1) "Thatin order to relieve the colonial market and to secure remunerative prices for all classes of agricultural produce, including grain, dairy produce, beef, mutton, etc., it is necessary that an export trade be established with Great Britain. (2) That with a view (o such trade being placed on an economic and efficient basis, it ia desirable that prodnoers within the provincial district of Otago should unite in forming a special organisation or society, through means of which such trade might be conducted. (3) That the duties of the executive of such society should include the making of all arrangements for shipment at the lowest possible freight9,eecuiing the services of efficient consignees and salesmen in the Home country, and a thorough Gyetem of inspection and classification of grain before shipment in order to establish and maintain the good repute of that exported by the society. (4) That with a view to bring about unity of action among producers, copies of the toregoing resolution be forwarded to the various agricul tural societies within the provincial die trict, and that the Otago Society be asked to call an early meeting of delegates from each of these societies to meet at Dunedin to consider and discuss the whole matter, to obtain all necessary information, and to adopt other preliminary steps toward the establishment of such a Society as that suggested for conducting an export trade in all kinds of agricultural produce with Great Britain."

A German newspaper lately gave itn readers the following information :—" The Rev. Pelhaoi Dale has been committed for contempt of court to the prison of Holloway. Holloway is a town near London famous for its pills."

Our local cricketers, it appears, are net contented with the defeat they sustained at the hands of Little River, and a return match has been arranged to come off < n Saturday next, at LUlle River.

A meeting of the Akaroa Library Co:r.j| m'ttee was held last evening. The on y business transacted was the acceptance or Mr R. Noonan's tender for painting tie buiiding.

Says " Frank Fudge ":—1 beg respectfully to draw the attention of any young man who is blessed with pugilistic proc ivities to the following parable clipped by me from the Burlington Hawk-eye. The extract is pregnant with good advice and Holemn warning and should be thoroughly digested by every fast younij man in the Colony:—Don't be over-coiifideuf, young man. Don't carry your pet hobby too far. Take note of the shoulders ai.d legs of a mar. before you sass him. Out here on West Hill there is a goat that for three long years has butted everything mid everybody the broad empire of Burlington could send against him. lie ate the circus posters before the pa3fe was dry, and when the advance agent remonstrated, the goat just stood up and crowded the rash man clear through the bill stand. He once upset a hay wagon, jambed his head through the end of a woodshed, and flattened Officer Hoefer up against a brick house. And one day last week he wandered down into a saw-mill and butted the fly-wheel—only onco. When he came down his neck was bent. He couldn't make a dent in a sack of meal now. Young m n, be content with reasonable victories. Some day you, too, may run against a fly-wheel.

An unusual case occupied the attention of Mr McCulloch, Resident Magistrate at Inveroargill, last week. Three young gentlemen bacheloiising in town obtained from a local tradesman a piano on the deferred payment system. Shortly afterwards one of the number got into difficulties, and, making the acquaintance of hia " uncle," obtained an advance of £35. giving as security, inter alia, the aforesaid piano. On his departure for another colony his erstwhile companions returned the piano to its oiiginal owner, against whom the accommodating relative of the departed one brought an action to recover it. According to the Southland Times, Mr McCulloch ruled that tho negotiator of the loan had no right to pawn the piano.

Sin Arthur Gordon lias, it ap.warr, given great offence in Maori circles by declining in the comae of his recent visit to the Hot Lake country to rub noses and clasp hands with every prespiring Maori who chooses to present himself. He was even ungallant enough, according to the New Zealand Herald, to reject the advanced of the aboriginal p.-Incesses who swarm in those parts and have been accustomed to be treated on terms of intimacy by such great men as Sir George Grey and Mr Sheehan. Sir Arthur culminates his offences by peremptorily refusing to put in an appearance at a public house hop, ostensibly got up in his honor by certain Pakeha Maoris not unknown to fame.. His Excellency evidently does not care to f«r----f it his self-respect for tho sake of currying favor with the class of persons who intest the Native districts.

The Dunudiu Morning Herald says that the pleasant statement is heard on all sides that monoy is abundant, and is absolutely going a begging at lowrntes of interest.

Mr F. W. Witlmn, vice-president of tlio Levuka Chamber of Commerce, is at present on a visit to Dunedin. He bring* with him some samples of tho principal products of the Fijia, viz., sugar, coffee, and arrowroot, with a view of promoting (trade bet.ween the colonies.

The " travelling cricketers" do not appear to have been popular in Nelson. The following is clipped from the Colonist:--•• At the conclusion of the game Mr Lucre again had his fine turn-out ready for our visitors, and on their taking their seats the Nelson menjfgave them three hearty but undeserved cheers, for only one (Mr Boyle) recognised the compliment in any w y, unless an ill-tempered scowi can be called so doing. They wore again cheered on their departure from the wharf, whither they were also conveyed by Mr Lucre, but there was 'the same i 1-bred conduct, and a feeling akin to relief was experienced when the men had really left. Individual members of the team might possibly improve on acquaintance, and it may be that one or two are not in reality bo boorish as they appeared. It is, however, generally supposed that travel gives polish ; but if it has done so with several of the Australian team*, we can only deplore their original roughness. We were led to consider the players as gentlemen when they went home, but now—well, they have become professionals in the money-making sense, but in another we have met better professionals."

A Tasmanian bug, the Clematis, went ashore on a rock off the Long Look out on Monday last. The ressel was 240 tund register, and wae bound to Lyttelton from ilobart Town with a cargo of timbei, p'ling , shingles, etc. An enquiry inJo the cause of the wreck was held in Lyltelron on Friday last before Joseph Beswick, Esq., B.M. and Captain C. J. Macey Nautical Assessor. The master of the brig, Henry Bovvden. stated in his cvi dence that he made Akaroa light on the morning of the 21st. At noon got closer to shore, shaping from point to point, the wind being off the land. About 12.30 the wind got squally, and the man at the wheel was cautioned to keep the vessel off. A squall came down one of the gullies? and the brig was some time paying off as she was under full sail. Produced the chart that was used ; had no other chait showing Banks' Peninsula more fu'ly. About half-past twelve the vessel run on to an apparently flat rock. There was six fathoms of water under her keel, six fathoms between her quaUor and mainmast on 'ooih sides, three fathom* a little forward of that, and eleven feet under the miinniast and for about fifteen feet forw.ud of that. The water deepened from the foreiigging from 3£ fathoms to six fathoms, and seven fathoms under (he bow o i bofh sides of the ship. Witness consideied that he was from half a mile to one mile off the shore. Hugh McCellun, harbormaster, deposed that he visited the scene of the wreck of the Clematis at low water at 7 a.m. on Thursday. Measured exactdi tame from mainmast of Clemali to the coastal rocks at low water mark and found it J3G6ft from low water m.trk lo high water maik ; a low shelf of rocks extends in to the perpendicular cliff, measuring 340 ft. The bearing of the rock on which the biig struck f-om the extreme point of the Lo k-Out point is N. 40deg. E. The 340 ft of rock is uncovered at low water, and completely covered at 11i3.11 water, It appeared there was a chait in existence showing the rock on which the vessel struck, and containing a caution to masters not to approach the Look Out point within a mile. Af : er hearing the evidence the Bench said they considered that the captain of the brig had committed an eiror of udgment in keiping(o) close to the land, and he had been somewhat negligent in not providing himself with a chart that showed the coast more clearly. Under all circumstances tlw.y would order him to pay the costs of the enquiry.

Re boating on the Avon a contemporary writes ns follows :—The ch : ef attraction to Christciiurch visitors is undoubtedly the Avon. It is no uncommon tiling to see strangers from afar gazing in mute admiration from the budges at the beautiful stream as it flows silently on its course towards the mighty ocean (copyright) laving the decomposing bow-wow, and cleansing the furry skin of the unregretted cat. But like everything else in this incomplete sphere, this lovely stream has its drawbacks. It has weeds; ye*, like the lazy man's garden, it lias weeds ; and these weeds are not only seen—but felt. Now although swearing is a bad habit— a very bad habit—yet, under sonio circumstances, nearly everybody admits that swearing is justifiable; it is justifiable when trying to pull down to New Brighton through the forest of weeds that block the Avon. Anyone that can carve his way to Now Brighton without swearing has a right to send in an application for a harp and a pair of wings right away, and there would be no justice if he didn't get them, A person desiring to learn something new in cuss words hay only to 101 l on the bank of the Avon for an hour or two on Satur- ] day afternoons to hear some of the choicest flowers of speech the English language is capable of manufacturing ; in fact denizens of Billingsgate and the Salt Market would bliiph for their ignorance of cussography were they to listen to the festive Christchurch youth for an hour or two as they meander down this classic stream —and "it's all along o' them ere weeds." I

' Mr Justice Hawkins decided at the Leeds assizes that prisoners may make to the jury a statement of their version ot the matter with which they ate charged, but not upon oath. Mr Justice Lush, who was sitting in the nisi prius Court, was consulted on the point, and entirely agreed with f c ruling of Mr Justice Hawkins. Accordingly in the case in which the question arose the prisoneis in the dock made their statement to the jury after the address of their learned counsel.

It is said, warbles an Australian journal, but whisper it not abroad, that a bather of the female persuasion was disporting veiy recently in the sad sea waves at a coi lain popular watering-place seven miles from the metropolis, having two railways, an Institute, and a jetty, the name of which watering-place n;ust never be divulged or indicated, and she (the bather) got out of her depth. In accordance with a time-honored custom of the fair sex ) she immediately took the necessary steps not to save herself, but to faint. She was rescued, and laid out upon the beach insensible. All the known expedients for restoring drowning persons—and a good many not known—were resorted to, bu* the lady remained obdurately lifeless till home one said, " Bring a nobbier of

brandy." Immediately the lifeless lady opened her eyes, and faintly whispered, " Got a shilling's worth 1" Tableau !

The Otago ciicketers have sustained a severe defeat at the hands of the Canter, bury men. The match commenced on Thursday, and Canterbury went first to the wickets. It was not till well into the second day that they were disposed of, and then they had put together no less than 381 runs. Mr G. Watson played a mag. nificent innings, and contributed no le:,s than 175 of this totah The Otago team then went in and were all disposed of for 77 runs. Iα their second innings the Oiago team only succeeded in scoring 72, of which Paramor contributed 37. Canterbury was therefore victorious by one in nings and 232 runp. This is the greatest I victory yet achieved by the one team over (he other, though on six former occasions Olago has sustained one innings defeat.

A beautiful example of the force of habit is to see a disciple of Sir William Fox fii! a cup at a drinking fountain, and dreamil}' blow the forth off the innocent water before drinking