OUR AUCKLAND LETTER

Bay of Plenty Times, Volume IV, Issue 413, 26 August 1876, Page 3

OUR AUCKLAND LETTER

(j?EOJI OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT.)

Auckland, 21st A ugust. The political Bituatiou, according to the latest telegrams from Wellington, is very " mixed," and tbe great question asked here is, How will Auckland come off ? Some surprise was manifested when the large majority for the Government against Sir George Grey's resolutions was heard of, but it might have been expected, for when it is once known that a side is certain of victory, the waverers as a rule incline to that side, thinking do doubt they might as well be with the winners since their votes cannot influence the roßult. There is no doubt whatever that the idea of putting the resolutions one by one came to Sir George Grey as an afterthought, for else why should he propose the last — perpetuating the Beat of Government at Wellington — and then with his party vote against it ? Perhaps he had some idea of confusing the Government ad' herents, and so getting a few stray voteß, but if bo, such a shallow device was not likely to bamboozle an old soldier like Julius Yogel. And after all it is no great misfortune that separation is not carried. Putting aside the difficulties likely to arise with regard to the public creditor, there are many reasons why the prospeot of one Provincial Government in each island with the capitals at Auokland and Christchuroh is not one suggesting a better state of things than at present exists. To mention one— it is not likely that Wellington and Dunedin would consent to being governed from the other large centres, and a row on that score might pretty confidently be looked forward to. But if surprise was manifested at the decisive nature of the Opposition defeat it was nothing to that which followed the appearance of the Southern Cross on Saturday. A telegram from that journal's special Wellington correspondent professed to give the details of negotiations carried on by Mr Tonks, the recently elected member of City West, with Sir Julius Yogel for the purpose of arranging a basis of compromise, and also stated that Mr Tonks was working to get Sir George deposed from the leadership of the Opposition in favor of Mr Whitaker. Every one who knew the ciroumstances of Mr Tonks election might well be astounded if this were true, and Sir George might have exclaimed with Cresar, " ffi tv Brute." Ihe echoes of the applause which on the nomination day scarcely a month ago greeted Mr Tonks declaration of fealty to the leader whose vacated seat he was contending for, have haidly died away when the news comes that he is in open revolt. The excitement in Auckland was immense, and the Star was eagerly looked forward to for confirmation or denial of the report. When the fiery little sheet appeared at sunset it contained a fierce denunciation of the " lying" report of its cou. temporary, but while it vituperated, it was Constrained to say that there was evidently something going on which it was unable to fathom. A good many people here would like to see Mr Whitaker lead the Auckland party, for although it is treason to say it at a public meeting, Sir George Grey's high>.flown harangues and virtuous indignation, even if warranted by the corruption which pervades the political atmosphere under the present dictatorship have not been very successful in their avowed object— getting justice for Auckland, Indeed the latest bit of paltry spite, namely the throwing out of the bill authorising the borrowing of £2,000 for paying off the debt on our new Museum acd Institute would seem to indicate that we may expect to be retaliated on in every conoeivable way if the present tone of the Opposition is persisted in. While I myself fully believe that Sir George Grey is animated by no other than the beat of motives, I cannot help thinking that he is defioient in tact, which is the very quality in which Mr Whitakei- excels, and which is the virtue above all others just at present most requisite.

The Herald correspondent has sent up from Poverty Bay a letter giving a fresh illustration of the land-jobbing for which the Eaßt Coast has an unenviable notoriety. Here is what be says:— "The Eaßt Coast landijobbing soheme still flourishes. I will give you a Bhort narrative of late events. The Lands Court sat this month at "Dawa. There were passed before the Court, inter alia, three blocks of land which had previously been purchased by the Government Purchase Commissioner, and notice of the fact had been given to the district offioer, and the Burvey paid by Government. It was a welliknown fact that the lands were bought for the public, and it waa freely admitted by the native owners that they had sold to Government. Over and above all this, the lands had been proclaimed in the Govern> ment Gazette as being under the 42nd clause of feho Immigration and Public Works Act, 1871, therefore, they could only be dealt for by Government, even if they had not previously been purohased by Government. In spite of all this, on the lands being passed through the Court, Mr E. Cooper, of land-pur-chasing notoriety, it is stated, procured a conveyance of the land to himself, and the Court, or Judge, actually recognised the purchase, and made a minute on the order for memorial of ownership to that effect, in the face of the land being bought by Government, being proclaimed under the Baid Aot, and in contravention of the 59th clause of the Native Lands Act, 1873, which suys the Court shall make an endorsement upon the memorial of ownership — not, mark you, on the order for such memorial — ' that no difficulty exists in respoct of the alienation of the land comprised in such memorial.' . . . . Viewing all these faotß, a petition -will be presented to the House, ipray'iri'g tor a full enquiry into all the foctai-connected herewitn ; and looking at the probability that these lands will form a part of the assets and revenue of encli district, it certainly behoves Mie public to have an eye to these matters, unci see th»-y ure not robbed of their inheritunco. ihe worst feature of tho oaae ia. the apparent complicity of Goverm

ment officials, or, to say the least, their neplf gence and ignoring of the Gazettes and Government interest. If those appointed to guard the public are false, where shall we lund ?" The Bay of- Plenty Times has made a name for itself by opposing and exposing such abuses of the powers of Native Land Courts as the above would appear to describe, and I have made the extract, thinking that possibly a different version of the affair may have reached Tauranga, and if so your readers will see both. In reference to land purchasing, it iB said that a provoking difficulty has occurred lately, where it was very important in the interests of this province no difficulty should have arisen. It appears that by the mail steamer which arrived on the 13th instant, a family of the name of Brothers, came from the States of America to settle here. There are thirteen of them, all told, and they are most desirable settlers, for the grown up members are experienced agri oulturists, and they have a decent amount of capital, which they are ready to invest in taking up some hundreds of aoreß of land and cultivating it. The difficulty is that they cannot get the land without first going through such an amount of delay and round' about negotiation, that they are half disposed to go further afield in disgust. If they are driven away the Government ought to be ; ashamed of itself, for a dozen of this sort of colonists are worth a shipload of Government immigrants. The family referred to hail from lowa, and it is said paid £300 for their pasBage money to this country. The New Theatre was opened on Monday night, and everyone is pleased with it. We may indeed boast, notwithstanding our wrongs and poverty, of having the neatest and most convenient, if not the largest, theatre in the Australian colonies. In point of size I believe it excels the Dunedin theatre, up to lately the largest in the colony. The interior decoration is exceedingly pretty. The ceiling is lofty and divided into panels aboat six feet square, picked out with coloured borders of mauve, blue, and pink, which combine very effectively. In the centre a large dome about fifteen feefc in diameter, and rising six or eight feet into the roof, gives space for a chandelier composod of one mass of lustres, which shed a soft and beautiful light. The dome is extensively perforated for ventilation, and being rendered highly ornamental by designs in gilding and scroll-work, adds largely to the general effect. The benches in the stalls are of polished kauri, and can be removed *t pleasure for a dance ; the dresscircle is composed of several rowß of easy seats, gaily covered with crimson cloth, the back rows being well elevated above those in front. On the opening night every seat was occupied, and there could not have been fewer than 1,500 in the building, while it was generally allowed that the assemblage was the most imposing that had ever been seen in Auckland. The Simonsen Opera Troupe have now performed six times, and up to the present I hardly think they are so satisfied with their reception as they expected to be, -for since the first they have not had particularly good houses. They have played "Lucia di Lammermoor," "Martha," "Carlo Broachi," "LaSomnambula," " Maritana," and "La Periohole." The company have a magnificent prima donna in Madame Simonsen, and two excellent tenors in Signor Carmini Morley and Mr Florence ; the rest of tbe voices are only moderate. The orchestra is all that could bo desired, and Mr Martin Simonsen has them beautifully under control. The prices are unusually high, and I fancy more business would be done if they were lowered, but perhaps this will come by and bye. The prize Inaugural Address, it should be mentioned, was spoken by Madame Simonsen in her foreign English, with very peculiar effect. Had there been any local hits, which fortunately in one Bense there were not, they would altogether have been thrown away. The case of John alias George Wilson, accused of attempting .rape on a widow woman named Mary Macdonald, is very singular. The prisoner is an engineer by profession, and has been engaged driving the stone' breaking machine at Mount Eden, His behaviour would seem to indicate a desire to dispense with the machine in his future stonebreaking operations. The prosecutrix lives by herself in a small house in Cross-Btreet, Newton. Some years ago she occupied a very decent position in tbe world, and she and her husband had the reputation of being pretty well to-do. She took to drink, and her husband, in disgust, deserted her. He died soon after, leaving her two houses in Newton, and a revenue of £60 a year from New Zealand Insurance Co.'s Bhares. Since she has been a widow, Mrs Macdonald has not improved, but got worse. Not many months back, she had an attack of delirium tremens, and was received into the hospital. Her drinking propensities have proved a great nuisance to her neighbours, who have complained more than onoe to the police of the beastly scenes enacted at her house. On the night of the offence charged againßt Wilson, one of the neighbours came down to the police, and told the sergeant that Mary was drunk again, and that there was a man in the house with her. A police officer at once went up, and on entering the house heard loud shrieks proceeding from a back room. He made his way thither and found Wilson in the act of forcing the woman, who was not too drunk to resist his attempts. He immediately arreßted him, on which Wilson said it was all right, the woman was an old friend of his, and he was only doing her a good turn. After one remand, the case was heard 10-day, and the man acquitted, as the court consi* dered the woman was more to blame than the man.

Two reported shipping disasters are ex- j pected to bo confirmed every hour. The schooner Agnes, which left here five months ago for the Chatham Islands, with over twenty persons on board, has not yet been heard of. A schooner was chartered at Lyfctelton to go ! in search of her. and left nearly a fortnight ! ago. She is expected back in a few days, and : we shall know the worst. The ketch, Clematis left here for Timaru, on the 14th July, with timber. She had a orew all told of eight, and one passenger, Mr Giles, lately a butoher in Queen-Btreet. She put into Lyttelton on the 24th to repair her mainsail, and sailed agoin on the 30th. Since that nothing has been heard ! of her except that three vessels arriving at ' Lyttelton have reported seeing a small vessel ; about her size, bottom upwards, between ■ Banks' Peninsula and Arnuri Bluff. There J was a GVrce southerly gale two or three days after her leaving Lyt.telton, and it is onJytoo ' probable that sl»e w»b capsized after, being ■ blown north. Captain Clarke, tho- master, leavos a wife and family in Auckland. We are daily expecting to hear of the wreckage

being identified. Jdd to these that the barque Union, from Newcastle, bound to this port, has been thirty-five duys out, and the barque Moneynick, owned here, and bound from Newcastle to Timaru, is about the Bame time out, and you will see that our shipping circles are well supplied with topics. of conversation.