The Daily Telegraph. THURSDAY, JANUARY 11, 1883.

Daily Telegraph (Napier), Issue 3588, 11 January 1883, Page 2

The Daily Telegraph. THURSDAY, JANUARY 11, 1883.

A. discussion took place in the Municipal Council last night concerning tho retention of a clause relating to sub-letting in the draft of the lease of the Town Hall reserve to the Recreation Ground Company. The public works committee, to whom the subject was first referred, had recommended that the clause be struck out, but when this recommendation came before the Council it, was opposed by the same councillors who had objected to it before. It was argued by its supporters that the leaseof tberesorve to the company was never intended to carry with it any other restrictions than those imposed upon holders of other Corporation leases, and that the insertion of the clause was a mistake, as it had never been proposed by the Council or agreed to by the company. The company claimed the right to do what they pleased with tho laud, to retain it as a recreation ground if it paid to do so : to cut it up into building allotments iir sublet to another tenant if it were so desired. From what we could gather from Cr. Monteith, who is tbe secretary to the company, it would, appear that the association might just as well call itself the Town Hall Reserve Laud Speculation Company as by any other name. But in this character it did not originally pose before the public. It rather introduced itself as a Napier loyal and philanthropic society for the,, encouragewent of innocent amusement, the promotion of cricket and Caledonian sports, and the. retention of public money in the town in the place of letting tho spare cash of holidaymakers go to Hastiugs, Farndon or Petane. About the time the company was floated there was a sort of Hastings scare, and an uneasy feeling that the ''City of the Plains" was going a-head a little too fast. Then Air Villers was beautifying Petane in a way highly calculated to attract visitors from town, and to extract money from their pockets. It became necessary for the peace and comfort of the town that an effort should be made to keep people from visiting green fieldsandpasturesfreshon holiday occasions. At the supremo moment —as history relates of all tho great events that have occurred in tho world--the right man sprung up at the right time, and with a flourish of trumpets tho Napier Recreation Ground Company was floated. A. provisional directory was appointed, a secretary, aud a bank. On September 21. 1881, the secretary, on behalf of the directory, addressed a- letter tn the Town Clerk applying to lease, "in one block, the Town Hall'reserve/or (he purpose of convertinrj >'( into « recreation ;/rnit,i(i.'" On the following day the directory in writing stated the terms on which the companywould lease the reserve. They offered £o for the first year's occupation, as it was their intention to spend between £'.300 and £000 on improvements, then to pay £60 per annum for the next five years. £90 for the following five years, £120 for the succeeding five, and £1.30 for the concluding five years. These terms were liberal enough, and no fault could be found with them, always bearing in mind that by their acceptance the people of this town secured a public recreation ground for twenty-one years. It not being competent for the Council to make a private arrangement for the alienation of Corporation reserves applications were invited by advertisement for the leasing of the Town Hall reserve in one block. The only offer received was from the company, and on October 19 they repeated their offer in answer to the advertisement. On the 21th of that month the Council accepted the terms, and the Town Clerk Avrotc stating that "the solicitor of the Corporation has received instructions to prepare and complete the necessary documents iv connection with the above terms." Air Logan accordingly drafted tho lease, and, to our thinking, very properly, inserted a clause preventing the company from parting with the land by sub-lease or otherwise. It is to the insertion of this clause that the company now objects, and, having sufficient support'in the Council, they have succeeded in getting it struck out of the draft of the lease. Reverting to the past history of the town we cannot but think that, in the first instance, the Council only agreed to the leasing of the reserve in one block under the belief that by so doing the land would be reserved, so to speak, for public, purposes. It was never intended, we imagine, to endow a company with a valuable estate to enable the shareholders to make a ju'ofit that should properly belong to the ratepayers. If, instead of calling themselves the Recreation Ground Company, they had named their association a Land and Building Society, we doubt very much whether their offer to lease would have been listened to for a moment. If the company have any intention to carry out the objects denoted bj- their title we cannot see why objection should have been raised to the clause preventing sub-letting; if, on the other hand, they have no such intention, but have ueeured the land for speculative purposes, thou, perhaps, it is a pity the Council is not a iittl/j more careful in the selection of its tenants.

The Poverty Bay eleven won the cricket match at Wairoa yesterday against the Wairoa team by five wickets. The bowling and fielding of the local men were good, but the batting was weak. In consequence of the late hour m *»h;'cb the proceedings of the Municipal Council terminated last night, the majority of the councillors left the chamber before the special meeting could be held, and it was therefore adjourned by the 'Town Clerk tor one week. We hear that there will be a large number of candidates for election on the Napier School Committee, and active canvassing has already commenced. Tho following gentlemen are, we believe, going to stand : — Messrs Winter, Carnell, Laws, Dugleby, C. T. Williams, Large, Garner, Craig, M'Vay, Bowerniau, and R. G. Graham. At Tamumu on Monday evening a settler of the name of Robert Price had a narrow escape from a serious accident. As Price was driving some sheep his horse .stumbled and fell on him, breaking the small bono ot j his leir, and dislocating the ancle. The injuries were quickly attended to by Dr. Todd, and the patient is now progressing favorably towards recovery. The new Volunteer regulations are having the effect that wo predicted. They have led to the disbandment of the Wellington Engineer Corps, and unless arc made the finest body of volunteers in- the colony, the Thames Navals, must also dis.r band." The Auckland Victoria Rifle company is also breaking up, and we believe it is only a, question of time when we shall have no volunteers in Hawke's Bay. The coach road having been opened for traffic through to Kuripapanga, Mr Rymer will, on Tuesday next, commence a line ot coaches which will meantime ply weekly between Napier and that place. These coaches have, we understand, been built to Mr Rvmcr's special order Cor the trade in which ,tl{i?y aiyj v, };p employed, and have already, on trial, proved tjLu.>,.- for the road. It is intended to increase vervico as soon as circumstances warrant. Fiuvfche.v particulars wjll ha found contained iv an advertistfiucnt c^wher?,

To the Editor: Sir,—ln the absence of the Chairman of the Hospital Committee at the meeting of that body on June 2 Dr. Spencer was voted to the chair. As it was not till the 11th of June that he was elected Mayor, it is impossible to suppose that his temporary occupation of the chair was regarded by the Committee as a recognition of his right to that position by virtue of his being the Mayor.—l am, &c , AntiHUHBUG. Tho Right Hon. Sir Samuel Martin, whose death is announced in to-day's cablegram, was born in Londonderry in 1301, educated at Trinity College, Dublin, called to the Bar iv 1830, "and gained a reputation in Liverpool and other towns by the ability he exhibited in the conduct of cases._ He married in 1843, and was elected on Liberal principles one of the members for Pontefract, which he represented till 1850, when he was appointed a Baron of the Exchequer, and was shortly afjerwards knighted. He resigned his judgeship at the close of 1873. Tho board of directors of the Southern Cross Petroleum Company met last night at Gisborne and unanimously resolved that the removal of the board from Gisborne would be detrimental to the interests of the company. As this resolution is in direct opposition to the opinion of four-fifths of the shareholders it is not likely to count for much at the annual general meeting in February. Steps are now being taken to have at 'the general meeting next February rule 3 of the articles of association rescinded, by which the board can then be removed to Christchurch. The Australian Mutual Insurance Company is now represented in Napier by Mr C. M. Williams, and the Government Insurance Department by Mr C. J. Barker. Both gentlemen are thoroughly conversant with their business, and capable of advancing the interests they have engaged to promote. Advertisements in another column point to the several advantages of either ofliee. Mr Williams was lately the agent iv Hawke's Bay for the Government Insurance Department, and Mr Barker has been removed from Gisborne here to fill the vacancy caused by the retirement of the former gentleman. Mr T. R. Gilpin, whose services on numerous occasions at concerts, ifcc, for charitable purposes in Napier and the surrounding districts, have been always so readily given and so thoroughly appreciated, is about to leave for " fresh fields and pastures new," and the idea seems to have occurred to several gentlemen in town that, prior to his departure, it would be fitting and proper to tender Mr Gilpin a benefit entertainment in the Theatre Royal in order that the public generally may have the opportunity to show the esteem in winch his past favors*have been held by them. By a reference to our advertising columns it will be seen that an influential committee has been secured, and we have every reason to believe that the entertainment, which is to take the form of a ballad concert, will be a. success in every respect. There was a protracted sitting of the Municipal Council last night over "much ado about nothing - ." No one feels disposed to find fault with the manner iv which His Worship the Mayor presides over the Council, but we aro inclined to suggest that if he rigidly enforced the rules of debate much valuable time might be saved. Last night Cr. Monteith spoke no less than four times on one question, and on others he reiterated the burden of his woe three times in nearly the same language. Having been a party to a good deal of useless expenditure in the"past—to wit. the Wellesley road—he is now, at the eleventh hour, a perfect Jeremiah in the copiousness of his tears at the extent of the overdraft. Nevertheless for the last three months he has opposed every motion that has been brought forward for really economical administration. Tbe quarterly meeting of the Wcsleyan Circuit was held in the schoolroom of Trinity Church on Monday evening at 8.30. The several circuit officials were present. The returns presented by the circuit minister shewed ;52 members, 31 on'trial for churc,hmembershipaiid2lcatechumiins. The balance-sheet as laid before the meeting showed the ordinary income to be £123 10s, and the cxpenditm - c £112 lis, the surplus going towards the reduction of the circuit debt. The several departments of church work received the careful attention of the meeting, including that of the church anniversary, which it was deemed advisable to hold next month, so that some of the Southern members, 011 their return from tho Auckland Conference, could take part in it. The retiring stewards received the thanks of the meeting for their services during the past year. Messrs Mellon and T. Laws were chosen circuit stewards for the present year, Mr E. Walker filling- the office of society steward. Mr J. S. Welsman was chosen as representative to the Auckland Conference, for which he and the Rev. J. J. Lewis will leave at the end of next week. A valuable addition has lately been made to the Hawke's Bay herds by the importation of a. grand young bull, eighteen months old, that was bought by Mr W. Williams, son of the Rev. S. Williams, of Te Aute, from Mr R. McDougall, of Victoria. This bull, which has been named Sir Garfield, is now in quarantine at the Spit. He was calved in September, 1881, and is by Sir Roderick out of Grace Booth by FieldMarshal Booth. (See Herd Book.) Sir Garfield, as we have said, was bought from Mr R. McDougall, of Arnclel Park, Kila, Victoria, the only real breeder of Booth cattle in Australia. Mr McDougall has imported some of the finest sires from Thomas Booth's herd, for one of which, Field-Mar-shal Booth, he paid 800 guineas iv 1870, the highest price that up to that time had ever been given for so young an animal. Sir Roderick-, the sire of Sir Garfield, was imported from the herd of Mr Hugh Ayhner, and took the champion cup at the Victorian International Show last November, and is considered to be the finest bull now in Australia. Mr Williams has also very recently bought from Mr P. Russell, of Timavu, the imported bull Hastings. This animal was also bred by Mr Ayhner, of West Dereham, Norfolk. His sire, High Sheriff, is full brother to Knight of the Shire, sire of the well-known bull, Ribey Knight. A lecture on John Bunyan was delivered by the Rev. J. J. Lewis in Trinity Wcsleyan Church last evening, when there was a thin attendance present, Tlio chair was occupied by Mr J. M. Cowell, who, after the singing of a hymn and prayer, briefly introduced the lecturer. The rev. gentleman divided his lecture into three parts— first the parentage, birth, life, and death of John Bunyan; second, his writings ; and third, John Bunyan as a preacher. With a considerable amount of dramatic and oratorical power, that completely won the fhe sympathy of the audience, the lecturer succuodud in interesting his hearers. At each interval selections, of music were rendered by the choir under tho leadership of Mr Prime, a* follows :—"Arise, shine," "In Jewry is God Known," and Mozart's Kyiie and Gloria from the Twelfth Mass. ThoseAveregiven in good style. Mr Prime sang Sull.van's "Lost Chord" with expression. Mi'T. It. Gilpin was in splendid voice, and gave "Consider the Lillies " in a manner that shewed he hud well studied the bubject. Mrs Prime presided at the organ in Iter usual able manner. After the usual vote of thanks tin; benediction was pronounced, and brought, v very enjoyable entertainment to a close. Of the many complaints in winch Ladopcpiiiu: has shown most jn-ompt and decided success none have been more quickly relieved than the various forms of headache, including - nervous and sick headache, which distressing complaints are in nine cases out of ten, due to inactive or sluggish liver, with constipated bowels. Lactopeptine can be obtained in handy bottles, with full instructions ;,udQ«ed, of Professor Moore, Waipawa. — [AoVT.-j