The Dunstan Times. FRIDAY, AUGUST 13, 1880.

Dunstan Times, Issue 956, 13 August 1880, Page 2

The Dunstan Times.

FRIDAY, AUGUST 13, 1880.

Beneath the rule of men entirely just/A PEN is MIGHTIER than the SWOJiD

Now that the Daily Times (the supposed leading paper of Otago) has gone somewhat out of its way to deal with Vincent County affairs in a lengthy leading article, heaping throughout a deal of harmless nastinessnasty though for all that - on Mr Vincent Pyke, the County Chairman, and patting patronisingly on the back Councillors Colclough and Fraser for their action at the last meeting, we feel induced to join in the fray and take these worthy Councillors down a peg or two. Cr. Fraser’s indignation at the Chairman not consulting the Council and himself personally before ordering a stoppage of woeks is so puerile that we shall not give it further notice, hut Cr. Colclough’s virtuous indignation is too good a joke to allow to pass so easily -Cr. Colclough indignant forsooth—we scarcely thought it possible that he would have had the temerity to talk such fad, leave alone that there could bo found anyone so virtuous as to believe it. The man who could deliberately charge the Chairman and officers with hoodwinking him over the County finances, and to believe it, must be a fool, and for a fool to be righteously indignant is as impossible as t’would be to scrub a nigger white. Councillor Colclough was merely acting but once in a way he mistook his part. No greater evidence that there has been no Manipulating of figures and no woodwinking except by the bye that Mr Livingston, the County Auditor, is leagued with the Chairman and that is not likely, are the following figures taken from the audited balance sheets of the County, and which have been published. Assets 3rd March 1879 L 17,029 13s fid. Liabilities L 19.090 5a lOd.

Assets 31st March, 1889, L 10,040 15s. Liabilities L 28.676 0 Id. While on Jnly 28th ths assets were L9OO. Liabilities H3,000. The many friends of the Rev. M r Dewe, many years incumbent of this parish, will regret to learn of his very serious illness. Last Sabbath, the Rev. Mr Clinton from 1 the pulpit referred tq it, and asked the prayers of the congregation for the suffering gentleman, We understand fhe banks have reduced the price of gold another sixpence per oz. The heavy charge for escorting it to Dunedin necessitating the same, Mr Pyke is reported to have said from his seat in the House that it was a notorious fact that unless members voted with the Government they could get the Government to do nothing for their districts. He hail himself been told that if he went up to Ministei s’rooms his views might be met. He know what that meant, and did not go. Mr Hnrsthonse differed with the remarks made by the last speaker. He had voted with the Government for years, and yet he found that his district was treated in the most cavalier manner. ■ Mr Fache directs ua to draw attention to the sale of freehold sections at Alexandra on Monday next. By the first annual report of the Victoria Insurance Company which is now before us we learn that the profits for the year amounted to L 71.092 13a lOd of which eight fifths equal to one hundred per cent on the paid up capital, was distributed as dividend the other three fifths being added to reserve fund. The Norwich Union Insurance Company once declared a dividend of eighty percent. In reply to Mr Read, Mr Rolleston said the question of subsidising free public libraries was a luxury they would have to dispense with in the meantime.

At tho present time the Colony pays in pensions, L 21.262, which represents the interest on nearly a quarter of a million of the colonial debt.

Mr Pyke gave notice of tho following motions : —“That this House is of opinion that the report of the Royal Commission on Railways, is so far as it deals with lines which have never been submitted to or sanctioned by the House, was uneccssary and uncalled for; that in so far as it condemns railway linos the construction of which has, after due consideration and careful inquiry, been sanctioned by this House, the said report was not sufficient foundation, and should be regarded as a mere expression of individual opinion hastily formed, without any special knowledge or experience on the subject; that it would, therefore, bp unwise, and highly detrimental to the, best interests of the Colony, for the Government to shape its Public Works policy upon the opinions and recommendations embodied in the said report.”

| About 650 men are now employed on the \ Hindoo section of the Otago Central Railroad. Altogether there are no leas than 1674 men working on the various “ unemployed ” sections. The Minister for.Public Works stated recently that he had full confidence in the future of the Colony. The present depression he looked upon as a precursor of unexampled prosperity. When delivering his Public Works Statement Mr Oliver stated that he was not in favour of selling our railways, unless at the price they cost for construction. The hou. gentleman —politician like— appears to dread the great influence the owners ,of so large a property could exercise iu time of political agitation. Wo understand; that Mr G. T. Clarke was yesterday served with a summons by the Dunedin City authorities for selling by auction without having obtained a license, as required by the' 4 ‘Licensed Auctioneers Ordinance 1826,” and the “Otago Local Revenue Ordinance of 1872.” Mr Clarke had a license through the Souh Dunedin Borough Council, anti thcoase has been evidently brought as a test one, to ascertain whether an auctioneer can carry on his business outside of the municipality wherein he obtains bis license.—Daily Times. An exchange says :—“ The Oamarn police have raided the public-houses for samples of brandy which are to bo submitted to Professor Black for analysis.’ We cannot but think that if the police, throughout the Colony, were to act in like manner, selecting samples not only of brandy, but of every other class of liquor, the benefit to the seller as well as to the buyer would be incalculable. The Mount Misery goldfield continues to attract people from a distance. We (the Bruce Herald) nro informed that the flat through which the creek runs has been tried, and excellent prospects obtained. The flat is about three miles down from the workings on the creek, and is much more extensive ; the gold also is coarser, but there is water to contend against, and the sinking is deeper, being about six io eight feet. There are now about 49 persons on the place, and more going to it. Byrue and party, of the Seventocn-Mile Beach (West Coast), washed out 81b 4oz of gold from one truck of washdirt last week. The lead has been struck on the south side of the beach at Fogan’s Creek. It is now supposed that the lead will extend some miles along the base of Faparoa Ranges. In the General Assembly on Tuesday night, during the discussion in Committee of Supply on the vote for railways, the Minister for Public Works stated that the Auditor-General had discovered serious discrepancies in the stores account, one amounting to nearly LIOO,OOO, since the initiation of the Public Works policy. He added that no charge of misappropriation had been made against any public officer, but that an enquiry was being made iuto the matter.

The following particulars from a private letter from Okarito to a resident at Hokitika iriay be of interest:—“ The Okarito rush is likely to be all right. Two young fellows named Meares and Fleming (from Ross) struck good gold last Friday on a low terrace, running as straight as an arrow for about five miles along the Forks River, where the road crosses the river. There are four parties on payable gold, and about four miles up the creek is where Cunningham and party are working. The Chickens party have got gold between the Cunninghams and the road, which proves that gold has been traced for fully three miles. There is room for hundreds of miners. A steady rush is setting in, and miners are arriving daily overland. Those on the ground are satisfied with the ap pearances of the country.” The Wellington correspondent of the Southland News quotes as follows from a speech recently delivered by the Premier : —“ Rabbit statistics: Skins exported in 1877, 205,4(53, value L 3107 ; in 1878, 1.331,153, value not stated ; in 1879, 1,492,952, value L 13,128. Assuming five rabbits to be equal to one sheep, the 1,492,952 rabbits will have consumed the feed, in round numbers, of 300,000 sheep, the wool from which would be worth, say, L 55,000. The skins exported do not probably represent more than a tenth of the rabbits existing in the various districts ; hence it is probable that the actual loss is rapidly increasing. Reliable information enables an estimate to be formed, to the effect that 500,000 acres have virtually been abandoned owing to the increase of the rabbits. Such runs as the Takalimo, 44,000 acres, have been let for sums as low as LlO per annum, and the rabbits are gradually creeping up the slopes of the ■Southern Alps in Canterbury.” The Dunedin correspondent of the Bruce Herald is responsible for the following : “ Polite duelling, I thought, was confined to France. It seems not, when even here—in unromantic New Zealand— blood must be shed to quell the fury of a heart. As fate will have it, two Lotharios basked in the sunshine of a certain young lady’s eyes; and the one, feeling powerfully under the influence of the “ green-eyed monster,” “called the other out,” and the Ocean Beach was the spot chosen for the sanguinary scene. Having arrived there one dark night and seconds appointed in the orthodox style, the opponents blazed away at each other until one of them had been wounded in the shoulder, when he acknowledged that the other was now entitled to the lady, and accordingly retired from tho amatory contest. Of course the affair is hushed up ; yet chivalry of this kind, like murder, will out. Duelling in the American fashion is carried on here too. Late one night two young men had a quarrel, and feeling that the only way to settle the affair was to hack each othei’s ears off, they proceeded to do so with the aid of sailors’ knives. They cut and sawed each other until a large poo! of blood was drawn, when, feeling quite satisfied, they went on their way, and, strange to say, untouched by the police.”

A very doubtful rumour has been started, to the effect that the Chinese residents of Sydney are about to start a newspaper, intended as a counterpoise to the proposed anti-Chinese organ, and generally to advocate the interests of the heathen in Australia. It is presumed that, in the event of such a venture being entered upon, the paper would be written iu “ pigeon English." A lu licrous incident occurred in connection W’th a recent inquest at Hokitika. The Coroner, by mistake, made out a warrant for tiro burial of the hotelkeeper, at whose house the inquest was held, instead of the deceased.

It is said that Government will make rn effort to organise a rural police force, which, while being inexpensive, shall ensure the maintenance of law and order in country districts.

St. John’s Church, Waikouaiti, the other day presented quite an unusual spectacle. There wore (the Palmerston Times says) some dozen children, whose ages averaged from six weeks to thirteen years we believe, presented themselves for the solemn rite of baptism. The curate, the Rev Mr Sothara, we should imagine, had a liv -ly time of it ; and what with the parents of the children, their sponsors, and the spectators, of whom there was quite a gathering, the church was crowded around the font.

A meeting was held recently in Melbourne to take steps for the establishment of a hospital for ihcerables: It was stated that a lady had promised to give 1-6,000 towards it, on condition that a similar sum was subscribed by the public. The lady who has made the munificent offer is Mrs Austin, widow of the late Mr Thomas Austin, of Barwon Park.

Sydney has been entertaining an angel unawares. About twelve months since (says the Bulletin) a gentleman arrived in Sydney with the debris of LIOOO in his pocket, and as they heard he was blue-blooded people kindly took to him, and he speedily planted his feet under aristocratic mahogany. He was soon in first-rate fettle for a station billet at “ twenty bob a week and found,” but after eating Johnny cakes, water dogs, and black sugar, and drinking tea out of a billy lid for a few months, he rose superior to himself with the advent of the International Exhibition, where he aired to some advantage his linguistic gifts. It may here be mentioned that the LIOOO he had on leaving England was obtained in the following mannerHe was a younger son and was fast in a ratio inverse to his income. He “made a smash ” and applied to his elder brother, the Earl of for assistance, which was denied him. A few days after a signboard inscribed, “ Fish and Oyster Saloon, by the Honorable Mr • —” was hoisted over a very unpretentious little shop in the ancestral village.

The board and the LIOOO shortly “came down ” together on the Hon. ’s agreeing to exile himself to Australia. However, the Hon. Mr has now gone back again—probably to go into the fish business once more.

The Home correspondent of the Australasian’ writes : —The proprietor of the Sporting Life offered a prize of L 25 to those who could succeed in placing the first three in the Derby ; the guesses were to be’writtcn on a coupon issued in the Sporting Life Companion, a weekly guide to the turf after the style of Ruff. Well, over 40,000 coupons were sent in, and of these 354 succeeded in placing Bend ’Or 1, Robert the Devil 2, and Mask 3. The amount to be divided being so small, it was decided to increase the stake to L4O, or give it to be divided amongst the 354, who now have to guess the first three for the Ascot Stakes. I saw the room in which the envelopes were opened which contained these coupons, and it was simply knee-deep in empty envelopes. It cost LlO in extra labor to get them all opened. . A bill is about to he introduced by the Horae Government to abolish flogging in the army and navy.

In the course of a discussion on religious instruction at the Wellington Education Board last week, the Chairman (the Hon. O.J. Pharazyn) is reported by the Chronicle to have dwelt on the inconsistency of the proceeding in Parliament being opened with prayer, while nothing of the sort was allowed in tho state'schools. Mr Blair asked if the Legislature were any better for the prayers ?—(A laugh.) The {Chairman : “ I hope so ; they seem very attentive.” Mr Blair : They don’t exhibit it in their life, at any rate.” At this covert “dig,” the Board fairly exploded, and Mr Pharazyudid not pursue the subject further.

/Egles says,;—“ln Lond-m the young colonial or either sex can anil does practice the “nil admirarl” to perfection. A lady belonging to one of our best families told a friend the other day that she had been to the Academy and looked round, hut “ she didn’t think there was much to see !” Aud a young Australian, on his fb-st visit to England, meeting a Melbourne friend at the same place, was asked if he had been round. “Oh yes,” he replied, “ I’ve seen what’s to be seen.” “ How long have you been here?” inquired his friend. “Oh, about half an hour!" And he hadn’t a catalogue. The Cape, as a field for emigration, may not turn out so profitable as at present contemplated. Much has been written in its favour as a grain-growing country. A gentleman in Oamaru has received a sample of oats from the Cape. It would be impossible (the Times says) to give a deacripti m of the sample sent. Suffice it to say that good judges of the cereal are only ready to admit that they are oats at all from the fact that they do not like to appear sceptical on a point where, although ocular demonstration is weak, the work of a fel-low-sinner may bo impugned.