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Evening Star, Volume VIII, Issue 2223, 22 June 1870, Page 2

Telegraph Money Orders.—We have been requested to state tlifit money order telegrams can now be obtained at the Dunedin Tost Oflice. The rates of charges were published by ns a few days ago. Mayor’s Court. — In the Mayor’s Court to-day, James Bridget was fined os for drunkenness, with the alternative of 24 hours inipii-.onniont; Thomas Owen os, Slid

Janet Farrow 40s, or one week’s imprisonment. Two unimportant summonses under the Bye-laws were disposed of. Death op a Maori Prisoner. —One of the Maori prisoners died yesterday evening in the Dunedin Hospital, at half-past five 3 o’clock. His name was Roupeua Te Rail'd i Runga, and lie arrived at tho gaol on the (3th November, ISliO, under an original sentence of death, commuted to three years penal servitude, for high treason. He suffered on his arrival from disease of the heart, and was removed to the Hospital on the •>sth May last, where he yesterday evening was visited by his brother and live other prisoners of the same hapu, who remained with him till he breathed his last. He belonged to tlie Ngatiruamu tribe, professed 'lie Roman Catholic religion, was about forty years of a" ■ and leaves behind him a wife at Wanganui. His death is deeply deplored by the Chief .and the whole of too tribe, as he was a very quiet and respectable man.

Mutual Improvement Society. Last evening a meeting of this >oeicty was held at the Athemeum, when the subject o! Spiritualism was brought under discussion. The Pre id cut (Mr Charles Smith) was in the chair, and the subject was introduced by Mr Stout, who gave his reason for supporting the theory of Spiritualism. Several members took part in the debate, which was continued to a late hour. Wo have received a communication from a person present, complaining of the report in the Dodi/ Times, in which ft was stated that “the first speaker was patiently listened to, but as the meeting progressed, tho audience becmic more and more noisy, until at last it became necessary to adjourn the debate.” It is exp’amed that there was nothing more in the demonstrations than is usual in discussions, and that the principal di (Terence arose on the qiustion of adjournment, which was decidi d upon at 11 o’clock. The best feeling prevailed during the whole evening. It 10 impossible to give even a fair outline of the various arguments used, and this is the less necessary as nothing was added to facts and reasoning already known. /Libel.—Criminal proceedings for libel seem to be the rage in New Zealand just now. The latest case has turned up at Greymoutb, where a stationer named Dale has been committed for a libel on the Mayor of that town. The libel arose out of the following letter which was sent to the local Tomahawk— the editor of which by the way is in trouble on a similar charge “To the Editor of the Tomhake Sir will you he kind enough to answar me to following Questions °l. Why the Mayor of Greymoutb has not been appointed a Justice of the Peace when every Mayor in New Zealand for 1870 is 2nd Why the Mayor of Greymoutb was not Knighted on his official visit to Wellington to meet the flying squadron and tho Government 3rd When Joseph Kilgour intends to give the Gremouth Volunteer Fire Brigade the hundred pounds ho promised to edve if the Union Hotel was saved at the Great fire last year on Mawhera Quay 4th Who got six months in Dunedin gaol for card sharping six years ago sth When will the public of Greymoutb be allowed to use the County materials for their private* use like one of the * Borough Councillors Greymouth * the 4th question answares first two and ten pounds of the LKK) was paid last year ” It will be seen that the whole gist of the libel is connected with an event which is alleged to have taken place six years ago. According to the local paper great interest was manifested in the proceedings, and the case was the only topic of conversation in Greymoutb on the day of trial.

The Mail Service,—We learn that at a recent meeting of the Sau Francisco Steam Committee at Wellington, a discussion took place in regard to the letter of the, Postmaster-General, -which resulted ip t}ie following resolution being carried: That the resolution passed on the ‘2nd of June was forwarded to Mr Vogel as an act of courtesy, for the purpose of informing him of the views of the committee, and not for the purpose of eliciting his opinion thereon; and that the word impracticable waa not meant, nor could it be fairly held to apply to the capabilities of Otago or any other port. It was Intimated that steps would be taken to convene a public meeting at an sfudy date, at which the Wellington representatives would he requested to be present. The Pre*s thinks that though the service may be performed ever so creditably, still the fact remains that what we are paying fer is not what we wanted j;o get. It is merely a branch line between Auckland and Honolulu. It does not bring New Zealand ip to direct communication with the United States, which the Government represent to bo their pripcpal object. It does not place New Zealand on the main lino, but simply connected with it, so to speak, bv a tiding. And the establishment of Auckland as the New Zealand terminus, involving, as it does, in the Southern provinces the latest possible delivery of the incoming and Hie earliest collection of the outgoing mail, and having therefore the minimum of time fop answering correspondence, is not an arrangement which they can consent to put up with for five years, especially when the withdrawal of the contribution to the Suez mail leaves them entirely dependent on that by S:jn Francisco. 'There arc strong objections to the refusal by Parliament io ratify a contract entered into by a Minister under a direct resolution of the House of lleppesentatives. We iu Canterbury, remembering how Indig. nant wc felt when the Ministry of the clay declined to sanction Hm Panama contract, and how eagerly we volunteered to take it on ourselves, ought to feel some little sympathy with the agitation displayed by the people of Auckland under similar circumstanc.cs. Put the Assembly has a right to require that the objects if Jpul view in passing the resolution should be as for as practicable attained. It will be its duty, theref-re, to insist, as the conditions cm which it confirms the provisional contract M'ith Mr Hgll, that ho shall give ample guarantees of his ability to fulfil his engagement, and that it shall be carried out in’such a manner as will best suit the convenience and the interests, not of Auckland alone, but of the whole Colony, The monthly meeting of the Lodge of Otago, E.C., will be held this evening, at 7.30 p.m,