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Evening Star, Issue 3327, 18 October 1873, Page 2

Mr John Reid, formerly of Dunedin, having given up farming at Hakateremea, the inhabitants of that district have presented him with a handsome silver cup and coffee set as a token of the esteem in which they hold him. Sydney has started a now weekly literary paper entitled “The Critic.” Its object is “ to show that New South Wales possesses men of quite sufficient ability to found a literature for their native or adopted country ; and, with this aim in view, it will lose' no opportunity of engaging the services of able writers, no matter what may be their antecedents or present mode of life,” The employes of the New Zealand Distillery have formed a cricket club, which should be able to put forward a good team when the season has advanced a little. At a meeting of th,e members held at the St, Vincent Hotel last evening, Mr J Eskdale was elected president ; Mr Hart, vice-president j Mr Anderson, treasurer ; Mr Cunningham, Secretary, and Mr Stevens, captain. The club will practice on the Northern Recreation Ground. We do not know a greater annoyance than bad, nor, so far as business is concerned, a greater comfort than good ink. To be really valuable, it should be flowing and sufficiently dark to be immediately legible. These two qualities are combined in Steele’s New Zealand office ink, a sample of which we have ; received. It is manufactured by Mr Steele, Jetty street, Dunedin, and we heartily commend it to the notice of all classes. The city of Auckland must be an extremely pleasant sort of place to live in, if we may judge from the following observations of its leading and only independent paper, the Star :—“lf ever scandal flourished in any place rankly and luxuriantly, it does in ■ Auckland. No one is safe from its poisonous breath, and the more lofty the position the flaore virulently is it assailed. If only half

of what is whispered in the knots of gossipers under verandahs, or at hotel bars, be true, this city is cursed with about th? worst collection of inhabitants that has fallen to the lot of any city since the creation of the world.” There was another capital attendance at the Masonic Hall last evening, when the programme of the previous night was repeated to the evident satisfaction of the audience. And not a whit less successful , was the afternoon performance to-day. The hall was inconveniently crowded ; several ladies were accommodated with seats on the stage, and a good many went away rather than be crushed. Referring to the recent fire at Hokitika, the Grey River Argus says :—“ The prompt payment made by tho Victoria Insurance Company of the LSOO nolicy on the Bank of yew Zealand, Hokitika, is noticeable, as pointing to the ready sett’ement of claims against the Company. The fire occurred on Saturday morning last, and on Monday morning the amount was paid over to the Bank by Mr Scott, the Hokitika agent of the Victoria Company.” Some time ago some of our readers (says the Auckland Star) may recollect that in attempting to carry out the sentence of death upon a man who was condemned for murder in Fiji,the executioner, who was drunk, bungled at bis business, and when the drop fell the cord did not tighten in the proper manner. The wretched man endeavored to 100-sen his hands, and at last succeeded in getting them free, and partially raised himself by their means, at the same time calling out to the sheriff to shoot him and put him out of his misery. Toe official thus appealed to could not endure the miserable spectacle, and ordered the man to be cut down. This was done, and it was found that he had sustained very slight injury. Thinking probably that his punishment had been sufficient, the authorities gave him a free pardon, The man, it is said, cleared out fro o the Fijis, and came on to Auckland, where he has been residing for some time. He has since gone to New Caledonia. Mr Bromley took his benefit at the Princess Theatre last night, when there was a decided improvement in the attendance com pared with that of the previous evening. The first part of the entertainment consisted of the farce “A Kiss in the Dark,” in which Mr Hydes as Pettibone indulged in an unlimited amount of “gag,” which was as stupid »s it was unnecessary. The other charactex-s were sustained by the Misses Raymond and Matthews and Mr Thorp. Then followed a musical melange, in which Messrs Bromley and Margetts in “The Moonlight Walk ” were very successful. The entertainmeut concluded with a laughable extravaganza, “ Dramatic Agency, or Can you stand ©n your head.” Phis afternoon performance was well attended by the juveniles, who seemed to be highly amused with the entertainment, but more especially with the monkeys. The Company appear at the Queen’s Theatre this evening.

A public meeting was held last evening in the Mechanics' Institute, Port Chalmers, for the purpose of electing officers of the institution for the ensuing year. Hia Worship the Mayor occupied the chair. About sixtythree subscribers’ names were on the list. The Chairman made a few remarks concerning the Institute, and said he was very sorry to see so few names on the list. He was in hopes there would have been three times that npjnber j but expected shortly to see many more naings added. The election of officers was then proceeded with, and resulted as follows President, his Worship the Mayor ; Vice-President, Dr Drysdale ; Treasurer, Mr Win. Elder; Secretary, Mr M'i'arlane j Committee, Kev. Mr Lesson, Messrs Downes, Noil Murray, T. A. Mans ford, Woods, Adam 3* M‘|£ay, Burton, and Sutherland. It was suggested by the Kev. Mr Johnson that the Institute be opened on Saturday evenings, subject to the approval of the Committee. A vote of thanks to the Chairman terminated the meeting.

Members of the Alexandra Lodge are requested to iweet in the Caledonia Hotel, Great King street, on Monday evening, at S o’clock. Thg (anniversary social meeting of the members 9f §t. Audrgvy’s Olmvch vill be held m the hall beneath the church evening i\ext, at half-past six.