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Evening Star, Issue 3421, 7 February 1874, Page 2

a fla y 011 a lon e job at Green Island is offered to carpenters and bricklayers. This is something like a wage ! le Governor of Tasmania and Mrs Du Cane and the Earl of Donoghmore in .New Zealand will extend over six weeks. At Invercargill, on the 30th ultimo, a man named Marks Bowles was fined L3O and costs, for S N grog selling at Stewart s Island, The popularity of the Variety Troupe increases with each new programme they put fo:ward. Last night the lower parts of the house were insufferably crowded. We understand that Mr G. B, Williamson, stationmaster, Duneifin, has been appointed to the newly-created office of Goods Manager of the Dunedin and Port Chalmers Railway!* Reaping has begun on some farms at the Mataura, and will bo quite general throughout the district in ten days or a fortnight. The ‘ Southland Times ’ reports that the crops are looking splendid, and a large yield is expected. Harvesting has also commenced in the Western district. The ‘ Southland Times ’ is of opinion that the captains of vessels who met at Port Chalmers to express sympany with the late master of the Surat, would have shown a better appreciation of the responsibilities of their profession, and a greater sense of the qualifications which it requires, had they abstained from questioning the judgment of the Court of Inquiry. Perhaps our Legislative Council will agree to pass next session the Deceased Wife’s Sister’s Marriage Bill, which the member for Waitaki will again bring forward, seeing that it is now law in another of the Australian Colonies. By the last mail, the Governor of Tasmania received intimation that the Queen had assented to the Deceased Wife’s Sister’s Bill passed by the Tasmanian Parliament last year. The ‘ Lyttelton Times’ writes As an instance of the unusually heavy crops which are grown on the Native Reserve, Woodend, it may be mentioned that on Monday last Mr J. Rickns threshed out thirty-six’ acres of first'class oats, which yielded a total of 3,216 bushels or rather over an average of 89 bushels per acre’ Nearly the whole of the parcel has been sold and delivered for shipment at a good pay innprice. J ° Ml l Jones, of the Bank of New Zealand Charleston, says the ‘ Grey River Argus,’ was the lucky holder of the first and second horses in the LI,OOO Derby Sweepstake drawn at the Albion Hotel, Greymouth, a few days ago. The fiist piize was worth LSD 3 6s Bd, and the second prize was worth L 166 13s Id. Having divided the second prize with Mr Mansfield, Mr Jones stands to win, far an outlay of 30s, the sum of L64113s 4d, and Mr Mansfield, for his investment, takes LBB 6s Sd, Last night, about 8 o’clock, a man named Alexander Affleck fell down in a fit in Walker street, and almost immediately expired. The deceased was met passing up Walker street near the Royal Hotel, by a man named Brooks’ w-ho, on passing deceased, heard him fall, and on looking round, saw him lying on the foot’path. He then could not speak, but breathed for some time. Dr Dick was promptly in attendance, but pronounced life to be extinct. Affleck was about 40 years of age, and a native of Scotland.

A very interesting and instructive address was delivered in the Kailcorai Church last nisdit by Mr Backhouse. With the aid of a number of colored diagrams, brought out from En-dand he succeeded in imparting to his audience a very vivid idea of the customs and heathen ceremonies of the people of India, while his humorous and conversational style rivetted their attention. A collection was made to aid the British and I oieigu Bible Society in c.‘irryiiu Y forward its operations, the Bible, or portions of it, being now translated into 20-1 languages and. upwards of two millions of copies distributed. . J u the Oamaru district the ‘ Times ’ is informed that in conscqunce of the ravages of the caterpillar, very considerable breadths of crop will not repay the cost of harvesting. One farmer, indeed, told us the other day that over a considerable acreage he had lost fully twenty bushels an acre, and over his whole farm fully ten bushels an acre all round, through the caterpillar pest. He added that if things went on at this rate, it would be useless to attempt to grow oats or barley in. this district, these descriptions of grain suffering much more severely from the depredations of the caterpillar than wheat and some other crops. In an article on Mr Vogel’s speech at Dunedin, the Australasian’ says the Premier spoke out cleavly and manfully’* on tion, and with regard to Lis observation that the manifest duty of Now Zealand is to civilise and explore the islands of the South Pacific, that “ there are a breadth of view and a states-man-like grasp of the subject exhibited iu Mr Vogel’s public deliverances and general policy, which are iu creditable contrast with the peddling spirit and hand-to-lnouth policy too often manifested by Victorian statesmen ; and we may congratulate New Zealand on the possession of a political leader who is animated by the ambition to make her great, prosperous, populous. and powerful.” The caterpillars are causing great annoyance to the farmers. In the Tokomairiro district, we learn from the ‘ Herald,’ that the travelling progress of the caterpillars has been iu the di° rection of the Gorge hill, or iu a "north-easterly course, even in the face of a strong wind blowing. A settler informed our contemporary that going along one of his" Helds the other day he saw them 111 thousands, rolling over one another m.a ditc.i, creeping up the sides, the north-east wind being so strong that it toppled them over again, but still they persisted in adhering to tins course, making no attempt to turn to the right or to the left he said they were “in bucketfuls. A general testimony also is, that they appear to select camping spots for feeding, and completely clear patches here and there, as they nuivo along, always selecting where the crop is thickest. They are noticed to be very severe in cases where they happen to move across sheaves lying on the ground, the heads of which they nip off, as if a lot of mice had been at work. Prompter ’ sends us the following items of theatrical _ interest; —Madame Anna Bishop, accompanied by her husband (Mr Schnltze) and a first-class pianist, has taken passage by the Macgieyor, which was to leave San Francisco for New Zealand on January 28. —A late bydney telegram reports the death there ,of (.diaries Voung, whoso unfortunate mental aberration I only mentioned a couple of weeks the Mr Young alluded to by ialuti iu the ‘ Australasiau ’ iu the eub-

joined extract:—“ I suppose the number of people who remember the time when Young and Hydes were the managers in Melbourne is now becoming small. That was in what we sometimes call the “ good times.” when poundnotes did not buy very much, and when the price of admission to the dress circle of the old Queen’s was 12s 6d. There was no reason that I could ever discover why Messrs Young and Hydes should -'not have continued to be managers in Melbourne, even unto this day. By this time they might, if they had so willed it, have been millionaire managers. It can hardly be said that a divinity has ‘ shaped their ends,’ although it is quite certain that they have ‘rough-hewn’ them a good deal.” Poor Charles Young has ended his days in a lunatic asylum. Johnny Hydes is very much forgotten in Melbourne, where he was once among the notable men of the time.—Miss Carrie Emmanuel is engaged to lie married to her cousin, Mr Robert Smith, a Queensland squatter, and was to give two concerts in Sydney on February 5 and G, before taking “farewell of the lyric stage.”—A private letter from London has been received by a lady in Benella, audit says that “a distinguished operatic company intends visiting this and the adjoining Colonies shortly, which will be accompanied by the Princess Ema Matchinsky, relict of a Russian prince, who has earned great praise in Europe as a prima donna. The company intends sailing from London in May next, and will visit Melbourne, Sydney, New Zealand, &c.”—Mr and Mrs George Case will reach Melbourne in April.

The Rev. B. Backhouse will lecture in the Green Island Presbyterian Church on Monday evening. A summoned meeting of the Loyal Leith Lodge, 1.0.0. F., will beheld on Monday evening, at 8 o’clock. The regular fortnightly meeting of the Protestant Alliance Friendly Society will be held in Milton Hall on Monday, at 8 p.m. A meeting of the Submarine Gold Minin" Company will be held at the Company’s Office, Princes street, at half-past 7 o’clock on Monday evening. The Rev. D. M‘Lean will conduct divine service in Milton Hall, to-morrow, at 2.30 p.m., nnd.7 p.m. Subject in the afternoon—“ The Divine Authority of the Sabbath.”