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Evening Star, Issue 4174, 13 July 1876, Page 2

Tiie proclamation of the Governor in Council of November 10, 1874, forbidding the importation into New Zealand of grape vines and cuttings, has been revoked:

The Gardeners' Society met at the Douglas Hotel last evening, and after the initiation of some new members a paper on the rose Aphis was read* whieh was well reeeived;

The action of Kirby v. Macandrew (as Superintendent) concluded in the Supremo Court yesterday afternoon, and resulted in a verdict for plaintiff ( for L 254 10s 3d. A second case between the same parties occiippied the whole of two-day's sitting. The Wellington 'Argus' remarks that the gpund of tha .division bell is. in Mr Stout's ears. Me calls for divisions every time the voices go against him, even on the most trivial matters, and if he goes on throughout the session as he did one night last wcei, he will :<dcl a week or Wb' to the length of the session. The 'Lyfctelton Times' learns that Mr Monk, of the Kaikainni Hotel at Kaiapoi, ha 3 erected j*,t his own exbejise; ai a cost of LSOO, works for tbepi'dcllfdticrio? g.-is.i which he linds afford an ample supply of good quality, lb i 9 tbHt.ight.it.wpuldbeagood thing for the public of that place if the Borough Council would make some arrangements with Mr Jjtonk to light .up the town, as he couid produce quite siifnciehi giis- if necessary, for that purpose.

Tlie following idea entertained by a Maori on the matter of bankruptcy (as Stated by the 'Southern Cross'} is rather too good not to be handed down to posterity. A certain chief, a man of intelligence, and punctual in his monetary matters with his pskehii iieighb«..*r*ij wm lately a sufferer to to the extent of some L3O or L4O through a man going through the Court. In relating the affair to some Natives whom he was visiting, he told them th».t he had lost his money by a man becoming "packarapu." The word rather staggerred the aboriginals, who immediately demanded an explanation. It was given as follows: —" A pakeha who wants to become a 'packarapu' goes into business and gets lots of goods and does not pay for them. He then gets all the money he can together, say L 2.000, and puts it away where no one can get it, all except 1.5. With this he goes to the Judge of the Supreme Court, and tells him he wishes to become 'packarapu.' The Judge says he is very sorry, but of course it cannot be helped, and he then calls all the lawyer;; together, likewise all the men to whom the ' packarapu' owes money, and he say: This man is 'packarapu,' but he wishes to give you all he has got, aud so he has asked me to divide this (the Lo) among you all. The Judge thereupou gives L 4 to the lawyers aud LI to the other men, and the ' tfa.ckarapu' S oes home."

The «Brace Herald* reports that the lambing season has commenced in the Tokot"ai"ro Lambs are now to be seen at Milburn, on Mr Oliver'B farm, and at Mr Forsyth's property. W e are authorised by Messrs Connell and Moodie to state that the deferred payments selectors for whom Mr Connell appeared at yesterday's sitting of the Waste Land Board were married on the 2nd ult.

Mr David Carson had a very narrow escape from death or serious injury a few days ago. The 'Herald' says he was driving home, and when »«ar the railway crossing at Clarksville the horse backed the buggy over the river bank. The vehicle was damaged, and Mr Carson was slightly hurt. The only ease at the Port Chalmers Police Court this morning was a charge preferred against a new arrival named Robert Dawson, for behaving in a manner calculated to provoke a breach of the pease. Accused was ordered to pay a fine of ss, in default, twenty-four hours' imprisonment. Mr T. A. Mansford, 8.M., presided. That the Government do not contemplate altering the present site of the Supreme Court buildings for some time at least is evidenced by the fact that the grounds outside the main entrance to the Courthouse are being levelled prior to re-metalling. It is to be hoped that the interior of the building and the roofing will be attended to at the same time.

TheWanganui Town Council, with only one dissentient, has agreed to give the local prisoners a stick of tobacco a-piece weekly while employed on Corperation work. The ostensible object is that this allowance will incite prisoners to work better. A correspondent to the ' Herald ' suggests the addition of a pint of beer each to make things quite pleasant.

At the lodge-room, Ocean View Hotel, Forbury, last evening, the installation of the officers of the Unity Lodge, 1.0.0. F., took place. The officers were as follows :—N.G., Bro Mackenzie ; V.G., Bro. Bonner; Treasurer. Bro. Boelke. The N.G., after the installation, appointed the various subordinate officers to their respective chairs. The installation of the secretary was postponed until next lodge night.

We have received letters bearing upon the prosecution of the Editor of this journal which, according to the decision of the Resident Magistrate, we should be justified in publishing, as, being only a Court of Inquiry, no contempt could be alleged. The writers must however accept our apology for not publishing them at present as we will not do anything that shall in any way pre judice the case directly or remotely.

Signor Ferara, who will be remembered as visiting Dunedin with his trained monkeys, has "fretted his last hour on the stage." He died at Tenterfield, New South Wales, of general debility. He was then a member of Ashton's Circus Company. A rather painful occurrence happened at the funeral. The horses backed into a creek, and the hearse upset, but in a few moments it was extricated without anything unseemly happening to the corpse, which was then conveyed to its last resting place.

The Wakatip 'Mail* has the following: —" Death has been busy in the ranks of our little community during the last few months. Queenstewn has lost for ever another good citizen, in the person of Mr John M'Bride, who died very suddenly last Thursday night. Deceased was, till a few years back, a member of the well-known firm of Messrs Robertson and Co. He was much respected by all who knew him. He was a kind husband, and his loss will be felt for a long time. On Sunday a very large and respectable cortege followed his remains to the cemetery, where the Rev. Father Mackay read the funeral service, after which (by the consent of the Right Rev. Dr. Moran, we hear), Bro. G. M. Ross, P.N.G., read the funeral oration of M.U 1.0.0. F. Mr M'Bride was a member of the Oddfellows' and Foresters' Lodges here. The anniversary dinner of the Loyal Orange Institution was held last night in the Friendly Societies' Hall, when about 130 gentlemen were present, including representatives from Blueskin, Waitahuna, Oamaru, Green Island., and Invercargill. The chair was occupied ly Bro. H. Church, and the vice-chair by Bro. John Harris* W.M„ of No. 21 Lodge. After the drinking of the Usual loyal toasts the Vice- Chairman proposed " The memory of King William the pThird," which was duly honored. The Chairman proposed the toast of the evening —" Orangemen all ©verthe World "; and in so doiwg referred to the principles of the Order, which were little .Understood by people outside. The first of these was to love the Lord our Maker with all our heart and with all our soul } the second to love our brothers in the same way as is laid down in the Commandments : the third to love and honor our Queen and siippflrt tbe_eonstitution as established by William 111. The speaker sat down amidst great applause, dha fif ter' several other toftsts had been well received and some capital songs given the company dispersed at about midnight. The Gisborne correspondent of the B Sdtttiutfn" Otoe** tells the following story : —" A somewhat curioiis and fiscitlfig' scene took place last Sunday evening in the Presbyterian Church. Whilst the Rev. Mr Root wte in the middle t fa most eloquent sermon, he was suddenly iiiterrtiptedj and the congregation startled, by the frantic screaming of a female at the door of the church. Some thought it was the Maoris, others that a fire had occUtfetl, and to solve the problem nearly the whole of the congregation rushed, pellmell out of the sacred edifice, when it Was found that the female who had been shrieking so was a Mrs Drummond, who resides a short distance from the Presbyterian Church. That lady breathlessly informed the congregation, who crowded round her, that her houss had been broken into by robbers, and begged for assistance. This appeal was readily answered by the sterner sex, who rushed ovei' to Mr Drummond's house and searched every nook and corner, but unfortiinAteiy the robber or robbers had decamped and left no trace—and so the matter stands shrouded in mystery."

Referring again to the vexed question at New Plymouth of the running of trains on Sundays, we notice that a committee consisting of the Revs. F. W. Isitt, H. Brown, M. S, Breach, J. Dumbell, and T. G. Hammond, together with five laymen, was appointed to obtain the opinion of the public on the question. For this purpose the committee issued circulars to every resident, and the ' Herald ' thcron remarks :—" We hear that ft number of these d( cuments have been destroyed by the recipient?, whilst others have been returned blank. Mr W. Habe published in the ' Budget' of Friday last a protest against the proceedings of the committee in the matter. The frank, open manner in which he lias expressed himself is highly commendable, and it is an example which, if followed in all public matters instead of so much anonymous writing, would tend to do good. As some may not have seen the protest, we republish it:— 'Gentlemen, —You pledge yourselves to regard the replies you receive to your circular as confidential. I choose, however, not to have recourse to that shelter, but to answer, through the columns of a public journal, that I absolutely decline, as the head of my household, to give the information asked, or in anj' way to recognise your right unsolicited to seek, on religious grounds, my opinion on this or any question whatever. Moreover, I consider the whole proceeding as highly intrusive.'"

Hegarty's Globe Variety Troupe gave their first performance in the Foresters' Hall, Fort Chalmers, last evening, to ft crowded Auiiekee. All the members of the troupe Were received with great favor, and emores were constantly demanded and acceded to. The troupe appsa* again this evening, It will be seen from our special Parliamentary telegrams that Mr Pavletich's petition re pawnbrokers is likely to be shelved, as the statements are believed to be exaggerated. The following is the texts of the petition :-The petitioner set forth that under the present system large numbers of people pawn everything for drink, leaving their children a burden upon the community and themselves—a pest to society. Any person requiring a k>an has to pay such enormous interest that he seldom, if ever, recovers his property." - The petitioner, therefore, prayed that "the House may take the matter into consideration in order that the present iniquitous Act maybe repealed, and that the poor people compelled by want to pledge their goods may at anyrate have some protection." The following particulars of the recent serious conflagration at Mr Aitken's Clifden Station, Waiau, resulting in that gentleman's splendid residence being totally destroyed, •are taken from a Southern contemporary : ™ ?•*? was first discovered by Mr Rowe, Mr Aitken's family tutor, about four o'clock on Wednesday morning, who observed flames issuing from the kitchen roof. Mr Rowe immediately aroused Mr and Mrs Aitken and family, who had barely time to escape from their bedrooms in their nightclothes. On rushing out they found the kitchen and the whole of the southern wing a mass of flame, and it being considered hopeless to attempt to save anything there, Mr Aitken and the few assistants he had (three of his men being unfortunately absent) directed their attention to saving the northern wing. Some time, however, was lost in trying to save some gunpowder in the store room at the southern end of the building, to prevent explosion, which Mr Aitken succeeded in doing, with the exception of about a pound, which did but little harm. Most of tha fnrniture and bedding in the north end of the building was saved; but all Mrs Aitken's valuables, which were in the southern wiug, were entirely destroyed, together with all the clothiDg of every m;mber of the family. The house, which was one of the finest station residences in the district, was insured in the Victoria office in two policies of LSOO each, part of one of the policies being on the furniture ; but Mr Aitken estimates his loss at L 2,000.

Mr C. S. Reeves will nddr ss the ratepayers at the new hall, Albany street, to-morrow evening at 8 o'clock.

The sixteenth ann'versary of the City Guards will be celebrated by a ball in the Temperance Hall, to-morrow even'ng, at 9 o'clock. A public meeting of all interested in a Ta eri De by Ploughing Match will be held at theCommercid Hotel, Mosgiel, on Saturday, at 6 p m.

The loyal Unity L-dge 10.0. F. will celebrate their first «nnivesary by a concert and ball at Maloney's Hotel, to-morrow (Frl day) evening, at 7.30.

fhe meeting of the Horticultural Society, cal'ed for last evening at tie Occidental Hotel, was postponed till to-morrow (Friday) evening, when it is to be hoped that membcis will attend.

A most successful entertainment Was held last evening in the Lower Temperance Hall under the auspices of Lodge Pride of Dunedin, 1.0 G.T , the proceeds being devoted to Temperance missionary fund. The, concert, in which a number of ladies and gentlemen from kindred Lodges took part, was a very enjoyable one.

We thank Messrs Reith and Wilkie for a copy of the three lectures on the " Doctrine of Providence and Prayer and the Reign of Law," delivered by Professor Salmond. The lectures are put in a portable form, in a neat cover. We offer no opinio a as to their merits, but commend them to perusal, to those who entertain any doubts on the difficult subjejts on which they treat.