NEWS OF THE DAY.

Globe, Volume IV, Issue 301, 31 May 1875, Page 2

NEWS OF THE DAY.

Annual Licensing Courts.— The annual court for granting public-house licenses will be held to-morrow. Lecture. —A lecture will be delivered this evening in the Durham street Wesleyan Church by the Mr J. H. Twentyman, on the Revival in England, now going on under the auspices of Messrs Moody and Sankey.

Status of Road Boards. —ln another column we publish the judgment of the Court of Appeal in the case Patterson v the Mandeville and Rangiora Road Board. St John’s Church. —The Rev Mr Coates who was ordained deacon on Trinity Sunday, by the Most Rev the Primate, preached twice yesterday in the Church of St John the Baptist, Latimer square. Census op New Zealand. —We have to acknowledge the receipt of Further Abstracts of the Census of New Zealand for 1874, containing a return of “ The Conjugal Conditions of the People,” and “ The Occupations of the People.” Accident. —An accident, which happened on the Great South road on the 25th, by which a man named Gascoyne was run over by falling from the shaft of the dray on which he was sitting, terminated fatally on Friday. He had been taken to the hospital at Timaru, where he died. Presentation— A very handsome gold wach and chain, purchased at Mr Urquhart’s, Colombo street, will be presented to-day to Mr Weymouth Roberts, foreman to the contractor for the erection of Ashburton bridge. The watch bears the following inscription.— “ Presented to Weymouth Roberts by the engineers, workmen, and residents, Ashburton bridge, May, 1875.”

Fatal Accident near Timaru. —On Saturday Mr J. F, Nettleton, Kaiapoi, received information that the body of a young man had been found drowned in Pighunting Creek, which has been identified by Mr Feldwick, of the Herald office, as Mr Nettleton’s son, Mr H. B. Nettleton, who was about twenty-five years of age. It appears that Mr Nettleton, jun, has been at Oamaru, and was expected, accompanied by a young man named Gifkins, to arrive at Kaiapoi within a few days on a visit. He was well known in the northern district, and was a young man of considerable promise. It is supposed that he and his friend were walking in to Timaru, and in attempting to cross the creek, Mr Nettleton was drowned.

The White Cliffs Line —As considea')le dissatisfaction is stated to prevail in tne district at the delay in opening the branch line to White Cliffs, and thus enabling the coalpits there to send down the coal, it has been decided to request the member for Rakaia fMr W. White) to table a motion in the Provincial Council on the subject.

New Caledonia —The Sydney Morning Herald has received intelligence from Noumea up to the 28th ult. The Moniteur of that date contains an Ordinance signed by the Governor, and dated the 24th April, authorising the schooner Donald M'Lean, belonging to Messrs Higginson, Morgan and Co, to sail under the French flag, between the New Hebrides and New Caledonia. This vessel was, it appears ,franoisSe on the 27th May, 1873, and is usually employed in the “ labour ” trade. The three-masted barque Camilla—belonging to the same firm, and trading between Australia and New Caledonia—has also been placed under the French flag. The owners are domiciled at Noumea. On the 25th April, the service of the aumoneriemilitaire. established in Prance by the National Assembly, was inaugurated by Mgr. Vitte, who celebrated a military mass at the Infantry Barracks at Noumea* in the presence of the Governor, the Commandant of the Military, and other distinguished personages.

Sir George Grey’s Policy. —The Auckland correspondent of the New Zealand Times writes as follows on this subject:—“l have been enabled to learn on good authority some of the points of the new policy which it is understood Sir George Grey will introduce in the General Assembly. It is said he has been in correspondence with Mr Eolleston, and the remains of the old Stafford party, and that the basis of an opposition has been agreed upon. The Southern party would accept no proposals for general action which threatened to disturb the land compact of 1856, and this Sir George Grey has promised to concede. The party will in the first instance seek to return to the old system under which the provinces received a moiety of the Customs revenue, and failing in that, will endeavor to make the abolition of the provinces general throughout the colony. The system of triennial parliaments, an elected Upper House, and other constitutional changes, will be proposed. ‘ An attempt will also be made to question even the legal status of the Governor in the colony, and it may be argued that his present position involves a distinct responsibility by the Imperial Government for the loans. I believe also you may look out for a special organ being started in Wellington to represent this party during the session. Is is argued that the Governor acted unconstitutionally in refusing to forward the petition of Sir George Grey to the Crown, and you will see that the matter will form the subject of a discussion in the House. The party which has enlisted under Sir George Grey’s banner is not numerous. It includes Mr Dignan, the lately elected member for City West, Mr Reader Wood, Mr O’Rorke, and several other Auckland members, and a considerable number of Middle Island members ; but it is far from being a majority of the House, and the adhesion of several of the Canterbury and Otago members is so clogged with conditions that a split on one or more grounds appears not improbable. The few facts 1 have given you above are thoroughly reliable.” Pbdestrianism. —The 300 yards spin between Young Delaney and Pentecost, for £lO a side, came off on Saturday afternoon, on that portion of the road between Wood’s Mill and the Riccarton Hotel. The road was not by any means good running ground, as besides being very hard, the late rains had left pools of mud and water at intervals. Between 250 and 300 persons were present. About half-past three the men toed the line, and after two attempts and one false start, went away at pistol fire, Delaney having about two yards the best of the start. This advantage he increased, until about 90 yards - of the distance had been travelled, when Pentecost spurted up and caught him. Delaney answered, and spurted ahead, continuing to increase his lead. When half the distance had been reached, Pentecost suddenly slacked, allowing Delaney to lengthen his lead considerably. Delaney now looked behind, and seeing that he had his opponent at any terms, slackened his pace. When about 50 yards from the tape, Pentecost pulled into a trot, Delaney simply ambling in, Pentecost walkinghomelame. Thetimegiven was 41-jsec, but this cannot be taken as any criterion of what the winner can do it in, as at no portion of the race was he asked to run. The cause of Pentecost’s stoppage was his treading on a stone with his right foot, which slightly wrenched it, his spikes being far too long for a metalled road, one of them having been forced through the leather into his foot. After the race Collins, a sprint runner of some repute, challenged Delaney to run him 100, 150, and 200 yards, in a fortnight, for £25 aside. Delaney, with some of his backers, attended at the Golden Fleece on Saturday night, the place appointed to arrange preliminaries, but it was eventually determined to postpone the matter until to-night. ' The Loss of the Schiller. The Southern Ci oss in a recent issue says In yesterday’s Cross we expressed the opinion that there was little likelihood of any of the passengers who left here by the s.s. Mikado being on board the unfortunate steamer Schiller, when she went to pieces on the Scilly rocks. This view receives some confirmation from the fact that Mr S. Browning has received a telegram from Miss Browning and Miss Jane Browning, who left here by the Mikado, intimating that they are safe. Twenty-six of the Mikado’s passengers were from Auckland, and it is therefore almost certain that they are all safe. The Waikato Times came out yesterday morning in mourning, for the supposed untimely death of the hon William Fox. It contains a very favorable notice of that gentleman’s political career in the colony. This notice will no doubt be read with interest by Mr Fox himself, after his return to the colony. The report which was industriously circulated on Wednesday evening that Sir George Grey had received a telegram, informing him that the hon Mr Fox was on board the wrecked steamer, and that he was amongst the drowned, is without foundation, Sir George Grey not having received any telegram upon the subject of the wreck ; while the fact is that Mr Fox intended to stay some months in the States, and deliver some lectures on his favorite topic of temperance. There are, we believe, eight or ten steamers which leave New York every week, and it is extremely improbable that any passengers for England would go in the German line of steamerJ especially one which, we believe, was bound for Hamburg, and wpuld only call at an English port.

Bobough School Committee, Lyttelton. —This committee held a meeting on Friday night, all the members being pregent, Correspondence was read, from the head-master, Mr Edge, stating that the attendance at the school had declined 25 per cent, owing to illness amongst the children, and suggesting that the school should be shut for a fortnight, holidays to commence to-day (Monday), instead of giving the usual vacation at the end of June ; also containing recommendations as to the separation of the sexes in the schools, and calling attention to the state of the playgrounds, both covered and uncovered, which were ancle deep in mud. The committee agreed that a fortnight’s holiday should be given, dating from to-day (Monday), but did not decide as to the separation of the sexes in the schools, th it question being deferred till their next meeting, in order that Mr Edge might be present. It was determined to write to the Government about the state of the playgrounds, and ask them for a portion of the hard labor gang to put things in proper repair. Regarding the non-comple-tion of the dwarf wall and care-taker’s house within the specified time, it was determined to write to the contractors informing them the committee intended to inflict the penalties. A report from the Board of Examiners with reference to a letter of Mr Phillips’ to the committee, regarding his application for a second-class certificate, was read, and the secretary was instructed to forward a copy to Mr Phillips. The meeting then adjourned.