NEWS OF THE DAY.

Globe, Volume VIII, Issue 825, 13 February 1877, Page 2

NEWS OF THE DAY.

Borough Inspector. —At the meeting of the City Council yesterday it was decided to advertise for a borough inspector, to act as inspector of cabs, &c, at a salary of £IBO per annum.

The City Baths.— At the meeting of the Oity Council yesterday, the town clerk reported that some £8 had been received for the use of the baths during the week. The announcement elicited a short congratulatory speech from Cr Ick on the subject.

All England Cricket Match.—The right of publicans’ and luncheon booths, during the three days of above match, will be sold by Mr J, Campbell, at the Commercial Hotel, on Monday, 19th inst, at 3 p.m.

Mdlle. Feanzini —There was a capital attendance at the Rink last evening, when Mdlle, Pranzini repeated her performance on the bicycle most successfully, She will appear again to-night. Floods in Napier.— According to telegrams published elsewhere the floods in the above district are now subsiding, but not until some considerable damage has been done. At Taradale people had to be rescued from their homes by means of boats. The Drainage Scheme.— A largely signed petition was presented to his Worship the Mayor yesterday, asking him to call a public meeting to consider Mr Carrnthers’ scheme of drainage. Hia Worship has acceeded to the request, and has fixed Thursday evening next, at the Oddfellows’ Hall, lor the meeting. Woolston Meeting re Drainage.— The committee appointed at the preliminary meeting held on Thursday last, met on Saturday at the residence of Mr Hopkins, when the arrangements for the Thursday’s meeting were discussed. Finally, a subcommittee was appointed to draw up a programme, which was adopted last evening. The Eastern Question. —A cable telegram states that peace negociatious between the Porte, Servia, and Montenegro are suspended. The tone of the Russian Press is leas warlike than it was a short time ago. It considers it needless for the Czar to make war upon Turkey, whose fall it maintains will be quicker from internal anarchy than from foreign attack. Rangitata Bridge. —" The public will be glad to learn,” says the Timaru Herald, “ that the Rangitata bridge, which has been closed for repairs since the flood which carried away a portion of the structure some eight or nine months ago, is now available for traffic. Only light vehicles can be allowed to cross as yet, but it will not be very long before the bridge will be fit for all sorts of traffic.” Traffic Returns.— The traffic returns on the Government Railways for the four weeks ending January 13th, 1877, appear in the Gazette. The total receipts are as follows:—Kaipara and Riverhead, £256 11s 91 ; Auckland to Mercer, £2155 9j Id ; Napier to Waipukurau,£2l4B 3s 4d: Waitara to New Plymouth, £219 lss 61 ; Foxton to Manawatu, £717 13s Id; Wellington to Masterton. £1155 10s 6d ; Nelson to Foxhill, £571 lls 2d ; I’iclon to Blenheim, £375 12s Id ; Brunner to Groymoutb, £647 10s 5d ; Westport to Mount Rochefort, £BB 5s 3d.

Cricket. —The M C.O C. Junior match for Saturday next will be Married v Single, play to commence at 2.30 p.m. sharp. The following are the sides—Married: Messrs Beaumont, Barringer, W. Horner, Palairet, Pavitt, Holt, Bitso, M'lntyre, Mercer, W. Thompson, Williams, Gerard, Poore, Monck, and Eyton. Sing’e—Messrs G. A. Turner, Gray, J. Horner, Hislop, Bell, Moore, Chapman, if. Smith, White, 6t Paul, Blanchard, Hill, Greig, Murray, and A. Watson, Any other members present will be allotted to their respective eideg*

I.O.G.T.—The quarterly meeting of the Sea Shell Lodge, Lyttelton, was held at the Oddfellows’ Hall on Monday evening, when the following officers were installed by the D.G.W.C.T. Bro Geo Ayers :—P.W.G.T. Bro f. Fogarty; W.C.T., BroG. Dimond; W.V.T., Bro H. Barker; W.S, Bro F. Arnold; W.F.S, Bro P. Childs, W.T., Bro S. G. Phillips ; W.O. Sister M. J. Phillips; W.M., Bro R, Waggarfc ; W.1.Q., Bro H. Wilson ; W.O.G Bro Lowe; W.A.S., Bro Millington; W.D.M. Bro H. Kelly ; W.R.H.S., Bro H, Graham ; W.L.H.8., BroG. Brown.

Christchurch Excelsior Lodge,— The Christchurch Excelsior Lodge, 1.0,G.T, No 59, bold their quarterly meeting at the Templar Hall, Worcester street, on Wednesday, February 7th, when Bro J. Buxton, D.G.W.C.T, installed the officers, assisted by Bro Hugh Bennetts, D.G.W.0.0. The following officers were then installed Bro T. A. Gates, W.C.T ; Bro H Carter, W.V.T ; Bro J. H. Pickrell, W.Sec ; Bro Roe, W.F.S ; Bro Brown, W.T; Sister B, Bennetts, W.C; B:o Snedding, W.M ; Bro Williamson, W.I.G; Bro Wakefield, W.O.G ; Bro Horace Gates, W.A.S ; Sister Penderville, W.D.M ; Sister Bourne, W.B.H.S ; Sister R. Cave, W.L.H.B, The London Times —The Home correspondent of the Otago Daily Times writes: “ Reports of the failing health and probable retirement of Mr Delane, the editor of the Times, have been circulated for fully a year past; but latterly they have assumed so positive and circumstantial a form that [it becomes necessary to notice them. It is beyond doubt that Mr Delane’s health is seriously impaired, and that on this account his duties are being discharged by another, and as he is now sixty-one years of age, it is not unnatural to suppose he is seeking the rest which is impossible of attainment so long as he wields the thunderbolts of the Jupiter of Printing House square. It is stated that Sir George Dasent, who for many years was Mr Delano's principal colleague, was asked to succeed him, but Sir George having lately got a snug berth as a Civil Service Commissioner, and knowing the arduous nature of the post offered him* declined to be tempted. Mr Leonard Courtney, one of the best of the staff of leaderwriters attached to the Times, has been spoken of as the next most likely man to fill the vacancy, but he is at present contesting the representation of Liskeard, and is, moreover, a Liberal of too decided a type to be altogether suited for the editorship of such a political chameleon as the Times. Meanwhile Mr Stebbing is conductin g the paper, but his efforts are far from giving satisfaction, and many complaints are made of the doctrinaire character the leading articles of the Times have assumed, especially in respect of the Eastern question. It seems to be as difficult to get a really good editor for a leading paper nowadays as Napoleon found it to be to get a general capable of commanding 100,000 men, Mr Walter baa just returned from the Philadelphia Exhibition, where he is said to have been much in the company of Mr Childs, the energetic proprietor of the Philadelphia Ledger , and probably the most far-seeing newspaper man in America. It is rumored that Mr Walter, acting on the advice of Mr Childs, intends to start a penny evening paper in London, but for the truth of this I cannot vouch, I believe, however, that I am correct in stating that before long a penny weekly summary' of news will be issued from the Times office."

Auckland Museum. —Respecting the Auckland Museum the Herald writes:—“ We understand that some additions of an attractive character are expected from Paris; Dr Filhol, of the French Transit of Venus Expedition, remained in New Zealand for some time, and having credentials “from the Museum at Paris, arrangements were made with him for exchanging. We asked for skins of birds from Europe, Asia, and North America, which are always attractive, and as the Paris Museum has a number of collectors out, the curator will doubtless be able to send what is wanted. It will be interesting to know what we gave in exchange, as showing what we have to give, and what European collectors most wish to get. The Auckland Museum sent to Paris, by desire of Dr Filhol, a large number of Maori skulls and acomplovcmaorl skeleton, and these will be of great interest at present to European savants. These skulls were mostly obtained from the caves iu the volcanic hills of the Auckland district, which have been so prolific in this respect; not from the caves at the Three Kings, which have been pretty well ransacked, were these specimens obtained, but from caves at Mount Wellington, in the hills by the Tamaki, and from cavesgon the Bllerslie racecourse. It has often been said that the bones were carted from the caves in the lava stream at the Three Kings in order to make bonedusfc for manure, but we believe that to be a fable. They were taken by curiosity hunters to satisfy the demands of science. It is rather curious that all our New Zealand museums and scientific men were too late to secure a Maori head preserved in the old style. Our readers will remember the lively account given in “ Old New Zealand” of the trade in heads in the early days, when slaves were tattooed up to the proper point and then decapitated, in order that the head might be sold for exportation. That, however, is a “ local industry, which is now extinct, and Dr Haaat, of the Canterbury Museum, had actually to send to Europe and purchase one. However, what we can give to Europe is not confined to Maori skulls,”