NEWS OF THE DAY.

Globe, Volume VIII, Issue 948, 9 July 1877, Page 2

NEWS OF THE DAY.

Labour Loan and Investment Society.— The half-yearly meeting of the Friends of Labour Loan and Investment Society will be held at the Market Hotel this evening, at eight o’clock. Civil Sittings. —Owing to his Honor the Judge having to visit Dunedin, the civil sittings of the Supreme Court, which were to have commenced on Wednesday next, have been postponed until the 20th instant. A notification to special jurors appears elsewhere. St. Michael’s. —The Bishop of Nelson preached in this church yesterday morning to a large and attentive congregation. In the evening Archdeacon Thorpe, also of Nelson, and who recently returned from England, gave a most impressive and eloquent sermon in the same church. Lecture. —The first of a series of lectures under the auspices of the Young Men’s Christian Association is to be delivered this evening, in the Congregational schoolroom, Manchester street. The lecturer is Mr N. K. Cherrill; the subject, “A Trip Beyond the Sun.”

Supreme Court. —In consequence of his Honor the Judge leaving for Dunedin, a Chamber sitting was held on Saturday. Orders of discharge were made in the cases of Harband and Steel (Mr Loughnan, solicitor) and Nixon (Mr Slater, solicitor). The Increased Railway Tariff. —The Timaru “ Herald ” quotes the following telegram as a sample of the results already accruing from the increased tariff on the Canterbury lines. It was received by a business man in Tiraaru from a merchant at Geraldine, and runs as follows: —Keep goods till I send dray. Railway charges too high.” As the person at Geraldine is doing one of the largest businesses in the district, and his store is some twenty-five miles from Timaru, it is not likely he would prefer tedious dray carriage to rail without sufficient reason.

G-aiety Theatre. —Tliere was a capital house at this theatre on Saturday evening. The first piece was a comedietta entitled “Doing for the Best,” in which Miss Lizzie Morgan, Miss Wiseman, Mr Deering, and the other members of the company appeared. This was followed by the burlesque of “The Invisible Prince.” In this, Miss Morgan received the exceptional compliment of a double encore for her singing of “ Whip-Poor-Will.” Miss Alice Johns, as on former occasions, was very successful in Mr Emmet’s song from “Fritz,” and was encored. To-night Mrs Hall will make her re-appearance in Byron’s comedy of “ Old Sailors,” and the burlesque of “ Aladdin. This lady will no doubt, as she deserves, be warmly welcomed. Mr Hall also appears, and this, together with two new pieces, should draw a full house.

The Bible Christians. The second quarterly meeting of the Bible Christian Mission in this city was held last Monday, and was numerously attended by members and friends of the body. The report presented, with regard to both members and funds, was of a most encouraging nature. The former had nearly doubled in number, and the latter, after all expenses were met, left a surplus of over £22, which, together with the £ls invested last quarter, gives a total surplus of over £37. A most gratifying feature of the meeting was, that a letter from the Missionary Secretary at Home had just come to hand, expressing the deep interest felt in the undertaking, and stating that the request for a minister -would be most readily complied with but that the demand from the Australian Mission, and the rapid extension of the body in the North of England, rendered it impossible until after the next Conference, when one or two ministers will be sent to the colony. County Council Etiquette. —The members of the Bruce County Council decided at its last meeting that in future, when one member had occasion during the course of any debate to refer to another, he should do so by merely prefixing the word “ Mister ” to the name of the person he referred to. The use of the term Councillor was strongly objected to, as it was not in harmony with several of the members’ names. The “ Daily Times ” satirically suggests that probably, as one of the Councillors remarked, St. Kilda has had something to do with the decision.

Items. —There are six candidates for the Mayoralty of Port Chalmers —M'Kinnon (the present Mayor) Murray, Lines, G-raham, and Reid.—Anderson, a bootmaker at Queenstown, has been committed for trial for an assault of a desperate character on a laborer named Andrew Ryan.—Dr Hector has recovered from his attack of typhoid fever, and gone to Napier to recruit. —The erection of a proper public telegraph office is one of the improvements lately made in the Parliamentary Buildings, Wellington. —Paul, the Maori chief of Orakei, has brought an action for libel against the “ Wananga.” —An unoccupied four-roomed house near Oamaru, belonging to Mr Collins, has been burned to the ground. It was insured for £3OO. —The tender of H. Munro, to erect public baths at Oamaru for £877 has been accepted.—The earthquake lately felt at Westport and Nelson was also felt smartly at Wellington.—The Lydia Howarde troupe have left Greymouth for Wellington by the Luna, whose freight consisted of 200 tons of coal and 53640zs of gold. —There is now published in Dunedin,the “New Zealand Volunteer Service Gazette.”—The Deborah Bay tunnel, on the North Dunedin line, is expected to be pierced through in three weeks.—The shepherd Moffat, whose disappearance from Wanaka caused fears for his safety to be entertained, has turned up all right.—The new Princess Theatre, in the Te Aro end of the city of Wellington, was opened on the 4th of‘July, when a masked and fancy dress ball was held.

Otago University.— The Dunedin Presbytery have resolved by ten to three votes that the synod should be requested to endow the second chair in the University as that o£ English literature, rhetoric, and constitutional history. Charles Geey’s Fraudulent Insolvency. —The circumstances which led to the arrest of Charles Grey, confectioner, Wellington, were thus described by N. J. Isaacs, in his evidence before the Supreme Court:—At the meeting of creditors a list of prisoner’s stock, &c., was produced at the meeting, and he was asked if he had any other goods than those enumerated in the list which he had filed. He said he had some few things, and named them—a bag of flour, two cases of jam, and a few other items, about four different kinds of things altogether; these goods, he said, were at Mr Atkinson’s, in Tory street. He led me to believe that there were no other goods but those he had mentioned. Witness sent for a man named Purdy to take possession, and went to Atkinson’s house accompanied by Detective Fanell. A large quantity of goods were found there—--14 or 15 tins of lollies, 2 cases of jam, 2 wedding cakes, several glass bottles filled with confectionery, a clock, a gold watch and chain, studs and other jewellery, several dozen knives and forks (elect to- plate), glass centrepieces, ornamental vases, a. very large family Bible, Ja quantity of table linen, Ac. There was altogether about £6O worth of stuff. Prisoner never informed witness that those things were at Atkinson’s. It will be seen that the bankrupt has since been sentenced to two months’ hard labor.

Juvenile Good Templars.— The Hope of Lyttelton Juvenile Lodge of Good Templars, which is now in a most prosperous condition, celebrated its first anniversary on Friday evening last. At 6 p.m. a tea meeting was given at the Wesleyan School, which the members and their elder friends appeared to enjoy very heartily. The arrangements were excellent, and the credit of them is in a great measure due to Mrs Ockford, who worked indefatigably to render it the success it has proved to be. Nearly 200 people were present at the tables. It was getting well on for eight when the dispensers of good things had completed their task, and a general move then took place across the road to the Oddfellows’ Hall, where further treats were in store for the youngsters and their supporters. Mr H.“E. Webb took the chair, and, in a brief speech, testified to the good which had been wrought by Good Templarism in Lyttelton, impressing on parents present the necessity of inculcating habits of sobriety in their children, A varied entertainment was then proceeded with, songs, readings, vocal and instrumental duets being given by Mesdames Crowley, Ockford, and Allwright, the Misses Stout, Grubb, Reed, and Messrs. Lance, Yule, Smith, and Jacobson. All were well received, but perhaps the most amusing item in this part of the performance was a dialogue given by Masters Messiter and Street, two juvenile members of the order. The fun wound up with a “Spelling Bee,” Mr Smith acting as interrogator, and Mr Edge as judge and referee. No sooner had the chairman explained that anyone could compete, and that there woidd be three prizes (viz., a painting of the Lurline, barque, by Mr G. W. White, an album, and a book) than forty competitors of mixed ages and sexes crowded the platform. It took more than Half an hour to reduce the competitors to three. Mr T. L. Smith took the well-earned first prize, Miss Clarkson the second, and Miss Fielder the third. This brought a most successful festival to an end. Messrs Hay and Reed got up the entertainment, and deserve great credit for their exertions.