NEWS OF THE DAY.

Globe, Volume IX, Issue 1350, 12 June 1878, Page 2

NEWS OF THE DAY.

Evangelistic Committee. A service will take place this evening in the Oddfellows' Hall at 7.30 o'clock. Notice to Passengebs.—As will be seen by advertisement elsewhere, the passengers by the Cuzco are requested to call at Matheson's Agency. L.O.L.—A meeting of the brethren of the above will take place at the Orange Hall on Thursduy evening, to consider the celebration of the 12th July. C-ANTKBBUEY CfiICKET ASSOCIATION.—A meeting of the committee of the above will be held at Radcliffe's Hotel on Thursday, at 8 p.m., to receive the report of the subcommittee appointed to revise the rules of the association.

County Council Conference.—A meeting of representatives from the various County Councils of the provincial district of Canterbury will be held in Christchurch on the 20th instant., for the consideration of the provisions of the Sheep and Fencing Bills.

Complimentary Benefit to Mb W. Hillieb.—A complimentary benefit has been tendered to Mr W. ilillier, who is about to leave Lyttelton, where ho has been located for many years. It will take place at the Oddfellows' Hall to-morrow (Thursday) evening, and a splendid programme has been prepared. City Ar/DiTOBa.--A notice in accordance with the Regulation of Local Elections Act haß been lodged with respect to the late election of city auditors, praying for an enquiry therein. The Resident Magistrate, who under the Act has to hear such cases, has fixed the 20th instant as the day on which the enquiry will bo held.

A New Steam Company.—Wellington, says the " Chronicle," will have another steamer in the coasting trade shortly. A company has just been formed at Patea under the title of the Patea Steam Navigation Company, with a capital of £6OOO, to purchase a steamer to trade between Patea, Nelson, and Wellington. Captain Gibbons, late of the steamer Clyde, was commissioned to purchase a suitable steamer, but has not been able to obtain one. Tenders, therefore, are to be invited for the construction of a steamer about the size of the ill-fated Egmont, with a very light draught of water, and suitable in all respects for the trade specified.

Pobestebs' Couet at Ashbtjrton.—lt having been decided to establish a Foresters' Court in Ashburton, a meeting of those interested was held on Monday evening at the Somerset Hotel. Dr. Kesteven was voted to the chair. A letter from the district secretary was read, which stated that a dispensation would be granted. The committee reported that Mr R. W. Shearman had offered the use of his sample room for the Court, which was accepted. It was decided to hold the opening of the Court on Monday, 17th, and to celebrate the opening by a banquet. Already a large number have signified their intention of joining, and there is every reason to believe that the Ashburton Court will prosper. Volunteer Inspection.—The head-quar-ters companies of volunteers will parade for inspection this evening at the drill-shed, Major Lean, the officer commanding the district, in charge. His Excellency the Governor will be present, and invitations have been issued to the members of the Legislative Council and House of Representatives. The programme of the proceedings will be as follows: —At 8 p.m. His Excellency will arrive and be received by the battalion in line with a general salute. The Governor will then pass down the ranks, and the various corps v/ill afterwards go through battalion movements and the manual and firing exercise. After a selection has been played by the band of the C.Y.C., His Excellency will proceed to the gun shed, where the C.A.Y. corps will go through dismounting practice. The Governor will then return to the drill-shed and address the companies. In consequence o£ the whole floor of the drill-shed being required for battalion movements it will not be possible for the public to be present on the occasion. Whilst on the subject of volunteering it may be noticed that the drill-shed stands very badly in need of repair. It is a pity that so complete a building for its purpose should be allowed to fall into decay for the want of a few timely repairs. Judge Rogan.—A telegram received the other day respecting Mr Rogan, for many years one of the Native Lands Court Judges, was of an ambiguous character. It stated that the Native Minister had issued instructions that the Native Land Court Judge,'John Rogan, be recalled forthwith. This looked as though Mr Rogan had committed some desperate offenpe, and was about to receive condign punishment. It appears, howeyer, that Mr Rogan had retired, and the t( New Zealand Times" explains that the Native Minister had determined to recall him to the office of Judge of the Native Lands Court. It is pleasant to find that the Telegraph Agents are impressed with the necessity of economy for their constituents. But still there are limits, and the following observation by " The Loafer" was worth bearing in mind : —"The number of people who prefer being telegraphically unintelligible for the sake of say sixpence, would fill St. Peter's at Rome, and many of them wouldn't be much ornament to the edifice when they were there."

Shipping- Difficulties at Oamaeu.— From the following extract from the " North Otago Times " of Wednesday, it appears that Lyttelton is not the only port where shipmasters haye to complain of detention through the insufficiency of trucks for shipping and discharging cargo : —There is another matter fully as important as that of the rates of freight which the Board has already opened up, and which, we trust, it will push to a satisfactory issue—we mean that of securing, by some means or other, the providing for the Breakwater line of sufficient rolling stock to enable the work of loading and discharging vessels to be carried on with something like reasonable despatch. As things go at present, notwithstanding all the representations that have been made, there in nothing Jika half the number of trucks necessary to effect this, and latterly vessels of from 100 to 200 tons have been delayed in port in consequence for from ten to twelve days solely on this account; while, were it not for the want of railway rolling stock, twenty-four or fortyeight hours would have sufficed to discharge and load. This : state of things is unbearable, ensuring as it does an increase in shipping freights, and so both enhancing the price of all we import and decreasing the uett price of all we export, the district thus suffering doubly.

Winter in the Mountains. —The f Lake Wakatip Mail," says ( —The effects of the late severe storms and heavy falls of snow on the higher altitudes will be seriously felt by runholders in the district, as they were quite unprepared for such an undesirable change at this time of the year, and the continued frosty weaiher will increase their loss, as it will be impossible to extricate !^ e sheep. The amount of damage sustained cannot yeL ..? ascertained, but it is to be feared that if the frost continueo the losses will be most serious, as many old sheep may be oeen lying dead even on the lower ground. The mining industry, especially in the quartz interest, is brought almost to a standstill on account of the claims being mostly situated on the ranges. Our Skipper's correspondent, writing on the 16th instant, thus comments on the state of things in the Upper Shotover district : —Since the 11th instant there has been nothing but a succession of storms with heavy rainp. The creeks and rivers are for the most part impassable." The oldest inhabitant can safely say he has not seen the like before. The tracks also are in a frightful state—slips in some places have taken them into the creeks. The snow is about a foot thick on the flats, and if the winter continues as it has commenced, the peoplG living at Skipper's are not to be envied.

Hedging on thbie Pbomdies.—Some of the Ministerial organs are taking an apologetic tone on behalf of the Ministry as regards the absence from their exposition of policy of any proposal for the reduction of Customs' duties. The "Post" says:—"lt can very well be understood that a Ministry, after laying before the country the general features of their policy, may discover when they desire to embody such a policy into practical shape, that there are serious difficulties in the way. for instance, we believe that Sir Q-eorge orr<>y was perfectly sincere when he declared his intention of reducing the Customs' duties on necessaries. Nay, more, we further believe that he still entertains the desire and intention to carry out that to which he stands pledged. But while holding this view, we can at the same time quite understand that on looking closely into the matter he may discover that the financial exigencies of the time may render it very difficult to make the desired reductions. There is no logic so inexorable as the logic of facts and figures, and it may possibly be that such logic in the present case shows the inexpediency of making the desired reductions." This would be very well as an apology if no distinct pledge had been given ; but unfortunately Sir Greorge Grey emphatically announced that he would reduce the Customs' duties, and that no more opportune time for doing so than the present could arise. If his apologist's argument has anything in it, then the Premier spoke thus positively without understanding the facts, and is thus convicted of being a political deceiver.

Queensland Exhibition.—A notice in another column calls attention to the fact that Messrs P. Cunningham and Co. will receive exhibits of wool, grain, and other articles of New Zealand growth or manufacture for transmission to the exhibition of the Queensland Agricultural and Industrial Association, to be held on 20th August next. A Crucial Test.—The "New Zealand Times" says—We saw an experiment tried lately with startling results, and we recommend it, as both profitable and interesting to our readers. Take a list of the members of the House of Representatives as published at thejend of last session, and write down in two separate columns, first the nnmes of those who are prepared to support Sir George Grey, and then the names of those who refuse to trust him on any terms. Then count in each list the number of those to whom a prudent man would be prepared to entrust the conduct of any important private affair; and note the result, " for private information only." Small-pox in Melbourne.—The following telegram has been forwarded to several of the Mayors of seaport boroughs by the Under Secretary of the Colonial Office:—"An official report from Melbourne states that three mild cases of small-pox have occurred on board the A.M.S. Siam, which has been put in quarantine and the cases isolated. The Government think it desirable pending further information from Melbourne to use vigilance in regard to shipping from there, but do not consider the case sufficiently urgent as yet to justify proclaiming that colony an infected place, or placing vessels from thence under the restrictions which would in such a case be necessary. The Colonial Secretary trusts that he may be informed at once if any suspicious cases are discovered on board any ship froin Victoria."

A Government Vagaby. The Napier " Telegraph " of May 31st says that while the Court was sitting on that morning, his Worship stated that he was placed in receipt of a telegraphic message informing him that all public business be suspended by Government officials in order to attend Te Hapuku'a funeral. His Worship did not appear byes?: come by the information, but informed the Court as soon as the ordinary business was transacted, those who desired to hold a tangi could do so. Surely this is somewhat overdoing the thing. Without the least desire to question the virtues or services of the defunct chief, it may reasonably be asked if the order in question was not a silly mockery likely to disgust Europeans, and be ridiculed by natives. How many good settlers, who have, dope, infinitely more for the colony's future than eves Hapuku did, die every year, and are hove into their graves unnoticed except by their immediate relatives.

The Defence Question —The following ridiculous remarks are attributed by a contemporary to the Wanganui "Herald." This must surely be an error. The "Herald" would never call the Ministers who remained in Wellington " the weaker or more supple members of the Cabinet," nor would that journal expose the dissensions of the Government. The remarks are : —" During Sir George Grey's visit to Tawhiao, an alarmist telegram was received by the Governor, who seized the golden chance to avenge the humiliation he felt when the visit of Sir William Jervois was declined, by prevailing on the weaker or more supple members of the Cabinet to pledge themselves to the expenditure of £44,000 for the purchase of cannon and construction of fortifications. The Premier is away, and to evade his opposition to the reckless folly, the guns were -instantjfy telegraphed f6r, and the country ia saddled with an expenditure that, instead of giving security, will only invite attack. Had he been consulted, the probable answer to the Marquis would have been, that, as JJjTew Zealand has had no voice in making the quarrel, it will not accept any share in warlike' operations. He was not long since roundly abused for stating that a party in England desired to tax the colonies for a share of naval and military expenses, and now the spirit of this dispatch proves him to have spoken correctly. There is no warrant of law for what is accomplished by a transparent trick. When the batteries are erected, a permanent force must be retained to man them, and thus the Colonial Office, aided by the Governor, has succeeded in deluding Ministers into taking the first step towards saddling the country with the grievous burden of a standing army."

The Euins of New Zealand. —A correspondent furnishes the " Grey Eiver Argus " with the appended account of one of those towns of a bygone era, which are to New Zealand as much relics as. Nineveh is to the East, save that the time whiphone reckons in months, the other counts in oen« turies, or nearly [so :—" The once flourishing township which rejoices in the designation of No Town, presents just now a woefully different appearance to what it bore some eight or nine years ago. The diggings, which used to be in great activity close at hand, are now deserted, and but heaps of stones on which the first germs of vegetation have settled, serve to mark a scene of former busy industry. The townghip itself looks very dilapidated; probably about' half the buildinga ■ in- ths place are unoccupied and falling to decay, whilst the grand promenade of [former days, Brunner Parade, has forfeited all right to such a designation, the 'parade ' itself having been nearly all washed away, and its formerly well painted, if not architectural row of buildings, presenting a very melancholy aspect. And yet, spite of all this, the few people left do not seem to complain: they expect, like a celebrated character in fiction, "something to turn up,|" and their faith in this respect is wonderfully Scriptural in that it is the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not seen. Just now the chief anxiety of this West Coast " srewhon " js fche critical position in wbiph the township is on account of the rapid ens croachment of the river or creek. Soma feeble attempts have been made to divert the stream from making an inroad at the upper end of the township, but at present the ' promotive works ' have nearly all gone, and now something more yCr™™nt must be done, ot at some great flood No Town wni u.w ~> v fulfil its designation and disappear altogether."