DUNEDIN.

Grey River Argus, Volume X, Issue 826, 21 March 1871, Page 2

DUNEDIN.

... „,v,. , ....... March >lL y . The nomination of candidates for the representation of the city in the Provincial Council took place on Tuesday, in front of the Government Buildings. Mr Burnside, Returning Officer, presided. There was a great crowd, and at first considerable excitement, which died off latterly, on account of the great length of the proceedings. There are seven members to be elected, and twenty candidates were duly proposed and seconded, viz. : — Barnes, J. ; Barton, G. E. ; Bathgate, J. ; Birch, T. ; Cargill, E. B. ; Cutten, ■••? W. H. ; Duncan, G. ; Fish, H. S;, jun. ; Graham, J. ; Howorth, H. ; Isaac, B. ; . Jago, J. W. ; M'lndoe, J. ; Mason, W. ; Reeves, G. S.; Reynolds, W. H. ; Smythies, H. ; Turnbullj G. ; Turton, G. X.; Walter, H. J. Each of these gentlemen addressed the electors, and were received with cordiality or the reverse, according to their personal popularity. At times , there was a considerable amount of fun and chaff going on, during which it was ! quite impossible to hear a word the candidate said ; but all was conducted with the utmost good humor. After the speech-making was over, the Returning Officer proceeded to take the usual show of hands, and it was amusing to see the difference in the numbers held up. For some there were only five or six, others got 20, 30, or 40, one or two went as high as 80 ; but when Mr J. Graham's name . was called quite a forest of hands responded, placing him iff the top of the show by a long way, but whether he will head the poll is a very different matter. / Mr Graham thanked the electors for the honor done him in one of his usual discursive speeches. A poll was demanded by Mr Jago, and the proceedings ended. Since then the candidates have been addressing the electors in all parts of the town, and the difficulty they experience in getting places in which to hold forth hasped to a few odd conjunctures. Rooms of all sorts, public-house parlors, empty stores, drill-sheds, mission-houses, as well as the usual public halls, have all been brought into requisition, and yet the postulants for public favor have to wait on each other; first come, first served is the rule, and the audiences have the chance of hearing both sides of the 'question, and sometimes in a most original way. [The following is the result, of the polling as received by telegraph :— Cargill, 974 ; Reynolds, 800 ; Turnbull, 799 ; Cutten, 718 ; Bathgate, 687 ; Bar* ton, 670 ; Birch, 607 ; Duncan, 605 ; Mason, 539 ; Howorth, 474 ; Fish, 411 ; Turton, 379; Barnes, 374; M'lndoe, 356 ; Jago, 308 ; Smythies, 276 ; Reeves, 263 ; Graham, 192 135 ; Isaacs, 70.] ■■•: The Supreme Court sat for the despatch of the criminal business of the past quarter on Monday. The calendar was very light, there being only five cases, all of a trivial character. In- the Judge's charge to the Grand Jury he congratulated the country on the comparative freedom from crime which we now enjoyed. Ofthe five cases three were brought to trial, ~ but only one found guilty ; the other two were thrown out by the Grand Jury. All the business was concluded on Monday. The second libel case — Regina v. Barton, editor of the Daily Times —was commenced on Thursday, but had only proceeded a short time when it was brought to an abrupt stop by the absence of a witness, and postponed for ten days. The first case is also hung up for a similar reason. If [more activity than this is not shown in the conduct of these cases they will last a twelvemonth. The other libel cases — those arising out. of the Superintendantal election — were initiated yesterday ; the one of Regina v. Dick being first taken. This is the one in which Mr Driver is the real plaintiff, and refers to the publication of an opprobrious placard, purporting to be a copy of a letter written by Driver to one Treweek. Dick was the printer : hence the case. The other one—Regma v. M'Leod was also begun. It relates to the same matter, M'Leod being Dick's employer in printing the bill. Evidence- was led in; both coses, with some amount of legal fencing as usual, and both have been postponed till Monday. By way of preparing for the Governor's visit, a Reception Committee was organised, but after some telegraphing backwards and forwards between them and the Superintendent, a misunderstanding arose, and the Committee rather precipitably dissolved. It is rather unfortunate that his Excellency should have come upon us just at this particular juncture, when everybody is taken up with the elections, but still something might have been done. As it was, he came quietly into town from Tokomairiro on Thursday afternoon, and hardly a score of people knew of it till next morning. He has since been going about inspecting the various places of interest, either alone or in company with some of the officials. On Tuesday he is to hold a levee, inspect the. Volunteers, open a flower show, &c, &c. Nothing further is publicly known as to his future movements. His Excellency is living with Mr and Mrs Biss, of Fern Hill. A rumor spread abroad yesterday, thai , the Clio and the Rosario, the men-of-war on the station, had passed the Ocean Beach on their way to Port Chalmers, where the former vessel is expected to be docked for repairs after her mishap in Bligh Sound. However, it turned out to be only the Jessie Readman, a large merchant shipjfrom London.