DUNE DIN.

Grey River Argus, Volume XII, Issue 1331, 4 November 1872, Page 2

DUNE DIN.

(from our own correspondent.) .V October 26., A. meeting of the congregation of the First Church was held on Monday evening, for the purpose of appointing a committee to assist the office-bearers in the necessary steps required for filling \ffi the vacancy in the pulpit. A. report was read detailing what was thought advisable to ask the congregation to! do. From the report it was ascertained that a temporary supply had been arranged for from Victoria, to begin "after the, meeting of Assembly there j aa that fo* the next six or seven months some of the leading Victorian divines would fill the First Church pulpit fora few weeks each. These ministers are not coming with any view to the vacancy, but of course are open to call from the congregation. In addition, negotiations are to be opened up with the Rev. Dr O. Dykes, of London, and some Otago, gentleman now in, the home country, to look out for a suits able clergyman for the charge* $he.coivgregatioh are; left jo choose either fron* tfce Colony, tjhe A^stralias, or Britain or America. So far the congregation seem a. little more unanimous than they used to be. ; The boat invention of Mr Villaine fos working the auriferous beds of rivers, does not seem to have met with' much encouragement either up-couutry or in, town. A public meeting was fceld fa fte. Masonic Hall this week, presided aver by the Mayor, at wh^ch Bjr Nuttall, the agent -of the inventor, gave a full de* scription, of the bpat and its appliances, illustrated by plans and diagrams. He (Mr Nuttall) also detailed his experience in his up-country tour, during which he inspected the Clutha at various' parfs of its course, and expressed his perfect satisfaction with the power of the boat to do what was wanted; but he regretted very much the apathy manifested by the diggers and storekeepers to the merits of the invention. The share list is filling up very slowly. But if they are so very confident about their boat, why dotft they get a boat made and turn to? By all accounts there is abundance of gold in the river-bed, and they would soon make enough to clear the cost of the boat and all their liabilities, and realise a hand-, some fortune for themselves. Another invention for this purpoße---the «* Pfieti* matic" affair— is about to be put |o <'s■■

practical teat; bo if the "submarine" one don't go ahead a bit, it may find its pipe put out altogether as an invention. Nevertheless, there is plenty of room in the bed of the Clutha River for both. For the last two or three years matters theatrical have been at a very low ebb in Dunedin, and although the Star Company, at present performing in the Princess's, are doing a little better than ÜBual, the normal state of matters mast be very discouraging to the lessees. Nevertheless, the Friendly Societies 1 Hall Company, not daunted by the untoward prospect, are going to fit op the handsome brick building at present being erected by them in tlit Chitting as a theatre, to be called the Queen's, and advertisements are now in the papers calling for tenders for fitting up the stage with all necessary scenery, machinery properties, &c ; aud also intimating to possible "showmen" in other places the capabilities of the place as the auditorium, size of ataqe, and other requisites. If ' one such place of amusement has found it difficult to keep afloat in these times, how will two manage? One of them must shut up. Of the two the new one is bound to take best, for the associations of the Princess's are certainly not very nice. Among other new things about to be started here, I learn that a new morning paper is contemplated. It is to be a joint-stock concern, capital LIO,OOO, in L 5 shares. What its prospects are Ido not know, but the managing man is named Whiteway, lately employed on the Evening Star here, and does not look as if he possessed the sort of brain necessary to conduct an affair of the sort successfully. The Port Railway has made rapid progress during the last few days, and last night the locomotive Josephine came up with a train of loaded trucks to within a few yards of the station, all the connections up to that point having been made. The locomotive is a funny sort of machine —just like two of the normal shape turned end to end, with the stoking department in the middle and a funnel at each end, and mounted on two sets of four wheels each. There is a great deal yet to do to the line— hardly any ballasting being laid at this end, and the rails shake and give a good deal. The Jetty at the Port is to be brought into use at once, the E. P. Bouverie and the May Queen, both late from Britain, are to unload their cargoes into the waggons alongside, and are advertised to. be laid down in Dunedin for 4s 6d a ton dear. The Supreme Court and a jury have been occupied from Saturday last till late last night, in trying the case— Nutter v. (For continuation of News, see 4(h page.)

>roco Cabba

Iress

Leek

Pritcuard, the one arising out of Roddam's horses to which I referred last week. The plaintiff is Administrator of Intestate Estates at InvercargiU (Roddam having committed suicide at the Bluff), and sued Pritohard on bohalf of the creditors in the estate. The plaintiffs case went to make out that at the time Pritchard brought the teams Roddam was in a state of delirium tremens,. or in such a mental condition from constant drinking that he was unfit to transact business of any sort, and that Pritchard took advantage of Roddam being in that state to induce him to sell his horses for less than they were really worth. To prove these averments, a vast array of witnesses of all sorts were summoned to give evidence, and were examined and cross-examined by the lawyers on both sides— there being no fewer than five of these gentlemen engaged, two for plaintiff, three for defendant. For the defence, an equally strong body of witnesses was brought forward, none of whom, as a matter of course, ever saw the poor deceased much the worse of drink, but always able to do whatever business he wanted done. A good deal of damage was done to the defence by the discovery of what looked very like an attempt to bribe a material witness. A man named Croft threw five LI notes across the bar counter of a witness who keeps a public house in George street for the purpose of, as he said, saying Roddan was not in a certain state. Crofton was brought before the Court for this, but denied on oath ho had done anything of the sort, whereas the other man as positively swore to it. Hard swearing somewhere. The notes were given up in Court, and impounded for the Benevolent Institution, as neither would claim them. The parties in tho case being so well known, public excitement was very great, and the Court was crowded all the time of the trial. The addresses of the counsel on both sides when addressing the jury abounded in pretty strong language, and some cf the witnesses, unless very thickskinned, must have felt it keenly. The verdict given by the jury was substantially for the plaintiff, so that Pritchard not only loses the case, but also loses the teams about which the whole affair arose, and will have to pay all the expenses, and only rank on the estate of Roddan with ihe other creditors, whose claims will only admit of about 2s Gd in the £, or thereabouts. The weather has been very variable during the week, fine warm days and cool evenings, and splendid showers liavo fallen. The face of the country is looking finely— trees and grass and crops all alike fresh and green. The bloom is about over in the gardens, and the weather has been favorable for the setting of tho fruit.