DUNEDIN.

Grey River Argus, Volume XIII, Issue 1544, 17 July 1873, Page 4

DUNED IN.

[FROM OUR OWN CORBBSiPdNDENT.]'"' ! July 7. | The Provincial Council met .for its thirty-second session* on^Tuesday. There was a full attendance,- arid the various galleries i were crowded. I' iThe' first''business, being the election/ of Speaker^ . the Government lost a fine chance r .of, throwing oil on the troubieWaterls h tii party, for they first profips"e*d.. Mr W. H. Eeynolds for the office, aii'dbn'tnat gentleman refusing to .stand.. Majoij (Richardson, jwas brought forward, but hp.also refused. My Reynolds was persuaded' to 1 withdraw his refusal, and w as ; again ; nominated^- - f -B\it Mr J. L. Gillies was proppsed^andiopp'osition being withdrawn he was formally installed in the chair. ,< All, tbia took^place amidj a sharp, fire of accusation and Se--crimination between the opposing parties,: which augured ill for the future peace of the session, and might all have been saved' had the. Government, only .shown a little, more tact and skill in management.; /This, business over, and the Speaker formally approved by hia i' 'Honor 1 the Superintendent i : by j. message in the 1 usual way, the latter gen t^man; was mr troduced to the ! 'Obuncil',_, and tHen, de-, livered a short address' 'indicating" the'^ chief business that lay: before^ them, arid 1 urging on all the duty, of „t''-buryingithe's hatchet," and going in , forj v/ the ( qviicb ; , despatch of the wbrk of the 'session^. as only a few days were available before Wei meeting of the Assembly.-iiiThei Council was then declared open for.business. Every one' e'xpecteli at ieast, that. ; the new Cburicil would shbw a' greater aptitude for business than the old bnei ; But the old leaven is still there to too great an extent, and instead' of going- on ■witli the work pf the session ;the members are as full of quibbles, and indulge in person-:/ alitiesj to as great an extend as ! ever. "" Irideed'it is. quite disgusting to see the 'time of the country wasted in frivolous •discus*! sion.on minute points of difference,,-and-merepersbrial matters. " No question! has , yet been discussed which has had th!e ; effect of trying the real strength of parties, although the Government have invited them. Mr Shand, of' Taieri, indeed, brought forward a motion of "want of confidence on various, grounds*; but when it came on for discussion he found he stood alone ; he could not get, even, and 'one from the ;.; other, sjuip '.did so pro forma; and the motion 1 was" lost "on the voices; there was no division. ; Shand was' very much rUedyvbutu only. /j got i well , laughed ; at; Still, (' the Government > are., not j ,but of danger-ri-ominous iplbuSs - are before them, and one in particular) 1 regarding a large sale of alleged auriferous land at. the Mare when ua, 1 J 'is • f likely to cause them serious trouble, ■ The'applicaT tion for the land has been" a longtime' before the Board, and has been a sort of legacy .from the old one, which the mem- 1 bera of, the new Board .would -have been very glad to get rid, of. However, after various hearings of parties on the subject, the application was finally granted at the meeting of the Lands Board on Thursday last. Tlra land; is vHUy^.and ' hardly adapted for cultivation, though isolated, patches of it mayi be ; thb gold is ; 'very thinly distributed, two: or three specks to the dish being the prospect, ; and ( , much difficulty would be experienced in bringing water to the ground 1 . For ' 'all that," great difference of opinion exists. as,tp the; policy, of parting with the land, 1 in such a , large block, and there is sure to be'a row over, ik ; ; During the'discuss'ion the re 'has been t a; . great j display of humor, !some ; of; the sallies cpnvulsingthe House,, strangers and all ;' indeed, the'latter' ,hadf,tp beY called' to v order by the Speaker more ttian once. Yesterday the Council- adjdu*hed' after a short sitting, the Government: wishing ' 'to Have 'the ' ! discussion J oif' 'the' motion regarding the Marewheriua'land' sale over before they took, up any.pther business. '"''' '" ' vx The annual^ electibn^fdr* Mayor comes on in a.few days, and; the,candidates for the office, of whom there are three, thjs year, Messrs Barnes, Mercer^and'Tlfone-' 1 man, are now busying themselve^in orders to secure their return. 'The first-named geutleman has been coming out rather strong in support of his claim, and at a meeting he held one evening. this week, almost gave his autobiography to his audience. His peculiar idiosyncrasy and well-known habits render him hardlyv the man to "put into the r ' office; 'though' his lengthened experience^ of the "worts' 'in 5 the town and neighborhood, and also as'a 1 Councillor, tgiye him as } good a <claimi to to the office as any of the other citizens.; It is not an improbable thing- that jDja'n-.' din may receive a visit! from the .governor during, the Maybfal 1 ' 'year^'aiid'"!' fairly think that no on^'dFthe three" gentlemen named above will feel" himself '■ m his proper, element at such a.time. . .Even) our present Mayor,,, with fall n hi3i varied, talents, was wanting on such an, occasion.-, Mr Reeves, one of thelate for the representation of? Dunedin" in Ode* Provincial Council, was entertained T at'dinner- by a ; number of his supporters -in the late contest, by way of consoling him: somewhat for his defeat. The,. dinner, passed off very well, though the postprandial eloquence was' rather turbid. Mr George Duncan, one ; :of>ouf oldest settlers, who has long been in business, as a butter and grain dealer, Vis'' about^to emigrate to Calif orriia, arid is t6 ; be" en^rtained at dinner, by a numerous body,of citizens/ comprising all classes "and "all shades of politics, in the large room of Messrs Driver,. Stewart, and Co. 's; late"; store, High.streety,next (Week) i !'!//!«:! ■ f"! The ! theatres have ? , b.eennopen ..during the week, but the audiences. -have'been rather scanty-^the . *| displacgment; of ; vacuity " r ? has not . been! , iCflmmeicisurate. with the quality of thepiece's'piaced on the respective stages. Th'e"fact ; is f1 that the Provincial Council '^draws'* much better houses ;than either theatre^— there being hardly, standing .room^in'the'gal^ leries. Messrs Geddes and [Willte, lessees of the Princess, had a complimentary benefit given them by, their ! employees./ last evening, which was. wjbJl attended.. j; . r The Weather has been very changeable, during the/weeky but mostly s mild,'ivitli frosty eyeningß. , One, or two. mornings a i slight cake, pf iee ■■ t waSjpbseryajijejpnj; shallow p'6ols. The roads up-country are in very bad order, and travelling vveryV y slow. ... - M.!;- ,;i-i'.<y:a:\ vf?;i/.ii

The James N. Fleming has arrived*' from Glasgow in 71 days,j witii a large cargo and 280 passengers' all well. There were 60 odd single females oh board, a large number of whom have' been already engaged at good wages ; the farm servants also have mostly, got engaged jithi yfase# ranging from LSO, to L6O per, anjaum^,, r,