CANTERBURY.

Hawke's Bay Times, Volume V, Issue 237, 10 March 1865, Page 3

CANTERBURY.

(From tbe Press.) Attempted Robbery. —Early on Sunday morning an attempt was made to break into a house on the Papanui road, occupied by a widow of the name of Mann, The thieves, in trying to remove the glass from one of the windows, broke one of the panes, and the noise thus caused awakened Mrs Mann, and she immediately roused a Mr Nelson, a lodger, who on proceeding to the door discovered a man making his exit through the fence. Being barefooted, he could not follow, but succeeded in hitting the rascal with a piece of wood which he threw after him. Accident. —The practice of leaving horses standing in the streets without an attendant resulted yesterday in an accident. A horse and gig had been left in Cambridge terrace, when from some cause the horses became frightened, and started off in the direction of the Victoria bridge, with one of the buttresses of which the vehicle came into collision, and was completely destroyed. The horse luckily escaped without injury. Christchurch Horticultural Society.— The last exhibition for the season of this society is appointed to be held, weather permitting, in Kohler’s Gardens, on Thursday, March 9. West Coast.— We were informed yesterday by a gentleman who has just arrived from the Lake districts with horses, that the excitement regarding the West Coast there is greatly on the increase. He calculates that several hundred men are now en route for those, parts overland, and reports that from the small quantity of gold now being obtained on the Shotover and other diggings, a perfect stampede will take place on the arrival of the present favorable reports. Several vessels are also advertised to sail from Dunedin direct to the Okitiki. Mr Dobson starts this morning with a considerable party to survey the new line of road by the Waimakariri, and we hope for the sake of those coming overland, he may report favorably of this route.

Christening of the Steam Pike Eng rap.— The ceremony of christening and handing over the steam fire engine to the City Council took place last evening. A considerable number of persons assembled to witness the ceremony, About 7 o’clock the Brigade mustered in full uniform, and the engine was placed with steam up in front of the publie offices in Oxford terrace. Mr Worth en the part of the Brigade, stated the course pursued by that body in raising the necessary funds for the purchase of the engine, and the kind assistance that had been rendered by Messrs Heywood and Co., through whom the order for the engine had been sent to England. The cost of the engine had amounted to nearly £I2OO, and the amount of subscriptions promised was £1207 nearly the whole of which sum, he was glad to state, had been received. He was happy to find that all the amounts promised had been paid with the exception of about £2O, a fact which fully evinced the interest taken by the public in the undertaking. He had been asked to name the engine, and hoped the name he should bestow upon it would be an earnest of its future career. He should call it the “ Extinguisher.” Mr Luck tnen handed over the key of the engine-house to Mr Worth, to keep on behalf of the Council. The secretary then read the balance sheet. The Brigade afterwards practised with the engines close to the Victoria bridge, and the general inspection took place. The Electric Telegraph.—With reference to the progress made in laying down the electric telegraph, the Lyttelton Times contains the following The line from the Bluff to the north of the Waitaki is now complete, and is readv for working when the necessary office accommodation is provided. The great difficulty encountered in the construction of the line was stretching the wire across the river Waitaki. This has been now successfully accomplished. The line is at this moment completed nearly to the Orari, and it is believed the Rangitata will be reached by the. end of this week, and Christchurch in about a month. The posts are all deposited on the route from Christchurch to Nelson and Picton. The gang which has been employed on the Otago and Southland portions, are now expected here and will commence with the erection of the line, to the North immediately. The whole of the necessary material is now on the ground, and the apparatus in hand for the working of the line. Should no unforeseen obstacle present itself, we may hope to be in direot communication with the Bluff in three months from this.”

The Native War. —We take the following from the Canterbury Press :—“lt appears that the army at Wanganui at the present time consists of 113 officers and 3,306 rank and file; in all, 3,419 men. In addition to this, there is a small colonial force, of the numbers of which we are not at the present informed. We cannot be wrong in saying that 3,500 is about the strength of the force now advancing from Wanganui along the coast to the westward. The whole strength of the native population of these parts, according to the best census which has been taken of the Maori population, is as follows :—Ngatihau round vV anganui, 3,360 ; Ngaraura, 243 ; Ngatiruanui, 1,330; Taranaki, 690; making a total of all the population from Wanganui to North of Capo Lgmont of 5,623. This includes men, women, and children, and would indicate about 1,500 adult males. Again it may bo noted that this census was taken before the Taranaki war, and there is no doubt that a very considerable number of these have been killed in the last four years. Besides this, it must not be forgotten that a strong party of the Wanganui tribes are staunch allies of the English, and, as all will remember, fought and won a most 'important battle in our favor. Taking these elements into consideration, it is in the highest degree unlikely that the natives could bring much over 500 men into the field in any part of the country between Wanganui and Taranaki, and that even including the assistance they obtain from the Waikatos, which is now very small. The natives are said, at the battle of Nukumaru, to have numbered from 500 to 800, and a part of this force were Waikatos.”