Hawke's Bay Times, PUBLISHED EVERY MONDAY AND THURSDAY. THURSDAY, 3rd JANUARY, 1867.

Hawke's Bay Times, Volume IX, Issue 443, 3 January 1867, Page 2

Hawke's Bay Times, PUBLISHED EVERY MONDAY AND THURSDAY.

THURSDAY, 3rd JANUARY, 1867.

“ .'id.zicf.il2 UiTO:?* t)f*rha VUUjhtiri”

APOLOGETIC. We must crave the kind indulgence of our good readers for the delay of our publication to-day, which is owing in part to the additional labor involved in effecting the change that will be observed in the appearance of our journal; but principally to circumstances altogether unforeseen and consequently unavoidable. OUR NINTH VOLUME. Occasions similar to the present, — where one stage may be said to be completed, and a new one commenced, —may well serve as resting places from which we may take a retrospective view of what has been done, and also cast our vision forward towards that which appears to lie before us. Our community, in common with the rest of the Colony, has passed through a very trying period, owing to the rebellion of the Native race, or, rather, perhaps we might say, to the mismanagement exercised by the governing powers, w hereby that rebellion was prolonged ami extended, instead of promptly crushed out. He this as it may, the crisis has been a trying one to the Colony as a whole; and though we may now perhaps be bold to hope that active rebellion is at an end, it cannot be denied that its effects will be felt throughout all this and the next generation in the burdens it has been the proximate cause of laying on the shoulders of the Colony.

But, notwithstanding the difficulties which have surrounded us, and which have tended in a nreat measure to retard our progress, we feei that an ac tual advance has been made in our position with the public. Not that we are unconscious of numerous shortcomings and errors of judgment; but we believe we may claim to have laid bare such abuses as have come under our notice, exposing whatever we had good reason for conscientiously believing a false and mischievous policy, and always to the best of our bumble ability advocating what we have felt to be the true interests of the community. And now that we enter upon a new phase of our labors —albeit under some additional difficulties to those we have already surmounted—we look forward to the future with confidence, being fully convinced that the principles which have animated us from the beginning of our labors, and which shall continue to rule our conduct—of thorough independence of all parties in our expression of opinion, the unflinching advocacy of all measures that, in our view, may be calculated to benefit the public, and the fearless exposure of every wrong,—will lead us on to all the succes that is attainable, and will prove trmninhant wlion s, time* serving policy would lead to disgrace and ruin. THE SEASON. Fbom all pans of the outlying districts of the Province we receive the most encouraging descriptions of the benefit the country has experienced from the | late plenteous rain. Growing crops that i appeared almost burnt up,‘and of which

no hope was entertained, have, under its reviving influence; acquired a new vigor, Hiid promise, if not an average yield at least far more and better than could be expected while the drought continued. The abundant rain has, indeed, proved A great blessing, t for, had the preceding dry weather con= tinned, in addition to a light shearing —the result of a scarcity of feed—we should have suffered an almost complete failure of agricultural produce. We are informed that, in addition to the drought, there are several pests in great abundance, which are inflicting almost incalcuable injury upon the crops. These are caterpillars, grasshoppers, and locusts, which it seems, commit fearful havoc among the grain crops by eating off the ear from the top of the stalk or severing the grains of corn from the head, and so letting them drop. To such an extent is this the case in some particular instances, that there is probably as much grain already wasted on the the ground as remaining on the stalk. The prevalance of these destructive pests seem to be the result of our deficiency of small birds; and it is to to be hoped that either the Government or private enterprise may be speedily directed to the object of importing and acclimatising the little strangers whose aid is found to be so essential to the preservation and ripening of the produce of the earth. More rain is also wanted, for already the heavy winds that have prevailed for the past few days have dried the surface of the earth; and though a great deal of rain fell during the past .. v .0 suca a I depth as made it a work of time to penetrate, and thoroughly moisten the soil. There appears to be the promise of rain in the heavens, but up to the time of our writing, it is oppressively hot, windy, and excessively dusty. Thermometer 80 c in the | shade. NORTH AND SOUTH. By the s.s. Lord Ashley we have, just as we go to press, our files from the Southern Ports, but fail to find any news of sufficient importance to justify us in farther delaying our publication. From Auckland, per s.s. Star of the Evening, we have our files to the 29th ult. We make the following extracts from the New Zealand Herald of that dateTHE WAIKATO. King Matutaera, we learn, paid a visit on the 20th ult. to the north side of Kawhia to see an aged.chief and on his return a runanga was assembled, the real object of which has not yet been ascertained. It is surmised that the king is raising recruits to proceed to Taranaki forthwith. That this was the object of the runanga is coroborated by the fact mentioned in the Taranaki Herald of the 22nd, to hand this day, that a party of Waikatos, sixty or eighty in number, had passed Pariuinihi, going 1 southward. The natives of Kawhia, where the king and court reside, are, we learn, still most decidedly opposed to any attack being made upon Waikato, or to any disturbance being made at Raglan and Kawhia, or, indeed, in the Auckland province at all. They will not fight, they say, unless driven to do so by the aggressive actios •of i the Government. Thus Waikato en joys security and quiet, and is, we believe, likely to enjoy them uninterruptedly. THE GOVEEXOE, His Excellency Sir George Grey, we learn from a private letteiyarrived safely at Taupe, where he spent ; Christmas Day with the natives, be- . tween whom and himself every cordiality appeared to exist. Sir George ! was to strike overland for-Wanganui. ; which place be will probably have t reached by new,

A tfATiYE. ACCOUNT OK OM-IBAKUI, JlK±> WHAT the king said. A gentleman, writing us from Rag* lan, says that after the late fight at Aiiuriri. two natives that escaped the Napier militia, and volunteers came over to Kawhia to report to the Kirig their fass-fortuss. The substance of that report was that they had lost 80 men killed. Matutaera told them that that was the result of their own folly. The' fault was theirs ; they had commenced without “ hia authority ” or. as the natives of the Hau-hau faith term it,. ” his pikt-rapu.' ! that is. they believe ' that if a disaster occurs to them* it is - the fault of some one of the number engaged, something wrong that he or she has done, and that in consequence of this fault, the whole party are no longer protected by the Hau-hau deity. WAIKATO NATIVES AT TAKANAKI. The Taranaki Herald of the 22ud ult. says:—“A party of Waikatos, 60 or 80 in number, on their way South, were seen coming along the beach from Pariniaihi. They turned up the usual track at the Waipingao gully, and are probably some of the party reported at Auckland as on their way down here. They told the natives at Tupari that their orders were not to interfere with pakehas thereabouts if the Pakcha did not interfere with them. We hear from the South that small parties of Waikatos have been arriving in the ueighborhoO d of Pungarchu, and inland of Waingoagora/’ CHRISTMAS BAY AT AUCKLAND. [X. Z. Herald, 2titU Dec,] Notwithstanding very doubtful encouragement afforded yesterday morning by the clerk of the weather, there was a very genera! t urn out of holiday makers bent on purposes of pleasure merely, or to the interchange of those civilities and compliments proper to this festive season. The early part of the day was most unpromising ; a stiff’ southerly breeze prevailed ; the water was rather rough, but a large number of well-dressed persons of sexes, nothing daunted by these appearances, crowded the “ Enterprise ” landing wharf, and the river steamers Enterprise No. 1 and 2 plied constantly between the Flagstaff Wharf (North Shore), and the Queen-street Wharf, (Auckland), being full of passengers each way; the North Shore people, no doubt, coming to visit friends on this side of the Waitemata. The ships in harbor were gaily decked with bunting and evergreens. In the latter respect a very considerable amount of ingenuity was displayed, as if there had been some competition to rival the floating gardens of the East, or imitate those fabulous avenues from which the classic hero Amphytrion could be seen riding on a dolphin, only here the high shouldered “ snappers ” must be supposed the steeds for the river gods. May our good ships always spring such foliage, and never

a leak. The Winterthur stood out in the stream like a parting friend, freighted with good wishes as well as a valuable cargo of New Zealand produce. We wish the good ship and her amiable skipper a speedy voyage and prosperous. The wharf at several periods of the day looked lively and pleasant, being a promenade for those who missed the last or waited for the next boat, or whose endearments did not prevent them to “ wander far from home.” To us, the whole aspect of

the town looked more than is usual like Christmastide. The principal hotels were gaily decked with ferns and pereuaiul shrubs, with the feather-like plumes of the tail grass of New Zealand interspersed. Many private houses were also gaily decked with such qrnameuts as the climate at this season in these latitudes provide. Garlands of crimsou Pohuiukawa blossom in the form of globes, crowns, crosses, as native ingenuity suggested, hung from the roofs of private houses, or in front of hail doors, or could be descried within 'windows. If there is

really any distress existing here, judging by the number and the heartiness of yesterday’s holiday-makers.

they uid not appear to be troubled with any doubt which would give to i oninwmpnt a shade of reserve, and I *' ■,,. Si j j *rowr neiguuOrs taiH«,j■'•now reported any distress which was out of i roach of relief of the merest temporary

description, We have every reason to |]iope that we shall hear nothing mors |on this subject. The various roads lout of town had their pedestrians for I quiet walks, and the more fortunate [ took air in carriage or , on horseback, i If there was a noticeable absence of | UliJ'iuliig Lia oXCIICuICUI, IUCIS no laCa ox me mesmS Oi cnjoyiufist* ; Those who undertook the office of caf tsrin? for amusement and appetites provided abundansp, and, we think; found custom and the reward of their I foresight. The beautiful and retired |Jake gardens, a retreat ail times for the lovers u* Sana* 3ud iallUsCap'd) « uruAUwll v Gardens, North Shore; ‘Maxwell’s and Cox’s Hotel, in the same place, w ere visited by pleasure-seekers, while those who wished to test the strength of their lungs essayed the somewhat prekpipituous slopes of Flagstaff-hill, and nhe walks of Kemp’s Gardens on this ||side attracted many. * * We corSdially wish our friends a pleasant and llei merry time during these Christmas ®olidays. IgIOYAL MAIL STEAM NAVIGATION W, COMPANY. pA half-yearly meeting of the sharet holders was held on 31st October, at I the London Tavern; the Right Hon. iLßussel Gurney, Q.G., M.P., deputyilffiairman, presiding. H The report having been taken as Sread, 5 The Chairman, in moving its adoption congratulated the meeting on the idecrease in the expenditure for coals, |jf which he said did not arise merely I from a reduction of freight,- £ 14,000, but had been occasioned by a decrease of 6,000 tons in the consumption, while the speed of ships had not been at all diminished. As regarded the Government contract, he remarked that there was an increase of <£4oo in the receipts i under that head, arising from a difference in favor of the company as regarded penalties and premiums. The decrease of £ 14,000 on homeward freight was one of the effects on the cessation of the American war, as bearing on the amount of Specie sent to this country. The company had also suffered from competition with a highly-subsided French line of steamers. It was impossible that they should not suffer from that cause, and the only way in which they could meet such rivalry was making their service as popular as possible. In the last siz months there was an increased mileage of 6,000 miles in order to afford additional accomodation. Reciiiocu itucs iX’onx competition could not but lead to temporary loss, but he believed they now knew the worst of it. As regarded the new route across the Isthmus of Panama, he thought it would prove very advantageous to the company. The manner in which the work had been done by the New Zealand and Panama line had given great satisfaction to the passengers. The distance run was no less than i* aaa *L. 4.:^ n <» . GUilica, ciuu tuc nine vtaS ixcpt within a few hours. As to repairs, the expenditure of the next six months would exceed that of the passed six months; bat the sum set aside for that purpose would be sufficient to cover it. As to the insurance account, . they were thankful to Providence and to their captains that they were enabled to divide a considerable sum out of it. He might add that, after deducting the amount now to be divided out of that fund, there would remain a balance of £200,000, though £300,000 had been taken. Mr Eden Col vile (a director) made some.remarks confirmator of the chairman’s statement with regard to the advantages of the service from Panama to New Zealand; and in the course of them he said an official at the Colonial office, with whom he was conversing on the previous day, observed that he calculated that some despatches which would leave on the 2nd Nov,, by the Tasmanian, for Panama, would reach New Zealand before some which left to go by the Marseilles and Suez route on the 26th October. The report having been adopted, and a dividend of £3 per share aud a bonus of £2 per share having been declared, the proceedings terminated in the usual manner. The members of the Napier Volunteers would do well to remember that'SaSurdsy next is usual • mommy inspection ■»*y. * ■ • ' - •*'

HURRICANE IN THE BAHAMAS—- * NASSAU HALF DESTROYED. Havana, 13th October. A terrible hurricane commenced in the Bahamas on the 30th ultimo, and lasted two days. Almost half of th» ' town of Nassau was destroyed by the roofs carried away, and trees uprooted. Trinity Church was demolished, the government house lost part of its roof, and the roof of the Marine Hospital was entirely blown off. Vessels were driVSS rn ijiArPs And wharves were demolished. The neighboring island suffered in tbs same desreo and a laroe number of vessels have been lost or damaged. This hurricane is the severest which has been experienced since 1813. The Nassau Guardian of the 3rd says the hurricane commenced on Sunday night, the 30th, at 8 o’clock, blowing all night from the north. On Monday morning, the barometer went down, and later the gale became stronger. A part of the town of Nassau was destroyed. Trinity Church was demolished. The Goeerument House suffered considerably and lost a great part of the roofing, The entire roofing of the Military Hospital was carried ; away. From the Arsenal, West Baystreet, to the Eastward, no one could pass, on account of the obstruction in the way caused by the ruins of houses, 1 boats, fragments of vessels and of the wharves. The Arsenal wharf completely disappeared. Many of the 1 houses and stores that were thrown down were swept away by the hurricane including the beef and fish markets. The catalogue of the property destroyed is very long. . The gunboat Nimble was thrown on the bank in front of the Arsenal, notwithstanding the great efforts of 1 her commander and officers. She does ' not appear to have suffered, however, and it is hoped she will be set afloat shortly. The Canal Company’s steamer Relief is now hard and fast near the 1 tower of the lighthouse; and the ' steamer General Clinch went to pieces near the public abutment. The only vessel that rode out the hurricane was the Minnie Gordon, as her spars and rigging were down.

The like weather has not been experienced since 1813. The most doleful accounts were being received daily of the effects of the hurricane in the adjacent islands. The church at St. John, and thirtysix houses in Harbor Island, had been completely destroyed, and the estab-

lishments upon Spanish Well, Current, Governor's Harbor, aud Eleuthina have been completely swept away; Green Turtle Bay, Hope Town, and North Harbor are in ruins.

A correspondent at Great Harbor writes that the huricane has ruined all the estates, dystroyed the cisterns of water, public schools, &c, r . and that the poorer classes were exposed to starvation. The schooner Victory,

schooner President, and barque Tick ler, of New York, were lost here.