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Hawke's Bay Times, Volume 17, Issue 921, 19 January 1871, Page 3

Support to the Government (observes the Evening Post) fetches a good price at present, and as things are likely to look more unfavorable for them shortly, the figure will doubtless range higher. Taranaki, " faithful among the faithless," is to be rewarded for promising to return Mr Gisborne to Parliament, by having a line of coaches between Wanganui and New Plymouth subsidised at the rate of £3OOO a year. Referring to a recent Order in Council which exempts from postage all newspapers addressed to Athenaeums, Mechanics' Institutes., Hospitals, Public Libraries, and Lunatic Asylums, a contemporary says:—" It seems to us that the Government, having such a redundancy of money, proved by their numerous unnecessary appointments and the amount lavished on themselves, could very well afford to do without the postage on newspapers altogether." The Spectator says:—One or two papers, notably the Times, seem exercised ab.mt some effort which Russia is to make against Constantinople with the consent of Germany. It is likely enough that Russia would like to be rid of the treaty jof 1856, but that Germany can ever go heartily with St. Petersburg in the East we are unable to believe. Their interests in the Valley of the Danube are directly contrary to each other, nor does Germany want Russia iu the Mediterranean. That Germany would let Russia take her own course for a time is possible, but England ?i strong enough to deal with Russia alone, it the Cabinet should decide once more upon entering into that cul de sue, the Eastern question. We very much doubt if Russia is regarding the wonderful success of Germany with such amiable eyes as she pretends, or if the Czar is jblind to such incidents as the refusal of the students of Dorpat to sing the Imperial Hymn. They sang the " Wacht ,am Rhein" instead with effusion. The «nd of the war will leave the Baltic a German lake. From the Auckland papers we learn that on one day no less than three b;at accidents occurred at Wangarei. The first happened to a new centre-board yacht with three young men on board : a squall struck her, and being insufficiently ballasted and her main-sheet made fast, she went over, one of her crew swimming ashore, and the other two hanging on to the boat's keel until rescued. The next accident happened a little later in the day, near the head of the river, at the bottom of the Short Reach, and about a mile and a half from the township. A large boat belonging to a native chief named Kamira, and trading between the Patana river and Wangarei, was coming down the river freighted with waipiro and other Christmas delicacies, which the natives had just procured from the township. A native called Graham was steering the boat, and, being Baechi plenus, was not to be induced to take a reef in, though cautioned and advised to do so by the others. ■ The consequence was that, as soon as the boat got clear of the mangroves, which afford great shelter in the narrow reaches of this river, the wind getting a clean sweep at her fairly overturned her, sending Maoris, waipiro, and all the Christmas commodities to the bottom in an instant. This boat was also insufficiently ballasted, though the occupants were deeply filled. Nearly the whole of the cargo was lost, but no lives were sacrificed. The third aecident happened to a small pulling boat, which left Takahiwai last week bound for Matapouri. Nothing is known of the fate of the two meu who embarked in her, but the boat was found bottom upwards, and it is expected that they both have met with a watery grave, One of them was a pakeha-Maori, commonly known by the soubriquet of "Jack Smith" or "Maori tech,"