Hawke's Bay Times. Nullius addict us jurare in verba magistri. TUESDAY, MAY 30, 1871.

Hawke's Bay Times, Volume 17, Issue 1029, 30 May 1871, Page 2

Hawke's Bay Times. Nullius addict us jurare in verba magistri. TUESDAY, MAY 30, 1871.

At the Resident Magistrate's Court yesterday, a civil case—Forard v. Toop ■ —was gone into at some length and finally adjourned to Friday next. It was a claim for <£lo damages, for trespass of cattle.—Some debt cases of no greyt public interest occupied the Court this morning.

The Nebraska, v ith the European and American mails via California, was due in Auckland to-day. Telegrams, via Tauranga, may be looked for here to-morrow.

The following is the petition present ed in the Pro\ incial Council on Friday last by Mr Kinross : " To the Honorable the Provincial Council of Hawke's Bay in Session assembled : The Petition of the undersigned inhabitants of the Town of Napier humbly sheweth : That the Swamp in the Town of Napier to the west of Hastings street and south of Carlyie-street, has become a great piiblic nuisance—offensive in smell and prejudicial to +he health of the inhabitant*. That there appears to be no prospect of the owners of the land in the swamp reclaiming their sections, and e\ery year the nuisance w T ill be increased. Your Petitioners therefore pray that you will take .this Petition into your favorable consideration, and adopt such measures, as you may think best to remove, the eVil complained of." [Here follows, "the "signatures of 21G residents.]

On the 15th inst., (as we learn from the New Zealand Herald), a sad accident happened on the Mongonui river, by which a youth named James Arthur Braund, aged 17 years, lost his life. Tt appears that deceased, "with MrWm, Braund, who had lately settled on their land, were coming down with two gumdiggers and a load of gum ; about se> en miles from the mouth of the river the boat got snagged and capsized. Four l teen cwt. of gum and all the" baggage was lost. The two diggers and the de ceased clung to the boat, and William Braund remained hanging on to the snag. Shortly afterwards the boat rolled over again, and one digger (Jas. Kelly) struck out for the shore. The other digger stuck to the boat, and deceased struck out and got hold ol a pole used by the natives for staking an eel pot. The boat drifted down stream until stopped by a fallen tree, and there Kelly reached and got hold of it. .De ceased hung on to the pole for half-an-hour, and was seen by his brother to climb up higher. It is supposed that the pole overbalanced, as he disappeared and was not seen again. St Paul's Church, Auckland, (says the Daily Southern Cross, May 19) probably never presented a more pleasing and animated appearance than it did yesterday afternoon, when a double marriage was solemnised between two officers of H.M.'s ship Viiago and the daughters of two of our leading citizens. The happy pairs were Lieutenant Little and Miss Priscilla Helen Hamlin, and Sub-Lieu tenant Wi!lcox and Miss Catherine Anne O'Neill. About half-pasi 2 o'clock the carriages—eight in number—drove up to the church, and the brides were led up the aisle to the altar—Miss O'Neill leaning upon the arm of her father (the hon. James O'Neill, M.L.C.), and Miss Hamlin supported by her brother (Mr John M. Hamlin.) There were twelve brides maids. The brides weie both dressed in white satin, and the bridegrooms were attired in na'-al uniform. The Bev. C. M. Nelson (Incumbent of St. Paul's), Dr. Purchas (Onehunga), and the Rev. F. Gould (Otahuhu), were the officiating clergymen. The Virago is now under orders to proceed to England, but yesterday's incident will serve as a memento of her visit to many in Auckland, while two of her officers at least will not be likely to forget their period of service on the Australian station, and mor^'.particularly that portion of their stay which was spent in Auckland.