GOVERNMENT PRINTING & ADVERTISING.

Hawke's Bay Times, Volume 19, Issue 1428, 14 September 1872, Page 2

GOVERNMENT PRINTING & ADVERTISING.

PARLIAMENTARY RETURN, ordered by the House of Representatives, on the motion of Mr CJollins, showing the amounts paid by Government to Newspapers in New Zealand for Advertising and Printing, during the Financial Year 1871-72. AUCKLAND.

* Those papers indicated by an asterisk are now no longer in existence.

The following commercial items are supplied by the London correspondent of the Wellington Independent, who writes under date 27ih Jnne: —The wool sales for June commenced on the 20th instant, with a hill of nearly Id per lb. Since then a decline, mostly on greasy wools, of id per lb has taken place. The fall in half washed and greasy New Zealand wools is barely, jd per lb. The total quantity likely to be offered for sale is nearly 220,000 bales, of which number 42,116 from New Zealand have already arrived. The current prices are still from 3d to 4d above the low rates of 1870-71 for New Zealand wools, and I am glad to say that there is a fair piospect of these rates being maintained at the fourth and fifth series of sales, which are fixed to commence on the 12th September and 21st November of this year. I have but little to report on the prices of preserved meats and flax, except that the demand is continuous for both. The consumption of preserved meats is extending in the workhouses, prisons, and hospitals of England, and though present quotations are not favorable to importers, it would be unwise to shorten production when the demand for Australian and New Zealand preserved beef and mutton is steadily increasing. J may note that the consumption is not so great in summer as it is in winter. The same remarks apply to flax, which still brings good prices, and is being used, as a fibre, on its own merits, instead of being worked up with other hemps. I have seen excellent specimens of towels made out of it. Keep the market here supplied with well dressed flax, and New Zealand will yet become a necessity tp the British manufacturer. It was rumored in London when the last mail left that Sir George Grey intends shortly to return to England—a step rendered necessary, it is said, by his niece being engaged tp be married.

The Melboure Leader has the following :—Little Bourke-street —a congregation of abandoned women at night - assembled in one of the moat wretched' of its habitations —a drunken; orgie—a quarrel—a murder— and the locking up • of the dying woman alone to bleed todeath, while the murderess and her companions go below to finish their night's wild ©arousal.. This is the latest picture of Melbourne low and scarcely a deeper depth may be found in any city in the world. Thevictim was »> woman, of 40, the femalewho murdered her a girl of 2.0. Another girl shared the house with them. What a commentary on our civilisation it isto reflect that this drunken orgie and horrible murder took place-in. a lane between and in close proximity to theTemperance and Gospel Mission Halls t The following interesting scraps of" London gossip are from the correspondent of a provincial paper: —lt is not often that in the course of three minutes' walk you may see as great a, contrast as greets you on walking from* Regent-street to Leicester Square. From* the crowded handsome street with its. well kept shops, and its well-to-do. people, you pass into an,open,, desolate,, dilapidated square* surrounded by fourth rate hotels with foreign, names,, frequented by needy foreigners. On, one side are the gapingruins of a largehouse burnt many years ago,.but never - rebuilt.. On another, is the tawdry, Alhambra, and, inappropriately enough,, almost next door to it stands the newly, built Archbishop Tenison's schools. But.. it is the enclosure which strike* the-passer-by most forcibly. LeicesterSquare has long been, a synonym for neglect. But during the last two orthree weeks the four relics of its broken;railings have been, carried off, thewretched statue has become more than* ever defaced, and, the long,rank grass, been trodden down by innumerablefeet. When things are at the worse they are sine to mend, is a hopeful: proverb, which has been verified in thepresent instance. The relics of the* statue have just been sold for £.l6,.ands the Square itself is to. be put up to auction, at a reserved- price of «£3Q,OOOi Many schemes hav:e been on, foot for purpose of utilising, and. beautifyiu& this open space. The new railway from Cbaring : Cross to. Euston will run, underneath it, and the station will bebuilt near or in the Sqnare.. There was. some talk of having a flower, market there, but white the projectors havebeen talking the D.uke of Bedford has. been acting, and has just built a fiowcrmarket at which will be open in a few days. I am not without hope that something will bedone to give the French quarter of London a Parisian aspect. An open* garden, with a restaurant or two, and a. iountain, would be a welcome innovation, and would show the dwellers iu ; our other squares what they might do. with their present gloomy iron-railed enclosures. I am told that never were there so many Whitsun holiday keepers as there have been this week. I can* believe it. At the same time the holiday has had its drawbacks. Visit owto the Crystal Palace give a most deplorable account of the perils of thereturn journey on Monday night. Thefighting among the passengers as they made their way into the trains was desperate, and many people w ere carried away fainting; others did not reach, their homes until two in the morning.. The crowding on the underground railWAja was nearly as bad. At the Zoological Gardens the people were packed, like herrings, but there it was not they who suffered; it was the animals. Oneof the practical jokes of the day was ogive halfpence to the ostriches. Tliefoolish birds ate the coin in such profusion that all of them have been very ill in consequence, and one- has (bed- | On a post mortem examination of thedeceased ostrich, an entire copy of die Daily Telegraph, was found in the birdsstomach. . The proprietors of &»■ 1 "Zoo" have also been unfortunate 1 enough fo lose one of then? lions. He I died of natural decay, and thecc is now J only one lion left. The deceased* W* 1 some years ago "sat" to Sir Ed«*. 1 Landseer, who has not only introduce* j him into many a picture, but has »\ | commemorated him in enduring bron j at the base of the Nelson coJum»t I

The Canterbury Press, Aug. 26, says: —A moet dastardly act bas been committed in our harbor during the past week, and we trust the perpetrator or perpetrators will be traced, and meet with their proper deserts. On Monday last the schooner Mystery, belonging to Messrs Hay don and Co., was employed wilh other crafts, at the breakwater in taking in ballast for the barque Ben Moie. She had loaded a few tons, when the men anchored oft the vessel, leaving everything on board right. On Tuesday morning the vessel was found sunk. We may state that the night was quite calm, and there was neither sea nor wind. The im pression seemed to be that the vessel had started a plank, and so gone down. A. diver was employed, but he did not discover the cause, and means were taken to bring the vessel into shallow water. This was done last week: it was thought when the vessel was near to the beach, she might lighten with pumping. On a seaich being made, the spear and handles of the pump were found to be missing. On beaching the vessel on Saturday, the cause of hei sinking was discovered. On the vessel's port quarter near to the water line were seen sixteen auger holes about an inch in diameter, showing thai the vessel had been scuttled. At what hour the dastardly act was done, it would be hard to say. It is to be hoped that the reward offered will bring the perpetrators to justice. The Wellington Independent, 6th inst, states that th At well known Wairarapa settlor, Mr Morrison, betterknow as " Morrison of Morrison's Bush," died yesterday at the advanced age of 90, at his residence in the Wairarapa. The deceased, «-e believe, was one of the earliest pioneers in the Wai rarapa Valley. Death has of late been busy amou«st the hardy old band of early settleis. An Edacation Leagne has been formed in Melbourne, the aim of which U' : —"To secure the secular, compulsory, and free education of the youth of the Colony. To urge the passing of a Bill to amend the present Common Schools Act, em bodying the following principles as the basis of a public school svstem :—The whole scheme of public education to be under a Minister of Instruction, who shall have a seat in the Cabinet, and be responsible to Parliament; providing a thorough secular education for all the vouth of the Colony; making it compulsory that eveiy child between the ages of six and twelve years shall veceive an elementary secular education; provision in the public schools for instruction in higher branches than these rendered compul sory; the abolition of all fees in the public schools; placing public school teachers on the civil service list. To secure the return of representatives to Parliament pledged to support the views of the League. To foster in the public mind, by means of lectures, public meetings, &c, a sustained interest in the objects of the League." A London telegram, of date 2nd August, says :—The wool sales closed firmly, and prices were latterly equal to highest rates. 500,000 bales were catalogued.—New Zealand hemp is inactive.—Preserved meats are advancing in price.-—Tallow is steady at late quo tations.—Sperm oil has been sold at .£B7 pel tun.—-There is great agitation throughout the North of England in consequence of the high price of meat. Indignation meetings have been held, and resolutions passed to abstain from purchasing from butchers, some of whom have commenced the sale of Australian meat. —The French loan is a stupendous success.

New Zealand Herald. .i. 385 18 6 Daily Sonthern Cross ... 311 1 4 Evening Star ... 29 9 Q ♦Evening News ... 33 H u ♦Militia and Volunteer Gazette 4 7 Q Thames Advertiser 89 3 6 ♦Thames Guardian ... .. 7 17 6 livening Star (Grahamstown) .... 3.8 19 8 Coromandel Mail .. .4 0 0 TARANAKI. Taranaki Herald .. 303 19 0 Taranaki News .. A 10 11 7 HAWKE’S BAX. Hawke’s Bay Herald ... 135 6 3 Hawke’s Bay Times . .. 31 4 0, Daily Telegraph 58 6 6 WELLINGTON. Wellington Independent. .., ... 731 9 6 Evening Post 408 7 9, ♦Daily Advertiser .. 70 11 0 ♦Evening Telegraph 1 7 6 Wanganui Chronicle. .. 56 13 6 Wanganui Herald 340:16 0 WairarapaMercury... . ... . .. 16 16 8 NELSON. Nelson Examiner .. 68 14 0 Colonist.. 483 15:, 8 Nelson Evexxing Mail ... 54 0 6 Westport Times 118 8 6 Charleston Herald .. 23 15 0 Inangahua Herald 36; 1 6, Grev River Argus .. 333 10 0 Grey Valley Times 4 10 6 Greymouth Star .. 71 15 0 MARLBOROUGH. Marlborough Press ... .. 38 8 3 Marlborough News 7 13 0 Marlborough Express .. 13 16 0 Kaikoura Herald CANTERBURY. 5 18 0 Lyttelton Times... 415 8 3 Press.. .. 284 3 7 Evening Star 5 14 6 Timaru Herald .. 71 13 9 Timaru and Gladstone Gazette... 16. 4 6 WESTLAND, West Coast Times 35,.5 18 9 Westland Independent .. 13 11 6 Evening Star 6 OTAGO. Otago Daily Times 573 9 6 Evening Star . .. 418 9) 8; Echo 66 10 6 Waikouaiti Herald .. 56 18 0 Ross Guardian 3 13 0 Ross News ... .. 61 11 0 Dunstan Times 41, 15 0 Oamaru Times ... 40 5 6, Tuapeka Times ... 83. 5 0 Mount Ida Chronicle ... 30 3 6 Lake Wakatip Mail 55 10 0 Cromwell Argus ... 1-5 13 0 Arrow Observer 11 6 0 Bruce Herald . ... 4 10 6 ♦Bruce Standard 37 3 9 Southland News ... 100 2 0 Southland Times . 84 15 0 Advertisements ... £4,518 11 4 Printing... . ... 3,263 6 3 | 6,781 17 7