Hawke's Bay Times. Nullius addictus jurare in verba magistri. MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 16, 1872.

Hawke's Bay Times, Volume 19, Issue 1429, 16 September 1872, Page 2

Hawke's Bay Times. Nullius addictus jurare in verba magistri. MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 16, 1872.

The steamship Nebraska, from Honolulu, with European and Awevican mails via California, arrived at Auckland at 8 o'clopl? this morning—just a. week hehjn.d| extract time,

The Napier Rifle Yolunteer Band gave the first of a series of open-air performances in the Government lawn on Saturday afternoon. The weather being fine, a large number of persons were present. The rendering of the several pieces was excellent, the audience testifying their appreciation by repeated plaudits. ,

We regret to have to record the death of Mrs Hitchings, the wife of Thomas Hitchings, Esq., Provincial Surgeon, which occurred at about two o'clock this morning. The sad news has cast a gloom over the town.

Jn the Resident Magistrate's Court this morning, one drunkard" was lined five shillings. The newly-arrived immigrants appear to be generally of a superior class. Those per Balls?rat were landed to-day, and taken to the barracks. The Scandinavians, w»s believe, are to be placed in the 40-mile bush, about 60 miles from Napier. Among the immigrants by the Ballarat and the Hovding are a considerable number of young men ac customed to agricultural labor. Jn addition to a large quantity of general merchandise, the,barque 3alJarat, from London, is the bearer of about 350 tons railway iron. The Hovding does not bring any cargo.

Our morning con temporary charges us with want of candor in our criticism on the parliamentary return issued by us on Saturday, in omitting to refer to those cases where the chief patronage appears to have been bestowed upon opposition journals. The Herald points out that in Auckland Mr Vogel's own paper received less than an opposition paper, the Herald, and that in Wanganui the Herald, an opposition paper, received far more support than its older contemporary the Chronicle, "a warm supporter ot the late Government." Now both the Auckland Herald and the Wanganui Herald were only recent accessions to the ranks of the opposition, and, regarding the first, it would have been impolitic for Mr Vogel to have subsidised his own paper in preference to one of such standing as the New Zealand Herald. The Wanganui Herald has certainly lately been a "virulent opponent," but not long ago it was as violent on the other sicie; but our contemporary is rather in error in calling the Chronicle a " warm supporter of the late Government." Those cases in which an opposition journal received equal benefit with a Government supporter, are so exceptional as only to go to prove the rule.

Under the heading, " Let us make our o~vn iron," the following appears as a letter to the editor in the Wellington Independent:—"Sir,—Now that railways are being constructed in New Zealand, and iron has risen in Europe, with every probability of its continuing to maintain a high price for many years to come, I would ask your pei mission to draw the attention of our legislators to the desirability of some assistance being given by Parliament to develop (he manufacture of steel and iron from the vast quantities of sand to be found on our shores. There are in this colony a number of settlers whose early years were passed in iron smelting in England, and whose practical knowledge of the subject renders them confident of eveiy success if this industry were once fairly started, say at TF&vslnaki, where an immense quantity of san4 13 to be found, and every facility exists for converting it into steel or iron. Want of the necessary oapital antl the difficulty of obtaining a lease from, the Taranaki provincial authorities alone have prevented these men from starting the enterprise ihemselve*, and carrying it to a successful issue. The grant of about .£6OOO by the Government to erect proper smeUing wor&s would soon show that instead of our being obliged to import iron for railway and other purposes, we oould soon bo in a position to export large quantities of this valuable commodity, practical men assert that iron rails can be produced in New Zealand superior in quality and cheaper than can he imported.—l am, &o, Practical." Numbers of people are now out in Qipps Land, it is stated, looking for selections of land for the purpose of growing flax,

Some curious experiments have, ac cording to the Matin, been made by a doctor of Montpellier to ascertain the effects ot wine, brandy, and absinthe on fowls. Any doubts" which may have been entertained as to the disinclination of the birds to adopt intemperate habits wero speedily dispelled, for they took to dram-drinking wich evident delight, and many an old cock in the chickon-hous'e proved himself quite capable"of consuming his bottle a day. It was found necessary at last to limit the allowance of wine and spirits for each bird to six cubic centimetres of alcohol, or from 12 to 15 of wine daily. The result was that they lost flesh rapidly, more especially tbo<ie who drank absinthe. Two months of absinthe drinking was found sufficient to kill the strongest cock or hen. The fowls who indulged in brandy alone lasted, however, four months and a half; while the wine-bibbera survived for ten months. It was not only their health which was affected by alcohol; their personal appearance underwent an extraordinary change. An immense development of cocks' crests took place. The crests, it is stated, increased to four times their original size, and assumed a hue of unnatural brightness—probably on the same principle that the noses of confirmed drunkards become preternaturally large 'and red.

The large diamond mentioned in a recent telegram as having been discovered in New South Wales is thus referred to by the Bathurst Free Pi ess:—On Monday, sth August, a man named Creed came tcv our office and exhibited a very largo and exceedingly well shaped diamond, which he stated had been found by him near Bullock fiat. He stated that he was working on an "alluvial " on the Back Creek, wheie lie has leased a quantity of ground for mining purposes. He and his party had sunk a shaft to the depth of about eight feet, and when washing a prospect from their first " paddock " of dirt they came upon the precious gem, which Creed immediately brought into town Those who profess to be judges say that the diamond is one of the very best water, is exceedingly well-shaped, and will lose very little under the hand* of the lapidary Opinion varies as to its probable value, but all who have seen it are unanimous in expressing theii conviction that it is a veritable " Koh-i-noor." Mr Curtis, jeweller, placed it in the scales, and it weighed 12|- carats. Creed has deposited it in the Bank of New South "Wales for safety. The value of the diamond has not yet been determined.

Some Melbourne speculators are going to erect at Geelong a number of model cotiages for mechanics and others of limited means?.

The Wesleyans of Ohristchurch have resolved to purchase an organ for Durham-street Church, at a cost of £SOO. The ladies of the congregation are taking steps to provide the ways and means.

Tanning is now being carried on upon a large scale at Woolston, Canterbury. The " Patea River Argus" is the name of a manuscript newspaper started at Patea by a member of the local Literary Institute. The price of meat in Melbourne has risen 2d a lb within a month, and has led to the stoppage of several of the meat preserving works.

Queensland has adopted the principle of payment of members, fixing the scale a* - 4150 per annum, with mileage at the rate of Is 6d per mile, to be paid ouly once a year. A cowl at Hong Kong lately con"demned a criminal to be killed by wakefulness. The culprit, a strong and healthy man, was kept awake constantly for fifteen days, his sufferings for the last few hours being of the most excruciating character. At last he dropped down, and the heart ceased to beat. Boasting alive is a mercy compared with such torture.

The Launceston Examiner informs us thai, a private company, formed in Melbourne, has leased 400 acres of land at York Town, from the Government of Tasmania, for the purpose of hoiking tlie iron deposits there.

The Vienna papers (saya the T&lh Mail Gazette) describe the want of house-room for the poor in that city agmost deplorable. A dreadful exampleof this was brought to light by an official inspection of a house in the Keinergasse. The cellar of the house is only-twenty-four paces in length and'fourpaces in breadth, yet it seWed War dwelling for forty eight hnnian beings.. The cellar has neither air nor light enough, yet the landlord had no scrupfeß. about letting so many inhabit this miserable place. The wretched inmates, were obliged to sleep two in a bed,, twelve narrow couches being arranged along one side of .the cellar, and twelvealong the other. For this accommodation each person had to pay sixths kreutzers (about 2s 4d) a week, yet thecellar is always full. The landlord (say the Viennese journals) should be punished, and the lodgers dispersed; but. in the meantime the owner of the den* makes 1440 florins or «£l6B per annum; out of the necessities- of his. fellowcreatures.

A writer in the Grey Kiver says :—Same years ago I crossed overr i'roru the Big River, a tributary of the? Grey that joins the mam river Dear theLittle Grey, and followed, down & ; stream that, joins with the Inangahua* belovv Fein' Flat; and in the bed of that >tieam I saw a coal seam which, may nob inaptly be designated, as magnificent. For many years I passed between the two, perpendicular walls oft" the gliitering mineral. As far as I_ could reach up to' displace the over--hanging masses it reached,, and as far asthe water would permit me to sink, X found no change. I could mention many other places where coal outcrops, in the Grey. In short, our coal supply i». almost inexhaustible.

Mr James Payne, of Greymouth,, who, with other gentlemen, has been* interesting himself in the matter of" introducing salmon and trout ova to. the rivers of the West Coast,, recently addressed a letter on the subject to.. Dr Hector, and received tha following; reply :—" In reply to your letter of the 2.oth tilt, I beg to inform you that. ]. understand Government have determined that all the ova by the first shipment is to. be sent to the Makarewa Ponds, in Southland* and I suppose* the young fish, when reared,, will beafterwards distributed to. various, parts; of the colony. The manufacture of paint has become a local industry at Nelson.