OTAGO.

Lyttelton Times, Volume I, Issue 43, 1 November 1851, Page 5

OTAGO.

The arrival of the "Fortitude" from the above port has put us in possession of a file of the Otago Witness, from the 17th May to the 18th October. The arrangement of our paper having been partially completed before the news came to hand accounts for its not appearing in the usual place with the other New Zealand news. The Otago Settlers' Association were continuing their monthly meetings. At that held on the 13th of October, an Address to Sir G. Grey, upon the subject of the Provincial Councils' Bill, was resolved upon. Discord appeared to have crept into the Association, and personal disputes appear to preponderate in their proceedings, if we may judge from the reports in the Wittiest.

A dinner had been given by the principal settlers to Dr. Stewart, previous to his leaving for China in the " Dominion."

A committee of Magistrates had been appointed to consider the best means of laying out the 00/. which his Excellency had authorised the Sub-Treasurer to "expend in repairing the Port Chalmers Road. The Bench resolved, should no more urgent work appear, to expend the sum in making a good road through the N.E. Valley, including a foot-bridge over the Water of Leith.

The prospectus of the " Otago Banking Company "is published in these papers. The business of this Company is to consist of banking in all its branches upon the Scotch system. The capital is fixed at 7,500/., in shares of bl. each, with power to increase. This capital will be called up in instalments not exceeding 1/. os. each, to extend over a period of four years from date of charter. .Five shares will give one vote to the shareholder. No person will be eligible for a directorship unless he be the holder of 50 shares. The Company is to be dissolved immediately upon the loss of onefourth of the Capital Stock, unless a majority of the proprietors determine otherwise. At a meeting of applicants for shares, it was stated that nearly the whole of the shares were in demand by persons living within the Settlement, and it would probably be found advisable to increase the amount of Capital; also that there were eight individuals among the applicants who were qualified by the number of their shares, to fill Directorships. An inquest was held at Dunedin in August last, upon the body of Wm. Underbill, carpenter, who had destroyed himself by hanging. No cause could be discovered for the act, the deceased being in comfortable circumstances, having about £70. in cash, his own property, in the house at the time. The Jury returned a verdict of " Temporary Insanity." It was ascertained from his papers that he has a brother somewhere in theneighbourhoodofChristchurch, in this settlement. A Mechanics' Institute had been founded in Dunedin upon a somewhat extensive scale, and at a charge for membership of four shillings per quarter. A building was at once to be erected. A dinner was given on the 6th of June, by the Magistrates of the district, to his Honour Mr. Justice Stephen, to celebrate the opening of the Supreme Court. On the 9th of June Otago was visited by a violent gale from the S.W., which lasted 48 hours. Many of the buildings were considerably injured. Some of our readers, may have heard of a meeting held at Dunedin for the purpose of requesting W. H. Valpy, Esq. not to accept his nomination to become a member of the Legislative Council. The information was brought here by a gentleman who left Otago not long after this meeting. We now have before us the Newspaper report thereof. The settlers were not unanimous in this request, some slight opposition having been made lo the resolution embodying it, but a large majority were averse to any acknowledgment or recognition of a Nominee Council, and to having the appearance of being represented, while not actually so. The following extract from a private letter expresses the general feeling of the Otatro settlers : —" The public here look upon the doings of your settlement with more interest than any other part of New Zealand, feeling in fact, that our case is a joint one with yours. You are more fortunate than we are, for your community appears unanimous on the subjects of representative institutions and local self-govern-ment, whilst we have a party amongst us hostile to those institutions, who, although insignificant in point of numbers, are yet active and unscrupulous ; this circumstance gives a .fulcrum to the lever of discord which His Excellency is making use of to break up the class character of our settlement. The Governor's attempt to exciie jealousy between Otago and Canterbury, by the alleged aggression of the latter, is looked upon here as an absurdity, while therefore we have your papers and the facts before us, no mischief can arise, but in the absence of authentic information, falsehood is the weapon we have most to fear. As an illustration of the absolute necessity of local self-government, and also as an ■ excuse for your not having received any late numbers of the Witness, I have to mention that we have had no opportunity of sending to Wellington or to any other of the Settlements of New Zealand, since the sailing of the " Scotia" in the beginning of May last."