The Lyttelton Times.

Lyttelton Times, Volume V, Issue 237, 7 February 1855, Page 4

The Lyttelton Times.

Wednesday, February 7, 1855. We have leceived news from England to the beginning of November, and from the Crimea via Alexandria to a still later date. Breaches had been effected in the walls of Sebastopol, and the assault was to be attempted about the Bth or 9th November. There has been severe loss on the side of the allies both by land and sea, but nothing to that suffered by the Russians. Wellington has been visited by a most destructive earthquake, the distant waves of which were slightly felt here about ten days ago. Captain Drury's report will give our readers some idea of the loss of property in the town. The earthquake had been severely felt at Nelson and Taranaki, and more slightly at Auckland.

The " Home News" announces that Col. Gore Browne, C.8., now Governor of St. Helena, has been appointed Governor of New Zealand. Colonel Gore Brown being senior to Colonel Wynyard, he will also be Commander of the Forces stationed in the Colony.

We understand a despatch has been received from Auckland, announcing that His Excellency has allowed the Provnrcial Council Extension Ordinance, but does not intend to dissoh'e the Provincial Council. "We believe that it is His Honor's intention to issue the writs for the return of the additional members without delay

To the Editor of the Lyttelton Times. Bin,— A humorous letter to lighten the usually heavy columns of correspondence in a newspaper is of so great value, that I could scarcely find fault with the one signed " Working Settler," in your last week's letter, even had the satire directed against me been as brilliant and caustic as it was intended to be. But there is something more than a mere personal matter in it, so I will venture, to say a few words In the first place I fear the writer has not Rtulhuly preserved his incognito, 'for (nutting aside a certain tone of disappointment in the production) from one or two pointless iokes and also from a certain amount of loose Emc.liMywhicl, seemed in-my mind to connect the wnler with a remarkable bye-law passed at a

late meeting1 of Church Trustees, I was driven instinctively to exclaim when 1 read the letter, " The Bumpkin from the Plains" is himself the writer. "If any be Trinculo's legs, these are they. Thou art very Trinculu indeed." I must add that T am still unable to join j n the regret ho expresses, that the "Bumpkin" was not allowed to speak his experience in what he Ik.s had to do with stock, runs, &c, (which experience by the way, perhaps, could only | )e used by way of warning) /or if by. < putting him down' the people of Lyttelton were deprived of the eloquence of our " youngest" Pitt they were at the same time preserved from the great danger of having the Christchurch element of discord thrown amongst them. But let that pass, and let me observe, that it is a common practice (very weak now-a---days to use it!) to endeavour to undervalue the fm-ce of a public meeting when the opinions there enunciated happen to be adverse to our own, but, nevertheless, public meetings ore lorcible, and are and will be respected." There is possibly a ridiculous side in most things, and I should not wonder that even if a less than Punch were here, he ,could discover a very ridii culous side, (shall I say it?) in the sayings and doings of our Provincial Council, even perhaps in the awful deliberations of our Executive itself, and in which " Working Settler" has played his part. I will now conclude by expressing my belief that the amendments carried at the public meeting were an improvement on the Government plan for the disposal of waste lands, and I would just hint to 'Working Settler,' or 'Bumpkin,' as he calls himself, that however extraordinary it may apppear, and however shocking to his self-esteem, that many of those whose opinion he undervalues as ' not particularly well qualified' to decide this very knotty point, are well qualified to give, even him, a few lessons, and who knows, to teach him (and this * might be very desirable) a lesson of humility. I£am, your obedient servant, James Spowebs.