The Lyttelton Times. Saturday, Sept. 22.

Lyttelton Times, Volume V, Issue 302, 22 September 1855, Page 4

The Lyttelton Times. Saturday, Sept. 22.

Saturday, Sept. The Immigration Scheme of the Provincial Government has as yet worked with great success. The system of encouraging old established settlers to send for their friends and relatives in England has proved most useful to the settlement. Not only is a boon thus conferred upon those labouring men who have made money here, and who regret nothing which they enjoyed in the old country but the presence of their nearest relations. A still greater advantage results from this system. No one can have failed to observe that most of the immigrants by the Grasmere, and the Caroline Agness found [friends to greet them on their arrival,—to give them good practical advice ; and to put them in the right way to get on in their new country. As for those who arrived by the Grasmere, one would imagine that they were old colonists, so far are they from giving the idea of " new hands." The state of mind and comparative value of a new hand is thoroughly appreciated in a colony. « A new hand" is understood to mean a discontented, useless, clumsy, grumbling mortal. Something more whining than a " new boy" at school; more " green" than a freshman at college. The late arrivals by the Grasmere and the Caroline Agness appear to us to be sooner at home than any batch of immigrants whom we have yet seen land. They find their friends

here, and a new and plentiful home established here in place of perhaps a poor and scantily supplied one such as they have left behind them in England. There are of course exceptions. We have just heard of the intended departure for Wellington of an immigrant per Caroline Agncss, with his family.) His friends are in that Province, and it would appear that he has taken advantage of the assisted passages offered by our Emigration Agent, to find his way to his friends in a different Province. We understand that his friends have caused to be paid into the Provincial Treasury the amount of the note which this immigrant gave for the portion of passage money which he was required fo provide for in London; but at the same time, we must remember that half of his passage has been paid for at the expense of the Province • so that his now leaving Canterbury for Wellington amounts practically to a fraud upon the Provincial Revenue. Mr. Harman has taken care to chose immigrants in such a way as to avoid as much as possible such a system of obtaining passages under false pretences, but he must be deceived now and then. We understand that Mr. Harman has informed the Provincial Government that he intends in future to take from immigrants promissory notes for the whole amount of the passage monej-, giving them at the same time an understanding to the effect that if they remain for three years in the Province only one-half of the amount will be demanded from them. In this manner the Province will be secure against h-ss. If any person attempts to leave the Province within three years after having obtained an assisted passage, without paying the whole of his passage money, it will be the duty of the Provincial Treasurer to sue him for the xohole amount of the notes given by him; and he will not be permitted to leave the Province until the sum due is paid. We are glad to find that such a precaution has been taken to prevent frauds upon the Provincial Government; although we believe that there will not be many such cases as the one which has been brought to ourliotice this week.

Lyttelton Colonists' Society and Literary Institution.—Meeting, Sept. 18, 1853, Mr. Spowers in the chair. Dr. Donald gave a lecture on Botany, in which many interesting facts connected with the science were noticed. At the end of the lecture Dr. Donald kindly offered to assist any who might be desirous of studying the science, which announcement was received, as it ought to have been, with much applause. y, Ou Thursday evening, the first meeting look place of those who wished to take advantage of the Eev. Mr. Aldred's liberal offer to give instruction in Maori, to a class in connexion with this society, and we are happy to say that it \va9 well-attended, and upwards of twenty were, we believe, enrolled as members of the class.