Local Intelligence.

Lyttelton Times, Volume XI, Issue 651, 2 February 1859, Page 4

Local Intelligence.

We may notice that the erection of one of the largest buildings in the settlement was commenced last week at Kaiapoi. We allude to the Assembly Rooms, which are beingbuilt to supply a want much felt in the town. The building is to consist of a large hall for public purposes, 60 feet long, 30 feet wide, and 20 feet high to tho springing of the roof, surrounded by shops and other rooms, The

frontage to Charles Street will consist of the entrance to the great hall, and four shops, and at the sides will be ten rooms, one of which, 30 feet long, is intended for a refreshment room in connection with the hall; the others it is intended shall be let as meeting rooms for societies and as offices. Altogether, we believe this will be the most complete and commodious building- of the kind in the settlement, and great credit is due to the enterprising- projector arid proprietor, Mr. Wylde. We understand that several of the rooms and two of the shops have already been engaged. The harvest may now, in the beginning of the second month of the year, be said to have fairly commenced on the plains generally. In several fields the harvest men are now blithely at work reaping or mowing the crops of wheat or oats. Some few oats are by this time fully harvested; but these, except in some favoured localities, are all self-sown, and but few of those fields which have been regularly sown will, from the unavoidable lateness of the last seeding season, be ripe for cutting for some days. We trust our agricultural friends will excuse our remindingthem of the apparent suddenness with which ripeness spreads among all crops here, as compared with the old country; and the consequent necessity of commencing to cut corn as soon as it can be done with safety. The large number of fields which we see seeded from grain shelled out from the. last year's crop are a sufficient evidence that much of that crop was over-ripe before it was cut; and where the winds are as unrestrained as they are in this colony, over-ripe corn will inevitably sustain damage. In many seasons, it is true, we are so abundantly blessed with exuberant crops that a little may be* spared without missing it: the great bulk.at the same time causing delay in the gathering in. But the crops of this year are certainly hot above an average; and it/will be possible. to afford such a degree of attention as will avoid the appearance, at least, of negligence, which the shaking out and consequent loss' of- grain upon the ground always shows. The fields which have hitherto been cut are for the most part light of yield, and would therefore not occasion as high a rate per acre for harvesting as prevailed last year; the introduction: of reaping machines, from a trial/: of some of which, lately imported, we are led to: expect great results, will also bear/a considerable share in keep down expenses to a reasonable rate for farmers. We fare, at present-" >ll»We to state any general price paid for cutting crops of average weight. . -/./'.- ;. On Thursday evening last a meeting of members of the various trades connected with building was convened by advertisement atr the Royal Oak Inn, Christchurch, for the purpose of uniting for mutual protection against any attempts that may be made to compel or produce a reduction of wages in their several departments. The introduction of immigrants, among whom many have been tradesmen, seems to have been cause enough in the opinion of some of the members of the housebuilding trades for this proceeding./ Only a very few persons attended, the good sense of those interested no doubt recognising the uselesness and impropriety of any. such measure. An adjourned meeting is, however,; expected to be held. That any attempt to form a union of the kind will; fail is cer* tainly to be expected from the known intelligence and sound understanding of the mechanics resident among us, as a body; but as no attempt has been made to reduce the rate of wages, nor any combination among capitalists or contractors for effecting such a purpose been ever talked of, so far as we have known, it appears astonishing that any such scheme of union should even have been broached. The evils resulting from trade strikes are well known to every one; but those in the old country have always had the excuse either that the employers had reduced the wages of their workmen .below what the fair returns of the trade.would allow, or.that improvements had taken place in the rate of profits, in which the workmen had not been allowed to participate. But even with a good case to put forward, the unionists have, almost invariably been the losers, and always great sufferers. The leaders of a movement of this kind must in some way or other be paid. All who strike, must by some means be supported during the conflict. And invariably dissatisfaction and suspicion are engendered between the parties to the certain injury of all concerned.. It is not necessary, we hope, to preach a homily on the subject to the authors of the proposed movement, for such a thing as a strike among workmen here is beyond possibility.: But there is a view in which the question must come home to every one practically. The most difficult thing to acquire, and the dearest thing to: pay for, is a house, whether to buy or to rent. If newly arrived builders refuse to work except at famine prices, they will hurt themselves as much as any one. Wages are now as high as they possibly can be; and it will be quite for the house-maker's own interest to follow cheerfully the subsiding of prices to their own natural level. Every one of us in Canterbury is contributing his energy to the advancement of the province, and for any one to draw back from such a course is foolish in all respects; The mail despatched on Monday for England and the colonies was the. largest that has ever gone from this port. It comprised 2097 letters and about 1800 newspapers. The Emerald Isle brings intelligence of the arrival of tho Boomerang in Wellington on the 25th ultimo. At her departure from Melbourne on the 18th; the Oneida had not arrived. The steamer Prinze Alfred, from Sydney, would be the next opportunity by which the mail could be forwarded to New Zealand; but the date oi her probable departure is not given in any of the papers to hand. '/'.'.;..'/..

LYTTTELTON SAVINGS BANK. We have much pleasure in giving publicity to the report of the Trustees of the Lyttelton Savings Bank for the.year 1858, which, with the balance sheet, exhibits the present position of that useful institution. It will

be seen that the money deposited, generally in very small sums at a time, now in the hands of the bank, amounts, with the interest which the rules of the bank allows, to above £1,708. .After paying this interest, the bank shows a gross profit tor the year, arising from interest received on money lent out, of £71 17s. 2d.; which the year's charges reduce to the net profit of £46 35., .carried to the 'rest account;' that account lis thereby raised to a sum of £100, showing | the net profits of the institution since its esI tablishment. We may here call attention to | the large business done at Christchurch, I where a branch was establisued during- the [past year; The report notices briefly a certain injury sustained by the enactment of fthe Savings Bank Act,'lßsß; but the balfance sheet tells the tale more clearly. The fact caused a suspension of operations as far :as regarded a large portion of the funds for /a period of about three months of last year; | that is, from the time when the act was an|iiounced as about to come into force until the |Governor's permission to discount bills of lexchange was obtained. Now, the deposits |iire applied in that manner close up to the i&point permitted, but a very large balance has Isince remained unproductive at the Union ißank, for want of opportunity to invest in of/.tlie kind required by the act. fjLt a moderate computation one-fifth of what llrould have been, the gross earnings of the institution has" been lost during 1858 to the Ijepositors, owing to the suspension of opera■&ons for the last four months. It is not to $)e feared that this loss will continue, for by •fleo-rees safe and legal investments will offer themselves, in which the. dead half of the Jinds can be employed and made productive; ■already we learn that the thousand pounds 'Jmeinployed at the date of the balance sheet, Jhave been reduced to about seven hundred in "Ihis way. * % Without further preface we give the

\; THIRD ANNUAL REPORT. I The trustees have much pleasure in referring to ffche increased usefulness of this institution. \ Since the last annual meeting a district branch ias been opened at Christchurch. * Seven accounts havelbeen removed from the Lytf "itelton to the Christchurch branch, the amount transferred to their books being £156 Bs. 7d.; notwithJißtanding which; and -the large amount deposited at 'Christchurch, the bajanceof the deposit account in stiu'shows/a.trifling increase over last lyear. Twenty-eight accounts have been opened and pfteen closed during the year. b A' much larger amount of profit would have accrued to the bank /but for the New- Savings Bank liAct, which .for :a:time;ina,terially interfered with its Operations, in; discountingbills. |a The trustees have to acknowledge the assistance fiendered to the hank by Messrs. George Gould, Chrosvenor Miles, and H. E. Alport, in keeping the ' Recounts of the ; Christchurch. branch; and they jkave unanimously adopted a resolution thanking jfihose gentlemen for their services: - |f I. T. Cookson, Vice President. . v F. E. Wright, Actuary. I BALANCE sheet. 1 For the year ending 31st December, 1858. account "J .-„.>. £ s. d. * Lyttelton . . . . . . . 1056 17 3 ,-£ Christchurch ." 646 11 2 -Interest account £ s. d. j Interest received . 130 16 9 Less accrued on i deposits . . .. 58 19 7

I 1 . 71 17 2 Beductcharges. " . . 25 14 2 %, 46 3 0 Best account: balance 54 16 7 t, 1804 8 0 Bills discounted account .... 760 0 0 ■ Mortgage account .._ 100 0 0 - Balance at Union Bank of Australia . 944 8 0 ' |/L- 1804 8 0 vA > ' . W. Wright, Accountant. |/We hereby certify that we have compared the books of the Savings Bank with the above balance . sheet, and have found the same to be correct, and iSrther that" we'have examined the assets of the Bank and found them as above stated. i'/^ . . R. Latter ) $S •-,"""" A> J> Alport tTrustees -,£/.; • - E. A. Hargreaves ( lrustees'*s& ■" Frederick Banks j " '- *" ■