The Nelson Evening Mail. THURSDAY, AUGUST 30, 1866. ARTISANS' MUTUAL IMPROVEMENT ASSOCIATION.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume I, Issue 152, 30 August 1866, Page 2

The Nelson Evening Mail. THURSDAY, AUGUST 30, 1866. ARTISANS' MUTUAL IMPROVEMENT ASSOCIATION.

Last evening the members of this association held their quarterly meeting, iu the Government School-room, Bridge-street. The room was crowded by persons of both sexes, who appeared to take great interest in the proceedings of the society. Mr. Haddow, the President of the Association occupied the chair. The object of the meeting was to make those preseut acquainted with the progress ot the society, to enlist public sympathy in its favor, and to provide an evening's amusement for the friends and relatives of the members. The chairman commenced the proceedings by stating the objects of the association, and enlarging on the advantages that would accure to the young men of the towu if they would devote themselves to mental improvement, aud embrace the opportunities which the society presented. Youth was the period of leisure, elasticity, energy, and hope ; and hence the desirableness of consecrating a season fraught with such numerous advantages, which would soon pass aAvay, never to return, to the acquisition of knowledge, and the laying the basis of those manly virtues which spring out of well employed time aud well used advantages. He invited the young men of the town to join the association iu ordev to increase its efficiency and promote their own I happiness. Mr. Sigley, the Secretary, read the quarterly report. From this it appeared that during the last quarter, the uumber of members had increased from 17 to 24. Several essays had been read by the members of the society, and discussions had followed of an excitiug and instructive nature. The report enlarged on the usefulness of a society whieh stimulated inquiry, led to habits of reflection, and furnishedthe means of rational enjoyment to a large class of youDg persons, whose characters were not formed, aud who were so unfortunate as to be living without purpose or laudable object in view. The great business of the evening now commenced, and songs, duetts, trios, and choruses WL-re freely given, Mr. Sigley presiding at the harmonium and accompanying the singers with skill and taste. Readings, recitatious, speeches, and dialogues were also called into requisition, and the audience had no sooner recovered from the pleasing sensations produced by a good song or duet, than they were moved' to sadness by the Jrepetition of some plaintive and pathetic elegy, or provoked to merriment by a composition devoted to mirth and comicality. The singing was sometimes really good, and could not be listened to without infusing pleasure, kindling patriotism or exciting virtue in the minds of those who heard it. The selection of pieces repeated was a judicious one. aud by blending the agreeable with the useful amused and at the same time instructed the audience. The various speakers were not professed elocutionists, consequently it would be unfair lo expect from them that attention to grace and expression which criticism usually exacts from such performances. Practice will lead to greater efficiency in regard to rhetorical effeet, and the stiff and timid speaker who begins with dissatisfying himself and friends, will end as in the case of Burke, Disraeli, and others too numerous to mention, with inspiring respect if not with compelling admiration. The impression conveyed to the mind of a listener by the exhibition of last evening was that there is an under current of good sometimes flowing in society which is unnoticed, because its progress is quiet and unobtrusive. It is no mean compliment to pay the young men of the Artisan's Association to say that they knew how to furnish an evening's rational entertainment to a great number of persons. There is a dearth of such amusements in Nelson, and" when they are' furnished by local meags they ought to be, and

we doubt not they are, the more highly appreciated. Anything that makes so.large a number of persons as assembled last, evening less selfish than they were before, and. mOre resolved to be wise and generous, must be regarded as well worthy of public approbation. We shall be glad to learn that the society increases in numbers and influence," and that the young men of the town listen to the appeal .of the chairman to store their minds with useful knowledge now that leisure is abundant, memory tenacious, and the mind unfettered by the anxieties aud disappointments which never fail to come in after life. The members who took part in the performance were Messrs. Garrard, Gibson, Grieg, James and John Graham, Sigley, Falkner, and Bethwaite. The proceedings terminated with the national anthem.

A meeting of the Fire Brigade committee was held last evening, at the Court-house, Mr. Kingdon iu the chair. The following members were present : — Messrs. Fisher, Irvine, Wigzell, Blackett, Catley, Knight, Richardson, Robinson, Thompson, Greenfield, Cooke, Younger, Flood, Cooksey, M. Sinclair, Evans, Murfin. The proposed rules and regulations of the Nelson Volunteer Fire Brigade, were read by the Secretary and ordered to be printed. It was resolved that a meeting of members be called for Tuesday, the Ilth September, at the Courthouse ; that the Secretary be instructed to send a printed copy of the rules to the Superintendent, to the agents of the various insurance companies, and the chairman of the Board of Works ; that the thanks of the meeting be given to the committee appointed, to frame the rules of the brigade j and to the secretary for the aid given by him in the formation of the brigade; that the secretary be requested to get 150 copies of the rules printed, and to send a copy of the same to each member of the brigade. Mr. Green----field gave notice that at the meeting of the brigade on the Uth September, he would propose that rule 24 be struck out, and the following substituted : — " That gentlemen shall be admitted honorary members of the brigade on payment of £1 Is. in advance." The thanks of the meeting were given to the chairman. Iu the Resident Magistrate's Court this morning James Bell was fined 10s. and costs for drunkenness. In our report of the case Carter v. Cock yesterday, we stated that the plaintiff was not allowed for loss of time, which the Magistrate, who spoke in a low tone of voice, was understood to say. On the contrary the plaintiff was allowed 10s. per day for three days. The following amusing incident is related by the Otago Daily Times : — " At a recent sitting under the Debtors and Creditors Ordinance, a solicitor who appeared for some opposing creditors examined ah insolvent very pertinaciously as to some 'valuable plate,' which it was insinuated the insolvent had sent to the house of a friend for safety. The insolveut denied that lie had had any plate, and said that ' the Court would laugh' could it see what is now spoken of as plate. He admitted that some old things were left in a box in which he had sent some plans to a friend's house. The solicitor did not easily give up the idea of secreted plate ; but probably he yesterday laughed heartily enough over the matter. The friend, seeing the published report of the examination, has sent to the assignee the 'articles of plate.' They comprise — two plated spoons, one plated fork, a battered Britannia metal teapot, a block tin coffee pot, and three small japanned canisters. The things were packed in something like a porter case. The sender requested that the assignee would be' good enough to 'give tp ths bearer a receipt for ' one. box plate, !' ' We believe that the assignee didn't." The Otago Daily Times of the 13th inst. says We are glad to be able. to. state that ths Post-raaster-General has sent instructions to the Bluff that. for this month, at. least, the Press messages .are to have precedence over private messages for two hours after the arrival of the ; English ma,ii. ; It would be well. that such a course rshould always be folr lowed. On'the present, oeasion,, it is .specially

of importance, owing to the anxiety which, is felt concerning the expected news. The rush upon the banks must have been very severe in Dunedin when a correspondent of the Evening Star tenders the following fact: — On calling at the general postoffice for a few postage-stamps, for which I tendered a Bank of Otago £1 note ; I was told by the clerk in charge, that his instructions were not to receive it, but he said that any other bank note would do. I, of course, immediately handed another, and got the Queen's heads. I. am sure it requires no more than the fact to be stated to cause a feeling of the greatest indignation at this most childish order in Council of some of our would-be Gladstones. We (Lake Wakatip Mail) are permitted to extract the following from a private letter: — I do not think Bradshaw will be able to carry this session the reduction of the export duty ou gold. The miners' rights will, I think, be reduced to 10s. A bill will also be carried extending the powers of Municipalities and County Councils in the outlying districts, giving them a clear right over the territorial revenue. If this measure be carried in full, and a responsible Minister of Mines created for the gold-fields generally throughout the colony, the Gold-fields districts can theu snap their fingers at Dunedin. "Why don't the people of Queenstown send a petition to be presented to the House, asking for a post-office. I heard, one had been sent, but nothing is reported here abont it. The Marlborough News of the Ilth inst., has the following complaint in reference to the summoning of juries :— lt was for a long time a complaint against the system of summoning juries alphabetically in Nelson, because frequently several members of the same family had to leave their farms or other business at the same time ; but bad as that system was the present, as practised by Mr. Downes, the Sheriff at Pieton, is much worse. In that gentleman's mode of summoning a jury, there is no consideration given for parties who have been before called upon from a distance just within twenty miles, and if almost appears that if an individual is once a juryman, he must consider himself to be a juryman for life ; nor is this the worst ; it frequently occurs that partners of a firm, are called upon to attend to this duty at the same time from a distance of upwards of nineteen miles, both afc great expense and loss. Another singular proceeding is that jurymen from what we cau learn are summoned from the towns of Pieton aud Blenheim only — all other parts of the province within the radius of twenty miles being excluded. The Wellington Independent says : —As our readers are probably aware, the postage on newspapers going by way of Panama is already Id., but will it be believed that an attempt is going to be made to raise it to 3d.? The newspaper proprietors of course object to the increase as one mau, but they do not stand alone, for the public will certainly support them id this instance. As was pointed out by Mr. FitzGerald in the House, unusual facilities have always been afforded, for obvious reasons, in every civilised country for transmission of newspapers by the post, and many of the poorer classes in this colony very often cornmuaicate with their friends at home, merely by sending them a newspaper j but the rich transmit papers as well as the poor, aud we presume that even they would put one stamp ou them with much more satisfaction than they would three. Besides, we don't see how the Government waut more money. Mr. Jollie estimated the expenditure at a little more than a million, while his ways and means are to be, so he says, about a million and a-quarter. Why on earth does he want, then, to tax the newspapers any more. In truth, this proposal is ouly another act in the iniquitous crusade which has been . instituted against, the press by a Ministry of financial quacks smarting under merited criticism. The Marlborough Express reads its correspondent for the Clarence district the following lesson :— -We have received several communications from- the Kaikoura district, reflecting very strongly, upon our correspondent in the Clarence, oom'plaiqirig' of his meddling iu and interfering with matters of a private

and personal nature, and untrue in point of fact. One female (who we are bound to say puts a forced construction on the passage referred to), expresses a wish "to take it out of him," and vows she will do too if she can catch him ; whilst another proposes literally to tar and feather him; and we would caution him particularly not to go any nearer the peninsula than he is at present. We are told that persons have invented canards for his especial use, believing that he would retail them to the public through us. We regret exceedingly that we should have been the means of his giving pain or annoyance to any person, and we write this with a view. of obtaining pardon for the unfortunate sinner, aud ourselves, and to assure our correspondents (the fair one especially) that no more of his lucubrations will appear in our columns which contain anything of a personal tendency. If he choses to write an abstract essay, or descriptive in it nature, well and good : we will consider it. But the sight of a name therein will be the signal for the waste paper basket then, and ever after. The Canterbury Press says : — A noticeable feature with regard to watercress, which is here regarded as a troublesome weed, is the use made of it in the Acclimatization gardens, forming as it does, a supply of good food for nearly all descriptions of birds, rabbits, &c. ; the abundant supply of Crustacea adhering to it making it doubly valuable in a country where lime and grit— so necessary for poultry — is singulary deficient. It is also readily eaten by cows, increasing their yield of milk ; and there is no doubt, were its advantages known and made use of, it would greatly tend to diminish its overluxuriant growth in the Avon. Boiled watercress forms a capital dish for the table — in flavor much resembling spinach. The Express is glad to hear that the Rev. J. Wallis is returning to Blenheim ; his health having much improved by his temporary absence at Auckland. The M. Express says: — Our river communication is iu very bad condition just now, ovjiug to the late fresh, which has largely increased the bauk near Morgan's Creek, j The City of Nelson schooner, which arrived at- the Boulderbank about a fortnight ago, is not able to come up with her load, and is, we hear, discharging part of her cargo, which is much needed here, where she lies, to enable her to proceed. The proposed dredging, aud other operations should not be delayed, as the wool season is fast approaching. We (M. Express) hear that it has been arranged for an Aberdeen clipper ship, the Countess of Kintore, to be in Port Underwood on the Ist December next, to carry j 2,200 un pressed bales wool. If our growers get their wool down wifch facility, this vessel ought to be despatched by the second week in January, so reaching London in good time for the May sales. We believe that the rate of freight will be as low as from any port in New Zealand, and if so, Port Underwood will afford advantages to our growers for , forwarding their wool to England such as no other port will, either as regards economy or expedition.