THE STOKE CULVERT.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume VI, Issue 163, 12 July 1871, Page 2

THE STOKE CULVERT.

To The Editor ov tub Nelson Evening Mai 1 " film — I was much surprised at reading in your Monday's issue that tlie Waimea Eoad Board had condemned the work done at the Stoke culvert, and that payment was withheld until the work was properly done. Now, Sir, this is by no means correct, as, though the Overseer raised some slight objections, he invited Mr. Younger the Town Surveyor to inspect the work, which that gentleman did and passed it on Friday, June 30. I saw the Overseer, on the following day, who said he was then satisfied; and op. Monday the 3rd inst., about two o'clock, I received in Richmond, where the Board had held their meeting, a" cheque for the full amount of my money. I therefore cannot account for such a report being published, aud as the real facts are so different, lam desirous of expressing them that they might not injure me in my business. I feel assured that in your usual character for justice you will publish these few lines to oblige The Contractor.

Whale Fishery.- — The Auckland Herald has recently published two or three articles advocating the establishment of an Auckland whale fishery company. "The yield from the Thames goldfield,". says our contemporary, "is continually seeking re-investment, and many there are who would, we should think, gladly avail themselves of the opportunity of investing some portion at least of their profits in other than mining speculations.; To such the establishment of an Auckland whale fishery would be doubly acceptable, as affording what few investments' can offer conjointly, namely, great certainty of success, and the probability of large gains as the result of such success. Large gains are not here, as in most investments, coupled with large risks, and as affording to investors something more than an ordinary .investment in this respect the establishment of a whaling expedition should find especial favor. with the people of this city and province. That, it has ben so long " neglected seems indeed strange. Port of Wellington.— Captain Harrington, of the ship England, . which has just completed her loading at : Wellington, has written a letter to one of the leading firms in London, a copy of which he has sent to the Independent for publication, in which he says : — "I am glad to inform . you that the England is at last loaded, after a .considerable detention, caused principally by the boisterous state of the weather duriDg the last three months, and the want of accommodation at the wharf for the storage and protection of cargo duriDg rainY To give you some idea of the4iature of my detention, I may mention that I was thirty, days discharging my 'inward cargo,; whilst,, during that period I actually worked only 76 hours, the detention having arisen, from the weather, the Qustpms. delays, /and short working hours (from 9 till 2), the hatches and every entrance into the ship's hold having been sealed up 17 hours out of the 24; coupled with this, delay, >I have found the charges for whafffduesj port charges, •light dues ( and pilotage,.; most* ( e.xcesßiv<e." He goes on to say that in Calcutta, next to Wellington tha 1 most expensive port in the world,, the charges tfor -discharging a cargo, loading, pilotage, steam hir^, port charges, 'and* all usjial disbursements for a vessel of 860. tons such as the England, would be £800. while at"Wellington they amounted ;to, £lsoo!' .m; I. v,;..' / '<7. Dunedin Distille^t,— T. he Wellington Indep'eiidefUeivei l t^e \ foilo.wipg particulars, with Ho ll tbe 'distillery at Duuedia „ :r-The < b;mtdipgs..were t ejjeciejiin ; Cumberland street, lathe year 1869, and

cover two'and a half acres of ground, but, .in consequence „of the extension of the |jialt*houßei^to£ineet the growing requireinenfs of their^ trade, the company have ?t>een^biiged'to J seek storage accommodation in the vicinity. To ensure that the New Zealand should reach the reputation of the far-famed Highland whisky, they have secured the services ot a gentleman who for thirteen years had been manager of a distillery of great reputation at Glenury, where the whisky bearing that famous brand is manufactured. Still further to secure the peculiar flavor desired by connoisseurs, peat is brought from a distance of over a hundred miles, and the very best malt is used, the company beiag anxious to establish the fact that as good whisky can be manufactured in New Zealand, as in the most celebrated distilleries at home. The great difficulty they have had to contend with is that they cannot get a sufficient supply of first-class barley.- This year ; they bad to go for supplies to Southland— the Otasjo' and Canterbury barley not being quite good enough for their requirements. We understand that nothing but th 6 very best barley, and that well-dressed, will satisfy them ; and for that they are willing to give a very full price. They consume from 650 to 900 bushels of grain per week. They manufacture whisky, gin, old torn, spirits of wine, &c. The number of wages men employed in the establishment is thirty-three, irrespective of the managing, clerical, and travelling staff. It would be superfluous to dwellupon the importance of developing a new v Tparket for our agriculturists, and new sour^ee of employment for our population ; nor \an the most ardent teetotaler refuse to admit, that so long as our population will continue to relish the mountain dew, it is better that the profit arising from its consumption should be a means of employment to colonial, rather than British capital and labor. " Larrikintsm seems to have reached a pretty pitch in Melbourne. A recent Aryus says : — A larrikin, named Dermoody, who was before the Bench at Ballarat East, for stealing a pair of trousers, was sent to gaol for three months. When leaving the Court he offered to "toss " the magistrate " double or quits " : — whethe'r»he should be incarcerated for six months or allowed to go scot-free. Another fellow named Antcliffe, charged • before the same Court with stealing a pair of boots, received a similar sentence, when he -ejaculated, evidently quite content with his future prospects — " Thai's better. I'll steal another pair as soon as I get out— a fellow can't live outside now-a-days."

THE LATEST IN NATURAL HISTORY. The Horse.. — The horse is a noble animal. Authorities differ as the laud to which he properly .belongs, some eminent naturalists asserting that be came from Horsetralia, while.-others ascribe to him a Norse origin. From the bony nature of the London cab horse, he is spoken of in fer tain circles as an "os." Horses may c called amphibious. Everyone has heard of a horse-marine or sea-horse. This peculiarity is further ehown by the fact that a female horse in England and the ocean in France are botn called mare (mer). Believers in metampaychosis will not be surprised to learn that a man has been known, after standing in a puddle for any length of time cm a rainy night, to become a little hoarse. A strange fact in connection with the value of this animal may be mentioned. A horse may carry a great deal, and yet not fetch much at a sale. Oddly enough he must be very valuable to be worth a " pony." The Sheep. — A sheep is a singular animal— also plural, but two sheep usually make a couple. Sheep's eyes are much used before and during courtship. Ladies often have them cast at them, and rather like it than otherwise; A dead sheep is mutton. In asking for a second help at a dinner party, it is customary to say, " Revenons djwtre mouton." The proper name for a sheep is Balaam, or baa-lamb. It is no longer elegant or customary in polite society to speak of the mother sheep as the. J : :. Sheep, is considered by some people to serve the purpose of a barometer, inasmuch as when they see bell-wether, they anticipate Jbeautemps. The Cat.— -The cat i» a voracious animal, and [isoften styled as a lodging-house keeper's;, best friend. , There are many species; the common one has nine lives, and the (happily) uncommon one has nine tails. Whe> k ganie is "scarce, cats are occasionally in England—^usually 'in the sausage season';* under such circumstances two may be called a brace, but on no account. should four be styled a pair of braces. s Cats' and cows differ in many important details. Ajman must be a poor naturalist ppt to ( tell cat from* cat-tell.; Ttte 'offspring 'of cafs'are called kittens'. " Should the parent cat >can«y one oft her children from the* cellar to |he second floor., it is neitKei i * ndr* punishable by law H& singSuch a kitten up stairs.

A Philological* Gem. — A dabbler in literature and fine arts, who prided himself on his language, recently came upon a youngster sitting on the bank of the riv.er angling for gudgeons, and thus addressed him "Adolescence, art thou endeavoring to entice the finny tribe to engulf into their denticulate mouths a barbed hook, upon whose point is fixed a dainty allurement ? " "No," said the boy, " I'm a fishin." The Cape. Argus of April 1 publishes a report of a meeting of the Queen of the Thames passengers aiter the wreck. It is rather a significant fact that, no allusioa commendatory, or otherwise, was made to the captain 6f the vessel. The ofiicers, and many of the crew, were mentioned in terms of the highest praise, but respecting Oaptain McDonald there was maintained an ominous silence. The Lover and the Husband.— A girl of very tender sensibilities eloped with a man near Knoxville, Tennessee, recently, and when her father sought to detain her, she knocked the oil gentleman down with a shovel. Her parent pursued the coupte after marriage, and the husband and father y having exchanged shots, the blushing bride emptied a revolver at the head of her liege lord, disabling him completely, and then , returned -home with pupa. Who sayß the age of chivalry is over in Tennessee.

For remainder \of news see fourth page.