The Nelson Evening Mail. TUESDAY, JULY 29, 1873. NELSON BOARD OF WORKS.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume VIII, Issue 181, 29 July 1873, Page 2

The Nelson Evening Mail. TUESDAY, JULY 29, 1873. NELSON BOARD OF WORKS.

The election of four members of the Board took place to-day, with tho following result : — CV. Fell 87 R. Burn 80 J. R. Dodson 70 G. Thompson 53 P. Cooke 39 J. Webb 35 A. Bush 27 G. Collios 26 The four first named were declared duly elected.

Richmond Glee Club. — Our Waimea readers aro reminded of the concert to bo given at the Agricultural Hall to-night by the members of a club that now offers, not for the first time, a pleasant evening's entertainment to residents in the district. The Financial Statement. — Mr Yogel has promised that he will make hia Financial Statement to-night, and as he has also staled tbat he will at the same time suply a list of the railways to be undertaken, we may hope to learn something of our Nelson and West Coast line. Harmonic Society. — The next conceit of this Society, comprising miscellaneous selections, will be given at the Provincial Hall, on Thursday evening next. The rehearsal will take place to-morrow evening. The times and places at which tickets can be obtained are notified in the advertisement. Mr Gillies has introduced a bill which is a commendable specimen of legal brevity. The enacting clause and short title occupy four lines, and the operating part of the moasure is comprised in the words, " The Volunteer Land Act, 1865, is hereby repealed." If, as is probable, this Bill passes, it will probably be the shortest Act on our statute book. Inquest. — An inquest was held yesterday by Dr Squires, the coroner, upon the late fire at the Sands. The house, which waß valued by Mr Green at £400, was recently insured in the London & Liverpool office for £300. A verdict was returned to the effect that there was no evidence to show how the fire originated. Horticultural Society. — At a meeting of the Committee held yesterday, it was resolved to hold the first Show on the 5 28th November next. It. is not proposed ! to confine it to fruits and flowers, but that • it shall include all kinds of produce and I local manufactures. As the price of members' tickets has been fixed at the exceed- '' ingly small sum of five shillings, it is hoped that the subscription list will very shortly assume respectable proportions. ~"~6ur Mail Service. — There is a certainty about tho arrangements for despatching the English mails from Nelson that must commend itself to the minds of all who have given the subject a moment's thought. We may always make sure that we shall never know how or when our correspondence is to be conveyed to Melbourne. Tho present month offers no exception to the general rule. Not many days since, it was duly notified that the mails would close on the sth of August. Very shortly after, and before timely notice : of the change could be given to outlying districts, it was stated that the 31st inst. ; would be the latest date on which letters could be posted, and yesterday a further alteration was made, to the effect that the Rangitoto, which sails to-night, would be the bearer of the mail. As a rule, we take things pretty well as they come in Nelson, occasionally giving utterance to a subdued growl at the manner in which we are too frequently so cavalierly treated, but this playing tbe fool with the public is rather too much of a strain upon our good nature. There are here men engaged in business, to say nothing of private correspondents, to whom it is a matter of quite as great importance to be informed with some degree of certainty of the movements of tbe mail steamers as it is to dwellers in the larger provinces, and it is impossible to say what inconveniences or pecuniary losses may accrue from this culpable indifference to their interests. It was perfectly well known several days ago that the Rangitoto was to leave Melbourne on the 22nd instant, and that she might be expected here to-day, and would in all probability sail for Wellington within twenty-four hours of her arrival, *• but in tho face of this instructions were sent from the head office to advertise the mail for the 31st inst. Nothing can be more irritating, to those engaged in business especially, than these eccentricities on the part of the postal authorities. We have frequently wondered at the nonexistence of a Chamber of Commerce in Nelson. Surely no greater inducement to combine and press their claim to be j not entirely ignored by the Government I

could be required by the merchants and tradespeople of tho town than this latest instance of tho apparently studied neglect of their interests. [Since the above was written we learn that arrangements have been made for despatching the 'mail by the Wellington to-morrow morning-, but as the Rangitoto has missed the tide they will probably be sent on by her.] The Reason Wht. — Referring to the Miners' Franchise Extension Bill, the Independent saya : — Mr O'Conor is, no doubt anxious that his bill should be carried, for we notice that it is proposed that it shall come into operation *■ from and after the passing of this Act ;" and as the election for the Superintendency of the province of Nelson takes place late in October or early in November, and Mr O'Conor is a supposed candidate, the extension of the miners' franchise would result in the mining entirely, swamping the settled districts in the election." The Independent does not think the Bill will pass. Education Bill. — The Independent says : — " Tho Bill introduced by the Government this session should not create any strong discussion. Whilst it preserves, with few exceptions, the provisions of the old bill, it has this important difference, that it is entirely of a permissive character. Like the Municipal Corporations Act, it contains a number of sections each complete in itself, which Provincial Councils may adopt or otherwise at their discretion. It will in no way interfero with the individual action of tboße Provincial Governments which have already an efficient system of education in operation, but it may possibly be useful to other provinces which are not so favorably circumstanced. Whilst we are willing to admit that the bill may exercise a useful influence, we cannot but think that it is one of these half measures which is not likely to satisfy anybody. Tenders for the removal of tho Westport Times printing office are advertised for. The building once Btood many huudred yards from either river or sea, but is now in danger of being washed away. The Wellington Horticultural Society has issued its report and prize schedule for the year 1873-4. In addition to the regular prizes offered by the Society, which necessarily are comparatively small in amount, a number of special prizes of considerable value will be given by the Superintendent, tho Mayor, and ' several other of the leading citizens to the competitors who take the highest aggregate value of prizes in the variouß classes. The second device to improve the heaving in the House of Representatives has been tried, but no perceptible improvement has resulted. This plan is the stretching of a number of fine brass wires longitudinally above the galleries at about a foot apart. To a believer in the Darwinian theory, the effects of a protracted session upon the auricular appendages would be fearful to contemplate. A preternatural development of ear is scarcely the thing hon members would be prepared to accept as one of the rewards for their services to a grateful country. — Independent. In the Otago Provincial Council recently, Mr Donald Reid stated it as his opinion that every man in the colqny was entitled to a vote on account of his manhood, because every man was liable to be called upon to aid in the defence of the colony; but he also thought that every owner of property, in addition to his manhood vote, was entitled to a vote on account of his property. The Russell correspondent of the Auckland Herald writes: — A very unusual capture was made this week by Mr Hanson, of Mirniwhangata, Whangaruru, in the shape of a large seal, measuring 13ft. 6iu. length, who took the liberty of disporting himself on the beach, opposite Mr Hanson's house. A Maori servant fired at him with small shot, which appears somewhat to have ruffled his temper, as he followed Mr Hanson with no peaceful intentions up on to the high ground, where he was speedily lassoed and dispatched. This is, I believe, only the second instance of a seal being caught on this part of the coast, and he was evidently out of his latitude. One of tbe Auckland papers recently devoted a somewhat strong article to a criticism on the political honesty displayed in the management of public affairs in Westland, and made some unfavorable comments on the character of the men by whom the affairs of that county have been administered. At this one of the Greymouth papers has waxed wroth, and thus apostrophises the writer: — Lethimlook through tho list of Auckland Superintendents, and say then if there is nothing of the past which he would wish to conceal; let him recall tbe frequency of fires, aud their cause, a few years ago, let him even rake up the records of the Courts, and he will find both Justices' decisions and juror's verdicts which excite a stronger feeling than that of surprise, lastly, let him consider the history of the Thames GoldFields, and then tell us what Auckland public moralty is > as compared with that of Westland. Wellington does not seem to be a nice place for promenading, judging by the following extract from the Post : — The streets are still allowed to remain in the disgraceful state of quagmire, to which we have called the attention of the Corporation times without number. It is now almost impossible to cros3 Willis-street anywhere except under the undesirable conditions of wading knee-deep or thereabouts in a dusky compound varying between thick batter and thin gruel in consistency. Surely road-scrapers and mud-carts are not unattainable luxuries in this dirty town we are so fond of calling (with painful irony) the " Empire City." If we will retain our sewage filth, at any rate let us see that it is out of sight, and at least let us whiten our sepulchre externally, and clear away tbe

outward aud visible signs of our uncleanness; if the convenience of pedestrians be unimportant, at all events let us consider *' the look of the thing youknow," and keep our priucipal streets tolerably decent. A Suggestion. — It is pretty well known that some time ago the Lower House in Victoria resolved to introduce the system of paying members of Parliament, and decided that during tho next Parliament members of each House should receive a salary of £300 per annum each. Members of tho Lower House had some scruples about voting this salary to members of the Upper Chamber, but it became evident that unless the latter were included, the bill had little chance of receiving their concurrence. So the Act passed, and ever since members of the Legislature have been the happy recipients of their £800 per annum. The operation of the Act was, however, limited fo the duration of the parliament, whose days are now drawing to a close, and it is rumored that in solemn, private conclave, the members of the Upper Houso havo resolved that it must not be renewed. At this members of the Lower House and would-bo members, are of course indignant. They argue that members of the Upper House aro quite right to say that do not want to be paid, but that it is at the least unkind to insist on the involuntary abstinence of members of tbe other House, who do want to be paid. Might not the members of our Legislative Council, who are supposed to repreaent the wealthy classes, be at least a third part as generous as those in Victoria, and intimate that they do not intend to receive any further honorarium. Such a proceeding would raise them immensely in public estimation, but we fear there is little chance of their taking it; on the contrary, we believe that if the Lower House refused to vote the honorarium to members of the Legislative Council this session, tbe way would be to a great extent opened to a speedy reformation of the constitution of the Council. If the £100 a year, which should never have been given to members of the Council, was abolished, we are pretty sure that the virtue of resignation would to a large extent be displayed by the hon. members, and the necessity for the Temporary Appointments Bill be done away with. — Post. An extract from a private letter to a person in Taurangn, speaks of wonderful discoveries of gold at Port Darwin : — "By this post I send you some newspapers. Read the reports of the share market. It may give you some idea of the state we are in. You will probably have gleaned from your papers that some time ago rich gold reefs were found in the Northern Territory. It appears that the more tbey are developed the more they expose the richness of the reefs. Estimates have been made of some of them yielding from thirty ounces to sixty ounces to the ton! Suffice it to say that there is a constant crowd and buzz on the Exchange kept up till it is pitch dark, and they then adjourn to hotels. People say our Verandah is something like the Ballarat one is, as to the number of people who assemble there, and yet people say that it is nothing to what it will be when the crushing commences. Of course there are many and great difficulties to the working of the mines in such a climate, but where gold ia the reward men will do anything. Already four ships have left,- and two more are on the berth aud I should not be very much surprised if that is not merely a beginning.