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Nelson Evening Mail, Volume IX, Issue 164, 13 July 1874, Page 2

The Claud Hamilton wes to leave Melbourne on the 7th instant, and consequently may be looked for at Hokitifea hourly. The Churchwardens of AH Saints' Church notify that tbey will be in attendance in the vestry to receive pew rente, to-morrow and Wednesday evenings. The whole of the properly of the Alpine Quartz-Mining Company, consisting |of battery, tramways, &c, is advertised to be cold by auction at Westport, on Saturday next. Babbarous Murder, — Our Auckland telegrams announce one of the most inhuman rxurders that ever disgraced a community. It is reported that a woman was beaten into a state of insensibility by her paramour, who then proceeded to saturate her c'othes with kerosene and to set fire to them, after which he wrapped her up in a sack, aud threw her in the river. We are improving upon the original state of Bavagedom tbat existed in New Zealand before the arrival of the Europeans. The refinement of cruelty was never attained until an Englishman stepped into the arena. Two Wellington gentlemen, the Hon C. J. Pharazyn, and Henry Sewell, Esq., have, it is reported, intimated their intention of giving £500 each towards the General Endowment Fund of the Church of England. The first dip in the colonial lucky bag (says the Auckland Herald) has ; been made by Nelson. Mr Curtis, we are told, amidst the applause of the House, gave notice of his intention to apply for a loan of £250,000 for Nelson. We have not been made aware of the position the Government intend to assume in the matter of provincial borrowing, but it is very certain that that question will be found to be their bete noir unless preparation has been made to face the difficulty from an unexpected point. Pioton appears to be in anything but a nice condition just now. The local paper says: — The great amount of rain that has fallen during the past fourteen days made the roads in some places almost impassable, and the journey from Picton to Blenheim is anything but an agreeable oue. Oo this side of the Elevation the road is cut up in all directions, and the drivers of the waggons that come into town have great difficulty in avoiding the numerous quagmires that ore on the road. The resources of the Picton County Board are likely to be taxed pretty severely in making good nil the bad places now on the roads. Last week the destruction of a bridge beyond Captain Baillie's place stopped vehicle traffic altogether for some days, and prevented the forwarding of & quantity of goods that were wanted in Blenheim. Picton itself is in about as disgraceful a state as it is possible for a town to be in, the main street being little better than one large slough of tenaciouß mud. High-street was improved very recently, and the effect of the improvement has been to make travelling almost impossible where before people could move about in comfort. The year 1876 will be the first centennial of American independence, when it is understood tbat all Americans are preparing to make the greatest display ever known in the world. The Otago Government have promised to contribute pound for pound towards the establishment of a Home (or sailors in Dunedio, and to give the old immigration barracks for the purpose. Dr, Hector states that of the area of this colony, 12 million acres are fit for agriculture, and 50 million acres are fit for pasturage, but of the total, 20 million are at present covered with timber. The following statement as to England's wool trade with ail places, and, from Customs Keturnß, in lbs, may be interesting to some of our readers:—

The Wellington Tribune says: — The carriage ot the huge water pipes now lying along the breastwork, and some few at LytteltoD, is likely to coat the Government a large sum of money. Considering the number of email vessels, which have been loading with them, we have heard an estimate of freight amounted to nearly £20,000. A* correspondent of a Wanganui paper writes as follows from Bianheim: — There are fearfully exciting times here during a flood. In fact, I think the people here welcome a little flood aa a relief to the monotony of their existence. I bad been here a few days when I experienced a flood. It rained bard for a day and a half, and then people began to cast anxious looks at the adjacent rivers. Towards the second evening they began moving things off the ground floors; by ten o'clock there were several feet of water in the main street, and many of the houses were surrounded by the flood. People were getting into long high boote, and towards midnight, from the window of my hotel, I could discern dark figures passing hither and thither through the water, an J could hear an incessant "splash, splash." ] This flood was only a small affair, and it appeared to have quite a disheartening effect upon the possessors of the long boots, who had anticipated some healthy marine excitement. They = will point to the flood marks of former inundations here, as , though they felt an honest pride in the fact that Blenheim can excel any other part of the colony in the frequency and extent of its bountiful overflowings. In many places these flood marks are three feet high on the walls of the ground floors. During a really exciting flood, the people go about in boats paying congratulatory visits, and there, is a liberal interchange of hospitality, or they betake themselves to the second floor, and subsist on cold meals and whisky; or if they do not possess the luxury of a second floor, they live on the top of the furniture until some friendly boat conies to the rescue. Floods are caused by heavy rains, or the rapid melting of snow on the ranges by which the Wairau Plains are surrounded. The river Opawa is eccentric in its movements; it does not appear to have quite made up its mind as to the course it will ultimately pursue, but rushes about hither and thither. Now and then it receives n friendly hint from a groin to keep a little further off, but it isn't to be "done" that way, for where it is pushed away from one property it consoles itself by "goiug for" auother. An embankment, which is estimated to cost £600, is now being constructed for some distance along the Opawa river, to protect Blenheim and the adjacent suburban lands; but it is problematical whether or not the work will be carried away before it cau be completed, or whether or not it will stand completion. It is painful to see the wreck that has been made of farms adjacent to the river. Fragments of fences are strewn about everywhere, mingled with vegetable debris; what were originally ditches, have been converted by the rushing waters into deep creeks, and the land is covered with shingle, alluvial deposit, and rank tall reeds. Thus you will perceive, ray dear reader, that this is a delightful place to live in. We {Herald) commend all newspaper telegraph correspondents to follow the example of "our special" nt Wellington under like circumstances. He wires us as follows : — ' 7.30 p.m. — ■ Nothing to say — absolutely nothing worth writing, only the writ Laß been sent up for the Waitemata. election. No use me patting you to wire charges for nothing," We say to this "Q'lite correct," and we only wish such a rule waa more generally borne in mind. Generally when correspondents have nothing of real intelligence to send they | appear to labor under some impression that it becomes necessary to manufacture items. We can assure them there j is not the least necessity for anything of the kind. The promised remuneration will be remitted with much greater pleasure when the practice is carried out of sending " nothing" when there is nothing to send . The New Zealand Times suggests the advisability of the telegraph offices in the leading towns of the colony being kept open all night, in support of which proposition it says :-r- %< The department is not one from which the Government can or should expect to derive a profit. Its object is to transmit throughout the islands — to the leading centres of population at least — as early and fully as possible, by night or by day, information on public affairs, and such news by foreign, English, or inter-colonial mails as the public desire to receive. For the dissemination of such news the Pieaa is prepared when once the telegraph has done its work; it is organised for the collection of the desiderated intelligence; and it is prepared to pay ! reasonable rates to recoup the outlay of the department. The enlargraent of the telegraphic arrangements, therefore, would involve the Government in little more cost than the pr«sent defective system entails. In view of what is coming — the growing importance of the provincial news, the increasing commercial interests of the public, the frequency of mail communication with Europe, America, and the Australian colonies, and the certainty of direct communication between New Zealand and 'ail the world beside' before many months are over, it would be well if this subject — this enlargement of the working ideas of the telegraphic department — were considered early."

IMPORTS, 1840 1850 1860 1870 1871 1872 J873 50 74 148 259 319 lo_ "aiaMillioa EXPORTS. 1 li 31 92 135 137 123 „ 49 60 117 167 184 "-6.1^ „ All less than one million ia not shown.