Nelson Evening Mail. MONDAY, DECEMBER 17, 1877.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XII, Issue 298, 17 December 1877, Page 2

Nelson Evening Mail. MONDAY, DECEMBER 17, 1877.

Tas lamentable state of affairs in connection with the Welliugton College, to which we referred the other day, has induced us to make enquiries as to the condition, financial and otherwise, of the institution of a similar character oi : ivhich Nelson boasts, and as the information we have acquired should prove of iufcerest to others than ourselves we propose to publish it in as brief a form as possible. A sum of money for the endowment of the Nelson College wa3 set apart by the New Zealand Company, with the assistance of which a school where a higher class of education than could be procured than elsewhere in the province was established in 1855. An Act to incorporate the College was passed by the General Assembly in, 1858, and in

1859 the foundation stone of the presentbuilding was laid by Colonel Gore Browne, the then Governor of New jZealand. We do nofc iatead to trace the history of the College up to this time, but merely to show the position U occupies at the present date. Upon reference to the balance sheet published at the commencement of this year we find that the loans on mortgage out of the general endowment fund amounted' to £11,169, the endowed scholarship fund to £1000, and that there was a balance in the Bank to the credit of the loan account of £1246, the total being £13,416. The freehold property on which the College stands is valued at £6500, and the buildings at £8955. Coming to the receipts and expenditure for the year 1876 we find that the former included interest ou loans and reuts from endowment property £1414, boarding receipts £1752, and tuition fees £848. The expenditure side shows that the masters' salaries and fees amounted in all to £1342. A comparison in this respect between the Wellington and Nelson Colleges tells very much in favor of the administration of the latter, the salaries at Nelson being nearly £1100 less than at Wellington, and if we may argue Iron* the results the money has been far more judiciously expended here, as, while Wellington College has never gained for itself a name, Nelson occupies a foremost rank among the educational establishments of the colony as is shown by the records of the University. We have been unable to ascertain the exact number of scholarships gained by Nelson boys, but we are not exc^.eding the mark in stating that it is between sixteen and twenty. It is therefore clear that to the Governors for their economical administration, and to the masters for their painstaking, able, and successful tuition of the boys committed to their charge the greatest credit is due. In connection with, the Nelssu College there are four scholarships tenable for three years endowed by the late Mr Newcorae, the Hon Major Richmond, C.8., Mr E. W. Stafford, and the late Mr Alfred Fell. These are worth respectively £24, £24, £20, and £16 per annum. There are six foundation scholarships, two worth £5, two £10, and two £20 each per annum, tenable for one year; one of £12 10s tenable for two yeara provided by the Governors for boys educated in the town schools, and two of £52 10s each established by the Provincial Conncil open to pupils at the Government schools in the country districts. There is also one of a like amount provided by the Marlborough Provircial Council open to boys educated at the Government schools in that district. The Act under which the College is incorporated provides for the payment of one guinea to each Governor for attendance at each meeting. This, however, although regularly set apart for that purpose, has never been claimed, and the aggregate of these fees now amounts to the handsome sum of £1032, of which £500 is placed at fixed deposit. From this fund it is possible that other scholarships will be established unless some other way of investing it to the advantage of the institution appears preferable.

The young salmon were successfully conveyed to the Motueka River on Saturday, having borne the long journey very well, only a very few dying on the road. It is to be hoped that within five or six years' time there may be good salmon fishing in the Wairoa and Motueka rivers.

Considerable disappointment was felt by the congregation of the Wesleyan Church yesterday when it was known that the Rev Charles Clarke, who had only arrived from Westport that morning, was reluctantly obliged to decline to occupy the pulpit of that church in the evening, in consequence of the fatigue resulting from his arduous labors on the West Coast during the last month. It is nearly three years since Mr Clarke last lectured here, and, as everybody knows, he will make his reappearance this eveniug, when he will lecture on " Oliver Cromwell, or Bible and Sword." To-morrow evening ike lecture will be " ThaOfcßKVy the Snobographer," a charming entertainment which Mr Clarke has written since his first visit to New Zealand. Amongst the illustrative recitals will be Mrs Major Ponto's Musical Party, and the death of Colonel Newcome, and several members of the great Snob Family will be introduced to the audience.

We would warn intending purchasers of Crown lands that they should make their applications as soon as possible, as on the Ist of January next the new Sale of Lands Act comes into force, whiich prohibits the sale of any landa at a lower rate than £1 per acre. We were in hopes of being able to place before our readers a budget of European news to-day, as the repairs to the cable were completed on Saturday, but just as a few messages had come throngh (one of which will be found in our telegraphic news) an interruption occurred in the overland line to Port Darwin, which had not been remedied up to the time of our going to press. The adjourned meeting of the Regatta Committee will be held afc the Trafalgar Hotel this evening at eight o'clock. The Post contradicts the rumor that Parliament is to meet in February, and states " on the best authority " that it will not be called together before June.

During the late floods a salmon wa3 seen iii one of the branches of the Clutha. The fish appeared to be from 30in to 32in in length. It was seen (says the Bruce Herald) by two brothers, Messrs John and William Smith, who hold property uear Mr Mosley'a Messrs Smith saw the fish iu shallow water, and as they were able to come close to it, they had an excellent opportunity of scrutinising it. They feel quite sure that it was a salmon, not a salmon trout, and having caught hnndreds of salmon in the Old Country they should be able to know.

Nature is not uniformly generous. To many she denies that vigor of constitution with which she bleaaes others, While it mav not be possible to convert a weakly person iatoa Hercules, judicious tonic medication may, and assuredly does, infuse no small amount of vigor into systems naturally destitute of it, and protects them against diseases to which they would otherwise fall a prey. The most suitable iurigorant and protectiveis Udolpuo Wolfe's Schikdam Aromatic Schnapps. — [ Ad vt. ")