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Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XIV, Issue 212, 18 September 1879, Page 2

The Timiru Herald of a recent date says:— " We are perfectly convinced that, throwing - out all doubtful men, the Opposition are at this moment in an actual majority, which \vjll be increase4 before the general election is over. Even if they were to be slightly in a minority, however, they would still be the superior party for two reasons. Firstly, they are united, while the Government party are divided into Greyites and Independent " Liberals." Secondly, they include nearly all the debating power and most of the political character and experience of the House. A really strong Ministry might well dread an Opposition comprising the Hon John Hall, Mr Ormond, Mr Stevens, Major Atkinson, Mr Moorhoiise, Mr Bryce, Mr Kolleston, Mr Bowen, Mr Saunders, Mr Wakefield, Mr Dick, Mr Oliver, Mr Johnston, Mr M'Lean, and — by no means the least formidable pair— Mr Whitaker, junior, and Mr Vincent Pyke. We may have omitted many others who may prove to be a8 powerful, in one way or another, as any of thesebut these are quite sufficient by themselves to form the nucleus of a party capable of holding almost any Government in check A Government which cannot possibly—accepting their own most sanguine calculations —have a majority of more than three or four and who have not half a dosen really able men a?uong them, could no pcore face them with any hope of success than a party of Zulus could stand against an equal number of Grenadier Guards," Mr parruthers, late Engineer-in-Chief, in a recent publication, says:— •< That Auckland does not belong to the same volcanic area as the rest of New Zealand is, I think, proved by the fact that only two out of the 234 shocks of earthquake" which have recorded have been felt there. One of them was felt nowhere else; the other was felt as a severe shock in every other to\?n, aqd in Auckland; only a3 a very slight one. This f *ct is very remarkable, and, as Auckland is situated in the centre of a perfect neat of volcanic cones, it is, of all the places in the colony, the one where manifestations of present activity would be looked for." Mr Speight's address to the electors of Ancklnnd City fast (says the Telegraph) fills three columns of the Auckland Star, and affords a pitiable exhibition of personal Tinity. We hnve been accustomed in New Zealand (says the Auckland Herald) to regard the filling oft' in the sale of Crown lands as an unmixed evil. In the Australian Colonies they arc finding out that the disposal of the waste lands is only half the difficulty, in the progress of settlement, if those lands are only held for speculative purposes. The Parliament of South Australia has had returns made out showing the area of land told or selected, and the acreage under cultivation in each of the Australian colouie*. In Kmith Australia, iu 1877-8, of four mjlljon aces sold or selected, half was in cultivation; in Victoria, of live millions, only a fourth was cultivated; and in New South Wales, of naveu iniijions, only » tenth was being utilised. The S A. liegistur very truly remarks:— ■' These figures" should afford food fur seriuus reflection to the capitalists who set so high a value upon the bonds of New South Wales." A fatal disaster took place at Oronstadt. \ A torpedo boat attached to the frigate of of Admiral Lnzureff, after practice with torpedoes suspended on spars erected in front oi' the bow of the launch, exploded and destroyed the launch. Of twenty-two men board, five were instantaneously killed, and sjvcu dangerously wounded. Several have since died. The remainder receive 1 slight v.-ounds. It is said that the torpedo was charged with GOlb of pyroxyline. The accident is attributed to carelessness. There are three Maori apprentices in the Government I'riutiug Office at Wellington. '

a * f'h A^ ay unm one of the l **M*g stars ThJ *r Alnamb . ra ' Leicester Square, London. £h*r tICj T nalss P eak iQ hi e fa terms of her acting and vocal abilities. A young artist has painted the picture of a dog under a tree, and the work is so artistically done that none but the best connoiasenrs can tell the bark of the tree from that of the dog. The London Times is establishing telephonic communication between the House of Commons and its office. This will enable the reporters to transmit reports instantaneously. Utah is attracting European immigrants m large numbers. Six hundred, mostly women, recently arrived at Salt Lake from Europe, and 200 more are to start from Bavaria shortly. a ?l- a Sw rd Btory is told ia Philadelphia Itlegraph that the Prince of Wales owes London tradesmen §11,500 000 A recent Parliamentary debate proved that there was nothing in these sensational stories of the indebtedness of the Prince Under the heading " A False Alarm " the Sun prints the followiog:-A Canterbury ?n? e *» d rT tises " ladies> n »ght-dresses, 2s 10d; Jilted ditto, 3s 9d.» Of course it was a printer's error for "JriUed," but that didn't save him from a perfect crush of country orders from bachelors. The Prince and Princess of Wales paid a visit to the Alexandra Orphanage at Hornsey. In the course of the proceedings a little girl belonging to the Orphanage recited on the dais a humorous piece called "The Dead Doll » holding a doll in her arms while speaking Their Royal Highnesses laughed hmh il a l hl3 | erformance ' delivered in a child hke but effective manner, and concluding with the words "She died of a broken heart and a dreadful crack in the head " Creditors' meetings (says the Star) have their comical, as well as the serious, aspect At a recent meeting held privately there SL a trM° Cr^^ Orspre9ent ' and ifc "1 stated that the chief asset was a small piece of land One of the creditors seriously proposed that they should divide it between tnem. The chairman characterised the proposal as ridiculous; even if it were possible to carry out such an idea, it wonld only give each of them about six feet. •' Just what I calculated," rejoined the creditor; "if I have to attend many more of these meetings it will not be long before I shall wlnt a grave ! ' TT^l£v eriCa V XChange BayS : ~ Mr jQli « s K.btebbins writes to say that he is not the Juhuslv. Stebbins who was hanged in Arizona last week for shooting a stockbroker. What Mr Stebbins can object to in being put out of the way under more meritorious circumstances than a Stebbins was known to be before we can't imagine. We are sorry, however, that the rules of this office will not permit of our complying with his request. We never take anything back. No doubt our correspondent really imagines that he is still putting away his regular three meala per diem on this sublunary sphere, but when the Post says a man is dead— he's dead and theres an end of it. Mr Stebbins had better burrow back into his cofin and behave. The Dunedin Morning herald gives the following as the opening sentences of a speech made by Mr Fulton, the newly elected member for Taieri:— Mr Fulton commenced by explaining that it was about five or six years since he possessed a run, and therefore he could not be charged as a representative of the interest of the squatters He thought the present Ministry were very much to blame for mismanaging the affairs of the colony. Sir George Grey had called himself a liberal, and yet during his term of office as Premier he declared that there were 70,000 serfs in New Zealand. Now he (Mr Fulton) regarded such a declaration as an insult to the people of the colony, who were really the most free people under the sun. The object of Sir George Grey in talking such stuff, and saying that he was the only liberator in the country was only to mislead the people. The Premier had carefully intimated that if they did not return him to Parliament their progress would be retarded a hundred years. He (Mr Fulton) did not think the electors would agree with that sort of nonsense, and it was because he did not support the Ministry ;that he asked them to return him as their representative. (Cheers ) He believed he had the feeling of the Taieri people with him when he said that he did not believe in the conduct of the present MinisA new phase of the licensing question has cropped up in Dunedin. Aa we gather from our exchanges, a herbalist wa3 charged with selling a gill of brandy to a man who wanted it for his wife, and the Magistrate seeing that the vendor supplied it in his medical capacity dismissed the charge, A sarcastic correspondent of the Herald writes that he knows another " herbalist, who usually curea his patients with carrots and cabbages and sometimes, when they are very bad, gives them green peas for dinner pills, has just ordered in a 10-gallon keg of brandy to have in readiness to meet cases of stomach-ache fainting fits, dry throat, and palpitation, which patients sometimes complain ot, and meang to sell it in qoses of one or two gills as the case requires." In the same issue the herbalist hiojself, a person named Neil of Georste-street, writes thus , —« About my selling brandy without a license, the chemists should be thankful to me for having settled the point — that in the case of a medicine a license is not needed. For it is a fact that many, if not all of them, ba-o been in the habit of mixing it with a few drops 01 Sbmetning else to evade the law. Now they need not do so, if it is really sold as a medicine ; if the law ia wrong, then let them apply to Wellington for such a Bill as will please themselves. But, Sir, does it not seem a farce that I should be charged with sly grog-selling when I put my name and address on the bottle , and further, that the police who recommeuded me to be registered as a druggist, should prosecute me for selling spirits because, as the sutumous says, I am not a druggist,"

Hollow ay's Oixtment.— Turn which way you will, go where j'ou please, persons will bo found who have a ready word of praise for this Ointment For chaps, chafes, scalds, bruiVs, and sprains, it 13 an invaluable remedy ; for bad legs caused by accident or cold it may be confidently relied upon for effecting a sound and permanent cure. In cases of swelled ancles, erysipelas, gout, and rheumatism, Holloway's Ointment eives the greatest comfort by reducing the inflammation, cooling the blood, soothing the nerves, adjusting the circulation, and expelling the impurities. Tbi? Qint W ent should have a place in every nursery. Jt will cure the long list of skin auctions, which, originating in childhold, gain strength with the child's growth.