The Nelson Evening Mail. SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 1880.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XV, Issue 39, 14 February 1880, Page 2

The Nelson Evening Mail. SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 14, 1880.

We would direct special attention to the prospectus of the " Anchor Steam Shipping Company (Limited)," which appears on our fourth page to-day. At the time of Mr Symons' death there was a general feeling of uneasiness lest that lamentable event should lead to the dispersion of the handy little steamers sailing under the Anchor flag, the sight of which is so familiar to frequenters of the wharves in Nelson, Wellington, Wanganui, and (the West Coast ports. Under the management of Mr Cock, however, they have continued to perform their work with the regularity and punctuality which has always characterised their movements, and those who are employed in them and the foundry, which they help to keep in existence, still have their head quarters in Nelson, where numerouß cottages are occupied by their wives and families. Recently, however, the order has gone forth that these boats are to be disposed pf, and the first offer is made

to the people of Nelson, with whpm.it now, rests to decide whether the Kennedy, -the : Charles Edward, the Murray, and, the WaV lace shall belong to other ports of New Zea-; land, and the little colony of officers, engineer seamen, and others connected with them, together with their wiVes and families be broken tip arid dispersed throughout the cqlony, or whether these smart little boats shall still hail from Nelson, and tV.Oac Ivi wnoni they provide employment continue to reside in our midst. The capital of the Company will lie ;5?.r.,0p0 in SiJop shares oi „£5 each, the price having been ilxed at this Ibvv. rate in order to place the shares withiu the reach of all. Of these Mrs Sytuons takes , one-tenth, and another tenth has been subscribed fey the officers at present engaged in the boats, which is a ; :Very practical proof of their opinion of the soundness of the venture, and, than they, none should be in a better position to jodge of the remunerative character of the concern. The list of provisional directors is such as should ensure the management being carried out, in a, thoroughly business like mariner; and on the whole we can c6m.mend the proposed Company to the favorable consideration of the public as one that is -caloulated, not only to prove remunerative to the shareholders in a direct jnanner, but also ito'j be of immense advantage to; the place, and so to benefit every resident in" it. We hope to hear of the share list being rapidly- filled up. ; ' ' '•■• The plethoric state of the letter Carriers' mail bags as they started ofi: on their daily rounds this niorning showed t.hat f there are still many* as; probably there always Will be, who offer their annual sacrifices at the shrine of St. Valentine We regret that we are unable to compliment the vendors of Valentines upon the appearance^ of their- shop windows this year, and can but express the hope. that the general character of the wares they exposed for sale is not to be accepted as in any way indicative of the taste of thoste who usually purchase such articles. . : x /\ We would draw the, attention of our readerstp the sale by auction' in Blenheim on Saturday next of the Ottjisrson or "Mount Gladstone Run in the. Upper Awatere, corn sisting of 11,600 acres freehold, and,..'lo,ooD' acres leasehold, with 8,000 good sheep. !% It is well known as a' very compact property, and there is no better lambing run;in the district. A Rtflroxiß having been prevalent that the Key. Father Mahoney was about to be removed to Wanganui, we are requested to state that such is not the case, but that he will continue to reside in this district where' he has made so many friends. .. ; A lecture will be delivered by the Eev. J. Beckenham at the Theatre Royal on Monday evening on " Thomas Edward, the . Scottish Naturalist." So interesting a >sub ject, combined with the low rates of admis- : sion, namely, a shilling for adults and sixpence for children, should attract a large amlieuce. A supplement containing a variety of items of news by the San Francisco mail, some interesting extracts from the Indian papers by the Sues mail, and other reading matter, is published with today's issue. Most of us have at one time or another watched with amazement some clever conjuror as he drew article after article out of what appeared to be an empty hat. Yesterday there was a drawing from a hat at the City Council Chamber which possesses more interest for a score and a half of individuals in this town than any of the conjuring tricks of even Heller or Houdin. At the Council meeting last night, the Chairman stated that it having been decided to sue those who had not paid their rates, the names of all the defaulters had been put into a hat and shaken up, and from these, thirty had been drawn who would b 3 served with summonses at once, and it was hoped that the othcrj would take warning thereby. Who are the happy thirty? Tins morning as some children were standing on the bridge .connecting t&fri&.&t&c? By* 'a "peculiar looking blue fish that was swimming about in the water. They pointed it out to some men who were near, and while they were looking at it, to their astonishment, it rose out of the water and flew a distance of quite twenty feet. This naturally gave rise to some little excitement, and a small crowd speedily gathered, and the movements of the stranger were carefully watched down to the Pilot Station, where an attempt was made to catch it but without avail. There can be no doubt whatever that it was a veritable flying fish, indeed it was pronounced at once to be so by several seafaring men who were among those who saw it, but that a fish, which is seldom seen out of the tropics, , (should be cruisiog about in 41 decrees south is indeed a strange occurrence, and we imagine that even Dr Hector will be puzzled to account for its presence in these waters. Sir George Grey's star must surely be setting. That the Ministerial journals should adversely criticise his recent utterances at the Thames was to be expected, but it is not without considerable surprise that we find the Wew Zealander. which has hitherto ranked among bis warmest supporters, commenting upon his speech in the following terms :-" * * * * Most blatant, frothy, demagogic utterances are these, serving no purpose but to arouse empty, unthinking applause, carrying no conviction save that such words were better left unsaid, in behoof of good will and peace between all conditions of men. Herein is the leaven of uncharitableness which pervades all Sir George Grey's public utterances, and stultifies his bdst intentioned efforts for the public good. Much as we have written in his favor, and wide the latitude we have given contributors and correspondents in advocacy of Sir George Grey's j views, and in support of bis party, it has been impossible to shut one's eyes to the < fact, or controvert an intensifying public opinion, that the glaring defect inhis policy, the rift within the lute that has marred every breathing of his fervid eloquence, has been that one unvarying diatribe— setting class against class, abusing those in power as the most unscruplous of men, sympathising with the people as downtrodden, longsuffering, much enduring serfs. Judiciously regulated, that sort of thing has its use in politics, but administered ad nauseam y it altogether defeats the purposed end. We ] had hopes that Sir George Grey, in the quietude of his retirement, would hav.e reviewed his position, taken account of the varying causes which led to his defeat, marked the weak points in his plan of action, and in thus marking have studiously avoided a repetition of errors, but this apparently, he has not done.- He harps again oh the old discordant strings, and he need not be surprised if his listeners refuse to be charmed, charm he, in his own conceit, ever so wisely."