Intercolonial News.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 310, 30 March 1878, Page 19

Intercolonial News.

The building of the new Eastern Market has commenced. It will cost £BO,OOO when completed. The steamer Easby ran down the schooner Northern Eight inside the Heads. The schooner sank, but the crew were saved. There have been two or three failures in the grain trade—S. House and Co., liabilities, £64,440 ; W. Rautird, miller, Kyneton, said to be £40,000. H. R. Carter, £12,000, an oldestablished firm at Mount Gambier, is spoken of. On Thursday night last a boat containing Robert Siggee, boatman, and Mr. W. Yuille jun., was run down in the bay by the steamer Rescue, both men being drowned. Yxxille’s body has not yet been recovered. The night was dark, and as they were both rowing they did not see the steamer. A few nights ago the boys in the Reformatory School at Coburg mutinied, and for the period of an hour kept the large number of warders at bay. Blank cartridges were fired at them, but to no purpose. At length the door of the dormitory was smashed in with an axe, and entrance gained. Some rather ugly wounds were received on both sides. No cause is assigned for the outbreak. One of the oldest and best known business men in Melbourne, Mr. Thomas Stubbs, died recently at St. Hilda. Mr. Stubbs, whose career as an auctioneer dated almost from the foundation of the citj, was (says the Australasian) a celebrity in his day, and his name will not easily be forgotten. In business circles he was much esteemed for his kindly and genial disposition. He died at the ripe age of 75. The Executive of New South Wales have at length determined to liberate the prisoner Bswerman, who nine years since was sentenced to life imprisonment for an attack made upon the then Under-Colonial Secretary, Mr. Manning. Bowerman has since that; time been an inmate of St. Helena Renal Establishment. Events have proved that, whatever the intentions of Bowerman were in making the fierce attack upon Mr. Manning, the bodily injury received by the latter was far less serious than was supposed at the time. Mr. Manning has for years been a pensioner of the State, and resident in another colony, where he appears to enjoy active bodily and mental health. The Launceston Examiner gives the following mining news : —“ Things are looking very lively at Brady Creek just now, diggers pouring in from all directions, and. all (or nearly all) getting good wages. Though the Tasmanian Company keep their wages at 7s. and and 7s. 6d. a day, on the diggings, Bs. to 9s. for good sluicemen is the prevailing figure. Another deeper lead of alluvial has been found running through the old Florence Nightingale; the gutter seems to be narrow, but the prospect exceeds those got on the old ground. Counting sluicemen and carters, there cannot be much less than 300 men employed on the allfiVial. Of tin mining, Mr. Hunkin, writing on the 4th February, says be had sunk two prospecting shafts on the fiat, the prospects obtained from each of which gave a result of lib. of ore to the dish. He considers it will take twelve months to work out this flat with four boxes.” A very heavy flood occurred in the Melbourne suburbs, by which considerable damage to property was occasioned. It rained heavily from Thursday to Saturday, during which time four inches fell. The Yarra rose so rapidly that in a few hours it had overflowed its banks, and all the low-lying lands adjacent speedily were submerged. Every building, mostly stores, on the south bank of the Yarra was completely surrounded, and communication was only obtainable by boat, and then only with difficulty, owing to the rapid current. The traffic on the south side of Prince’s Bridge was suspended for fourteen hours, in consequence of the water running over the St. Hilda Road. The whole stretch of land, as far as the eye could reach, was one expanse of water. Only one life was lost, that of a Chinaman, who was drowned in his hut on Diamond Creek on the Upper Yarra. Theflood was not within four feet of the great flood of 1868, but the water rose much more rapidly—so much so that a number of persons had not time to save their goods, while many only escaped with their lives with great difficulty. On Sunday morning the flood began gradually to recede, and now has gone down altogether. The most serious accident connected with the floods was the carrying away of the bridge over the Plenty River, by which the flume conveys the Yan Yean water to Melbourne, together with five chains of the aqueduct. By this accident the water supply of the Melbourne suburbs was limited to the supply then in the service reservoirs at Preston. On Monday morning that was exhausted, and the large population of the city and suburbs is now dependent upon the Yarra River for water supply until the Yan Yean aqueduct can be repaired, which is expected to take only two or three days, as gangs of men are working day and night.

The Newcastle Daily Pilot states that a notice from the manager of the colliery offers Is. 3d. per hour to fifty miners. This, if they worked eight hours per diem, would bring them in £3 per week. The members of the Queensland Woollen Company (says the Queenslander of the 9th instant), to judge from the enthusiasm shown at their late meeting, do not require to have their spirits raised; if they did, a perusal of the half-yearly report of the Victorian Woollen and Clot'll Manufacturing Company, presented to a meeting of shareholders held at Geelong on the 14th instant, should have the desired effect. During the previous six months, 143,029 yards of tweed, 189 shawls, and 1176 pairs of blankets had been manufactured; and after the usual reserves had been made, a working profit of £4668 15s. lid. remained, out of which, on the recommendation of the directors, a divideut at the rate of 10 per cent, per annum was declared. The Melbourne Argus writes as follows : From a despatch received by the Governor of Victoria from the Secretary of State for the Colonies, and presented to the Legislative Assembly, it appears that the programme of the Juvenile Industrial Exhibition forwarded to the Queen has been duly presented and graciously accepted by her Mxijesty. The programmes forwarded to the Prince of Wales and the Duke of Edinburgh have also been received, and the attention of the Executive has been duly acknowledged. The Duke of Edinburgh accompanies his thanks with an expression of his interest in the undertaking, and his hopes for its success. A man named Day, who has been twenty years a shepherd and digger in Victoria, has obtained a splendid property a few miles from Sydney. It appears that three farms amounting to a total of 2000 acres, and worth £2O per acre, were occupied by a man named Molloy. Day waited till he went to Sydney, and then jumped the property, saying that it was left him 26 years ago by his father, and leased at £IOO a year, which sum, however-, had never been paid. Molloy, who was immensely surprised, charged Day with stealing some keys, in order to test the validity of his claim. The magistrate dismissed the case, being unable to adjudicate. Day, however, is very snug on the property, and it is believed that Molloy cannot show a better title.

The South Australian Register says that Mr. George Fx-ancis, the analytical chemist, has forwarded to the Government a supplementary and detailed report in reference to the impurity of the water in Lake Alexandrina, which he lately visited at the request of the Government. From the confervoid plant named Nodularia spumigera he procured when in a state of decomposition a remarkable blue coloring matter that is apparently quite new to science, and although somewhat like archil —a pigment obtained from a lichen by decomposition—is still distinct and marked in its chemical characters, and has a most extraordinary power of fluorescence, being blue by tx-ansmitted and blood-red by reflected light. Mr. Francis forwarded by the Stad Amsterdam a small box of sample tubes of the poisonous plant and fluid to several scientific gentlemen in London and Paris, with a request that they will be kind enough to favour him with their obsei-vations thereon.

The Melbourne Daily Telegraph, relates tnat a boy named Rowlston, aged about nine years, was charged before the Epping Police Court with having wilfully and maliciously shot another boy, about the same age, named Dunn. From the evidence taken, it appeared that Rowlston and Dunn were out shooting in company with another boy named Vockenshon. When Dunn went to pick up a piece of rope which was lying on the ground, Rowlston said, “If you pick up that rope I’ll shoot you.” Dunn then took up the rope, and Rowlston deliberately raised the gun to his shoulder and fired, the charge taking effect in the side of Dunn’s head, who immediately fell insensible. He was left lying on the ground for about two hours, a hot sun shining on him all the time. His mother happened to hear of the case, and immediately went in search of her son, whom she found lying on the ground, with a wound in the side of his head. She carried him home, and he was forwarded' to the Melbourne Hospital, where he remained under treatment for a month. On his appearing in the Court on Thursday his head was bandaged up. It is quite a wonder how young Dunn escaped death, as the whole of the charge out of the gun lodged in the side of his head. Rowlston was committed foxtrial.

The Melbourne Argus reports that a Frenchman named Charles Tizier, aged sixty-six years, residing in Lonsdale-street, made a l-ather strange attempt on February 13 to destroy himself in the General Cemetery, near where he has a child buried. Having found a secluded spot he drew a razor from his pocket and commenced to exxt his throat. Finding that the razor did not cut smoothly at the particular part of his neck he was opei-at-ing upon, he stayed his hand when only a slight wound had been inflicted, and tried a little lower, where he made a second and much deeper gash. He then concluded that the razor was not shai-p enough for his purpose, and therefore closed it, put it in his pocket, and started to walk to the Melbourne Hospital. On the way thither he was met by a friend, who assisted him, and the hospital was reached at a quarter to four o’clock. The patient was at once attended to, and his wounds, neither of which was regax-ded as serious, were dressed. He was vei-y commxxnicative to the hospital officials, and stated to them that he wished to leave this world because he was unhappy. He is a jeweller by trade, and has been in the employ of Messrs. Denis Bi-othei-s, of Boui-ke-sti-eet. He receixtly commenced drinking wiixe to excess, and on Satui-day last he was locked up for drunkenness. According to his own statement he had been seventeen yeax-s in the service of Messrs. Denis Brothers, but left his employment on the Monday preceding his rash attempt q,t self destruction.

A groom named James Wormakl oti March 12 attempted to commit sxxicide at his residence, Eureka-street, Ballarat, by cutting his throat, but was unsuccessful. It appears that Wormakl has lately received intelligence from England that a legacy of £4OOO had been left him by a relative. He celebrated his good fortune by a drinking boixt, the result of which was delirium - tremens, aud conseqxxently a half-severed windpipe. His wounds, howevei-, are not serioxxs, and he is doing as well as can be expected.in the district hospital. A correspondent of the Australasian, writing from Canala, New Caledonia, mentions that to the formei’ly known mineral resources of New Caledonia, is added antimony, of which a very extensive and rich deposit was discovered, on December 14, by M. Ferault, general merchant, of Canala. “ Some of the ore,” writes our correspondent, “ which was sent to Australia foxassay, proved to be most remarkable for its quality. The mine is of very easy access, and is situated within five miles of N aket Bay, one of the best anchorages of the colony. At the present crisis of the country it is highly satis-factoi-y for the prospectors to have found a new source of wealth from which much advantage is to be anticipated.”

The Colac Herald thus records the death from fright of a horse, through seeing elephants -“ Some sensation was caused on Saturday afternoon, after the first performance at Cooper and Bailey’s circus, by the procession of six elephants, which were taken down to Lake Colac. The animals seemed to thoroughly enjoy the few minutes they were allowed to remain in the water. The sensational part of the affair occurred soon after the elephants left the menagerie. William Drew, the son of Mr. Drew, tlie well-known carpenter, was riding along Gravesend-street at the time, and the horse catching sight of the, to him, strange-looking animals, gave one plunge, reai-ed almost perpendicularly on his hind legs, aud then sxxddenly dropped dead. His rider fortunately escaped without bodily injury. Several other horses appeared much disconcerted at the sight of the elephants.” The Argus of the 19th instant says : “ Melbourne yesterday was waterless. The Preston reservoir ran out at 19 o’clock ; the mains were exausted in most localities by midday, and in the afternoon the city and subui-bs were absolutely destitute, nor is there any pi-ospect of relief until the communication with the Yan Yean is restored. Large numbers of citizens at the fii-st alarm stored what water they could, but thousands of houses have been unprovided for, and already distressing scenes are occurring. Water is begged for from house to house, and the fireplugs are beseiged in the hope of getting a drop from the mains. The department holds oxxt the hope that there will be water on Wednesday morning ; but this is long to wait, and much suffei-ing must ensue in the meantime. A pump has been erected on the Yarra near Edwards’ boathouse, and the muddy water thus obtained is at the public disposal ; but the difficulty is how to distribute it. The extremity which has occurred is a very great one. The department ought to have made efforts to send out water-carts to the suburbs to supply hoxxseholds with gratuitous pailfuls of the Yarra water, which is all that is obtainable, but the immediate wants of the popxxlace do not seem to have been thought of. Relief steps should be taken to-day. Bax-rels and tanks on common di-ays can be xxtilised for the purpose, and only euei-gy of this kind can mitigate the disastei-.” TRAMWAYS FOR SYDNEY. (From the Sydney Morning Herald, March 9.) The question of tramways for Sydney is just now engaging much attention. It has been twice discussed by the City Council, under different forms, but with different results. On the first occasion the expression of opinion was advei-se ; bxxt on Wednesday last the Council resolved, by a majority of 10 to 4, that the establishmeixt of a system of pi-opei-ly constructed tramways in Sydney would be a great public advantage and convenience. Opinion upon this question is sharply divided. People who have not seen the working of improved tramways in other lai-ge cities, and who look back upon the signal failure of the experiment made some years ago in Sydney, ai-e generally opposed to the project. On the other hand, those who speak from experience elsewhere, and have seen how possible it is for propei-ly constructed tramways to be worked, even in narrow streets, witliout interfering with the ordinary traffic, as generally take a favorable view of it. There is no doubt now that the old Pitt-street tramway was radically bad in design. The modern tramway, which has simply a depression running along the centre of the tramway plates, and a flange of corresponding foi-m in the centi-e, not at the edge, of the tires of the car-wheels, is fi-ee from the main objections that were justly raised against the old Pitt-street arrangements for wrenching carriage wheels off. But there is another ground on which the project is meeting opposition. It is feared by many that if the tramway project were sanctioned it would hinder or prevent the construction of a system of suburban railways by the Government. The probability is that, if both subux-ban railways and a system of tramways were constructed, there woxxld be ti-aific enough for both. The two modes of communication woxxld not compete on the same level. Each would reuder a service of its own ; and the public would use each as each in different ways served the special purposes of the public. The possession of the two modes of transit would, in fact, increase the movement of the people ; and each would thus contribute to the support of the othei-. But it is not so clear that, if the tramways were once authorized and in process of construction, the cry of vested interests would not be i-aised in Parliament in strong opposition to any proposal for the construction of suburban railways ; and as there is always a party in the House disposed to resist votes for expenditure in Sydney, their case would thus be materially strengthened.

SIR JOHN COODE AT THE GHPPSLAND LAKES ENTRANCE. (From the coi-respondent of the Melbourne Leader.) Sale, March 13. Sir John Coode and party returned to Sale this evening. They left in the Tangil on Monday, and after stopping to take in fuel, arrived opposite Roadnight’s station, at the Lakes entrance, at 10 o’clock the same evening. The work of inspecting the present entrance was commenced before sunrise on Tuesday, and the coast to the eastward, as far as the Red Bluff, w-as visited. In the forenoon the Tangil steamed up to the new entrance works, after which Mount Bax-lcly, or Jemmy’s Point was ascended, froxn which a view of the whole locality was obtained. The Rosedale, screw steamer, arrived off the entrance in the morning, and as there was not enough water on the bar, she anchored. At 2 o’clock the Lady of the Lake went oxxt, that being the time of high water, to bring in some of the passengers from the Rosedale, and to sound the depth of the water on the bar. This gave Sir John Coode an opportunity to go out and examine the bar and the outer portion of the enti-ance, of which he fully availed himself. The afternoon was spent in taking the bearings of the entx-ance fx-om the adjoining elevation, and the evening in collecting evidence from the residents as to the varioxxs changes that have taken place in the entrance. On Wednesday, before daybreak, further observations were made, and additional information was collected. The Tangil left the entrance at a quarter to six a.m., and proceeded to Bairnsdale, where an hour was spent, a start being made for Sale at a quarter-past eleven. It is evident from the method of observation pursued by Sir John Coode that he depends on being able to formulate a scheme for making a permanent entrance by taking advantage of the natural operation of wind, tide and current. The plans and surveys of the entx-ance and the coast generally he has been able to verify at a glance, but he has xnost assiduously addressed himself to the task of taking observations and cai-efxxlly collecting evidence regarding the changes that have taken place in the coast as to the process by which, and the time when, they occurred. His observations include nautical data, iix the collection of which Six - John Coode received great assistance from Captain Payne. It is xxnderstood that Sir John regards the task of making an entrance as extremely difficult, but not impossible.

THE ACCIDENT TO THE YAN YEAN AQUEDUCT NEAR MELBOURNE.

During the recent heavy floods in Victoria serious.damage appears to have been caused in various parts of the colony, especially in the vicinity of Melbourne. An accident which occun-ed to the Yan Yean aqueduct exxt off tlio whole of the main water supply to the city. The following particulai-s of the occurrence appear in the Argus of the 18th instant: The actual occurrence of the accident — which took place before daylight on Saturday morning—was not, so far as could be learned, witnessed by §anyone ; but when the embankment gave way the noise caused by the bursting of the embankment and the cari-ying away of the great ma s of masom-y soon drew those living near to the spot. The Plenty had been steadily rising all the px-e-------vious afternoon and, before this, had a large amount of damage to the fai-ms on its banks, several of the farmers and their families between Whittlesea and Morang being flooded out, aud having to take refuge on the higher lands. It was observed during Friday afternoon that the river was bi-inging down a much larger number of trees and other debris than during the flood of 1863—probably owing to the extension of settlement along the 11 por coui-se of the l-ivei- and. its ti-ibutaries. It is to this fact that, in all probability, may be attributed the disastrous result of the present flood in the river. Although the accident was not seen, the large trees scattered by the flood along the banks near the river supply the cause of the catastrophe. After a careful examination of the present state of the bridge and embankment the theory of the officers of the department is that the arch of the bridge, from its small span, became choked with the clowncoming trees, and the waterway, already inadequate for such a toi-i-enfc, became almost completely obstructed. The embankment aud the bridge itself thus acted as a dam, holding- the waters back until they rose to the pai-apet. Some of the floating matter brought down —a large tree or two probably then struck the parapet and carried it or a portion of it away. The aqueduct, being on a level with a parapet wall, was the next object of obstruction, and even its solid mass could not resist the force of the concussion. Once the water got over the parapet wall it soon worked a slight opening in between the connection between the bridge and the earthen embankment. As soon as this was done the embankment was, of coui-se, soon swept clean away. The broken side of the embankment—which displays its whole composition—shows that it was not so compactly constructed as it ought to have been, as lai-ge qxxantities. of loose rubble and spall ai-e l-evealed which should never have beeix allowed a place in it. This is only mentioned by the way, however, as no embankment, however faithfully constructed, could have remained intact under the circumstances. As a couti-ast, the accident revealed the splendid workmanship in the construction of the aqueduct walls, aud the manner in which the remains of these lay about also served to show what must have been the terrible pressure of the water. Although the walls of the aqueduct could not withstand the stream, aud although masses of the stone were carried many yards down the river, the excellence of the masons’ work was shown by the fact that in some cases os many as sixteen blocks —forming three courses of the W all—remained unsevered. If any error was xnade in the eonstrncli-li of the aqueduct at this pojnt it was xmfc on the part of the woi-k-------meu. After the accident no doubt the thought

presents itself whether it was wise to trust to the old eenhfaikment, and whether the restriction of the water-way, rendered evident by the flood of 1863, should not have been considered. On the other hand, however, the fact that the bridge and embankment had offered a successful resistance in 1863 was undoubtedly deserving of clue weight, and no doubt, also, the expense of building a completely new structure over which to carry the aqueduct was a very important consideration with the Government. That so apparently impregnable a mass would be swept away by any rise that could occur in so seemingly unimportant a stream as the Plenty perhaps never entered into the calculaitions of the Yau Yean Water-supply Depart:ment ; but in whatever permanent plan re•places the means of crossing the river that has mow proved a failure, the liability of the Plenty to rise into a rapid and tremendously ■.powerfully torrent will have to be taken into i consideration. Prompt measures are beving taken to repair the damage. A number • of carpenters and other workmen wore despatched to the spot immediately, and timber :and other materials were supplied without delay. The Argun of the 19th instant says : Mr. Davidson (the engineer) expresses the most confident hope to have the connection sie-established by midnight, so that a full supply of water will be available in Melbourne to-morrow (Wednesday) morning. For the purpose of meeting immediate requirements, the Hon. Henry Miller yesterday waited on the Commissioner of Public Works and offered to place the large reservoir on his estate at the service of the public, if the department could convey the water into the : aqueduct ; but as Mr. Miller's reservoir was -..found to be half a mile from the line of the .conduit, his offer could not be avafled of. /AFFAIRS IN NEW CALEDONIA. .(From the correspondent of the Sydney Evening News, February 21.) Mr. Higginson has been unsuccessful in his .efforts to°form a new bank, and contrary to any expectations, the Government here are not yet instructed to pay the liabilities incurred by .tlieir protege the Bank of New Caledonia. There is no money coming in, and the place has been regularly pumped dry by the representatives of three Sydney banks. Works and mines of all kinds have been stopped, a reduction has been made in the salaries of the officials by the Government ; a considerable number of the staff have been sent Home by -the Navarino, which sailed yesterday, and people are leaving the place by every opportu-nity—seventy-five last mail, sixty leave by this •out going mail, and I understand 350 left by ■the Navarino. Disease and death have been •busy since my last, and many respected and • deserving citizens have gone to tlieir final rest-jing-place. Altogether such a scene of woe, .misery, and wretchedness, I suppose, has never Vbeen witnessed before; and the coup cle grace tSo the colony has been given by the Government granting to Mr. John Higginson, of this colony, the little favor of 300 men for twenty years, the men to be fed and clothed by the Government, Mr. Higginson paying the men the munificent sum of Id. each per diem; and, to sum up, I see no remedy, unless speedy assistance is given by the Government, but for Noumea to compound with Sydney. Some £SOOO per month was expected by Mr. Higginson in working the Balade Coppermine; but immediately there will be an end to this expenditure, as Mr. Higginson will be enabled -to work the mine gratis. I must explain to you that Mr. Higginson has a speciality as to making contracts. He made one with the . Government some years ago whereby be , erected sugar mills, plant, &c. as Bourail. ■ The Government had to supply sugar-cane — . a great number of tons per year, and to make ' a great quantity of rum, half of which would .revert to Mr. HigginsoD. The contract was Si’or twenty years (the Government like this ■(period—2o years—for some particular reason). The Government could not fulfil their contract, and it was estimated Mr. Higginson was a loser to the amount of—or properly speaking if the contract had been carried out, Mr. Higginson would have made £28,000 a year by the contract, or £560,000 for the twenty years ; so, to compensate Mr. Higginson, the • Government gave him 300 men for twenty years on the terms above stated. Mr. Hig- . ginson not expending £SOOO per month on the ■ Balade will ouly effect a saving in the twenty '.years of £1,200,000, and whether copper is (£7O, £SO, or £4O per ton is of very little consequence to Mr. Higginson. Of course, Mr. (Higginson is perfectly right to make the best ferms he can with the Government, or any institution, or any individual, but for the interests of the• colony at large 1 consider it would have been better for the Government to give Mr. Higginson even a sum like £300,000 cash, if he would accept it, and cry .quits. However, the Government have made the second contract with Mr. Higginson, which I consider far more foolish than the -first, and the papers were signed yesterday. “This is how we do things in Noumea. As far as the bank matters are going on, <we hear of fresh revelations every day as to the peculation of the bank officials. Mr. Moninmny, the cyrillic, or official assignee, has some happy knack of bringing fresh cases to In-ht. But what is the use of locking the stable door when the horse is gone ?_ _ This institution is under the entire supervision of the Government, and if ordinary scrutiny had been observed what misery and ruin would have been avoided ; and we now blame the Government more for their laxity than the officials for their misdoings. Jlumanum est errare. Since my last the Society Fouciere has been made insolvent. Some property might have been saved if this happened some months ago, for the manager lias been sacrificing property right and left to put off the evil day. The Governor leaves the colony next month. He has made many friends by his strict impartiality. He pushed on the public works to a considerable point ; and we have to thank jbis Excellency for the introduction of the

water to Noumea. He, with great foresight, saw that Noumea would suffer to a terrible extent if we bad not water ; with great deteimination lie stuck at it, until we got it ; and this summer, if the water bad nob been hud on, the entire population would have been swept off. The treasurer of the transportation service has just hanged himself. He was going in the Navarino, with his wife and family, to France, when, at the last moment, it was discovered liis accounts were irregular—-short, I believe, to the amount of 14,000 franks. He was greatly respected, and his friends here would have made up the deficiency, but tlie ordinateur would not have it, and, dreading the disgrace, he committed suicide. ■i-IURRICANE IN THE NEW WS HEBRIDES. (From the Sydney Morning Herald, March 2.) The Rev. Dr. Steel has received letters confirming the rumor of a fearful hurricane among these islands. It took place on the 9th January. The following are extracts sent to us:—lsland of Fate, or Sandwich. The' Rev. J. W. Mackenzie writes :—“ We had a very severe hurricane, which laid our island in ruins. It blew steadily from the east with terrific violence for about four hours, after which there was a lull of a few minutes, when, with almost equal violence, it blew from the south for several hours. We were very much alarmed lest the sea should rise so high as to sweep us off our little island. It was very terrifying to hear it roll past us on each side, and gradually gettiug nearer ; but a kind Providence watched over ns and Icept us from harm. We had to flee to a native house, and then from one to another ; and our youngest child is very ill with pneumonitis. During the hurricane the Bobtail Nag, with 100 natives on board, was driven ashore on Fila, but no life was lost. Another vessel, lying in Havannah Harbor, was also wrecked. Nearly all the settlers’ houses have been thrown down or damaged. Native food is very scarce, aud to ali appearance will be scarce for some time. We have had no rain, except an occasional shower, since the Dayspring left until the day before the hurricane, and none since.” Havannah Harbor. —The Rev. D. Macdonald’s new house is a complete wreck. It will require to be taken down and rebuilt. His old house is quite good.. His tilings have been dried and stored up in the old house. Island of Nguna : The Rev. P. Milne writes:—“ On the 9th there was a fearful hurricane here, worse than any that have been for many years. Middle-aged people say that it is like what their fathers told them about, but they bad never seen the like. The ground is covered with fallen trees and branches, and there is not a single leaf left on any of those that are standing, excepting a few cocoanufc fronds. Many bouses are blown down. Ours ar i all more or less injured, and some of them are laid flat on the ground The church and teacher’s house at Pele, and Pleura, and Sake are amongst the latter, and I have no doubt but that our houses on Mataso and Makuru have shared the same fate. I have just heard that great damage has been done at Havannah Harbor, and at Mr. Macdonald’s station they tell me that one ship has been sunk in the harbor and that another has been driven ashore. There will be a famine here this year. We had scarcely any rain for six months until the present lime, when it came with the hurricane. The yams did not grow owing to the droughts, and now the bananas and most of the fruit trees are broken down and destroyed. Peace lias not been concluded between the bushmen and the Tikolassa people, and the latter are still living at Pele. We have now to worship there in the open air, and the school has had to be discontinued for want of a house to meet in.” It is to be feared that similar tidings may come from the other islands in the group.