New Zealand Spectator, AND COOK'S STRAIT GUARDIAN. Wednesday, July 31, 1850.

New Zealand Spectator and Cook's Strait Guardian, Volume VI, Issue 521, 31 July 1850, Page 2

New Zealand Spectator, AND COOK'S STRAIT GUARDIAN. Wednesday, July 31, 1850.

The Constantinople arrived on Saturday evening from Auckland after a ten days passage bringing, with her own, the mail of the Fairy Queen, which arrived there July 9th. The English intelligence by these vessels is only to February 10th, so that news of a later date had been previously received via Sydney. There is very little local news in the Auckland papers. The only topic of importance is the dismissal of Archdeacon H. Williams, of the Bay of Is- . lands, from the Church Missionary Society, the particulars of which we have extracted from the Nev Zealander. The following appointments have been published in the Auckland Government Gazette : — Mr- P. A. Deck, to be commander of the Victoria, Government brig, vice Mr. Pulham resigned ; W. Gisborne, Esq , to be a Commissioner of Land Claims ; J. R. Clendon, Esq , to be a Resident Magistrate ; and P. Wilson, Esq., to be Coroner for the district of New Plymouth. The circulation of the notes of the Colonial Bank of Issue at the North does not appear to be so extensive as in this Province, the amount in circulation at Auckland for the four weeks ending the 29th June, being £1,309, while the amount in circulation in this Province during the same period was £2,403. A very gay ball was given by the Masons at Auckland at their Lodge room, in Princes -street, which was attended by the Governor-in-Chief and Lady Grey, and a numerous circle of guests ; from the accounts in both papers it seems to have gone off with great ichA. The accounts from California, received at Auckland by the Shamrock, are of a very unfavourable character ; we have extracted "from the Scuthtrn Cross some letters published in that journal which furnish the most interesting details of the state of business in that country. The disposition to emigrate from Auckland to " the diggings" had considerably abated, from the official return it appears that during the quarter ending 30th June the number of persons emigrating to California had been thirteen, while eight persons had returned from California to Auckland.

We perceive that the Net- Zcalander has republished our observations on the letter of the " Passenger by the Government Brig." The Southern Cross makes the following remarks in reference to the same subject : — "The Spectator of the 12ih devoted a clever and caustic leader in reply to " A passenger by the Government Brig," whom the editor identifies as Mr. Fox, the Principal Agent of the New Zealand Company. The retort of the Spectator is too good to be passed by. It deals with the " Passenger" after his own fashion, and establishes quite as strong a case

against him as be has made oat against the brig. We shall, if possible, make room for the article in our next."

The iV<?.v Zealand Journals received by the Constantinople and Fairy Queen are mostlyfilled with extracts from the Independent of what were intended as jokes here (miserably bad ones) but which the editor of the New Zealand Journal, either through ignorance or design attempts to pass off as the current news of the settlement, We do not perceive or hear of the slightest indications of activity on the part of the Company. Theirs is the sleep of Death. In the Journal of Dec. 15th, under the head of New Zealand topics, is an invitation to intending purchasers commencing with the following naive paragraph :—: — " At no time since the New Zealand Company was formed, has the duty been more imperative on those who have the administration of its affairs, than the present, to make it universally known — that persons desirous of purchasing land in New Zealand with or without the intention of emigrating, may deposit any sum of money with the Company at their office, 9, Broad Street Building::, London, and receive an order from the secretary to the agents in any of their settlements, to deliver the amount in land, when selected, and a legal possession." No doubt the Company will gladly take any sum of money they can lay hold of, but if intending purchasers, as a matter of precaution, before they part with their money, inquire how many of those who deposited their money ten**years ago with the Company have received from them legal titles to their lands ? how many (those who selected land at Manawatu for example) have neither titles nor lands ? — we suspect if their questions be truly answered, they will be in no great hurry to deposit their money with the Company,

In the Illustrated Nevs of Jan. 12th, is an engraving from a drawing by Mr. Marriott, of the Reform Banquet at Wellington in which, by representing the figures one-third the real size and other artistic devices, the whole scene is so grossly exaggerated as to convey a very erroneous impression. Perhaps the drawing " in little"' of these soidisant men of the people was asatitic touch of the artist to reduce them to their real level, while the general exaggeration of the drawing was intended to be an emblem of their pretensions.

The following description of the Great Seal of California is taken from the Illustrated News of Jan. 12, which contains an excellent engraving the actual size of the Seal : " Around the bevel of the ring are represented thirty-one stars, being the number of the States of which the Union will consist upon the admission of California. The foreground figure represents the goddess Minerva, having sprung fullgrown from the brain of Jupiter. She is introduced as a type of the political birth of California, without having gone through the probation of a territory. At her feet crouches a grisly hear, feeding upon clusters from a grape-vine, which, with a sheaf of wheat, are emblematic of the peculiar characteristics of the country. A miner is engaged at work, with a rocker and bowl at his side, illustrating the golden wealth of the Sacramento, upon whose waters are seen shipping, typical of commercial greatness ; and the snow-clad peaks of the Sierra Nevada make up the back ground. Above, is the Greek motto, "Eureka" (I have found it), applying either to the principle involved in the admission of the State, or the success of the miners at work."