The New Zealand mail for England via Suez will be taken out by the s.s. Albion, which will leave the wharf for the South today, shortly after the closing of the mail at 12.30 p.m. The usual Summary of the month's news, for transmission to England, will be published on Monday morning, for the San Francisco mail, which closes here on Tuesday the 13th instant. After an interval of fine weather the barometer rose rapidly during Wednesday night, and one of the sudden changes for which this colony is noted, occurred yesterday, when the wind came in from the south-east, accompanied with drizzling rain. During the afternoon the wind increased to a gale at Opunake, and the appearance of the weather at most of the telegraph stations on the coast implied the probability of storms being very near. A misfortune attended the 9.15 p.m. train from the Hutt yesterday morning, that fortunately was . not attended with any serious consequences, though had it occurred a few minutes sooner, when the train was going at full speed, the results might have been serious indeed. After the train—which consisted of the engine and three carriages—had passed the outer points and was slowly entering the station, the last carriage was seen to bump and jerk considerably, and it was at once ascertained that the carriage had got off the rails. The signalman saw what was wrong, instantly signalled the engineer to stop, and the train was brought to a standstill. The door of the carriage—fortunately, we may say —had not been locked, and some of the passengers at once jumped out on feeling the unusual motion. The others followed on the stoppage of the train, and walked to the station. The question is, how did the carriage get off the line ? and no doubt the matter will be investigated. It was not, apparently, attributable to the points ; and either the rails have widened at the point where the accident occurred, or the axles of the carriage itself have sustained injury. The traffic went on as usual afterwards during the day. There arrived per the Phoebe yesterday afternoon thirty pure-bred Lincoln' two-tooth ewes, consigned to Mr. William Common. They are a direct importation from Mr. Kirham, of Caistor, Lincolnshire, whose stock are so wellknown for their extraordinary wool-producing qualities, and size and symmetry of carcase, combined with purity of blood. We understand this consignment has been purchased by Mr. Barton, Wairarapa, and we congratulate him upon the very valuable addition which he has thus made to Ins flock.
Graziers in Napier are sending to Wairarapa, saya the iVcros, to obtain cattlo. Several mobs have recently changed hands at very satisfactory prices. J. V. Smith, Esq., recently sold over 100 head of fine young cattle intended for the Napier market, and Mr. E. Meredith, jun., is purchasing largely for the same purpose.
The Belvedere saw and flour mills, situate near Greytown, Wairarapa, and 1160 acres of totara bush, were disposed of by Mr. George Thomas at public auction yesterday. The auction room was filled, but the bidding was not marked by briskness. Mr. Cattle started the lot at £5,500. Mr. E. Port supplemented that amount by £IOO, which was not advanced upon, and the valuable property feel to that gentleman at £SOOO.
For some weeks the name and fame of Miss Christian as a distinguished vocalist have been much talked of, and when the lady passed through Wellington on . her way from Auckland to Duncdin, about three weeks since, it was feared she might return to Australia without visiting Wellington. Such, however, is not the case. In to-day's issue, Miss Christian, who is at present singing to crowded audiences at Christchurch, announces that she will make her first appearance here, in the Odd Fellows' Hal], next Monday evening, under the patronage of his Excellency the Governor and the Marchioness of Normanby. The following notice of Miss Christian's last appearance in Auckland will afford some idea of the esteem in which the lady was held in that city :—" We really do not remember any artiste who came to this colony whose departure from it will be accompanied with such general regret. She was, almost from fhe moment of her arrival here, thrown into contact with our principal society. She has secured admiration for her ability, and respect for her personal worth from all classes. Her performances are so replete with sensibility and fine culture, that her visit cannot fail to have a beneficial effect upon taste in this city." The Dunediu journals are equally flattering in their notices, and express regret that the lady could not prolong her stay. We observe that Captain Underwood, of the s.s. Albion, who interested himself most kindly on behalf of the widow of Captain House, has been not less active on behalf of the lost crew of the Gothenburg. When last in Melbourne he paid over to the Belief Fund the sum of £124 65., collected by him chiefly in New Zealand ports. Not less than £l3 2s. 6d. of the amount was subscribed by the officers and crew of the Albion. A fireman on board the Albion, named Neal McLean, also paid over to the Victorian Seamen's Union, a sum of £l7 10s., collected by him in the ports of this colony visited by the Albion, for the benefit of the sufferers by the wreck of the Gothenburg. His Excellency Sir Hercules Robinson was unusually successful with his horses at the autumn meeting of the Australian Jockey Club, lately held on Bandwick Course, near Sydney. He won the Champagne Stakes with his colt Hyperion, while his filly Barbara ran second ; he won the St. Ledger with Kiugsborough, beating Melbourne by a neck ; he won the Trial Stakes with his black colt Valentia ; and his Fitz-Yattendon ran third in the Doncaster Handicap. Contractors appear to take widely different vie vs of thing's, but it is seldom that there is so wide a difference between six tenderers for the erection of a new two-storey building as occurred in the Wairarapa the other day. The lowest tender (which was accepted) was £361, and the highest £BOO ! Some one must have been far out in his calculations.
Tk« German scientific expedition, which left Melbourne soku, months ago for Auckland Island to observe tho transit of Venus, was, writes the Argus of the Sovk ultimo, on the whole-very successful. The party cached the island on the 16th of October, and chose for their observatory the same spot as that occupied by Captain Ross in 1814. By the end of the month the iron houses were so far finished that the members of the party were able to live in them. The erection of the astronomical and photographic instruments ivas then proceeded with, and everything was ready by the end of November. The weather was very unfavorable, and it was feared that the expedition would be a fruitless one, but, fortunately, during the transit the weather was fine, although heavy rain fell just before the critical time and immediately after the transit, continuing then for fourteen days. A large number of astronomical observations of the transit were successfully taken, and also 120 photographs. The party remained some months on the island to make geographical observations. At the end of February they began to take down the houses, and the island was left on the 6th March. The winds proved contrary, and the voyage to Melbourne occupied twenty-two days. The Neio York Herald of January 24 writes : —" We observe among the cases on the calendar an action against William M. Tweed to recover eleven million dollars, alleged to have been stolen by him, or others with him, from the treasury of New York. So far as wo know Tweed has not paid back a dollar of this money, although he offered, through some of his associates, to return three million dollars, provided the suits against him were adjusted. Yet all this time he and his friends are beating at the prison bars and clamouring for mercy 'to an old man confronted by a cruel fate.' No one will deny mercy to Tweed, but is it not an insult to justice and reason to expect any mercy until he returns to the city of New York a part of the vast sum he took from its coffers? Mercy, by all means, but let us have justice first, and justice means restitution." The Melbourne Daily Telegraph says :—" A serious accident happened on Saturday, March 29, on board the steamship Otago, bound for New Zealand, by which a man named Bald, engaged in the engine department, sustained the total loss of both the first and second fingers of his right hand. While he was engaged in his work, one of the officers of the ship called his attention away, and on turning his head to see what was required of him, his hand was caught by one of the cranks, which chopped both his fingers clean off to the lower joint. The captain immediately dressed the wounds, and landed the unfortunate fellow at Queenßcliff, whence he was brought to town by the Golden Crown, which happened to arrive at the cliff a few minutes later. During the trip to town the poor man's sufferings were somewhat intense. On arriving in Melbourne he at once proceeded to the Melbourne Hospital, where he received all due attention." As illustrating the enormous additional value acquired of late by pastoral land, says the Southland News, we may mention a circumstance that occurred at the land sale at the Mataura Bridge on the Ist inst. On that occasion a remnaut (1600 acres) of land left outside the Toi Tois Hundred boundary, "when it was declared, being considered too broken and limited to bo worth obtaining a lease of by the original runholder (who had the right to renewal 'without premium) was submitted—not for sale, but for lease—at the ordinary rental paid for runs in Otago. The privilege of paying this rent was eagerly competed for, and eventually the lease was knocked down at a premium of £22o—or nearly 3s. per acre. The Monileur Beige publisher a Koyal decree, conferring the Civic Cross of the First Class on Prince Loui3 of Hesse, for the courage and devoteduess which his Koyal Highness manifested in saving, at the peril of his life, a person on the point of drowning himself in the sea at Blankenburghe, on August 15th, 1874. Mr. Philip Phillips, "the singing pilgrim," who lately passed through Auckland on his way to Australia, has arrived iu Melbourne, whero he gave his first "evening of sacred song" in the large Wesleyan Church, Lonsdalestreot. The l)aily Telegraph, noticing the " evening" favorably, says :—" Mr. Phillips's voice is not a great one, but it seemed to win sympathy from his audience, who applauded him in a manner so cordial, and so secular, that after the third or fourth hymn or song he was obliged to request that they would not do so again. As he between every two numbers spoke a few words by way of application, it may not here be amiss to say that his voice is not unlike that of the Rev. Charles Clark. It is not quite equal to it in volume, but it is less monotonous. Nearly all the songs were of a very popular character, and many of them seemed to have been adapted from airs not altogether new." The Bcndigo Independent states that one of the frequenters of the Verandah, Devine, has succeeded to a legacy of £20,000, left to him by a relative in England.
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New Zealand Times, Volume XXX, Issue 4385, 9 April 1875, Page 2
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1,933Untitled New Zealand Times, Volume XXX, Issue 4385, 9 April 1875, Page 2
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