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New Zealand Times, Volume XXX, Issue 4413, 12 May 1875, Page 2

The Chief-Postmaster despatched from the Wellington office by the Taranaki yesterday, which took the outward English and American mail via San Francisco, for transmission per s.s. City of Melbourne, the following number of letters, newspapers, &c. :—For the United Kingdom—3979 letters, 3031 newspapers, 56 book packages. For the United States—2sl letters and 141 newspapers. We are pleased to find that Mr. Moorhouse is making a successful canvas in the Wairua district. He has his work cut out for himself, however, as the following engagements for public meetings will show;—Blenheim—at the Provincial Hall, this evening (Monday), May 10 [meeting a great success] ; Grove Town—at the Schoolhouse, Tuesday, May 11 ; Kenwick—at the Schoolhouse, Wednesday, May 12 ; Marlborough Town—at the Public Hall, Friday, May 14.

As soon as some unfortunate child is smashed to atoms by tumbling over the new Terrace embankment the city authorities will begin to think of putting up some land of protection, which will also serve to prevent accident during the coming winter nights. Every day a batch of youngsters amuse themselves by playing leap-frog on the edge of the boarding, with the pleasant prospect of a drop of twenty feet staring them in the face. The diversion is exciting, thrilling, and sensational, but it has its drawbacks. Inevitably one of these mirthful leap-froggers will miss his footing, and the wailings of the disconsolate parents will not bo likely to elicit any satisfactory explanation from the City Council. Any Councillor may any day witness the pranks of these youngsters, and the dangerous consequences. A railing is badly needed. The Wanganui Herald says :—“ Mr. Hutchison is again in a minority, and no doubt he will excuse himself as he did on the hustings at Kangitikei, by urging to be in the minority is no objection to him unless his principles can be shown to be unsound. He believes that the provincial system should be abolished, and tables a motion to give effect to his opinion. Is this objectionable ? The question can be best answered by asking another—Are there only four members in the Provincial Council favorable to abolition ? Mr. Hutchison is evidently not intended for a leader, and if he were he could not expect to jump into the position without the consent of the party whom he would lead. Without a conference of the abolition party, he gave notice of his motion. Two radical errors were here committed. He assumed, in the first place, that, every member who believed in the abstract proposition that provincialism should be abolished, would be bound to support his motion ; and ho presumptuously put himself forward as the leader of the Opposition without consent. That he was defeated, we might almost say ignominioualy, is what we anticipated, and what we are compelled to admit he richly de-\ served. So impracticable and fruitless a politician must sooner or later be relegated to the shades of oblivion.”

We are informed, says a Hawke's Bay contemporary, that the action begun by Sergeant King, A.C., against the Board of Officers at Tauranga, for £IOOO, has been satisfactorily settled without the intervention of the Supreme Court ; and that Sergeant King has been reinstated in his former rank, but will be stationed at Taiipo, instead of at Tauranga as formerly. The Auckland Herald says ;—The Hon. Mr. Reynolds was true to his word to the boys of the training-ship at Kohimarama. On his visit to the station he promised them a treat of apples. A case of these, and a quantity of buns, were in due course sent down to the school, for distribution among the boys. In addition to this a sum of twenty shillings pud sixpence, collected on board the vessel during the day of the Commissioner of Customs’ visit, was forwarded to the manager by the Collector of Customs. Captain Breton has, in accordance with the unanimous wish of the boys, expended this amount in the purchase of a foot ball, and several tennis balls, for their recreation.

A meeting of the City Council takes place on Thursday, at four o’clock. The examination in the Greek language was held to-day, at the University Room, between the hours of 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. No spare examination paper being procurable, we cannot comment on the subjects selected. The A.S.N. Company have commenced to run a monthly steamer between Melbourne and Brisbane and Maryborough, without calling at Sydney or Newcastle. It is evident that the late gold discoveries in Northern Queensland are greatly increasing the trade of that portion of Australia with the capital of Victoria. We have had a couple of swindlers lately amongst us, it appears. Information has been received by Mr. Otto Berliner, of the private inquiry office, Melbourne, says the Australasian, regarding the proceedings of two persons who have been swindling merchants in New South Wales, South Australia, Queensland, and New Zealand. The last place they operated in was Dunedin, and it is thought that they may pay a visit to Melbourne. Their system is stated to be to open an account at a bank by paying in £SOO or £6OO, and working upon the credit thus gained to obtain goods to the value of several thousand pounds, for which payment is chiefly given in bills. The goods are profitably disposed of, and when the bills become due, the two partners are not to be found.

“ iEgles” writes in the Australasian the following ;—“ I have had placed in my hands a policy and other papers connected with a life assurance, for which the European Company was responsible. It affords one of the most curious instances of the art of dwindling, following a long course of swindling, that it is possible to conceive. In the year 1856, the life of J. R. was assured for £3OO by the Professional Company, which was absorbed by the European in 1861. In 1871 the European failed. The premiums paid at that date amounted to £BO 19s. 9d. A process of valuation has been going on under the direction of Lord Romilly, official arbitrator, and at the end of four years it is announced that the claim of the holder of this policy against the European— i.e., the admitted debt on which dividends will be calculated—is £i is. ! Upon this magnificent sum a dividend of 2s. per £ is now declared, so that the outcome of the £3OO policy prudently taken out eighteen years ago is Bs. 5d.!” The same writer remarks : “My solemn friend, John Smith, the showman [who is nqt unknown in Wellington], I have noticed lately haunting the precints of the foreign telegraph offices, and laboriously examining files of China and Singapore papers. Seeing me look inquiringly, he explained that he had lost the run of his Variety Troupe, performing at his expense and risk somewhere in the Indian archipelago, and he was trying to find out where they were ! Furthermore, in evidence of what shows cost, I read a telegram from his Loudon agent, stating lowest terms per annum for a room entertainment, as follows : —‘ Wardropers (2), £BOOO, and all expenses paid. H. Liston (1), £SOOO. Duval unobtainable.’ Isn’t the singing of comic songs nearly as good a thing to be trained for as to be a chief-justice, a bishop, or a colonial goyerner ? And there are discontented people going about complaining they don’t know what to do with their boys !” Mr. Buchanan, a candidate for Clive, Hawke’s Bay, appears to possess and avow rather curious notions of political morals. He publishes an address, or letter, in the Telegraph, in which he says : —“ I shall willingly await the decision of the ballot-box, on coming to which, every voter can use, wholly unfettered and unknown, the privileges he possesses, despite hasty or iU-considered promises.” This means, we suppose, in plain, words : Gentlemen, if you happen to have pledged yourselves to Mr. Orr -or Mr. Russell, there is nothing whatever to hinder you breaking your pledges ; nobody will know, and I have no doubt that you are, far too enlightened to be influenced by any of these old-fashioned ideas about sticking to your words just because you have given them, and without any regard to consequences. “We have heard,” remarks the Herald, “a good many defences and eulogiums of the ballot, but we think this is the first time that we have seen it eulogised in print on the ground that it affords such remarkable facilities for telling lies without being found out. •It is, no doubt, the case that it does so, but the fact is anything but a matter for congratulation.”

About 250 Maoris have already assembled at Waitotara to assist in the convocation there, remarks the Wanganui Chronicle of the 3rd instant, but till now little has been done beyond the bare preliminaries of ceremonial and feasting. Judging from the amount of kaikai prepared, the korero will last for a considerable time. Major Kemp is present representing the Government, but no other pakeha official or representative has yet put in an appearance. The question of boundaries will be the present subject of discussion, the native element, probably judging from precedent, having finally arrived at the correct conclusion that an accurate definition of landmarks frequently prevents much subsequent disputation. Several large blocks in that splendid district have been lately surveyed under the supervision of the Government, and when the exact boundaries have been defined to the mutual satisfaction of the various claimants, a system of leasing or purchasing can be safely inaugurated, to which course of action we have ascertained that the original owners are generally favorably inclined.

The T'mmru Herald, May 3rd, says:— “ There are now eleven 'sailing vessels in the roadstead. This is a greater number than has ever been here before at one time. Whilst it is very gratifying to see such a large number of vessels, evincing •as it does the extent to which the trade of the place has grown, there are some matters in connection with the shipping which are very , unsatisfactory. These are the inadequacy of the landing aud shipping facilities, and the results which spring from them. In consequences of the want of better facilities of the kind, there is merchandise lying in the town which should have been away long ago, and there are cargoes in the roadstead which should have been landed and the vessels containing them away.”

The Patea Mail, of May Ist, has the followlowing local items : —“ Mr. North, of Carlyle, was the successful tenderer for the Kakaramea Town Hall, the contract price being £lll. The building is expected to be completed by the end of June. —Wo are glad to learn that the Provincial Secretary has made arrangements for the carrying out of several resolutions relative to this district which were passed at the last session of the Council, viz., the erection of a pilot-house aft the Heads, buoying the channel of the river, fixing mooring posts, and raising snags.—We understand that the reason why the road has not been commenced through the township of Hawera, is because no application had been made to the Chairman of the Hoad Board for the necessary funds. An arrangement had been made with the Board that they should contribute a portion of the money for the work, the Government to provide the balance ; and had the Chairman of the Hawera Board made the necessary application, the work would have been in hand ere this.— A fire occurred at Mr. Burke’s farm on Thursday last. It appears that Mr. Burke had been burning off fern from his land, and thinking the fire had burnt out, he went home. About 7 o’clock in the evening the fire broke out afresh. It caught a furze hedge, and then ran along to a large hay-stack, which was soon consumed. A breach having been made in the hedge, the progress of the fire was arrested, but not before considerable damage had been done.—We learn by telegram that an accident, which was nearly attended with fatal results, occurred at Ketemarae yesterday. It appears that two men were engaged sinking a well—one being employed on the surface, and the other at the bottom of the shaft at a depth of 62ft.—when foul air suddenly oozed through the earth, knocking the man employed in the shaft down. His comrade, on hearing the alaim, descended the shaft by means of the rope with commendable promptitude, and conveyed the stupefied man to the surface in an insensible condition. The man is reported to be recovering.”