TELEGRAPHIC NEWS.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXII, Issue 4965, 20 February 1877, Page 2

TELEGRAPHIC NEWS.

(PEB PRESS AOEXOV.) Auckland, Monday. , In Chambers, in the Supreme Court to-day, Stsrndale, who had been arrested at the suit of Henderson and Macfarlane, was released on the application of the Attorney-General. Registrar Wilcocks held that section 15 of the Abolition of Imprisonment for Debt Act must be taken to have abolished all arrests on mesne' process, and that the present action does not fall within the language of section 16; and that, according to. the authorities, one partner has no power to bring such action against a co-partner, and there was no_ action shown within themeaning of the said section, and that plaintiffs’affidavit was insufficient, inasmuch as it does not allege that any balance has been struck or agreed upon between the partners. After Arguments by, the Attorney - General, the. Registrar said he ought not to have granted the order for defendant’s arrest, and Jio.w rescinded the same, with three guineas costs. Captain’Anderson, of the Thurland Castle, has been presented by the South British In-

surance Company with £2O, to'purchase a testimonial, as a mark of appreciation of the energy he displayed in the detection of cargobroaching on the voyage. The Railway Commission met to-day. The Hon. Mr. Chamberlin gave evidence re excessive rates, and said the road was used largely instead of the rail by the public. He considered if the rates were lowered the traffic would be largely increased. The test match on Saturday between the white and black targets resulted in favor of the latter. . Masterton, Monday. C. A. Morris was brought up at the Resident Magistrate’s Court this day for obtaining money under false pretences in Wellington, and was remanded there. George Ashdown, charged with housebreaking, was remanded for a week on bail. The upper part of the Valley is filled with smoke from a tremendous fire in the Fortymile Bush. Timartj, Monday. E. P. Jones, a schoolmaster at Pleasant Point, was drowned on Saturday while bathing. He came out in the Duke of Edinburgh last year, and was said to be well connected. The weather is, intensely hot, and the crops are not nearly so much damaged as was at first supposed. The destruction of the Opawa railway is considered a great misfortune, as farmers have to drag machinery up the country and produce down. It is wholly owing to faulty engineering.

Dunedin, Monday. Mr. George McLean, Commissioner of Customs, arrived in Dunedin this ; morning! ‘ He intends to apportion the apartments in the Provincial Government Building during his stay. Some will be used for court-house purposes, and others will be assigned to the Waste Lands Department. The receipts on the Otago railways for the past month were £15,127. A preliminary meeting of the friends and supporters of Mr. Macandrew was held to-day for the purpose ’of taking steps to present him ■with a testimonial. A public meeting will be held shortly to forward the object in view. The following letters, addressed to Mr. Duncan of this city, are published in this morning’s Daily Times : —“Fruitvale, Alamanda County, California, 27th December, 1876.—Mr. James Duncan, —My Dear Sir, — Inclosed you will find a copy of a letter that I have sent to. Mr. Macandrew. I also send you tracings of the Government map of certain lands in Lower California that' are under offer to your father and myself at a low figure. We have already purchased two squares of say about 15,000 acres, and we start for there to-morrow, by way of San Diego. The land is about eighty miles south of that grant of Mr. Burton’s, at Todos, Santos Bay, where you and Mr. Mabeu once had a notion of going. From all we can learn of the nature of the soil, resources, position, fine harbor, &c., it seems to me a very tempting place for settlement. It is bound by the march of progress to be next place for settlement, and Uncle Sam will have hold of it in a short time. If Mr. Macandrew wants the map, please take copies, as they may be of use at a future time. Probably some of my friends may be calling upon you for information; and I shall be able to give you more details after our tour of inspection. You will see there are about 200,000 acres marked on the map, most of which is fit for wheat and barley at once, simply the plough, harrow, and seed wanted. The natives are better stackers than the Chinese, and can be had just now at 2s. per day for such work. If we get fairly into this thing we may be able to charter a vessel or two, by way of' Otago, for San Quentin Bay direct. Your people will probably give you more information. Yours, &c., Thomas Redmayne.” The following is a copy of the letter sent to Mr. Macandrew:—“Fruitvale, Alamanda County, California, To Jas. Macandrew, Esq.—My Dear Sir,—l do myself the honor to address you on a subject that you may take some interest in, seeing that your strenuous exertions on behalf of the pioneer settlers of Otago have been unsuccessful. In anticipation of the present political troubles, I was requested by a number of persons before leaving Otago to look out for a suitable place to move; to, for which purpose I have during the last two’years been on the look-out, and visited various parts of California without finding all the essentials for a successful settlement. At last, I believe that I have met with a section of country that-possesses more advantages than 'my most sanguine imagination could have expected, namely, in Lower California, and at present under the Mexican Government. ' Mr. George Duncan and myself have already purchased several thousand acres each, and are negotiating for two or three thousand more at a few pence per acre, on conditions of settlement under the Mexican laws of 1875, which give unusually, liberal inducements to immigrants. But these are s too numerous to. mention in a brief letter. Amongst others, I may state 640 acres, or a mile square, to each family, and to be free from taxes, import and export duties during the first ten years. The climate, nature of the soil, mineral and other resources are probably unsurpassed in the : world. It has hitherto been a terra incognita except as a grazing place for some wild herds of cattle and sheep.. I have sent a map of portion of the land that we are negotiating for to Messrs. Reid and Duncan, surveyors, from which they will take a copy. I would call your attention to the splendid harbor. Myself and Mr. D. will start tor there by the steamer on Thursday. Should you take any further interest in this matter, I shall always be glad to furnish you with information. The Mexican Government especially invite English and German people, and the natives give them a kind welcome.—With kind regards, I am, &c., Thomas Redmayne.”