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New Zealand Times, Volume XXXII, Issue 4969, 24 February 1877, Page 2

• Telegrams stating that the weather was not reliable, and that the glass would probably fall within twenty-four hours, were sent to stations in the Middle Island on Thursday. By yesterday morning the glass had fallen in the South, and during the day continued to go down fast, and strong northerly gales were experienced at several places. Warnings for bad weather from the north and westward were issued to Southern stations by 10 a.m. yesterday. The following tenders were received by the Public Works Department ‘for carting 21,800 sleepers from Feilding to points oh the Wan-' ganui-Manawatu Railway, viz.:—Accepted: Emigrant and Colonists’ Aid Corporation, £1044. Declined : T. J. Allen, £1362, G. Y. Lethbridge, £1453 ; R. Slattery, £1589 ; do (alternative tender), £2233 ; W. H. Taylor, £1589 ; J. and C. Bull, £1589 ; T. Deriby, £1771 ; Hall and Irons, £2866. A little story of an interesting character, romantic too, but real withal, was unfolded to a member of our reporting staff yesterday. It appears that some . time .ago a man named John McMahon lived in Wellington, having been employed at, one period by Mr. Rhodes, and subsequently by Dr. .Johnston; .Now McMahon was..like .Pip—he had expectations, ..though they may not have been, great;, but at any rate he expected at any moment to. be - sent a sum of money—say £IOOO or more; and very naturally, he was in the habit of visiting, the Post Office to see if anything had turned up. At last he was rewarded. Calling at the Post Office in the m'onth of January last, he re- ■ ceived a letter, addressed John McMahon, and enclosed was a draft for £BOO. He went to a certain bank’ in Wellington upon which the draft was drawn, and presented it. He was of churse questioned closely for the purpose of ascertaining whether he was the real Simon Pure, and he was .required to give references. Accordingly, he referred them to Dr. Johnston and two other gentlemen who knew him well ; and the statements made to the bank were apparently satisfactory,; for on the strength of their representations the £BOO was, paid over to McMahon. He then cleared out, and went to.Melbourrie, we believe) with the intentions of proceeding thence to ■ England. Now comes the interesting part of, the_. story. Among the immigrants by the Hurunui which arrived here a few days ago were a married couple—Mr. John McMahon andhis.wife—and this John . McMahon presented, himself , at the bank with a duplicate.’; of j the draft for £BOO, for which the other John McMahon had received .cash. Here,; to use a 'common phrase,! was , “a .pretty i kettle' of fish.” It’ seems that before Mr, Hurunui McMahon (that, probably is .a good way to,distinguish him) left Ireland for,New Zealand he posted a draft, and .the letter of course reached here before-Jm- did.- He-addressed it /‘John McMahon, Poet' Office,' Wellington, to; be called for." On presenting himself at the' bank, he was told what had happened: that the money hod been paid to-his namesake. Mr. - Hurunui McMahon was naturally disappointed) hay)

wroth, at finding how matters stood, and we are given to understand intends taking an action at law for the recovery of his money. The peculiarity of the matter is that the other John was not guilty of intentional fraud. He was in reality expecting this money, and finding a letter addressed to him with a draft in it for £BOO, very naturally turned it into money. 'He went Home from this colony in 1874, and returned again. Before going Home he used at one time to keep the Northern Hotel, in Palmerston, Otago, and had also been a sergeant of, police. The lately arrived John came out as an immigrant.

A large bush fire was burning at Ohariu yesterday, and at one time the whole of that part of the country was covered with vast clouds of smoke, giving the idea that afire was raging such as that which occurred last year, and fears were entertained that on this, as on that occasion, dwelling-houses and property might be endangered or perhaps destroyed. On making inquiries, however, we learned that the fire was confined to a green bush, consisting of some thirty acres or more, and that it was originated intentionally, a quantity of timber having been cut down and set a light for clearing purposes.

Some of the cases heard at the Resident Magistrate’s Court yesterday, in which persons were charged with having neglected to register their dogs, were slightly amusing; at least the excuses offered were. Mr. Nichols, of the Panama Hotel, pleaded that the dog in respect of which he had been, summoned was not his; but that he could not get rid of him. Sergeant Monaghan said he could not deny that he supported the dog, and defendant said he couldnot, becausethe dog would not leave him. As if to prove this, the dog, a handsome goodnatured looking spaniel, made his appearance in front of the witness-box, winked slyly at the magistrate, and wagged his tail affably at Sergeant Monaghan. Then a lady, who was charged with having an unregistered pet, declared that it wasn’t of age!—an assertion which caused a general titter in Court. Constable Shields, who was connected with a number of the cases, and seemed to have laid himself out energetically for dog catching, said in reply to his Worship that the dog was “ purty big,” but not being, like Mr. Weller’s friend, “ a ackerate judge of a animal,” he declined to make any positive statement about the dog’s age. Another lady who made her appearance to answer a charge, said that her husband was in the Wairarapa and the dog was with him, whilst several of the defendants denied having dogs at all. As stated in the report of the Police Court elsewhere, a number of the cases were withdrawn or dismissed, and in the remainder nominal fines were inflicted.

We have to offer an apology for again introducing the subject of frogs to readers of this paper.; Paragraphs in reference to that active batrachian have of late been almost as common as notices of Holloway’s pills and ointment. Indeed it was an unfortunate day on which that Tustin frog was first made a hero. The fact of a host of persons, hungry after fame, setting up rival claims to a direct personal, interest in it, has sunk into insignificance now. It was considered a matter of some importance a little;while back, as may have been gathered from one of the paragraphs about it, in. which a gloomy reference was made to Mark Twain’s corn beef contract. But the frog disease has broken out in a new place. The origin of Tustin’s has no longer any interest for the great majority, and the sounds of the approaching election strife are even as the distant buzzing of a half-developed blow-fly. People (and those in the country especially) are now going about hunting up frogs, and worse, writing about them when they are spotted. The waste basket is full of fi'og locals, and. still they come. Another one has just arrived, and the writer declares that the interest of science and the well-being of the Philosophical Society demand that it should be published. He says : —" A frog family have established themselves in Mr. Donald’s pond, in Karori. In a sunny day the active creatures may be seen by scores. This is a good opportunity for those who have never seen frogs in an infant state." , “ Sinbad” in the Canterbury Press writes The attendance on both days of the meeting was, considering the very unpropitious weather, remarkably good, and while the stewards certainly have the interest of the sport at heart,, the Wellington public are. evidently ready to support them. The W.J.C. has a very nice course, a good stand, and the secretary, Mr. Kerby, and other officers are most energetic in their respective duties, so much so that racing is evidently looking up in the Empire City. I observe that the club intends adding 600sovs. to next year’s Cup, thus making it equal in added money to the principal event in Dunedin. The conditions of entrance and acceptance for the Cup might next year be altered with advantage. The Cup, on the occasion of the meeting under notice, was supposed to be' of the value of SOOsovs., but after deducting the £SO for the second horse, and the usual 5 per. cent., it will be; seen that the total amount received by the winner conld not have exceeded £237 10s. To ran for this it was necessary for an owner to pay. the dub ' £ls, and this seems rough on racing mem. To run for the W.J.C. of £125 cost acceptors > 7sqys., which is also, under the circumstances! father, a heavy tax. As the club has decided' to have a 500sov. race next year, let the actual stake' paid over to the winner be of that amount, and the reduction of entry fees in the principal, events would I -feel sure considerably swell the entry, list. r.

The maiden pair-oar race between the Wellington Bowing Club and the Star Boating Club came oif, on Thursday evening. The respective pairs were as follows : —Wellington Rowing Club—Mountier and Crowther; Stay Boating Club—Bethune and Hunter. The' course was from the Thofndon baths to the Te Are baths. The’first start resulted in a foul, but the second was successful, the boats getting away splendidly, for some 306 ! yards both boats keeping together. The Wellingtons then drew ahead, and came in first by fully two lengths. The race was for £5 a side. , The Mirror of England was again exhibited last night to a fair audience considering the weather, arid with the.nsual success. There will be an afternoon' exhibition to-day at half-past two, at reduced prices >of admission, and it is announced that every child attending will receive a present. To-night in addition to the panorama some extra attraction is announced in our advertising columns. A large number of presents will be made to the audience in coins varying in value from shillings to sovereigns. This should certainly crowd the hall.

The following sections in the Mariawatu District, for which there had been conflicting applications at 20s. per acre, were sold to-day at the Land Office :—Section 197, 178 acres, fetched 235. per acre ; section 199, 168 acres, fetched 275. per acre ; section 203, 187 acres, fetched 275. per acre ; section 205, 168 acres, fetched 265. per acre ; section 262, 197 acres, fetched 275. per acre. The one-fifth of the purchase ■ money paid down at once amounted to £233 13s. 2d. The total purchase money would be £ll6B 6s.

A meeting of the creditors of Charles Leo Hart was to have been held yesterday, for the purpose of considering the application of the doctor for discharge, but as none of the creditors proved; the meeting lapsed; not, however, before the creditors had expressed their sentiments pretty forcibly. To be mild in expression, they were irate, and evinced a desire to! adopt other measures for the correction of the .bankrupt than those provided by law. ; . It was announced last Sunday at St. Raul’s that the offertory to-morrow morning at that church would be devoted to the Melanesian Mission. We have been requested to state that this intention has-been altered. The new Bishop of Melanesia, will be in Wellington shortly, and will. It is understood, preach in favor of the mission at St. Raul’s on Sunday, March 4, in the morning.

The Theatre Royal was well attended last evening, when “ Old Soldiers *’ and " Tottlea ” were played with the success, which inevitably attends any performance in which Mr. and Mrs, Hall are engaged. To-night “Check arid-Counter Check,” a play written by Mr. J.; Uttlng, a member of the Press in Christchurch, will bo produced, to be followod by that most glorious of - farces, as it is made to appear by Mr. Hall; “Spitfire."

Mrs. Scott-Siddons, who is at present In Christchurch, is expected in Wellington about a fortnight hence. Mr. Steele accompanies her.

It seems we were in error yesterday in stating that the informant in the Morris case was not present during the hearing of the case on Thursday. He was there during the whole time.

Mr. W. T. Smythe, agent in advance for the Lydia Howarde Troupe, arrived by the Taupo from the South yesterday. The company is at present at Timaru, and go thence to Nelson, and next to Wellington, where.they will arrive on the 24th proximo. The cricket match Star Club v. Wellington Club will be resumed to-day. No doubt there will be a large attendance on the ground, as the match so far has excited the greatest interest. In their first innings the Stars made 72, and the Wellingtons made 10 less in their first innings. Two wickets of the Stars fn the second innings have fallen for 40 runs. Wickets will be pitched at 1.30. The Westland County Council and its officers are in a peculiar condition just now. According to the West Coast Times, the clerk has no office, and is provided with neither stationery, stamps, letter book, nor any other official requisites. The Council have no funds, and in the meantime the clerk must rub along as best he may.

The Lyttelton Times says Mr. W. A. Murray, the member for Bruce, has of late considerably risen in the estimation of the House of Representatives because he has always played the part of Apemantus to Sir Julius Vogel’s Timon, and done his best to warn the House of financial breakers ahead. If Mr. Murray has risen in the estimation of the House it is because he has talked less. Many of those who think too little and talk too much might take the hint.

Describing the New Zealand Kapanga Gold Mining Company’s works the Auckland Herald says : —“ The water wheel, 300 ft. underground, to the great surprise of many, is now an accomplished fact; winding truckloads of mullock from a winze now 40ft in depth, and pumping water from the same winze through a six-inch column, at the same time working as steady and smooth as a timepiece. Many people are led to believe, from previous reports issued, that the management have had to turn water into the mine to drive this extraordinary wheel, and then pump the same water to the surface again ; but it is not so, and anyone doubtful of the statement should take the first opportunity of inspecting the work, and making themselves acquainted with the details and the manner of its accomplishment. In the first place, the water utilised is the natural drainage of the old Kapanga mine workings,' falling from the different drives, winzes, and stopes to the old shaft, and, when the present company opened from the new shaft, this, of course, drained the old workings, and drew a constant stream of water to be pumped to the surface, , whether the water wheel had ever been planned ojr not, so that instead of being, as is supposed by many, an extra expense in labor and coal, it is quite the opposite. The wheel is being driven by a motive power previously running to waste, entailing no expense beyond the first cost of erection.”