TELEGRAPHIC NEWS.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXII, Issue 5217, 11 December 1877, Page 2

TELEGRAPHIC NEWS.

, (PER PRESS AGENCY). Auckland, Monday. Several Auckland members arrived to-day per Ifavrea. The Tavares company go on. a tour to Waikato, and then to the West . Coast, prior to leaving New Zealand. One hundred and ten children partook of the Holy Communion at the Catholic Cathedral yesterday. The natives here caught 2533 sharks last week. Mr. Whitaker went to Waikato to-day. The Christchurch cricket team are coming here to play at the end of the month. Napier, Monday. The criminal sittings of the Supreme Court commenced this morning before his Honor Chief Justice Preudergast. The calendar contains fourteen cases, including one murder, one rape, one beastiality, and one indecent assault. The consecration of the Bishop of Waiapu took place yesterday morning at St. John’s Church, which was crowded. The ceremony was conducted by the Primate and Bishops of Wellington and Auckland. The installation was performed in the evening by the Primate, who formally inducted Bishop Stuart into the See of Waiapu. The offortory in the morning was over £25. The Hawke’s Bay Jockey Club Races are fixed for Thursday and Friday, 21st and 22nd March. Nominations for the Napier Handicap, 150 sovs., close on sth January. Te Han Wirerau Karauria was found guilty of assaulting Constable John Walsh in September, 1875, near Ormond, Poverty Bay, when the prisoner was being arrested for larceny. The assault consisted of his biting off a part of the left band and thumb, and gnawing to the very bone the right forefinger of the same man. He was also convicted of escaping from the lock-up at Gisborne in October, 1875. William Geary was convicted of breaking a large window of the Union Bank. Michael Koonay was convicted of an indecent assault upon a girl eight years of age. Richard Winter pleaded guilty to forging Mr. G. E. Lee's name to a cheque for £3. All the prisoners were remanded for sentence. The Grand Jury brought in a true bill against Connelly for horse stealing, and the trial is fixed for Thursday. The case of Hans Thomsen, for the Woodville murder, is fixed for next Monday. Wanganui, Monday. Tlie schooner Colleen Bawn, from Pelorus Sound, laden with timber, is ashore at the South Spit. She went ashore at 3 o’clock this

morning. She is now being unloaded, and efforts will be made to float her off next tide. The amount of damage is not known. Tabpo, Monday. A very smart shock of earthquake was felt at 4.15 on Saturday morning, lasting a considerable time. No damage was done. Captain Turner leaves here to-day for Orupui to complete the survey, if possible, of the Hukui Blo^k.

Blenheim, Monday. At the Supreme Court to-day true bills were against Darke for fraudulent bankruptcy, and Annie Watson for concealment of birth. No bills were found against English for fraudulent pretences, and Darke for wilful injury of gaol property. Darke was found to be insane, and was discharged by the Judge. Annie Watson was found guilty and sentenced to three months’ imprisonment. Christchurch, Monday. A little rain has fallen, and the crops are looking better, but want more rain. The following men have been selected as a cricket team to go to xVuckland :—Neilson, Corfe, Moore, Godby, Sweete, Ollivier, Watson,,. Lee, Ashby, Frith, and J. Fowler. Balclutha, Monday. At five o’clock this morning, William Stevenson, saw sharpener, discovered on waking that his wife had left her bed. On making search, be found her in the passage with her throat out right across, and quite dead, with a razor lying beside her. She attempted suicide a short time ago. An inquestwill be held to-morrow.

Timaeu, Monday. The criminal session of the Supreme Court commences on Wednesday. There is a heavy calender. A breach of promise case will be heard ; the damages are laid at £3OOO. Mr. Ball, proprietor of the Timaru Times,. was charged to-day on two criminal informations of libel against Judge Ward (the alleged libels appear in the Times of September 12 and October 13), before Mr. Beswick,R.M., and two justices of the peace. Copies of the above dated papers were tendered as evidence. Defendant offered no defence, and was committed for trial at the next criminal session. Thereis a strong feeling here in defendant's favor. SUEZ MAIL NEWS. (per abawata at the bluff.) London, October 26.

Her Majesty is at Balmoral in good Health. The Prince of Wales, with his two sons, leftAbergeldie on the 15th, and then proceeded to Dartmouth, where the two Px-inces were placed on board the Brittania tx-aining ship. The Prince is now in London. The Princess has remained at Abergeldie in consequence of the dangerous illness there of Miss Knollys. On his way south the Prince had a long conversation at Ballater with Mr. Archibald Forbes, the special correspondent of the Daily Neivs, who was proceeding to Balmoral, having been honored by an invitation from her Majesty for his bravery and truthful account of the war. Mr, Forbes has had conferred on him by the Czar the Order of St. Stanislaus. The Shah of Persia intends visiting London and Paris next spring. Alderman Andrew has been chosen Lord Mayor of London for next year. Sir John Bennett has been elected Alderman for Cheap Ward a third time, but hasagain been rejected by the Court of Aldermen, and ex-Sheritf Brefitt has been appointed by them. Slavery has been abolished in Madagascar, and three millions of slaves have been setfree. Sir Allen Young is having the Pandora refitted, with a view to another start for the Arctic regions next spring. The Spitzbergen route will be tried in preference to that bySmith’s Sound. By this year’s racing Lord Falmouth has netted £31,433, exclusive of the Ascot GoldVase, ixx stakes up to 15th October, which is by far the largest amount ever won in one season by one person. A mutiny occurred on board the Americanship New York at the Nore on the 16th October. One sailor was shot dead by the captain, and the mate wounded another. Anarmed party from the Duncan flagship took possession of the ship, but subsequently withdrew. No inquest has been held, it being decided, in pursuance of the judgment in the Franconia case, that it was out of British jurisdiction. Prince Nikata has declared the campaign ended by the occupation of the district of Banjani, thereby effecting the deliverance of the Upper Herzegovina. The German ironclad squadron has returned from the Mediterranean, and will winter at Wilhelmshaven. The Queen has presented £250 to the Red' Cross Society for the relief of the sick and wounded of both armies. The correspondent of the Standard at Nicopolis states that during the twenty days ending 9th October 15,000 of the allied troopsdied in Bulgaria. The management is so bad that the army between the J antra and Lorn was left for three days without supplies, and the men were half-starved at Simitza. Horses are daily suffocated in liquid mud 4ft. deep, and hundreds of men, who daily die undercanvas, are carried out of hospital tents and thrown into the mud, not fifty yards from, where they died. Many hundreds of Mahomedan families have been expatriated by the Russians to Northern Russia, where they, are suffering terrible privations. A band of Cossacks burnt the village of Ivor,, south-west of Lovatz, on the 27th September,, and carried off the inhabitants, tied to their horses. They were met by a body of Turkishtroops, who released the prisoners, killing every one of the Cossacks. It is positively stated that at Manza, outside Kars, the Russian officers found the deadbodies of Arab women among those slain in the fight, and deliberately cut them into small pieces, in order that by concealing their sex the army generally should not know how desperate was the feeling of enthusiasm against the invaders. So great is the deficiency of officers in the Russian army, that all the pupils at the military colleges over sixteen yeax-s of age have been sent to join regiments. The want of medical men is shown by the fact that at Fratesti, where there were 10,000 sick, there were only two doctox-s and six attendants to look after them. Madras news states that rain had fallen in the north-west provinces, and that the prospects are good everywhere. Prices are falling. Distress is increasing in one or two districts,, but is stationary in six. The harvest was gathered in fairly.

AUSTRALIAN NEWS. (per arawata at the bluff.) Melbourne, December 5. The Government is not likely to bring the session to a close so early ai anticipated, as there is still a large amount of work to be disposed of before closing. The Council havingrejected the Exhibition Bill, that question cannot bo decided until next session. The action of the Council in this matter is pretty generally applauded, as in many quarters it was thought imprudent to commit the colony to the charge of £IOO,OOO tor a building alone without knowing whether any of- the foreign countries would respond to our invitation to exhibit. Others looked upon it in a free-trade point of view, and argued that with such absurdly heavy duties as are imposed on all goods there would be no possibility of manufacturers sending their goods here with the ultimate view of finding a market. The action of the Council in throwing out the Defences Bill has not been favorably regarded, especially after all the labor, trouble, and expense which was bestowed in obtaining reports on our defences. The fault lay with the Government in placing the free gift preamble to the Bill after the Council had rejected all opinion upon it. On the question of payment of members the Government have changed their front, and the Council will have an opportunity of considering it in a separate measure, but the amount is still retained on the Estimates in the event of the Bill not passing. Petitions are being extensively signed against the payment of members. Tbe Elections Committee have once more signalised themselves by bringing up two reports on the Banvon election petition. Under the first, the election was void only, and the

usual course of the Speaker would be to have issued a new writ ; but under the second report, Levien, the sitting member, was declared guilty of bribery and corruption, and the seat given to Joyce, A boiler explosion has occurred at Magnsta, and nine children and one man were killed, another being seriously injured. The Soldene Troupe leave here on the 19th for Dunedin. They have done a very good business here. The theatres are preparing pantomimes for Christinas. The Troubadours will appear in the pantomime at the Opera House. The Princess will not have any pantomime. There appears to be some hitch in the issue of writs for penalties against members of the Legislative Council. The drought is very disastrous in all parts of New South Wales and Queensland, where there is no grass, and the cattle are dying off rapidly.