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New Zealand Times, Volume XXXIII, Issue 5287, 6 March 1878, Page 2

There will, be a.meetiag/of' thb; Board of Education, at a quarter-past;eleven o’clock this morning, at the office of the Board. ,

The libel action—Whitaker v. Jones-—which was reported to hare been abandoned, is now stated to be set down for hearing at the ensuing sittings of the Supreme Court,.at Dunedin. At the Supreme Court yesterday, > George Gilbert, storekeeper, applied through his solicitor, Mr. Quick, for his discharge, which was granted, there being no opposition.. The following is the programme of’ sports proposed to be held- by the 'Wellington Amateur Athletic Club on Easter* Monday next. The prizes will consist of silver cups, gold and silver ornaments, &c., &c. No money prizes will be given. Events Nos. 3, 10, 13, and 15 will be for the championship of the chib, and the winner of such will receive a medal (silver), but prizes will be offered for these events in addition. No. Bis a favorite game in England, and it is the desire of the committee to get a party of picked firemen from each of the rival brigades here to take part ,in it, thus dispensing with the ordinar. I firemen’s face. Events not specially stated to, he otherwise will be confined to members of the; club. 1. Maiden race, 220yds.; 2. Hop, step,; and jump; 3. Champion handicap, 220yds. i.. Long jump; 6. Open handicap, 100yds.; 6, Open high jump; 7. Steeplechase, 880yds.; 8. ! Tug of war; 9. Open two mile walking haudi | cap; ,10. Champion handicap, 10yds. ; 11. i Open single-stick;- ; 12. Collegians handicap,; 880yds..; 13. Champion handicap, 300yds.; 14.; Open mile handicap; 15. Champion handicap, flOOyds.; 16. Consolation, open, 220yds., ; Offenbach's comic opera founded on the 1 well-known nursery story of “ Blue, Beard” was presented last night by the Soldene Opera' Company to a large audience. • The piece was capitally mounted, and, it is needless to say,j elegantly dressed, for this is one of the great features of this excellent company’s performances. Miss Soldene’s impersonation of Boulette was another fine piece of opera bouffe acting. It is one of the merits of this lady's performances that there is no same-i ness in her acting. Even in ren lering an e.i-; core she endeavors to vary her'style. In' every character’ she is so different that' the; audience for a moment never sees Miss riol-l dene—they have ; always ’before them the; character of the piece, and by her acting alone: they can read the meaning of every word she utters. ! Mr. Campbell's representation of the; hero of the: piece was very meritorious indeed,; .whil.e, his; vocalisation was, as, usual, of the' most pleasing character. Mr. Wallace’s, Queen Clementina was a most humorous piece of act-' ing, and his serio-cora'c singing of “You take an angri rare” brought forth a vigorous round of applause. ’ The King Bubeche of Mr. Marshall was, we need-hiivdly say, a splendid piece of comedy acting—intensely humorous, without for a moment being vulgar. Miss Clara Veasy had not milch more to do than dress handsomely and look pretty, a work very easy for her to do. None *of the other characters require' special mention, further than to say that every part was excellently filled. Tonight the grand; spectacular opera -bouffe. of “ La Belle Helene,” a production entirely new to a Wellington audience, will .he presented for the first and only time. To-morrow night “The Grand Duchess” will be played, and bii Friday night Miss Soldene - will, take her benefit. ;

The; Brisbane Telegraph, reports the death of Mr. Thom.is Slattery,, Inspector of the Queensland detective force. The deceased had been twenty-f Our yhars iu',the detective force of Victoria and New Zealand, and ; for the past, thirteen years'had been in Queensland, ris'nd by merit to the position of. Inspector., He was much esteemed by the officers and men of the force/and always carried out his somewhat unpleasant duties with tact and courtesy.

A dramatic and musical cm ertaiiimeut, in [ aid of the i,Convent schools, was he'd in the large hall of the Catholic school, Boulcottatreet, last, evening, under' the patronage of the Hibernian Society, the .services of whose fine brass band were volunteered for the occa sion, and added not a little, tb'the success of the evening’s amusement. There was a very full atteudanoe, the hall being literally crammed, and those who came late had to content themselves with.standi groom. An excellent bill of tare was .provided. The first part comprised selections by the band, the drkroa of “The Brigand and his Son,” in which Messrs. Davis, Whitaker, Gibbs, McNamara, Kirk, and McGuire took part, the song, “Thou art so near, and yet so far; the duet, “ I know a bank,” by lady amateurs; and the glee, “ Now is the mouth ot raaying,” by the Cathedral and St. Joseph’s choirs, which were each and all heartily received and deservedly applauded. The second part consisted of selections from the opera of ‘fAttila," followed by the laughable farce entitled “ A Sudden Arrival,” ia which Messrs. Whitaker, Davis, McNamara, Gibbs, Bryan, and Neal took part. Some excellent selections by the band came next, and were succeeded by the songs “ We parted by the river side,” and “ Sweethearts,” which were charmingly rendered by lady amateurs. The glee “ Good night, thou glorious sun,” by the Cathedral and St. Joseph’s choirs, and the finale “ God -Save the Queeu ” conclued a most en.oyable , entertainment.

A correspondent at Karori has favored us I with the following particulars of the rifle I volunteer meeting at that place on Saturday ilast :—The Makara rifle volunteers met on ’ Saturday at the Karori butts to fire for the ■ company’s prizes, which included many useful presents from several Wellington friends, viz., bags of sugar, boxes of soap and candles, also I wearing apparel, a cruet stand, cigar cases, a gold pencil case, several pipes, and some money prizes. Over 50 members competed, and in consequence of the fact that'most of the present members of the company have lately joined, the committee wisely decided i that these annual prizes should be so arranged ithat the beginners would have something to stimulate them in trying to become good shots, instead of making only three or tour ' prizes of them, which invariably fell to a few who monopolised both local and district prizes. The scores were very far , beneath .the average shooting of the company. The .ranges were 300, 400, and'soo yards; five shots at each ‘ range, and a ful;-sized target. Mr. Brandon, M.H.R., visited 1 the ground ’during the day. After the distribution pf the prizes, the members sat down'to an excellent spread in'Host Spiers’ usual good style, to which full justice was done by the volunteers and friends. After, the cloth had been removed, the chairman (Captain Monaghan) proposed “The Health of Her Majesty the Queen,” which was duly, honored. “The Captain's Health” was proposed and responded to, after which a hand -SO me sword, and also a valuable watch and gold chain, were presented to him by Mr. S. Lancaster pn behalf of the company. Mr. Lancaster, in making the presentation, referred briefly !to Captain Monaghan’s services to the company during, the past,ten years', when he worked for them with all his might. 'He also referred to the interest which he had taken in the individual welfare of the members of his company in getting their lane! scrip for those who were entitled to it at an early date, so that they. would have ample time 'to select Captain Monaghan, on rising to. thank the company, was; loudly cheered. He said he never expected'to be presented with such a number ,ot valuable presents as those now before him,' It was true he had always tried to do bis best to maintain the company in an efficient state, and, be accepted their presents as ah acknowledgment of that desire, and hoped they would all attribute' his failings to his head and not to,his heart. He also hoped that the young men he saw around him that night would take the.lesson to heart. He was glad to find that, the gates of promotion were open tp all in this tree country, without let or hindrance to class, creed, or nationality, and he hoped they would all exert themselves to qualify for any office within their reach. He again thanked them for the unabated kindness shown to him during his connection with the company, and said he hoped that, if in the past , there 'were any drawbacks, he would make amends in future. During the delivery of his address he was repeatedly cheered. “The,Subscribers to the Prize Fund”, were then proposed, coupled with the name of Mr. Brandon, M.H.R., and duly honored. '“'The Prize Committee, ’’ .coupled with ,tha name of Mr. Lancaster, was next proposed, and responded to by that gentleman.' “The Land we Live in,” was then given, and enthusiastically received. “ The Vice-Chairman ” was the next toast, which was acknowledged in suitable terms by Lieutenant Monk, who was well received. “ The Health of the Host and Hostess” was duly hono ed, and was ably responded to ,by Mr. J. F. Spiers. Several songs and recitations were given during the evening, and on the whole it may be said that a more enjoyable time has seldom been spent by those present. After eleven, o’clock all dispersed, after singing “ God,Save the Queen" and “ Auld Lang Syne,’’ Sep. At a meeting of country'settlers and others held at the Corn Exchange, Christchurch, on the 2nd irist, amongst other toasts which were proposed was that of the “ Shipping and Mercantile interests.” Mr. Selwyu Smith, manager of'the New Zealand Shipping Company, responded to the toast;n He> -said if 'any : per-: sona) friend of Anthony Trollope had been ‘present that dayyhe could have written to his friend : and told him that he-'had hloue the people of the ■ colony a great wrong when he ha-1 spoken about their blowing.! (Laughter.); He (the speaker) had only had the short experience of two years and a h'.ilf In New Zealand, ■ but he hod known it commercially, for a much ■ longer period. He remembered the Mini’ when! they used ,to send their produce from “ the other side”, to Port Cooper, now Port Lyttel-; ton, and if they only got a cheese in exchange 1 they were thankful. But since then times had very greatly changed. It had been said that, the ; New- Zealand farmers . were- cockatoos.; Well, if they were, they were uncommonly well fledged. (Loud laughter.) . He, gave all honor to the producers, and credit to those' .whose, enterprise first opened up this grand! country which the farmers were destined tomake take its place in the world as the Greater Britain of 1 the South. (Loud' cheering.): With regard to the shipping interests, it could not be denied that New Zealand took a very high place. No doubt many among them remembered . the early days of New SouthWales. He had lived in Australia nearly forty years, and could therefore speak with some authority. In the early days New South Wales registered five steamers and very few’ sailing vessels. But now what was the case ? Why, they had upwards of 500 colonially, registered steamers, and they were, he thought, as good boats of their class as were to be found in any part of the world. Thun they had 2000 ships, with a registered tonnage of .300,000 tons. . Was not this a great advance, and were the shipping,interests not indebted to the work of that large class who were now sitting round ithat table? . But the colonial ships by no means answered all their require monts, for they had upwards of 100 . vessels trading from Gfoat Britain alone. The time might come when New Zealand might not belong to the British Crown—though he trusted that time would never come (loud cheers)—the time might come when they might be told to protect themselves, and then the importance, of the shipping ■ interests would be shown and fully appreciated. The best men in the British navy were those drafted from the mercantile marine. In the colonial marine there were upwards of 12,000 seamen employed, who it it should ever bo required would form the nucleus of a good colonial navy. (Cheers.) ; ; Of O’Connor, who has lately been nibbling after laud in the King country, and who formerly was in negotiation with the then disaffected To Hira for the acquisition of enormous areas in the Upper Thames District, the ‘Auckland [Jerald says We are informed that Mr. O’Connor is desirous of negotiating for the purchase of ■ 500,000 acres of land in the King country, for a special settlement scheme, -aud that he .would prefer ,it at Waikato.

The Timor u Herald, writing-oil the retire-'j ment of Mr. Stafford from,political life, says ; I “ In losing bim from her 'councils, the colony j loses not only a politician, but a maker of politicians. Without ever claiming any innate superiority, or affecting the ' part of a Triton among the minnows, there is no denying that he has towered over the highest of his fellows. His lofty intellect, his wealth of resources, his untiring industry, his perfect situ* le-mindedness ; enhanced a hundred-fold by that nameless grace which made everybody trust and esteem him as much as they admired him ; have constituted him the'very, model of a public man, in a country, where good models are of incalculable value.” • A young man named James Augustus Hall has been arrested on warrant at Williamstown, Victoria, charged with stealing bis father’s will. The prisoner, with other mourners, attended the funeral of the late James Hall, who was interred in the Williamstown Cemetery, and afterwards returned home to Cecil-street, where the decease I’s will was read by Dr. Finn. Seeing that all his father’s property was left to his stepmother and a young sister, Had snatched the document from the doctor’s handand rushed out of the bouse. About nine o’clock the same evening the will was found by the police on the premises torn to pieces. The latest railway novelty in America is a Turkish bath on wheels. It is a car that can run behind the sleeping coaches of an express train. It has a drawing-room, a Russian and plunge bath, shampooing rooms, and all the other accommodations of a Turkish bathhouse. The temperature of, the rooms varies from 80 to 160 degrees, and the compartments are lighted from the roof with blue glass. : Travellers can bathe as well as eat, drink, and sleep on the rail. Such a car can be switched off on a side track in any town or village, and remain a day or two for the accommodation of the residents. Tidings are to hand (says the Mel bourne Age) of Mr. O. E. Jones, a wellknown Victorian politician, and formerly Minister of Railways. We hive before us a letter in his handwriting, bearing date 85, South Grace-street, Chicago, 19th December, 1877- It is written in reply to a gentleman residing in this city, who sent a letter of condolence to' Mr. Jones’s daughter under the impression that her father was dead. He says—- “ I am now editor in chief and one-third proprietor of the Wcsferrt Era, a new paper, which commences almost immediately to be pub ished in this city of Chicago,' but I fear it won’t make.mnch money.. I have been editing the Spirit of the Turf, a horseman's paper. But of course my sympathies are with men rather than with horses, although some horses are ! better than many men. I hare written many books since my departure from Victoria, and am now engaged on two, but my chief delight is to pile up material for lectures on America and its Congtess, which may yet tickle the ears of Victorians.' It my means would permit I should lecture in this country extensively on. Victoria and its people, because I am sure that thousands of men with shekels of silver and gold would migrate across the Pacific it only the truth were known, asking no aid except the information that I could supply.” . ' Further improvements,' says the Dunedin Morning Herald, are being effected at the Industrial School A gang of prisoners from Governor Caldwell’s establishment is engaged laying 500 ft. of piping, and ;erecting; a firstclass force-pump, which ;will be worked by crank and fly-wheel. The number of children recently in the institution was 234, but some of them have been drafted into service, and the inmates now number 226. They are reported to be “ exceedingly well,” though of the 25 infants now being nursed by the Stats two are rather delicate. Mr. Titchener, the master of the institution, informs us that during the present month only one child has been sent to the Industrial School, and ,this wa? ' immediaately licensed to a gentleman in the city. Mr. Henry Houghton (the newly-appointed Honorary Inspector of the school, vice Mr. John Hislop, resigned) is taking a'deep interest in the welfare of the institution.

Mr. Severn (say's the Dunedin Times), whose popular lectures on scientific subjects attracted such large audiences here about nine mbntha ago, has been lecturing at Brisbane on “ Galvanism, Electricity, .and the Telephone.” In the course of his rflmarks upon the telephone, Mr. Severn observed that the brain was in itself a small galvanic battery of 'some kind or other, in proof of which he said that by means of half-a-dozen sheep’s heads, freshly decapitated, a Morse’s instrument would send a message to Sydney. It ought not to be supposed that the telephone had been invented all of a sudden—picked up, as it were, with a pitchfork. Professor Graham Bell and his father had been for years investigating the human voice and the organisation of the human ear. The lecturer then exhibited a model he hud caused to be made, and the instruments of his own manufacture, and explained, as on previous occasions, the method of construction and the principle involved. The sounds which were sent by means of one instrument, he explained, could be multiplied and heard at any number of instruments at the other end ; and ordinary fence wires being sufficiently isolated for the purpose, it would be possible for orders to be sent from the head station on a run to any of the out-stations situated near the fence by the' use of the telephone. He also stated that by means of the telephone, the electric wire could be “ tapped ” at any part, and messages in transmission read. ‘' Petroleum has recently been successfully employed for the removal and prevention of scale in steam boilers, also foi the removal of deposits from water pipes where the water contains large quantities of lime.; It has the effect of penetrating and rotting the scale, causing it to become; porous and disengage itself from the surface to which it is attached. It is a very simple remedy, and can be used in small q anr.ities without any difficulty whatever, say about a quart every week for a twenty-five horse-power boiler, and in quantities more or less, according to the size of the boilers. It may be introduced in the feed water or through the safety valve, or in any way most convenient for that purpose ; but to be effective must be pure. The heavy oil used for lubricating purposes in cold situations is the most efficient, as the refined oil of this description is of no use, as it is soon expelled by the heat. ,

England has 152 active vessels and 350 in reserve, 60,000 sailors with 3000 officers, and 15.000 marines with 326 officers, and 10 monster ironclads. France has 115 active vessels and 78 in reserve, 48,000 sailors with 1800 officers, and 16,000 marines with 780 officers, 3 mounter ironclads and 9 smaller coast boats. Germany has 61 active vessels and 48 in reserve, 8000 soldiers and marines wi‘h 500 officers and 3 ironclads. Russia has 158 active vessels, mostly small, 60,000 sailors, with 2000; officers, only one-third serving on board ship, and one monster ironclad. Austria has 68' active vessels, 7000 sailors with 500 officers.! Italy has 65 active vessels.. 12,000 sailors, with, 425 officers and 3000 m irines, with 115 officers and 2 monster ironclads, the largest iu existence, carrying 8 100-ton guns. Turkey has 57 active vessels, and 28 in reserve, 36.000 sailors and marines, with 1000 officers and 7 ironclads. Spain has 128 active vessels, 1 21.000 sailors and marines with officers, and 3 small ironclads. Greece has 21 active vessels, 7000 sailots and marines. Denmark has 33 active vessels, 10,000 sailors and marines. Holland has 87 active vessels, 13,000 sailors and marines. ; i

A Ballarat paper is responsible for the following grim joke : —“ A witty member of the Oivil Service, residing in the Ballarat District/ made arrangements; with a friend some time ago to join him in a walking tour through Victoria and Tasmania in January,,lß7B, Neither gentlemen, however, kept the engagement, and last week the oivil servant received a note from his friend, in which the latter .stated that a dangerous illness had prevented his fulfilling his appointment. Our civil servant,/ who had only kept his office by the. merest chance in the world during the recent dismissals, replied, “DearO , don't apologise for not meeting me at Melbourne as agreed upon, for, like yourself, 1 did not keep tryst. The cause was somewhat similar in both bases ; you were in danger of dying,.and I was ‘within an ace of Using Berried.”

Rcferriug to die -ieuosits of shale th.ap: have t’or- aiyhinjg time been known, to exist .in the -Orepuki District, the Southland News'sn-y* : “ The absolute certainty of possession of a practically unlimited supply of amineral iucoustaat demand would certainly afford another reason for pushing on with the railway between; Riverton and Orepuki, without which the yas coal, timber, and other resources of* the district are of- no more use to the colony than money would be to a man on an island of which he was the solitary occupant.” < Says :—Leatherlegs is on© of the fine old type of cattle-owners, the cardinal point in whose squatting faith is a free range over his neighbors’ runs and no questions asked. Backblock* invited him the other day to join him iu fencing the dividing boundary. L. at once looked serious. *• Well, you know,” said he, “ Boyd wants me to fence, and Jenkins, and now you ! Why, the end of it will, be, I’ll be fenced all round, and hang it, man, I’ll have nothing left but my own run ” According to Sir William Stilling-'-axwell (says the Bailie of December sth) our countrymen are being educated out of house and home. “People,” says he, “are emigrating from these islands in order to escape the pressure of a too costly education, just as they emigrate from other countries to escape military conscription,” and this remark, it seems, applies more particularly to. the far North,' | This is a terrible state of matters. What between ship, deer, ami the School Board to say nothing of amiable enthusiasts like Professor Blackie, who want to prevent him from learning "English, John Hielau’man is having a rough time of it. Lieutenant-Colonel ’ G. Denison, of the Canadian Volunteer Force, has just been awarded the prize of 6000 roubles offered by the Russian Government for the best book on the “ History of Cavalry.” There were competitors belonging to all countries, and it is singular that Lieutenant-Colonel Denison, who never served in the regulars, should have produced a work deemed by the Russian authorities superior -to all its competitors. The money value of the prize, though considerable, is comparatively little as compared with the honor of being deemed the best cavalry historian. We are requested, to notify that Mr. ,N. J. Isaacs’ sale of wines, etc., at Messrs. Eddie and Jack’s stores in Manners-street, has been postponed till to-day on account of yesterday beingr licensing day.