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New Zealand Times, Volume XXXIII, Issue 5294, 14 March 1878, Page 2

The San Francisco mail, which arrived in Auckland by the Australia on Tuesday, is expected in Wellington by the Taranaki on Friday next. We hear that Sir George Grey may be expected back in Wellington in the course of a few days, and that the Hinemoa will be despatched to Lyttelton to-day to await him. He is expected to be in Christchurch on Friday. • . Amongst the passengers from the South by the Hinemoa yesterday were the Hon. Mr, Stout, tho new Attorney-General, and the Hon. Mr. Macandrew. The latter gentleman, we understand, will officiate as Minister of Public Works, in the room of Mr, Laruach, who, as our readers are aware, has gone on a visit to England. The quarterly meeting of the Licensing Court' for the Hutt District was held at noon yesterday. Tho commissioners present were J. O. Crawford, Esq. (chairman), J. Grace, and W. Beetham, Bsqrs. The business done was confined to the confirmation of a transfer of a license from Mr. C. F. Worth to Mr. W. B. Prosser, for the Travellers’ Best Hotel, Taila. At a meeting of the Benevolent Society on Tuesday the following subscriptions were received :—Messrs. Felton, Grimwade, and Co., £2 25.; Mr. O. Bennington, £2 25.; Mr. Hill, £1 Is.; the Bev. B. W. Harvey, £1; Mr. Boe, 10s. 6d.; Mr. Luhuing.-lOs. • Several cases of distress were considered and relieved. Tho V.en. Archdeacon Stock, who presided, gave notice to move at the next meeting, that Mr. Crawford, 8.M., he requested to resign the chairmanship of the society. A meeting of persons whose names have been recommended, and of others desirous of joining the Christian Young Men’s Association, will he held at the Congregational Church, Woodward-street,' to-morrow evening, at seven o’clock. The objects of this association are most laudable, and many young men will no doubt have cause in years to come to rejoice that they have become members of such au institution. We hope therefore to see a full attendance ou this occasion, and that a large number of the rising youth of the district will become members.

, Tho Bev. Gervase Smith will preach this evening in the Wesleyan Church, Mauuersatreet, at half-past 7 o’clock, and a collection will bs made in aid of the funds of the Wellington Benevolent Society. The excellence of the cause, and the eloquence of the preacher, are certainly calculated to draw a large congregation. It is well to bear in mind that notwithstanding the. general prosperity of the community there are nevertheless, as is sure to be the case, everywhere, isolated cases of distress and suffering, which our Benevolent Society inquires carefully into, and relieves so far as the limited means at its disposal admits. At the present moment the : funds are insufficient to meet the urgent demands made upon them. The 1 proceeds of. the collection to-day will therefore prove a very seasonable windfall indeed. It has been suggested to us, and the idea appears a good one, that if some Sunday, were set apart for services - in aid of this object in,all the churches, a sufficient amount might be raised to enable the Benevolent Society to afford assistance in several pressing cases.

. There was no business at the Assessment ■ ■Cpurt at the Hutt yesterday. ? ' ■-■■ib; St. Patrick’s Day (the 17th inst.) falling on a :Suhday this year, the hbliday/will be kept oh the Monday following, on which day the banks will be closed. . An application for a transfer of the license of the Custom House Hotel, at Wanganui,* to Mr. Edwards, late of the Waterloo Hotel, Kaiwarra, has been refused. A telegram in an' Otago paper "states" that h£r. John Martin, of, this city, will shortly be, called to the Legislative Council, in the' room of the late Hr. Rhodes. Captain E. W. Sullivan, C.R., who commanded the Harrier during the New Zealand war of 1863-4, is now commander on the Cape and West African'station. ■ ; The leasehold of a dwelling-house, shop, and two acres of land at Karori was offered for sale by, Messrs. : Beauchamp, Campbell, and Cp. yesterday. £145 was bid for the property, but the reserve being £IBO, it’was withdrawn. . - We again take the opportunity of reminding our readers that the autumn show of the Wellington Horticultural, Society will take place to-day at the Odd Eellows’-Hall. The doors will be open to the public at 2 o’clock As this is the last show of the season and is likely to be a good one, we would advise all lovers of flowers to pay a visit. A meeting of creditors in" the estate of Abraham Scott, of Wellington, hawker, was to have been held yesterday at noon, at the Supreme Court House, but as there was not,-a sufficient .number of present to form a quorum, the meeting was adjourned until to-day, at the same time and place. - The liabilities in this case are set down at £1349, and the assets at £636. At the Lower Hutt Resident Magistrate’s Court yesterday, James Hobbs was fined 20s, for drunkenness. Johu Chaney was fined 20s. and costs for allowing a cow to stray over the railway line.’ :: On the civil side, J. H. Rose sued W. Phillips for £1 3s. sd. The amount was paid into Court. 'ln the case of Horbittle v. *J. Ereeraan, a claim of £l6 12s. 9Jd., judgment was given for the amount, with costs. : Mr. Stephen Massett’s olla podrida of song, story, 1 sentiment, and comicality•; will come off on Eriday at the Odd Eellows’ Hall, and wo expect to see a crowded house, as elsewhere, not only in this colony, but in various portions of Europe and America, he has, in his single-handed entertainment,, succeeded in attracting large and enthusiastic audiences. The leading journals in England and America, from the London Times to the New York Trihunt, fferald, and World, are highly complimentary and even enthusiastic about' his performances; and we anticipate much pleasure in listening to his “ Song and Chat ol Travel.”

A team of the. late Wainuiomata Volunteers, at the invitation of Captain Thompson, of the Kaiwarra Volunteers, paid a visit tp the latter at Kaiwarra, oh Monday last. The team, with their wives and families, arrived early, at about nine o’clock, and were entertained by Captain Thompson, who provided them with a substantial breakfast, after which they made their way to the butts, and a match was fired between them and: the Kaiwarra marksmen, which proved a very close one, the visitors winning: by a siuall majority. In the evening a “big,feed” of all sorts of good things was laid out in the schoolroom, which was done ample justice to. : Aftsr all hungry souls were satisfied, Lieutenant Cameron, on behalf of the Kaiwarra Volunteers, presented .Captain Thompson with a most handsome silver cup, with his name inscribed on it and the date of the presentation, and expressed in a few well-chosen, sentences the regard and esteem which the company at large felt-for their captain, for the energetic and persevering manner in which he always worked for the interest of the corps. Captain Thompson then thanked the volunteers,' and .expressed his sense of the honor, and gratification at. the' presentation, and stated that as far as he possibly could he had always, he thought, con-, scientiouslydonehis utmost forthe benefit of the company, and he hoped would continue to do so. (Cheers.) He then explained that, owing to the new volunteer regulations .requiring every company to be fifty strong, the Waiuui corps, being unable to recruit that number, were consequently disbanded, and it had required the most strenuous efforts on his part to raise the standard number.: Tables, &c.,' being cleared away, some of the lady visitors favored the party with some extremely nice : singing, and a quartett was rendered in a really exquisite manner, getting very heartily encored. Dancing was indulged in till ten o'clock, when the late Captain of the W ainuis stated that he wished to thank the Kaiwarra people for the hearty manner in which they had entertained them, and he invited the Kaiwarras to fix a return match at Kaiwarra next month. Captain Thompson then responded, thanked him, and accepted the invitation on behalf of his corps. After some cheering, the party left, all expressing satisfaction. Mr. Brandon, M. IT. R. for the Country Districts, was present during part of the evening. After the departure of the guests dancing was , renewed till an early hour in the morning. The Alburnia claim, at the Thames, after paying a 15s. dividend last month, has declared another , of 10s., with £IOOO added to the reserve fund. This ‘ claim is one of the best on the field, and has paid steady dividends for the last twelve months. ■ It has been calculated (says the Hokitika Star) that the Eiver Clutha discharges into the ocean 1,600,000 cubic feet of water per minute, being a larger quantity than the Nile, and sixteen times that of the Thames. It is at present navigable 59 miles from its mouth, and presents no engineering difficulties to prevent navigation to its source, within 55 miles of the West Coast. The Wairarapa Register of the 11th instant says : —“ There were some heavy floods in the rivers on Sunday morning. The Tauherenikau was bank high in both channels, while the Waiohine sent a large body of : water through Greytown, crossing the street near the Rising Sun Hotel, and washing a small portion .of the footpath away. At the northern end of the town it ran through a number of houses. It is said to be the highest flood that has occurred for three years. The Waingawa ran over both ends of the bridge, but like the others did no damage. The Ruamahunga and Waipoua were also very high.” The contract has just been accepted (says the Otago Times of the 3th instant) for the beginning of what there is every reason to believe will grow to a permanent and important industry in our midst. We refer to the projected establishment of a rope manufactory at South Dunedin. Mr. Donaghy, who is proprietor of a large manufactory of a similar description in Geelong, Victoria, has been for some little time in Dunedin making the preliminary arrangements for the beginning of operations. Having purchased a block of land in South Dunedin, he has had laborers engaged in doing the draining and embanking necessary to form a rope-walk, and the contract to which we referred at the outset is that for building a shed over this walk. Messrs. Paul and Miller are the contractors. The building will probably be begun on Monday. A good deal of Mr. Douaghy’s manufacture of rope has hitherto been imported from Victoria, and by way of a quid pro quo Mr. Donaghy has supplied himself with New Zealand flax for his manufacturing purposes. The machinery for the proposed works here will be mainly brought from Victoria, but some portions of it we believe are to be ordered from San Francisco, The machinery from Victoria is expected to arrive here about the end of April, and then no time will be lost in getting things under way. Buildings will be at once erected, and wo may expect shortly to witness the establishment by private enterprise of an important, and there is every reason to hope, successful local industry. f ■ The Hongkong Daily Press, quoting from an exchange, says that a snake, seventeen or eighteen feet long and three feet in circumference, has been caught alive in a cave in Tokakushi Mountain, , Shinano. It was; to be taken to tho Osaka Museum. ■ ,

says it is expected that the Railway, will be completed between the Rimutaka: and Eeatherston in about four months time.*

Tl ia - Otago Daily Times of Monday last says The young man William Armstrong, who recently sustained serious injuries at the gymnasium, still lies in a very critical con* dition at the hospital.

A man named E. Rose, says the Otago Daily Times of the 11th insfc., was admitted to the hospital ou Saturday evening, suffering- from physipal weakness .- and, .mental ' excitement. twice attempted to commit suicido at Oamaru, once by trying to drown himself, and again by cutting his and was take* into custody by- the police,"and by them re* movedto theDunedinHospital. A ludicrous printer’s error, says the Auckland lately appeared in the Otago Daily Tin** ih .a report of Dr. Stuart’s speech at the Knox Church annual meeting. The rev. gentleman , was made to'speak of some of hif parishioners as ct members /of the church who had passed away to heaven, while others had been transferred to the other place.” The Times in explanation makes matters worse by sayihg “ the other place” is Wellington. We should like to know what the' Wellingtomans have to say about it. ; ;;! The New ‘Zealand Retold of March 7 says “By the last steamer from Sydney two gentlemen arrived here bn behalf of, themselves and several othersrwith a view of selecting blocks of. land to settle upon.; They waited, upon Mr. Tole, the Commissioner of/Crown Lands,* and Chief Commissioner' of the Waste Lands Board, who afforded them all the information he could both with regard to the different blocks available for settlement and the conditions upon which they could either select or The commissioner also promised them a perusal of the several recent land laws, and gave instructions to get maps of the, land . they desired to inspect. Pastoral and agricultural farming operations in.the colony of Net? South Wales during the last. few years have been carried on under great disadvantages, owing to a variety of circumstances, .but principally from extended dry periods, making expenditure heavy, with no corresponding return for outlay. This state of things has been so much felt during the last year, that many persons are very desirous of leaving that colony to settle in New Zealand.”