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New Zealand Times, Volume XXXIII, Issue 5358, 30 May 1878, Page 2

His Excellency the. Marquis of Nomanby proceeds to Lyttelton to-day by the Hinemoa. The Hon. the Premier (Sir George Grey), the Hon. Mr. Sheehan, and the Hon. Mr. Hoani Nahe, arrived by the Hinemoa yesterday. We understand that Captain Maling and family will leave Wellington for Lyttelton to-day in the Hinemoa en route for England. Mr. Clark, C.E., left by the steamer Taup° yesterday. His Worship the Mayor and several of the Councillors, and also Mr. Baird, the city engineer, and Mr. "Graham, the town clerk, accompanied Mr. Clark on board the steamer previous to her departure, Mr. J. W. Preece, who succeeded Mr. J ames Maokay as Native Lauds Purchase Commissioner in the Thames 'District, has come to Wellington for the purpose of obtaining information as to transactions for the purchase of native lands, which had not been completed when Mr. Maokay left office. ". A parcel of iron sand from Taranaki is to be sent to England for Sir John Coode, who intends to have experiments made to test its commercial value. Some day the titaniferous deposits on the Taranaki beach will, become of value, and we hope that the tests to be conducted for Sir John Coode may lead to the discovery of a mode of working up the sands that will cause a market demand for it. •As a new morgue has been erected in Tara-naki-place, and as inquests are now held there, instead of in the old building at the bottom of Ouba-streot, it is very misleading to find the words “ public morgue ” still painted on the old market house. Yesterday a witness and a juror summoned to attend at the inquest on the body of Charles Meadows were in attendance at the old morgue punctual to the time fixed; and half-an-hour elapsed before, they discovered that the inquest was being, held elsewhere! t To ; prevent any further mis-; understanding, it would be -well to obliterate the words “public morgue” from the building which is no longer used for the purpose. It is stated that there is every probability of the Working Men’s Industrial Exhibition being a great success!' The committeej and Mr. K, W. Cary, the manager, are leaving ho stone unturned to effect this desirable result. Replies have Iseeh received from Christchurch to the effect that several large oil paintings and crayons will be forwarded, and from Wanganui satisfactory replies ! have also been received. Dunedin, Auckland, and Napier have not yet responded, but' doubtless these towns will also send several works of art. Prom his Excellency the Goyerpor a letter has been received, intimating that he will forward for exhibition a case : of stuffed Queensland: birds. Several local artists of, Wellington, have expressed their intention of displaying original pictures, &c. The committee will be glad to have' sent to them any object of interest or curiosity, and an assurance is given that every care will be taken of everything .so. forwarded,'which will be returned at the close of, the exhibition—that is, in about a mouth’s time from its commencement. Prom a private source we learn that Mr, Sothern and his company are playing to good business in Wanganui. Mr. D. Clinton, who left ■ Wellington ■ with the others of the company, has been unable to perform. Mr.' Clinton had been confined >to his bed for some days prior to leaving" for Wanganui, and his fllqess there bad assumed such a serious aspect that doubts of his recovery wore entertained yesterday.

The s.s. Hinemoa; which arrived here fr.cn Auckland yesterday, brought down £SOO • worth of new copper coin.

Mr. Allan McMastor, farmer at Saddle Hill, was killed on Thursday at Brighton by a fall from his horse..

' The plant used in the construction of the Napier Harbor Works will be sold on Tuesday, June -i th, at Napier.

Several persons have been summoned by the Inspector of Nuisances for allowing cattle and horses to wander in the Te Aro district. We again remind our readers that another of the popular entertainments by St. John’s choir will he held in the Willis-street schoolroom this evening. ' ‘ The arrival of thes.s. Busby from Newcastle yesterday, with a cargo of coal for Wellington, was very opportune, and has removed all fear of a coal famine.

Messrs. B.vgnall Brothers, who have a lease of the Hauraki saw-mills, Thames River, have turned out during a twedve-mouth no less than two rud a quarter million million feet of sawn kahikatea.

One of the cooks on board the steamer Easby accidently fell down the hatchway into the steerage part of the vessel yesterday afternoon. Fortunately, beyond a severe shaking, he sustained no injury. We regret that Mr. Jordan, clerk assistant of the Legislative Council, who has been in bad health for a considerable time, is now so ill as to cause very serious alarm to his family and friends.

The ordinary monthly meeting of the Education Board was held yesterday. The business was of a purely formal character. A report of the proceedings will be found in another column. Mr. Thos. Macffariane has been nominated by the Grafton Hoad School Committee to the seat at the Central Board of Education rendered vacant by the resignation of Mr. H. H. Lusk.

The Hou. Mr. Sheehan will leave by the Hinemoa for Lyttelton to-day, in order to attend the native meeting at Kaiapoi. The Maoris assembled there are anxiously awaiting the arrival of the Hon. the Native Minister, who certainly will not lose any time in Wellington. Mr. Harry Simmons, the well-known comedian, was to leave Wellington by the s.s. Easby late last night for the purpose of joining Mr, Hoskins’s company at the. Theatre Royal, Christchurch. Mr. Simmons’ wife—Mrs. Tilly Andrews—is leading lady at the Christchurch Theatre.

Nothing has yet been settled as to the next lessee of the Imperial Opera House, hut in all probability it will be Mr. Wm. Hoskins, of Christchurch. If Mr. Hoskins takes the Opera House, the playgoers of Wellington may rely on having something presented to them that will be worthy of their patronage,] Yesterday the coroner imposed a fine of ss. for non-attendance mi a person named W. Marshall, who was summoned as a juror at the inquest on the body of Charles Meadows. The fine is so small thatdoubtless many persons would prefer paying it te being compelled to serve as a juror and as a consequence view the body of a deceased fellow being. - A memorial of Ohinerauri residents, addressed to Councillors Mitchell and Thorp, the representatives of the Ohinemuri riding in the Thames County Councils has been published, calling upon them to convene a meeting of the ratepayers of the riding to consider the advisability of petitioning Parliament to separation, and the constitution of an independent county for that district. A gentleman passing through Wellington from Auckland informs us that the reigning stars in that city—Mr. John Jack and Miss Firman—are playing to only moderate business. Mr. Jack’s Falstaff is spoken of in high terms by our informant, but in other parts he speaks of him as an actor of the very mechanical school. It is doubtful whether Mr. De Lias will travel southward with his present company.

We would; direct the attention of the authorities to the great danger that exists in many parts of the city through quantities of building material being deposited on the roadway, with little or no precautions being taken to prevent accidents. There is a building at present in course of erection on Lambtouquay nearly opposite to Messrs. Wilson and Richardson’s, and not only is the whole of the footpath monopolised by: the; builders, but a large quantity of, timber has been stacked up to a distance of. several yards across the roadway. Last night a: lamp placed at either end of the temporary footway for pedestrians only served to make the darkness visible, while there was no light at the outside of the timber to warn drivers as to the distance it encroached over the roadway. It is all very well to afford builders reasonable facilities for carrying out their contracts, but it is quite another thing to allow them to convert a great part of the public thoroughfare into a brick and timber yard, to the great danger of the public.

At the new morgue in Taranaki-place, at two o’clock'yesterday afternoon, an inquest was held before Dr. Johnson, coroner, and a jury, on the body of Charles Meadows, who was found dead bn the previous evening at the bottom of the steps leading up to Plagstaff Hill. Evidence was given as to the finding of the deceased at the place above-mentioned; aiid the testimony of Dr. Harding, by whom a ■post mortem examination was made, went to show that death had resulted from apoplexy. The jury, in accordance with the medical evidence, returned a verdict of “ Death from natural causes. It is stated that the deceased had been a resident of Wellington for nearly thirty-eight years. ~ Thin attendances at the Theatre Royal have been rather the rule than the exception for some time past, and it was not surprising, 'therefore, to find the repetition of the- “ Octoroon” last night was 1 witnessed by a rather mediocre audience. As placed on the stage last evening, the piece was fairly presented, and although faults were apparent in its production,! yet, as an entire performance, it could not be said to be",devoid of considerable merit. , The assumption of: the herioiie, by Miss Marion Willis, was very creditable to that lady, and in the pathetic scenes she acquitted herself with undoubted merit. Uncle Pete is one of those parts • that Mr. Sam Howard plays as a kind of speciality, and to say he is n great deal better in the part than most actors who have assumed it on the New Zealand stage is no exaggeration. Mrs. ■ Hesford’s juvenile appearance was much against her as Mrs. Peyton, and Miss’Lizzie Laurence’s Dora Sunnysides was only a passable performance, i As Salem, Soudder, Mr. Walton’s make-up was not in correct keeping with the original, and in’the early part of the first scene his artioulation was too rapid, but in the scene with Jacob McOlosky he : acted capitally, and throughout the remainder of the piece > there was exceedingly little to cavil at. Miss Bell’s Paul was exceptionally good. Mr. Eeogh, as Jacob McOlosky, looked the ruffian, and acted the part of one to the letter, but‘ho was a great deal too , boisterous at the end of the second act, and ranted with more than pardonable license. Mr. Hesfordmade a good Squire Sunnysidss. Astothescenery,theset inthefirstact was very creditable to all concerned in its production, but the marine scene in the second act ? possessed very little artistic merit. A creditable centre. door scene swas presented in the third actand tho auction scene was made most amusing by the droll I humor infused into it by Uncle Pete. This evening Mr. Hesford will take his farewell benefit, and the performances will he under the patronage of the Loyal Britannia ■ and Antipodean Lodges, 1.0.0. F., M.U. The programme comprises “ Ten Nights in a Bar-room,” and the farce entitled “The Spitfire.” . As an exceedingly painstaking . actor; and one who is invariably well up in the parts allotted to him, wo trust that on the ■ occasion of his farewell benefit to-night Mr. Hesford will bo greeted by a bumper house. ■ On Thursday morning, the 23rd iust. (says the Patca Mail), it was reported in Carlyle that 'a butcher, named' James Hargreaves, well known throughout the district, had been drowned m the Patea River. Sergeant Whelan on being informed made all possible inquiries,' and searched the river bank, along which wore found footprints in one direction, but no signs of the body.. It appears that Hargreaves left the Boiling-down Company’s works near the Heads on Wednesday. About 5.30 a.m. on Thursday, Daniel Ball, steward of the s.s. Clyde, which vessel was lying at Hirst’s wharf, heard some one palling out “ Steward, steward,” the voice apparently coming from across the river. Mr. Ball turned out on” dock, but it was too to sec far. Whllii bu deck 1 he again heard cries of f Oh, oh,” and sounds as of some one struggling in the water. 1 He 1 immediately pulled off in the boat in the direction of tho cries for_help, but failed .to discover janything. It is believed, Hargreaves,' attracted, by the ' light of the stoamer, had ‘ stood on tho opposite; bank, and while calling for help had rolled'over into the river, or that ho had attempted to swim across

and got drjwaed. The ert-w of the steamer; as soon as daylight npp .iv.l, searched both sides of the river to the Heads, but could find nothing of the body. As Hargreaves.is nowhere to be found it is concluded he has been drowned. Search is still being made for the body, Sergeant AVhelan having dragged up and down the river. We understand that the water has now been laid on to the Lunatic Asylum. This will be a great benefit, especially in the case of fire. The Inspector of Nuisances has summoned three persons who were breaking in a young horse in Sydney-street. The occurrence took place on Sunday while the church bells were ringing. The offenders will appear at the Resident Magistrate’s Court to-morrow. Fully 150 spectators (says the Wanganui . Chronicle of the 27th last.) assembled on the racecourse at two o'clock on Saturday afternoon, to witness the trotting match between Mr. Mnlvor’s hny horse Charlie, of Auckland repute, and Mr. Quinlivau’s grey mare Winifred, which has been in the district some few months. The stakes were £25 a side, and the distance five miles, which was accomplished by Charlie in 1 Grain. 39sec., there being no breaks ; the mare was some 50 yards behind. Both trotted well together for three miles, but generalship on a good staying horse won the race. Messrs. Mcßae and Chadwick acted as referees, and rode with the horses.