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New Zealand Times, Volume XXXIII, Issue 5370, 13 June 1878, Page 2

A message received from the Telegraph Department last night states that the Port Darwin line is all right again. It will be seen by reference to our telegrams that Mr. Dumsden, M.H.R., has resigned his seat for Invercargill. The Corporation cases, with regard to street obstructions, will come on for hearing at the Resident Magistrate's Court this morning.

Some information as to the unsettled state of the kerosene market will be found in another column.

It is notified in our advertising columns that a special general meeting of the Wellington Chamber of Commerce will be held to-morrow (Friday): afternoon, at three o’clock, to consider the action of the City Corporation in reference to kerosene oil. Members are particularly requested to attend, and to accept the notice by advertisement, as no circulars will be sent round.

Mr. McGowan, whose accident' at THe Brothers was reported in yesterday’s issue, was brought to Wellington by the Stella last night. A stretcher was placed on the companion, and so strapped down to it as to prevent as much as possible the sufferer from being shaken, and every kindness and attention was shown to him on the passage up. Dr. Johnston went on board immediately after the arrival of the steamer, and after some little delay Mr. McGowan was removed to the Hospital, where he now lies under treatment.

Unless a suitable offer tor the purchase by private contract o£ “Ludlam’s Gardens" at the Hutt be made shortly, the property ■will, it is understood, be brought into the market and sold at auction, the result of which will probably bo that it will fall iuto the hands of some land speculator, who will cut it up into small allotments, and re-sell it at a profit to himself, but to its utter destruction ns a pleasure ground. At a recent meeting of the Wellington Horticultural Society the matter was brought under notice, but nothing definite was done respecting it. In a former issue we gave a description of this pleasantly-situated and charming domain of thirty-five acres, pointing out how desirable it was that an attempt should be made to acquire it as a public recreation ground. From that time wo have heard nothing more of the matter, and the probabilities are that these gardens, which as a nursery ground for rearing plants of almost every description are unsurpassed in the colony, will fall into private hands. The city of Wellington is wanting in public gardens, and it will bo a pity it the opportunity now offered bo lost.

A correspondent, referring to the recent escape of the Athenasum, attributes the fire to the fact that the West Wanganui coal, which has been lately burnt there, keeps alight after it has been reduced to a fine ash. It is likely that some of this had been thrown on the dustheap, and had set fire to the wood. Our correspondent points out that it is enacted by the list section of the Public Health Act, 1876, that it shall not be lawful to erect any new house, or to rebuild any house, unless a proper ashpit is provided, and section 42 states that if the Inspector of Eiiisanoes reports that there is no sufficient ashpit at any such building, the local body may require the owner or occupier to provide one, to be constructed as may be from time to time prescribed by the Board. This will be news to a groat many people. The 11.10 a.m. train to the Upper Hutt did not start yesterday till 11.24, but the lost time was made good on the way up, as the train arrived at its destination punctually, according to the time-table, /

A memorandum received yesterday from the Telegraph Department informs us that the Tasmanian cable is interrupted.

The Revision Court was to have sat at the Upper Hutt yesterday, but there was no business for disposal. Mr. Sohwabe, of Wellington, architect, &o. has been awarded the premium for the best design for the new club-house at Masterton, and also for the new court-house, Wanganui.

A correspondent asks the attention of the City Council to the wretched condition of Thompsuu-street. Recent slips from the steep banks have made the roadway quite impassable.

At the Resident Magistrate’s Court yesterday Frank James Smith was remanded to Melbourne on a charge of obtaining money by false pretences. The prisoner left by the Ringarooma in the afternoon, in custody of Senior Constable McCormick, of the Melbourne police force.

Mr. Walton took a farewell benefit last night in the Odd Fellows’ Hall. Every available seat was occupied, and the performance passed off most satisfactorily. “ His Last Legs ” formed the principal item in the programme, in which Mr. Walton was highly amusing.

Miss Lizzie Morgan’s benefit, at the Theatre Royal to-night, promises to be a great success pecuniarily and otherwise, as a good programme will be submitted, and a large number of seats have already been secured. A running match between two local amateurs, Messrs. G-. Howe and A. Wratt, came off on the Basin Reserve last evening. The distance was one mile, and was accomplished by Howe in smin. 22secs., his opponent being about 50yds. behind at the finish.

It is intended to make alterations in the time-table of the Wanganui-Foxton railway, with the view of giving more lime for the shunting and handling of goods trucks. It is probable that under the proposed arrangements the journey will occupy nearly two hours longer than at present. Messrs,. J. H. Bethune and Co. sold yesterday the following properties :—An allotment of land in Howes-lane, leading from Dixoustreet, 84ft. by a depth of 75ft., together with a convenient six-roomed dwelling-house, twostall stable, and out-houses, for £7OO. Mr. W. B. Howe was the purchaser. Also, an allotment of land in the same locality, having a frontage of 33ft. by a depth of 66£t., planted with fruit trees, for £7 10s. per foot, to Mr. Ivor James. After which, the whole of the furniture and effects of the late Mr. John Howe were sold, and realised satisfactory prices.

At the Resident Magistrate’s Court, Upper Hntt, yesterday, one prisoner was fined 205., or forty-eight hours’ imprisonment in default, for being drunk and disorderly. Richard Hagan was ordered to pay 10s. a week towards the support of an illegitimate child, of which Mary Ann Pearson deposed he was the father. An ordinary meeting of the City Council will be held this evening at half-past seven o’clock. The following is the business on the order paper :—Report on the removal of nightsoil (adjourned;. Clause 9 of Public Works Committee’s report of 30th May (postponed),— That the question of permitting the erection of brickworks on part of Town Belt Reserve No. 13, has been remitted to be dealt with by the Council. Public Works Committee’s report. Tenders for furniture for new premises. Appointment of inspecting officer under the Dangerous Goods Act, 1869. Accounts. Notices of motion:—Councillor Macdonald to move, —That the report of the Te Aro Reclamation Committee, adopted by the Council on the 4th day of April last, be hereby rescinded, and that the City Solicitor be requested to incorporate in the Te Aro Reclamation Bill he is now drafting (to lay before the General Assembly next session) a clause to the effect that the rights of all parties whose lands abut on or have frontage to the harbor of Port Nicholson shall be ascertained and dealt with in the manner provided for by parts 2 and 3 of the Public Works Act, 1876 ; and that if any of such parties shall be found to be entitled to compensation, the amount of such shall be paid by the Council, either in reclamation land adjacent to their property or in cash, as the Council may elect. Councillor Dixon to move, That inasmuch as Mr. Clark has signified his approval of the asphalte water channels as already laid down in several of the streets of the city, the same be continued in all the streets, and that the work be proceeded with at once in such streets as the City Surveyor considers it is most urgently needed, to be protected by kerbing where necessary. Councillor Allan to move, —That the City Engineer be instructed to supply plans, specifications, and approximate cost of fencing the distributing basin at the Waterworks, to prevent the possible loss of life by its present unprotected condition. Councillor Diver to move, —That all waterolosets shall have a ventilating pipe, placed to the satisfaction of the Engineer, within days, or be disconnected. All drains to be periodically cleansed. The Timaru Herald has the following : Mr. G. Freeman met with an accident whilst riding after the hounds near Mr. Studholme’s station. In riding his horse over a post and rail fence, the animal came down with great force on his head and neck, and died almost immediately. Mr. Freeman -was much hurt, but no serious consequences are anticipated. The horse was a valuable animal, well known in the neighborhood for its good qualities. Another man, named McKay, was also hurt by a fall from his horse, whilst riding at the hunt on the same day. A great deal of sensation was created in Wodonga recently (says the Border Post), when it was reported that a farmer named Magee, living at Felltimber Creek, near Wodonga, together with his wife and child, had been smothered to death by charcoal fumes. The particulars of the distressing and fatal affair are briefly as follow :—Mr. Robert Magee was a farmer living at Felltimber Creek, about three miles from Wodonga. He had a wife and a family of some half-dozen children, and had lately erected a brick bedroom, in which he and his wife, together with the youngest child, a mere infant, used to sleep. There was no fireplace in the room, neither was it ventilated ; and yet, in spite of the warnings of neighbors, the deceased was in the habit of burning charcoal—we presume in some grate or receptacle—during cold nights. Last Sunday evening Mr. and Mrs. Magee and the baby retired to rest at the usual hour, and as the night was cold, left some charcoal burning in the room. The other children, whose ages range from seven to twelve years, slept in a detached apartment. In the morning, the eldest of these, a little girl twelve years of age, opened her parents’ door about 8 o’clock, and immediately called out to her sister that her father was dead in bod. A neighbor named Mr. Dibley was then informed of the occurrence, and on arriving at the bedroom he at once saw that Mr. and Mrs. Magee were quite dead. They were lying composedly in bed, as though asleep. The bedclothes were in order, and there appeared to be no signs of a struggle having taken place. The child was lying across its mother's arm, and was alive, but the poor little thing expired about an hour afterwards. The affair was reported to the police at once. An inquest was subsequently held, when a verdict was given to the effect that death had been occasioned through the inhalation of charcoal vapor. The Hon. Mr. Fornander has published in the United States a work on the Polynesian race, in which he states :—“ I believe that I can show that the Polynesian family can be traced directly as having occupied the Asiatic Archipelago, from Sumatra to Timor, Gilolo, and the Philippines, previous to the occupation of that archipelago by the present Malay family; that traces, though faint and few, lead up through Deccan to the north-west part of India and the shores of the Persian Gulf; that when other traces here fail, yet the language points farther north, to the Aryan stock in its earlier days, long before the Yedio irruption in India ; and that for long ages the Polynesian family was the recipient of a Cushite civilisation, and to such an extent ns almost entirely to obscure its own consciousness of parentage and kindred to the Aryan stock.” Tasmania (says the Mercury) has obtained a wide reputation for having among its inhabitants many who have long passed the allotted age of three score years and ton ; but it is seldom many persons live to become centenarians. An obituary notice to-day, however, records the death at Macquarie River, on Saturday, May 26th, of Mrs. Gatenby, relict of the late Mr. Andrew Gatenby, at the good old age of 100 years. The deceased lady has been long resident in this colony. The Chicago Bally Commercial Bulletin publishes a report of the packing in that city for the_ year ending March 1, which shows that during that period the business reached the largest extent on record. (No fewer than 4,009,311 hogs were slaughtered and despatched to various cities in the United States, England, and Europe, in the various forms of ham, pork, bacon, lard, &o.

The Admiralty reckon the average pecuniary value of each life lost in the Eurydice at £l5O, so that the mere money loss of the crew is about £50,000. The London Gazette says that the holders of India 4 per cent, debentures may renew them for a further period of six years at 4 per cent, interest.

It is reported, says the Pall Mall Budget, that Mr. Tennyson received the sum of 300 guineas for his ballad which appeared in the “Nineteenth Century,” and which has been copied into almost every English and colonial periodical. The Registrar-General of England shows that last year there were 34,072 marriages, of which 29,661 were at church, ten of them by special and 3316 by ordinary licence, and forty-eight upon the production of the registrar’s certificate. There were 1098 Roman Catholic, 1341 Dissenting, 3 Quakers’, and 319 Jewish marriages ; and 1650 at the registrar’s office.

Vanity Fair says that the Treaty of San Stefano would introduce the following alterations of territory and inhabitants : —Servia would gain 3280 English square miles and 216.000 inhabitants, of whom 92,000 are Mussulmans. Montenegro would gain, 1160 square miles and 45,000 inhabitants, of whom onethird are Mussulmans. Allowing for the exchange of Bessarabia against theDobrudsoha, Roumania would gain 3980 square miles and 194.000 inhabitants, of whom 100,000 are Mussulmans. New Bulgaria would consist of 51,240 square miles, and contain 3,822,000 inhabitants, of whom 1,430,000 are Moslems ; of the latter, 800,000 are Turks and Circassians, and the remainder Mahomedan Bulgarians. The total loss of Turkey in Europe alone would therefore be nearly 60,000 square miles of territory, with 4,277,000 inhabitants ; and 1.637.000 Mussulmans would pass under Christian domination.