TELEGRAPHIC NEWS.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXIV, Issue 5660, 21 May 1879, Page 2

TELEGRAPHIC NEWS.

(PER PRESS AGENCY.) : 1 • >■' Auckland,. Tuesday..; The Belle Brandon, which has arrived from Marshall Group, reports continued fighting at the Island : bf < Majura. Several'native l men and women have been killed. Sir George Grey leaves to-morrow morning for Wellington. Mri Sheehan probably will accompany him. The Working Men’s Club has prepared an anti-Chinese petition, which, after being largely signed, will be presented to the House of Representatives by Mr. W. Swanson, M.H.R. The committee l of the Club will decide on Thursday evening whether the on arriving here shall be addressed on the subject, and whether a meeting shall be called- in order to bring the matter more prominently before the public.

Sergt.-Major Tolly died in the hospital yesterday. An inquest will be held on the body to-morrow. ■

Heavy floods between Auckland and the Waikato have done considerable' damage. Five bridges on the Great South-road are completely washed away. At Drury a man named- Moßurney ’had a stable 1 and three horses carried away down the stream. One horse was drowned. The Waiuku Bridge was carried away, and a portion washed ashore at Drury. -; A special train left Mercer at 11 o’clock, got through the tunnel sfifely and over the broken bank at Whangamarino, and was shunted off at'the ’Wairanga crossing! Here* the engine was detached,mnd ran back to Mercer to get instructions. Meanwhile the passengers waited in > a' state 1 of ' miserable suspense' > for • three

hours, when the traffic manager came to the rescue, much annoyed, at the- way the passengers had been treated. -Theaction of the railway officials showed a want of proper system. No train started during the day from Waikato, and no excuse Can be given for inflicting so unnecessary a delay on travellers from Auckland. There were many ladies, and one little girl with whooping cough, on the train. Sir George Grey has expressed a wish that the Waikato Cavalry should take part in the reception to be accorded to the Governor on his arrival here. It is expected they will respond. The Native Minister inspected the Te Awamutu contingent of the cavalry to-day, and complimented them on their soldierly appearance. At a meeting of the Harbor Board this afternoon the statement of accounts showed a balance in the bank of £2979. Gkahamstown, Tuesday. The objections to the names on the Thames electoral roll, which is the largest in tho colony, number 1500, besides some 600 county ratepayers, the list of which was not sent in to-the Registration Officer in time to be of service to him. Mercer, Tuesday. Another collapse in the Auekland-Meroer railway is making things look serious. Mulliriger,; inspector of the permanent way, > with a gang of men, has been working all night. The mouth of the tunnel is nearly cleared of mullock. A messenger has just arrived with bad news. He says a portion of the railway has been carried away by a flood near Whangariro, completely blocking the line for today. Some of the passengers got out at Papakura, afraid to face the water. The remainder stopped at Mercer last night. Many are anxious to, get to Cambridge for the Land Court; today. It is proposed to take planks and a small boat, and transfer the passengers across the broken part of the swamp line. The collapse of the bank in the swamp was discovered at midnight last night by the man on watch. Mr.. Rowe, traffic manager, is expected, to arrive directly by the special train from Auckland, when satisfactory arrangements will be made. Wanganui, Tuesday. W. G. Watt, storekeeper, Marton, has filed a declaration of insolvency. Assets £7,120, liabilities £19,000. The largest creditors are in Wellington and Wanganui. • : Christchurch, Tuesday. The district prizes won by the head-quarters corps of Volunteers were presented to-night at the inspection parade by Lieut.-Colonel Parkes. ’ • Miss Jennie Nye and Miss Lizzie Morgan join the Hydes Burlesque ' Troupe at the Gaiety. An inquest was held at Oxford to-day on the body of a laboring man named Tegg, who died suddenly. The jury returned a verdict of “ Death from apoplexy.” At a meeting of the creditors of ' J. ; J.. Howe, of Leeston, who attempted suicide last night, an approximate statement was read, showing the liabilities £46,030, assets £50,300. It was resolved that the estate be wound up in bankruptcy/ • Timaru, Tuesday. A test of the steam crane took place to-day. Owing to some bolts breaking it- was .postponed. The Queen’s Birthday will be celebrated with sports, when a large nember of excellent prizes are to be given away, the Publicans’ Handicap being worth about £2O. Thera are sixteen special jury cases, arising out of the bush fire at Waimate, set down for hearing at the next sitting of the Supreme Court. 152 special jurors and 72 common jurors - are to be summoned, - and it is pated that all the cases will not be heard in less than-a fortnight. ; Henry Wrigg, C.E., borough engineer, died this afternoon after a short illness of about ten days. Dunedin, Tuesday.

' Weatherston’s Cement Company now employs thirty men daily, and puts a large quantity of stuff through its battery’with profitable results. The savings banks in schools question has been referred by the Dunedin committees to school - masters, to report upon whe'ther the same should be adopted. A couple of the members wanted the system introduced without reference to the masters, but Mr. Keith Ramsay opposed, considering there was already too much money grubbing in the community. • ! Mr. Maoandrew will probably arrive in Dunedin next week. ' ■ - ; ; i

Mr. James Mills, manager cf the Union Shipping Company, returned from Melbourne, where he has been for the past six weeks arranging for the.'next siimmer’s.-traffic. '• The Corporation advertising question, which has for the past few weeks attracted attention outside of newspaper circles, was to-day decided by the City the Council giving it to the Morning Herald at 3s. per inch per insertion for twelve months. Strenuous efforts were made on behalf of the Times to retain the advertising, but councillors:i could not shut their eyes to the immensely greater circulation of the other paper, and to the fact that it has the lead in auction and other business advertisements. :The Couhcil retains "its -right to advertise in the other papers, and it is generally understood that the livening Stir is to get Corporation advertisements as well as the Morning Herald. .■■■ .f, .;•; //. Invercargill, Tuesday.

..The District Court ,was opened; by Judge Harvey to-day. Two cases were decided. John H. Blake pleaded guilty to a charge of larceny at Makare pa, and sentence was deterred. A charge of indecent assault was next preferred against C. : McKay,ja man of, good position in the district, and a member of the old Provincial Council.,: It. was stated that he had committed an assault with intent on a .girl named .. Carpline Cotter; fqurq years of age, at Campbelltown. The principal evidence for the prosecution’was that of the mother of the girl, and her credibility was severely shaken by witnesses tor the defence, who averred she was a woman of violent temper, and given to drink.'nThe. medical testimony was in favor of the defence, as was also that of the.. Hon. Viilliam;Nur3e, M.L.O, who spoke highly of prisoner's general character in the past. The jury were only a few minutes considering their verdict of not guilty. The weatheq threatened a- little: last night, but has'again cleared up. There is no sign of snow on,the hills, . ... „ ~r ; j ;l r Grain is coming in freely from the country districts. It ia of excellent quality.