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Oamaru Mail, Volume II, Issue 389, 25 July 1877, Page 2

The settlers in the vicinity of the railway line between here and Moeralu are desirous that a late train should be run from Oamam to their township on Saturdays, and are holding meetings in order to influence the railway authorities to confer upon them this boon. A meeting of the Maheno, Hampden, and Otepopo Committees, organised to carry the wis!) of the settlers, if possible, into effect, is called for Thursday next at Otepopo. It is intended to appoint a deputation to wait upon Mr. Conyjgrs with regard to the matter, and we do not know of any more effective means thai

could have been devised to attain this desirable object. That gentleman, in whose hands the whole matter rests, will not only at once perceive the advantages that would accrue to the residents of the towns from Moeraki to Oamaru, but will, from his superior knowledge of how to work railways to the satisfaction of the people and to the advantage of the revenue, be equal to the emergency. It will be almost unnecessary for the deputation to point out to him the benefits to the settlers to be derived from running the Saturday night late train, and as he is intelligent and obliging, we think that the settlers may look upon success as certain.

Mr. Hislop, M.H.R., who has hitherto'] been prevented from leaving Oamarn through pressure of business, purposes proceeding to ! Wellington on. Saturday to attend to -his ! Parliamentary duties. j

An accident which might have been attended with serious consequences happened this afternoon to a man named Richard Daver, a storeman in the employ of Mr. G. Sumpter. A number of trucks were being shunted on the railway siding immediately behind the Mail Office, and Davcr being between two of them, got jammed between the buffers. At first the accident bore the appearance of being a very serious one, but fortunately such was not the case. "Hie unfortunate man seems to have been caught by the buffers on the fleshy part of the thigh, and received a severe shock. After a few minutes, he succeeded in walking away, though his leg had been severely bruised. It is thought that he will be all right again after an enforced holiday of a few days.

Some three months ago we predicted that the Customs revenue for the year would fall short cf the Colonial Treasurer's estimate by about L45,C00. The result has proved that we were not far wrong in our calculations, the actual amount of the deficiency being L4O,SO'O. When Major Atkinson stated that he expected to receive a revenue of L 1,240,000, it was pointed out that he •was taking too sanguine a view of affairs ; but he persisted in maintaining that his estimate was a perfectly justifiable one. Once more the Colonial Treasurer has been shown to bo wrong, but we presume he will find some plausible excuse for the Customs duties falling so far below his estimate. The total amount of duty collected during the year is LI, 199,140, the sums collected daring the various quarters of the year being as follow : _^ e ptember quarter, 1.303,430: December quarter, L 294.125; March quarter. L 295,039 ; Juno quarter, L 303,542. It need scarcely be stated that Dunedin has contributed the largest share of the year's Customs revenue, that port being credited with L 345,911, or considerably over onefourth of the total amount for the whole Co'ony. Auckland comes next with L197,t>43; then follow Lyttelton, L 195.217; Wellington, Lt(i7,Sss ; Greymouth, L40,45S ; Xapiei-rCWJioS: Hokitika, 1,35,999: Kelson, 1.34,534: luvereargiil, L 31,530; Waniiauui, L22,UOL The remaining ports of entry are all below L 20,000, the amount contributed by Oamaru being LI 1,275. Glancing at the returns for the quarter we iind that there was a larger amount of duty collected during it than was the case during the corresponding quarter of last year, the excess in fav.-ur of the quarter of this year beir.f 1 12,053. The most noticeable increases have occurred in Dunedin, Lyttelton, Wellington, Auckland, and Hokitika, whilst the greatest decreases have taken place at Nelson, luvereargiil, Napier, and New Plymouth.

The man John Madden, who figured somewhat prominently in the notorious Craig case, and a woman of ill-fa;ne known by the name of Jenny Anderson, were arrested to-day on a charge of having stolen a sum of money from a well-known character niimnd Henry Young, a'a'.* Chi. The ease will come before the Court to-morrow morning.

The person who has, in consequence of his extraordinary intellectual powers and wonderful facility for ornate oratory, been favored with the title of " The Great McLaren," will lecture to-night at the Volunteer Hall. We have the advertisement before us announcing the subject; but we have come to grief over attempting to write the last three words. We refer canreaders to the notification for further particulars.

At the Resident Magistrate's Court this morning, before T. A. Clowes, Esq,, James Johnston, charged with being drunk and disorderly in Thames-street last night, was discharged witli a caution.

In a recent issue when writing of Messrs. Guthrie and Larnach's projected Factory Company, v.'c stated tluit the Union Sash and Door Company of Auckland —a kindred institution —had declared the handsome dividend of 10 per cent, per annum since its establishment. This we did, as showing that the business conducted by .Messrs Guthrie and Larnach was a lucrative one, and that the new company offered every inducement to investors. A telegram published in last evening's issue states that the l':;-.- n Sash and Door Company has just declared a dividend of 25 percent. The inference deiUicilile from this is that tha new company will bo at least equally prosperous. If anv argument W re wanted to produce the result that the promoters of the new company have in view this should suffice. The Auckland company which has paid this magnificent return to its shareholders is not comparable with the Dunedin factory of Messrs. Guthrie and Larnach as regards size or number of its branches. There is nothing required in building or in woodware that cannot be produced by the Dunedin factory. From the first we felt that we were only doing justice to the public in asseiting the advantages that the new company oii'ered, and we are now more than ever confirmed in that opinion.

Mr. A. H. Maude will, at noon to-morrow, offer for sale the lease of the Railway Boarding-house, Tyne-street, together with a or furniture ar.d elisors.

The sale by Mr. A. H. Maude of the stock-in-trade of Mr. J. Moss, advertised to take place to-day, has been postponed until Wednesday next, owing to a death having occurred in Mr. Moss' family. .Amongst a long list published in the Gazette of new post offices which have been opened in the Colony, we find those of Ngayara and Tcaneraki. This is rather stale news, but its publicat'on at this late stage is in keejnng with the movements of the Government.

The Civil Service List of New Zealand contains some very extraordinay names, some of which are borne by very extraordinary men ; but one of the latest additions to the already too lengthy list of Government hangers-on far surpasses anything in the shape of names which we have hitherto met with amongst our civil—very civil—servants. We learn by a Government Gazette just to hand that "his Excellency the Governor has been pleased to appoint Frederick William Ricmenschneider, Esq , to be an Interpreter under the 12th section of the Native Lauds Act, 1573." That the Governor hiii been pleased to make the appointment we are told, that Mr. Riemenschneider is pleased with his appointment we can easily believe, but that the Maoris, for whose especial benefit the appointment is made, will be pleased therewith we have grave doubts. How the dear dark-skins are going to remember, much less pronounce, the name of this latest addition to our unnecessary and useless Native Department surpasses our comprehension ; but we presume the euphonious cognomen of llieuienschneider will be twisted into some kind of Maori, much after the manner in which some of the most sublime names of Turkish towns have been lately tortured in the Wol-a Jlnor!. Happy Governor ! happy Ricmensehneider ! unhappy Maoris !

A meeting of the shareholders in the Otajo Thtilii Time* and Wibu Company will be held on the Ist August, for the purpose of considering a resolution to wind up the company.

It is stated that the woman Margaret M'Kean, who lately caused Mr. Manders, for a time, to east on one side the heavy responsibilities attachable to a representative of the people in the Parliament o ; ." our adopted land, purposes following the lion, gentleman to Wellington. She is evidently determined to render Mr. Manders ashamed of himself. Will she succeed? We think not.

In Napier a special agricultural fund has been established '"' with a view to direct more attention to agricultural pursuits " by offering " champion prizes for ploughing, for Provincial-grown wheat and other cereals, as well as for root crops, miscellaneous farm produce, and agricultural implements, heretofore provided for by comparatively small prizes from the general funds of the Hawke's P>ay Agricultural and Pastoral Society. " In a very short time subscriptions were obtained to the amount of LUiO.

A libel case of prodigious proportions, if not of great interest, is at present being heard in Napier. It is one brought by the lion. Henry liusscll against the ll'ahi Maori newspaper. It commenced on Thursday last, and has not yet been concluded. The Government are the actual defendants, and are represented by that pet of theirs, Dr. Bullcr and Mr. Carlile, while .Messrs. Wilson, .13**11, and .Sheehan appear for the plaintiff. The evidence is being taken by a Commissioner appointed by the -upreme Court with closed doors. A whole host of Maoris are witnesses in the case, which, it is stated, is likely to last for several weeks. The costs in this somewhat celebrated libel case will amount to a good round sum by the time the matter has been settled. There are just two or three little questions we should like to ask : In the event of the affair going against the Government, who is to pay the costs V Will the members of the Ministry subscribe the amount amongst them ? Will Native Minister Pollen pay the piper ? or will the taxpayers of the Colony be called upon to pay the costs of a libel case arising out of the Government,through its satellites, indulging in a little printed and published abuse of a political opponent? We will risk a trifle that, in the event of the Government being worsted in the matter, the country will be asked to defray the costs. We shall have Whitaker, Atkinson, or some other member of the Ministry bringing in a Bill to indemnify the Government, and authorising tiie paying of the costs of this libel case out of the public chest. If such a course should be adopted, we caution members that the public will not tamely put up with such barefaced proceedings. We have had enough of Bills of indemnification pardoning the wrong doings of ihe Ministry. There may be truth in what has been stated by the Wal-a Mnori, or there may not ; but be that as it may, the Government, no more than any private newspaper proprietor, has no right to publish a libel against any person, and if they have done so, they should pay for their own misdeeds, and not the taxpayers of the Colony.

Through the courtesy of G. Cliff, Esq., Mayor of Timaru, we have at our office a sample of the cement used in the construction of the Oamaru breakwater, which we consider as quite equal to any stone with which they could have ejected their work, of so useful a nature. —South Coutcrbur// \ Times. The Pafmcrstoii Timr* says that the Shag Point coal mine is on liiv. It has been found necessary, it is stated, to close the shafts in order to exclude the air from the mine. We have not been able to obtain any additional particulars, but trust that the proprietors will soon bo able to extinguish the flames and resume ordinary operations.