The Evening Mail. SATURDAY, MARCH 9, 1878.

Oamaru Mail, Volume II, Issue 578, 9 March 1878, Page 2

The Evening Mail. SATURDAY, MARCH 9, 1878.

Weunderstand t!i ....He will ! entir-ly suspended on the IJreaku.it— -■■ ...■■"-.- .:•-'-■ on Monday, in consequence <,i puf:::_- in j new girders and sle-pers at the long bridge. | This work will be arranged so as to have it j completed by 5 ..•..-lock, in order that the | line may be again open for traliie on Tues- j day mornim.'. J In the District < '-urt y-d-rday. before j his Honor Ju.L'- Ward. Mr. C:-.-agh mad,-| anappii-aU'.n. «- <■■ -b>n,e- Cndg. bankrupt, j for an order of o.st-= "iir. of in- estate of H. j .Stock, which was granted. The monthly inspection <-f the headquarter, companies . f th- Oarnaru Volunteers took place last evening, when there j was a very fair muster of X>>. 1 Company j and the i'iti:'.--n Cadets, hut the attendance! of the Artillery C.-rps might have been better than i: was. j Ov.-iiiLT to ;.hc rain on Monday last having I prevented N"-. I Company from competing for the dir-triet prizes, it has been arrange-d that the company shall lire -u Thursday next at o" a.m. and '■'• p.:n. We would remind our readers that the i;.S. Min-tr.is will make their first appearance in Oumarti this evening at the Masonic Hall. We have already spoken of the merits of th- members of the troupe, and wc need only add the company is we believe, by far the best of the kind that lias ever visited Oamaru. We can with safety say that those who visit the Masonic Hall this evening will be afforded a treat seldom obtainable her-.

The Supplementary ttaziar in aid of the fund for erecting the Wok-va.: Parsonage will be opened oil Monday next at mid-day, and we hope to see it well patronised. A large quantity of useful and ornamental articles v. ill be 0:1 sale at the different stalls at moderate prices, as the whole of them must be disposed or.

The vital statistics f-r the boroughs of Auckland, the Thames. Wellington. "Nelson, Christchureh. Dune-din. and Hokitika show that during the year the births in the towns mentioned amounted for the year 1577 to 3t,TS. and the deaths to i:«f». Wellington shows the highest death rate and the Thames the lowest. Of course Diim-dhi shows the largest number of births and deaths, the totals being-births, 'H- : deaths. ..'."A Wellington comes next with B*3 births and 33S deaths. The Commissioner »f Railways, Mr. f Olivers, gives notice to owners of private stores | and that where the unloading is -lone : bv consignees the Government will n.ifc be: re.-p-n,n.!e for delivery of quantities or! weights as declared by senders. j ! The Oamam Voting Men's Association! j having taken a r-.r.m at the Colonial Hank. ; I Sun lay morning prayer-meeting will be held ; j there to-mo'.-.ow raid future Sundays, at It» I o'clock, to which ail are invited. Tie.- vario't- i'.anks in town will observe ! Moudav a- a •"'..-.-e holiday, and on Tuesday j they will close at lv! o'clock, in eoli-equence of the ra.-s. In order v< afford visitors to the- races an opportunity of reaching the course easily, tiie Railway Department have madearrangei ments for running a special train to the racecourse at return ticket- being issued at the rate of Is., while the ordinary trains wtil also stop at the course when running each way. Mohave intending visitors from the country be..-n forgotten, as return tickets will be issued at all stations south of Tireaiu at i single tares, available for the return journey I until Wednesday evening.

We have received the se.-o;:d issue of a

comprehensive almanac and tim--table, issued gratuitously by Mr. Hislop, watch

maker, Duuedin. Last evening, the < >ainaru Railway Em-T)lov«'-.s Leuetit Society held their quarteriy meeting at the railway stores. Therewas a large attendance of members, the chair being occupied by Mr. A. Weir, l're=idi.-nt. After tiie minutes of the previous meeting were continued, Mr. T. W. Prebner read the quarterly report and balance sheet, which showed tliat the Society was in a very prosperous condition, its members numbering about 1-0, and having a credit balance in the bank of L 77 o'. Id. The report and balance sheet were unanimously adopted, and a vote or thanks passed to the Committee for the manner in which they had worked the Society. After some other routine business had been disposed of. a vote of thanks to the chairman brought the proceedings to a

At the meeting of Xo. 1 Company Rifle Volunteers last evening. Acting Lieutenant Headland was elected Lieutenant, and Acting Sub-Lieutenant Morris was chosen as Sub-Lieutenant.

A man rushed out of the Northern Hotel yesterday afternoon, and evidently after looking for an enemy "settled on" to an expressman named M'Fetrish, and in a most deliberate manner "let out" at the man of the conveyance. The attack was not over successful, the blow being vigorously returned, and the man of wrath was overtaken by a speedy retribution for his sins : he fell and broke his leg. It will be a severe lesson, and teach a man that if his jiassiou or ill nature carry him so far as to meditate or carry out an assault upon his fellow-man, he had better not '•reckon without his host." The Hospital now contains a heapful of repentance, and its source done up in lint and bandages. The Wellington telegrams make mention of the disappearance from the deck of the Taupo of Mr. Alex. Eeid, one of her passengers from I.yttelton to Wellington, and from hinuiries instituted by " our own " at Wel-

lington, there is little reason for doubting the opinion of the passengers that he must have thrown himself overboard. To the numerous friends of Mr. Reid in this and the adjoining Provincial Districts this intelligence will be heard -with deep sorrow. The deceased was one of the most experienced and capable journalists in this Colony. For many years assistant shipping reporter on the Ar<j>'*, he came over to Otago shortly after the discovery of gold here, and joined the stall" of the !)■'!!;/ Times, on which he served fi.r many years in different capacities. When the West (.'oast rush broke out, he proceeded there, and, with .Mr. T. S. Pratt an.l others, started the short-lived Obrrlla L.-nrlrr. Then he undertook the editorial management of the Time*, owned by his brother (Mr. 11. N. lleid), and afterwards edited the GY.-.y PlnrAriju* and We.'t C„,:st Tim-*. In 1874 he succeeded Mr. Godfrey mi the Ni'iv Z<-<il«M Times, and for a short time was engaged on the Lvemnj I Post, which he left to fill the sub-editor's I chair on the Christchureh Pre*:*, which he

retained until la.-.t mouth. He paid a visit to DuiiL-dhi only a few days before the races, j As a paragraphist there were few men on the Colonial Press who could equal him, and those who can remember his brilliant account of the Ce-long's visit to the West Coast Sounds some years ago, which appeared in the columns of the D'Cd'j Time*, will readily testify that his descriptive powers were of the hi-.-hest order. Those on the Pre** who were well acquainted with him knew him as a hard-working and conscientious worker, as a -enial companion, and as a true friend.—

Mr. J. G. S. Grant, the irrepressible author of the " Rose of Sharon/' ''Pierian Spring.?," " Flowers of Hymettus," " Koses of Parnassus," " The Cynic," and innumerable other pamplets, has had his light partially extinguished. This time the giant force that opposes him is not the Education nor the High School Board, nor yet the exSuperiiitendcnt of Otago, but the irreuressible Mr. John Graham, author of the

"Independent,'' vendor of railway literature, and eat exporter. _ Mr. Graham has established himself in a glass palace stocked with periodicals, in direct opposition to the Ut't'/o Du'ilij Thwi, ami over this transparent shrine is a huge signboard, with the following device in ornamental letters or s ,,i L l ;__•• Graham, of Claverhouse : First Kector of the High School of Otago, and Author of the Eight-hours' System of Labour."' Mr. Graham declares that these titles have been wrongly appropriated by Mr. J. G. S. G-., and he is determined to expose the injustice. An inquisitive youth had the teiu-rity this morning to doubt the accuracv of the inscription, and with an air of confidence asked Mr. Graham whether he reallv was first Hector of the High School. - Why dae ve doubt it?" said our modern Whittiuittoii. " I-stcau.se I never heard you were," rejoined the youth. "How old are you V" was the next question. '" Eighteen. "' Ah ' then." said the expounder of Daniel's ! prophecies, '"I don't wonder at your ignorj ance : I was a rector, my boy, before ye i were born."