The Evening Mail. TUESDAY, APRIL 2, 1878.

Oamaru Mail, Volume II, Issue 598, 2 April 1878, Page 2

The Evening Mail. TUESDAY, APRIL 2, 1878.

We have to congr-' l-:'i the people of North Otago upon Ik-.v 4 :l' «t octved their sharf of the Suez mad v.: 1 :. '- ■ Jinnecessary and annoying delay whicn .las hitherto occurred in its transport from i ort Chalmers. It was smart work tins morning in the Post- Office at Port Chalmers. There was no time for ferreting out the conventional red tape. Mr. Downes and his stall were high busv ; and although the Arawata did not amve'in Pert Chalmers till 7 a.m.. at 8.20 the mails were sorted and delivered on b'-ard the Waitaki. Mr. Downes is deserving of every praise for the successful manner in which he has carried out the instructions of the heads of his department. The services of Mr. Alfred Hesketh, the gentleman who has for the past five year occupied the position of Barrack Master and Immigration Officer for this district, have been dispensed with by the Government, in consequence of the proposed initiation of a new system of conducting the affairs of the Immigration Department in Oamaru under the auspices of the Benevolent Society. Mr. Hesketh and Mrs. Hesketh. who has been associated with him in his work and has proved an able seconder, may not yet be disssevered from the position for which they have proved themselves so eminently suitable, the Benevolent Society having made an offer of 175 per annum, residence, and provision for Mr. Hesketh and family, in order to retain their services.

The following letter addressed to Mr Allen, Hon. Treasurer of the .North Otago Benevolent Society, *.vas read at the meeting of the Committee last evening:—"Colonial Secretary's Office, Wellington, March 20. IS7S. Sir, —I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of your letter of March Sth, and, in reply, to inform you that if you will forward to this office a statutory declaration of the amount of subscriptions received in aid of the North Otago Benevolent Society between July l*t, ISn, ami December slst, 1877, an I equal amount will be remitted to you without delay. If. in future, a similar declaration is forwarded half-yearly, the Government wi'-l continue the subsidy at the same rate. There is no appropriation which will justify the Oovernment in payins a subsidy for any period anterior to the Ist of Juiyb.-t. I have &c, G. S. Cooper."

The total amount of Customs .?uty collected in Oaniaru during titc quarter ending 31st March last was Lo.yOl) 3s «d. sh-.wing a considerable increase over that for the corresponding quarter of last year, when the sum collected was [.-2,783 0s <M. The importfrom and to Britain and the Australian colonies alao sh«w a very lame as compared with the March quarter of 15,7. During the month of March 3S births were recorded in the Oaniaru office, a? aaainst 20 for the corresponding month o ! fast year. The number of deaths registered in the month were 3, while those for March, 1577, were 10 in number. During the month 12 Marriage ce-tificates v/ere issued, as against 2 for the same month last year. Milkmen heware ! The Committee of the Benevolent Society are apparently determined that onlv milk of the purest description shall be supplied to the inmates of the jn-ti-tution. At the meeting or" the C-mniittee last eveninsr it was decided to procure one of those tell-tale instruments, a lactometer. Mails per Tarawa will close at ITokitika to-morrow., at 10 a.m. The Eleven to play in Saturday's match against the Eighteen will, we understand. be selected from the following players : Athertnn. Booth, D Lautonr, Edward?, Fertns. Jlowe, Macdonaid. G. Millingtun, J. Miliiimton. Kiee. Sumphi, Taylor, and Tempest. The wickets will be pitched at ! 1 o'clock.

The ordinary monthly meeting of thc-

Commtttee of the North Ulago Horticultural Society was not held last night, in consequence of the paucity of attendance, a quorum not being present. The adjourned meeting will be held on Thursday next, 4th instant.

The St. Pawl's Young Men's Christian Association's weekly meeting took place last evening', at which then was a moderately full attendance of botli ladies and gentlemen. Mr. M'Pherson, Yiee-Pre-ident of the Society, presided. The debate on the subj-ct. ,; Which does the greatest amount of injury to society—the miser or the .spend- , thrift?"' was introduced by Messrs. lioiHson ami ll'Donald. The discussion was somewhat animated, and ended in equal numbers voting on the .jiiestion. >iext Monday Mr. G. Parker will read a paper on " Frederick the Great.'' (J--ratable Joyce succeeded in capturing a man last evening whose whereabouts has for some time past been a matter of interest to the police. The man's name is Charles Moncur, and he has been "wanted" for some months on a charge of having commit ed an unnatural offence at Tuapeka in November last. It seems that at an early hour this morning the Constable met the fellow in Thames street, ami was accosted f>V him. In an ungarded moment he blurted out his name, th« result being that Constable Joyce at once arrested Moncur on suspicion of being the man who had been looked for for some time. He was brought up at the I'.esident Magistrate's Couit this morning, and on the application of Sub-Inspector Smith, remanded for a week, pending the receipt of the warrant from Lawrence. A Meeting of the Waitaki County Acclimatisation Society will be held at 1L o'clock on Friday. The postponed meeting of the North Otago Turf Club will be held at the Kmpire Hotel on Thursday evening-at eight o'clock. The panorama of the Franco-Prussian war was re-exhibited last night. Tlic public seem not to appreciate this entertainment, for the attendance was about the smallest that we have ever, seen on a similar occasion in Oaninru.