The Oamaru Mail WITH WHICH IS INCORPORATED THE NEW ZEALAND AGRICULTURIST. TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 1879.

Oamaru Mail, Volume IV, Issue 1118, 18 November 1879, Page 2

The Oamaru Mail WITH WHICH IS INCORPORATED THE NEW ZEALAND AGRICULTURIST. TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 1879.

It t.+ t>. he hojit'i that tho stewards in the general classes who will officiate at the approaching exhibition of the Agricultural and Pastoral Association, will I)*-' on the ground at !> o'clock at latest on the mornings of the Show, so as to prevent confusion. It i.i moat important that ever."thin? should Improperly arranged before the public arc admitted.

A ennh of telegrams has compelled us to hold over a large quantity of other matter. There was a very fair attendance at the ordinary drill of No. Company Rifle 3 last evening. During the evening the results of the first examination preparatory- to promotion were made known. The seven candidates had previously undergone examinations by means of written papers, and last evening they were examined fully before the Company. The points gained were then added together, the result Wing that Corporal A. Hardy was appointed Sergeant, and Volunteers Forlies and M'Grcgorwcre promoted to the rank of Corporal. Of the seven candidates, five acquitted themseh s*s remarkably well. The general result of the examinations showed that, in addition to ensuring the promotion of men who kn> w their drill, they are wi.ll calculated to create a greater amount of interest in the (trills amongst ntemliers of the Companv than was previously the ease, and we congratulate No. 1 Company upon having adopted so sensible a system ol promotion.

Those ladies and gentlemen who liayc promised to tike part in the concert to be given this evening In the Pttkettri Schoolroom are requested to me»?t at Mr. •!. **. Finch's store, Tyne-strvet, at 7 o'clock sharp. We hear that aomc of the wheat crops in South Canterbury have suffered through the late unfavorable weather. In some eases several inches of the tops of the wheat plants have been taken otT. We are requested to again remind exhibitors that their index cards with catalogue numbers are ready for delivery by the Secretary of the North Otago Agricultural and Pastoral Association. Those not delivered to-morrow will be given on the morning of the Show at the office on the ground, but it is preferable that they should be got tomorrow.

Mr. A. Pateraon h.i 3 decided to sell a portion of his thoroughbred stock, and the animals will be offered for sale by Mr. Geo. Greenfield on Saturday next. They will include Corruption, a six-year-old. mare, by Tradtteer, the grandest sire in the Colony, out of "Betty Martin : Maid of the Mill, the winner of many a hard-tought battle on the turf. and a few years ago the fastest horse over hurdles in the Colony : some three and two year old colt 3 and fillies of undeniably 1 good pedirree, and a number of other useful ! animals. Most of the stock to be offered ; will, we believe, lie on view at the forth- ■ coming show, and intending purchasers will have an excellent opportunity of examining and comparing them with other anii.'ials on the ground. The second of Mr. Alfred Brunton's lectures on the Creat Pyramid was only moderately attended at the New Tees-street Hill last evening, but those who were present were highly entertained. The Rev. A. fl. Todd again occupied the chair. The lecturer chiefly confined himself to explaining and illustrating the calculations of several eminent men, and gave in a clear and concise manner the results of t*ieiiresear The lecture was throughout highly interesting ami instructive, and it is to be regretted that the audience was not more numerous. We hope to see a much tarirur attendance this evening, witen the tjnal lecture. dealing with the religious aspect of the question, will be delivered. The usual monthly meeting of the Hospital Committee will be held this eveniug at halfpast 7. at Mr. Church's office. At a meeting of officers held this morning irt Captain Snmpter"s office, it was decided to have an attack and defence drill by the Artillery, Rifles, and Citizen Cadets, on Monday next, 24th inst. The ground selected for the purpose is situated in and arovrnd the junction of Itchen and Severnstreets to the Volunteer Hall. The public will be able consequently to view the practice from Tlinmps-strcct, and are kindly requested not to impede the movements of tho men. They will also be good enough to accept this intimation that such military proceedings are to take place, in order that none of them may be unduly disturbed by the unusual noises that will rend the air on that occasion.

At the Resident Magistrate's Court to-day, before T. W. Parker, an inebriate who made his first appearance before the Court was fined ss, with the alternative of 24 hours imprisonment. His Worship gave his decision in the charge of arson preferred against Agnes Nimon. He said lie was sorry the accused contd not leave the Court without a strong snspicion attaching to her. but the evidence was not sufficiently conclusive to convict her, and he would have to dismiss the charge. At the nomination for the Mayoralty ' v i Waimate yesterday. Messrs. .John Manchester and Alphens Hayes were duly proposed.

The adjoßrned meeting of members and threw desiring to join the new O.imaru Jockey «lnf> will lie held this evening, .-it the Umpire Hotel, at S o'clock. The Btfual weekly meeting of the Director* of the Caledonian Society took place last night at the Criterion Hotel. The chair was occupied by Mr. N". Fleming. ami there were also present—Messrs. - Bee. A. S'linUie. Taylor, M'lntosh, J. TJcc, M'Combe, Lindsay, Kennedy, .Sinclair, E. Rowland, Xewton. Hook, Lawson, and R. L. Rule (Hon. Secretary). The minutes of last meeting having read and continued. a letter was read from Messrs. Ferguson ami Mitchell enclosing price for Directors" After consideration it was resolved to allow the .[ties'ion of badges to stand over till next year. It was decided to hold the next meeting of Directors on Monday, the Ist December, and a meeting of the Programme Committee was fixed for Monday,

the 24th inst. Considerable discussion took place a3 to the advisability of purchasing a permanent piece of ground. Ultimately it wa; resolved, " That the Ground Selection Committee obtain all information concerning Mr. Lewis' land, and report to the meeting of Directors to be held on the Ist December. A vote of thanks ha-. in" V-e:i passed to the I"tiairman, the ' irned. The annual ger.-ral of the North ( Henevoient So< iwill be held tomorrow evening at Lilf-past t o'clock, at the Oddfellows' Hall, in Coquct-street. The annual rq-ort will be presented, and President. Vice-President, Honorary Treasurer and Coinmittce of Management : for the year elected. It will be as well for those wishing to take part in the meeting to know that the subscription of LI for the vcar ending 3*) th September, ISSO, must be paid on or belore the meeting, otherwise they will not lw entitled to take part therein. The hares which were introduced into, and liberated in the Waikato district a few yt-ars ago, are now regarded as a great nuisance. They not only destroy fruit trees and newly-planted forest trees, but in several districts the injury they have done to the wheat crop this spring has been very considerable. Several of the large farmers in the Waikato district have sustained considerable 1093 by their being turned loose to prey upon the labors of industrious settlers. — N.Z. Herald. The following is an outline of Sir G. Grey's Bill providing for an elective Legislative Council, to consist of a blank number of ; European and Maori members, the North j Island to form one electoral district. European members to be elected by European electors, and Maori members by Maori electors. The duration of the Council is to be for three years ; the first writs to be issued on March 1, ISSO; in case of a vacancy occurring the Council shall acquaint the Governor of the fact, and the Governor thereupon shall issue a writ. Such elected Council shall have the same privileges as present nominee Council, and until provision is otherwise made by law, shall be judges without appeal of the validity of the election of members. Hie lGth and concluding clause provide that if any Councillor shall for one whole session of tho General Assembly, without permission, fail to attend, or shall take any oatli or make any declaration or acknowledgment of allegiance in any foreign prince or power, or shall become bankrupt, or shall become a public defaulter, or be attainted of treason, or be convicted of felony or n;iy infamous crime, hi* seat in such Council shall thereby become vacant. A Scotch pedlar, without the remotest intention on his part of getting into a quarrel or tight with any man, hail put up (with his pack) for the night at a country ale-house on the borders of Wales, where, as the fates would have it, he found in the kitchen of tho inn a motley assemblage of not the most desirable companions, and among the rest a Welshman, whose aim fr»m the very first seemed to be to get into hot water with poor Sawny. The latter, sagaciously appreciating the tme character of his tormentor, and determined to get rid of him in the quietest way possible, told him that he "did not wish to fight." This only excited to a still higher pitch the bravado of the Welshman, and lie told the Scotchman lie would "make him light." " Well," said Sawny, "it I must fight, let me say my prayere before I tight," which tiie Welshman conceding, the Scotchman fell upon his knees and implored his Maker to pardon him for "the twa men he had already killed, and for the one that was a boot to die." The Scotchman slowly rose from his knec3, but the \\ clshmau had made traoks.