Untitled

Oamaru Mail, Volume IV, Issue 1186, 4 February 1880, Page 2

Soma of the loungers about the town seem to be driven to their wits' ends to know how to spend their time. They congregate on the asphalted portions of the footpath, and behave in a manner most repugnant to the feelings of passers by. Not even the desire of a lady to pass along undisturbed will disturb their stolid indifference to the amenities of manhood, to say nothing of civilisation. They actually seek to keep as close as they dare to female pedestrians without bringing themselves into the hands of the police, and gaze into their faces and after them whilst the hearts of the subjects of this rude treatment are in their mouths. The esplanade is a favorite resort for a number of these wanton fellows. There is no reason why they should not go there. There is room for them and everybody else, and the sea breezes, have, perhaps, a deodorising effect upon their tobacco, spirits, and beer-tainted persons. But they are not satisfied with the enjoyment of ordinary privileges. They must needs go on to the Esplanade during the hours set apart for the ladies to bathe, and look through the chinks in the boards and over the walls of the bathing establishment. Others plant themselves in such positions that they are enabled to pry into the faces of those who enter and leave the baths. We are told that a most shocking act of indecency was perpetrated by one of these blackguards yesterday. Their behaviour is so bad that there is room for police interference, and if these offenders against common decency get into the clutches of Mr. Inspector Thompson he will have them taught a lesson that they will not soon forget. It is positively unsafe to send little girls to the baths during these times without a good escort. At a meeting of the Irish Famine Relief Fund Committee, held yesterday, it was announced that a sum of L 209 had been collected, and it was decided to forward L2OO immediately to the Mayor of Dublin. The following letter has been handed to us by Captain Sumpter for publication : " The Officer Commanding Oamara District. —Government has decided that officers commanding volunteers may issue free passes for men serving under them when it is necessary they should travel by railway to attend drill or authorised meetings of volunteers, it being a condition that men receiving such passes shall be carrying arms and shall be in. uniform. The fares to be paid for out of special vote of the Defence Department. —H. E. Header, Lieut.-Col., Under Secretary Defence.—Defence Office, "Wellington, Jan. 30, ISSO."

It is probable that within a few days the necessary step 3 will be taken for rebuilding the Queen's Hotel upon an improved scale. In addition to the hotel, Mr. Markham, 'we believe, contemplates erecting a public hall, or more correctly speaking, a handsome and commodious theatre. As yet, howeverj a definite conclusion has not been come' to upon the point, though there seems little room for doubt that a theatre will form a portion of the new structure. • Mr. T. W. Parker has been appointed a trustee of the Oamaru Drillshed. The same gentleman has 1 also been gazetted a trustee of the Oamaru Hospital Reserves. Mr. Henry Livingston has been appointed Auditor to the Waitaki High School Board of Governors., • I Pastor Chiniquy. wiil visit Oamaru, arriving here on the 19th inst; * A meeting of those interested M bis-work will be held at the Young-Men's Christian Association-Rooms on-Friday evening,; at half-past.7,o'clock.; ! The' Suez, mail, which arrive^'last -night, brought a" pleasant" Tlifles, m,tne formtqf ,an ( aimouncement that the long-talked-of new uniforms were • on board the mail steamer. They are nqw in Duhedin, and may be expected here in a day or .two, so that, the members. will to turn 6"iit at; next, inspection parade in their scarlet tunics, &c. It is hoped that the band uniforms will be received next

month, the order having reached Home some six weeks since. The uniforms for the Hampden and Otepopo Volunteers will shortly be received, and when these arrive there will not be a better dressed body of Volunteers in the Colony than No. 3 battalion. A footrace took place on the old Cricket Ground yesterday afternoon, and attracted a few spectators. It was 100 yards match between John M'Laren, of Victoria, and L. Morgan, of Oamaru, and was for L 5 a side. M'Laren won in 11 j seconds. A well-dresßed girl named Margaret Rouch, aged about 14 years, was; brought up at the Resident Magistrate's Courfc lateyesterday afternoon,' on a charge of -having' obtained a pair of boots, of the value of 15s, from Mr. Samuel Anderson, by means of false pretences. From the evidence it appeared that the girl obtained the boo.ts_upon the strength of a statement that they were for Mr. Amos. His Worship remanded the accused, stating that, in consideration of the age and respectable appearance of the girl,* should the value of the boots.be paid in the meantime, he would dismiss her. The money was paid "last evening, and the girl was brought up at the Court this morning, and dismissed. At the Resident Magistrate's Court to-day, before G. Sumpter and S. E. Shrimski, Esqs., J.P.'s, Robert Low was charged with having yesterday stolen a quantity of bread and meat from the Commercial Hotel. The accused pleaded guilty, saying that he was hungry or he would not have committed the theft. Mr. Johnston stated that he had several times missed articles, the lock of the safe having been broken open and things stolen. The Bench sentenced the prisoner to one week's imprisonment with hard labor. Charles Mantle, charged with being a vagrant, was sent to gaol for 14 days with hard labor. The usual monthly meeting of the Kakanui Road Board was held in the office this afternoon, when there were presentMessrs. Gilchrist (chairman), Morton, Manning, Gemmell, Thomson, Meek, and Oliver (Engineer). The minutes of the previous meeting having been read and confirmed, and the outward correspondence read and approved, the following inward correspondence was read: —l. From the Otepopo Rard Board, agreeing to pay half the cost of constructing a footbridge at Davis' crossing. 2. From the Waimate County Council; thanking the Board for information Supplied. 3. From Mr. A. .Gordon, Kakanui, complaining of several of the street lines in that township being obstructed by fences. There being some doubt as to the street lines complained of, it was resolved that Mr. Gordon be requested to give more exact information. Tenders were opened for contract 65 (erection of a' footbridge at Island Stream), and that of Messrs. Biggar and Robertson for LlO9 was accepted; Accounts amounting to L 202 8s Id were passed for payment, and after a vote of thanks to the chair, the Board rose. To-day's Timaru Herald says:—We are glad to learn that several of the. leading shipping firms of Timaru have made, or are making arrangements to secure vessels to ship grain to England direct from Timaru. This, we understand, is due in part to pressure on the part of extensive growers, who desire to ship on their own account, and partly to the satisfactory manner in which the shipping of grain was carried on here last season.