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Oamaru Mail, Volume IV, Issue 1236, 3 April 1880, Page 2

The Ofcago Daily Times yesterday called in question some statements made by our correspondent at the Ciiristchnrch Volunteer Review with reference .to the conduct of the Navals in C'hristchurch. We have made inquiries of our correspondent npon the

matter and called upon him to explain. We herewith attach his explanation. From this it will be seen that he adheres fully to his previous statements, and that the paragraph in the Timea'does nb£dealvwith the many matters whicb,;he las" to 'tfte charge of the Navals. ;.6ar dorrespondent writes :—" I have read the paragrai--h in the Times, and in reference to it I have to say. that I in no way the Ashbjurton affair, so that I could not have blamed the Navals for the robbery of the apple shop. I amaware that those who behaved in such a disgraceful manner were ii mixed body of men from Dunedin and the south'; and included Artillery, Kaflea, and Navals. -1 am also aware after, my. letter was written that Marks published a letter exonerating the Navals from blame in connection with the occurrence at his shop, but I am also;, aware that the affair did most unquestionably originate with the Navals. I need noi/ attempt to give a detailed account of the affair, but I may say that the opening of the row was the entry into the shop of Marks of Navals and the free handling of fruit by one of the number. Of course the affair having once been commenced, it soon developed into a regular riot in which both larrikin civilians and volunteers of all classes took part. The many specific charge? which I laid against the Navals have not been met by any explanations or denied, though the Times attempts to create a doubt as to the truth of my statements by saying : —' If all the other grave charges of misconduct turn out to be as ill-founded, as we have every hope on inquiry they may, it will give much satisfaction to the pubjip, who naturally feel that the honor of the whole volunteer force is at stake.' In conclusion, I may be permitted to say that I have in no degree attempted to exaggerate anything, and that my statements with reference to the disgraceful conduct of the Navals are correct and can be vauched for by scores of respectable people who were present in Ohristchurch during the review."

An error occurred in oar cablegrams last evening, As supplied to us, the message read that Messrs, Holmes and Fawcett had been rejected for Hackney, whereas they had actually been re-elected. At the Resident Magistrate's Court to-day before W. H. S. Roberts, Esq., J.P., five drunkarJs were dealt with. Donald Manson, Thomas Nailing, Thomas Mitchell, and Thomas Morrison, were each fined 5s with the option of going to gaol for 24 hours, and John Bradley was mulcted in the penalty of 10s with the alternative of 48 hours' imprisonment. A thanksgiving service for the abundant harvest will be held in St. Paul's Church toI morrow morning.

One of the pleasant features of the late Christchurch Review was the assembling of all the officers of the various battalions in front of the staff at the conclusion of the Review, to receive an expression of opinion from Inspecting Officer Colonel Packe. That gentleman sa : d that he thanked them very heartily for their attendance, and for their efforts to make the review a success. What he had seen had greatly pleased him. As a Volunteer Review the proceedings of the day had been simply perfection. It was at such gatherings as that which was just being concluded that a soldier learnt to do his duty. We have given a precis of Col. Packe's remarks as they were supplied to us by a gentlemau who was present, and who is naturally surprised that the Colonel's remarks should not have found their way into at least the Christchurch papers. The celebrated Lynch Family Eellringers and vocalists, who are so well and favorably known through these colonies, will give three of their interesting performances at the Volunteer Hall, commencing on Tuesday next. In addition to the performance, which obtained for them such fame when last in this colony, the English Combination Troupe, comprising the names of Mr. Chas. Lyndhurst, Mr. Santley, and Mr. Warde, will appear in their ventriloquial and vocal entertainment. The last tour of the Lynch Company through the colony was signalised by full hoases, and row that this company has been strengthened by the addition of what are designated ■ accomplished artistes by those of our contemporaries whose representatives have heard them, it is not surprising that they have met with full and enthusiastic audiences during their present tour.

The entertainment ■given last night by Mr. and Mrs. Florence, assisted by a number of amateur vocalists and members of the Dramatic Club, was attended by a very large and exceedingly orderly audience. The entertainment was a-very good one indeed, and comprised songs, duets, trios, and the trial scene from Charles Dickens' "Pickwick." The programme opened with " 0 memory," which was very creditably rendered by Miss IT. Hardy, Mrs. Kinnear, and Mr. J. Booth. "Excelsior," a duet by Messrs. Florence and E. Booth, followed, and was undoubtedly one of the best items on the programme. The music was correctly sung, and the voices blended well. " Happy birds," by Mrs. Florence, was loudly applauded, and Mr. Florence obtained an encore for his rendering of the pretty ballad "Still I love thee." Mr, E. Booth's fine baritone voice was heard to great advantage in "A tribute to a tear," the beautiful melody being given sweetly and correctly. The duet " Oh, Maritana " was very fairly rendered by Miss IST. Hardy and Mr. Florence, and the same may be said of the duet "The sailor sighs," by Mrs. Kinnear and Mr. Florence, but the gems of the concert were undoubtedly " Alas those chimes" and "Norah O'Neal (given as an encore), which were excellently rendered by Mrs. Florence. Ascenafrom " La Somnambula," including "All is lost" and "Still so gently," was then given by Mr. Florence, but it was evident that the large amount of work in the concert that had fallen upon him had affected his voice, and he did not sing ao well as might have been expected. The musical portion of the entertainment concluded with a short chorus from " The Sorcerer," which was so good as to make us regret that there was not more of it. The trial scene "Bardell v. Pickwick," considering that it was undertaken at a day's notice, owing to the book of the piece previously announced having gone astray, was very well performed. Mr. E. Booth made a sufficiently serious judge; Mr, H, Newey got up admirably as Pickwick ; Mr. J. G. Moir was sufficiently nervous as Nathaniel Winkle; Mr. W. Finch made a good Sam Weller; Mr. Florence had little to do as Sergeant Snubbin; Mr. Murphy did the small part of the Crier creditably Mrs. Kinnear both 1 dressed and acted well as Mrs. Clup- ' pins; and Mrs. Florence had only to look the character of Mrs. Bardell, the much" abused plaintiff, and this she did successfully. As Sergeant Buzfuz Mr. J. MitcheU had to bear the greater part of the burden of the scene, and it is due to him to say that, he proved himself equal to the load. His opening address was capitally rendered, but the effort seemed to have almost ex-

hausted him, and he became somewhat tame afterwards. Nor must we omit to mention Mr. Ws Rayner, who, seated amongst the audience, performed the sirvall but. important P'airt .of Mr. .Weller, sen. So well .did A® 'perform the part that a policemail who: was present was taken off his guard, and threatened to turn Mr. Eayner out of: the hall. The performance altogether was", of. a highly satisfactory character. .../

Yesterday's Daily Times contained the fol- j lowing : —" A strange incident occurred at the Gaol, yesterday, at,,,the,, conclusion..of. Butler's trial. A sister of Mrs. Grant, the mother of the deceased man Dewar, informed Mr; Watt, R.M.,that the : prisoner was tlie man who committed the murders, and that she saw him do it. Upon Inspector Mallard asking her to interview one of the detectives, she said that it was in a dream she witnessed tlje deed."

It may not be generally known, although an interesting fact, that the only sovereigns now minted are those which are minted in Sydney and Melbourne, principally in the first-mentioned city. They are those bearing the image of Her Majesty on the obverse, and St. George and the dragon on the reverse side, and which we all so much admire. Affairs in Newcastle, N.S.W. (says the Melbpurng Argus), begin to wear a very unwholesome aspect, As our readers are doubtless aware," arrangements were made some time ago whereby it was hoped that given rates of pay for coal and labor might be artificially maintained. The elaborate machinery, as might have been expected, was totally nnable to fulfil the expectations formed concerning it. Under its fostering influence the trade qf tjie pqrt lifts fallen off to the extent of about 50 per cent., and the consequent distress is' serious and; widespread. By maintaining an exorbitant rate, New South Wales coal has been practically shut out from the markets of the world. It would be well for mine owners and workers, howeyer, if this was the only punishment they had brought upon themselves by their folly in attempting to fly in the face of experience and economic teaching. They have not only lulled demand by their prices, but they haye so stimulated production elsewhere that returning common sense will have a difficulty in finding fields wherein'to operate. To these remarks of our contemporary we may add that the loss of New South Wales has in this instance been our gain, a largely increased consumption of New Zealand coal being the result of the short-sighted policy of the Newcastle mine owners. Tbe defeat at the general election of Mr. Berry's Ministry and the rejection oE his policy has had, according to the Insurance and Banking Record, a very obvious and decisive effect on the value of investments, especially in the share market. Between Friday, 27th February, the day before the election, and the Tuesday which folWed that event, the rise in Bank of Victoria shares was f«lly L 3 per share, and other bank stocks participated in the improvement. There was a marked development of public confidence, which had been sapped and undermined during the last two years of the late Government's tenure of office, As showing the impetus given to the movement of capital by recent events, may be mentioned the monthly takings of one Building Society one evening recently. The payments into the Victoria Mutual on that day were over 1.20,000.

The Tasmanian Mail, writing on the no work " cry in this colony, says : —Perhaps recourse by the Government to the expedient of providing Public Works, upon which to engage spare labor, may avert keen distress, but it certainly is bad policy for a country to have to provide its inhabitants with work at the public expense at a time when labor ought to be abundant. Nor can it be urged that there is any pretence on the part of the unemployed; the fact that they are accepting very low wages from the Government, with thankfulness, sufficiently proves the genuineness of their need. Taking both the main Islands of New Zealand there are nearly 1500 men waiting for work from the Government. It seems strange that the authorities did not forsee the present dearth of employment and stop immigration sooner. During the last seven months some 15,000 people have been added to the population of New Zealand; a number far in excess, as events prove, of requirements. But immigration is one of those subjects in regard to which Governments never seem to exercise discretion and foresight, the cable notwithstanding.