Untitled

Patea Mail, Volume II, Issue 133, 19 July 1876, Page 2

We remind our Masonic readers, thet an Emergency meeting of the Patea Kilwinning Lodge will be held this evening in the Town Hall, at half-past 7 o’clock. We learn by telegram that Sir William Power, has been appointed Agent-Genorel pro tem, and will discharge the duties of the office till a successor to the late Dr. Featherstone be appointed. We remind our agricultural readers that Mr Cowern will hold his monthly stock sale to-morrow, the 20th in st, at Kakaramca, at 2 o’clock. He will offer fat cattle, superior breeding cows, mixed steers and heifers, calves, a well bred bull, and some fat sheep. In addition to those announced, be will receive entries to the time of sale, and probably submit some horse stock, besides cattle and sheep.

The meat competition is extending. An announcement appears in another column, that the Carlyle Meat Bazaar Company intend to send carts, to supply both Wairoa and Hawera customers, which will travel to Wairoa every Monday and Thursday, and to Hawera, every Wednesday and Saturday. A vessel was off the harbor yesterday afternoon, but it was not known whether it was the Agnes or the Theresa, both of which are due from Lyttelton. The former is consigned to Mr Taplin, the latter to Mr W. Dale. She will probably come in on to-day’s tide.

The p s. Tongariro will start early this morning for Wanganui, where she will meet the schooner Richard and out her cargo and return on the e< tide to this port. The Richard and Svill not come here therefore after all.

The Alcaroa Mail, the new paper about to be started by Mr J. Ivess, late of this town, will, we hear, make its appearance on Friday next, and will bo published in future twice a week, on Tuesdays and Fridays. The location is a good one, and a paper was wanted in Akaroa, so in all probability our Canterbury namesake will proVe a great success. An announcement of the first performance of the Patea Combination Troupe of amateurs appears in another column, and their first entertainment will be given this day week, the 26th hist, instead of August 2iid, as previously stated. Great pains have been taken in preparation for the eveht, and a full hall will no doubt welcome local talent, on the occasion.

Any one wishing to secure a capital sniall faun, has an unusual opportunity offered in the fifty acre section of Mr Joyce at Manutahi, as that will be offered by Mr Cowern, for sale by auction, on Saturday next the 22nd inst.

In addition to the Patea Harbor Bill introduced by Major Atkinson, Mr Hunter has introduced one for Wellington, Mr Eoweoneforthe Thames, and Mr Shrimski one for North Otago. An esteemed correspondent, in another column, draws attention to the cool proposal of the Wanganui Small Farm Association, that a block of the recently acquired Kakaramea land should be granted to its members on deferred payments, to the exclusion of residents or other persons desiring to take up portions. A number of people are anxious to take up that land, and if the Government choose to sell it on deferred payments, so much the better, but it would be out of all reason to grant a block to any association of the kind, unless on the same conditions usual throughout the colony. That any downright offer has been made, as stated in the paragraph referred to by Mr Dale, we do not believe, and think that with whosoever the tale originated, the wish was father to the thought. The people of Patea will

cordially welcome members of the Wanganui or any other Small Farm society, if they take up land in the district, but will strongly oppose the concession of a large block, in a (Cultivated district, to any association or company,, to the prejudice of individuals, ready and anxious to make homes on the same land for themselves and their families. There need be no alarm on the subject, we feel convinced, for the Opako block is not a Pjako or other swamp, and the Government are not likely to part with it in a wholesale manner, when there are so many wishing to buy it in what may be termed retail parcels.

Although the existence of Road Boards in this province nominally ceased on the 30th of June last, no notification, as required by law, has been given, either by the Superintendent or his deputy, appointing a day during the present month for the election of new Boards. Whether the present political tangle has anything to do with the omission or not, we cannot say, but it is exceedingly inconvenient, and should be remedied as soon as possible. If the Deputy-Superintendent has not power to issue the necessary notice, surely he should communicate with head-quarters, and obtain it, for the present interregnum should bo put a stop to somehow or other. If no new Boards are to be elected till Abolition is accomplished, the public should know it at once ; if things arc to go on, in this respect, as usual, then the Boards should be set afloat at once.

The first meeting of the Patea Whist Club, was held 'on Saturday evening last, when a large number of members showed up, and enjoyed their rubber. Several other gentlemen have expressed a desire to join, and the new club promises to be a popular institution in this part. Owing to the piercing cold weather on Thursday last, the muster at the Good Templar’s Lodge here was small, and the proposed formation of a Small Farm Association amongst |ts members was not discussed fully. The question will, however, be brought forward to-morrow evening, and if approved of, immediate action will be taken. Several have already intimated their intention of taking shares, and if the Government will confer the privileges that will be asked for, the Association will ho fully constituted. The election of a member of the Carlyle Town Board, to serve in the place of Mr James Southby, resigned, was held on Monday last, and was without exception the quietest affair of the kind that could be witnessed. The Town Clerk, Mr C. Campbell, was appointed chairman, and introduced the business, taking the opportunity to state that the advertisement calling the meeting had been ordered insertion twice, but had only been published once, the fault lying with the printing office and not with him. Mr Taplin proposed Mr James Hirst as a fit and proper person to fill the vacant seat, and Mr McGuire seconded the nomination, both gentlemen speaking highly of Mr Hirst’s qualifications for the office. No other candidate being proposed, Mr Campbell declared Mr Hirst duly elected, and the proceedings were thus brought briefly to a close. There were only six persons present, including the candidate, his pro-

poser and seconder, exclusive of a press representative and the chairman. We are glad to learn that a match has been arranged to take place on Saturday nest, between a football team from Hawora and Waihi, and one representing Carlyle. The convincing ground will be the usual practice ground of the Patea Football Club, adjacent to the Town Hall. The teams will be composed of 15 men a-side, the opponents being selected from the following gentlemen : Hawera and Waihi —Messrs G. Bayley, F. Bayloy, Broadbent, Byrne, Cowan, Coffey, Gray, Guerin, Grant, Greig, Hargood, H. Jenkins, Lawton, Lacky, Lucas, Luff, Mason, Roche, Riddiford, Teague, Wilson, and Wooding, Carlyle —Messrs Baggett, Burke, Burston, B. Dasent, Davis, Gordon, W. Nicholson, Hargreaves, Haywood, Hankins, Inman, Jaeomb, McCoy, McMahon, Meredith, Powell, Fetch, Taplin, Tennent, Turner, D. Williams, W. Williams. The match will commence at 2 p.m., and the competitors are specially requested to be punctual. It is to bo thoroughly understood that no competitors will be allowed to play in heavy-nailed or tipped boots. Apropos of football, we regret to say that, whilst at practice on Saturday afternoon last, Mr E. Meredith, Clerk of the Bench here, accidentally received a furious black eye, which by no means adds to the respectability of his appearance in or out of office hours. We specially make this statement so that those having business at the office may know to what he o.ves this very undesirable addition to his

physiognomy. In the Resident Magistrate’s Court on Saturday last, Tuhia, the Maori who stole Mr Mcßae’s horse, saddle, and bridle on Boxing Day last, was brought up before Major Turner, K.M., and Dr Croft, J.P. Our readers will remember that Te Rongo had been charged with the theft, but cleared himself of being the actual thief, though an accessory after the fact, but in doing so involved his friend Tuhia. The same evidence that convicted Te Bongo in the second degree, showed conclush ely

that Tuhia was guilty of the offence charged to him as principal, and he was sentenced to six months imprisonment with hard labour, without the option of a fine. After prisoner had been locked up, Major Turner was besieged by his Maori friends, who were most anxious to condone his guilt with a money fine, but this—very properly in bur opinion—was refused, and Tuhia was reserved for a half-year’s work at Taranaki. He was taken down in the coach on Monday last, in charge of Constable McMahon/- A large gathering of natives saw him off, and a great howling match took place on the occasion, hut, as we have heard nothing to the contrary, we presume he duly arrived at his destination, without any difficulty being raised on the road to his deportation.

The settlers of Waverly and surrounding districts will no doubt be much pleased to learn, that they are to have a flour null ready tor work in time for the next harvest. Mr Wm. Hone, an old and much respected resident in the district, has secured a splendid fall on the Mangatangi stream, within three quarters of a mile of the Waverly Post-office, a most central position, where there is a natural fall of 20 feet, with a plentiful supply of water. The enterprising proprietor being a most persevering and painstaking man, the settlers will no doubt back him by gettting in wheat crops at once, and change Waverly from a flour importing, to an exporting, township. The headlong and reckless manner in which Maoris, are permitted to ride through the township and its outskirts will most certainly, if not checked, be productive of fatal consequences, either to children or their elders, before long, When maddened with drink—and this is their general afternoon condition when they have the means to get liquor with—they become perfectly insane, and the lives and limbs of pedestrians are in constant peril from the mounted portion of these Maori maniacs. On Monday last two ladies were walking along the Taranaki road, near Dwyer’s> when they saw one .of these horsemen coming towards them, at full gallop, zigzagging from side to side, and evidently requiring a wide road for his convenience. Apprehending danger, they clambered up the bank by the side of the road, thinking to be safe there, but instead of this, the blackguard, on seeing them, rode directly at them, forcing his horse up the bank where they were standing, apparently with the intention of riding over them. The horse, fortunately, had more sense than its rider, for, on reaching the top, it stopped short, and in doing so, shot the native over its head. As a proof of how narrow an escape one of the ladies had, we may say that as the horse stopped, it put one of its forefeet on a portion of her dress, pulling her down to the ground. Had the animal gone one step further it must have trodden on, and probably killed her, or at least have done some very serious injury. Mr and Mrs Smith, living near, saw the occurrence, and kindly came up to render assistance, but luckily beyond the fright no harm was done. The Maori, after this feat, coolly gathered himself together, re-mounted, and set off again at full speed, to repeat the performance if possible on the next pakeluv female he met, and, as a matter of course, with the most perfect impunity, as far as legal

interference is concerned. A policy that condones brutal murder could not of course be expected to notice playful native vagaries of this kind, even, if resulting ultimately in maiming or death to some of the white population. Under present Government proposals, the Land Fund is to be charged with twothirds the cost of education in the respective districts, and the other third is to be defrayed out of the consolidated revenue. Under this arrangement, the estimated provision for the province of Taranaki, from Ist October 1876, to 30th June 1877, is £4,525, the sum of £3,017 being from the former, and £1,508 from the latter. The Counties Bill has been printed, and was handed to members on Friday last* As its name implies, it defines the boundaries of the proposed Counties. This province is to be made into two counties, Stony River being the dividing lino. All south of that is to belong to the Patea county as at present proposed. The New Plymouth press protest against such division, and the Herald says that the members of that part are prepared to take their stand in opposition to it. We rather doubt whether it would be more satisfactory at this end,’but wait for the bill before giving a decided opinion respecting boundary adjustment. The Colonial Secretary has forwarded to the Deputy-Superintendent copies of correspondence in the Scotland affair. In what may be deemed the Hon. Mr Scotland’s apology to the Colonial Secretary, the following is the concluding paragraph. He says :—“ When in an unlucky hour I allowed my feelings of humanity to impel me so far beyond the. bounds of worldly prudence as to write to a man whom I considered an object of persecution on account of his opinions, I by no means

intended to endorse every one of his details, but merely to express my conviction that the picture he had drawn of the state of New Zealand at the present time, was, on the whole, a faithful one, or, to repeat my own words, “substantially correct.” I have only to add that in -writing- to the Belfast News Letter , I distinctly told the Editor of that paper that I was not in a position-to say whether the firm belief expressed by Mr Grant as to the manner of living of a certain proportion of the female immigrants in the various towns of this Colony was correct or not.—l have &c.» Henry Scotland.”

The following appears as an advertisement in a Calcutta paper :—“ Wanted, by a blackguard, employment of any kind, temporary or otherwise. The advertiser haying hitherto conducted himself as a gentleman, and signally, failed, of which his hopeless state of impecuniosity is the best proof, is induced to adopt the other course, in the hope that he may meet with better success. No objection to up-country. Terms moderate. .. Apply by letter to ‘ Perdita/care of fh'e Pririter.”

The following is told as a recent incident in the Christchurch Court. The plaintiff in the' suit before the Bench had the misfortune to bear the name of Virtue The Case being called—“ I appear for ‘ virtue,’ ” Sang out Mr Joynt, with a grin’.—(Laughter.) “ You generally appear for ■‘vice,’” replied the Bench.— (Great la'tfghCer.) “ That is a ‘ vicious’ remark of your, Worship,” retorted the vivacious defender of soiled innocence.— (Still greater laughter.) Singular to relate the plaintiff alone failed to join in the merriment.

A bulbous plant called the soap plant, long known to the Indians and old Spaniards, is said by a Californian paper to be now claiming the attention of settlers generally in America. This plant grows all over the country, and sometimes in very large quantities, and is now attracting much attention with a view to its cultivation. The bulb is enclosed in a fibrous coating, of which the writer thinks one is produced every year ; so that a matured plant will have many. It is found that when dressed, those fibres run into four or five different qualities ; the finest is like human hair, and being naturally of a fashionable colour, it is in great request for ladies’ use, the other qualities for various purposes. The coarsest of the fibres are used for stuffing sofas, chairs, and other articles of furniture, and also for stuffing railway carriages, superseding crimped horsehair, being equally elastic) and much sweeter. It is expected that more than a thousand tons will bo exported during the coining summer, and it is now thought desirable to bring the plant into general cultivation. The core of the bulb makes first-rate lather with water, equal to the finest soap, and its properties for cleansing are very great. An instance of how intelligence travels and missing friends are found, is thus told by the Westport Times. Some months ago, Mr Warden Broad, while at Beefton, received a letter from a Greek merchant residing in Cairo, making enquiries as to a long absent brother, named Demetrius Dracatos. In the letter Mr Broad’s unknown correspondent stated that a West Coast miner, making the overland home-

ward trip, had, while in Cairo, noticed the name u Dracatos” over the door of the writer’s bazaar, and entering, he said that he had known some one of the same name in the Inangahua district. The merchant said he had a brother somewhere in the colonies, but be knew not of bis whereabouts. On the advice of the miner, he wrote to Mr Warden Broad, asking that enquiries should be made. Strange to relate, just after getting the letter, Mr Broad found, on the list of business in the Warden’s Court, an application from one Dracatos to register some mining race at the Landing, Desiring the man to stay until Court business was over, Mr Broad found, in conversation with him, that this was the .missing brother of his Cairo correspondent, to whom he subsequently wrote a letter on the brother’s behalf. By the last mail Mr Broad received a collection of photographs of Egyptian scenery, sent by Mr Dracatos, of Cairo, as a slight acknowledgement of the services so opportunely rendered. The Mmlgee correspondent of the Town and Country Journal says : —Some few weeks back a man was imprisoned for intemperance, suffering from an attack of delirium tremens. At the time of his admission into the lock-up he was suffering from the effects of the loss of a finger, which he had cut off witli an axe. Before he had recovered from the attack of delirium tremens and had been discharged from the gaol, he had actually gnawed off three fingers of the other hand as far as the second knuckle joints. The Auckland Star says—We have received a very good suggestion 'with reference to the capture of Winiata. There is little doubt that the scoundrel has given a very garbled account of his diabolical crime, in which be has magnified himself as a great hero. If the simple facts showing how, for the sake of a few pounds, he killed one who had always treated him with the greatest kindness, were printed in Maori and circulated through all native districts with the offer of £SOO reward, it is extremely probable that some native would be found prepared to seize Winiata and hand him over to justice.

There is some idea of manufacturing gas from timber in Masterton. The local paper says :—“ Although never before attempted in New Zealand, the generating of gas from timber and forest refuse is, to a considerable extent, practised in some of the colonies. In the application a percentage of coal is made use of, the bulk of the material being the debris above mentioned, and we are assured that, when properly treated, the gas produced is as strong and pure as it is when wholly generated from coal. The matter is under consideration by a body of gentlemen belonging lo the place. So impressed are they with the intrinsic merits of the scheme that steps are already being taken to get a bill passed through Parliament, so as to form an incorporated body to bring the project into operation. 'The intention is to work the affair on the joint-stock principle, so that shareholders and consumers may enjoy the advantages of a conjoined interest.”