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Patea Mail, Volume II, Issue 184, 13 January 1877, Page 2

Tito quest Inn nf leasing from Hie Town board is beginning to be of special significance. both to Ihc- Town board and (he leaseholders. Tb.o sections were disposed of in slay la-d. nine months ago. and yet. up to Iho present time, no! a lease has been issued. The matter cropped up at tho last meeting, hut nothing was done. Either the Board should release those who purchased, or give them ri a title to the land. Failing to be aide to do tho latter, the tlovornmcnt should bo appealed to on tho subject, when possibly tho long po.slponed transfer might be made or some arrangement, of a more salisfnctoiy nature than at preent existing, entered into.

There arc numberless candidates said to be going in for the Hccretarysb’p of (ho County, fo Ijo delcrmined in loss than a month. The Councillors i hero fore should have no difficulty ill choosing a firpl-olass man. who will be fully up to (he difficult duties that will have fo 'no, underlut;on. As to the question of salary, there is little chance of the. previous resolution being altered, and we fail to see that, when a public body of such importance as (tie Comity Council will be, and is, wish one officer to be clerk, collector, and treasurer in his own person, that, the salary offered is in the least decree extravagant. Potty public bodies in the district have been hitherto able to secure flic services of competent men at the lively rale of about Is a week, but the County Council’s work will he heavy, and any such parsimony as proposed by some would be false economy. In the first piece, the officer in question will have to devote his whole time to liis duties, and though persons might he not at a lower rate, they would in all probability be far loss corn potent. With a fair .-alary, as olToml. a thoroughly capable man will no doubt bo secured. We remind intending buyers or sellers of 1 1 or so stock that "Mr Cowem will hold Ids sale to-day at Erskine’s llar.aar at 2 o’clock. Messrs Ash forth and Li flit on will hold a Largo sale of stock at Waitotara on ’Tuesday next, to which we would specially direct our readers’ af rention.

Jt, Is with sincere regret that wo have to record a serious accident to Mrs IJsshcr’s youngest son, Edward, on 'Wednesday last. He was riding a pony, in the track of another horse, when the latter throw up its heels and struck little Ussh.er on the leg. fracturing the bone, a little below tho knee. .Subsequently he was put on his pony again, but fell off. and at that time dislocated his ancle in addition to tho fracture. This occurred in a paddock near town. After falling from tho pony Mr H. I. Davis most kindly carried the little sufferer in his arms from (lie scene of the accident, a. long distance, to his homo. Dr Walker set; the limb, and reduced the dislocation on Thursday last, and the. patient... is going on admirably. We hope soon to sec him about again. We woidd warn parents against the practice of young boys riding their jinnies recklessly about, in (lie way that has been the fashion of late. It is almost miraculous that some fatal accident has not already occurred through this practice Possibly the severe mishap to the poor littlefellow recently hurt, may prove a warning.

An example is set by the Graham-Mown County Council, in reference to Hie rcmmiera* lion of their Chairman. Particulars will be. found in llic telegraphic column. Anylm -,v. Iho Graham own Coanty Chairman imr-.t be a happy AVo nine’: fear (hat Mr Kells will not. he ko liberally dcait with, and tint

dm KiiUt) a year, and daily guineas will have to he more hardly earned.

Wc would direct i boat ten! ion of our readers to (he reiver;i c.nmnt o; Mr Robert Currie, who lias commenced bufine.-s as a watchmaker and jeweller in this town-dun. Tie will shortly bo in ;{.Vled in the premises at pre-ont occupied by Mr Adams, draper, bat in the mccmtiui : will receive orders at the Albion ho!ol.

In the Ro d had. Magi drate’s Court vc-.tor-day. there was a full Bench —the Resident Magistrate. Dr. Croft, and 11. F. Christie. Ksq.. J.P.’s, attending. Mr Lett sued Mr D. Smith, for damage alleged to have been done by nigs. The case was a long one, and tho evidence considerably contradictory, but it resulted in the Bench giving a verdict for £1 His damages, with costs. Tho next wat rather an extraordinary cam. It appeared that a judgment was recently recovered, rightly or wrongly we cannot say. in the U.M. Court here, Mr F. McGuire against Mr Meredith. Tn the absence of funds, the bailin', Mr Connolly, assisted by- a man named Baxter, removed certain poods from Mr Meredith’s bouse for tho purpose of sale, in order to satisfy the distress warrant. The judgment. Mr Meredith alleged, was an improper one, that he he was sued in the wron, name, and that on its merits he has a claim for re-hearing. Be that as it may, the distraint was put, in and certain articles carted away. Mr Meredith then charged William Connolly and Isaac Baxter with stealing, taking, and carrying away, one table, a portion of the property sei/.ed. and urged that, as the goods had boon taken under an unia t warrant, the bailiff bail no right to remove them. Under those circumstances, lie thought himself instilled in faking' the action lie had done, with a view to recovering tho proper!v. Daring the hearing of this cast .Major Turner left tho Bench. After Mr Meredith had made his statement, the Bench said that there was no evidence whatever in support of the charge. The bailill simply acted under a warrant that he bad received from that Court, and was therefore justified in all that he had done. If any one was re-pon-ible it was nut him, amt ihc.y therefoic dismissed the ca m During the hearing Mr Meredith withdrew the charge against Baxter, and explained that he did not press I’m; charge again A Mr Connolly personally, but solely in hi; position of baiiilf. There was one other undefended, civil case for J-2, in which a verdict for the amount claimed was returned. The Court then adjourned.

The formal opening sot". ice; in the new Promy torian Church at fla.-.vora. will be held to-morrow, when the Ilov. Mr Treadwell ollieiale. The services will lx; bold at, II a.in. ami 0.110 p.m.. eol’.oci hms b 'in;,;- i-mi’u: in aid of tho building fund at tho clo-e of early A toil mealing will also be held on 'Wedne-dav in aid of the name cause. when ?. number o*addresses will bo. delivered, and a good gathering D confidently anticipated. The you Ill’s Star Club play the S’aloa Cricket Club to-day. the former with proper cricketing appliances. tito bitter with pick-handles. The following arc the name; of the Paten. Club : Messrs Fraser. Jaeo nb, Tcrmen!, Meredith Taplln. Horner, Jlajrgott. Contis, U. Jda-onl. C. Da cut. and Fetch. Slur Club—Messrs Har greaves, W. Williams, ]). V> illiani•?, McCoy, lie; uer, Darke. Jenkins, W. Dasent, Hornerif. Hankins, and F. Hankins.

“ Slaived out” (says tho JJurlr/cf ) was (he answer feelingly given by an intelligent man skilful and willing amt able to turn-liis-hand-to-auy(hiiig a working man who left by steamer this morning. “ I eanimt keep my wife and family on two day’s work a week, when the working places are so far apart —one day, perhaps, in town, another at Inglewood,, with a race of unotiici twenty miles for a possible chance of get ling a day’s work. It’s a case of si aimed out with, mo and olliers besides ino. I am comp ‘lied to leave' wife and family behind, to seek a living els‘where.” Tho above, is a sample of the position of many working men at the present time ; and prospects ahead are not at all inviting. Others who are not exactly starved out, hilt who have a little ready cash and working plant which may b.'turned to advantage cisi'wbt'r", are also on tin- move. They nave bad enough of the Ta;anaki wanting policy, and while yet they an; able are preparing to move off. Many of the tradesmen are, tight; pushed, and must go to smash unless relief in the shape of harbour or other works are initiated.”

A 'few days since. a young man was observed intently gazing at the portrait of a j-oung Jad\ r , in 11 1 0 shop of a photographer, until lie seemed to be lost to every object around, and only conscious that, lie was looking-at the resemblance of the face of a lady whose pictured charms had been so admirably produced by the photographer At length he entered the shop, and asked for copies of the picture which had impressed his whole being. Ife could only get one which he immediately pressed to Ids lips, and placed it next to his heart, lie ordoicd twelve portraitsof the beautiful Hebe, and would have given anything for the address of Miss L—(lie interesting original, but, photographers are like fatherconfessors, they tell no secrets, especially to anxious enquirers. The young man however, pushed his enquiries until he discovered Miss L-—'s residence, He immediately dipped his pen in the magic fluid of love, wrote one of the tenderest of epistles, which met with a favorable response. The youngmans prospects being good, liis oilier was accepted, and the marriage fixed for the second week in the New Year.— An/us.

The. rabbit infliction in Otago maintains frightful proportions. Theotherdaj* 1 (5,000 rabbit skins were sent by waggon from Galloway Station, Mamiherilda. Thirtyseven bales of rabbit skins are now lying at Castle Krook Station, Southland, arid on that station above 130,000 rabbits have been killed this year.

An extraordinary attempt . at hushranging is recorded by the Bonier Post : — '• Air Fi liner’s two-horse omnibus was travelling from Wagga to Albnry with several passengers, and on arriving at a iiltle scrub which lies between Post’s and ibe Creek, at about 5 o’clock p.m. on Sunday, 10th ins!., a horseman sudden'v emerged therefrom, armed with a double-barrelled cam, which he cocked and presented at the driver. The man is described as about sft. loin, in height, and apparently about 30 years of age. Mis face was blacked, but perspiration having washed away some of the dye, it was easily to be seen that he was only a * made up-’ black fellow, lie did not attempt to rob the coach, however, but appeared to be afrai 1 that some of tbe inside passengers were armed, as be cast frequent uneasy glances into the omnibus, and subsequently >’ocle away. On going on a little further the omnibus met a party of three gentlemen, one of whom was a travelling jeweller, who stated that they had been stuck up and robbed of everything they possessed by a man whose description tallied exactly with that of the desperado from whom they had just parted.” The Postmaster-General's 22nd annual report has just been published, and, as usual, contains some curious facts. The usual astonishing carelessness in posting letters without any address was manifested during the year, when 2b,000 such letters were posted, 4G t of tnein containing cash, bank-notes, and cheques, to (lie value of nearly £05,000. A letter was received in Liverpool in a thiu # envelop.’, with an illegible address. It was delivered to a firm to whom it was supposed to be directed, and by whom it was opened, when it was found to contain five £IOO pound notes, bid intended for another firm altogether. A letter also reached Liverpool with the-following unique address 1; This is for Airs AI -. She lives in some part of Liverpool. From her father John . a tailor, from ; he would be thankful to some Postmaster in Liverpool if he would fi id her out.” The letter did not reach, and had to be sent to the Retnrned-1 otter Office, The Intelligent Vagrant; In the New Zealand Times gives (ho following advice, to newspaper proprietors : —Gentlemen proprietors of newspapers who are jubilant over getting the Provincial district advertising. be not too proud ; and gentlemen newspaper proprietors who have not obtained the advirtising, he not cast down. So much eagerness to obtiin the advertising at low prices was shown, that the Government. it is pretty reliably stated, intend next vefir to call for tend *rs from parti-s willing to pay for the piivib-g’ of publishing tii" Gizotte notices. Let no one complain of want of Government economy. Some weeks ago th ; death was recorded of Air J. Miliar, F.S.A., Nelson, who was known to many persons on the Coast and throughout the colony. It will he rem-mi-h ■red,'(hat shortly before bis death be was prosecuted bv the Nelson Government, hut was acquitted AAA; learn from the Ilokitik i papers that among his papers aider hi s death was found the following letter, a copv of which lias been forwarded to A!r ,1. Liz >r, of Hokitika. The letter was .•lal.- l August 1. 1876. and r-’.ad as fo’lows : —o Alas, to-day tiie change of my symptoms are of such a nature that a fatal termination is not imp obab! • ev,-n ir-fo.-e I iv-wit Nelson. Should Provideiuvso direct it, [ desire, tr’f'o-e flic as-air-mee of an honest man’s (lying- deelara!ion, ffiernity now staring me in the face, I declare bejorc the Great Architect of tin- Universe that I never in thought, word, act. or de-M, defrauded the Government of Nelson of a shigle shilling. 'Therefore. I depend noon you and my Alasonio brother Stanton to asmre the world of the fact. I look to von both to protect my moral rectitude of character when I am gone to i hot Inn me whence there is no return.” (Signed) —J. Millar. Octavius Iladtield, son of the Bishop of Wellington, aged 20, died suddenly on Wc Ine-iday week, at Napier. He was a clerk in the National Bank there, and much liked. A correspondence of a capillary nature was recently attempted between a noted Parisian thief in durance vile and his comrades outside. The prisonin' was sent a letter from his fiancee containing merely a lock of hair wrapped in the leaf of a book. The gaoler did not, consider tbe souvenir important enough to bo delivered, but a lew days after came a similar enclosure, and yet another. This aroused suspicion, and the Governor took the matta 1 in hand. Ho examined flic loaf of the book ; which Was only that of a common novel twenty-six lines on a page. Then lie studied the hair, and noticed tbe small quantity of tbe gift. Counting the hairs, lie found them of unequal length, and twenty-six in number, tbe same ns the lines of tbe page. Struck with (die coincidence, bo laid tbe hairs along the lines of the page winch tdey respectively reached, buginning at the top with the smallest hair. After some trouble lie found that the end of each hair pointed to a different letter, and that these letters combined, formed a slang sentence, which informed tbe prisoner the next, time lie left the prison to be examined an attempt would be made to rescue him. The governor laid bis plans accordingly : the attempt at rescue was made, but the rescuers fell into their own trap. “The Order of Foresters arc advancing clearly. A Taranaki contemporary gives the following particulars of: their advancement in New Plymouth.” The usual quarterly meeting of the Ancient, Order of Foresters, Court Taranaki, No. 4356, was held on Wednesday evening, January 3, when tbe balance-sheet of tbe past quarter, and the annual report of the position of the Society, wore read. Taking the dull times into consideration, very satisfactory progress lias been made during the year. The total worth of Court Funds in December, 1875, was £392 12s. 9d. There lias been paid to sick members during tbe year 1876, .£34 10s. ; and the total worth of the Court Funds in December, was £457 12s. lOd. of which .£455 bad been invested through the trustees,, whilst £2 12s. 10. was left in the Treasurer’s bands, tbe increase of capital for the year 1876 having been £65 Os. Id. Twelve new members were initiated during the year, and four had left through non-pajnnenfc of contributions, leaving the total number of sixty-seven financial members in December, 1876. The average age of members is 30 years. j

Air Cobbett has Ikm n making another application, says the Argus correspondent, in the Chancery Division, High Court, for a writ of habeas corpus in the matter of Sir K. Tichhorne, but failed to obtain it. Perhaps lie may renew it on a future day. when Arthur Orton and a survivor of the Bella malm their appearance in London, whither they will no doubt Insten, if the telegram be correct which Mr Onslow says be lias received from Melbourne. It.states that Arthur Orion is found, also a survivor of that mysterious vessel.

The law sometimes has strange freaks. A case lately tried in a Dublin court brought out one of the strangest of them. The plaintiff sued for damages for injuries sustained by falling into a cellar, the grating of which had been left op cm by the defendant. The plaintiff in his fall broke the grating, and for this damage to his property the defendant claimed £5. Plaintitf’s counsel said that the audacity of this demand had never been paralleled in his experience, except in one instance ; and this exceptional case he proceeded to relate for the benefit of tbe jury. There lived, ho said at one time, in the fashionable quarter of that city, an eminent lawyer, who afterwards came to occupy a position on the judicial bench. He was a man of high profession d attainments, but of testy and irritable temp-r, His next door neighbour was a retired major, noted for the eccentricity of his habits. Between the two there was anything but friendly feeling, and (hey did all in their power to annoy and harass each other. One night, memorable in Ireland as the night of the great storm,” the major’s chimneys were blown down. Crash they went through the roof of the lawyer’s house, and thence down through floor after floor, carrying havoc in (heir course. The man of law was in no good humor as/he contemplated the destruction ; and what made matters worse was that it was the major’s chimney that had occasioned the wreck. His mind was actively engaged in devising some process by which lie cmild get satisfaction from his arch-enemy when a missive arrived from the latter, couched as follows; —“Send me hack my bricks immediately, or 111 put (he matter into the hands of an attorn ey. —E xc’i a' i ge.