COUNTY NEWS.

Patea Mail, 3 August 1880, Page 2

COUNTY NEWS.

Mr Downes, one of the contractors for the Patea section of Railway, arrived with his family on Saturday, from Wellington. He will commence operations on the arrival of plant and timber from Wellington. The Wakatu Steamer is to be put on the Patea-Wanganui service early in the spring. She will probably make an occasional run during the next few weeks. The new landing stage and cattle wharf on the town side must be open for traffic in less than five months from date, and by the time that much-needed facility is available there will probably bo a considerable development in shipping at this port. It will not be surprising if the Patea S.S. Company put on a second boat for their Wellington and Nelson trade. School Examination,— The examination of pupils in the High School at Patea was conducted on Saturday by Mr Foulis, the inspector. The extra subjects in this examination are Latin, French and algebra. The results will be known in a few days. The proposal by a section of the Education Board at Wanganui to have a fresh examination of pupil teachers at Patea school, on the plea that the previous examination had not been conducted in accordance with the Board’s instruction, was negatived afterdiscussion at the last meeting. The majority of the Board objected to a partizan attempt of this kind to throw discredit on the much-abused inspector; and they saw also that it would be a bad precedent to establish if the local gentlemen who had assisted in the examination were to have their work impugned for no better reason than that certain members of the Board were eager to seize every opportunity of discrediting any work in which the inspector had a hand.

Money Order and Savings Banks Transactions are recorder! for the quarter ended June as follow Wanganui postal district, including Patca &c, 10 offices open, 1943 money orders issued, total £6,398, 5s 3d ; orders paid 1176, total £3,777 Os 4d, showing the importation of small articles to be nearly double the same export transactions. The Savings Banks opened 217 new accounts and closed 109 ; the number of deposits during the quarter were 804, the amount being £8339 3s 3d ; the number of sums withdrawn was 451> representing £6,438 6s 2d, the excess of deposits being £I9OO 17s Id. Only three districts show an excess of withdrawals over deposits, namely Christchurch, Hokitika, and Westport. The nett sum added to the capital deposited in Saving Banks in the colony during the quarter was £20,650, equal to of £72,600 per annum, it should be remembered that among those who use these banks for small savings, a certain number will take out their little from time to time, and invest in land or house-building. Fifteen Tenders for tip drays, horses and drivers for the Railway formation at the Junction Station and at Kakaramea, were opened yesterday, at the Militia Barracks. They were as follow : Thomas Quinlivin, 15s per day ; Thomas Brightwell, 14s lOd ; Richard E. Mcßae, 14s ; H. J. Davies, 13s 9d , J. Stevenson, 13s 6d; D. Hughes, 11s 6d; J. Armstrong, 13s 3d; W.Box, 12s 6d ; J. Keys, 12s 6d; H. MahafEy, 12s Hid ; Anderson, 12s ; T. 0. Shronessy, 10s ; Matthew Quinling, 9s 6d ; Patrick Murphy, 10s; Alexander O’Donnel, Patea, 9s 2d. The last tender, at 9s 2d per day, was accepted, and the contract has been signed. A fortnight’s pay is to be always held in hand as a guarantee against failure. The price is considered surprisingly low.

Infected Sheep.—The following farms on the West Coast are gazetted as having infected sheep during tho three months ended June : No. on Bun, Hamblin, C., Waitara ... ... 80 Sargent, J., Bell Block ... ... 102 Tate, Mrs., Waitara 600 Reid and Hume, Ford ell 2,300 Burnett, A., Oneida 700 Higgie, A., Blink Bonny ... ... 400 Higgie, T., Okoia ... ... ... 150 Campbell, P. A., Wiritoa 1,390 Honeyfield, E. M, Whenuakura... 1,300 Blyth, D., No. 1 Line 350 Hawken, J., Kakaramea 600 Symes, C. and E., Manutahi ... 3,000 Peacock, H. S.,Manutahi... ... 2,400 Baker and Allison, Lamb Hill ... 680 Morse, Major, Headland ... ... 1,700 Flommery, T, ... ... ... 300 Reid, W. Riverton... 486 Howard, Martin ... ... ... 170 Shields, T.. Okui ... ... ... 375 Ball, J., Kakaramea 600 Palmer, A., Whenuakura 2,200 Bayly, Gr. T., Mokoia 1,700 Bremer Brothers, Whenuakura ... 1,006 Total sheep on infected farms ... 21,709

The Patea s.s, was weather-bound on Sunday and Monday, in the harbor. A child bitten by a pig has died in the hospital from blood-poisoning at Timaru. Nelson Banks.—The second of August is gazetted as an annual holiday for banks in Nelson City. Ship Stryeys. —Mi H, W. Brewer, Customs officer at Nelson, is appointed Government surveyor of ships at that port. Gisborne was visited by a severe shock of earthquake early on Saturday morning. No damage was done. Tender for .Gravel. —The tended of Mr J, E. Keys for gravel to be supplied to the Patea Town Board at 4s 9d per yard has been accepted. The Native Lands Court is now sitting at Wanganui. The Kaitangiwhenua case is to be gazetted for hearing at Wai totara, but no notification has yet appeared. The Gas Company at New Plymouth is not able to declare a dividend on its subscribed capital of £5379. The number of consumers is increasing, and the prospect is said to be hopeful. Inspector op Nuisances. —Two tenders for the office of inspector were opened by the Patea Town Board last night. MrJ. Jackson offered to take the inspection of nuisances at £5 per annum ; Mr 0. Orchard tendered at £25. The tender of Mr Jackson was accepted. The Unemployed who are camped up the river, on Government Railway works, are not all satisfied with the conditions under which they are allowed to earn subsistence wages “ till better times.” Some complain of the food, some of the mud in which they have to work during wet weather, some of the tents, and some of the gangers. Probably the majority are thankful to be able, by honest labour, to earn money enough for present necessities, with a few shillings to spare every week after all deductions. The men who were sent from a distance, as unemployed, are keeping to their work more steadily than the laborers taken on as residents in the district. This is natural, the Patea laborers being at home and better able to shift for themselves or take any new job that offers. The new arrivals don’t know the “run of the ropes.” About 20 local men were taken on since the work began, and one half of these have knocked off at the first fortnightly pay. About 6of the new arrivals have also left the work. There arc 60 men at the two camps at present, and there is not room for the employment of more local men on these works, as another draft of 50 unemployed are to arrive next week from Wellington, and these will complete the number who can be put on the work as at present intended by Government.

Docks in Australia and New Zealand. —Tlie question of increasing the size of the graving dock at Lyttelton is now under consideration by the Harbour Board. The Alfred Dock at Melbourne, which is specially adapted for accommodating the Cerberus, and therefore exceptionally wide, is 420 ft. long on the floor, 26£ ft deep, and 80ft wide. Cockatoo Dock, Sj’dney, is 43Gft long, 20£ ft deep, and 59ft wide Mort’s Dock, Sydney, is 400 ft long, deep, and 63ft wide. Brisbane Dock is 300 ft long and 19ft deep. Auckland Dock is 315 ft long, 15ft deep, and 46ft wide. Dunedin Dock is 328 ft long, 19£ ft deep, and 50ft wide. Lyttelton Dock, if the present contract be carried out, will be 400 ft long, 23ft deep, and 46ft wide, but it* is possible that the length may be increased to 450 or 500 ft. The Governor’s Word. —ls it honorable to break your word, to fail to fulfil your promise ? If it be, then the Ministry are all honorable men. Their mouthpiece the Governor, for whose political actions they are responsible, promised the Maori members that the Maori prisoners would be tried in January or February, 1880. This is now Jnly and the Maori prisoners are still untried, and the Ministry propose to extend their time of trial for twelve months more. Is it lawful to deceive Maoris? Is it, we repeat, honorable to break your promises ?— Echo.

The Comet. —As it will be seventeen years before the new comet plunges into the sun and causes difficulty on the eartb, might nor the interpreters of prophecy extend the time of the end from 1881 to 1897 ? Nothing equals a solid scientific fact as an aider of prophecy. —Ec ho , A Musical Relic. —The original manuscript score, in Mendelssohn’s writing, of the well-known air, “ O Rest in the Lord,” from the oratorio of “Elijah,” has been stolen from the Corporatian Library at Guildhall, together with an autograph letter.