NEWS OF THE DAY.

South Canterbury Times, Issue 2447, 21 January 1881, Page 2

NEWS OF THE DAY.

The operation of the Maori Prisoners Act has been extended for. three months. A boy named Cuthbert Turnbull was drowned at I’elichet Bay, Dunedin, yesterday, while bathing.

The ninth annual conference of the New Zealand Primitive Methodist Church will he held in Dune lin this year. Nearly 40 ministers and laymen, from all parts of the colony, arc expected. At a meeting of the crodl.ors of Ryan, Bell and Company, spirit find commission merchants, Auckland, the liabilities were stated to be £13,8!)5. The estate was assigned.

At the Waimate Court yesterday, D. Cruickshank was charged on remand with the larceny of a dray, the property of A. Chisholm. As the prosecutor failed to put in an appearance, he was discharged. A number of civil cases were also disposed of.

At a dress levee held by the Governor at Auckland a number of Maori Chiefs were sorely disappointed. They were desirous of being presented to the new Governor, and had the same clothes they appeared in before Governor Robinson, but said they would not go to be laughed at, as they had no dress coats.

Ac the Timor (Victoria) New Year’s Day sports a competitor in a foot-race created a sensation by presenting himself to the admiring gaze of the spectators as naked as Nature made him, He was a tall young man of about twenty years, and excused himself on the score that the weather was “ beastly hot.” A critic in the Dunedin press who is evidently on the road to distinction has lately been commenting on Herr Bandmann’s pronunciation of words and lines Herr Bandmanu never uttered. The editor of the Otago Daily Times says in a footnote :—“Herr Bandmann doubtless scores a point against our critic as regards the particular words used in one instance. Our critic has trusted more to his pocket Shakespeare than to his ears.” The barque Annabella over which there was so much trouble some time ago at Lyttelton in consequence of the crew refusing to go to sea in her, has arrived safely but in n very bad state at London, ihe Undcrwritoi's’ Association report concerning her as follows : —" Annabella, Sydney : A very rough cargo. A portion of copra is damaged. The vessel was being pumped out whilst discharging, being leaky.” That [choir remains out on strike. A few Sundays ago the pulpit of a certain church at the north end of the City was temporarily filled (says the Dunedin “ Star ”) by a gentleman who is great on overtures anent bankruptcy, etc, and at the conclusion of his sermon he made the customary congregational announcements. One of these had reference to an impending picnic, but the announcement was made in such peculiar language that the young ladies of the choir set up a suppressed giggle. Unfortunately, the pastor was within hearing, and the screen behind which the offenders sat did not protect them from his searching glance. That night saw the screen demolished. The choir thereupon made common cause, and vowed that the indignity passed on them should be resented. The screen has been replaced, and three Sabbaths have gone by since the rupture, but the choir seats remain untenanted.

As the Albury train was crossing the bridge at the Washdyke, yesterday, afternoon, it collided with a dog,i;; which, happened to be travelling,., across the the sleepers. To the astonishment of some of the passengers who expected to. see the poor brute cut in , two, the i cow-catcher tossed the dog high in the air, throwing it into the water, from whence it swam out again apparently uninjured.

There was a lively,scene at the .meeting of the Waitemata County Council yesterday over a record in the minutes, to Which some objected as irregular, /A hpisterous discussion, lasting an hourj ensued. One councillor said another was ignoUttnt of all business forms and methods of procedure, to which the person, addressed made an offensive retort, referring to his opponent as “a long-eared donkey/’ etc, y :

At the R.M. Court this morning, an inebriate, a first offender, was Haed 5s by Mr Beetham, with the alternative of 24 hours’ seclusion. Hugh Boyd was charged with wilfully and maliciously 5 setting fire to a stack of hay belonging to Mr ,Qosliiig, Mount Horrible manded on Inspector Pender’s application until Monday when the other men, Connisky and Egan, will be brought up on remand charged with firing the stack in question. Boyd was arrested last night by Detective Kirby at the Upper Pareora.

Adverting to some of the remarks made at the Bible-in-schools meeting in Dunedin on Tuesday “Fair Play” writes to the “ Star ” as follows :—Last night Mr Bathgate remarked that those persons who had become proficient in what are commonly known as the three R.'s had made use of their acquirements for the purpose of committing forgery. Are we to understand that they were secularists and of godless education ? as I and some others are under the impression that lately both in Glasgow and Dunedin these educated forgers have divided their time between the Church and a trusting public.” The principal telegraph operator at Wakapuaka, the New Zealand terminus of the Australian cable, has been suspended (says the Lyttelton Times’” Wellington correspondent) on grounds which the authorities are endeavoring to keep quiet. I can, however, state on absolutely correct information, that the operator referred to has been suspended at the instance of the firm of Messrs I’roudfoot, Dunedin, in consequence of an allegation on their part that a telegraphic tender, involving a sum of £IOO,OOO, had been delayed in transmission, and the acceptance of the tender pos'ibly lost. In consequence, the matter has been referred to the Hon John Hall. The Ministerial press lias, it is said, received a hint to keep quiet on the subject. At a trial of reapers and binders held at Oamaru yesterday, the Wood’s machine won the gold medal of the N.O.A. and P. Association, and the Osborne the speaial prize, competing against all the machines on the ground. For the information of farmers generally we may state that there is a great difference between the machines originally made by Wood and his new and improved ones, and that time, labor, and scores of pounds may be saved by purchasers securing the assistance of a practical mechanic when selecting these implements. Since last season improvements of a most important nature have been made in the original patents, and the latest machines arc as different from the old fashioned ones, as an American springvagon is from a clumsily made dray.

A public meeting of persons interested in forming a Joint Stock Company for the purpose of constructing the West Coast Eailway (North Island), was held at Wellington yesterday afternoon. The Committee appointed at a previous meeting reported that it would be necessary to raise £50,000 locally before floating a company could be hoped for, and that from a partial canvas made, they had every reason to believe that the money could be raised without difficulty, A very large and influential Provisional Directory, comprising the leading merchants, professional men, and the Members representing the district, was appointed. The prospectus will be issued whsn £50,000 has been subscribed.

Keferring to the resignation of Mr Byrce the “Wanganui Chronicle” says:—“lf dragging Te Whiti out of Parihaka is necessary or advisible, it ought to have been done before the settlers were tempted on to the Plains, There was no necessity whatever for exposing them to the risk which would inevitably be attached to an attack on the stronghold of the Maori prophet. Wc are unable to see any necessity for altering the line of policy in Native matters which the ministry have been steadily pursuing. Much therefore, as we regret Mr Bryce’s retirement from the Ministry, we cannot hut think that his colleagues are in the right in the view they have taken of the situation. At the same time, we allow, it is possible that circumstances may hereafter arise making it necessary to do what Mr Byrce wishes to do at once.”

The Maryborough (Victoria) “Advertiser ” bears the following testimony to Mr Milner Stephen’s galvanic, or magnetic powers:—“An old man named William Sutherland, aged 75, with left eye destroyed, and only able to distinguish light from darkness with the right, was in the hospital at Mount Gambier, South Australia, when, hearing the account of Mr Milner Stephen’s cures read to him from the "Age ” newspaper, he formed the bold project of walking 300 miles to see him. He did this expecting to find Mr Stephen in Melbourne, but accidentally met him in Maryborough. The poor fellow was so blind that he had to be led to a chair. After Mr Stephen had breathed into his eye he joyfully exclaimed that he could see everything in the room distinctly, and on leaving the apartment two gentlemen asked him if he could see that he had his handkerchief in one hand and his stick in the other. Yesterday another aged man, named Edward Howard, . from M'Callum’s creek, so blind in both eyes that he could only distinguish the figure of a man, found his sight suddenly restored and accurately described a small picture hanging over the door in the presence of several witnesses.”

The Premier is off to Picton on an errand connected with business in the Postal and Telegraph Departments, and he is accompanied by Dr Leinon.

The SiS, Taiaroa arrived from Dunedin this in orning. In addition to a considerable quantity of general merchandise, she brought the remaining parts :of the steam dredge for the Harbor Board. No time is to he lost in getting the dredge pub together and in working order.

• Thfe streets' of the town were made lively from an early hour'this morning by a severe dust storm. The pulverised municipal shingle rose in blinding clouds compelling business people to close tliirir doors or suffer the partial destruction of thenstock. Owing to the warm sunshine combined with the wind the town during the day has been far,from agreeable for pedestrians.

It has been decided that Mr Rollcston shall permanently hold the portfolios of

Defence! and Native affairs. The Governor

has formally signified his approval of Mr Rolleston’s appointment as _ Native Minis-

ter and Minister for Defence, and he will be gazetted immediately. This will involve his being relieved either' I 'of "'the Lands,;

Mines, or Justice so soon, as the vacant seat

in the Cabinet is filled up, which will not be for another two. It is most likely that he' will relinquish the portfolio of Justice, but this is not yet definitely settled, and depends much upon the choice of the new Minister. The “ New Zealand Times ” is responsible for the following : —‘ ‘ A rat in a peculiarly perplexing predicament was espied on one of the stringers of the Queen’s Wharf on Saturday. The unlnckv rodent, on foraging expedition intent, had espied one among the multitude of

mussels clustered on the timbers with its. shells invitingly open, and scenting within a toothsome tit bit, thrust its paw in. The bivalve instantly closed, and the rat was a prisoner hard and fast, with no hope of release- Its plaintive squeakings soon drew attention, and an onlooker took his ratship by the tail and performed the hasty despatch by knocking its head against the planks.”

At yesterday’s sitting of the Auckland Supreme Court in bankruptcy Mr Browning applied, on behalf of W, H. Lingard, for his discharge. Mr Hesketh, for the provisional trustee, asked for a postponement of the matter as from information which had just came to hand there was reason for believing that fraud, a gross conspiracy, and perjury had been associated with the proceedings. A vast amount of information as to assets, etc., hadl been kept back. The Judge decided that at any rate insufficient notice of the application had been given to the creditors, and he therefore ordered that a fresh notice should be given Messrs Lingard, Searle, and De Lias to be examined before the trustee to-day. The Sydney “ Town and Country Journal” supplies the following question and answer:—“Sir, —Between fifty and sixty years ago a certain man living in Sydney was found (suiliy of some offence, and sentenced to be hanged. The sentence would have been fulfilled but for the rope breaking three times successively, and seeming like a miraculous intercession from Heaven, which, no doubt, it was, a reprieve was granted by tbe act ing- Governor of the time. The poor man was saved, and afterwards proved innocent. He subsequently met his death by drowning, being overtaken by a squall while in au open boat. Can you, or any of your readers, give me authentic information relative to his name, religion, the cfate of the event, and the name of the Governor, etc.? As some

folk doubt it ever having happened, and I know it did, I want to prove it beyond dispatte.—- 1 am, etc., Histobicus. [The omiviicts name was Joseph Samuels, and Captain P, Gf. King , K.N., was Governor. 3t was on the 20th September, 1803.]” A landslip of am extraordinary character has occurred at, Wharclift’e Side, near Oughtbridge, Sheffield. The entire side of a hill has slipped down, about 3 feet towards the river, carrying five houses

along with it_ Three of the houses were unfinished, but the occupants of the other

two have experienced no inconvenience from thf;ir removal, The highway has also been, shifted, and has been slightly bent out! of its proper direction. It is stated, -jlait some quarrymen in the course of tbeib work “ tapped ” several springs, an d it is thought the water, percolating

b etween the rock and the shale, has occasioned the landslip, which has. occurred very gradually. The hill is now thought "to hawc aßmue to a standstill, without any •damage whatever having been done.

This is what the Her J. W. .Davis, Baptist minister of Dunedin, and one of the most e loquent and forcible speakers in New Zeala.id, says of the Bible-in-Schools organisptio u “ The steps that were being taken by the Bible-in-Schools Association were? imperilling a principle—a principle for which in early life he had suffered cduc lational, social, and pecuniary loss—the principle which was at the root of every struggle, for religious liberty during the ! last few centuries—(“ No !”) It imperilled the principle upon which the early Christi an Church worked —a principle that wa s in the teachings of Christ and, therefore , as a citizen and a Christian minister he co nld not but speak upon the matter. Furtl itT- .than that, it was well known he had; giveTJ a good deal of attention to the question of education, so that historically • and officially he had a. right to speak. State assistance was not de. uned necessary by the founder of the Ch.dstian religion, and never vr,-as Christianity atronger than in the days, when most of its ■ people were poor and 'the Governments wei all against it. It wi is because the State tr. ied to take part in 'the religious teaching of the people that thf • condition of society was formed in Judea • which enabled the enemies of Jesus to bet ray him to the cross. Hti would also remi? id Christian men that our Savior and his r .postlea never availed themsolves of the pov ;er of the State to press their opinions up on the young or upon the old, but that tl icre stand among the last words of the I jord, words that should never be forgotten in our political and religious life —“My kingdom is :uot of this world ; if my kingI dom were of this world,, then would niy I servants tig’M-”

Mr C. E. Barker, in -a letter to the ‘‘ Patea Mail,”'advocates the manufacture of potato Hour in■■.variousshapes for export.He proposes the erection of a,mill at Patea for pulping and purifying all.th** .potatoes that can be grown .in this splendid root district, and ‘ exporti nj<, the • refined product in- barrels to -sell in England as farina. ''

The New Zealand Times ” of Wednesday says;—“ Odd applications occasionally come before the Benevolent Institution, and one at the least singular was discussed yesterday afternoon. A sailor who had sent his wife out to New Zealand, ‘ just to read her a lesson,’ as he expressed it, and who had evidently not been always on good terms with her, wrote stating that he had sailed from London to Sydney by the ship British Enterprise with a view of rejoining his wife. As, however he had shipped for the return voyage to London as well, it ; would be necessary for her to go to Sydney claim him, and thus get his discharge. The wife accordingly applied to the society for her passage money, but the committee considered that it Would not be right for them to lend themselves to an evident Grilse to enable the man to, desert his ship, and refused the The fine dry weather that ’ has succeeded the rainfall that occurred 1 early in the week, has ripened the crops in a good many parts of the district and the harvest is in full swing. It is believed that'hc yield of grain on the whole will be a good average one. The grain principally grown this season is wheat. There are a few patches of barley, but the area under oats is exceedingly limited, farmers having naturally been dismayed at the low prices ruling for horsefeed lately. Potatoes in most places are a miserable' crop, but the onion crop is immense. In the direction of Temuka and at' Parcora they Have attained an amazing’ size,’ some of the hulbs weighing as much as between two and three pounds and averaging. all round about one pound each. The quantity of reapers and binders at work has seriously told against manual labour, and the district is thronged with men looking in vain for employment. i

From the latest dates of the “ Te Aroha Miner” to hand we glean that mining operations on the new field are progressing steadily in the direction of opening up the claims by tunnels and drives, but very little gold is being got. A public meeting was held on the 7th instant for the purpose of deciding on means for erecting,a crushing battery, and a provisional directory was formed, the members of which subsequently received an offer to erect a ten-stamp battery with steam power, two herd ans, and every appliance necessary to work the mill for £looo,the machineryto bejruuning in six weeks from the commencement of contract. The company is likely to be floated with very little delay, as it is admitted that without a ready means of testing stone, and the avoidance of the delay in sending samples to the Thames to be tested, public confidence in the field will not bo long l maintaiaod A wood and coal merchant, who was summoned at the Wellington Resident Magistrate’s Court the other day for allowing his horse to wander at large in Tory street, attended en drxJiah/llr. He appeared with his shirt sleeves rolled up, thus baring his “broad and sinewy arms.” while his face was illustrated with a series of grimy patches, suggestive of a too close acquaintance with the dusky diamonds in which he deals. Mr Shaw enquired, “Haven’t you got a coat?” Considering the inefficient acoustic properties of the Court, it is not to be wondered at, remarks the “ Post,” that the defendant understood his Worship to enquire if he possessed a -colt, and though, like Captain Corcoran, striving hard to catch at what Mr shaw was driving, promptly replied that he hadn’t. " Not got a coat ? ” almost shrieked the Magistrate in evident surprise. “ A coat ? Ah, I thought you said a, colt. Oh yes, I’ve got a coat,” said the defendant. “ Then,” sharply remarked Mr Shaw, “the next time that you come to Court see that you put it on and make yourself look respectable.” He was fined Is and costs.

Mr 'Robert F. Barber, architect, invites sepcrate tenders for completion of house, -See., at Wai-iti,

The Canterbury ram and ewe fair will take place on the grounds of the Canterbury A. and P. Association, Christchurch, on March 2i and'2s. Further particulars will be found in another column. We have received the “ Few Zealand Country Journal.” The frontispiece consists of an engraving representing Darnley, an entire belonging to Mr David Hiddell, of Paisley, Scotland. If the likeness is a speaking one the animal would be worth bringing out to the colonies to exhibit as a prodigy, for it has the head of a pig, the neck of a buffalo, and the legs of an elephant. As usual the “Country Journal” contains a large amount of information valuable to farmers and graziers, and it is printed and got up in a most creditable manner.