South Canterbury Times, SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 1881. NEWS OF THE DAY.

South Canterbury Times, Issue 2472, 19 February 1881, Page 2

South Canterbury Times, SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 1881. NEWS OF THE DAY.

The great Patatere land scramble is to begin in earnest at Cambridge on Monday. Nelson college is probably the only prosperous institution of the kind in the colony. Its transactions for the year shew a balance to the good of £1394. Purcell, the Auckland contractor who made a desperate race for liberty when pursued by a detective, has been committed for fraud.

There is no accounting for taste. A European girl has eloped to Parahaka with a released Maori.

Half the cases relieved during the past year by the Auckland Ladies’ Benevolent Society, were grass-widows—viz., married women deserted by their husbands.

A drunk and disorderly was lined 10s by Mr Bcctham ibis morning with the usual alternative of 48 hours in the lock-up. Chicago has a sensible ordinance requiring the use of iron vessels for ashes, under a penalty of 5 dollars for every violation. The racehorses Fishhook, Clarence, Amulet, and Talent, went South by the express to-day. They will figure at the Dunedin races which take place on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday next. The Caswell Sound Marble Company has been floated. A meeting of shareholders has been called for an early date, and active operations are to be commenced in March.

It appears that it is the Government, and not the promoters of the West Coast Railway, who have sent out the expedition to report upon Messrs Thornton and Brown’s discoveries.

A farmer in the Leeston district, after receiving offers of only Is lid per bushel for some 1,200 bushels of barley, shipped it home through a firm here, and has just received the account sales, showing that, after paying all expenses, the grain brought clear 2s per bushel. Ten Europeans and a large number of natives attended the Parihaka meeting, which has just terminated. Te Whiti’a speech was simply a dignified protest against the invasion of Maori rights and territory by the white man, whom he compared to a cannibal devouring the native race.

There has been quite a famine of American wire for the wire-binders in use. The sellers of reapers and binders have been unable to keep the farmers of the district supplied. Mr Bourn, manager for Messrs Wilkin and Co., sold out a very large stock in a few days. Wo learn that there is not a box of wire to be had even in the Australian colonies. This tells a significant tale respecting not only the harvest, but the extent to which the machines are coming into use.

At a banquet given at Dunedin tbe other day to Mr Justice Williams Mr Stout proposed “Crimes and our unfortunate Clients,” without which the cost and mechanism of the Supreme Court, and the whole profession as a body, from the Judge down to the usher, would have no existence. It was proposed by a prominent member of the Bar that the toast should be drunk in solemd silence or to slow music, but the feelings of the guests got the better of them, and the toast was drunk with musical honors.

At the New Zealand University examination the eight scholarships have been awarded as follows: —1, Leonard Chapman, Christchurch; 2, Edith Howard Searle, Christchurch ; 3, Mary Montgomery, Dunedin ; 4, Arthur Jonathan Mayne, Christchurch ; 5, William Percival Evans, Nelson ; G, Adolph Hamann, Dunedin; 7, Edmond Wilkinson, Christchurch ; 8, Robert Malcolm Lang, Dunedin. J'ro.rime . laces it Caroline Woodbury, Christchurch. The following have passed the matriculation examination for the year :—A. P. Clarke, Nelson ; C. Colebrook and B. Cronin, Auckland; F, F. Fondall,Christchurch ; W. Friend,Dunedin; W, Gilmer, and J. J Gribbin, Auckland ; H, F. Queritz, Christchurch ; A. Hannah and J, J. Hay. Waircpa, Otago ; R. J. Jacob«o , Wellington ; C. Jervis, Auckland ; K. McNab, Dunedin; E. Mcnzics, Tokoraaitiro; D. Munro, Waircpa, Otago; D. Nome, Auckland, J. H. Simraonds, Timaru; N. Simpson, Auckland ;G. S. Stewart, Dunedin ; J, Sykes, Auckland ; S. F. H. Smith, Cliistchnrch ; P. J. Waters, Wellington ; L. M, Will, Taieri, Otago ; J. Wilson. Auckland.

The “ North Otago Times ” reports that an extensive robbery of jewellery was perpetrated at the Waitaki Bridge Hotel on Wednesday evening. Mrs Ward, wife of the licensee, accompanied by Miss Hoggett, had been to a neighbor’s house, and on returning about midnight the last-named lady went into her bedroom, and on looking round missed several articles of jewellery, Mrs Ward was informed of the circumstance and awoke the barman, the three making a joint search. On looking under her bed Miss Hoggett observed a man crouched up in a corner, and catching him by the hair of the head she forced him to come out, when he said, “It is all right ; I will cive up what things I have got.” He was searched, and the undermentioned articles found npon him :—Watch and chain, void locket, necklace and locket, three gold finger rings, pair of earrings, gold cross, set gold studs, solitaire, gold plated neck chain, silver chain, two silver pipe ferrules, one pair solitaires, scarf ring, watch, and seventeen and sixpence in silver. The man's name is James Mack, and he bad been stopping at the hotel since the previous day. He was yesterday committed for trial.

Referring to the departure of the Australian cricketers from Nelson, the “ Colonist ” of Saturday last says:—“At the conclusion of the game Mr Luker again had hia fine turnout ready for our visitors, and on their taking their scats the Nelson men gave them three hearty but undeserved cheers, for only one (Mr Boyle) recognised the compliment in any way, unless an ill-tempered scowl can be called so doing. They were again cheered on the'r departure from the wharf, whither they wore also conveyed by Mr Luker, but there was the same ill-bred conduct, and a feeling akin to relief was experienced when the men had really left. Individual members of the team might possibly improve on acquaintance and it may be that one or two arc not in reality so boorish as they appeared. It is, however, generally supposed that travel gives polish ; but if it has done so with severs 1 of the Australian team we can only deplore their original roughness. Wc were led to consider the players as gentlemen when they went Homo, but now—well they have become professionals in the money-making sense, but in another we we have met better professionals.” Those who have still any doubts about the character of the Lingsrd bankruptcy may, says the “ Observer,” be interested to hear that Horace’s share of the profits on the New Zealand tour alone amounted to over £IOOO. When Mrs Lingard came to pay Mr Hesketh the £250, she brought with her a nice little canvas bag of sovereigns, from which that sum was extracted. Those behind the scenes reckon that the unfortunate (?)pair took away with them at least three such bags, holding perhaps £SOO a piece. Mr DeLias was very nearly having a shot at the Lingarda on his own account. Throughout the engagement he had been paying Horace copyright fees for pieces which that worthy declared belonged to him. Now, in the bankruptcy examination, Lingard swore that the copyright of these pieces did not belong to him. On this De Lias went to Searcll and said, “ Look here, Searell, I mean to have ago at Lingard. I’ve paid him £3O for copyright fees, and now he swears he’d no right to them." Well,what do you think Mr Searell said ? Why, he declared Lingard had perjured himself when he said the copyrights didn’t belong to him. Of course Mr DeLias wasn’t going to let the matter rest there, and eventually Mrs Lingard was very glad to compromise by paying him back a portion of the fees.

Mr Callanan’s consultation on the Dunedin Cup is filling up gradually. Those desirous of investing should do so at once, as the drawing will take place definitely on Tuesday evening. It is notified elsewhere that the first instalment of Property Tax for the year commencing April 1,1880, will be payable on Maich 8 next, and the second instalment will be payable on March 22 next. The morning and evening services at St. Mary’s Church to-morrow will be preached by the Rev C. Melville Pym. A general meeting will be held this evening at 8.30, at the Criterion Hotel, of persons interested in the St. Patrick’s Day sports.