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Southland Times, Issue 1021, 14 September 1868, Page 2

"We are authorised to state that the time for receiving tenders for fhe completion of the Northern Kailway ■will finally close on the 30th inst., as advertised, and that the tenders will be immediately thereafter submitted to the Provincial Council, which will then be in session. Intending contractors should not trust to an extension of time being allowed, but send in their offera at once. A meeting of the committee of the Acclimatisation Society was held on Thursday last. It was reported that the ponds had been visited, and the ova was in a very healthy state. A committee was appointed to draw up a report of the Society, to be attached to the appl cation For an annual grant that had been made to the government. Mr W, H. Pearson was elected a member of the committee. Several accounts passed, and some other business of no public interest was transacted. The Penny Headings' Entertainment on Friday evening last came off with the customary success. The first part of the programme, the exhibition of a Magic Lantern, gave infinite pleasure to the juveniles present, if the deafening demonstrations of approbation were to be taken as the measure of their delight. Through the courtesy of Captain Elles, a variety of new slides were displayed, some of them grotesque enough to provoke to laughter the most sedate. The other portions of the performances wore quite up to their usual standard of excellence. Readings, grave and gay, songs, instrumental pieces and everything went off first rate. The house was also quite as well filled as ever, the cash receipts being, we believe, a little in excess of any formar evening. This week will, as has been announced, be a blank, and the following week the last performance of the season will take place, the proceeds to be given to the funds of the Hospital. This is a becoming and laudable act on the part of the Committee, and forms a fitting close — temporary, We hope— to a series of entertainments the most popular that have ever been given in Invercargill. The meeting of the subscribers to the Southland Hospital, for the purpose of electing a President and two Members of the Committee, called for Friday last, was adjourned until* Friday evening, 25th September. No business was transacted. Extensive drains are being raadeinTathan-street between Tay and Esk streets. The government is certainly evincing a desire to improve the town, and the locality mentioned is certainly one of the worst bits of road ; but we think an effort should be made to clean and repair the main drains, that are now in a state of dilapidation and filth, especially Esk-street. Startling details connected with the escape from the Chatham Islands crop up from time to time. One of the most exciting is recorded by a correspondent of the ' Hawke's Bay Herald.' He says : — During the late Hauhau panic an old whaler who has resided on this island for many years was, to his unuttarable disgust, metamorphosed into a soldier pro tern, and, as such, was one night posted as sentry on an enclosed track of land overlooking the western side of Waitangi Harbor. Pacing to and fro in the dim religious light, he heard a strange and mysterious rustling amongst the adjacent bushes, and perceived, or fancied he perceived, the indistinct outline of a figure advancing towards him. We will venture to say his heart began to throb and b .-.it like his old ship in a gale of wind; >.. v . ; theless, he called out boldly and in a stentn.-i i i voice, • Who goes there?' To this interrogatory, however, he received no reply, and still the mysterious figure continued its advance ; whereupon, with musket presented and finger in deadly proximity with the trigger, he was about to let fly, when a most euphonious, ' Baa' saluted his ears. 'By the holy poker,' said he, • that pass- word has saved your mutton this Hime pass on, old woolley head.'

Tho notice publiahed in a previous issue of portions of a supposed wreck having been pioked up on tho coast near Wellington, has been oon« firmed. The 'Independent' &ays that Mr Hill, of the. Customs department, -was despatched to make enquiries ortthe subjeot. The result is thus stated :— About half a mile from Happy Valley on the beach ho pioked up the. lid of a kerosene case marked ABO; three miles further on he saw a portion of a boat, three planks, copper fastened, teak wood, painted white on both Bides j some hundred yards the other side of Black Rock found a hencoop, between nine and ten feet long, made of te&k, painted oak color, the railings in front being round ; at Karori Stream found an empty case marked ABO, side out, yet in good order, and did not appear to be long exposed; met Mr Hunters shepherd, who showed him two tins containing oil which were found lying alongside the case just mentioned on Monday last; they appeared to be full, in very good order, and not at all rusted ; then went to Mrs Macmanaman's, at Cape Terawiti, when that lady said she had picked up a chest containing tea, about two-thirds full, at Orangoronga, which appeared to have been broken open by the action of the sea ; the only marks on it were JNO on the matting, which were brought into town, together with a piece of the hencoop. The Gipps Land Times reports that during the week a new line of reef has been found on the Crossover, about 300 yards from the Guiding Star ; it is about 18in. wide ou the surface, and very rich gold is plainly visible through the stone in every part, and it is considered by good judges to be equal, if not superior, to anything yet found in the Gipps Land ranges. The party of Cornishmen who have taken up the old prospecting claim on the Guiding Star have raised upwards of 200 tons of quarts, which is expected to crush from 6oz. to Boz. to the tori. His Excellency Sir George Bowen, is remark- ! able for the style in which he writes. We clip the following florid note from a Northern paper j — His Excellency the Governor is said to have replied to an address from the Nelson Provincial Council in the following style :— " I look forward with pleasing anticipation to my sonjourn in your flourishing and picturesque cityj to my rides over the rich and fertile plains surrounded by your noble mountains; and to see your gardens blooming with delicate flowers and plants under the influence of your soft and serene climate, while the lofty peaks above are crowned with snow. The Fiji islands are now attracting much attention in this and the Australian colonies, and every item of information will be read with intrest. We take the following from the ' Daily Times/ Bth inst. :— "A little geographical information about the Fiji Islands will not be amiss at the present time. We may therefore inform our readers that they consist of about 20n islands, having a total area of about 7,000 square miles, or nearly 4,500,000 acres. Two of the islands (Viti Levu and Vanna Levu) have each a circumference of 250 miles. There are several others of smaller but still considerable extent ; but the greater number are mere islets, rising abruptly from the ocean } and, with the exception of some tracts on the two larger islands, but little level land i 3 anywhere to be seen. The native population in 1860 was estimated at about 200,000." The Poatmaster-General has authorise'? the pnblication of a Postal Guide for New Zealand, containing a list of the various Post Offices, Tariff of Telegraph Charges, Bates of Postage on letters and newspapers, regulations for transmission of letters, books, and patterns, and usual details. Our Bluff correspondent under date 12th, says : — A large full rigged ship arrived at the lower anchorage this morning about 8 a.ni. but on account of the strong gale blowing it is impossible to have communication with her, however, she is supposed to be the Maria, Capt. Duncan from Honolulu Islands, with guano for the Australian and New Zealand LaudCoinpany.