The Southland Times. MONDAY, DECEMBER 21, 1868.

Southland Times, Issue 1077, 21 December 1868, Page 2

The Southland Times. MONDAY, DECEMBER 21, 1868.

We learn that, pending definite arrangements being entered into at home, a temporary understanding has been arrived at whereby most of the steamers of the Panama Company will continue to run in the Inter-colonial trade. We have heard that during the last trip of the Otago, a gentleman was placed in charge to see that the new arrangements were carried out. It is to be hoped that the colony will not lose the advantages of this line of steamers. The Wakatip Mail gives the following information regarding agricultural aud pastoral matters in the Lake District : — The wheat crop, though fully three weeks backward, looks very healthy, and is luxuriant in the extreme — even more so than last year. This may be attributed chiefly to the heavy rainfalls of late. The sudden return of wintry weather at the close of last, and commencement of this week has interfered with shearing operations, and the clip is behind time this year. With abundaut facilities for washing, the wool is being shorn in the grease. The • New Zealand Sun,' says: — "The special jury cause, Bank of Australasia v. Cavgill and O;hers, which occupied the Supreme Conrt throughout a long sitting yesterday, involves a question of importenee to bankers and merchants throughout the Colony. Briefly stated, that question is, whether or not there is a custom of trade in Dunedin, by which the delivery of endorsed bond warrants is held as equivalent to the delivery of the goods specified in such warrants. As the question is one of custom, it is to be decided by weight of evidence, and we have reported with tolerable fulness the very lengthy evidence given yesterday. This has compelled a more thaD usually condensed report of the speeches of Counsel, and the summing up of the Judge. That summing up was not completed until half- last seven o'clock ; and at midnight, under circumstances which will ba found stated in the report — the jury were locVep up for the night, the Court being adjourned until eleven o'clock this forenoon. A set of new Regulations for the Coloniul Treasury, is puplished in tha 0-xzetfce of the 4th inst. The Emulations, 56 in number, are to come into force on the Ist January. One of the effects of the disastrous struggle in the North, says the New Zealand Sun, has been the forced emigration of a large number of the dispossessed settlers on tne West Coast. In turning their attention to new homes, many have prudently fixed upon Otago as a field for their enterprise, and noticeable among the nutnb«» t w 10 have lately cast in their lot amongst us is an c itire Canadian family of the name of Dickie, or at least such of them as could be released from military daties at the Frjnt. After having | remained on their land even after it was consi lered unsafe to do so, the reverse of Okutuka necessitated its abandonment, and placed their very fields and dwellings in the hands of the enemy. In the hurry of leaving their homes, consequent on this disaster, they were obliged to abandon most of their stojk, and all their agricultural implements. The 'Evening Sta.-,' of the 15th December, says : — " By the arrival yesterday of the brigantine Emulous from New Brunswick, the population of this Province has received an accession of upwards of 50 souls. The undertaking — for the passeagei-s by the Emulous are in the position of a Joint Stock Company, owning and freighting the vessel they sail in — was intended, we .believe, in the first instance, for settlement at Wauganui, but on reaching Wellington and learning that tUat unfortunate district had been plunged into the horrors of war in the interval of their embarkation .and arrival off the Coast, they wisely determined on shaping their course for more peaceful shores, and so have landed here. The immigrants cannot fail to prove a valuable addition to Otago, as they are composed for the most part of practical agriculturists, artificers, and tradesmen."

NeW3 comss to us (the ' Argus') to the 13th of October by way of Mauritius, from the Cape of Q-ood Hope. No further intelligence had been received from the goldfieids of the interior, but letters had been received from the prospecting parties which were on their way thither. An apocryphal statement had been made, to the effect that Prussia was desirous of establishing a colony on the borders of Natal, and %ould be glad to be able to take over the "Free States and Trans raal territories. Professor Halford's now celebrated remedy for snake bites has been proved to be an antidote for scorpion-bite. A correspondent writes to the ' Western Post' : — " Last week my daughter was carrying a log of wood, and while doing so, a scorpion which had by some means lodged in her dress at the back of her neck, bit her four times. I immediatelly rubbed in ammonia, and with the happiest effect, nothing unpleasant having resulted from the wounds since. I pen this for th 6 benefit of any person who may be similarly bitten." We clip the following from the ' Argus,' 11th Dec : — The " Spygomographe" is the name of a new and most ingenious instrument which has been recently invented and brought to the assistance of medical science. We believe that only one has as yet been imported into the colony and that has pa3sed into the possession of a wellknown Collins-street surgeon. The instrument is designnd for the purpose of recording with unerring accuracy the condition of the circulation of the blood. It, in fact, transfers to paper an exact account of the pulsations of the wrist. Tb.3 manner in which it acts may be very briefly described: It is fastened upon f he wrist with a moderately tight bandage. The pulsations of tho wrist work upon a spring, which communicates its action to the body of the machine, which comprises a pen charged witli ink and a white tablet. The pen worked by the spring registers the action of the pulse upon the tablet, and the machine wound up, runs down in a quarter of a minute The tablet then shows not only the number of pulsations wheh have taken place in that period, but also their force and regularity. The instrument is now used very extenaively by cliniual physicians in England and on the continent. It is of great use in determining the action, of chronic diseases on the system, and is also being called into requisicion by life assurance companies as showin* very conclusively the value of lives proposa d for insurance." The au horities of Jaszbereny, a Hungarian town, havejust had the following notice published to the sound of the drum : — " Seeing that oatbs and bltißphemies are the real causes of earthquakes, everyone, no matter who, is forbidden to sware or use bad language, under a penalty of I'ecciving twonty-fiVe stripes with a rod and paying a fine of twenty-fi>e florins." It is worthy of note saya the 'Herald, (Melbourne) 12th inst, that during the last week six vessels, including the mail steamer, cleared out from Hobson's Bay with 20,217 bales of wool, 7b',4480z gold, and 32,127 sovereigns. At; the Williamstown Railway _ pier there are now five vessels engaged in loaiing corgo for England, two vessels discharging. At tho Sandrige Railway pier there two vessels loading and five discharging inward cargo. The Christmas entertainments this year are as numerous, and we have reason to conclude, as attractive as any that have been presented on previous occasions. On Christmas eve, a grand Concert, in connection with the Church of England, will be held at the Theatre Soyal. Numerous pic-nics have been arranged for Christmas day, and during the following week there is be to horse-racing, Calidonian games, and other popular sports of an attractive character. The ' Sydney Mail' thus speaks of the great American railway : — " When the railroad across the continent of America is completed, which it soon will be, there will be constant conveyances by means of railways and mail packets for passengers desiring to travel round the world. Tais grand tour will be 23,00J miles in length, will cost about £JOO, and will be accomplished in about eighty days. The English tourist will be able to visit America, Japan, China, Ceylon, and Egypt. He will cross the At.antic, North Pacific, and Indian Oceans, the Bed and Mediterranean Seas, the continent of America and the Delta of Eygpt. He will be able to leave England, say the beginning ot May, and to arrive home again about the middle of July. Steam packets leare England for .New York almost daily. Daily trains will start from New York for San Francisco. Mail steamers leave San Francisco for Hong-koiig monthly ; and Hong-kong for Southampton fortnightly. The ' Argus ' gives the following description of a Chinese newspaper just established in Melbourne : — " £t is a sheet of white ioolseap, upon which the Chinese characters have been well lithographed. Its name is the ' JEPi-pao ' — literally rendered ' .Flying Intelligencer' — and it resembles as uearly ad possible an English commercial paper, the reading matter and advertisements being, of course, compiled, and edited exclusively for Chinese readers. The first number, we are iniorinou, coutoius a preface, a portion ol the Liev. Ml- ifoun/a Cliinose report, an epitome of the last mail news, an account of the late earthquakes iv South America, and other intelligence. The price U6i per copy. From the ' Lyttelton Times,' of the 9lh inst., I wo learn that the river Waimakarire has burst the embankment near McLean's, aai that a strong current was yesterday making its way across tiie Plains in tlie direction of the Styx. The ' Southern Cross/ 3rd December, in commenting upon the prospeot of the laud, supposed to oe highly auriferous, adjacent to the Shoi UanJ settlement, Auckland, saya : — " Mr Mackay will leave for Shortiand to-day accompanied by Kapata and other influential natives belonging to Ohinemuri. Ihuugh the negotiations iv respect to the opening oi tue land will probably occupy some time, sanguine expectations are eutei-tained as to the result. It is said tliat Te Hira, in whose jndgment the natives who o^n land in the Ohinemuri district appear to have every confidence, ia not prepared to hold out any longer against the almost unanimous wish of the people in favor of opening the laud. As has been said over and over again, Te Hira's actual proprietary right iv the land is comparatively very small, but, as he is said to be a man of great, tact and experience in dealing with questions relating to land, the majority of the Hauhau owners of land at Ohinemuri have committed their right to him agreeing to abide by his decision."

A meeti ig of the Wardens of the Invercargill Hundreds, will be held at the Farmers' Anna Hotel, on Saturday the 26th. The 'Hawte3 Bay Herald,' December Ist, says : — " Captain Tanner and Ms troop, in so cheerfully leaving harvesting and shearing operations, closing business premises, and making other heavy sacrifices for the purpose of proceeding to the front to serve the colony in a time of unexampled difficulty — have shewn a chivalrous feeling which will long bo remembered by the colonists, and which will ever be a source of proud satisfaction to themselves. We heartily wish Captain Tanner and his troop God speed." The ' Timaru Herald,' was published for the first time since the fire, on Saturday the 12th inst. In writing upon the recent calamity, it says : — " Amidst all the gloom that the late disaster has cast upon the town and neighbourhood, there is one bright spot, and that is the ardent .and heartfelt sympathy which is felt by all classes towards those burnt out of house and home j \ some of whom, being uninsured, have literally I been ruined. A public meeting was held, even i when the ruins were still flaring, and energetic ■ step 3 were at once taken to relieve the most necessitous. Other meetings have been held since then, and committees formed, who have given substantial money grants to the sufferers. Not only locally have expressions of sympathy been evinced, but from the Temuka, from Christchurcli, and from Dunedin there have been received sympathetic letters and offers of assistance. We mu3t not forget to note also the letter of His Honor the Superintendent ; it wll be seen from it that the Government are fully alive to the great calamity that has overtaken Timaru, and we are giren to understand that if requisite they intend to supplement the aid already offered to the sufferers." The cold and stormy weather we have had in Southland during the fi-st months of summer, does not appear to have been experienced far North. The following extract i 3 from an article in the 'Nelson Examiner': — "At no previous time do we remember seeing all kinds of crops showing greater promise of repaying the labor bestowed oa thiin. The wheat is remarkably healthy and strong, with that dark tinge which tells of ample nourishment at the roots, causing it to stole out in a manner promising a manyfold return. The later sown grain, barley and oats, are also looking well ; the bean and pea fields wear an aspect of luxuriance ; and the pastures give hopes of abundant crops of hay. We remember twenty years ago, that a great luxuriance of vegetation followed the earthquake shocks which occurred at the same pjriod of the year as those recently experienced, and in so marked a degree as to give rize to conjectures whether, fro-n some electric cause consequent upon the phenomenon, vegetation had not received an unusual stimulus. The present appearance of tha country almost warrants such a supposition, >nd with favorable weather at harvest farmers may be assured of good returns, which will go sound way, we hope, to compensate for the disasters of the last three seasons." In consequence of a resolution passed by the Wellington Presbyterian Assembly, the 27th of the present month will be observed as a day of humiliation and prayer, on account of the recent calamities which have befallen certain districts of this colony, through the unhappy native war at present raging.