LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Southland Times, Issue 1170, 24 November 1869, Page 3

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

(Continued from page 1.) On and after the Ist January, tho stamp dutir-s now payablo upon bills of exchange, drafts, orch-rs, and promissory notes, shall bo denoted by an impressed stamp only, and not by an adhesive ■tamp. The Oamaru Times of tho sth inst. says :— "We are informed by a gentleman who has seen the plans for tho meat-preserving works at K»k:inui, and the adjoining residences for the operatives employed, that the . roup of buildings will be ' quite a little town ' in itself." We (Auckland News) have frequently noticed of late the general prosperity of Auckland, but we must not overlook the fact that there is also a great amount of dis'ress and poverty in the city. Sickness and other misfortunes abound at all' times to a sufficient extent to create want and misery, and, as trade is cow generally flourishing in all branches of business, we consider it one of the most powerful reasons wliy an effort should be made to relieve the unfortunate. It is somewhat strange that what has been considered the great defect of the New Provinces Act should be sought to be adopted by an old province like Canterbury, but such, nevertheless, ia the case, the following resolution having been paused the other day by the Provincial Council of that province :— " That the Superintendent of the province should be elected and removable by the vote of an absolute majority of the Provincial Council, and should have a seat In the Council, and a right to vote therein." Tuesday, 9th inst., the anniversary of the Prince of Wales's Lirthday, was observed as a general holiday. Pleasure-seekers were particularly fortunate in the first requisite to rural enjoyment— fine weather, and consequently everybody went to the country . It is no fiction to say the town was literally deserted, for, barring a solitary individual or two, who seemed not to j know how to dispose of themselves, not a soul ( was to be seen in the streets throughout the day. A great many of the inhabitants betook themselves to the sea-side, by the railway, on which trains were run at ft cheap rate, others availing themselves of the opportunity for a drive or ride into the interior. The return to town of , numerous happy-looking parties in the evening gave evidence of the day having been generally pleasantly spent. "From the New Zealand Gazette of the 23rd I ult., we observe that Peter Grant, Esq., has been ' appointed Deputy Returning Officer for the election of members of the House of Representatives for the district of Riverton, and for the provincial districts of Riverton, Aparima, Waiau, Longwood, and Waianiwa.

_ By a notice in the General Government Gazette of the 23rd ult., some alterations are made in the postal rates on book packets and parcels of patterns ; the scale is now a3 follows : — On book packets and pattern parcels posted in New Zealand for places within the Colony, the Australian Colonies, India and China, and the United Kingdom, not exceeding one ounce, penny ; exceeding one ounce and not exceeding two ounces, twopence ; exceeding two ounces and not exceeding four ounces, fourpence ; exceeding four ounces and not exceeding £ lb., eightpence ; exceeding $ lb. and not exceeding 1 lb., one stilling and fourpence ; for every additional eight ounces or fractional part of eight ounces, eightpence. A Wellington paper of the 2nd inst. has the following: — A party of the Ngatiporou garrison at Waihi, while out scouting the other day, came upon a party of Tito Kowara's men at Ngapuhi. They captured three men and two women, and shot two men who attempted to escape. They are all well-known rebels, and were armed with double-barrelled guns. An old woman who was taken tells a circumstantial story of Ie Kooti's being on the Upper Waitara — close to Tito Kowaru — badly wounded, but recovering.

The Auckland Weekly Herald of the 23rd ult. speaks in the following in Jignant strain : — " The Thames is doing nothing ! Is it ? The Auckland took away on Monday 9587 ounces. The Cambodia sailed on Wednesday for London with over 10,000 ounces. The gross value of the two shipments may be taken at something like £60,000. Four thousand ounces of silver also go by the latter vessel. The above fact 3 speak trumpet— tongued for themselves. But little need we care for Southern sneers or Australiaa indifference. We shall yet work out our own destiny." Although Auckland (says the Cross) is very deficient in many of the appliances and luxuries ■which civilisation has brought into use, she is in advance of many older countries as regards one thing— gas. We do not apply the word in the sense in which it is vulgarly understood, though even in that sense we might pronounce this city abundantly well supplied ; but we use the won I in its primary sense. Our streets have been for several years lighted with gas ; Civita Teochia has just been lighted in this way, and there is only one other town in Italy — Rome— that has abandoned the old lamp oil. Even in these two fortunate cities it is only the aristocracy who can afford to use gas, while the streets are still lighted with oil and by the candles burning before the images of the Madonna. Eeports from up-country are most encouraging. Everywhere flocks and herds are in excellent health and condition— the result of mild weather and abundant pasture. Lambing has commenced, and the season is confidently expected to turn out a most successful one — exceeding considerably the average. Fleeces are in splendid order, a marked improvement being noticeable on many runs, where judgment in breeding, and care in rearing the sheep have been duly exercised. The clip promises to be by far the best and heaviest yet shorn in Southland, and shearing time is therefore anticipated with a wide-spread feeling of satisfaction. We are glad to be able to intimate that Mr Cross is recovering slowly from the effects of the Bevere accident he met with eight days ago. Mr Moodieleft Invercargill for Dunedin, overland, on Friday, sth instant, to expedite the forwarding of the plant for this province. Telegraphic instructions had previously been sent by him to his subordinates there, ordering as much of it as possible to be sent on by the Ashley, and it has probably by this reached town on its way to the proposed aite at Woodlands. During his visit, Mr Moodie has been most favorably impressed, not only with the facilities Southland affords as the scene of his future operations, but with the manner of his reception by the Government and people, who respectively met his proposals with encouraging cordiality. The result is that he has decided to erect his most extensive establishment — that embracing both boiling-down and meat-preserving —at Long Bush. This fact should go a great way in encouraging our settlers and runholders to fresh efforts and extended operations. The existence of a steady market, easily accessible, ought to remove all anxietj touching surplus stock, and give an impetus to production which must be perceptibly beneficial. Mr Howard, the curator to the Acclimatisation Society arrived at the Bluff by the Ashley on the 7th with 700 trout fry, the produce of the ova hatched at Dunedin. The young fish were conveyed by rail as far as the junction of the Wallacetown road, and from thence the box was carried to the ponds by a party of volunteers, consisting of the following gentlemen :— Messrs Shearer, E. Rogers, Bell, Butts, Howard, and The steamer Albion has been sold by Mr Hoyt, in Japan, for the handsome sum oi £28,000. , , . We observe that workmen have commenced to effect some alterations in the Messrs Sloan s premises, which, when completed, will add another to the many improvements which have recently been made in Dee-atreet. For some time past, as is well known, the premises to which we allude, formerly Morrison, Law & Co.'s, have been occupied exclusively by the Union Bank of Australia. Recently, however, the tenement has been divided, one half being apportioned to the bank. Ibe remaining half is now undergoing such changes as are requisite to transform it into a firfct-clais shop, to be occupied, we believe, ac {.a beet and the* wuwheaa* by th« proprietor*;

At one of the native meetings held during the stay of the Hon. Native Minister, (says the Taranaki Herald) Mahau enquired of Mr. M-L-.m if he mi^ht bring William Bag and Tt> Koworu in without danger of being molested. To this, we believe, the Native Minuter replied that lie mi-ht brin- ia Wi Kin«i, but if Tito Kow \-.-a cum in, it would be at hU own risk, for he *oukl have to be tried as a murderer like anv'.nie el-e.

fmm opinions expressed by the lion Mr D. M-Li-an in the House of Representatives, auys the Wanganui Times, we thinlc it rerj likely that during his present tour he will initiate a movement that may eventuate in the deposition of the Maori King. It is now a notorious factthai all the leading chiefs of this island begin to fet'l that the allegiance and respect of their respective tribes have been alienated from themselves and transferred to the Maori King. The leading chief of a kingite tnbe is no longer what he used to be, the man whose orders were to be obeyed, anJ tho man to whom the tribe looked up with feelings of confidence, submission, and unbounded respect. If those chiefs could be induced to deal firmly with Tawhiao on their own account, a gres.t object would be gainei as regards the permanent pacification of the country. Tlrsir co-operation would effect a more complete revolution in the present state of native affairs than the most powerful army our Government could send against them could do. The grievances of each tribe, whether real or imaginary, could afterwards be dealt with through their respective | chiefs ; the native race be allowed to die out m i peace, and the material prosperity of the colony very greatly advanced. This is a consummation devoutly to be wished, and we earnestly hope that Mr M'Lean is now successfully endeavoring to carry out the policy indicated in his speech in tho House of Representatives, when he showed the evil effects of detribaUsing the natives, and depriving the chiefs of the influence which they once held over their respective tribes. As they seem to havo discovered their mistake, it now rests with themselves to undo what they have done, and compel his Maori Majesty to take rank with the other leading chiefs of Waikato.

The new Clyde clipper- ship James Nicol Fleming, recently arrived at fort Chalmers, brings out from Glasgow a most extensive plant for meat preserving and boiling-down purposes, sufficient, we understand, to start five or six complete establishments. In addition to the apparatus, the fiim to whom it belongs has also sent out a number of hands acquainted with the processes, under whose care the works will be erected, and operations commenced. The whole will be under the superintendence of Mr Moodie, the agent of the company, who has already, we are informed, visited a number of the localities, both in Otago and Southland, thought to be most suitable as sites for the proposed works. It is gratifying to be able to state that Mr Moodie considers Southland as offering a site tor at least one, and probably for two establishments, preferable to any he has seen elsewhere, and has, we believe, fixed upon the neighborhood of Woodlands as the spot on which to erect one division of his plant. Somewhere near Win ton will also likely be chosen for another, the facilities afforded by the railway for direct import and export, being a consideration of much weight in the calculations. Two such establishments would alone do much to restore prosperity to the province.

At a general meeting of the shareholders in the Southland Prospecting Association, held at the Prince of Wales Hotel on Wednesday, 3rd mat., there was a very good attendance. A progress report was submitted by the overseer of the coalborin<* operations, which, stated that a depth of about°24o feet had been reached, and that the strata encountered did not lead to the belief that the mineral sought for would be found in that locality, and concluded with a recommendation that a bore should be made on ground considerably nearer the line of railway, where there was a greater probability of meeting in with strata which is generally found to overlie coal-deposits. The Treasurer's balance-sheet wasnext considered, and as it allowed that several shareholders had declined to pay the second call, it was unanimously resolved that no further steps should be taken until it was ascertained, by summoning the Hrst shareholder who again refused to pay, whether the Association had power to compel payment of the full amount of the Bhares.

A sale of the accumulated funds of the Southland Building. Land, and Investment Society, was held on Wednesday evening, 3rd, when the following premiums were realized : — On 11 shares, £6 9s per share ; on 2 shares, £6 5s per share.

A preliminary meeting of citizens was held in the Prince of Wales Hotel on Wednesday, 3rd inst., to consider the desirability of establishing a municipality for the town of Invercargill. Upwards of twenty gentlemen attended, Mr J. W. Mitchell occupying the chair. A motion affirming the necessity for having the town incorporated under the Municipalities Act, was passed unanimously, and a sub-eoinmittee was appointed, consisting of the following gentlemen, viz. :— Messrs Lumsden, Bain, Mitchell, A. Ross, P. M'Ewan, Wade, Kingsland, Blackwood, and Garthwaite, to make some necessary enquiries, and to report to a subsequent meeting, to be held on Monday next, Bth inst., at the same place.

The Otago Gazette of the 27th ult. contains the official notification of the resignation by Mr 3t. Joha Branigan of the office of Commissioner of Police for that Province, and the appointment of Mr T. K. JWeldon as his successor. While congiatulating Mr Weldonon his preferment to a much more important and lucrative position than the similar one he has so long held in Invercargill—with great credit to himself and much to the benefit of the community — we also feel an amount of satisfactiou for other reasons. It is well known that the necessity for a reduction in the Police Department has lon# been recognised, and more than once retrenchment to some extent haa been effected by curtailing the pay or numbers of subordinates. At a recent session of the Council, however, a more sweeping measure, affecting the head of the force, was discussed, and would have been carried, but for the great reluctance of all concerned to deprive the province, and probably the colony, of the services of a most efficient officer. Mr Weldon's removal to Ota^o affords at once a solution of the difficulty satis"! actory to all parties. As a matter of course, then, it may bo presumed the offije of Commissioner will be abolished, and simply an Inspector appointed. Au officer thoroughly qualified for such a post is at present in charge, during Mr Weldon's ab-encp, and will, no doubt, be duly invested with the rank necessary to givfe him full control of the force. Sergeant-Major Chapman is an officer of wide experience, whose reputation for zeal and ability is established by upwards of twenty years' active service. That lie is competent to discharge the duties of head of the department, everyone will admit, and we trust soon to ace him in the position he so well deserves.

The correspondent of the -Haw**'* Bay Herald writes as follows from the Chatham Islands on the sth inst :— A few days sine, a Maori woman named Na Moni, residing at Waitangi, committed suicide by hanging herself. Upon entering the dwelling, just after sunset, her husband discovered her suspended from a beam. He immediately cut the rope ; life was not quite extinct, and he ran for a medical man, but ere his return all was over. The poor woman was one of the beat of her class. Jealousy is said to be the cause of the tragedy.

The Otago Daily Times of the 2nd inst. says :' —"We understand that the Council of the University has decided to establish three Chairs, (1) one for Classics, including English ; (2) one for Mathematics, Theoretical and Applied; and (:}) one for Mental and Moral Philosophy, including Political Economy. The appointment of Professors, who will, of course, be selected at home, wiil be made without delay. The next meeting of the Council will be held on the Bth inst., when the Chancellor and Vice-chancellor will be appointed, aa also the Secretary. The former officers will be appointed by the Council from amongst th*mi«lT««>"

The annual general meeting of the Southland Agricultural and Pastoral Association, was held at the Prince ot Wales Hotel on Tuesday afternoon 2nd inst. There was a very good attendance of members. The chair was occupied by John Morton, Esq., the retiring President. It was a subject for regret that the medals fur last year s shov had not yet been leceived, and some correspondence between the society and the makers was read explaining the delay. A few cash prizes also still remain unpaid. The Treasurer's report, a. lengthy but very lucid statement, was read, showing a surplus of assets ever liabilities of £24.i 3s 7d. This excess, however, consists entirely of property — the yards, &c. — so that so far as available funds are concerned, the Society is in as great need of public support as ever ; in fact, there is a small cash balance to refund to the Treasurer for disbursements .made by him. Several subscribers have, however, still to pay up for last year, »nd it is to be hoped they will now do so at once, and so enable the Society to discharge its obligations, incurred on the strength of promised aij. The report was unanimously adopted. After the financial business had been disposed of, the meeting proceeded to the election of officers for the current year, the result bein- as ioilows :— President, G-. M. Bell, Esq. ; -Vice-President, J. Dalgliesh, Esq.; Treasurer, Mr G-oodsir ; Secretary, Mr Macroric ; Committee— Messrs R. Hamilton, A. J. Smyth, J. Morton, — Sutton, W. B. Kingswell, J. W. Raymond, A. Ross, G. Smith W. Johnston, A. Smith, D. Warnock, R. Weir, — Vallance, W. M'Leod, J. Elliott, Q-. Webster. A motion was afterwards carried allowing non-members to exhibit on condition of the payment ol double entrance money. The date of the annual show was fixed for the second Thursday in each December. A vote of thanks to the Treasurer for his zeal on behalf of the Society during the past year, accompanied with a small indemnity for exDenses, was carried by acclamation, after which the usual acknowledgment to this chair terminated the meeting.

It is gratifying to find that the runholdera of this Province are never behindhand when an opportunity offers of purchasing really first-class stock. Mr Hill, of Croydon, Hokanui, hasjast imported from one of the celebrated breeders in the Mudgee district, New South Wales, four merino rams, as we are given to understand, at the large price of £100 each ; also, about 150 choice ewes, bought at an extremely hit<h figure £rom the Hooka ol' those well-known breeders, Q-. H. and E. King Cox. Prices such as these cannot fail to convince our wool-growers that it really has become absolu ely necessary to pay attention to the improvements in their flocks, as the only means to make this important industry remunerative. Wool from the stations where these Bheep were bred fetched 3s 8d per lb in the London market last year. We have no hesitation in saying that, in point of quality, nothing approaching them has ever been imported to this colony, and they will doubtless prove a great acquisition to the Province. We may with all truthfulness remark that few gentlemen in the colony have done more, or taken greater interest in the introduction, not only of first-class stock of all kinds, but pheasants, partrides, Californian quail, &c!, Vc, than Mr Hill, to whom all credit is due for the spirited and disinterested way he has carried out not only an " acclimatisation society " of his own, but in using every endeavor to make the value of the wool increase so far as quality is concerned iv which he has considered money no object.

Samples of gold and specimens of quartz were freely exhibited the other day by parties who have temporarily retnrned from the Longwood district, and confident hopes are expresed that " something good" will soon be discoYered. It is said that 10s per day can be easily earned on ground already opened up.

The Westport Times says :— " Two * mining accidents ' — such incidents as occasionally occur in a mining township — amused the few pedestrians who passed through Westport streets on Tuesday, a persistently wet day. In the afternoon a ' party ' suffering from the pressure of the atmosphere and a plethora of beer, voluntarily or involuntarily seated himself among the piles of clothing at a draper's door, and fell into a condition °of probably ' calm repose.' Except that he nodded his head occasionally, and was more of a figure fitted to adorn a second-hand clothes' shop than a first-class draper's, he might have been mistaken by the unobservant for a straw-stuffed 'dummy.' A wit passed by, and, appropriating one of the show-cards attached to ' bias's Tweeds,' he very soon obliterated the latter word, and, pinning the word ' Bliss ' on to the crown of the ' party's ' hat, left ' the party where he sat, to continue nodding for several hours in ignorance of the caricature of bliss which he represented to the uncharitable passersby. Another 'party'— a type of the ancient lucky di^er — and probably a friend of him who was in "this blissful state of beer, paraded the streets, in the midst of the pelting ram, attired in cky-covered moleskin tronsers, a ' loud Crimean shirt, and a new white bell-topper, protected by a parasol !

The Dunstan Times says :— " The existence of quartz reefs throughout the length and breadth of the Dunstan district is now an undoubted fact. Besides those already noticed in our columns, at Bendi^o Gully, Nevis, Carrick Ranges, .Bannockbum, "and un -or the Duastan Ranges, we have now to chronicle the opening up ot another reet at the head of Butcher's G-ully. We have been shown a piece of stone, taken at a depth ot thirty feet from the surface, and which was thickly impregnated with the precious metal. We are informed that the reef is well defined, and that the specimen shown to us was picked hap-hazzard from a quantity of stone broken from it. We look for great results from this reef, as in our opinion the stone looks better than any we have yet seen from any other locality. Our Bluff correspondent says : — The erection of another saw mill ou Stewart's Island, contemplated by a Dunedin firm, has unfoitunately, from misrepresentations, iallen through. Mr Hayworth, on visiting the site selected by the local manager for operations, found the quantity of timber altogether too small, and remote from the place of shipment, to supply, for any length of time, the mill intended to be erected. The plant, which was brought up from Dunedin by the ketch Esther Ann, was never landed, and will be taken back again. It is believed that there are plenty ot spots on the Island, where an almost unlimited supply of timber adapted for saw-milling can be got, but to be profitable, the management must be entrusted to experienced men. Births, Marriages, and Death.— The following figures show the number of births, marriages, and deaths, also the excess of births over deaths, in the Colouy of Zealand during 1868: — Excess _r of Provinces. Births. . "" Deaths. Births <> over Deaths. Auckland... ..... 1909 ... 433 ... 595 ... 1314 Taranaki 393 ... 30 ... 63 ... 130 Wellington 960... 223... 285... 675 Hawke'sßay.... *53 ... 60 ... 67 ... 196 Nelson 640 .* 203 ... 199 ... 441 Marlborough.... 183 ... 31 ... 7o ... 108 Canterbury 1989 ... 389 ... 499 ... 1490 Westland 478 ... 177 ... 205 ... 273 Ota<m 2397 ... 464 ... 604 ... 1793 Southland 383... 69... 63... 315 . hatham Islands 6 ... 6 ... 2 ... 4 Totaxs 9391 ...2085 ...2662 ... 6729 Of the 2662 deaths registered, 153 were caused by drowning, and 169 by various other external causes j making a total of 322 from such causes. The Westport Times says : — " Mr Bees, barrister, who, a few days since was fined £10 by the Resident Magistrate at Hokitika for contempt of Court, refused to pay the fine, did not pay it, and dared any authority to attempt to compel him.