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Southland Times, Issue 1268, 21 June 1870, Page 2

ThVs.B. Omeo arrived at the: Bluff, from Melbourne, last evening, but as no train went down, and the wires were fully' engaged till after office hours, we had no opportunity of communicating with our agent. The steamer sails this afternoon at 3 p.m. The overland mail from Dunedin, due here last Friday evening, has not yet arrived, the Kaihiku being again impassable. The San Francisco mail, which has been detained through an accident to the Lord Ashley, may be expected overland from Dunedin on Wednesday morning. ' . - A rumor, which seems to carry with it its own contradiction, has been circulating during the past day or two. It is to the effect that thoae persons occupying rooms in the railway station to the right of the vestibule, have received notice to quit, their ejectment being effected for the purpose of having that end of the building "gutted," so as to afford more storage room about the station. Any one aware of the style in which the railway station has been finished, can but regard an order for its destruction—supposing it to have been given — under any circumstances, as the height of vandalism. Moreover, even admitting room for the storage of bulky goods to be required, we believe it would be cheaper to build the necessary accommodation than to demolish the costly and elegant interior of the main building, and then erect the necessary pillars to support the heavy roof. At Kew, there is any quantity of good iron frame which could be moved up at small expense. It will never be required where ifcia, and the convenient rooms of the Btation will be required some day where they are. Another curious circumstance in connection with the rumor deserves notice. The room is said to be required for the storage of wooL We had imagined the wool season to be over, or so nearly so that no necessity could possibly exist for "increased facilities for the traffic," at least this year. Moreover, if the public must provide storage for wool, it would be better that it should be provided apart from other valuable public property r seeing plenty of convenient sites are available, and wool is a little dangerous, being liable to " combust " spontaneously. A meeting of the committee of the Acclimatisation Society was held at the Government Buildings on Friday last, 17th inst. There were present Messrs Wood (in the chair), M'Oulloch, Shearer,. Gilmour, and Butts (hon. Secretary and Treasurer). The minutes of former meeting were read and confirmed, also a letter from the Dunedin Society saving they had written to Melbourne on the subject of procuring a supply of hares for Otago and Southland, and enquiring whether the Southland Society contemplated sending any person to Tasmania this year for a further quantity of trout ova. The Treasurer intimated that in reply to the circular issued soliciting contributions for the special object of introducing hare's, only £14 had as yet been received. A letter from Mr Huddlestone, of the Nelson Society, informed the committee that the red-deer etog for ,

| which they had asked could not be procured from Nelson, a3 the animils had auoh an extent of wild country to roam over that it was impossible .to catch them, but left some room for hope that, the want not being supplied in the interim, a joung one might be picked up next fawning season. The committee concluded it would be better to endeavor to obtain a stag of some breed more common. A letter frO'n Sir Robert Officer was read in which he informed the Society of the willingness of the salmon commissioners to assist the Southland Society to the utmost in their power, and that a considerable quantity of trout ova would be reserved for this province thisyear. .Aiefcter from the Provincial Government was Sad, stating that the Government could not comply with the committee's request for the use of a portion of the Hyde Park Reserve, for the formation of a garden, nor grant certain other concessions solicited, on the ground that, however much the Executive sympathised with the objects of the Society, it " had not the power " of dealing with the properties in question. The letter was warmly discussed by the members present, the prevalent opinion being that the Executive were under a false impression in thinking themselves precluded from dealing with the reserves mentioned, especially so in the case of the Park Reserve referred to. The following ia the letter from the Superintendent alluded to :— " Superintendent's Office, June 16tb, 1870. — E. D. Butts, Esq., Hjn. Secretary, Southland Acclimatisation Society. — Sir, — I have the honor to acknowledge receipt of your letter of the 31st nit., enclosing report of sub-committee of Acclimatisation Society, and in reply beg to convey to you the warm sympathy of the Provincial Government in the objects named therein. I have, however, to state that the Government has no jpower to comply with your request for any portion^of the Park Reserve, or the timber and flax of -the River Reserves. It would therefore be useless to apply to the General Government for the labor of Maori prisoners, as suggested by you.— l have the honor to be, Sir, your obedient servant, Wat. Wood, Superintendent." A correspondent of the Dunedin Evening Star, .writing about the state of matters at Martin's Bay, says : — " The settlement wants nursing. Let those who wish to get rich hastily Btay away. They must find another El Dorado for their goal j while those who are content to work and live hard for a few years, and leave- their children an unencumbered homestead, may accomplish this, I believe, without fear of disappointment. The bridle- track must be made not only to the head of the lake, but to Martin's Bay ; a good substantial reward offered for the discovery of payable gold in its vicinity ; a subsidy or aid of some kind granted for the establishment of a ferry on the Lake ; and care taken that when prospectors, miners, and settlers arrive at Martin's Bay, they maybe enabled to purchase provisions at reasonable rates. When the writer first returned from Hpkitika, in March, 1863, and reported the oharacfer of the country he had seen, the Canterbury Government chartered a vessel and sent round stores- to the Grey for the help of prospectors, and the hope of opening up the country. How well this measure was advised, the speedy opening up of the West Coast will demonstrate." The Dunedin correspondent of the Oamaru Herald says : — We live in an age of sensations-— Melbourne boasts its tragedies, and Dunedin is determined to follow in its wake. If Otago journalists are backward in using fire-arms, Otago squatters seem at any rate to be adepts in the use of horsewhips. The late encounter in Princes-street between Mr M'Eenzie, late manager for Dillion Bell, and Mr Low, of the firm of Campbell and Low, in the course of which the latter gentleman received a severe castigation at the hands of the former, caused, I can assure you, no small excitement. The delight of an inquisitive Drinedin public reached its climax when it became generally known that Mr M'Kenzie had received ] a' summons to appear in the Resident Magistrate's Court, on Saturday morning. Poor unfortunate j over-sanguine townsfolk of Dunedin ! it was not destined for you to become conversant with the full particulars of this grand passage at arms,', or of the cause leading thereto. In due order the case of Low v: M'Eenzie was called three times od j the .morning in question, but Jthe only response was. "No appearance your Worship," uttered with that delicious Hibernian richness of dialect with which frequenters of the Dunedin Police Courts are so well acquainted. It subsequently transpired that a reconciliation had been effected j between the two gentlemen, and the motives of their extraordinary encounter can now therefore be only, surmised. . ....-■ The Journal of the New York State Agricultural Society states that a farmer had a field, about thirty-five years ago, completely covered with thistle* ; he cut them and not one ever revived. This curious fact led him to a long series of experiments to discern if the particular date at which they were cut might not explain the phenomena. For many years, therefore, he has cut the thistles, marking dates, and watching the results. He practised this cutting every day in the season except Sundays. For four years past, he has cut them on August 15th, 17th, 18th, 20th, and 24th, and not one has lived. His reasoning as to their destruction is, that at this period the pith is not full in the stalk ; tbat rain and moisture settle in the stalk, and they rot to the root. This is certainly worth a fair trial. If by the simple observance of certain dates the roots of the thistle will die, and thus prevent j numbers of plants from springing up, the world has gained an invaluable blessing. It is an experiment that will cost little, and in any event the thistle will be cut off. These facts may be of interest to some of our farmers. The Oamaru Times publishes the following extract from a letter received by a gentleman in Oamaru from a correspondent in Dunedin. It will be observed that it is a hitherto unreported portion of the proceedings at Mr Fox's lecture : — " After Mr Fox's return from your part of the Province, he delivered a lecture on Total Abstinence to us Dunedin folks in Knox Church. The building was crowded in every part, even the passages being occupied by eager listeners ; and all the 'notabilia' of the city being present. Within the pulpit railing were the two Judges (Chapman and Ward), Mr Strode, R.M., and a number of clergymen of all denominations ; also several members of the Provincial Council. The address was listened to throughout with the utmost attention, and was frequently applauded. As aoon as the honorable lecturer had concluded, a somewhat amusing scene oocurred. The irrepressible J. G. S. Grant, who had gained access to the platform, rose and said he was going to address the audience, but the Rev Mr Stuart, who was in the chair, in mild but firm language, told him - that he would not on any account be allowed to do so. After several attempts to obtain a hearing, Mr Grant had to sit down amidst general laughter. Mr Jago then rase, and in a rather lengthy speech, which tried the patience of the audience not a little, proposed a vote of thanks to Mr Fox for his interesting lecture. Mr Jago having finished his remarks, Mr Grant again ascended the rostrum, and told the audience' that he considered himself to be quite as much entitled to make a speech aa the last speaker (to whom, and to whose abilities, I may mention, he alluded in language which was anything but complimentary). The chairman again mildly remonstrated with Mr Grant, and told him that Mr Jago' 8 address was part of the programme. However, in order to test the feeling of the audience with respect to Jthe lecture* Mr Stuart said: he would take a show of handß upon Mr Jago's -proposition, which resulted in a perfect forest of hands being held up in its favor. The hands on the contrary, being called for, Mr J. G. d. Grant alone, of all the vast assemblage, pointed his arm to the ceiling, and declared that his conscience would not allow him 'to thank even a Premier for such an idiotic ebullition as they had- just heard.' However much the political prudence of Mr Fox, in advocating the cause of temperance, may be questioned, every right-minded person cannot dp otherwise than admire the conscientious principle, and the deep concern for the well-being of his fellow colonists — both in thi aworld and the next— evinced by him in taking so bold a stand, in endeavoring to arrest the progress in jour land of what v, without a

doubt, the most pernicious vica known to humanity." In an article referring to the proposed adoption of "responsible government" in Western Australia, the Perth Inquirer gays : — There are two things operating m iteriaUy against the success of political agitation in the colony at the present time. There is great depression and financial distress to occupy the minds of the colonists ; and the season seeks at the hands of all in the country districts, ft close individual attention to their agricultural and pastoral pursuits. In our small community these matters concern Our wellbeing far more than electioneering, and the little squabbles and bickerings which the change is tended to usher in ; but if the one is attended to, the other must suffer. We had hoped that the last new thing in financial misfortune or insolvency, was passed ; bnt every day brings forth 1 its fresh rumors and realities of more. There is now, indeed, no confidence whatever in the I trading community ; money ia everywhere in de- ; mand, for it is not to be had ; and banking facilities are dried up. The harvest failures have much to do with all this, and naturally there ia an earnest eye turned to the agricultural pros* pacts of the next season. Happily the rain-falls since the date of our last Summary give heart and encouragement to this interest, the plough is at work over the land, and earnest efforts, blessed with a frtitful season, will be, so to say, the country's salvation ; and' we can only hope that our legislative wisdom may fail to allure our country settlers from giving undivided attention to a season which must result in relieving them of a pressure unknown before, or plunging them in absolute penury and want. The Marlborough Express of the 4th inst. says that there are about 300 on the new goldfield at the Wairau, all of whom are setting in steadily to work, and appear satisfied with their prospects. It is a significant fact tbat only a few have returned, and those chiefly miners having claims on the Deep Creek. During the month of May (says the Otago Daily Times) 3 men and 1 woman were admitted into the Otago Benevolent Institution,- and 1 boy was discharged. Out-door relief was afforded during the same period to 9 old or rick men, 46 women, and 118 children, making a total of 173 persons. Of these 34 belonged to the Church of England, 91 were Presbyterians, 26 , Roman Catholics, 14 Wesleyana, and 8 of other denominations not specified. The weekly sum disbursed up to Saturday, the 28th May, was £16. The present inmates of the Institution are 85 in number, consisting of 11 men, A women, 43 1 boys, and 27 girls. Of these, 36 are Episcopalians, 32 Presbyterians, 15 Roman Catholics, and 2 are. of other unspecified denominations.