The Southland Times. FRIDAY, DECEMBER 30, 1870.

Southland Times, Issue 1354, 30 December 1870, Page 2

The Southland Times. FRIDAY, DECEMBER 30, 1870.

We have arrived once more at the closing scene of another year,. a period, from ■which we pass on to an untried part of the world's history. Congratulatory as the season is, that bourne from whence there is no recal gives forth its solemn tone, at which the mind instinctively pauses to ponder on the past. Such retrospects may nqt be wholly pleasing, but, rightly considered, they" are profitable. They furnish a precedent wherewith to solve the mysterious problems ofdaily life, and they soften the asperities to which its irritations tend. What has been in the past will, according to a particular mode of application, be re-enacted in the future. Moments will lengthen out into hours, and hours into days and weeks, the whole culminating in months and years, at the close of which, as at present, much will remain to be interpreted by the light of a more distant date; The future, however, is too dim for human understanding, so that the lesson of life must be taught by the past.. The year 1870 has been a singular one — singular in respect to its issues upon the nations of the earth, and singular as regards the events through which we, as a component part of civilised settlement, have passed. Prom an ominous peace, continental Europe has been plunged into the horrors of war. Dynasties have been shaken, sceptres overthrown ; and what was reputed a stronghold of national rule, has been hurled to the ground without - a moment's respite. Such terrific convulsions cannot be wrought in vain. They must have their meaning, and without attempting to add a single breath to the word of prophecy, we are prone to believe that the fallacy of social centres will explode,and Jupiter be importuned for a god more efficacious than the inanimate log. s. '. . ' ■ New Zealand and its mysterious administration throughout the year, just Closing, continues as mysterious as ever. We are still, far. removed, from a united form of good serviceable government. Our relations to the parent country have been a disturbed feature of the economy. The internal organisation has been even more disheartening. At the present moment the political forces of the country are arming themselves for a deadly conflict, and whatever the issue may be, the struggle is sure to be a hard one. As a district, we have, had our adventures during thei year, and with the exception of the memorable proceeding given'effect to in 1861, no periodiuour history has been more eventful. Of course we allude more particularly to the reunion movement. With this alliance we have secured fresh privileges, as well a£ incurring fresh responsibilities, and 'at t&e present time it would be out of place to weigh these as against each other. The present, however, is pre-eminently a time for admonishing the populace to exercise

its electoral privileges cautiously. Two paths have been distinctly marked out for them, so very distinct that there is not the remotest chance of an intermediate goal being reached by either of them. Before concluding, we must not omit to operate upon the felicitous as well as the reflective features of the season. Happily, it affords a brief respite from the harder phases of life. It forms a sort of rallying point around which the sympathies of our nature are drawn — before -wfci<A«o7aflk*gives^ray-fcoTJongratulatipn. "We have many good reasons for giving play .to this more agreeable, mood. -We have already admitted our privileges, and by the honest, faithful, and intelligent exercise of them, we are justified in expecting A Happy New Yeab.

In the Mayor's Court, Dunedin, on the 24th instant, William Wakefield and Albert Isaiah, the two Maori boys who were sent to the Industrial School by the Resident Magistrate, Invercargill, were charged on warrant with -""■■"Mil' nf j Cb"* T> ' t ? a ll town ', .^k° ■ mjuiuiißsltwUJF 01 Police said these lads had been improperly committed to the Industrial School, and his Excellency the Governor had, in consequence, ordered their discharge from it, and caused a warrant to be issued for their arrest, on the capital charge. They were remanded foF a .week. - ■ "Atlalneefing of electors favorable to the" return" of Mr Macandrew as Superintendent, held in Dunedin, the following requisition was adopted, and circulated for signature throughout the Province—"To his Honor, James Macandrew, Superintendent of the. Province of Otago. — Sir, — We, the undersigned electors, understanding that, in consequence of the refusal .of the Provincial Council to concur with you in making immediate provision for the -commencement of railway works, and a water-supply to the goldfields — you have tendered, to his Excellency the Governor your resignation of the Superintendency, with a view to enabling the people of the Province to express their opinions on those matters by means of a general election— hereby convey to -you the expression of our approval of the Btep which you, have taken, and request that you will permit yourself to be nominated for re-election to the office of Supeiintendent of Otago ; in which case we beg to assure.ypu of .our .support.. .In. glancing at the history of the past, we find that whatever progress the Province has made is attributable in no small, degree to your individual exertions, and we have little doubt that, had your responsible advisers,, during the past two years, been men of equally progressive views with yourself, the, Province would have been in a. very different position from that in which it now unfortunately is. We sincerely hope that the approaching election will result in returning a majority of members to the Provincial Council of a different character from the hwt, and that they will be men who, instead of thwarting your efforts, will strengthen your hand in promoting the progress of the Province. —We have the honor to be, &c. — Dunedin, December 12, 1870. » The Hon. Mr Yogel left Dunedin on Friday last for the North. He will stay two or three days at Christchurch, where, in compliance with a requisition he received, he will address the of that- city. The Superintendent of Canterbury has been requested to obtain from Mr •Yogel a guarantee on the part of the General Government to enable the Province to proceed at once 'with the prosecution of the lines of railway authorised by the Assembly to be made in Canterbury. : The seventh annual, social meeting of the Wesleyan Sunday School was held in the school-room, Dee-street, on the evening of Wednesday last. The chair was occupied by Mr "William Russell. The report of the committee of .management was read by the secretary, MiW.fl. Hall. It stated ! that the present numericalstrength of the school ;was similar to that, stated in last year's report, Viz., 162 — 84 boys and' 79 girls, — with an average attendance of 30 in the morning and 91 in the afternoon. The number of teachers on the roll rwas 17 — 10 male and 7 female, — showing a decrease on the previous year. An appeal was 'made for extra: assistance, as the classes were inI conveniently large. The funds in hand had •slightly increased, and the congregation ' was thanked for its liberal support. The .library contained 217 volumes, but many of them had suffered from constant perusal and would require to be replaced. The remaining proceedings of the evening were agreeably diversified by readings', addressea; and singing of sacredmusic. A vote of thanks was accorded to the ladies, to whoso liberality, it was stated, the meeting was indebted for the substantial part of the entertainment. The attendance was very creditable, the room being neatly decorated for the occasion. We have to acknowledge the receipt from Mr L. Rodgers, bookseller, of a copy of Mackay's Otago Almanac for 1871. It is a bulky volume, and contains a large amount of general information. Advices from Eiverton, dated the 27th instant, abate that politics have lately been engrossing a large share of attention ; not a week passing without meetings of this kind being held. Two General Assembly candidates for the district are in the field, viz., Messrs M'Gillivray and Low. Last week Mr M'Gillivray addressed the .con-, stituency, and dwelt at length upon the boundary question in connection with the conduct of the four members alleged to .{have sold the district. Christmasj however, had arrived, and it is stated that eyen.politic3 had given way to. the festivities"" of the season. .A number of miners ; from the Longwood and Orepuki diggings had arrived i n ; town, and it wa3 reported that more were expected. Our correspondent adds— We do not hear of anything very startling from the Longwood, but' from all accounts the Orepuki miners have had a very profitable season. They brought down over 500 ounces of gold ; the average earnings of some of them' beiiig,over 30s per day, while it is reported by others that the amount did not exceed 20s. One thing is very obvious-r Ithey seem disposed to spend their "hard "won 'earnings freely, and, to all appearance, they do. mot lack the means. " ." ; . ; Our readers will ; be pleaded to learn that Mr j Robert Tait, of .the Invercargill Post Office, proiceeds this month to San Francisco as mail agent. ) We have no doubt the trip will prove of immense benefit to his health, and we look forward to see him return to his duties here with renewed rigor. ■ Mr Tait will be absent about three months.

We have much pleasure in informing the public that the Superintendent (Mr Macandrew) has succeeded in getting the Government to consent to create Southland into a separate district under the Land Transfer Act. In a telegram just received, Mr Macandrew states that the RegistrarGeneral might be expected to visit Inverc&rgill to initiate the Act in the course of two months, or so aooii »» liocaa.--got-fclxjfough.lug more pressing engagements. It is almost unnecessary to remind the public generally of the provision that has been made for their enjoyment on Monday next. The committee of management of the annual Caledonian Gathering have been untiring in their efforts to carry out their programme with success, and everything now depends on the humor of the clerk of the weather as to whether the games will come of with the usual eclat. The committee of the Horticultural Society have been no lesß unremitting in their zeal to make their first show of the, | season attractive, and there can be no doubt but l what it will be well patronised.