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Southland Times, Issue 1596, 25 June 1872, Page 2

The letters by the San Francisco mail are expected to arrive in Invercargill by the overland mail on Saturday night. The newspapers will arrive by the first steamer which leaves Dunedin after they have been received there, the state of the roads precluding their transmission by the overland route. We called attention, some few weeks ago, to the disgraceful condition of the Post Office buildings, which are now very old, and in design and accommodation quite unworthy of the town. We are glad to hear that a petition to the authorities for new buildings is being prepared for signature, and will shortly be submitted to the public. At the same time a rumor has reached us that the Q-overnment have called for tenders for painting the old building. As to do so would be a mere waste of money, while the expenditure bo thrown away would no doubt be made a reason for not giving us a new building, we hope something will be done to prevent it. Our local representative, Mr Calder, might do his constituents a service by communicating with the Government on the subject. Great dissatisfaction is everywhere expressed at the further delay in the sitting of the Supreme Court, which was announced for Monday, bufc could not take place on account of the non— arrival of the Judge. It is now announced for Wednesday, and we are happy to say that as His Honor is supposed to be a passenger in the Tararua, ! which left Port Chalmers last night, there is some j prospect of the Court actually sitting on that day. j The want of consideration which has been shown for those whose attendance is required as witnesses or jurymen, is, we think, peculiarly unbecoming, and calls for the severest censure. As His Honor has the matter entirely in his own hands, a little thought would have enabled him to postpone the sitting in the first instance to a day sufficiently late to have avoided the very serious inconvenience t hat has arisen from the repeated alterations which have been made, at very short notice. The following is the calendar :— lngpen, embezzlement, two charges ; Connor, larceny ; Wheeler, larceny ; Smith, attempt to commit suicide ; Ah Hoon, receiving money obtained on false pretences, two charges ; Christie, larceny, two charges ; Davidson, larceny ; Kee Chang, obtaining money on false pretences, three charges j Bishop, larceny ; Hitchcock, shooting ; M'lntosh, larceny. Sittings in bankruptcy: — Densham, for last examination ; Graham, for last examina- | tion ; Scott, for declaration of complete execution of deed. Who is to be our next Mayor ? is a question which is now beginning to excite a little interest. No candidates for the honor have yet appeared in public, but the nameß of several gentlemen are mentioned in private circles, including, of course, that of the present honored occupant of the civic chair, as well as Mr Lumsden and Mr Pratt. A very general feeling prevails that although any ratepayer is eligible by law, the selection ■ would -J be most fittingly confined to those gentlemen who have already given their time and experience to the service of their fellow townsmen in the Council, but of course this is a matter for the ratepayers to decide.

We understand that His Honor Judge Chapman has promised to deliver a lecture, during his visit to Invercargill, on " The Triumphs of Science," the proceeds to be devoted to the Church of England organ fund. We have received a copy of the Licensing Bill which it is proposed to introduce in the Assembly next session. Besiles provisions of the usual character for regulating the granting of licenses and the sale of liquor, it contains what are described as " prohibitory clauses," which may be adopted in any district on the vote of a majority of the inhabitants On the adoption of these clauses, no new licenses are to be granted in any district, and the old licenses are not to be renewed when they expire. The Bill is understood to be the work of the Premier, Mi* Fox. j The business at the "Resident Magistrate's Court yesterday was confined to two civil cases. L. Hume v. Charles Rous Marten, was a claim for £13 16s 6d for board and lodging. As defendant did not appear, judgment was given for the amount, with costs, 19s. Middleton v. Shirley was an action to recover £11, and 8» interest, on a promissory note. Judgment in default, with costs, £3 Is. A letter whieh appears in our columns to-day calls attention to the very improper practice which prevails of burying the advertisements for tenders for local works in the pages of the Provincial Gazette, instead of giving them publicity in the newspapers of the locality in which the works are to be executed. As a mere matter of economy, the Government must lose in this way far more than the cost o f advertising, by the exclusion of local competition. Besides the instance pointed out by our correspondent, a matter in which we were directly interested may be mentioned. The tenders for printing the rules and regulations for the railway were not heard of in Invercargill until it was too late for local firms to compete. The Provincial Gazette of the 19th inst. contains the names of the new road districts constituted under the Otago Roads Ordinance 1871, and the polling places for the same. The whole of the pastoral portion of the late province of Southland is included in the distriot of Oreti, in two subdivisions, Hokanui and Waiau. The pastoral settlers have hitherto been in the habit of forming their road9 by voluntary con* tributions among themselves, a plan by which a good deal of the load generally falls to the lot of the willing horse. They have now the power, by organisation, of levying a rate, and compelling every one to bear his share. The same iGazette contains a notice to the effect that copies ; of all alterations of roads made by road boards are to be forwarded to the Survey Office. Mr Hislop has been appointed Inspector of the Industrial School, vice Mr V\feldon, resigned. ! A Winton correspondent writes •• — The concert given here on Friday night by local amateurs, in aid of the school funds, proved a success, even beyond the expectation of its most sanguine promoters. Notwithstanding the unusual severity of the weather, and consequent bad state of the roads, no less than one hunired and fifty assembled on the occasion, and among t.h'3se more than the usual proportion of ladies was present The programme, which was got through without a single hitch, was sufficiently varied to suit all tastes, " from grave to gay, from lively to severe." After the opening chorus by the ehillren — duly appreciated — the " Christy Minstrels" made their appearance in force, and what between songs and conundrums, local hits, and odd grimaces, they kept the house in a continual roar of laughter. The Messrs Nicholas Brothers, photographers, who happen to be on a professional visit to Winton, very kindly and effectively contributed towards the pleasure of the evening, by their singing of well chosen songs and one or two duets together with the Mißses M'William. I mention these gentlemen merely because they are strangers, and not by way of comparison, which, people say, is odious. The concert part of the evening's enjoyment wound up by a laughable " Negro Farce," well rendered. After partaking of some refreshments, a score of ladies and gentlemen tripped it neatly "on the light fantastic toe" till near four in the morning, when " each went off their several ways, resolved to meet some other days." The net proceeds will, I am told, amount to about £20. The chair was well filled by Mr Bremner. A Long Bush correspondent writes as follows : — The second of the series of popular entertainments came off in the Bchool-room here on Friday, 21st. The attendance was good, and the programme was carried out most successfully. The readers were the Hev. Mr Alexander, Messrs J. G. Smith and James M' Kercher.- An entirely new feature in our entertainments was introduced, in the shape of a school choir, under the leadership of Miss M. A. Smith, to whom great praise is due for the very creditable manner in whieh her pupila acquitted themselves in both the pieces they gave. Though only sung in unison, they sounded well, but to my mind they were pitched too high for the children's voices. The treat of the evening was the song, "My Nannie's Awa," by Mr John Blue, rendered in a most masterly manner. Mr M'Gowan sang " The guii guid Wife," a song evidently very popular with the Long Bush people, as the same gentleman has now sung it at all the meetings we have had this winter. Messrs Christie, Chalmers, and Edhouse also sang with their uaual success. The next entertainment will take place at Woodlands, on Wednesday night, the 26th inst. The latest commercial information in the telegraphic summary received on Saturday, and published in our columns to-day, is only up to the Ist May. News via Suez up to the 10th May has appeared in a Dunedin paper, as follows : — London, May 10th. — The wool sales close on the llth. More animation has been shown, but there has boen an irregular market throughout, and a considerable quantity of wool has been withdrawn. Wheat is firm ; Adelaide has been selling at 61s to 63s per quarter. Tallow is steady. Oil is at £36 ; sperm at £93. Special Unpublished Telegram. — The fall in greasy wool is 4d, and in other kinds 3d, from the highest February rates. The Bank rate of discount is five per cent. The West Coast Times of the 17th inst. says : — " A remarkable instance of the fertility of the West Coast has been brought under our notice *by the ; exhibition in the window of Mr Ross, ReveJl street, of a beautiful sample of new potatoes grown in the neighborhood of Hokitika, anticipating the time at which this valuable esculent has been hitherto produced by two months at least."

The Bendigo Advertiser says that Schmfer, the little German traveller, whose adventures in Australia and New Zealand are so weil known, is now hawking second-hand jewellery about Bendigo. He is said to hare travelled 100,000 miles on land, and 60,000 by sea, while in Now Zealand alone he walked 16,000 miles. He still retains his wandering propensities, and if he can obtain funds, wishes to traverse the wilds of Siberia. The Nelaon Examiner advocates the formation of a league with reference to the proper conduct of immigration and the administration of the waste lands, setting forth the following programme : — l. Immigration and Public Works cannot with justice be charged directly or indirectly on the ordinary taxes. 2. The proceeds of land 'sales and of the leasing of the public estate, together with the revenues arising from the Public Works, are the resources out of which, or on the security of which alone, Immigration and Public Works should be carried on. 3. The , terms for purchase or occupation of Crown lands > should be uniform, and equally favorable to present settlers and immigrants. 4. The aliena- I tion of the public eßtate in large areas, whether to individuals or to colonising companies, subject; to no conditions as to its administration, is contrary to sound policy. 5. A land tax, like that of the United States of America, is an unexceptionable source of revenue, and the best security against obstructive tenure of land. The telegraphic intelligence published in our columns last week contained reference to certain land transactions in which a Mr E. J. O'Conor, a member of the Nelson Provincial Council, and likewise representative in the Assembly of the Buller district (West Coast), was concerned. The facts of the case, as narrated by a contemporary, are as follows : — " Westport, as we all know, has been suffering of late from encroachments of the sea, as well as from the vagaries of the Buller river, and the question of removing the site of the township, which has been mooted several times, has more recently acquired * shape and form.' The matter having been brought before the Provincial Council, it was referred to a Select Committee, who decided that the public buildings should be shifted to a site further up the river, and that all sections surrounding that site should be withheld from sale until they were properly marked out for sale as town sections. When this decision was arrived at, Mr O'Conor by virtue of his privilege as a member of the Council, was present in the committee-room, and immediately hastened off to the Land Office, where he purchased some of the most eligible sections. Evidently Mr O'Conor lost no time ; he was as rapid in the execution of his design as he was prompt in its conception j for though Mr Kynnersley, the Chairman of the Committee, betook himself as quickly as might be to the Land Office, to stop the sale of the sections, he found himself forestalled by the superior celerity of the keen-scented member for the Buller, Mr Eugene J. O'Conor." The result, as previously stated, was that the Provincial Council passed a vote of censure on the (dis) honorable member, and he has Bince given up his claim to the land and received back his money. A facetious writer in the Canterbury Press says : — " The New Zealand rivers take a deal of crossing. You have always a first class chance of getting drowned, and a certainty of getting wet, They make a pleasing variety in journeys which would otherwise be a little tedious. The Mission Priest came very near a drown the other day, and to show the estimation in which that gentleman is held in the up-country districts, I may mention the following fact, A working man who condescends to earn bis living by looking after the horses, &c, on some station was found furbishing up the double harness. As this was quite contrary to his usual habits he was questioned as to the cause of this extraordinary outburst of industry. "Faith and," says he, " I was just rubbin' of them up to give his rivrenoe a dacent funeral." The Melbourne correspondent of a Victorian | contemporary, in referring to the appearance in that colony of the foot and mouth disease, says : — I heard it stated to-day as an instance of the frightfully contagious nature of this plague, that a grazier in England was the means of communicating it to a whole herd by merely placing his hand on the back of one of the number after touching the diseased part of an infected animal. ; It is a popular belief at ho^ne, remarks the Ovens Spectator, that there is no snow in Australia except on the top of Mount Kosciusko. In order to dispel this illusion, we may mention for the benefit of our " Home Friends" that a bucketful of snow was sent from Stanley to the Post Office Hotel, Beechworth, and it certainly did not lose much on the way, as when it arrived in Beechworth it almost met with a congenial temperature. A Polynesian native has explained to Captain Rosengren, of the schooner Lyttona, which arrived recently in Sydney, the circumstances connected with the murder of the Rev. Mr j Gordon. He states that a native from Polenia Bay came down to the missionary station and asked Mr Gordon to come and see his children, i who were lying sick. He went, and on arrival found the children were dead. The man charged him with witchcraft, and immediately tomahawked him. The Thirty-sixth Annual General Meeting of the Liverpool and London and Globe was held in the company's offices, Liverpool. We make the following extract from the report submitted to the proprietors : — The occurrences of the past year, and the accounts it is now their duty to submit require the directors to report — That the capital issued is unchanged, and stands at £391,752, of which the amount held by trustees as consideration for Globe Six Per Cent. Annuities, is £146,112. That in the fire department the premiums reached the very large sum of £1,131,594 7s 7d, exceeding, by about £200,000 those of 1870, and showing the great and rapidly increasing hold on public confidence which the company is acquiring. That the losses have also amounted to a sum unprecedented in a single year, the charge under this head being £1,178,749 5s 2d for payments actually made, and full estimates for claims still unadjusted — that to this vaßt total, the startling catastrophe. _ at Chicago contributed £614,000. "S^ A petition is now receiving signatures throughout Otago, requesting the Legislature fco devise some means for securing the better observance of the Sabbath, having more special reference to the sailing of steamers, dray traffic, and "running of trains. i

A Commission appointed by the Provincial Government is to commence an inquiry into the circumstances connected with the Chinese petition for the removal of Mr Warden Beetham, of Queenstovrn, on Ist July next. The projected South British Insurance Company is being very favorably received. The number of shares assigned to the Province of Auckland has been more than applied for. 6,250 shares are to be made available for application in Otago, and a director is to visit each of the Provinces shortly. It is expected that a vessel will shortly arrivefrom Glasgow at Port Chalmers with over 300 immigrants. The stream of immigration from Germany had atao commenced , a vessel being tosail from Hamburg direct for Otago on 30th May r with 300 passengers. According to the Builder, no leas than 1000} skilled mechanics, carpenters, masons, bricklayers, smiths, &c, have been engaged by the Brogden firm, for our railways, and are now on the way j out. We notice that a member of this firm had I attended a meeting held by the agricultural laborers in one of the midland counties of Eng- ! land, and made arrangements with a number of ! the men to emigrate, with their families, to New | Zealand. i The Rev. W. Hogg has been appointed to thecharge of the Presbyterian congregation at Boss, Westland, with a stipend of £300 per annum, and a manse. The Canterbury papers state that efforts are being made by private enterprise to establish new oyster beds at German Bay, Akaroa. Eight | acres of land have been leased from the Government under "The Oyster Fisheries Act, 1866, ' Amendment Act, 1869," for a term of seven years, with a right to renew at the end of that | time for a further period of thirty years. Workmen are now engaged preparing the beds, and | 3000 dozen oysters have been procured from Stewart's Island, as well as a Urge number from the Akaroa beds for Bpawnin<j purposes. A dispensation for the establishment of a i Masonry Mark Lodge in (3-reymouth, has been i received by Mr Anchor, from Lord Leigh, Grand Master of Mark Masters of England and Wales.