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Southland Times, Issue 1705, 21 February 1873, Page 2

It will be obseryed that the date of sailing of the 8.8. Rangitoto, for Melbourne, has been postponed till to-morrow (Saturday). It will be seen from our advertising columns that the Artillery drill, which should have been held last evening, but was postponed on acount of the performance at the Theatre, will be held to-night. A meeting of the Committee of the Acclimatisation Society was held ou Thursday fternoon, 20th inst., at which it was resolved to invite tenders for the lease of the Society* reserve of 50 acres on the North Road. Mr Perkins, the secretary and collector of the Society, stated that in consequence of the unsatisfactory condition of the funds, he declined to receive any lemuneration for his services from December last. Mr Butts read a letter from the Colonial Secretary, enclosing correspondence between Dr Featherston, Mr Youl, and DrLindsiy, regarding the shipment of salmon ova to New Zealand It appeared that Dr Lindsay had strongly recom, mended that the ora should be shipped from the Clyde to Invercargill. Dr Featherston, however, has shipped it from the Thames to Part Chalmers. Mr Butts stated that he had information that the Oberon had sailed from London on the 21st January with 150,000 ova on board. It was stated that the secretary of the Nelson Socioty had written to say that in return for the 1000 trout ova forwarJed ia September, Qje Society would send a shipment of birds, principally Californian quail and English lark?. The yearly meeting of the subscribers to the Invereargill Atherseum was held on Wednesday evening in the Council Hall, Mr Macdonald, president of the institution, in the chair. The secretary, Mr Perkins, having read the minutes of the last annual meeting, which were confirmed, presented the committee's report for the past year, from which it appeared that the institution would be about £40 in debt at the termination of the present financial year, ualess in the meantime a large addition wag m -ule to the number of subscribers. A good deal of discussion followed, during •which it was suggested by Mr Wau^h that the benefits of the institution were not sufficiently understood by the working men of the town, and it was generally thought that the difficulty might be overcome by their aid, if the j matter were fairly laid before them. The report was ultimately adopted, and the following gentlemen were elected as the committee for the current year : — Messrs Perkins, Osborne, Lumsden, G-il-mour, C. L. Frederic, Cuthbertson, G-ellatly, M'Ewan, and James A. M' Arthur. Mr Lumsden was elected president, and the late treasurer and secretary were re-elected. The chairman of the Railway Committee recently received a letter from Ilia Heaor the Superintendent, enclosing a communication from the Colonial Secretary, stating that the Engineer-in-Chief, who 18 expected to arrive in Invercargill on Saturday, has been instructed to use his best efforts to secure the early completion of the Woodlands section of the Mataura line. The communication further states that the rails now in Dunedin are unsuitable for this line, being of a different pattern from those generally U3ed ; but that it was expected that a sufficient supply of rails would be forwarded direct from England in time for the early completion of the work . We are pleased to learn from the country districts that harvesting operations are proceeding satisfactorily, although the scarcity of hands is still felt. The weather has been highly favorable, and with a continuance of the same it may be expected that the crops will all be secured ere long, and in first-class order The telegraph wire to Winton has been completed for some time, and it is expected that the office will be opened on the let March. Our country friends will be gla^ to learn that the Winton Meat Preserving works have been sold to a firm who are likely to turn them to good account during the ensuing winter.

Through the courtesy of Geo. Wobste-, Esq., M. H.R., we bavc been shown a private telegram giving the result of the sale of tho extensive properties in Canterbury belon^inct to th •■ lace 11. Q. Keruioile, Esq., which was held at Christchurch on the 19th inst. Glenrnark, consisting of 35,781 acres of free'iol i, an! 11,500 aores of leasehold with 25 000 sheep, realised £85 000; and the Ashhurton station, with 70 0 acras of freehold, and 66,000 acres leasehold, together with 40,C00 sheep, realised £52,00}. A special meeting of the Municipal Council was held yesterday at 2 o'clock, for the purpose of opening lenders for debentures. The meeting, after opening the tender* received, was adjourned till Monday evening next. At the ■ usual weekly meeting in the evening, the followI ing tenders were accepted : — Jarues Ford, pathways in Biggar street, £17 8s ; R. W. Harvey, bridging Conon street, £118 4s ; and H. Craven, formation and gr.ivelling in Jod street, £41. The Council adjourned at a quarter past eight o'clock. We have much pleasure in directing attention to a novel amusement provided for the people of Inveroar^ill to-day, namely, a cricket matck between an eleven of (he Invercargill Club and the members of the Star Dramatic Troupe, in oostume. It takes place in the Agricultural Society's Grounds, and wickets are to be pitched at half-past one. At a meeting of the Education Committee, held last evening, it was decided to erect a picket fence, 4£ feet high, round the outside boundaries of the Grammar School grounds. There were five applications for the appointment of second mistress, and Misa C. Bain was elected, subject to her obtaining a certificate from the Board of Education. The appointment of Mr Arthur Grant as temporary assistant teacher was confirmed. The committee arranged for three of its members visiting the school monthly by rotation, and decided that applications for free education should be considered by the visiting committee for the month in which they were received, a report to be submitted to the general committee. At the meeting of the Land Board oa Tuesday, there were present Messrs Pearson, Baker, M'Arthur and Dundas. The following applications were granted : — Hugh Stevenson, 25 acres, New River Hundred ; John 3. Manning, 3940 acres, runs 156 A 2 and 156 82, Waiau district ; H. B. Morrison, 640 acres, run 159, Taringatura district. On the application of Cuthbert Cowan, the 900-acre reserve on run 207 b was laid off in one block on the east side of his dividing fence, to front the Wairaea stream. It was resolved that 189 acres of the bush reserve on the Tomohorako creek, New River Hundred, be advertised open for application on the 19th March. A. F. Dawson obtained a license to cut timber in the Seaward Downs bush for the bridge over the Mataura at Menzies Perry. John Coucher obtained a steam saw-mill license over 100 acres in the Longwood range, crossing Watson's track. The Commissioner of Crown Lands informed the Board that the following gentlemen had been elected Wardens for the Forest Hill Hundred : —Messrs W. Butler, J. Brown, A. M'Kay, D. M'Leod, J. Fosbinder, D. Anderson, T. M'Lean, G. M'Leod, and A. Macdonaid. It was resolved that Mr W. Russell be appointed to preside over the election of Wardens for the New River Hundred, in event of Mr Sproull's absence ; Mr Thomas Denniston in like manner at Oteramika, in Mr Dundas's absence, and Mr Howard, at the Land Office, in tho absence of the Commissioner of Crown Lands. Mr J. T. Thomson, Chief Surveyor of Otago, is now on a visit to Invercargill. Describing the circumstances attending the arrest of Franks, the man who fired a pistol at his wife in Chalmers' Church, Hobart Town, the Mercury states, that " on Wednesday morning Detective Simpson and Constables Ridge and Duggan went to a German's house in Macquariestreet, where they had ascertained Franks was. The Germau denied that he was in the house, but Detective Simpson having set the other members of the force to watch, entered, and after a little search foual Frank* ia a room writing a letter to the editor of the Mercury, in which, referring to what appeared in a former issue of that paper, about his attempt, he expressed his surprise that people could tell so many lies, evidently intending to conclude by denying the attempt on his wife's life. He wanted to finish the letter, but was told that he could do so at the station, to which pla^e he was taken. In the room a six-barrelled revolver was found, with ! one chamber empty, and the rest loa led with ball similar to that foun.l in the church. Some j percussion caps were also found wreapondin g with the one which Franks used. Franks was brought up at the police court on We Inesdav, charged with feloniously shooting at his wife with intent to kill and murder, and was remanded. He is a respectable- looking man, 38 years of age, but has the appearance of being much younger. While in the dock the flashing of his eyes left an impression that he was either suffering a good deal from nervousness or from mental derange— j ruent." j The Hobart Town Mercury says : — " Mr G. W. Weaver, the well-known chemist, of Wel-lington-bridge, brought home with him on Monday, 3rd inst., from New Norfolk, three magnificent trout, all shining, solid, and beautiful. There iB, as usual, difference of opinion as to the character of the trout. One opinion is that they were two raaloa and a female, the latter measuring 24jin. in length, and 15f in. in circumference, and turned the scale at 81b 6oz. The male fish was somewhat less, but the three covered a goodsized tea tray, and weighed 181 b. The third fish was landed by a friend of Mr Weaver, and it is \ the opinion of some that the fish described as a female is not a fema'e browu trout, but a sea" going fish. Mr Weaver, with the assistance of Mr Roblin and Mr Allport, took a plaster of Paris model of it, and this model will be left in the museum for inspection. The present is < acknowledged on all hands to be the grandest take yet made since the river was thrown open to anglers ; and when our readers are informed that Mr Weaver hooked two of these splendid fish, as far up the Derwenfc as Charlie's Hopo, they may well understand that the brown trout is thoroughly established in the tributaries of our noble estuary, even if by any chance the salmon proper and salmon trout should prove a failure." The Genevan paper, the Bien Public, announces that Dr Merle d'Aubign^ has left two volumes almost completed on the " Reformation," j

iii which the history is carried down to the death ! of Luther. Tho notorious Green Harp claim, at Corn— tnandel, has been sold at auction for £200. In last issue wo stated that a public meeHng ha 1 been hold in Christchurch for the purpose of urging on the Government the necessity o' com - pleting the railway to the Malvern Hills, in or.ler to utilise the coal deposits known to exiat in that locality. A correspondent of the Lytteltora Times gives the following unsatisfactory account of tho quality of the coal in question : — Having procured samples from the Malvern district, I carried them to a common 16 inch firegrate, set in the ordinary manner. I fir9t placed some paper in the bottom of the grate, afterwards a few chips on th» top of the paper, and, filling up the grate with a sample, I set fire to the mass, and the oporation wag complete. There was very little difference iv the burning of any of the samples, and what is said of one applies to all. If you will call the stuff operated upon Lignite. ; why, I say a* lignite the samples wore pretty jjool ; bu" } if you insist on calling it coal, thoy were as coal — rubbish. It has a villanous odour, collapses on the least application of the poker, has poor heating powers, and, in short, I would sooner pay double its price and stick to Newcastle coal. Another correspondent of the same journal, in replying to the above, says : — ln January, IS7I, I purchased from a persoa in the lfororata district 21cwt of coal from this particular part of the Malvern Hills, agreeing to pay the same price per owt as I would purchase Sydney Newcastle coal at the Railway station, which at that date was 40s per ton. This quantity of coal I carefully tested against a similar quantity of Newcastle coal, with an eight— horse engine, having a full-sized Cornish boiler, and I found, as Mr Bird states, that it had rather a shaley appearance ; but by admixing a certain quantity of water before putting it in the furnace, I found in a short time it caked together, similar to the small coal used by blacksmith.B in their forges. I found it to be a much more rapid generator of steam than Sydney coal, but it showed a deficiency as regards its sustaining power. It had, however, this great advantage over the Sydney coal, that it did not create anything like the quantity of soot, which speaks greatly in its favor as fuel for saultitubular boilers. The ashes were very free from clinkers, which at ali times prove very destructive to fire bars. The Governor has decided to pardon Martin Totaioiti te Kara, Rewi Tamainui, and Akareka te Okaia, who were tried in September 1869, for participation in the Poverty Bay massacre, and sentenced to be hung, drawn, and quartered. The Lyttelton Times states that it is not improbable that a company will be floated in Christchurch at an early dato for the manufacture of sackiag, &c, from phormium fibre. A Native meeting was held at New Plymouth i by the Hon. Mr M'Lean on the 15th inst., when he spoke in very decided terms to those assembled. One native said he wanted all the lands back. Mr M'Lean turned on him and said he had no land. The Waikatos opened their l*nd first, and his tribe had been there. The tribe rebelled, and the Europeans then took the land. The friendly natives are said to be pleased at the firm stand Mr M'Lean is taking with the Hauhaus. Ie is rumored that nearly 30,003 copies of Mr Tennyson's " Gareth and Lynette " were subscribed for, or taken principally by London booksellers. "At present (says the Wellington "Indepen. dent) no steps have been tuken to supply the seat rendered vacant by Mr Hah's resignation. It is rumored that VI r Shcphard, of Nelson, has been promised a seat in the Ministry, but tha possibility of such a promise biing effect to is very distant. It is quite certain that the app intment of Mr Shephard would be unpopular, and would alienate many of the best friends of the Ministry — not because of any personal objection, but because of the impossibility of discovering what claims he hus upon :he party, which he only joined at a very critical period, and after he had carefully ascertnined that it was likely to be the winning side. He would not impart the least additional strength to any Ministry, whilst he would certainly cost it a few votes." In Auckland, 14,119 shares in Ihe National Bark were applied for, the total for the Colony being 40,200. " A lady residing near Sale has," the Gipps Land Times understands, " been applied to by the Crown law officers in England to proceed home for the purpose of identifying the Tichborne claimant as Arthur Orton. This has already been done, so far as it thsn could be, before the commission which sometime ago visited Gipps Land for the purpose of collecting evidence. A photograph of the plaintiff was recognised by the lady in question as the likeness of Arthur Orton. The expense of the journey of the lady and her husband will be borne by the Crown." At the Theatre Royal last evening, the performance was for the benefit of that favorite amateur actor, to whom the Star Troupe have been so much indebted, Mr R. B. Wotton, in recognition of whose services the company lent their assistaace. The piece selected was " Jessie Brown, or the Relief of Lucknow," which we have already noticed. The presence and assistance of the volunteers materially added to the success of the performance. The house was crowded in every part, and the bene/iciare had every reason lo b 8 pleased with the reception accorded him. The performance concluded with the laughable farce, " The Virginian Mummy." The steamer purchased by the Star Dramatic Troupe to convey them round the coast, as Mr South humorously informed the audience at the theatre last evening, having started on a cruise without their consont, they are compelled to remain a little longer in Invercargill, and will tonigbt produce " The Ticket of Leave Man," with the original cast.

Mr Rodger s, bookseller, has submitted for our inspection some samples of exercise books for u»e in schools, manufactured to his order, the material being first-class, and the price moderate — two very special recommendations. Mr B Short, of Sydney, delivers his second lecture this evening, at 8 o'clock, in the Exchange Hall, the subject being " The Husband's Privilege, the Wife's Blessing, and Homes made Happy." The attention of those interested is directed to the announcement regarding St. Mary's Catholic School, which ia now under the management of Mr and Mrs Wood, who have recently arrived in the district.