CANTERBURY.

Colonist, Volume III, Issue 264, 1 May 1860, Page 3

CANTERBURY.

(From Lyttelton Times.) Consecration of a New Church. —The solemn service usual upon these occasions was performed, on April 10th, at the new parish at Lyttelton, dedicated to the most Holy Trinity. The dimensions of the edifice are, externally : extreme length, 84 feet, including the porch i breadth, 50 feet. Tlie width of the transepts, externally, is 22 feet 6 inches; which, the walls being 2 feet 3 inches in thickness, leaves an available space of 18 feet inside. The interior of the nave is 68 feet long and 28 feet 6 inches wide; and the chancel 16 feet square. The walls {are 9 feet 6 inches in 'height inside, and 10 feet 6 inches externally ; and the apex of the roof and gable stand upwards of 35 feet from the ground. The architect is Mr. G. Mallinson, and the builder Mr. L. W. Morey. Chciich of St. Mary, Parish of Timaru.— The ceremony of laying the foundation stone of the now church intended as the parish church of Timaru, was performed on the 7th of April, in presence of a considerable gathering of the inhabitants. The circumstances attending this meritorious undertaking are so graphically described in the address of Mr. Woollcombe, which we subjoin, that it is needless to recapitulate them. The Rev. George Foster read the prayers appropriate to the occasion, and the stone was laid by Belfield Woollcombe, Esq., the Resident Magistrate of the district. Beneath tlie stone a document was placed, bearing the following inscription :—" This foundation stone of St. Mary's, the parochial church of the district! of Timaru, was laid on Saturday, the 7th April, 1860, by Belfieltl Wooll- - combe, R;M.; Curate, the Rev. George Foster; District Wardens, B. Woollcombe, Henry* John LeCren, Alfred Cox, and George Rhodes. Built by subscription and by grant of the. Provincial Government."

Accident.—On Monday, the 26th of March, a man named Frank Harrison was drowned in the Rangitata Creek. The unfortunate man had been on horseback, riding alone^ and seems to have gone sheer off into deep-water from the bank. Both horse and rider were washed away without the power of recovering themselves, but the horse was found afterwards, all right, with the loss only ofthe bridle. The man perished, and his body was found about three miles from the place where the accident is supposed to have occurred. To show visitors and persons at a distance that humanity is not generally deficient among us, and that the duties of man to man are recognised and fulfilled to the amplest extent by those resident in the outlying districts of the province, we may'go on to mention the further facts of the case. As soon as it was known that an accident ofthe kind had occurred, Mr. W. R. Scott, a sheep farmer in the neighborhood, turned out at once with others on the station to search for the missing man ; and discovered the body at last on ; a spit in the middle of the river. The stream was running exceedingly strong, so much so that neither man nor horse could possibly cross by swimming or wading ; and the river bed was also beset with quicksands. Coupling ingenuity with daring, However, the object was achieved at last, by a man undertaking to float down the rapids secured by a rope round his waist which was held from the bank above, and the body was brought over by the same means. A coffin was at once commenced by Messrs. McDonald's carpenter's, (who were oh piece work); and at the same time a mounted messenger was sent to Timaru to acquaint the authorities and consult the relatives of the deceased. The latter wishing his remains to be brought to Timaru, Messrs. Scott and Gray sent their dray to convey thi* body there, a distance of nearly 40 miles. Harrison was a carpenter by trade, and arrived at Timaru by the Strathallan; after a short residence in the district, he sent home for his father and mother, who arrived in one of the last vessels, and of whom he was the sole support.

The late Mr. Witherby.—On Saturday last a large number of the inhabitants of this town, of both sexes and all ages and degrees, followed to the grave the remains ot Mr. Frederick Witherby, late Manager of the Union Bank of Australia here, who died on the previous Thursday. Mr. Witherby was well known as an early settler in Nelson, afterwards iv Wellington, more lately in Otago, and for the last six months of his life in this province. He was connected with the Union Bank first in Wellington and afterwards removed to Otago, when tlie branch of that bank was first es ablished in Dunedin. After resiling therefor full three yeai'3, he received the appointment of Manager of the branch in this town, on Mr. Palmer transferring his services to Christchurch. He had enjoyed the advantages of this piece of preferment but six months, when he died, one of a few victims of a fever lately .prevalent among the community. During the short period of his residence within our borders, Mr. Witherby had contrived to secure, as he had done wherever he had been before, the unmixed esteem and sincere friendship of all who met him, either in business or in his private capacity ; and his loss is proportionately felt. Mr. Witherby had been married for six years, and leaves a widow (daughter of Mr. Felix Wakefield) and three children.

The winter series of lectures under the auspices ofthe Lyttelton Colonists' Society was commenced on Monday evening last, by a reading from Dickens' Works, accompanied by a few remarks on the writings of that author, delivered by Mr. A. T. Brad well. The attendance was considerable, and the lecturer Was frequently applauded for his spirited treatment of both comic and pathetic passages from different works of this favorite author.