LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Temuka Leader, Issue 1821, 27 November 1888, Page 2

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Land Wanted. —One hundred and nineteen applications were received in Dunedin last week for Crown land selections in various districts. Excursion Tickets. —Excursion tickets to Dunedin, available for return until the 10th December, are now being issued at the Temuka Railway Station. Sir Julius Vogel. Tho Lyttelton Times states that it has reason to believe that Sir J. Vogel will return to Christchurch in about three months.

Arowhbnua Town Board.—-A petition hat Messrs J. T. M. Hayhurst and J. Ash well would not resign their seats on (ha Arowbenua Town Board, was in circulation for signature ihrough the district last week. The Great Will Case. —ln the Appeal Court, Wellington, yesterday, judgment in the will case was given for Broughton, with costs. Leave to appeal was granted.

A Bm BiiAST.—The contractors for the north mole of the Timam breakwater fired a big blast in their quarry on Saturday evening. A ton of powder was used, and it is estimated that some 15,000 tons of stone were displaced. Property Tax. —The property tax collected up to Saturday throughout the colony amounts to .£206,000. Some small returns have yet to oome to hand, and there is of course the second instalment of large amounts. The Population. —The estimated population (exclusive of Maoris) on the 30th September was 603,361, or 1000 below the number at tho end of June, The Maori population is given as 41,969. Rahgitata and Obabi Water.Raobs.— Persons desirous of having the water taken on to or through their land in the Rangitata and Oran water district are requested to notify the Geraldine County Council before Ist January next. The Mails, —The steamer Alameda with the English mail of the 3rd insfc left ’Frisco for Auckland on the 18th inst., one day late. The steamer Mariposa with the colonial mails of the sth inst., arrived at ’Erisoo from Auckland on 23rd inst., two days early. Intercolonial Boat Race.— The intercolonial eight-oar outrigger raoe between Victoria and New South Wales was rowed on the Parramatta River on Saturday afternoon when the Victorian orew won with the greatest ease. Time—l6mia. 27sec. The Lincoln Election.— The Lyttelton Times of yesterday says that Messrs Rolleston and Wright hare definitely refused to contest the seat against Mr Saunders, and that consequently the fight will lay between Messrs Saunders and Ollivier, Mr Woodward being merely a funny candidate, Geraldine County Anglers’ Society.— The first fishing competition of the season will take place on Friday next, St. Andrew’s Day, entries closing on Thursday, fat 5 p.m, A fish dinner will be held in the Wallingford Hotel on Saturday, tickets for which can be' obtained from the secretary. Sunntsidb Asylum.— The Colonial Secretary states that the cost of restoring the dunnyeide Asylum will be about £IO,OOO. This amount ? must be reduced, however, by several thousand pounds, which it was proposed to expend in making necessary additions to the old building. Our Volunteers.— Lieutenant-Colonel Bailey and Captains Wright, Measen, and Jackson are appointed trustees of the Timaru Drill Shed. Captain Jackson is appointed a member of the Board of Examiners of candidates for commissions in the New Zealand Militia and Volunteers tor South Canterbury district. Supreme Court.—The Supreme Court sittings for criminal oases at Christchurch is fixed for 7th January, Ist April, Ist July, and 7th October; for civil cases 14th January, Bth April, Bth July, sth August, 2nd September, and 14th October. For criminal and ciyil oases at Timaru, 30th April, 20th August, and 10th December.

Town Impbovbments.— ln our advertising columns the Temuka Town Board invite tenders for asphalting the footpaths on the Main South Road for a distance of about 30 chains. When the work is completed the paths will have a much neater appearance, and it will add most materially to the comfort of pedestrians.

Winchester Athletic Spoets, —ln our advertising columns will be found the programme of the sports to be held on December 17th under the auspices of the Winchester Athletic Club. It comprises thirteen events. The prizes are good, and the meeting should prove a most successful one. Entries for the handicaps close on December 7th. Pbopeett Taxßbtubns.— Those who have not yet sent in their property tax returns ars reminded that they must do so before the 30th oflthis month. Persons who have not received a form of statement from the assessor can get one from any money order post office, or from the local assessor. All persons, whether liable to taxation or not, are required to furnish a statement.

Football.— Encouraged by the success of the Maori football team, a gentleman in Wellington proposes to endeavor to organise a representative New Zealand team to go Home nesc year. Preliminary steps have already been taken, and a number of prominent players in the colony will be sounded as to their willingness to go purely on an amateur basis.

Alleged Larceny of Wool.— At the R.M. Court, Timaru, on Thursday, a min named James Bell, alias James Wall, was committed for trial on a charge of stealing a sack value Is and 1481 bof wool value £2 10* 9d, the property of the N.Z. and A.L. .Company, Pareora. The accused had previously sold other wool and skins, stating that he was a farmer at the Pareora, and bad over 800 sheep. This assertion was proved to be false. Other charges may be brought. Burning of the Rotorua Sanatorium. —The Rotorua Sanatorium buildings and Maori Hospital were totally destroyed by fire on Friday night at 10.30. Nothing was saved, but the outbuildings, doctor’s house, and Blue bath were uninsured. The fire originated in the kitchen. A strong southerly gale spread the fire with immense rapidity, and the patients were rescued with difficulty. One man broke his leg in escaping. There was a good water supply available but the fire-plug could not be found. The Government lose about £3OOO, and Mrs Taylor, the matron, and patients lose heavily. Rangitata Bridge Racing Club.— A well attended meeting of the Committee of this Club was held in Wheelband’s Rangitata Bridge Hotel on Saturday evening last, Mr J. Lorgelly in the chair. Mr Wheeiband’s offer for the publican’s booth, fencing, etc., was accepted, Final arrangements for the forthcoming races were made, and it was decided to add a post entry trot to the programme should sufficient inducement offer on the day of the races. A vote of thanks to the chairman terminated the meeting,

Ihtrkcolonial Exhibition. —A very large meeting of the shareholders of the Exhibition I Company was held at Dunedin on Friday f-venifig. The committee proposed a long list of names, and it was resolved, subjaot to consent being obtained, to make the following appointments:—Patron, His Excellency the Governor; President, Mr John Roberts; vice-presidents, Sir H. Atkinson. Sir J. Hector, Sir G. Grey, Sir W. Fitzherbert, Sir M. O’Rorke, Sir John Hall, Sir R. Stout,

Justice Williams, the Mayor of Dnnedin, the Hons. Reynolds and Oliver, Hon. T. Fergus ; executive commissioner, Mr R. E. X, Twopenny ; commissioners—the Mayors of Auckland, Napier, Wellington, Taranaki, Blenheim, Christchurch, Hokitika, Timaru, Oamaru and Invercargill. The committee appointed numbers over 100. It was resolved that as soon as £IO,OOO was subscribed the directors should be empowered to proceed with all things necessary. It was then decided to increase the capital to £15,000. The chairman mentioned that he behoved the £IO,OOO would be subscribed in a few days, and he did not contemplate such a thing as falure. The Youn» Dootob. —From reports in the Dunedin papers we gather that our young 1 friend, Dr Herbert C. Barclay, son of the Rev. Geo. Barclay, has been more successful than was anticipated in a paragraph which we published a short time ago. Not only has he passed the examination with extraordinary success but he has been fortunate in receiving the appointment of House Surgeon in the Dunedin Hospital. There are extraordinary features connected with this appointment. First, Dr Barclay was appointed before the result of his final examination was made known. That he had passed was privately known to some of the trustees, who are also doctors. They knew he had passed with honors, but Dr Barclay himself had not been officially informed that ha had gained his degree of M. 8., though he had a strong suspicion that he would owing to his success in the class subjects. So far as the outside public was concerned, therefore, he may be ; said to have received the appointment before he had passed. One thing is he did not apply for it. It was offered to him. And finally, he is the first Naw Zealand doctor nho has been appointed to the charge of an hospital in the colony, and the first outside of Otago to take the Medical Degree. Dr Barclay’s career has not only been brilliant but fortunate. Not only has he passed the examination with honors, but ho received an importantappointment in a first-class hospital, where he will hayc a splendid opportunity of showing that he is practically as skilful as he is learned in his profession. We find from the papers that he has pasted in the following subjects with firal-olass honors Materia medica, pathology and medical jurisprudence, with a percentage of 92. In the practise and principles of medicine, first-class honors, 95 per cent, passes, and prize man; surgery, first-olass honors, 93 per c»nt, passes, and prizeman; public health, first-olass honors and prize man ; diseases of women, fDst’class honors and prize man; and ha also won the hospital and clinical prizes. He has besides received the Bachelor of Medicine degree, •and this will entitle him to get the M.D, degree after a few years* practice. Dr Barclay's examination was, therefore, a brilliant success, and we heartily congratulate him on the honors which his talents have secured for ■ him; We find, too, that not only has he been successful in hie collegiate career, but 1 that be is also held in esteem and respect by his fellow students. At a dinner given u the Shamrock Hotel, Dunedin, to himself and two othors who hare passed, Dr Fitchett, M.H.R., filled one of the yice-ohairs and Dr Barclay the other. He won the £5 5s prize essay en the Darwinian theory, and has been one of the editors of the University Review. There has just been published in the Otago Witness a series of articles written by him on the life of Pasteur, the great Frenchman whe has undertaken to kill onr rabbits. The Stockwhip. —We have received the fifth slush of The Stockwhip—a publication io which ¥r J. M, Yerrall, M.H.R., cuts deeply into the flesh of capitalists. Mr Yerrall has hitherto regarded lawyers as equally as bad as the money-lenders, but he lets his fifth slash fall much lighter on them than has been his wont. His parliamentary experience has taught him there are good men amongst the lawyers, and he makes them the exception to his rule of looking with suspicion npon the whole profession. Our friend would do well to ponder over this a little longer, and remember that in every country under the sun lawyers have been foremost in the work of legislating for the public good. No other profession has produced greater statesmen, and the cry against returning lawyers to Parliament is both senseless and groundless. In The Stockwhip to hand there is a comic picture. It consists of a stockwhip coiled up on the ground, with two old women, representing the Little-toned Times and the Press, looking at it in evident terror, and regarding it as a snake, while the heads of ✓ five other old ladies look over an adjacent wall. These, we believe, represent the Press Association. The conclusion all these c.irae to is that the best way to destroy the snake is to tel! lies about it. The Stockwhip also contains the speech delivered in Parliament by Mr Yerrall on the State Bank question, many extracts from Sir Julius Vogel’s speeches, etc., and replies, smart puns, and two balance-sheets showing that England has no gold to spare for the purpose of lending. From this it is argued that New Zealand never gets any of the gold she borrows in England, and that all her loans have been paid to her in the shape of paper money. This is erroneous. We have not received the gold, that is certain, but, what is worse, we have not even received paper money for the loans we have borrowed. The money as fast as we borrowed it went to pay the balance of trade against us, and the interest on our loans. The loan operations were transacted as follows, viz.—lst, We issued debentures; 2nd, these debentures were

J bought by London financiers, and paid I for by cheques ; 3rd, These cheques were debited to the accounts of the financiers, and credited to the account of the colony of New Zealand ; 4th, The interest on previous loans becoming due, the Treasurer of New Zealand conveyed the money back again to the financiers by a cheque, a sola of exchange, or some other instrument of finance, and thus from beginning to end no gold was employed in the transactions. We do not want gold in New Zealand, but we want it in London, and a good deal of it, or something which will be equivalent in value to it. Wheat, for instance, will do as well as gold. Debentures, so long as we get any one to buy them, or anything like that will do just as well; cheques and bank notes will answer the purpose in this colony so far as our own domestic, commercial, and financial intercourse goes. The aim of The Stockwhip is to direct attention to the utility of a National Bank. The Stockwhip is right so far, but its arguments are often incoherent, and consequently devoid of that convincing force wlfich is necessary to carry conviction home to the unwilling and the unthinking.

Railway Commissionkbship.—Referring . to the Railway Chief Com missionership, the Wellington correspondent of the Press “ believes that Sir Dillon Ball has cabled that i'.n eligible gentleman would accept the post on certain specified terms, and that a good deal of correspondence is going on by cable with a view to arriving at a favorable settlement if possible.” He adds that it has been hinted to him that it is nob unlikely the ■natter may be arranged this week. A Good Story.— “ Butterfly ” contributes the following to the Dnnedin Evening Herald “ A good story comes from Geraldine. A devout and worthy churchman gave a bull to the Church on the understanding that it should be sold for £2O. it was decided to raffle the anim> l, •mi a well-known citizen was entrusted with the task of disposing of the tickets. He got on magnificently, the tickets moving off rapidly. Unfortunately, however, nearly everyone who beught a ticket insisted on sealing the bargain with a drink, and by the time 19 tickets were sold our wel'-koown citizen was gloriously drunk. Thereupon the local constable arrived on the scene, and attempted to remove the inebriated bull-raffler to the look-up. Our citizen, however, laid down on his back in the middle of the road, and refused to budge one single inch unless the gentleman in blue took the remaining ticket for the raffle -price one sovereign. Cases were scarce, aod ultimately the officer allowed himself to be persuaded ; and then—and not till then !—the drunken

nan lurched to his feet, and went quietly off to the police station. My informant adds : ‘lf this isn’t a case of the ruling passion strong in drink, I don t know what is.’” The “ Butterfly ” has got a hold of the wrong end of the stick in thie matter. There was something about a bull, bat the nature of it was altogether different to that recorded by our contemporary. It would not do to go into the. matter now. It would only complicate masters that have been settled. There was no one arrested for drunken-

ness in connection with the affair, at any rate, but there are funny stories told about it, which are not by any means so discreditable as the “ Butterfly ” would wish us to believe.

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