THE PROVINCES.

Tuapeka Times, Volume III, Issue 115, 21 April 1870, Page 6

THE PROVINCES.

In a letter from the Honourable Mr. Fox to the school-teachers of Auckland, he say 3: — " So long as Provincial institutions exist, education seems to tne to be precisely one of the subjects which ought to be administered by them ; and that, peopled as this colony has been and divided as it is, it would probably bo altogether impossible to devise any scheme which would bo universally acceptable, which could be administered better by the General Government than the educational institutions ai*e now by the Provincial authorities, in several of the provinces."

The Hero on her last trip brought from Sydney two han.som cabs. It is somewhat strange that ere now a good xn any of these light and useful vehicles have not been placed on the Auckland stands. — " Weekly News."

On Saturday evening, a man who was obviously suffering a recovery from the effects of continued deep potations, sauntered into the rifle gallery and demanded a shot. Something wild in his manner, however, put the person in charge on his guard, and he hesitated to supply him with a rifle. The fellow then beat a retreat, openly avowing that it had been his intention to destroy himself. After this he visited a restaurant hard by, and induced some one to procure him a^ bottle of laudanum to allay the pain of toothache — as he said. Immediately on receiving it he made an attempt to swallow the whole of the potion, but was foiled by the vigilance of the landlord. He then declared that "if he couldn't do it one way he would in another," and, drawing a knife from his pocket, opened it and made a frantic attempt to stab himself in the throat, but the bystanders pinioned him before he hr.d done much harm, and the scene closed on him in the lock-up. — " Weekly News."

A cool attempt, which was made about 9 o'clock last Saturday evening, to borrow a pair of boots from a shopkeeper in Shortland Crescent without first going through the form of asking permission, really looked as if the perpetrator only committed the act for the purpose of securing free lodgings. He had been loitering about the neighbourhood for some time, and, taking advantage of a slight commotion at the corner of the street, walked calmly into the shop, laid hands on a pair of boots, and departed as quietly. After making a show of endeavouring to elude pursuit for a short time by dodging among the people, he walked into the open arms of a policeman which were ready to receive him. — " Weekly News.' The " Thames Advertiser " contends that women had the right to vote in the election of a Mining Board for the Thames. The "Advertiser" says: — " We daresay that many of our readers will be surprised to hear that a woman voted at last Tuesday's election for members of the Mining Board. The right of a woman to vote is, we believe, in this case, indefeasible in point of law, and is certainly beyond all question on the score of fairness and justice. By the Goldfields Act his Honour the (Superintendent is empowered to prescribe the manner in which the election is to he conducted; and, whether or not his Honour is an advocate for woman's rights, he had so ■worded the proclamation that any woman holding a miner's right could Tote. The constituency is, "persons holding miners' rights." So far as respects the right to vote for member 3 of Assembly on a miner's right, women are excluded, the terms of the Miners Eepresentation Act, 1562, being " every man of the age of twentyone or upwards." The question was raised on Tuesday by our respected fellow-townsman Mr. G. H. Hagin, of the New Caledonia Hotel, who conBultedMr. Macdonald as to whether his wife's vote could be refused. Mr. Macdonald, we believe, advised that it could not, and on Mrs. Hagin tendering her vote to Mr. Davy, Senior Warden, who had charge of the election, he could not see that he had authority to refuse it, and the vote was recorded. We may say that, if the Mining Board is to have a certain power with reference to mining interests, we do not see why women who hold those interests, and who are

bound by all the conditions, should not be allowed to vote. If not, they ought not to be allowed to hold mining interests, and the Grovernment ought not to take fees from them for miners' rights. At Wanganui, a few days ago, Mr. Low, auctioneer, sold cattle, sheep, poultry, &c, the donations of settlers to the Presbyterian Church there. The sale realised somewhere about £50. That valuable property, the Starborough Run, in the Awatere district, Madborough, belonging to the estate of the late R. K. Newcome, Esq., was submitted at auction on Thursday, by the .mortgagees, and realised only £10,350, being but £50 in excess of the mortgage. The property consists of 13,710 acres, all freehold, mostly beautiful low downs of good soil, and well adapted for cultivation. The purchaser is R. Beaumont, Esq., the present tenant of the property. * A disastrous fire took place at the Kanieri about half-past eight o'clock on Thursday night, which destroyed \the shop and dwelling-house of Mr. Barr, butcher, residing in the township. It appears that Mrs. Barr had

retired and was reading in bed by candle-light, and it is supposed that the candle had fallen out of the bottle which served the purpose of a candlestick, against the lining of the house. Mrs. Barr first saw the flame running up the wall, and in a few minutes the whole building was one blaze of fire, obliging her and her two children to escape in their night-dresses. The only property saved were some boxes of clothing. The property is uninsured. — " Nelson Examiner."

Tho following is from the " Greymouth Star " of the 22nd ult. : — Insanity, we are told, is greatly on the increase in Westland ; and the cause is said to be produced from drinking to excess illicitly distilled spirits, very large quantities of which are manufactured in the up-country districts ; and owing to the abundance of water, and the dense — almost impenetrable — nature of the scrub, detection is almost impossible. The spirit which is made and sold to shanty-keepers, and even to some of the up-country licensed houses, is, it may be said, almost rank poison ; and when indulged in considerable quantities, brings on delirium tremens and insanity in their worst forms. The heavy duty of twelve shillings a gallon upon proof spirits is, of course, a great incentive for persons to engage in defrauding the excise, which, we believe, is done to an enormous extent. The large sale of spirits at the centres of population outside the main towns of Westland in comparison to the small quantities which are ordered from the legitimately licensed wine and spirit merchants is a sufficient proof that the above statement is substantially correct. The evil is a very serious one, and we should be glad if some means could be devised to check it. It is one of those offences against the revenue wherein we think the system of employing common informers might be very advantageously introduced.

On Monday, March 21, the dead body of an infant was found in a flour bag in the bsdroom of a girl named Annie Greenway, at the Hua Village. The woman has been arrested on a charge of concealment of child birth. It is said that the girl's brother is father of the child.— " Grey River Argus." Early on Sunday morning, March 27, ' Mrs. M'Donald (who, with four children, lives in a cottage belonging to Mr. Cross, near to the property of Mr. Baly, on the beach, at Nelson), was awakened by finding her bedclothes on fire and one half of the house in a blaze. With the greatest difficulty she got her childreu out of the burning building, no easy matter, as all are young, and one is a baby of eight months, and another a sick child of three years. Mrs. M'Donald was unable to save anything, and she and her children escaped only in their night attire ; unfortunately losing £100 in notes, which her hushand had left with her out of a sum of money he had received prior to going over to Collingwood district. — " Grey River Argus."

We have heard that an elopement under rather remarkable circumstances took place on Sunday week last. The Adonis is a well-known little gentleman lately residing in Shortland, and the lady fair was, we understand, a mere girl of sixteen. The lady was conducted to church on Silnday week last by her now disconsolate father, and has not since been heard of. It would appear that the loving couple took advantage of a late steamer proceeding to Auckland, and made a clean skedaddle without beat of drum — " Thames Advertiser."

The New Zealand Government have advertised in the Australian papers for tenders for the supply of a large quantity of woollen goods for the use of the troops and constabulary of the colony. The Melbourne " Argus " says :—": — " As the advertisement calling for tenders has been ordered to be published in this colony, it is evidently anticipated that Victorian enterprise wil be induced to co-operate in the foundation of the important industry which our. New Zealand fellow-colo-nists are thus seeking to establish."

A correspondent of " Lyttelton Times " suggests that a bonus of £1,000 should be offered by the Provincial Council of Canterbury for the establishment of a paper-mill in that province. He thinks there is a great waste of flax, tow, and other suitable raw material for paper.

On March 14th, a constable named James Downes was brought before the Resident Magistrate at Ahaura, charged by a constable named Swneey with being drunk on the 9th of February, from which date Downes had been locked up. The Magistrate considered the charge of drunkenness proved, and fined the prisoner 10s. and costs, but Baid the evidence disclosed a most discreditable state of affairs. He would send the depositions to Mr. Inspector Shallcross, and bring the case under the notice of the Provincial Secretary. It is. certainly something new that a constable should have^the power of locking up a man for drunkenness, for nearly five weeks, without bringing the case before a magistrate. — " Grey River Argus." When the news of the escape of Te Kooti reached Tokangamutu, Tawhiao, Rewi, and Manuhiri, the King's secretary, were "in Council assembled.." They expressed no satisfaction at the escape, but Tawhiao said he hoped Te Kooti would not return to Waikato, as in that case he would be obliged to

afford him shelter. Rewi spoke of the European forces in terms of contempt, saying that he had all along believed that "fiaxcuttors " would never catch Te Kooti. Manuhiri said he did not believe the Europeans desired to catch Te Kooti because that was the second time that they (the King natives) had delivered him over to the pakeha, and each time he had been permitted to escape. This information we have received from a native chief, who was present and heard the conversation. — "Cross."

The Secretary of the Nelson Acclimatization Society has made arrangements to obtain from California, by the new line of steamers, a supply of the quail of that country to turn out in the district of Motueka.

The Rev. J. Macintosh, from Canterbury, has accepted the call of the Greymouth Presbyterians to become their pastor. A contemporary says : — ''During the last eight months our forces have killed seventy-nine natives at a cost of £400,000. Each dead Hauhau therefore cosb £5,000."

The "Southern Cross " of the 14th instant, says : — We understand that the Hon. Colonel Whitmore has been created Commander of the most Honourable Order of St. Michael and St George, for distinguished services in the field as Commandant of the New Zealand forces. However much we may have occasionally differed from Colonel Whitmore, we are exceedingly pleased that his great public services have been recognised by her Majesty's Government in a becoming manner. We wish him a long enjoyment of his well- won honour.

The usual forms used in applying for Crown Grants may now be signed before a solicitor, a clergyman, or postmaster, as well as before a Justice of the Peace, as heretofore.*

The offer of £50 reward for the discovery of the perpetrators of the outrage on Chinese at Moonlight has, so far, failed to obtain the necessary information. Mr Ahloo, Chinese interpreter, Sergeant "Fox, and Constable M'Gann, have frequently visited the spot, and order has been restored. The feeling against the Chinese is, however, very bitter. — "Wakatip Mail."