OTAGO RAILWAYS.

Tuapeka Times, Volume V, Issue 229, 20 June 1872, Page 5

OTAGO RAILWAYS.

By permission of his Honor the Snperintendent, W6 publish the following telegram from the Hon. the Treasurer, addressed to him : — "I have arranged with Mr Brogden to construct the railway from Inverorgill to Mataara, thirty-nine miles, and three miles of sidings, for eighty-six thousand pounds, exclusive of rails and rolling stock. These are to be -prtrdissea. in England by tile Agent-General and Mr Brogden jointly, Mr Brogden to receive five per cent on their cost."— Star, Ulh-

Quartz MininA-^-A. telegram received in town states that the John Bull claim, Cromwell, obtained 80 Oz. of gold from 64 tons of stone crushed at the Royal Standard milL Patent. — Amongst recent patents in Victoria we find the following :— Henry Sorley, doctor of medicine, Dunedin, N.Z. An invention for propelling boats, steamships, or vessels, without the aid of paddle wheels or screw propellers. Another Innovation. — The Ade- • laide papers have introduced the laconic style in the birth department, and make the intimations in this wise : — "Mrs So-and-So, Ist April, another boy. Both 0.X." The mysterious capitals, when translated, mean that both mother and child are doing welL Ornithology. — Mr A. C. Purdie, curator of the Otago Museum, informs us that the Land Rail, known by the Natives as the Koitareki or Ortygomesra Affinis to which we caDed attention on Saturday, although not an unknown spee'es in New Zealand is now very ran ly met with. The^e are two specimens in the Museum. — Star. Immigration. — Advices reoeived from the Agent-General bj the Suez mail, state that the William Davie was to sail for Otago on April 16 with 190 passengers ; and a ship was to leave Hamburg for Port Chalmers on May 30, with 300 immigrants. Another shipload of immigrants were/to leave Glasgow in June for Port Chalmers. Non est Inventus. — The Wairarapa Mercury is responsible for the following:— A marriage ceremony was to have taken place at Mr.Lucena's dairy station, Featherston, on Thursday last. The guests were all present — the brida was dressed according to the latest fashions— the breakfast was ready — the priest was there prepared to perform the ceremony without delay, but no bridegroom. They waited and waited, but he proved to be "a laggard in love," and the ceremony war not performed. However, the guests were not going to be deprived of their tun, and so they had a dance, &c, and did not adjourn until an early hour the following morning Friends will be disappointed at not noticing in our marriage column, "On the 6th inst., at Featherston, Miss Worsley, of Featiierston, to Mr Cooley of the Hutt. No cards. " Bees and Seed. — Here is something worth knowing, seeing that in many matters pertaining to our agricultural grazing interests we know so very little. Dr Darwin, the greatest naturalist of the day, has been experimenting on the influence of bees in causing the growth of clover grasses. One hundred stalks of white clover were planted and bees allowed access to them, and the result was that 2,299 seeds were produced by the plants. Twenty other stalks were set out in the same locality, and subjected to the same treatment except that they were protected from the bees, and not a single productive seed was yielded. one thousand stalks of red clover were set out, from which bees were allowed to gather honey, and they yielded 2,700 seeds ; while from the same number, which bees were not allowed to approach, no productive seeds gathered. Spiritualism in the Divorce Cotjkt. — Capt. Elisha Freeman has been divorced from his wife in San Francisco on the ground of fraud practised by her in securing marriage. Freeman alleges that, previous to his marriage, he was insane on the subject of spiritualism, and believed that he navigated his ship under the direction of an old Spanish pirate. He visited the defendant (afterwards his wife), who claimed to be a clairvoyant and medium, to consult her as to whether the spirits were genuine or not. She assured him they were genuine, and said, further, that in two days he would see at the foot of his bed the woman he must marry. He saw at the time and place predicted, the medium herself, and, under the direction of the spirits, interpreted through her, married her, much against his will. On this showing* divorce was granted. Quartz Crushing. — The quartzcrashing machine, erected by the Provincial Government for the purpose of testing the value of stone, is now complete ; and several tons were to have been put through it yesterday. The machinery is worked by water power, by means of a water engine constructed by Messrs A. and T. Burt. The crushing mill has be-n erected by Messrs Wilson and Co., and comprises two stamps of about 4£ ewt. each. The water is supplied from the Water Works Company's mains by a threeinch pipe, the diameter of which is -too small togive sufficient pressure to work the engine to the full power of which it is capable. The cylinders are on the oscilatiog principle, and, if fully supplied with water at the full pressure, are calculated to work up te about two horsepower. Owing to the steamers drawing off the water, the machinery was too late in being put to work to enable us to state the results. A quantity of stone from the neighbourhood of Portobello was about to be put through the milL— Star, 10th. Allopathy v. Homoeopathy. — A war is raging between the allopathists and homoeopathiats of the Thames, arising out of a case recently heard in the local court. The plaintiff, an allopathic doctor, sued the defendant for services rendered to his sick child, which _it was said had been subsequently restored to health by homoeopathic treatment, administered by a person who in the evidence was styled a "grocer." The homceopathist had been consulted by ' the parents whilst Dr Lethbridge was still attending the child, and of course unknown to him. This breach of etiquette may possibly have had something to do with the length of the doctor's bill, which, together with the costs of the case (several of the faculty being called in evidence), amounted to between L3O and L4O. This fell rather heavy on the defendant, who is a poor Ban ; but his friends have taken up the cudgels in his behalf, and, more than that, are making' a^ public question of the matter, by collecting' subscriptions, not to exceed Is each, to defray the bilL That they have been sin- ' gnlarly •nccessCul was evidenced to by a formidable list of signatures, with tbe signers' occupations and residemces attached. The homceopathists are likely to gain a triumphant victory. Acclimatisation. — A letter on the subject of salmon acclimatisation, written by MV R. Ramsbotton to Dr Moore, of New Norfolk, Tasmania, is printed in the Hobart Town Mercury. The writer takes an encouraging view of the subject. He says : — I received your letter while in Ireland, for which lam greatly obliged. lam also obliged for the papers, which I anxiously search for the salmon ; but don't despair — . they are as sure to come as the sea and brown tr»ut have done; they only go further out of the way, and take longer to develop themselves than the ethers. I calculate you will have your first native-bred grilse in the river this season; but even they will be only from a small quantity of adult fish, so you must not be surprised' if you see no great number before the eleventh year from the time they arrived in Tasmania, as it takes four years to develope , each crop to a breeding state; but they .are" as sure as the sun, and all the cor- "' morants in the' country will not be able to dear them oat." :

Missing Men. — On Thursday evening two seamen belonging to the barque Medea, at Port Chalmers, went on shore in the ship's boat, but have not yet returned to the vessel. The boat has been picked up bottom up, close to Mr Harris's residence, near the sand spit, and fears are entertained that both are drowned. Reviewing. — A writer in a late number ef the Graphic, when reviewing a new work entitled " The Hermit, a poem : with miscellaneous verse,' remarks that it is chiefly mystical and wholly unintelligible, and the grammar is quite new. Some of the expressions are only a step from the sublime, as when we hear of folk who lived on oaten bread and ignorance ; which reminds us of the gentleman who was ' the father of modern chemistry and brother of the Earl of Cork. " Bonus fob Paper Manufactory. — It is notified in to-day's Gazette that the Provincial Government is prepared to offer a bonus of LI, 500 in addition to the General Government bonus of L 2.500 for the first hundred tons of printing paper produced by a colonial factory on the following conditions : — On the erection of machinery of the valne of not less than L 3,000, L 75 0; on the productiou of twenty tons of paper of the value of LSOO, L 375 ; and on the production of a farther quantity of 30 tons, of not less value than L 750, L 375 The paper to be produced by machinery established and working in the Province. Offers must be sent in by the 10th July, and must state when the manufactory will be in operation, &c, and must bind themselves in the sum of LIOOO to produce 150 tons of paper within three years from the acceptance of their offer. Our Land Reservations. — The New Zealand Herald, in its late issues, counsels the General Government to refuse to issue Crown grants for the endowments for hospitals, &c, made by the Provincial Council, in the following words :— " Of course Otago members have had a caucus, and probably this will be part of their price when the Assembly meets. But if the Government continue firm, they will meet, we feel sure, with strong support. It is neither reasonable nor right that any Province should thus j be enabled to free itself from the common I liabilities which it aids in imposing en the Colony. If this were permitted while we, for example, in Auckland shall have to impose direct taxation to meet the expenditure next year on hospitals, gaols, education, and other institutions, the c;ood folks of Otago will h*re relieved themselves of the pressure by throwing it on the land fund. It is ) worthy of notice also that the land which the Council wishes to alienate is not agrii cultural, or likely soon to be required for ! settlement. Our Southern friends are too I canny thus to lock up their country, but turn their attention to the territory leased to the squatters, from whom they receive the very respectable of between L 70,000 and LBO.OOO per annum. It is quite likely that the squatters will support, with all their energy, the alienation of the runs leased by them. They will naturally prefer dealing with (trustees ot institutions to whom the yearly rent is the sole consideration, than with the public, who might be likely to sacrifice an immediate rent to obtain the settlement of people on the land. The question of these endowments is likely, therefore, to exercise considerable indirect influence in the Assembly. The Otago members may rally around them most of the run-holding members of other provinces, as well as the merchants with whom they deal. We trust the members for Auckland and other non-grazing provinces will be united, to see that this is settled in the interest of the Colony, and not of any particular portion or class in it. " It must be remembered that the editor of the Herald, is Mr Creighton, M.H.R., who has always advocated the taking over of the waste lands by the Colony. The Approaching Session. — The Independent seems to think that the approaching session will witness a determined struggle for the extension of power to Provincial Governments, and hints that the Government, if defeated in resisting it, will appeal to the country. Our contemporary remarks : — We know from the public utterances of Mr Fitzherbert that he holds, or professes to hold, a strong opinion upon this question, and there is not much reason to doubt that his lieutenant, Mr Bunny, is impressed with similar views. Mr Rolleston, the Superintendent of Canterbury ; Mr Curtis, the Superintendent of Nelson; and possibly Mr Gillies, the Superintendent of Auckland, will no doubt use their best efforts in the direction of making themselves more powerful, and they may bring with them a following of their own officers, who, with themselves, will make a party that will at least make iiself felt, if it is not likely to obtain its objects. It is just possible that such a combination may seriously harass the Ministry and impede public business, but it is extremely improbable if it will command the sympathies and support of the country. It is a curious and significant feature of this new demand for increasing the powers of Provincial Governments that it proceeds entirely from those who are personally directly interested in the question. , . . Not a single Provincial Council has seconded the proposal to reverse the system of administering the Immigration and Public Works policy, although the Councils of Nelson, Otago, and Canterbury, have been directly or indirectly invited to d« so. We are satisfied that the people would as a body entirely oppose suoh a retrogression from the principles which the Legislature had deliberately laffirmed as would be involved in the transference of the administration of the Immigration and Public Works measures from the General Government to the Provincial authorities. The Ministry is bound to adhere to the position it holds. No compromise would be acceptable to the Colony, and, as the Government owes its position to the policy it is now proposed by some should be tampered with, it is btand to submit the question of any variation or subversion of principle to the elecj tors themselves: i Mr ,Yogel and his Detractors. — At the Nelson nomination Mr Saunders one of the candidates, brought a very grave charge against the Colonial Treasurer. The charge to which we refer was this :—": — " In coming through America, he heard a great deal of the manner in which Mr Yogel had travelled, occupying 1 carriages which would hold twenty-eight, all to himself, and detaining steamers at the cost of thousands." To this Mr Vogcl replied in a letter which was published in the Colonist. '• 1 did not," he said, know whether 'th« cost of thousands ' is meant to apply to the eccupation of carriages or the detention of steamers, or to | both ; in anycasethe statement is equally untrue. I did not incur any expenditure for the detention of steamers, and in justice to the hospitality shewn to me I must add that, with the exception of a short portion of the i distance, a palaca car was allotted to me | from ocean to ocean each way, as also a free | passage -for that car along the lines." Mr Saunders, as we have said, retracted the charge, but it also ought to be stated that jhe did so in a pecular manner. He said that the Colonist had not reported his speech correctly, and denied that he made use of the words we have quoted- above. In reply to , this, the Colonist says that it gave his precise words, "neither. more nor less," and tsserU that he made his offeue* against the

Colonial Treasurer worse by attributing corrnption.

Interesting to Hotel-Keeping. — At Wellington, lately, Mr Urwin, the landlord of a hotel was sued by aMrSteele, who had been residing at the hotel for Lls, the price of a watch, chain, and trinket, loßt by him. The Bench gave the following decision in the case :—l.: — 1. That the law holds the landlord of an hotel responsible for such a loss as that alleged to have been sustained by the plaintiff, unless it can be shown that there was negligence on the part of the guest. 2. That leaving such articles as a watch and chain on the dressing table in a private room, under all the circumstances ef thocase, Gannot be held to be suoh negligence as to relieve the landlord from liability. The Bench believe that the plaintiff lost the articles, the money value of which he seeks to recover, but the evidence as to value is not very definite. Judgment for the plaintiff for LlO and costs, L 3. The Norman Romance.— The Norman romance case is far from being played out, and has cropped up again with a uew feature. It appears that by the publiity given to it by the Star it has found its way into the Sydney Morning Herald, by which means a new claimant to the property haa been stirred up, in the shape of an eldest son. The f orjoer was simply the husband of a daughter by an alleged former wife, this person claims to be heir-at-law ; he therefore takes precedence in the field. From accounts to hand we learn that he has been employed as a clerk in some of the offices of the railway department of New South Wales, and occupies a good positioa. He, as soon as acquainted with the state of affairs, sought legal assistance in Sydney, and by that aid has given authority to Mr E. Bennett, attorney and barrister of Auckland, to prove his i claim, and take steps to secure the property I prior to his visit by the next vessel from Sydney, when he intends to apply for letters of administration The plot thickens. Mrs Norman will oppose his application, and as it will take months to obtain the necessary proofs, the estate will suffer in law costs. Meanwhile, however, we hear that Mr Norman, who was always believed to be in a good position, did not die possessed only of the United Service Hotel, but other property is now alleged to belong to him, not only in Auckland, but also in New South Wales. The Use and Abuse op Fiction. — In the course of a lecture lately delivered at Auckland on the above subject by Mr W. L. Rees, he gave the following instances of the popularity of some classes of fiction. Mr Rees described a book by "Ouida" as one which spoke of things that people would grow red in the face to allude to in an ordinary drawing-room. In those pages " seduction, gambling, and shooting a friend were very ordinary occurrences." And yet that was a book which he found had been engaged " three deep by the young ladies of Auckland." Another instance given was :—: — In a speech on paper duties, Lord Brougham instanced one penny journal of fiction, which circulated 670,000 copies weekly, another which circulated 500,000, and several circulating from 30, 000 to 200, 000. The staple of these publications was all fiction of a sensational kind. The proprietor of the first periodical alluded to, sold it to the late Mr Ingram, of the Illustrated London News, for L 40,000. Mr Ingram proposed te publish literature of the highest class. Sir John Gilbert was to be the artist, the two Galloways the engravers, Mr Gratton Cook, musical, and Mr Otway art critic. In less than eighteen months the circulation fell from 600,000 to 400,000, and the journal was repurchased by its former proprietor for L 25,000. Its circulation increased when it was again written for its market, who were referred to "as young women and young men witb sufficient leisure to crave excitement, — shopmen, milliners, nursemaids, •chool-boys and girls of a certain age, a general audience of both ages and sexes not sufficiently educated to be discriminative, and glad of anything to keep them from being dull." Arborculture. — In the garden of Mr George Mathews, at Mornington, there is just now a novelty in the shape of the North American shrub — Garrya-eliptica — in full flower. So far as Mr Mathews is aware, this is the only specimen of the kind in flower in Otago. He informs us that he tried for many years, but wibhout success, to introduce it from the Home country, where it has been known for a considerable time. The one now flowering has been in Mr Mathews's possession for about four years, and was obtained from Victoria. The plant at present is about three feet high, presents a very graceful appearance, and bids fair to become the parent of many generations of highly ornamental shrubs for planting on lawns, &c. The foliage resembles the evergreeen oak. The bloom is peculiar, exceedingly elegant, and withal very difficult of drscription. Of any known bloom that occurs to us, it most resembles — though far exceeds as to size, beauty, &c. — the catkins of the nut tree. - One calyx is suspended from another by a fine silky-like tissue, so forming a string or chain, varying from three to seven or eight inches in length, of prettily formed flowers delicately strung together. Of these individual strings, or chains of flowers, there are from about eight to twelve grouped together into a cluster or bunch; and these clusters or bunches are very profuse : so that the entire plant is hung all round with these beautiful tassel-like flowers. The opening of each calyx, which is of a dusky chocolate hue, is fringed with greenish yellow anthers, thus imparting a lightness and airiness to the whole. Mr Mathews invites those interested, or curious in such matters, to drop in and inspect the plant, of which he very naturally feels a little proud. — Star, 12th. An All England Eleven. — From the Australasian of May 25, it would appear that practical steps have at length been taken in Melbourne to secure the visit of another All England Eleven to Australia. This time, however, the eleven is to be formed entirely of " geatlemen players," except in the event of professional bowlers being expressly stipulated for by those who select to come out, and it is made a sine qua non that the great batsman, Mr W. G. Grace, shall be one of the eleven. In order to meet the expenses incidental to the visit, a guarantee system has been adopted, and such is the favor with which the project is viewed that fifteen or sixteen members of Melbourne clubs have put down their names for about L2OOO, whilst the East Melbourne Club guarantees L 750, and the South Melbourne Club LIOOO, making a total of L 3,750. It is to be hoped that the eleven will be in Melbourne by Boxing Day, And that they will remain in the colony about 100 days, during which time, instead of being hurried about the country like the lest eleven, they will only be asked to play ten matches. A committee has been appointed to communicate with England, and seeing that it is now about nine years since Parr's team came out to the Antipodes, it is not only expected that the visit will excite a great deal of interest, but that as the Australian cricketers have considerably improved, they will be able to cope with the eleven with a creditable result. It is scarcely necessary to say that New Zealand should not lese the chance of a visit from the Elaven, if , it is .possible by means of early agitation ,to obtain it. <An effort should undoubtedly be made in the matter.