GENERAL INTELLIGENCE.

Tuapeka Times, Volume V, Issue 254, 12 December 1872, Page 6

GENERAL INTELLIGENCE.

The Lyttelton Times devotes a couple of leading articles to answering those of our contemporaries who continue to be greatly exercised about the indebtedness of the Colony, actual' and prospective ; and. while ■ noticing the fact that these continual lamentations about ourrndebtedriess come, almost exclusively, from among those who, directly and indirectly, have opposed and still oppose the settlement of the country and the development of its resources, observes that " it is quite true that, adding tin Colonial to the Provincial debts, and calling the aggregate, as it is, the Colonial liability, we owe now dose on £10,000,009 It is also true that, in order to finish the railways already authorised, about four millions more will have to be expended in the course of four years. The population of the Colony, in round numbers, is 267,000, and the liability per, Lead is therefore about £37. Supposing the population to increase at only the same rate - as in 1871, we should have at the end of four years, say in 1876, a total population of 327,000. But it is safe to assume that, with greatly stimulated immigration, the increase will be much larger, and that at the end of the time specified the total population of the Colony will be at least 350.000. Say that the debt is then £14 01)0,000. aud we have a liability per head of £40, which is certainly not an alarming amount. Taking everything into account — natural increase and immigration — wo answer that the estimate given above is under the mark, and that the population will increase in much, the same ratio as the debt, thus keeping the liability per ; . ■ head at or about the. sum fiist mentioned, £37. This, compared with the liabilities of other countries, which do not, as is the case with New Zealand, possess immense undeveloped resources, is not. a verye, heavy burden. *' *r One of the speakers,-at a meeting recently held at Cromwell, is reported by the Argus to have said :— " The best definition of a squatter that he ever remembered hearing, was by the late Mr John Hetherington, formerly a resident there. It was this :' A squatter is a biped that sits upon his haunches and growls at civilisation.' " In addition to the collection of native timbers referred to elsewhere, Mr Bkvr, C.E., will exhibit at tlw Christchurch Exhibition a collection of fossils found in the Caversham tunnel, plans showing the progress of the construction of the tunnel ; and three photographs of the Bangitata bridge, whhh was erected under his supervision. One photograph will show the work shortly after its commencement; the second, the bridge when , the iron work was completed ; and the third as it is now ready for traffic. At Greyvnouth, on th*29th ulfe., » publican named O'Brien was drowned in a deep hole in the river. Be was a Roman Catholic, bnt, being a Freemason, was refused burial by the local priest, and the Masons read their usual' burial service at the grave. Messrs C. C. Corfe, E. C. J. Stevens, E Fowler, A. J. Cotterill, A. M. Ollivier, Wynn Williams, and E. Maples have been elected the Committee to choose the players to represent Canterbury in the Interprovincial Cricket Match. A guarantee list for the expenses of the match has been circulated, and a considerable sum guaranteed. The Education Board, at its meeting this week, will have to consider the necessity for making provision for filling up two vacancies in the teaching staff of the High School, as We Understand Mr Abram. the second master has sent in his resignation, he being about to return to England, and that Mr Pope will remain in Victoria, where the climate is better for his health. The Canterbury Flax Association received by the Suez mail a piece of cloth and weft yarn made from some flax they sent home. "Anglo* Australian," in the European Mail, says in reference to it that as the fibre in question was not sufficiently fine, Mr Forbes used some of Mr Thome's prepared New Zealand, flax for making tbe warp. The result was some capital cloth suitable for backing purposes, as our friends in Canterbury Wul have an opportunity of judging. The same package also contains a piece of cloth made from fibre prepared by Mr Thome. Mr Forbes spares no trouble to prove the usefulness of this fibre for textile fabrics. Gubernatorial movements are being narrowly wafcphed just now- The Argus believes , it is correct ;n stating that "Viscount Canterbury and family will take their departure ,from Victoria by the mail steamer which leaves Melbourne on the 28th February. It is rumoured, on what authority it is not aware, that his Excellency's successor, Sir Creorge Bowen, has applied fqr leaye to visit England for a few months, before assuming the responsibilities of the Governorship in Victoria. As Sir George has been absent from home for upwards of twelve years, his application, if it has been made, will, no doubt be granted, in which case the Acting Chief Justice, probably Sir Redmond Barry, will administer the government of the Colony until the new Governor arrives. A little boy named MeUor, aged between three and four years, son of Mr John Mellor, hotel and storekeeper, Drybread, was acci- .. dentally drowned on Nov. 29 .in a waterrace at the rear of the Drybread township. -,- - -It appears that the little fellow was playing about by himself, aud wandered to the race, where it is supposed he fell in. Be vras , first seen by • Mr. John Dickie, and imniefliately taken out, bnt was quite dead. A n inquest was held on Saturday by Mr E. H. Carew, coroner, when a verdict of " Accidentally drowned" was returned.- Much sympathy is expressed throughout the district for the bereaved parents. " The-funeral, which took place on Sunday, was one of the - 'largest ever seen in the district. :': ' The following Melbourne telegrams appear in '" the" Evening P.os't .•—Melbourne, 21st November, 2 p m. — Cabinet considering the question of the arrest of Dr Murray for the par} atrocities. Murray holds a pardon irbm the British Consul at liji. It, is understood in Melbourne "select circles ifcat -Sir James FeTgusson is about' to marry Miss Davjs, niece" ot the Hon. W. XJegraves, of frte Legislative Council. Th,e lady is young and highly accomplished. The marriage will nrob^blyitake place before Sir James goes jiome. — Adelaide, r2lstr 21st Nov.-, 1 p.m. Sir James Fergnsson leaves for England by the Deceniber mail, when Chief-Justice Hanson will assume i>he r Government. Sir James jp^rgu^son is due at New Zealand on the Ist -fit March, but has obtained leave to, the Ist of May next. Arrangements are niaking for a valedictory dinner.. ■The Evangelist for October contains less oirgipal 'and' more Readable extract matter thai} USUAL TJie edij»rial touches upon Knox's career, whiph is narrated' witbrwonderful brevity. The Melbourne letter is by far the most interesting contribution,^ and from it we make the following extracts :— - ■ •'Sir George, Stephen has been befpre the publip as an apologist for his cqndupt.in: hindering,-" on technical grounds, the law. from taking its .course . on a notorious crftningf ' One of the newspapers w«j: writing' Eretfcy strongly of the gross violation of the iw concerning .capital punishment? and mentioned the case of ope, I suppose, by. way <rf illustration. This worthy escaped the "gallows.* which;- he . richly ■ merited, through some point raised that delayed the exeeution.beypnd the appointed -time. Sir' George writes to vindicate himself. It would, appear- that this gentleman abhors capital

punishment. His dreams and waking hours are haunted, it would appear, by a vision of eight men and women hanging up at Newgate for horse-stealing and forgery ; hence, in this brilliant lawyer's opinion, because a man was hanged for a very slight offence in past time, he should uot be hanged now for any offence. A very comforting doctrine for naughty boys, who used to steal their neighbours' plums, and box their sisters' ears, and get soundly thrashed for it. They may now yarrote after nightfall, and steal their neighbours' /jjods and go nearly scot-free. Your correspondent never saw Bir George, but he is of opinion that he is a very old man — very old indeed. Mr Ireland, Q.C., ex-minister, also an o d man, has been doing funny and characteristic things. No doubt, some of your readers know f'e gentleman. He is in possession, like Duffy, of a LIOOO a-year pension for doing nothing that your correspondent can see, but lifting about L 2090 of Balary for a number of years. Well, \h\& sedate exminister, has been among the female acrobats. One of the " dailies" thus comments on the circumstance :— " When we arrive at a venerable gre,«-haired gentleman, an exMinister of the Crown, capering gaily on the -stag*e, presenting a girl in tights with a gold medal for turning head o'er heels before an audience, we have surely attained the climax of absurdity." The same paper goes on to say — "It is to be trusted that it is not the possession of a pension from the >'tate that makes our venerable Q.C. so generous with testimonials." Said I not well that we are a peculiar people. Wonders will never cease. Y our .quondam visitor, Smith of Spiritdom, has been developing strongly. Mr Smith has, "it would appear, invented a new andmore advanced hell than the orthodox one. It labors, however, under the defect of being somewhat transcendental, but, no doubt, " progress" will soon cure this defect. A wave of magnetic fire is to sweep over the 1 earth, by-and-by, because men are so naughty as not to receive Mr James Smith's views of all things past, present, and to come. Why these gentry make so much use of the word magnet, and its cognates, I don't know, nor do I know what magnetic fire is, only that Mr Smith says so. You are ■-.t liberty to fancy that it is a deluge sweet as nectar. Perhaps in using Biich words the Spiritists are influenced, like "Bird-o lfreedom Lawin," when instructing his friends in regard to the canvas for the "Presidential chair," — There, you can oil me " Timbertoes ;" that's wut the people likes, — Sutthin combinin niorril truth with phrases • sech ez strikes. But .really, it is a serious matter, and your correspondent fully endorses the comments of one of the daily papers in referring to Mr Smith's Sunday exhibition on "The voice of God ."—" Truly, extremes meet, and it was strange, in the midst of strong denunciatory passages of other forms of worship, to hear Mr Smith declare of professing Christendom, that for the worship of tbe true God they had substituted wretched dogmas of their own, utterly oblivious of tbe fact, that the principles he was laying down, as the only ground of hope of salvation, would not be regarded as reasonable or rational by probably one man in a hundred." — " One or two of the most promising men in Melbourne have gone to the dogs already (through Spiritism), are in the madhouse, or at its gat >s. And at whatever risk of wearying the general public, it is necessary from time to time to recur to the subject, and print these painful facts : they may startle and scare baclf some who are on the brink of the precipice. Your correspondent knows sensible people, who hare seen all spiriti-tic phenomena that can be produced, , have produced them themselves, and are only the more persuaded that they are of the carth — earthy. They can get tables and chairs to say or do anything that a chair or table can do— to say yes and no to the same question, and generally to tell them such profound truths as that 2x2 =4. It :is amusing to see the superstition, and even . idiocy of spiritists. An acquaintance of mine wa3 at a seance^ and when the good people .were till grave and expectant, this 'acquaintance irreverently, laughed at_fcli» whole affair, when he was^duly admonished not to offend the spirit, or it would go away. Surely spirits aye getting very thin-skinned. \t is painful to think of it. One is put in mind of Old Calabar and the gods there formerly worshipped.

The Arrow ObsciDer records the death of an old member of the mining community — Mr Thomas Hyam of Macetowri. Deceased had been under treatment for disease of the valves of the heart for some time back. On November 29 he had been to the township, and had called at the store of Messrs M'DougaU and. Smith, where he remained conversing with several persons who -were there at the time, until about ten o'clock, apparently in good spirits, when he left to go home. About an hour afterwards Mr W. T. Smith, who was returning from the Eightmile, found him lying on the track leading towards his house. He at once obtained assistance from those around, and deceased was carried into his house, where every available aid was rendered him by the neighbors who were present, until his death, which took place about five a.m. on .-aturday. Mr Hyam was one of the oldest miners on the Twelve-mile, and was universally regarded with feelings of respect and esteem.

The Oamaru Hospital was opened on Nov. 30 by the President, Mr John M'Lean, of Morven Hills. The local paper says of the establishment, which has cost £1,249, and commence? its operations- with a credit balance of £265, that everything is scrupulously clean and tidy, and the admirable result of their labors entitled the Building Committee to high eulogium. The main building contains four double-bedded wards, three of which are neatly and suitably furnished ready for use, a* day-room surgery, tyo warders' roomß, bath, lavatory, and •water-closets, all conveniently arranged. The first case entered upon ihe books was that of a boy of the name of Riddell, who roe^ with a serious accident on Wednesday afternoon, through being crushed between 'the wheels of two "drays." This is first case in which .the building has been availed of, but it must be .matter for congratulation that Oamaru has now an institution with open doois for the relief of the sick and suffering.

Two fires occurred in the Dunstan district lately. On the 25th ultimo, at about eleven p.m., Cromwell was the scene of the largest fire that Has yet occurred ihpre. The dwelling-house of Mr J. Harding, which was the property of Mr Gopdall of Behdigo, was totally destroyed, the occupants being unable to save a stitch of anj'thing ; indeed, Mrs Harding, who had not gone" to bed when the fire broke out, had barely time to get her family out of ihe building. It is thought the fire originated \\\ the c^ildven's bedroom. B,oth the house and contents were uninsured. The Dunstai^ Times says of, the fire that- not a drop p.f water was in thetqwn race, therefore the crowd of willing hands who on the first alarm rushed to assist, were. compelled. to stand idly by aud see the devouring element do its duty.- A perfect hurricane from the southward was hip wing -at the time and. fortunately directing the flames .Away f rgm the adjoining propei ties, and from the town. Had the wind been coming from any other direction, there is no saying- where the fire would have ended. — The second fire, which was at Drybread, oecun-ed on the afternoon of the 25th ult., arid resulted in the total destruction of a rapge of stables, the property of Mr John MeUor, »ituate at the rear of bis hotel and

store, together with two valuable racehorses and a quantity of saddlery. The origin of the fire is traced td a washing boiler built against the end of the stable, from the furnace of which sparks were blown into the feed house, where was stored a quantity of straw. Unfortunately but little water was at band, and for a time but -a few men, consequently their puny efforts to extinguish the flames or save any property were unavailing. By the greatest good chance, the weather, however, was calm, sctrce a breath of wind stirring, otherwise a very different tale would ha\ c to bo told, for had it been blowing half a gale, as is., nob nnfrequent here, nothing could have saved the whole township. Coquette, on* of the houses destroywd, was a valuable mare, and was in course of training for the coming up-country meets, and her chance of carrying oft some good prizes wa9 looked upon by her trainer, Joe Lafferty, rB a certainty ; she was burnt almost to a cinder, all efforts to get her out of the burn ; n* building being futile. Merry Lass, who was also in training, was, after great trouble, and at some considerable risk to Lafferty, got out, but frightfully burnt. The poor beast, when out, maddened with pain, galloped a distance of about half a mile, when she lay down, and was humanely shot. 'The estimated loss sustained is about L3OO, tota'ly uninsured. Women are frequeutly smugglers of fine laces and jewellery, but rarely of tobacco. Annie Thomson, a prisoner from Lawrence, sentenced to .five months' imprisonment for vagrancy at YVaitahuna, was received into the Dunedin Gaol on Friday last, ami on. ; being searched by Alra Stanton, assistant matron, exhibited an amusing spectacle. Her stays were padded with' the nicest care with twist tobacco, the whalebone having been first extracted. Bank notes are frequently found in the chignons, ears, and even nostrils of female prisoners, also in their • mouths, concealed under the tongue. We have tried to convince the sceptical that railways in Yew Zealand are bound to pay ; and if anything further were necessary to prove our assertion, it is furnished by the last report, for the year ending September 30 last, of Mr Slarshman, the general manager of the Canterbury railways. The total earnings of the lines already open for traffic in that Province, for the past year, was L 59.60 8; and its working expenses, which included new stock and buildings, and extension of telegraph property, chargeable to capital, L4Q,009. In other words, the working expenses proper amounted to L 38,839, or 65*16 per cent, on the gross earnings ; while as the result of the year's traffic, a balance of L 19,599 remains. A child named l'ait, aged two a-half years, died on Mr Creigh ton's farm, near Nasehy, from fcLe effects of poisoning, .by drinking caustic potash in a fluid state. The evidence adduced at this coroner's inquest disclosed that on Monday last, about six in the evening, the child was playing at Mr Creighton's with another about four years old, and put to its lips a bottle containing caustic potash. The child was without delay taken to Dr. Dick, who applied the proper remedies ; but the case was almost helpless from the fir?t, a"d the little sufferer expired on Wednesday night. A small piece of caustic potash had, it appeared, been obtained about two years ago by Mr Creighton, for use in a case of ringworm, and had been left in a pint beer bottle. It had then be u n in a solid form, but had seemingly turned to a liquid from exposure to the atmosphere. There was nothing to explain how the bottle had come within the child's reach. Its very existence had been forgotten by the family. The jury found that the child had died from accidental poisoning, but desired t < express an opinion that greater caution should be exercised by persons having poisonous substances in their posse sion. At Blacks, a man named Higgins has been committed for trial for indecently assaulting a girl ten years of age. FTe was admitted to bail in two sureties of L 75 each, and himself in LI 50. " Legal business in the Queensfcown District OftllT+. lino Jrvoi'Onocul fc<j gun}* an «»r*oxx6 fclictC Judge Gray is forced to sit, morn, noon, and night. The Mail says his Honor is suffering severely from lameness, caused by an acci* dental fall, but he continues at his post nevertheless. Some people are modest in their demand?. The Queenstown brass band, for example, the other day wrote to the loaal Hospital Committee, that they would play for one day for LI S, aud "all expenses paid " This liberality on behalf of a charitable institution deserves to be recorded. Despite the qry of dull timea, property ap. peara to bo steadily and surely rising in value in Queenstown. Two sections in Rees street, which, less than three years ago, were purchased for under L2OO, have been sold to the Bank of New Zealand for L4OO ; and the Bank intends immediately to erect fine stone buildings on them. So great was the interest in Invercargill in Mrs Witting's trial for the murder of her children at Waikivi, ' that the Southland Times was fotced to publish a special edition. From that paper we learn that the memorial in favor of commuting the sentence of death passed upon Mrs Witting has already received over 500 signatures, and the first por- | tion of.it has been taken in charge by the Judge for presentation to the Governor. The remaining sheets when received will be | forwarded to Lead-quarters at once. The [ prisoner, since her return to gaol, has ex- | hibited a quiet and composed demeanour, and sleeps well at night, although thoroughly understanding the nature of her position. She has been attended, in compliance with her own request, by the Rev. Mr Stobo. At 4 30 p.m. on the 3rd, a fire broke o« at' the residence of Captain Baldwin, on the North-east Valley Roavi, while the captain, and his family were in town. Ti(e servant girl, who was in charge of place, wa^s tfce first to notice the fire,' and she ftfc once gave the alarm, which, brought the neighbors to the spot, and with their assistance all the furniture was got safely out, though eke was mucb-.Bcorched.' The principal loss is of Capfc Baldwin's papers and MSS. '(some of them very valuable), which were in a room upstairs, and were all destroyed. • On examination.of the place after the fire, it waa found that a plank had been built into the diningroom chimney immediately above the stove, and this catching fire, it is believed that the strong wind blowing caused the flames to j ascend, to the floor of #ie girl's bedroom, and that they communicated with the roof, on which the presence of fire Was first detected. The building, which belonged to the Hon. Dx Bucban.au, was insured in the Liverpool, London, and Clo,be Oiljce for Ll5O. Oapfain Baldwin was uninsured. Under the heading '•' Piscatorial," the Tfo'qrt Towi), Mavcury,, of the lath ultimo, contains the followiug gratifying intelligence to"all_ interested in the work of acclimitisation :— Yesterday morning, some fishermen who were fishing in the Derwent with a seine net, caught two little fish of a species rare in the river, tnd which they thought • would probably prove the anxiously sought for salmon salar. The fishermen accordingly took them to Mr Morton Allport, who forwarded them to the Museum yesterday, where they were inspected by a large number of moans, andja few individuals who in ] earlier years have had practical experience in salmon fishing at Home. Some of the visitors hesitated not to aver that at laat the j real "Simon pure" had been caught, and that we should Jiaye an abundance of salmon in

the Derwent. Others, morn cautious, were donhtfnl, and, finally, Judge Francis, whose authority as a jnd*ce in mattt-rs piscatory is generally admitted, after a careful scrutiny of both specimens, jrave it as his decided opinion that one of them, the smaller, measuring between seven and eight inches, was a salmon trout smolt, which" he considered had only been a few days in "alt water. The other specimen measured about ten inches in length, and about this he was less positive ; still he inclined to the belief that it also was a salmon trout smolt which had probably been two or three months in salt water. This opinion was generally concurred in by other visitors, but as it is almost impossible to distinguish between the smolt of the salmo}i salar and the salmon trutta, at the stage of growth of those in the museum, the real character of the two specimens must to a certain extent be regarded as still doubtful. The smolt 'were fine healthy specimens, and the silvery hue was more decided than was the case with the two smolts caught about two years ago, one of which was forwarded to England, and, after considerable controversy, finally decided to be of the salmon trout spscies. We have an explanation of the silence of the overland cable from November 16th to the 20th, and the extraordinary rumors that the absence of telegrams from England gave rise to in Melbourne. The break happened ! in the land line between Peak station and Charlotte Waters, and both the rumors of the increased rate of discount and Mr Gladstone's resignation were found to have been invented in Melbourne. Lord Mbnck, the chairman of the British Telegraph Company, sent a message to Adelaide, which was delivered in two hours, the quickest work yet accomplished on the through line, while a message sent from Adelaide to Java was delivered in two minutes. Communication with England was restored on November 21, a few hours before the Albion left Melbourne for New Zealand ; and the value of the connection established between the Austialian Associated Press and the New Zealand Press Association is shown by the fact that the very latest messages from London, which had not been published in Melbourne on the morning of November 21, were brought on by the Albion. Had this connection not been in existence, we should have had to wait at least a week for the news. A Master Mason, writing to the Southern Cross on the counter allegations regarding Mr Freer's renunciation of Masonry, says :—: — " As a Mason I may inform the Rev. Father Norris that it is impombfe for any one once made a Mason to renounce the Graft. He may resign his lodge. He may declare his intention never to enter any lodge so long as he lives. He may be excluded for certain reasons from ever entering a Freemason's Locbe, but he still is, and will be to the last day of his life, a Mason. The initial secrets he learned at his entrance, and the secrets of the several degrees he has been invested with, are buried deep in his bosom ; and no renunciation, no promise of absolution which may be tendered, will ever cause him to divulge the secrets which have been entrusted to him." The lights and shadows of life are touchingly illustrated in the experiences of a young actor, JVJr A. St. G. White, who recently died at Napier. In announcing his death, the Herald says : — Knowing how his family would be situated in the event of either his illness or death, Mr White remained on the stage till his friends here compelled him to go to the Hospital j but it was not till he almost fainted at the close of each sceno in which he took part that Mr White reluctantly consented to accede to the wishes of his friends. When acting with the Sfceele and Howard Company, Mr White threw the whole of his talents and vigor into any character that he assumed while on the stage, to sink exhausted into the arms of his friends as soon as his role was completed. Never have we known a man evince more anxiety for the well-being of those dependent on him than Mr White. Those for whom he ' worked till strength failed «*» now i«tt n i nnft tAVa^Uo witnthe ■world. Having been debarred from the consolation of having cheered his last moments, it will afford his widow and children some alleviation of their sorrow to know that every care was taken of the patient, and that he has gone to his long rest deplored by all who knew him. The following items of mining intelligence are from the Dunstan Times ,<— Mining news from the Matakanui district is somewhat of a cheering character, the supply of water being abundant in all the races. The Blue Mountain Raoe Company at Tinker' 3 are engaged washing up. Fiom the head of their tail ditch on Satur lay last they had (our informant says) nearly 300oz. of goLl. They expect, when finished, which will be in about three weeks, to have a further 3000z. , making in all GOOoz for a five months' run, with live men. At Drybread the most of the companies are making preparation for a general cleaning up for the Christmas holidays, with good prospects. The late heavy rains up country have bad the effect of causing a great rise in the Molyneux, putting a complete stop to all dredging and mining operations on its banks. The slight showers that have fallen in the immediate district have been very timely, and a perfect godsend to the farmers. Th* De-p Lead, Black's No 3, continues to pay well. A washing-up took place last week, with most satisfactory res-ults. The drought which, for the last fortnight has prevailed in the Mount Ida district, has been very severely ije)fc at the j Mverewhenua. The Maerewhem^a and Otekaike Rivers a,rc singularly iow, and the supplies for the races fed from }ess considerable sources have altogether failed. The Melbourne agent of; the Queensland Insurances Company received a. telegram ou 3rd, announcing that the risk the Queen office held on. the Boston tire amounted to L70.00Q, and that a prompt payment of this sum had been made. Three newspapers are now published in Hokitika. The third was published for the first time last week. Its name is the Westland Register, It is not pretontious in size, and its authors, in a modest programme, do not promise to publish it after the present County Council election, whyA wa>" probably the primary ca.use of its' publication. A very characteristic letter was received by Sir J.ames, Fergu,sson, as Chairman of the Adelaide Telegraph Banquet, from the Mayor of New York. It ran thus :—"'lhe: — "'l he banks of the Hudson, fair Adelaide, has hied, with her cheery greeting. This metropolis of the western hemisphere sends he? congratulations to, the new mc-V'Mp.<>lis of the eastern, upon this full riveting of Anglo-Saxon brotherhood. '* One item in connection with, the Waste Lan,d Board meeting last week ia, deserving of a passing notice, as it indicates progress. The Province will shortly possess a second woollen manufactory, tbo looality of its operations being One Mile Creek, near Queenstown. We understand that it will be worked by a joint stock company, that all the shares are already subscribed, and that operations will be commenced shortly, A -well-known and notorious character named Corfitz Cronquist, a native of Sweden, well known to the Police and Gaol officials of New Zealand and Victoria, and who was the first prisoner arrested in the. Fiji Islands, has been obtaining money under false pretences in the Western District of New South Wales, under the assumed name of Edward Maurice, and was sentenced to seven years'* penal servitude. . .

The plan for calling for public tenders for the construction of the Colonial railways is to have a test applied to it. Thu Minister for Public Works has called for tenders for the construction of twenty miles of the Canterbury Southern Railway, aud the work will be absolutely thrown open to public competition. The experiment will be an interesting one, for the reason that it will enable the public to estimate with some degree of accuracy the nature of the contracts with Messrs Brogden. The Independent confesses to a feeling of doubt whether any appreciable difference will be secured ; but if by thus opening the public works to public competition b'ie Colony can obtain better terms upon equal security, then it will be a strong argument for continuing the same course. The result of this liew plan will be watched with interpst, and we can only hope that it will result favorably to the expectations of those who have been strenuous opponents of the Brogden contracts.

There has been laid before the Victorian Parliament the correspondence between the varions Colonial Governments re the pro posed conference to consider the Suez mail question. The Victorian Government has made up its mind on two points - first, that Melbourne shall be the terminus of the Suez route ; and secondly, that, if it can help it, it will not go to Sydney. The first condition has passed out of the sphere of argument : — " As there need be no- reservation regarding the intentions and views of the Government on. that point," says Mr Francis, "I • may aVwell inform you that the very much larger sum this Colony Avill contribute as her proportion of the subsidy ; her cenrral.position; the approaching completion of a dry | dock at Williamsto.vn, specially constructed for the purpose of receiving the largest mail steamers ; taken in connexion with the superior magnitude of her commerce and [ population in comparison with those pos- , sesaed by any of the other.Colonies, all com- ' bine, as her Government contends, in giving Victoria a paramount claim to have her capital selected as the terminus." This condition conceded, Victoria is quite prepared to be generous in dealing with branch services. With regard to the question, where the Conference is to be held, Mr Francis, evidently dubious of his reception in Sydney after the somewhat acrid correspondence that has taken place between Mr Parkes and hio'self, suggests Hobart Town. Ihe suggestion is acquiesced in by Tasmania, of course, and South Australia ; Queensland is reserved, Sydney hostile, and the final decision would seem to rest with New Zealand, whose opinion had not been received in Melbourne when the Claud Hamilton left. The rifle match between ten pehby officers of H.M.S. Dido, andten.of the Port Chalmers Naval Volunteers, was fired on the sth, and resulted in •» victory for the Port Volunteers, the Dido's making 211, and Port Chalmers 447 points. A miner named Bruce, while engaged in splitting rock in the Colleen Bawn Claim, Carrick Range, one day last week, was severely injured by the rebound of a steel gad he was using at the time. Tne gad struck him in the right eye, and it is believed he will be permanently deprived of its sight. They do things expeditionsly in Melbourne. The Suez steamer, the Behar, cast anchor in Hobson's Bay on the 21st ult. ; her mails were large, but notwithstanding this the letter portion, as also the packages via Brindisi, were all placed on boarfl the Government steam tug George Rennie in less than eight minutes after the Behar dropped her anchor, and were delivered at the General Post Office, Melbourne, within forty minutes from that time. The Dunstan Jockey Club have issued a programme for their annual meeting, which is to be held on Feb. 6 and 7. The total stakes are L 430. The Tuapeka J.C. will have two days' racing', and offer L 420 in prizes. The following is a list of the races denirlerl npnii, oiilyWfc. hoWeVP.r. tO revision, by a sub-committee appointed : — First Day : Maiden Plate, 35 soys. ; Lawrence Handi- , cap, 70 soys. ; Hack Race, 20 soys. ; Handicap Hurdle Race, 50 soys. Second Day : Flying Handicap, 40 soys. ; Tuapeka Jockey Club Handicap, 100 soys. ; Hack Hurdle Race, 25 soys. ; Consolation Handicap, 30 soys. Mr James Crombie, the Cromwell delegate at the Mining Conference, conveyed with Trim to Lawrence a memorial, signed by 130 electors in the Cromwell district, calling upon Mr Hickey, M.P.C., to resign, which he duly delivered. On Wednesday, he telegraphed to the Mayor of Cromwell : — "Have seen Hickey. He declines to resign, and says he will meet his constituents before next session. He blames the Municipal Council for any omission." The Argus says the result was not unexpected, and that the announcement will not create much astonishment; and observes: "We have no doubt | his constituents will accord him a very warm I reception should he fulfil his promise of meeting them ; but we don't think he has sufficient moral courage to do so. Time will tell." It is a fact beyond question that in this Colony the amount of business transacted by the electric wire is . proportionately larger than that obtaining in other, countries. During the three or foux weeks the electric communication between England and Australia has been established, the receipts for direct messages from this Colony have amounted to LI 3O, exclusive of Government messages, which probably will have reached half that sum. As in all probability this business represents a mutual transmission of messages, the revenue of the new line, as far as New Zealand is concerned, amounts to L4OO a month, orL4BOO a-year. This affords some idea of the probable remunerative nature of the proposed cable between New Zealand and Australia. The Indepe.ndc> f \t suggests if a uniform rate of saj half-a-crown a word, instead of twenty shillings as at present, were charged, it is highly probable that a larger revenue would be derived, and taat it would be a fitting occasion during the forthcoming Postal Conference to propose, that the Several Governments of the Australasian Colonies should give a 2 >ro ra^ a subsidy to the main telegraphic wire, and that snob, a reduction should be made in the tariff as would create a large and universal use of the wires.

Tb,ere have been some extensive bush fires, in Southland. A fire kindled for private convenience in the bush, near the north road, was fanned by a brisk N.W. wind into full blaze, and spread with amaaing rapidity. Sawmills, and even the railway liae were in great danger ; but when the danger was at its height, the rain fell. ' But for that, the township of Clinton must have -been destroyed. The Times remarks : — Never was the advent of rain more earnestly looked or more ardently prayed forby.the inhabitants of any lecality than was the case on Friday in this apparently doomed suburb. The recital of dangers, removals, and lossea will present a formidable page ; tbo' romenibrauce by the parties immediately concerned will in all probability never wear out. The actual sufferers by demolition of houses are Messrs Taylor, Stevenson, and M 'Master; Mr Lawson's fence being partly destroyed, but the house saved. The calamity, in reference to the first-mentioned of the sufferers, is perhaps the most considerable, extending as it does to the destruction of their all. The loss and damage by partial 'ignition and removal is almost' universally

spread. The dwelling-house of Mr J. F. Cnthbertson was on far e at three different times. The residence of the Rev. Mr Stobo was also in great danger, and the humbler dwe'lings around, though not scatheless, have escaped as by a miracle. At Edendale the 28th ult. was a regular "Black Thursday." The fire there v supposed to have originated through some person carelessly dropping a lighted match in the bush along the railway line. No less than 600 cords of firewood were burnt in a few hours. The men in the cutting — who were employed filling up the waggons— were compelled to stop work, and many of them narrowly escaped losing their tents, along with tne articles which they contained. The poor woodsplitters —who did not square or stack up their fireweod — Will be heavy losers, and the contractors must also suffer severely. The Zt-alandia, with immigrants for New Zealand, is commanded by Capt. Curry, late of the City of Dunedin. The summary of the number of emigrants now afloat for this port is as follows :-- Palmerston, 228 statute adults ; Christian M'Ausland, 2814 do ; Zealandia, 267 do ; Charlotte Gladstone, 350 do : total, 1133^.

The tender of Messrs Mills and Gnthrie of L 2250 has been accepted by the General Government for the conveyance to the Waitaki Bridge of bridge plant imported in he ships Bulwark and Palmerston. The condition of the industrial classes in the old country, and on the Continent of Europe, will have great interest for the Colonies, and, in his last despatches, Mr Childers, the Agent-General for Victoria, announced that he intends forwarding to the Colony reports on the condition of the industrial classes of England and other countries, together with the purchasing powar of money in those countries. A private letter (says the Age.) received by the mail gives the following on the state of matters in the West of England: — "A man with a small fixed income finds that, in six- months, its purchasing power has decreased just one half ; coals, that used to be 16s to 18s per ton, are now selling at from 30s to 35s per ton ; beef is selling at Is per lb ; all sorts of clothing have advanced from 30 to 50 per cent. The only thing that has not advanced is house rent, and that still remains moderate. The middle classes feel the excessive pressure of things very much."

The Daily Times and Witness Company are going to erect new premises on the section of ground at the corner of Rattray, Bond, and Crawford streets, and adjoining Messrs Dalgetty, Rattray, and Co.'s warehouse. The building, which though not possessing any architectural features reqairiag notice, will be very, substantial ; will he two storied, of brick, and to Kattnvy street will have a front >ge of Sift., and to Crawford and Bond streets of 43ft. The newspapers will occupy the whole of the premises, with the exception of the Bond street part, where Messrs Smith and Anderson, solicitors, will have their offices. The entrance to the new Times' office will be from Rattray street. A passage, 6ft. wide, traverses the ground floor, on which will be situated to the right of the passage the counting room and offices, 23ft. 6in. by 18ft. ; and on the left the publishing room, 21ft. 6in. by 14 feet. Immediately at the rear of the publishing room, and facing Crawford street, will be the machine room, 26ft. by 21ft. 6in. ; and behind it the damping room, Uft. 6in. b> 6ft., and the engine room, lift. 6m. by 10ft. 6in. On the upper floor will be the composing room, 40 x 22, and the jobbing room, 56ft. 6in. by 22ft., which will be lighted by five windows from Crawford street, and four from Rattray street, besides, snnli^hts in the roof. Then facing Rattray street will be the manager's, reporters', sub editor's, and editor's room. On the basement stor}>- will -be cellarage and storeroom. That part of the premises which will be occupied by Messrs. Smith and Anderson, is to comprise waiting room, four large offices, anteroom, lavatory, and other conveniences, and both establishments will be Drovided with efcrong rooms. The offices on the ground floor in Rattray street will be lighted by nine windows, and those in Crawford and Bond streets, by five. The architects are Messrs Mason and Wales ; the builder Mr James Gore, whose tender was L 2695, and who undertakes to finish the building by Ihe end of February next. The plans otiginally drawn by the architects provided for a three-storied building, part of which was designed for a hotel. Bad that design, which involved the expenditure of about L6OOO, been adopted, the Daily Times would have been boused in premises almost palatial in their character, and hhe city would have possessed a building which for elegance of appearance would have been unequalled in the Colony.

From the Arrow we learn that fine, warm weather has succeeded the late few wet and stormy days, and the crops are looking all the better for the rain. Nothing unusual can be reported of mining matters. The lately opened ground on the Crown Terrace is being thoroughly tested, as a very large paddock is being sluiced off, which will he completed about the end of the year. The re tilt will enable the party to judge accurately as to the paying capabilities of the place. The track up the Arrow Valley is being aotively pushed forward. At Wbitechapel Flat, Marshall and party, in opening their claim, obtained 3ioz. of coarse gold by four days'' flaicing, and the other claimholders appear satisfied with their returns.

At the last meeting of the Canterbury Presbytery, the Rev. C. Fraser brought forward the motion standing in his name respecting an overture to the General Assembly in the following terms :—": — " Whereas it is expedient for the spiritual growth and edification of the Presbyterian Church of New Zealand thai provision be made for the training ol yoxmg men for the Christian utfinsiry in tfiis Colony ; it is hereby overtured to the venerable the General Assembly of the said Church indicted to- meet at Chriatchurch in December, 1&72, by the Presbytery of Canterbury, to take into consideration ijne dcsireablenesa of c ing? with, the Synod of Otago in the establishment of a Theological Hall." The General Asaembly of the Presbyterian Church in New Zealand meets at Christchurch to-day.

A strange case was heard before Mr H. W. Robinson, R.M., at Naseby last week. One M 'Donald, charged Andrew White and f'eorae Thomas, mjnera at Clarks, with assaulting him. The facts of the case were peculiar, and to the. following effect : — M 'Donald, a perfect stranger in the district, made his appearance at Clarks on Thursday last, stating thctt he was looking for work. Ho went into the different stores and houses talking and drinking' with the inmates. His conduct appeared strange, and the more so when it was discovered that be had in his belt a six-barrelled revolver, loaded with ballj and cappofK This he was requested to give up, a«d did so without making a show of resistance ; and.his pockets Were searched. The party had just been washing up, and had a large .amount of gold in the place, which made them naturally careful and suspicious. The complainant said that he bad been kept prisoner for two days. ' The Magistrate remarked that that case- was not before him. nor was it one within his jurisdiction. Considering the circumstances of the case— that the place was a very lonely one; that there was valuable property at stake, and that complainant was a stranger, and carried an unlawful weapon, the Bench inflicted upon each of the defendants a b'no of Uaadcoetß.