TOWN NEWS OF THE WEEK.

Wairarapa Standard, Volume I, Issue 50, 16 December 1867, Page 3

TOWN NEWS OF THE WEEK.

Thursday, 6 a.m. The great “banquet ” to Mr Fitzherbert took place on Friday evening. The dinner was in Osgood i best style, and certainly did him credit. The speech of Mr C. Pharazyn of the firm of Levin and Co., who was the Chairman of the evening- was an open attack on the Superintendent, who it is supposed used every means in his power to make the dinner a failure. Mr Pharazyn himself has always been looked upon as one of the Doctor’s bosom friends and a staunch supporter. It was therefore astonishingto near him speak as follows:

Tne Chairman rose again to call attention to the services rendered by the Colonial Treasurer of New Zealand at the commencement, when constitutional government was inaugurated. It would ‘be remembered what efficient services he rendered to the present Superintendent; and he was sure that there was a marked contrrat between the present Executive and that of 1863; and it would be admitted that there was a lamentable falling off. If the denial Treasurer had been the Superintendent’s adviser the province would not be in its present position; the patent slip would involve a Jaw suit for three or four years; the Queen’s wharf extension was also not a success; next there was the reclaimed land: for which money had been borrowed at a very high rate, and which would not be built on for twenty years to come; for the Manawatu £25000 had been borrowed, and it certainly would not be realised for many years; then there was the Wanganui bridge, which he believed would remain a memento of the folly of the fertile brain of His Honor the Supertendent.

He was followed by Mr Fitzherbert, who regretted the absence of so many of his old friends, and denounced those who had been using all the influence in their power to prevent those attending the dinner, and regretted that the people of Wellington had fallen so low as to be afraid of bidding him goodbye at: the bidding of a certain gentleman evidently meaning his old friend—his old colleague —one with whom he had so often <£ fought the battle of the Constitution.” Has Featherstoa deserted Fitzherbert or Fitzherbert, Featherston ? Who would have thought that after such a long political connection—of as Mr Fitzherbert said a quarter of a century that such a split would take place. He defended the' course he had taken respecting; the public Debts Bill a'nd declared that ft was a Committee of the House that' had reconimehded the measure,' and that he had not a vote in the Comm|tteeJ He denied’that'it a, gigantic fraud* a great swindle* but believed that it | was a hill that future generations would tfiank them for. • , '

Mr Stafford in returning thanks for the ministry regretted the absence of a colonial public mind and a colonial said it was 1 the absence lof this in the colony that made it such an undertaking to govern the country; ?■ Fitzherbert deft Wellington bn Sunday moimihg, many of his old,friends meeting hini on the wharf to give him

*. good-%e.” ... EvoiThis opponetfte admit that for the successful accomplishment of such a mission, especially such a one as he has undertaken, viz;:—the raising’ of £7,000,000 there was no man in the colony who could Have been chosen wlm could do it with greater credit to himself or. the colony, ( i'l> v.T. Major Richardson fills the office of Colonial Treasurer during his absence. Mr.W. Rowlands, an old settler, has also left by the same opportunity. The. Supreme Court sat on Monday morning when the grand jury made a presentment relative to the retirement of Mr Strang, who has for so many years Riled the office of Registrar, from almost. the foundation of the colony. He retires on a pension and well has he earned it. Robert Shannon an old soldier was sentenced to 12 calendar months imprisonment for stealing from the person.

Three natives were charged with mail ciously killing a cow, the property o Mr Thomas, of the Hutt. The prisoners pleaded not guilty. Mr Thomas proved the beast to be his, and his son swore that he saw two of the natives, one named Erae, whom he knew, with a knife and blood on his hand, three yards from the cow. The Clerk to the Court deposed as to the three natives coming to him three days before proceedings, were taken against them, and confessing that they had killed a c«w, offered to pay £5 10s as part payment, that they had been out kiljing' pigs, and seeing the cow and perceiving no brand they had killed it. The Judge said that there was no evidence as to malice, and the jury having found a verdict of “ not guilty,” the prisoners were all released from custod3 r . Another native named Wiremu Pakata was charged with stealing a cheque to the value of £6. His Honor directed to give a formal vercljct of “ not guilty” through a flaw in the indictment. It requires very strong proof in our Courts to commit a native, and able lawyers to draw up indictments. Tom Minifie, the painter, estreated his recognisance in the case of the two Austins. He was bound over in the sum of £SO to appear and give evidence in the above case. W. Herring pleaded guilty to an indictment for perjury, and was sentenced to .18 month’s imprisonment. A man named Phillips was arraigned on two eases of larceny, and found guilty, but the sentence was deferred. The two Austins were fonnd not guilty, and ,the Buckridges are also acquitted. We reprint the following from the Evening Post” the spirited proprietor of which has considerably enlarged and improved his paper and we trust that his enterprise will meet from the public that support which it truly and richly deserves:—

The Grand Temperance Bazaar and Fancy Fair in aid of the Temperance Hall, was opened yesterday at the Odd Fellows’ Hall ; it was a decided success.

At a sale of land situate in the Pahau Block, East Coast Distinct, held at the Crown Lands Office, yesterday afternoon, the lots submitted were knocked down at the upset price of rural land to Mrs, Murch, Messrs. Taylor and Murch, and Mr Cameron.

The recent satisfactory reports or the discovery of gold near town have induced some of the community to organise a prospecting party to travel up the coast from Terawiti, with the object of instituting a search for the precious metal.

The civil sittings of the Supretne Court were set down for to-morrow, but the only case for trial, that of Turnbull v, Barnett, having been withdrawn, the Court will not meet. The special jury sittings will be held on the IStli instant, when the case of Hirschberg v. Hall will come on for trial.

No twiths tan di n g the obsef vati ons m ade in Court on Monday by his Honor Mr Justice Johnston, some members of ; the community obstinately refuse taking penny tokens in change, foolishly fearing that they may suffer a loss thereby, or be subjected to punishment. In order to allay any unnecessary fears on the matter, we re-publish that portion of his Honor’s charge to the Grand Jury touching on the Coinage Offences Act?—“lt had been brought to his notice that the popular view of the subject matter of this act had given considerable fear and annoyance to certain. tradesmen and others, therefore, he might, for their comfort remark, that there was quite a mistaken notion about the act prevalent; the law was in no way changed and there was no danger whatsoever in passingtradesmen’s tokens and those other copper coins common to the country.”

What are wages here ? ” asked a labourer ■of a boy; ’ “ I don’t know.”—“what does your . father get on Saturday night? ’’—“Get ? ” said the boy ;‘Swhy, be gets as tight as aback.” The seven splendid Afab horses, sent as a present from ‘the Sultan to her Majesty, have just arrived, in charge.of Mouraffen Bey, at the Royal Stables, Buckingham Palace. Accompanying these were two others for the Prince of Wales and the Duke of Beaufort.

An outraged Yankee husband publishes the following flattering description of his runaway wife:—“My wife is about five feet high, has light brown hair, right eye out, the other is of a pale blue colour has a pimple on left temple near eye, pug nose, a scar across one arm, is stoop-shouldered has short, thick feet and easily makes the acquaintance of strangers." Cows Slipping theib Calves. —Mr W A. Wooler advances the following incident as a reason why cows may part with their ealves at a few months after their visit to the bull. He, says:—“ There was a farm not far from Leeks which supplied that town for many years with milk, and for a long period it proved a profitable speculation; but in course of years ‘ luck ’ told against dairyman, and his cows, nearly and all, slipped their calves at an early period of gesnalion, and his losses thereby became so serious that he gave up the farm, which had acquired a bad character, and it was for some time offering in the market to be let. At last a man turned up who was possessed with a ‘whim’ and he knew the reason why the ill-success attended the late tenant. .He found upon inquiry that the calves were dropped at about a certain period of gestigation, and be therefore concluded it was caused by the blood of the cows not being sufficiently rich in hone material, and therefore his first step on entering was to dress the land with dissolved bones, and to cautiously and sparingly stock with breeding cows. This proved his ‘ whim ’ was right, for his cows weut the natural period, and produced healthy and strong calves.; and, at a farmers’ market dinner, while relating these facts, the table made merry at his ‘whim,’ and, after the laughter had some-what expended itself, he made the matter clear to the company by asking if it was not the want of lime caused hens to lay soft shelless eggs ? and therefore was it not obvious, that the diary farm, by selling off milk'for a long series of years, and so exhausted the land of its phosphates that the blood of the cows could not enable them to supply the indispensable to form the bone of the calves, and thus abortion was a natural result ? ”