THE WANGANUI CHRONICLE AND RANGITIKEI MESSENGER “Verite sans peur.” Wanganui, May 22, 1862.

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 6, Issue 292, 22 May 1862, Page 3

THE WANGANUI CHRONICLE AND RANGITIKEI MESSENGER “ Verite sans peur.” Wanganui, May 22, 1862.

His Excellency che Governor visited Otaki in the middle of last week and met with about 150 Government natives, but nothing particular transpired He is to visit them again on his return fr* m the South. The Auckland mail received yesterday contains nothing of particular interest. In Otago the escort of May 1 brought down 4699 ozs. of gold, and that of the Bth, 4/976 ozs.

A Meeting has been held at Dundin io commence the agitation for separation from the North Island. The particulars of the meeting we have not yet seen—but a speech in support of one of the motions made at it is copied in our Wellington contemporary the Advertiser —lio doubt ’ the speech of the meeting, as may be inj ferred both from the prominence given to it and the character of the gentleman who delivered it. Mr. Gillies is considered a sound man of business, and his appearances in the House of Representatives in 1860 were creditable—but in his arguments for separation his Maori-phobia seems to have entirely got the better of his judgment and he raves about the middle island being trammelled by maori domination in a way of which we could • not have supposed any “ canny” Seotch- > man capable. The speech we presume is 1 properly reported, We presume so because we have never seen so self-contra-dictory an oration proceed from any man whose opinion was worth listening to. He disclaims all petty motives in supporting this agitation. Nay he is magnanimously indifferent to every personal, provincial and pecuniaiy consideration. “If he thought they asked this as a boon at the expence of their fellow colonists of the North island—did he think it was a mere whim of the time, or that it was raised for local political aggrandisement, then, he for one would have nothing to do with separation.” “If it were asked for per- I sonal or private or for local political ends he would withdraw from the-movement.’

‘•Were it a question-that we should pay H 2,000, £3,000, or even £IO,OOO more towards the expence of maintaining the Government of New Zealand, then he for one would never advocate separation.” What are the reasons then that have induced this . most generous champion of separation to raise the cry of “justice to the Middle Island.” Positively the only tangible reasons vre can discover in liis speech are contained in the following sentences. “He contended that two thirds of the time at least which had been spent in the Council of New Zealand had been monopolised by the consideration of native questions ; if not directly, certainly indirectly, they were incorporated into every business before the House. There must not be distillation in (>tago, lest the Maories should learn it too ! They must not have a flax manufactory, lest the maories should break the patent, and then the law could not protect the patentee ! And then again the maories can only be taxed through blankets, y/ll legislation must be trammelled by, and made subordinate to, native questious and native 1 olicy.” \\ ith regard to the first of these reasons, it must be kept in mind that Mr. Gillies was present during the debates in the House of Representatives in 1860, when the Stafford Ministry made the Native’, question their constant stand-by, the deem ft lutamen of their administration. In that session the debates on the native question were long and stormy, and Mr. Gillies’ disagreeable recollections of these dreary discussions, to which from ignorance he could but listen, have raised the id..a in his- mind that the natives are and must be a standing topic in every assembly Even in 1860, however, of 43 public bills passed, only 5 related directly to the maoris ; indirectly,- pei’haps, they all did, that being a very comprehensive epithet. In ' the session of 1861, at which Mr. Gillies was not present, there was much less talk about the 55,000 natives and of 38 bills passed, only two referred directly to them Twenty-seven of these acts had direct reference to the 60,000 settlers in the middle island, and four of them had special refe. ence to Otago. So much for the immense preponderance of attention paid to native affairs in the House of Representatives. Then as to distillation —it certainly was objected to on the ground of humanity to the maoris ; but surely, if Mr. Gillies wishes to have distilleries in Otago, it is not necessary to get a Governor from England at a salary of £ 3000 a year to license their erection. The assertion as to the flax patents must be a mere invention. There arc such patents taken out in this island and wrought in the midst of the native population. The duty on blankets is certainly Mr. Gillies’ strongest point. It is hard that in the cold climate of Otago where these articles must be so m uch used, such a heavy duty should be levied on them, especially when no naive punch can be had to keep the cold away. Mr. Gillies’ eloquence we are sure, would not be thrown away, "if at next meeting of the General Assembly he were to depict in the glowing language of which he is master, the miseries of a winter night in Otago, with no allowance of grog and an insufficient supply of blankets. Mr. Gillies’ great bugbear is the native question, and yet towards the end of his speech he allows that the native difficulties are about to be solved; not however will the solution be fully arrived at for ten or eleven years, & then the two islands may be reunited. A good deal may no doubt be said both pro and can in reference to this question of separation. The noes in our opinion have it; but we shall revert to the question when the full account of the great Otago meeting reaches us.—-We hope all the speeches are not so absurdly Quixotic and lull of rodomontade as that of Mr. Gillies.

LOCAL INTELLIGENCE. Firing for Hibberts’ Rifles.— The Remainder ot CaptA Porter’s company fired on the 2nd of May. The following is the score :

Anniversary of the Battle of Albuera. The officers of the 57th l'egt. in garrison here commemorated this engagement on Friday evening last by dining together in the very commodious refreshment room lately opened by Messrs Lever dt Co. We believe that they were very much pleased with the arrangements made for their comfort and the general character of the entertainment, in the course of which some dishes were served up, which would not have discredited the Cafe de Paris or any restaurant on the Boulevards. Messrs. Lever & Co. were complimented on the superior nature of the entertainment and good wishes were expressed for the success of this new establishment. Our readers may remember that the battle of //lbuera was a very bloody engagement fought on the 17th

.Uay 1811, between the allied forces (7,000 only being British) under Marshal Beresford and 23,000 French soldiers under Marshal.Soult. The delay of one of the General’s subordinates in executing his orders nearly caused the loss : of the battle, and it was only by the stubborn valour of the British in taking a hill which commanded the position that the fortune of tlie day was retrieved. Out of 6,000 British engaged at this point only 1,500 were unwounded; and the 57th Regiment lo.st thpr. Colonel : (Inglis) 22 other officers and 400-men out of 570 that had mounted the hill. Steam Flour Mill. —We observe that Messrs. Sim and Holland have begun tbe erection of their Flour Mill in the town, to be driven by steam power. The building is to be forty feet long by twenty feet broad, with four flats, and the engine house adjoining will measure twenty-four by fourteen feet. It is to be built in a very substantial manner, and the machinery inside, which will be of the newest description, will be arranged m a compact and convenient form. The engine is of twelve horse power, and will drive two pairs of stones, although in the meantime one pair only. is to be put up. There was some difficulty in getting the boiler brought from Wellington. The Steam Navigation Company refused to. take it, and Messrs. Sim and Holland are indebted for its transport to Captain Linklater of the Tyne, who brought it up on the deck of bis vessel last voyage, the hatchway being too small for its admission into the huld. As it weighs three and a half tons it was rather an unwieldy and dangerous deck load, and Captain Linklater deserves praise for running the risk he incurred with it at this season of the year, and for his skill in landing it safely on our beach. Fire. — The fire bell rang yesterday morning, at half-past five, and summoned a large number of people to a fire which had broken out in a house standing by itself iu Campbell Street, occupied by Mr.. William Fyson. In half an hour the house was burned down, and the tenant only saved himself and family and a few bed clothes. The bricks of the fire-place were somewhat loosened, and it is supposed that some joists below had caught fire. When Mr. Fyson entered the room at half-past five iu the morning, it was all in a blaze. The house belonged to Henry Churton, Esq., was worth about £75, and was not insured. Ridgeway Street.— The Rutland Hotel must be remarkably well conducted. Any person moderately drunk coming out of the bar room door must stand a great chance of being drowned in the large pool which in wet weather fills the street at that place, and that no such accident has taken place proves that none but sober individuals issue from the hotel after nightfall. Further along the same street another pool of equal superficial dimensions if not of equal depth is met with. We see no unsurmountable engineering difficulty in the way of making this street dry. If nothing else can be done, the prisoners might be furnished with a pump to raise the water to a higher level, and so let it flow away. Slaughter House. —The folio.ving letter has been received in answer to the memorial addressed to His Honour the Superintendent. The gentlemen who have already interested themselves in this very important matter will no doubt take tbe necessary measures for having their recommendation carried orrt.

“ Superintendent’s Office, “Wellington, 12tlr May, 1862. “Gentlemen, “ I have the honour to acknowledge the receipt of your memorial relative to the site for a Public Slaughter House, and in reply to intimate that I shall be prepared to grant a lease of the site you propose for a period of three years (on the understanding that it shall be renewed from time to time) to any party who may engage to erect a Slaughter House, on condition that the fees to be charged by the Slaughter House Keeper are agreed to by the Bench of Magistrates at Wanganui. “ I have the honour to be “ Gentlemen, “ Your most obedient Servant, “ I. E. Featherston, “ Superintendent. “Messrs. John Davidson,

and the other Gentlemen Signing Memorial.”

Bank of New Zealand. A branch of this bank is, we believe, to be opened here in the month of Juty. Mr. Wm. Small’s house in Ridgeway St. has been taken for the bank offices. Justices of the Peace. The following gentlemen are gazetted as J. P’s. in this district:—Samuel Curl Esq. M. D. and Joseph Willcox Esq. Rangitikei ; and Henry de Courcy Martelli Esq Wanganui.

Ma jor Cooper. The following notice appears in the Atw Zealand Gazette, of May s: Colonial Secretary’s Office, Auckland, 3rd May, 1862. The following despatch jrom Her Majesty’s Principal Secretary of State for the Colonies is published for general information.

William Fox,

Downing-street, 2d Feb., 1862

Sir, —I have to acknowledge the receipt of your despatch ,; of‘ the 20th October, “Separate,” with the accompanying documents, in which you report the dismissal of Major Cooper and Mr. Broughton from Her Majesty’s service. The conduct of Major Cooper, in his seduction of a young native girl, and in his subsequent attempts to regain possession of her is so flagrant, and the importance of checking such scandals on the part of the colonists in authority is so great that—although I am generally much avesre to reopening charg % which have been

once disposed ol—l find it impossible to arive at any other conclusion than that both Major Cooper himself, and Mr Broughton who assisted him in this matter .were properly dismissed from Her Majesty’s Service. . I have, <fcc., Governor Newcastle. Sir George Grey, K.C.8., &c., <fce., <fcc., rii.OVINCIAL C eUNCIL, —The only business having reference to this locality is the passing of the Wanganui Cemetery Bill through committee, Mr. Walt ltied to get <£ls,ooo*for the building'of our bridge but was unsuccessful.

RESIDENTS! AG ISTRATES COURT

May 15.—Erick Orr v. Pawson. Tho plaintiff sued for 201 damages on account of injuries received from an improperly and furiously driven cow in the streets of Wanganui. Eric Orr said on oath— I am a carpenter in Wanganui, and was earning 10s. a day in the beginning of February. On 3rd February between 1 and 2 o’closk, saw a cow running furiously about, which charged the driver Pawson several times and the maori policeman ;• cried out to defendant Pawson, that cow will kill you or somebody else ; next saw the cow at Gudgeon’s corner, at about 4 o’clock ; was going round the town on business ; the cow was lying down, defendant just then came up and commenced whipping the cow, which ran and tossed the maori policeman ; ran to Gudgeon’s door, but the cov overtook me at the corner, caught me by my right thigh and threw me. I fell on my head and right shoulder", cow must have paused on. Defendant afterwards told me it served me right as I had no business to be in the street. Was attended by Dr. Tuke ; was six weeks without being able to do anything from the injuries received; could not work at my own trade for about 2\ months; after the first six weeks was employed at Newton Lees by Mr. Gudgeon ; cannot now work at my trade as before. John Batty Tuke, doctor of medicine in Wanganui, gave evidence as to the nature of the injury. It was a fracture of the right collar bone. There was a slight bruise over the collar bone. Attended plaintiff for six weeks,, during which, he was unable to work. Charged him three guineas. Mary Claridge, a neighbour of plaintiff’s, deponed that she was in Mr. Pawson’s shop about 5 -weeks ago, when she had some conversation with him about plaintiff; she said his arm was very bad : lie remarked that it served him right, as he was told to get out of the way. Geo. McKenzie, carpenter, corroborated plaintiff’s statements as to the wildness of the cow in consequence of furious driving : plaintiff had gone for shingles when he met with the accident. Daniel Richardson, plasterer, said the cow, though she was stupid defendant did not seem to be overdriving her, but he might have been driving her furiously without witness seeing her ; his whip was not so large as a stock-whip. David Atkinson, corporal of police, had seen the cow running about violently, had been charged by her, had warned passengers to avoid her, considered the cow dangerous to anyone she met; defendant flogged the .cow to make her move and considered him to bo in charge of her ; first saw her about half an hour before she was shot. David Lind, labourer, sold the cow in question to John Pawson, to be delivered on this side of the river, but at no particular place, brought her over. She was quite tame on the other side, but had become very wild ; I saw her on this side before she charged plaintiff; saw Mr. Orr thrown. Win. Pawson deposed—Am slaughterman fo Messrs. Alexander and Pawson ; was told by Mr. Alexander to take delivery of the cow at the slaughter house ; helped to drive to the slaughter house two other beasts which had crossed the river, and then went to assist Lind wth the cow in question ; found her in the pound; she made as if she would charge me; got her down round Gudgeon’s corner, where she lay down ; a mob of people collected and threw sticks and stone.-> at her ; met Lind and asked liis assistance ; he took a stick and a stone to drive the cow ; I was going to strike her with my whip when Page the policeman struck her; she tossed him, and then Mr. Orr who was standing by laughing ; I advised Lind to have her shot, this was done, and he paid the expense of taking the carcase to the slaughter house. John Pawson, butcher, deponed that he had bought the cow to be delivered at the slaughter house, anti had told his brother to go down and assist Lind up with the cattle. Geo. Beavan, Jas. Broughton, and Geo. Howe gave evidence to the effect, that the cow was wild when it came across the river, and th.it defendant had done nothing to infuriate the cow. One of these witnesses considered he had driven her rather timidly. Judgment was given tor plaintiff, 3s.—and costs 4t 17s, MARLBOROUGH.

The wharf and warehouse at Picton. constructed by Messrs. Akersten .nd Turner for the Marlborough Government, liave just been handed over by the contractors, and the work reflects the highest credit upon them. The wharf is 337 fe .'t in length, V shaped at the the end, and having at the foot of the shaft a solid enrJh approach also somewhat like a Y reversed, so that the whole wharf resembles nearly the form of a section of an hour-glass.

At the extreme end of the wharf there is a depth of 17 feet 6 inches of-water, with accommodation for a vessel of 1000 tons, while two vessels of 500 tons each could lie one on either side. i lie whole wharf is constructed entirely of black

-biren. The warehouse erected on the p r fcion of the wharf reclaimed from the see, stands upon'44 black birch piles, and is 50 feet long by 32 feet wide, with 13 feet walls. This building will warehouse 630 tons, cubic measurement, while below there is a cellar which will contain 250 tons. Tim total deck area of the Picton'wharf is 18,300. feet, and together with the warehouse, and the approach to it, cost only £1,600. Tlie contractors’ price for the Nelson wharf, which has a less deck area (18,200 feet), was £4OOO, and considered cheap at that - price. The absence of strong tides at Picton is the explanation why the . wharf there cost so much less than at Nelson. NELSON. Chrome,— Not only is the demand for chrorne-irou ore likely to increase on account of its being an “ indispensable raw material” for the production of colours heretofore in cbminon use, but' means have recently been discovered for apply- . ing it in such a way as to produce quite t£ new and important” results, in the •production', of the most brilliant new colours mauve, rosaline (a beautiful freshcoloured pink), &c. £c. Our friends, therefore, need not be at all apprehensive that the demand for chrome-iron will decrease, or that the home market will be overstocked on account of any shipments of ore whieii cau be made from Nelson .for many years to come ; especially while our local Provincial Government exhibits such apathy, and shows so little desire to assist in developing our mineral wealth in chrome and copper which lies upon the surface of the ground within a few hours’ walk from the port. —Examiner, April 30. Fatal Accident in Queeu Charlotte Sound.— On Monday week last Mr. B. S. H. Broughton, brother of the Principal of Nelson College, after taking part in a game of cricket at Picton, left in the evening to return to his residencein the west arm of the Sound, in a, small boat, with a lug-sail, the weather at the time heingrather squally. As the unfortunate gentleman did not reach home, liis friends became uneasy about him, and a search was made tor the boat, which was found bottom upwards, having, it is supposed, being capsized in a squall. Mr. Broughton’s £bocly had not been found.— Ibid.

Gold Field— The following letter.apcleavs in the A elson Examiner.

Buller River, April 20, 1862,

I have been with a party to prospect the .West Wanganui gold-fields. I must say that on landing I wtis much disappointed with the general aspect of tlm country ; it seemed to possess no perceptible object, to make one judge that it contained - *■ gold deposit. Subsequent experience proves the correctness of my first impression. We - got the colour of gold everywhere that we • tried on the banks of the ICaramea, but nothing more, and in file creeks running into this river we found absolutely nothing. The weather was rc-mnrkab y fine, so we had the opportunity of trying this, district well. We were disa- pointed and sorry because the more gold-fi Lis are discovered the greater inducement to try tin lit and the greater am : hut of gold is yielded. Wp, of course, .we.ve not of the class which, haying discovered a payable claim, say the country does not yield gold in order to keep away all other gold seekers. The Karamea will, I have no doubt, pay the Maori, but 1 do not think it will ever become what may be styled a really good g■-Id-yielding district. . . From the Buller lam happy to say that the vessel now leaving will tyke above 720 ounces of g"ld, so that, much as it was .despised, this district has shown that it contains gold in quantity. , •Several of our lucky diggers are going to Nelson by this boat, and I can assure you they have done well. Their intention is to buy allotments of land in this district, if any-' he open for sale, and to return again as speedily as possible. The specimens of gold taken by some of them are really beautiful, and will, I think, of themselves sufficiently plainly demonstrate the value of this district as a gold-field. The country contains plenty of gold and requires but opening, in order to become a richly yi< filing gold-field. Most of the d’ggers are now going bark to the Buller river, for the winter, though the Wainiungaroha has certainly, as yet, yielded remarkably well. AUSTRALIAN EXPLORATION... ..

The protracted absence of Mr. Burke’s expedition, caused the Victorian exploration Committee to, institute various expeditions to give relief to Mr. Burke and his companions. The sanction of the Government was obtained for a search, by Commander Norman, in H.M.C AS. Victoria, along the North coast. Arrangements’ were also effected by the committee, under the supervision, and with the aid of the Queensland Government, for organising a land party under Mr. Lands; borough, with the view of cu-operatiug with the expedition by sea. Furthermore, under the apparent, urgency of the case; the committee were induced to engage the services of Mr. Walker and his aborigines to st arch for any traces of the explorers between Bockhampton and tie Gulf of Carpentaria, in case they should have returned, as might'have beeu expected, by that .route.

The Firefly conveying, Mr. Landsborough and liis party, was unfortunately wrecked at Sir Charles Hardy’s group, hut with no thither loss than two horses, and, through the aid of the commander and ciew ot H.M.C. S.S. Victoria, the party finally reached the Gulf shores, and formed a depot on the Albert 1 liver.

Mr. Walker, oh his way overland from Bockhampton, having struck Burke’s track*, on the Flinders' liner, came, in accordance

Ifgvioup arrapgerpe.nt, tn the rendezmdthpse obtained from Commander n tiie'supplies recoßS‘.iry : to enable him >w up those tracks. Mr, Landsborongh, ig the instructions furnished to him 3 committee, instituted a search for iles south west from the Albert, ami mpelled from want of water to return depot. tain Norman’s despatches with the Is of Landsborongh and Walker have sen published. The most interesting e documents is Mr. Walker’s account journey from Rockhampton to the f Carpentaria. lough the route lay, for the most through the country traversed by HAiiDT and Gregory, there is a leal of fresh information imparted in icriptive notes andjobservations. It bold and spirited march, with much romance of adventure in it. Tiiert ong reaches of waterless desert to be 1, hunger and thirst to be patiently d, and emergencies of all kind to be id surmounted, including the attacks tile natives. Twice were the party 1 to defend their lives by firing upon of blacks evidently bent on mischief, tch time with fatal (fleet. In the iter on the 30th October, Mr. W alker ( twelve killed and a large .number ed. The number killed in the second iter, on the Ist December, is not ; but the statement that “ their (the ’) centre and left wing suffered a lois ” conveys a very significant in)h. The tribes to the north of the 3nt seem to be a much more warlike loodthirsty race than the southern Which have already nearly passed existence before the march of the man. i circumstances, as stated by the himself, and corroborated by his 1 in command, M’Allister, did ui> uiably vindicate the resort to force on ccasions. And this point is the more y of special notice, because it affords t.y certain though melancholy clue to timate fate of the heroic Leichhardt s party. The brave German explorer, likelihood, perished by violence shortly le bad left the frontiers of the northern l districts. s inspiriting to find that every fresh ion of knowledge resecting the terra ita of the continent confirms' the fact beirg, for the most part, a perfectly ble country. There is hardly a leagu* ground traversed by Walker which not be made available for pastoral nent. He also has to testify that be on his route long stretches of tin* sheep country he ever saw in bis life, mid new rivers at intervals, hitherto ked on any map. Landsborniigli four to our list, and Walker gives its tas many more. We have now the y, tiie Stawell, and the Macadam, in 3n to the O’Shanassy and the Ligar. 5 sure, some of these familiarly named is are but Australian rivers of the cmtype,—not magnificent “ silent high like the Tast rivers of America. But of them are really valuable wafers', and the existence of so many rivers ■eeks in that quarter shows that the of the country around the Gull of ntaria, on both sides of the dividing possesses a well-defined water system, lay therefore be all made, available in or populous and prosperous settlement, t what to the public ia of still greater st at this moment than even the pracesults of Landsborougli’s and Walker’s itions is the fact that both parties are Andeiing in the desert in the hopearch for Burke and his, companions, each set out again with the express nination of following down Burke’s i. Lahdsborough]started in February, g but the one object in view and stating ernative. Walker, on the other Imuil, din December; and taking apparently e sagacious and bushmanlike view ul hble position, lie announced his inteiif lie found any dangerous impediments route to Cooper’s Creek, to “make by the Curragaree of the natives,’ i large sheet of water, be had ho doubt, communication witli Stuart’s great thus giving him a safe retreat into tide. From this statement it is highly ble that Walker will htive taken the tide route,-'rathei than the more direct o Cooper’s Creek ; but there can be qnestiou that Landsborongh has adsteadily to his original plan. One of tvo parties therefore, is certainly, and maybe, making for the Creek ; or ter may be there even now'. PORI GAL FACTS CONNECTED ITH THE ORIGIN OF MERINO [EBP. . is pretty generally known, that at the lencemeiit Of the present century, and before, the manufacturers of -the finer iptioiis of woollen c ! oth obtained their material from the fleeces of a breed of ish sheep called Merinos. Attempts made to introduce these animals into countries—attempts, in England and c«,.attended with a very limited surwhilst in Saxony, and later, bat more iedly in our own Australian colonies, ts much more favourable have been ned. me obscurity bangs over the origin and progress "of this interesting m d most 1 variety of the ovine nice*; and few ns, perhaps, in this country have a disidea of the meaning of the term merino, I) is derived from mai«-riuu.«, contracted meirinus, both teims used in mediaeval i—-like the Spanish derivative —to dea local judge.. sufficiently appears. t';at this breed of 3 was originally introduced into Spain England ; biit some misapprehension • risen with respect to the precise period hicli the .importation took place, iiupany, edited fy Mr. M’Culloch, in ‘ C'omiriercial Dictionary” ,title Spain),

iDVd obscurity bangs over the origin and progress *of this interesting md most 'ill variety of the ovine race; ami few ons, perhaps, in this country have a disidea of the meaning of the term merino, ■h is derived from maioriuus, contracted meirinus, both terms used in mediaeval ii—-like the Spanish derivative —to dea local judge. sufficiently appears. t';at this breed of p was originally introduced into Spain \ kliglahd ; biit some misapprehension 'risen with respect to the precise period ich tlje .importation took.place. inpany, edited by Mr. M’Culloch, in C'ommereiaf "dictionary”-; (title Spain), bes/iuHccurattiy, - “ the first great im-

provement in the wool of Spain to the introduction of a flock of sheep from England in 1394, being a portion of the dowry brought by Catherine, daughter of the .Duke of Lancaster, to her husband, the elder son of the King of Castile.” This King of Castile was -John L, son of Henry, Count of Trastumara, the natural son of Alphonso XL. by Leonara de Guzman, who ascended the throne of Castile as Henry 11, having dispossessed and supplanted his legitimate brother, Peter the Cruel.

But tlie Spanish peninsula is, in all probability, indebted for the importations of fine wool led English sheep, in the reign of Alplionso XI.. to the intelligent activity of that wise sovereign, who entered into several treaties with our Edward lIL, whose second daughter, Joan, was affianced to Alphonso’s son, afterwards Peter the Cruel; but it is well known that in Australia, the merino 'flock( were introduced mainly by the energy of a single colonist. The quality of the climate of New South Wales, so nearly resembling that of Spain —in connection with the thinness of the pasturage, and the wide area taken for sheep husbandry requiring constant exertion in the search of herbage, and perhaps affording, in consequence, a greater variety ot foodWill, it is'hoped; tend to perpetuate in the merino flocks now spread over our southern colonies, the benefit which resulted to their meritorious progenitors upon being transferred from the pastures of Britaiu to those of Spain, a transfer which is shown above to have taker/ place in the first half of the fourteenth century.

SCAB ACTS. We are glad to observe that it is proposed in the Provincial Council to have these Acts consolidated. Having given our readers last week a copy of the first of them, we give below the Amendment Acts, namely that of Session HI., No. 10, 1856, and that of Session TV., No. 8, 1857. If a new Act is passed this Session, it will be seen what iuiproi omenta, have been made in it; and if not, the information contained in those may be useful to the Sheep Farmers of the district.

AN ACT to amend the Scab and Catarrh Act, Session /., No. 20. [ Assented to Feby. 6, 1.850.]

WHEREAS it is deemed expedient to impose a tax upon all sheep within the Province, for the purpose of maintaining an efficient body of inspectors of sheep, to prevent as far as possible the spread of the disease called Scab. Be it therefore enacted by the Superintendent, with the advice and consent of the Provincial Council, as follows: 1. Every person owning or having the charge of any sheep shall, in the mouth of May in every year, deliver in writing to the inspector of the district in which such sheep shall be depasturing, a return of the number of sheep above six months old owned by him, or under his charge. And shall append thereto a declaration, that 3uch return is true to the best of his knowledge and belief. 2. The Superintendent may appoint such number of inspectors of sheep for the purposes of the Act, Session 1., No. 20, and of this Act, as he might think fit, and assign them to such districts as he m.iy deem proper. And every inspector shall have at all times, and exercise at his discretion, the powers given by the said Act, Session 1., No. 20, to certain persons acting under tlie warrant of any justice of the peace in the inspection of the sheep suspected to be infected with Scab. 3. Every person making a false declaration shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanour. 4. Every person owning or having the charge of any sheep shall in the month of August in every year pay to the inspector of the district in which such sheep shall be depasturing, or other person authorised to receive the same, the sum of one farthing per head for all sheep over the age of six months so owned by him or under his charge, in accordance with the return made by him in the preceding month of May. If such sum be not paid in the month of September, the same shall be recoverable by the inspector of the district by summary proceedings, whether the same shall exceed £2O or otherwise, before any resident magistrate or any justice of the peace, together with all the costs and expenses incident to, or to be incurred in, recovering the same. 5. In the month of October in every vear the several inspectors shall pay the amounts they,have respectively collected under authority of this act to the treasurer of this province. 6. That so much of the act of the Ist 1 Session of the Provincial Council, No. 20, as relates to the appointment and duties of an inspector and sub-inspectors, is hereby repealed. Charlw Clifford, ) Speaker. Passed the Provincial Council, this fourth day of February, in tlie year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and fifty-six. H. S. Harrison, Clerk of Council. I assent to this act on behalf of tlie Governor of New Zealand, this sixth day of Febv., one thousand eight hundred and fifty-six. I. F. Featherston, Superintendent.

AN AC T, to define the Duties of Inspectors of Sheep, and to amend the Laws relative to Sheep. [Assented to Fcby. 20, 1357.]

WH,E&B ! A,S it is expedient, to make, further provisions to prevent the spread

of the disease called Scab, and to enforce the returns of sheep required

under Act of the Provincial Council, Session 111., No. 10., Be it therefore enacted by the Superintendent of the Province of Wellington, by and with the advice and consent of the Provincial Council thereof, as follows, —,

1. The inspectors of sheep shall in the months of March and September or as. soon after as possible in every year visit 1 the several stations in their respective districts, and examine the sheep thereat, and shall report to the secretary of the province in such form as the Superintendent may from time to time prescribe or approve of whether the sheep or any of them upon any station are infected with Scab or any other contagious or infectious disease, and if any to what extent they may be so affected and all such reports shall be forthwith published in the ‘Government Gazette’ for public information.

2. Every inspector shall give to the owner, or person in charge of each station within his district, notice in writing of the day on which he proposes to visit the station, and such owner or person in charge shall for three days after the day named in such notice have his sheep in readiness for mustering; and on the arrival of the inspector at his station shall, so soon as required by the inspector, muster all the sheep on the station, or under his charge at that time, for examination by the inspector, and shall, if required to do so, assist him in such examination.

3. Every person refusing or neglecting to muster the sheep for examination by the inspector after such notice, and being required so to do, shall forfeit and pay a penalty not less than £5 nor more than £lO for every day after the arrival of the inspector and beiug required so to do that he shall so refuse or neglect to muster the sheep on the station aud under his charge, and until the same shall be mustered to the satisfaction of the inspector; and he shall also pay to the inspector a Sum of £1 per day for his personal expenses for every day that he shall be detained by reason of the non-mustering of the sheep and all other expenses which the inspector may be put unto on account of such detention.

4. Anv person on whose. station the inspector may report that there are sheep infected with the Scab or other contagipus or infectious disease may at any time previous to the next half-yearly visitation apply to the inspector to examiue again the sheep upon his station, and if he shall prove to the satisfaction of the inspector that all the sheep on his station or under his charge are then free from Scab or such other disease may"demand a certificate to that effect, which certificate it shall be the duty of the inspector to give, a copy of. which certificate shall on the original being left at , the Provincial Secretary’s Office for the purpose be published forthwith in the ‘ Government Gazette’; and the party requiring such re-examination as aforesaid shall pay to the inspector a sum of one pound for qvery 're-examination. 5. It shall be the duty of the inspector whenever it shall be reported .to hun that shee,p infected with Scab or other contagious or infectious disease are being driven into or-through his district to take immediate Steps to stay the entry into or furtner progress through his district of such sheep, and for that purpose not only to lay information of such infringement of the law before the nearest justice of the peace but to give notice to the person in charge of such sheep to return, and in case of non-compliance by the driver to return immediately to the place from whence he started to detain such sheep or to employ such drivers and other assistants as he the inspector may think sufficient to take back such sheep to the place whence they started.

6. Every person in charge of infected sheep ,to whom notice to return shall be shall be so given as aforesaid shall return without any unnecessary delay to the station whence he started and by the same route that he shall have travelled, and if he shall refuse or neglect so to do shall forfeit and pay a sum of £5 per day for every day that he shall so refuse or neglect to return. 7. Every person driving sheep shall twelve hours at least before entry upon any station give notice to the owner or person in charge thereof that it is nis intention to drive sheep upon or through his station, and every person neglecting to give such notice before driving sheep upon a station shall forfeit and pay a sum not exceeding £5, such, notice to be given either personally to the owner or person in charge of any such station or left in writing at the homestead thereof. 8. Any person owning or having the charge of any sheep, who shall fail to make the returns thereof in accordance with the provision iii that behalf in Act of the Provincial Council, Session 111., No. 10, shall forfeit and pay a sum of £5 for every day after the 31st day of May that he shall so refuse or neglect to make such return.

9. Nothing in this act is to interfere with the power or duty, of the inspector to enter upon any station and inspect the sheep thereon under the provisions of the r acts now in force or cither of'them. 10. The term “Station ” shall include not only the stations or runs held under license from the Government, whether General or Provincial, but also all properties (freeholds or leaseholds) on which sheep are depastured or kept. C. . Cliffohd, Speaker. Ff.Sied the Provincial Council, this seventeenth day of February, in the year of Our Lord one thou-: sand eight; hundred and fiftyseven.i or: -l _ H. S. Harrison, Clerk of Council.

T assent^to this Act on behalf of the Governor, of New Zealand, this twentieth day -of Febuary, 1857. I. E. Featiierston, SuperintendentSilence. —A ’ disreputable wit, whose name/it would be superfluous to mention, ’.having gained admittance to a quakers’ meeting, suddenly broke the profound silence by exclaiming, “ Here’s a penny tart for the first man who opens his mouth!” producing, at the same time, that article from bis pocket. “ Young man,” began to remonstrate, in solemn accents, a venerable Quaker — •‘Ah, the tart’s yours, sir!” was the instant ’rejoinder. It was not, however, because silence was kept, but because it was broken, that’ the congregation wus made to look foolish. If the venerable Quaker had but held his tongue, the tables would have been turned ami tlie buffoon might have been silently consigned to the care of the parish constable.

.In domestic life the gift of holding the tongue is beyoftd price. A soft answer or a word in season may be misunderstood, but gently letting a controversy drop has but one signification, and pours oil on the most troubled waters. There is such a thing as holding your tongue from spite, a dogged silence persisted in day after day for the purpose of inflicting slow mental torture. But this crime of malignant taciturnity denotes so diseased a state of the moral affections as to render the perpetrator an object of almost as much pity as the victim, ami a not unsuitable inmate to somewell-regulated asylum for the treatment of the milder forms of insanity.

Cracks in Horses’ Feet. —The following is Dr. Dodd’s mode of treatment of this troublesome complaint, consisting essentially in sewing the parts together by means of a strong wax cord : —The best practice Would be first to poultice the foot (supposing the shoe to have been removed), with a view <>f softening the hoof and removing any extraneous matter that may have insinuated itself into the crnck. When the, hoof is sufficiently softened, it should be cleansed, examined, and dressed with tincture of inyrrli. Select a spot about an inch below the coronet, and witli a small gimblet bore a hole through the two edges of the crack, and another one inch above the toe. A straight needle armed with a strong ligature, is to be passed through the upper holes, brought over ami through a second time ; thus dosing the two edges of the fissure by what the sailors term a * round turn.’ The some thing is to be repeated at the toe. ’Hie .assistant, by .the aid of the pincers, or otherwise, shuts tiie crack as close as possible, the ligatures are each drawn tight, and tied with a surgeon’s knot. A sma 1 quantity of blister ointment is to’ be smeared over the crack, and barshoe applied. The cure is accomplMied in two ways—first, by fusion; secondly, by the growth of new, horn from the matrix downward. After the edges have firmly united, cut. the ligatures, and pare the uneven edges of the cicatrix level with the surrounding parts, and the cure is completed. The. Mechanical Skill of the Late Prince Consort —Vt an inflm utial meeting of the Leeds Philosophical and Literary Society, held in the Town Hall on /Saturday last, it was unanimously resolved to present an address of condolence to Her-Majesty on her recent bereavement. As illustrative.of the accurate and varied knowledge of tlie lute Prince Consort, it was mentioned in the course of the proceedings, that . when his Royal ' Highness was in Leeds he displayed a rare amount, of mechanical skill, when examining some inventions in machinery to • which hi* attention was/directed. Ik? celebrated combing machine of Mr Douisthorpe •Was oue which attracted the Prince’s curiosity, and he at once detected the absence of a wiieeei which the inventor of the machine was of opinion not four mechanics iu England would have observed. Sheridan was once spendipg a few days at Bri.-tol, and wanted a new pair of boots, but Could not, as usual, pay for them. Shortly befuie he left, he called on two bootmakers, and ordered, a pair of each, promising payment, on delivery. He fixed tlie morning of his departure for tlie tradesmen to send in their goods. When the first pair arrived, he tried, on the boots, but complained that tiie right one pinched a little, -and ordered the messenger to take it back and stretch it, and bring it back again at nine next morning. The second arrived soon after, anu this time it was the left boot which pinched. Ti.esame order was given ; to the.messenger as in the qi,her case, and 'soon afterwards Sheridan left in bis new boots for town.

A Hint *bo Grape Growers. —An'important discovery has been made in the treatment of grape ■vines’in France, which we do not remember to have ever seen noticed in this country. It was attended with the greatest possible success, -and is of the following character. It consists in taking a narrow ring of bark from the inner end of each branch. The rings should be taken from all round, the-branch, and should be as deep as the .liber, or inner newly-formed hark of the plant, without injuring the laiter. The effect of this process ia to check the formation of the leaf—mere green, useless stuff --and accelerate the growth and ripening of the grapes by at least a fortnight Specimens shown at the exhibition in Paris, in 1859, demonstrate the fact that in the same ivine,.,those gathered trom the branches that had been ringed were considerably larger and finer than those taken from the branches that had not undergone that operation. In every instance that it has been tried, the same results have been obtained. A'very little practice will insure .speed and dexterity in ringing the branches and a large plantation could easily be improved by following the above directions.

Cobwebs. —-In the Indian Lancet ’ is a communication from Dr. Donaldson, recommending the web of the common house spider as an unfailing remedy for certain fevers. It

is stated to be invaluable at times: when quinine and other anti-periodics fail in effect or quantity, not only from its effic{tcy,;,but because it can be obtained every where, with' out trouble and without price. This remedy it is observed, was used a century hack by the poor in the feiis)of-'Lincolnshire, and by Sir James M’Gregor in the West Indies. Dr. Donaldson now uses cobweb pills in -all his worst cases, and is happy to say he has never lost a patient from fever since lie tried it. This is certainly the cheapest specific, ever made known to the.world. Asa styptic the cobweb is well known to every, schoolboy. Perfumes —The following statement of figures regarding perfumes and flowers has appeared in the Athenaeum, and we repeat it., thinking it may prove interesting to our readers. The fairer portion will be desirous to learn where, for the most part, the flowers grow, the swe< t perfume of which is found in those pretty flacons on their dressing tables. The chief places of their growth are the south of France and Piedmont, namely, Montpelier, Grasse, Nismes, Cannes and Nice; these twd last, especially, are. the paradise of violets, and furnish a yearly produce of about 13,000 lb of violet blossoms. Nice produces a harvest of 100,000 lb of orange blossoms, and Cannes as much again, and of a finer odour. 500 lb of orange blossoms yield about 2 lb of pure Neroly.oil. At Cannes the accacia thrives particularly well, and produces yearly about 9000 lb of accacia blossoms. One great perfumery distillery at Cannes use 3 yearly about 14().000 lb of orange blossoms, 20.000 lb of accacia blossoms (Accacia Farneaiand), 140,000 lb of rose leaves, 32,000 lb of jessamine blossoms, 20,000 lb of violet 9, and 8000 lb of tuber roses, together with a great many other 'sweet herb*. The extraction of etherial oils, the small quantities of which are mixed in the flowers with such large quantities of other vegetable juices, that it requires about 600 lb of rose leaves to win one ounce of otto of roses, demands a very careful treatment. The French, favoured by their climate;are the most active, although not always the most careful, preparers of perfume; half the world-is furnished by this branch of their - industry; —Court Circular. Slavery in the Brazils. —The following, interesting intelligence relates to affairs in the Brazils as to slavery “ A bill has recently-been introduced in the Senate for the amelioration of the condition of slavesj which, after considerable discussion and alteration, was passed as follows:—All sales of slaves by public cry or on public view are prohibited. Commercial auctions of slaves are prohibited, under penalty of such sales being null, and a fine of from £IOO to £3OO bn the auctioneer for every slave sold at auction. The judicial forms, n thb nature of execution for division or shares among heirs, will be substituted by written proposals, which the judges shall recover from the vendors tor the- space of thirty;days, the judges announcing by advertisement the names,' ages, professions, valuations, and other characteristics of the slaves'they may have for sale. At the end of that period of thirty, days of judicial publication the Judge shall have the power to renew the publication for another similar period, by publishing the proposals in opeu Court, if the prices offered be insignificant, or objected to by the heirs or creditors, who mav require adjudication at a higher price. M. Silviera da- Motta, who. intro; cluced this bill, proposed also that a man and wife should not be separated, nor children under : a certain age sold away from their parents, according to the ancient laws of France and Spain for the g-vernmeut of the colonies, wich law is still in.force in Cuba ; but these claims were rejected.

MARKETS. WANOANur, May 22—Whoit fls barley sa, oats ss, maise 6a per bushel, flour (at NVtlye'mill) £l7, (in town) £lB per 2000 lbs, potatoes £3 per ton, br«*d—4 lb. loaf I*, butter Is 3d per lb, eggs'2a 6d per dos. Adklaidb, April B,—Flour, £lO 10s to, £ll 10a per ton ; wheat 4s 5d per bushel at the Port, and 4s 3d per bushel in Town. Holloway'* Ointment and Pill*.—Visible or invisible ailments. — ln all outward diseases, this fine Ointment will be found soothing, - cooling, and curative. It Bpeedilj’jallay3 al»vinnammatio:i, and reduces to a healthy condition all wounds, sores, ulcers, and sprains. ' It discharges all irritating maters, and stimulates the vessels to wholesome action. When the Oiniment is rubbed on; the skin over any organ afflicted by disease it exercises, a corresponding recuperative power, and in conjunction with Holloway’s Pills rarely fails to banish any internal disorder bc|its organ when or where it may. : Whilst using these purifying preparations, the tongue cleans, the appetite improves, chills and flushes depart, and the complexion becomes clear, while the spirits attain an elevation consonant . only with health. .35,,

CALENDAR.

CNew Moon May 29 3.5 a.m * 0011 \ First Quarter June 6 222 a.m

lot ue >‘ vVariganui Chronicle”

Turakina — Messrs. Franklin and Hurst Rang,itikei — Mr. Thos. Scott. Wellington — W. Lyon, Esq. Auckland —Messrs. Williamson and

Wilson Nelson— Messrs. C. & J. Elliott. \ew Plymouth— F. U. GlephiLl, Esq London— Messrs. Smith, Elder & Co

to m 0 0 ■ >> c5 o o o o . o 1—4 O c* o CO a. . Eh — — ' — — Mr. »J. F. Kells 13 6 3 22 „ A. Duncan 10 6 5 21 „ W. Armstrong... 11 3 4 18 34 15 12 61 ISTo. of Points made by the 20 men of Capt. Porter’s Companrwho 186 124 79 389 fired April 29 Total 220 139 91 450 2STo. of Bull’s Eyes ... 26 9 5 40 „ „ Centres 61 38 23 12z „ „ Outers 20 36 30 86 „ „ Misses 8 40 57 105 Average No. of Points per man 19.56 ?> jj Hits 10 78

May. S. rises. , S. sets. High water at Head 22 7 18 4 40 4 42 5 6 23 7 19 4 39 5 28 5 52 24 7 20 4 39 6 14 6 38 25 7 20 4 38 7 1 7 35 26 7 21 4 37 7 49 8 13 27 7 22 • 4 36 8 37 9 1 23 7 23 4 35 9 25 9 49 29 7 24 4 34 10 14 10 38