LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume XXII, Issue 9197, 16 August 1880, Page 2

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Postal. — Mails for the United Kingdom via San Francisco will close at noon to-morrow at Auckland. Ordinary telegrams will be received at the Wanganui office till 10 a.m. ; and urgent telegrams till 11 a.m. Mails for Australia, India, and China, per Wakatipu, close at Wellington at 11 a.m. on the 20th inst. Ordinary telegrams will be received at Wanganui for transmission up to 9 a.m. on the 20th ; and urgent telegrams up till 10 a.m. on the same day. Harmonic Society. — The members of the Harmonic Society, both vocal and instrumental, are requested to meet at the Christ Church Schoolroom this evening, at 8 o’clock, instead of tomorrow evening. The Arms Act. — We understand that there are large quantities of gunpowder stored in the town, in excess of what is allowed by the Arms Act. It is to be hoped that the police will give the matter their attention. Boiler Explosion. — A rumour was current in town on Saturday night that a boiler accident had taken place at the sawmill belonging to Messrs Bailey and Co., at Taonui. We have been unable to learn any particulars. The Deceased Wife’s Sister Bill. — This Bill has at length passed both Houses of the Legislature. After all the fuss that has been made about it, it can be of personal interest to an exceedingly small number in the community. Missing Seaman. — A seaman belonging to the s.s. Wallabi, named George Simpson, has been missing since Wednesday night. He was last seen at about 9 o’clock on that evening by one of the hands, who spoke to him on the wharf, and he then appeared to be under the influence of liquor. Simpson has money coming to him from the vessel, and his clothes are still on board, so it is supposed he has fallen into the river and been drowned. He is about thirty years of age. The Zealandia Exhibition. — The concluding exhibition of this panorama took place at the Princess Theatre on Saturday night, to a rather thin house. Mr Sidney Colville appeared in several of his comic songs and sketches, and gave a capital illustration of his powers as a ventriloquist. He was on each occasion loudly and deservedly applauded. Now that their season in Wanganui is concluded, the proprietors proceed with all despatch, to the Bluff, and thence take the panorama to the old country. The estimation in which the “Zealandia Exhibition” is held may be gathered from the following facts. The New Zealand Shipping Company have given the proprietors and their staff free passages home by the Mataura, their reason doubtless being that anything which makes the colony better known in Great Britain tends to increase intercourse between the two. Then we learn that Mr Ballance was so pleased with the exhibition that he interested himself to obtain for the proprietors a large number of very fine photographs of New Zealand scenery, taken by the Government photographer. These, together with the assortment of curios given by Sir George Grey, and a fine collection of water-colour drawings by Mr Gully and other eminent artists, will be displayed in the daytime in the halls where the panorama is exhibited at night. Mr Ballance was so satisfied with the merit of the “Zealandia” that he gave the proprietors a letter of introduction to Sir Julius Vogel, which will doubtless prove of great service to them. For ourselves we can only repeat what we wrote on the first night the panorama was exhibited in Wanganui. We fully endorse the universal verdict of the Australian and New Zealand Press, which is that the “Zealandia Exhibition” is the boat that has ever been seen in the colonies ; that the views have been well chosen and are admirably painted, and that the mechanical effects are first-class. Somo of the scenes which take the spectator back a good many years are amongst the best and most interesting. Nothing could be better than such pictures as Dunedin on the night of the first anniversary ; Auckland in the old days ; and Riccarton, on the Canterbury Plains. Amongst the best of the modern ones may be named Port Chalmers and Lyttelton, and some of the Dunedin ones. As a whole the panorama and the dioramas are excellent, and we have no doubt we shall hear that the proprietors have met with a large measure of success. We should add that, before exhibiting in Great Britain, some new views of the principal cities will be added, so that a very perfect representation of the New Zealand of to-day will be secured. Top Price. — A horse has been sold to a butcher at Bulls for one shilling. He says he wants the hide. We are sure the public will not want the meat.

The Governor’s Salary. — The Premier has stated, in reply to a question in the House, that Government do not intend this session to introduce a bill reducing the Governor’s salary. The Offertory. — It is wonderful how far religious enthusiasm will carry a man. During the present depression in Canterbury, when cash fails, gunwads and buttons are placed in the offertory bags at Church collections. Good Shooting. — The tallest rifle score on record is that recently made by Corporal Tillotsen, of the Victoria Engineers, who put together 100 out of a possible 105, the ranges being 400, 500, and 600 yards. The weather, too, as stated in the Argus, was most unfavourable for shooting. The Licensing Bill. — Among the petitions presented to the Legislative Council last week, was one signed by 16 residents of Wellington, representing merchants, brewers, hotel proprietors, and others, who prayed that the Council would “prevent such loss or ruin as would result from the passing of the Licensing Bill, 1880, in its present form.” It was presented by the Hon G. Randall Johnson. Sentence of Death. — Charles Hansson has been sentenced to death in Melbourne for rape. In passing sentence the Judge said :— “Rape is not punished by death in England any longer, but in this country, for reasons excellent in themselves, as the country is at present advised, the punishment for rape is death. The protection of the honour and virtue of women is a matter of the first importance. They are exposed to the solitude of life in the country where population is small, and where the temptations to many evil men are great. I do not hold out to you any expectation that the sentence will not be carried out.” A would-be Dairyman. — The Taranaki Herald, of the 11th instant, has the following :— “There are many ways of appealing for charity, but we imagine the one adopted yesterday by an able-bodied man was quite new and original. The person referred to, it seems, knocked at the door of a house occupied by a gentleman in good circumstances in New Plymouth, and requested to speak to the ‘good lady’ of the house. When Mrs —— appeared, the man produced a paper, and solicited a subscription to go towards the purchase of a cow, by way of encouraging him in his honest endeavours to establish a dairy. He stated that he was a hard-working man, and had succeeded in buying a cow out of his own earnings, and what he now wanted was sufficient funds to enable him to buy another cow in order to set up a dairy, Mrs —— was greatly puzzled at the manner in which the appeal for charity was made, and, after serious reflection, declined to become a subscriber.” The Governor-General of India. — Lord Ripon (says the Home News) fancies himself a Roman Catholic ; as a matter of fact he is an English Puritan, believing very strongly in certain truths of revealed religion, and thinking that he can only live up to his ideal of faith by strict submission to the laws of the old doctrinal code of Christendom. Possibly he was not altogether aware of the full force of his words when he said that in turning Papist he had become more sincerely liberal than before. It was perfectly true, and meant this — that he had become more profoundly penetrated with the conviction that there is a Divine ruler of the universe, and that an unflinching allegiance is due to Him if we would accomplish anything good or great in this world. So, when he received new spiritual comfort, the poetry of the political creed in which he had been brought up naturally struck his imagination more vividly than ever. A Tout at Jerome Park. — Last Saturday, says a recent number of the Turf, Field, and Farm, at the Jerome Park races, a green-looking individual scooped in 200 dols on Luke Blackburn in the first race. Shortly before the race for the Westchester Cup he was seen looking at the quotations of a prominent bookmaker, and appeared undecided about betting. The aforesaid bookmaker called a tout, and pointing out the green-looking individual, said : — “You see that man ; go tell him to back Uncas ; that he is a sure winner, and I will give you 25 per cent of what he bets.” The green-looking individual, being advised, stepped up and bet the bookmaker 100 dols to 600 dols that Uncas would win. The result is known. Barbee landed Uncas a winner, and the bookmaker was beaten at his own game. Emigration to the Cape. — From the Cape Times of the 1st July we extract the following :— That Australia should contribute towards the populating of South Africa is a singular episode in the history of our colony. The Northumberland, which arrived in Table Bay yesterday, brings over 100 passengers, who have come from Australia to try their fortunes at the Cape. They are mostly gold-diggers, who, finding golddigging in Australia not so remunerative to the poor man as in the days of old, have been led to come to the Cape by the news that goldfields have been discovered here. We do not know on what representations they were induced to come to South Africa, but a passenger by the Northumberland assures us that they are a class who make capital colonists, for they are prepared to do other work besides gold-digging. We trust that this is so, for if these people were gold-diggers, and nothing else, they are likely to be disappointed on their arrival. We may tell them that up to the present time the goldfields of South Africa have not been a success. A few people have managed to live at Pilgrim’s Rest in the Transvaal, and there is a confident belief of paying goldfields existing in this land. But they have yet to be discovered. There is, however, the satisfaction of knowing that any man of industrious and steady habits can at all times make more than his living at the Cape of Good Hope. New Vessels for the Navy. — The completion of the Inflexible, the Ajax, and the Agamemnon is now promised during the present financial year. This will make an important addition to the actually available strength of the navy. The Inflexible, the largest man-of-war afloat, is a vessel 11,406 tons displacement ; while the Dandolo and Duilio, her rivals in the Italian navy, are only 10,570 tons. The armament of the Inflexible, consisting of four 80-ton guns, is (says the Pall Mall Gazette) inferior to that of the Italian ships, each of which carries four 100-ton guns ; but on the other hand, there can be no doubt that structurally the English vessel is of greater strength than the Italian man-of-war. The Ajax and Agamemnon are sister-ships, each of 8429 tons, so that by the completion of the three vessels 27,554 tons of ironclad shipping will be added to the immediately available strength of the navy. The Ajax and Agamemnon carry only four 38-ton guns, but as these weapons throw a projectile weighing 700lb with sufficient velocity to penetrate 14-inch armour, the vessels must be regarded as offensively of considerable power, while they admittedly possess great defensive strength.

“New Zealand.” — The European Mail gives a long account of a very able and interesting (and certainly none too rose-coloured) paper upon “New Zealand,” read by Mr A. F. Halcombe, at a meeting of the Royal Colonial Institute, held at St James’ Hall, on the 9th of June, the chair being occupied by Sir Charles Clifford. New Zealand Institute. — The 12th annual report of the New Zealand Institute has been laid upon the table of the House, and from it we learn the following :— “The honorary members number 30, and the ordinary members 1277, the Wellington Institute being second on the list with 269 members. The balance-sheet shows the sum of £4 8s 3d to the credit of the Board, to which is to be added £31 2s 6d, due by the Auckland Institute, making a total balance of £35 10s 9d, against which there is an outstanding account of £66 6s 6d. To meet the deficiency, it is proposed to make a call of 1d per volume of the last issue. The number of names entered on the visitor’s book since 30th June last year does not represent more than one-third the total number who visited the institution during the year, which, from other data, is estimated to be not less than 40,000 persons. The average Sunday attendance still keeps up, showing that the public thoroughly appreciates the opening of the Museum on that day. Large additions have been made to the natural history collection, but the want of space prevents the possibility of exhibiting numerous and valuable objects belonging to this class in a satisfactory manner.” City of Glasgow Bank. — It appears that among the assets of the City of Glasgow Bank was a gold reef in the Indian mines, to which public attention has lately been directed, and it now appears that this “claim” has proved very rich ; indeed it is rumoured that its product may possibly be of sufficient value to return a moiety of the Bank’s debts, the payment of which utterly ruined so many well-to-do shareholders. But those and much the larger number who have failed or compounded with the liquidators, will have no share in this windfall, which will go to the very small number who have been rich enough to weather the storm and retain their position on the roll. An Election Row. — There was a very lively scene last week up North on the occasion of an election for the Newcastle District Board. The Ngaruawahia correspondent of the New Zealand Herald thus describes it :— “For years a party known as ‘The Corner,’ representing a small portion of the district, having ruled the roost by the use of proxies, ratepayers attempted to throw off the yoke by the introduction of the Local Elections Regulation Act. It seems the secretary unnecessarily called the annual meeting of ratepayers, and the corner party, complaining of insufficient notice having been given, came armed with proxies. The meeting and polling were going on simultaneously. At Whatawhata the old party took advantage of the meeting, and proceeded to elect trustees in the usual way. The chairman (Mr H. Salmon) expostulated that it was not a part of the business, and vacated the chair. The meeting went on, and elected Messrs T. Wilson, Carpenter, Morrison, C. Stone, and Laing trustees. Meantime ratepayers under the Regulation of Local Elections Act placed Messrs C. Day, A. Dawson, Braithwaite, Salmon, and W. Johns at the head of the poll. A rush was made for the books of the Board, each newly elected Board claiming them, and the secretary (Mr C. J. Barton) defending them vi et armis. A free fight ensued over the books, two and three being on the floor at a time. Constable Wild entered the room and settled the matter, taking possession of all the books and documents of the late Newcastle Board, which he brought to Hamilton to-day and placed in the Resident Magistrate’s keeping.”