TUESDAY, DECEMBER 8, 1874.

Waikato Times, Volume VII, Issue 401, 8 December 1874, Page 2

TUESDAY, DECEMBER 8, 1874.

Kothing can be offered in excuse of the conduct of a man, who, having received benefit from another, eeizes the first opportunity of vilifying his benefactor. To forget to be grateful is bad, but to return hospitality with abuse is simply atrocious. Yet a certain Mr Fellows, after finding a home in this country for six years, lias basely undertaken to circulate the most injurious and unfounded repoi*ts about the financial position of the colony. And, as if with the deliberate intention of perpetrating as much mischief as possible, he selects as the time for his attack a time when an all-important loan is about to be negotiated in the London market. The mischief such a reckless propagator of mis-statements may do just now is incalcutable. A large number of the public at home are not too well versed in the real position of New Zealand, and unfortunately lend a ready ear to the statements of those who seem to speak with authority on the subject. Mud cannot fee thrown without some of it sticking, and the money jnarket is so extremely sensitive that even the reekJess scribblings of a nobody may cost the colony dearly. What the effect of a failure by Mr Vogel to negotiate the new loan would be, is evident. In A short time our present resources would be expended, #nd we should be left with a quantity of unfinished And therefore unprofitable public works on our hands. £>uch a result would be a fearful waste of labour and material, and could not fail to prove ruinous both to our creditors and ourselves ; and yet we are 10 be brought in danger of this undesirable consumation of our railway policy because some would-be pmart quill-driverchoses to place a string of falsehoods before the British public. We sincerely trust that <our friends at horne — and they are not few — have jiot allowed this calumniator to go uncontradicted, "but that the true state of the case has, ere this, been made public. A man who will industriously scavenge from our records of the past six or seven jpears all the bad items of our history, — who will falsify figures and invent conversations with 11 eminent " personages for the purpose of destroying the national credit and reputation, — is deserving of no consideration, and should be mercilessly exposed. We await with some interest the arrival of Mr Vogel in England, when we expect that he will prove himself equal to the occasion, and vindicate the character and position of the colony from the accusations of this arch scandal-monger,

Complaints have again reached us of the extreme inconjeniente caus/d setlhrs by the unceitainty which pre\ails in releience to the return of confitcated lands to the natives by {.lie General Government. It will be remembei-ed that not long since a disturbance threatened to arise in relation lo the land held by the Pinko Swamp Company. A portion of this block wiib claimed by a native on tlie ground that Mr fHacleun Lad pionntcd to return it to him, and that it had since been fold to the company. Xhii was smoothed over. But now we bear of eeverul beltlm along the Waipa river fearing that a strip of Government land, about 300 acres in $ xtMit, and which should be open for purchase, will be handed fiock to the original native ow r ers, As this course would jiut ofl 1 the river frontage of several farms, tlie let tier* ore fijiturally anxious tbat the question should be settled. Wei gre wforn.ed that numerous enquirits have been made as to {he intention of the Government, without obtaining a satis/tictory answer. Kulurally the settlers nrc unwilling to proceed with their improven.epts in view of such a state of jttlairs. The Government should at once come forward and frtate precisely to what rxtent they have gone in making such promise?, and thus settle all doubts about the matter. Possibly they have gone so iar us lo fcnr to divulge the whole truth, and we m»j ypt It am that t!,c "Peaco Policy has fp»t the country ji ie than it bargained lor. Mr Moutgoni' , the new]} appointed clerk to the Resident Magibtr, ,. y' Couit, dibtrict of Waikuto, arrived by p oacli last night lo commence lustiutus This gentleman x>tw, rrc bcliore, clerk to the court at Wanganui. Ilu ger> Vices will tend to relieve our rather over-worked E. M. fii ft ggpsideruble potion of hi 3 9neroi.s duties..

Mr David Richardson has been appointed Collector of Rates for the Highway District of Cambridge North Township by Gazette notice of December sth. We arc reiilly quite unable to give any answer to the enquiry made by a correspondent in another column as to whether the Waikato Mail is to become an institution in the district. The projectors appear to have quite enough on the ip hands in Aucklaud at present. The Echo seems to make it pretty lively for thorn, and to keep all their available stall' pretty well employed. The pigoons themselves ara quite worn oft' their wingi. Ngaruawalua is not to be loft without competition in the matter of Christinas eporti. The inhabitants of Raugariri have taken the matter in hand, and have arranged a programme for the 26th instant. Taupin,, small as it is, will hold their own local jubilee on the same day, and there is some talk of a sporting re-union at Hamilton. In the meant'mc the Ngaruawahians have got tho start and already ovir £50 has been subscribed. It 13 expected that the amount available lor pmes w ill altogether be not less than £90 or J6LOO. Some really good sport may be expected We would remind intending competitors that the entries for tho different events close on tho 12th instant. Tho shorthorn bull, 25th Baron Wetherby, arrived at Nowcastlo in tho steamer Waikato, on Saturday last, en route for his new homo at tho farm of Mr Reynolds, Cambridge. It will bo recollected that he was imported by Messrs R. and E. Maclean, and was purchased by Messrs Claike and Reynolds fiom those gentlemen some short time since for tho sum of 400 guineas. He is a magnificent animal, very lengthy, and of a light roan colour, Ho is by 7th Duke of York dam Selma by 4th Duke of Oxford. At the last meeting of the Agricultural Show he took the first prize. We congratulate Messrs Reynolds and Clarke on their enterprise m introducing such a high class animal into the district, and trust that other settlers will emulate their good example. An improvement in the class of stock at 2>resent grown in the Waikato ia to be desired, and any btcps m tnis direction should meet with the success it deserves. Fiom time to time wo have to record suits commenced in our local courts by one neighbour against -another for trespass of pigs It is well that it should be understood that damage done to any garden or orchard by these animals can bo rectified in two ways : let, by shooting the pigs, and 2nd by suing for compensation for the injury mflictod. Tho "Protection of Grardana Act-," (Provincial), evpressly provides for the destruction of pigs, goats, and all kinds ©f domestic fowls, which shall be trespassing in or upon any garden or orchard round which a fence, constructed in accordance with tho fencing acts for the tune being in force in the province, shall be constructed, and leaves an action for damages still open to the destroyer. A case recorded in our columns of to-day should act as a w arning to all fanciers of the porcine tribe. Tho only safe advice to settlers is " keep your pigs at home.' Of course the above mentioned Act does not apply to any enclosures, but gardens and orchards. Almost every day large mobs of store cattle aro to be seen passing through tho Waikato on their way up to some of tbe stations in the up aountry, for the purpose of being fattened for the Auckland market. It has ofcen surprised us that the demand for this description of animals dees not exceed the supply* as tfeariy all those who keep cattle on a large scale, do not even breed them themselves As the populution increases, and the country is opened up, and other station-holders come into the market and bay cattle, there will no doubt be a great scarcity, and we think it is time that the attention of our farmers was drawn to this subject, otherwise we shall soon have to commence importing cattle. The only people who appear to go in for breeding at all are the small farmers, who perhaps rear at the most five or six head in a year. We should think qhal in the present state of the cattle market, it would pay to go in for rearing cattle. If it does not do so now wo are incltned to think that it never will. The other day on the road between Hamilton and Cambridge, a stately looking old gentleman was seen quietly cantering; along on his bay cob, when suddenly he stumbled and fell heavily, and tbiew the old party, who turned a complete somersault. After a short time, finding he had again arrived on terra Jirmu, ho got up off the ground, slowly shook himself, nnd gave one or two grunts. Then he looked at the spot where his hor c c had stumbled, anathematised the Road Board, and proceeded on his journey, apparently not much the worse for his mishap. An English paper writes :—": — " A few days ago, the public learned with regret that the young wife of Sir Charles Dilke had expired after giving birth to a child, and son.c surprise was felt when it became known that tbe body of the deceased ,lady wa3 to be removed to Germany. It is now, however, pretty generally understood that eoinc ulterior motive influenced Sir Charles when he decided on this step. Previous to the removal the body was ptrtially embalmed, under the direction of a well-known monumental sculptor residing near Kensal Green, who has since proceeded to Vienna (where the remains of the late Lady Dilke will ultimately be conveyed), for tho purpose of superintending the necessary details previous to the cremation of the body. In all probability the task has been by this time duly completed. We believe this is the first instance which has occurred m high life of the adoption of Sir Henry Thompson's plan for the disposal of dead bodies." Wifch reference to tho Hist case of crenvition of n liumnn body t eomo dead animals only having b<vn previously experimented upon in Breslau, tho Tagehlati of that city says — " On the 22nd of September, at half-past five in the evening, the cremation of a corpse took place at the new gas works, in tho pieseuce ot a large number of the members of tho Scientific Association. The soft part of the body disappeared in about hall an hour. After an hour the bones and portions of the liver only remained, and these required for complete incineration an hour and ten minutes- The time was somewhat prolonged by the opening of the door for observation, and the consequent admission of cool air into the chamber. The body weighed 70ilbs (German), the ashes about 31bs. The JV. Z Times, tells the following tale of card shaiping in Wellington: — The story goes that two or three " illustrious strangers " have lately c >me to town, probably attracted by the near approach of tho laces at the Hutt and the Wairarapa. They have a passion, on tho course, and any other convenient place for the thiee-card trick, and a partiality for poker, to while aw ay the time of an evening Two or three of them have been lodging in an hotel in town, the landlord of which discouiages gambling, and keeps no cards in his house. One night lately, however, they obtained a pack, and induced the billiard-marker — when all the other inmates were asleep — te indulge in a cheerful game. The marker was not loath, and poker began, After a time, luck probably setting in against him, tho pigeon noticed that one of the cards was mai ked and called attention to it. The trio, in whose hands he was, expressed great astonishment, turned up the card, and though it proved to be the ace of spades, they proposed to destroy it, and torn up it accordingly •was. The gam r went on.^and the stakes weie increased. J.'y and by the pigeon obtained a hand which held, four kings, ami a» it could not be beaten with a pick which now had only three aces, be piled the money on pretty stiff. His opponents weicnot less ready than he was, and coveied the stake? as fast as he increased them. He shewed his Inml with a chuckle, but what was bis astonishment to find that the ' Heathen Chinee ' had found another ace to take the place of the last one, for, lo ! there were the four aces, which of couise won. But the card-men had been clumsy, or precipitate. The marker remembered the fate of the first ace of spades ; a swindle was cletr. But he did not 'go for that heathen Chinee,' he threatened to go for the police instead. An attempt was afterwards made to compromise the matter, and we believe it was successful ; but the police were dissatisfied, and took action on their own account. Two of the three have been summoned. The other it is undei stood, was still in town yesterday, and the probability is that the whole three will this morning have an opportunity of explaining to the Magistrate how thit particular pack of cards happened to have five aces ia it.