The Waikato Times.

Waikato Times, Volume X, Issue 557, 14 December 1875, Page 2

The Waikato Times.

Equal and exact justice to all men, Of whatever state or persuasion, religious or political * * # # # Here shall the Press the People's right maintain, Fnawcd by influence ami unbribed by gain.

TUESDAY, DnCJMBIJR 14, 1875.

The river is fast going clown, and by the time this readies onr readers will probably be little above its nsu.il level. Prom all parts of tbe distiict accounts continue to be receiver! of the dumagr\ A very lienvy loss has been sustained in Waikato, both in respect to the damage done to public works and to the property ot individuals. Many of the brides which have not been utterly destroyed have received more or less injury, and will need a considerable expenditure upon them to put them in a fit state of repair. Others again, gone altogether, are works of such public importance that they will need to be at once replaced. To repair damage and open even the main lines of communication will be utterly beyond the means of the several local bodies. No amount of special rate that could possibly be levied would be sufficient to make good the damage. 'Upon the Provincial Government should "rail the cost of re-constructing the majority Af these works, but the Provincial Government is insolvent. In such case it is to*the Colonial Government that we must JooTe to come to our assistance, and no time should therefore be lost by the proper local authorities in drawing official attention in detail to the damage to public works, -which has been caused by the late floods. Every day that passes, leaving the Wa.ikato districts cut off from one another and from the capital, as they now are, is a .serious kiss to the community. The sooner representations are made in the proper quarter the sooner will the work of re -construction be commenced. It will be the duty therefore of the seveial Highway Boards to take stock of the damage done in their respective districts, and make anr official report. There may be some little circi iralocution before active operations are convmenced ; but there is little doubt but that- the Colonial Governmedt will recognise its responsibility in the matter. It is hiowever desirable that there shall be as lit tJe reasonable excuse -for' delay in itsdoimj- so as possible.

A. week ago we dre y attention to tbe neglect on the part of *ihe authorities of •a vaecessary public wo rk which is absolutely required for the prosperous settlement of an ira port ant portion of the Waikato — the road fro ai V Raglan to the Waipa — and recommen< iefl the Defence Minister to make the se rvices of a party of' the 'Armed Constabula .ry- available for the purpose. A correspo ndent has suggested the employment of 1 lative labour at the Raglan end of the line, nor do we see why the services of the Ma ori should not be made use of, whether fri. ?nlly natives or Hauhau. Let us have the * toad made, — that is the -chief point, and the sooner the better. Only so late as* Wednesday last, we understand, no less than twenty persons from the Waik. it© visited Raglan for the .purpose of lookii igtfor land under the homestead act, bat the majority of them were discouraged from sc »tfJteinent on acconnt of the utter impractii Mlity of the present road, and want of faith ti the intention of the Government to preside a better. What is needed is a new line of road altogether. From Waitetuna to the ra nges, a distance of nine miles, the road is 1 svel, though the bridges dl need renew iiogThreo n ilf>s of fhe road, through tlie ranges to Koqi*?ngi by the present line <flf road is a c*ntio&,to travellers, and ea ib. neveg/oo made tit for. e^pveyaaces of aa\*

kind. That this however is the only line to be obtained must not for a moment be supposed. Some years since ?*lajor Heaphy surveyor! a line known as the Mangakahu line, which is shorter by several miles, and wus free from any steep ascent. It is supposed, however, that the best line has not yet been hit upon, and the finding of a goofl road by which to give inland communication to .Raglan is of such importance that we would earnestly recommend to the Government, in view of undertaking such a work, to lose no time in offering a snita'bie reward for the disco\ cry of the best line available. The settlers of Kaglan have a right to look for such consideration. N earl 7- -we believe we might say the whole of the, land in the district unowned by individuals' is Provincial land, and thousands of acres have from time to time been sold, the cash for which has gone to swell the Provincial treasury, while very little in return has been expended on the district. Perhaps there is no other district in the Province which in proportion to its population contributes so largely to the General Revenue, owing- to the quantity of dutiable goods consumed by the natives and purchased from the local storekeepers. To put Raglan off with a subsidised weekly steamer to the Manukau is to leave it to its present t ie of isolated barbarism, and to treat it as though it were not what it really is, an important portion of the "Waikato di-strict.

Tenders are, as will be seen, required for draw ing some 50,000 feet of timber to certain railway bridges. Waikato Gcw Club.— -A meeting of the members is called for to-morrow evening at the Hamilton Hotel, P* Caru U advertised ro appear at Alexandra this evening, where ha will deliver one of his phr<>no-me<«mpric seances. Cambridge Farmer's Club.— The monthly mee'ina is announced to be held this evening ■»♦; the National Hotel. Thr Hamilton Extfrtainjievt Coanfrrrrci! will gire their next entei-taioment on Monday evening next a' the Courfc-house. Nknv 1.0. G.T. Lodge.—A me ting will be held in the Weslevan Chapel this evening at half-pnst seven o'clock, for the purpose of opening a Lodge in conn-c'uion with the 10.G.T, "Member* of t' i e order aj*e requested to attend, Lecturb on Egypt. -The Rer Mr McOr»y delivered an intere ting lecture last night in tht Court-house to tolerably well filled b* noli^s. A rote of thanki to the lecturer terminated the proceedings.

Musical Entertainment at Cambridge. — I The members .and friends of th« Roman G'aHiolic Church at Cambridge intend giving a musical and dramatical entertainment in aid of the funds of the Church in the school-room at Cambridge on the 22nd instant. Sunshine and Storm. — Mr Low, photographer, has put on reooi-d a photographic description of the effects of the late floods, and has now on sale riews of the river during the recent floor!, and of the wreck of the Jambrid^e bridge a* it lies at aachoi at No. 1 bridge, down the river.

Cambridge Cavalry VoiFNTEER9.-Sitimi.iy next find SntnnToy the BMI of January next are the two days fixed on which the comptition "will take Tplaco, by whifh the represent itivea to compete for the colonial prizes of 1876 will be cho«en. The firing will t'ik« place on eich of these (hivs at 10 a m., at the butts, C/Hizibririge, Pcvbbv Sun l». — A notice appears in the Auckland papan asi»in<j for tenders for the purchasing and boiHn^ dotrn of from 127,000 to I 30,000 sc-il>hy slipep in the Ka«t Co»ot dishict. As »)>e no' ice is signed by Mr IT 8 Kemp, Civil Cotnini«s?onor, if is probable that those alieep belong to the natives. Thk Onvrpo Sat,w. — Olmupo will be the centre of attraction in YTnikato to da}', Mr Alfred Bnckland luOding Inrce sales of sheep, cnfct'o, horse and fni"n implements. Thi sale is advert i-^ed to eojumenee at noon. After the business i-* over Mr Cox will addresathe electors prpsent.

C'AMBHinrjw .Annual Raci:s.— A programme of New Yoai'a Day races and uporfs, ?s they will bo Jielii at C.vmb 'idge on Mr Taylors farm, will be found at fnU length in our adrertisin^ i columns. There are, it will be «een, soni') sit ' hoise r.ices, the sfcnk^a vnry ; n% from two to ton sovereigns Wo unrierstand that tome good sport may be exnected. Wilson v Waitoa Uiquwat Boahd. — Tn onr repo -fc ef the case of appeal, Wilson t Waiton Hi^hw.7y Boird, instead of Mr Whitaker appearing for Mr Hfiy on b^haH' of th© plaintifT. it should hive read. Mr Wnitaker nppearod on behalf of appel'ant, Mr Hay was the solicitor for the respondent. The costs in furor of respondent have tinea been fixed at £9 Is fid. I.O.GKT,— At a meeting of the Hope of WaiUato Lod>je, on Thursday ni'jht, three delegates were appointed to confer with delrgites of the other j&d es in tbo district relative to holding a picnic during the Christmas holiday?. Sobriety ought to be one of the greatest Tirtnes of the Waitato people, for there are no less than six Templar Lodges existing and in contemplation in f lic district, baring nearly 300 members in crood standing on their honk?. Our Almanac. — We would remind those of our r^'dera who wish to n^cure aspa.ee in onr Sheet Aim mic for 1876 that they should send in their orders without clolay, as our advertising space is nearly filled ia, and the work is already in the prhrers' hands. .Besides maui'ig it an excellent advertising me Hum, it is in' ended that the Almanac ahull con rain tables of postal arrangements, SJn and moon, &c, and a la^ge amount of agricultural and geneial nieful intelligence, suitable for a dibfc'-t'ct aurb as the Waikato Ifc will be belter adapted for advertising thin a book alnrinac, as it will be uaivevsally circulated, tvery houspin the district being supplied with a copy gratis. We again remind intending advertisers to come to the fore with as little delay as possible

The Elevation of takd iir tub Waikaio District. — At the meeting of the Auckland Institute on Mondaj, Mr J Stewart, O.E. read a abort paper on the elevation of m (be Waikato His attention had been diroofced to the subject Drue pacfcicula^ly in sinfc'nj for one of the cylinder! for the Waikato Bridge at Nganuwahia Mr Stewart gave numerous instances of the great chants which hare taken place in the Waikato —referring to the sub-aquean forest, of irhich a specimen of the wood to be obtained fiere was exhibited, and which pro Ted the existence of the kauri in the Waikato at a peried of remote antiquity. In some parbs ef "the river the strata were clearly defined, and showed by their formation that they were deposited by the soa. Allusion was also made to the evidences which exist of the rivers Waihou and Waikato having at one tins flowed in the »atnc channel. The Hamilton West School Hottse. — The school-maafcer is abroad in Hamilton West with a vengeance. On Saturday next the enhoooli house will be sold by public auotion, and though none will he sorry to see this specimen of the early architecture of Hamilton removed out of the way, it is a somewhat serious mutter when looked at from another point of view. What we are to do for a school-bouse. It is scarcely lilcly t hat we shall be able to %t a new building erected by the time the holidays are ov<*r, bnt as little deUy «a possible should be allowed to tak« place, and tho*e who intend assisting Mr D^nvera by adding their ntmes to his subscription list towards the cost of erecting the new building about Idoso at once. Anoiher five and twenty or Ihirfy pounds and the thing is done. It is n>w anionlh since the people of Hamilton have had anything in the shapo of a •muxi^al enterfninment and ?urely a suns of at least. £10 or £12 could be nettei in aid of the !-6cho'»] funcU by auch means. 4 „

The Kelbujunjb and Mkeoeh Coal Company.—The opening of these tninej bai boon celebrated by a dinner giren to the workmen by the proprietor Mr Poote. At tue dinner it was otated in reference to the mine, that so.ne time azo a Government enginoar informed Mr Foite that he had neither coal nor iron npo» his property, while at the same time there are thonsmnds of tons of tho forme,*, while of the latter he has «nee been info mod by a geologist that there it more iron thin goal, and an opening for I7ork forthoustnda of men. Mr Footo it would seem has not only got coal, but a really good mine. The s^am of coal is, at present, cut into about 22ft, and the bottom of the same has not yet been reached. Under the present management the coal from this miae will noon find its way to Auckland, and then the pnblio can judge for themselfes as to its quality. <