The Waikato Times.

Waikato Times, Volume X, Issue 578, 3 February 1876, Page 2

The Waikato Times.

Equal and exact m-stite to all men, Ot v, hate ver state or jk rsuasion, religious or political # # # * # Here shall the PrcHs thfe Pkopi.k's right maintain, Undwcd by liWJucnce and uabnbcd by gain.

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 187-6.

Now that the detectives of the Auckland police have utterly failed in obtaining any clue to the murderer Hare Winiata, how is it that that sealous guardian of the public interests in Auckland and Sensation Monger General, the " Evening Star," has not corao to the l'escue. Now would be a fitting time for the gallant editor, flushed with the victories of doubtful election contevsts, to come to the front and summoning his " thousand armed men " to find them bettor employment than scuttling the " Ringleader," breaking open the bonded stores and by way of impromptu diversion pillaging the warehouses of peaceable shopkeopers en route. The " Star " is always peeking by some sensational stroke to keep itself before the eyes and in the mouths of the frequenters of street corners in Auckland, and hero is a chance for it that would eclipse Brett and his pigeons, his wonderful and heroic rcsctfe of tho drowning boy in Mechanics Bay, or any of tho thousand and one inventions of the fertile brain of tho poet Blackman. Blondin dancing on a rope fifty feet high would not be half the attraction that would Heed as Chaplain and Btett as Colonel commanding their thousand armed men in their search through the country for the Epsom murderer. Then, too, they could take the pigeons with them and forward sensational itoms of information from tinio to time for insertion in the " Star," such as "murderer overtaken by Brett who put salt on his tail, but did not succeed in catching him," or "great excitement in camp this morning — man with black coat and ■wide.iwuko seen riding a suspicious looking horse. Reed and Qeo Staines, gave eh.ise — tlie man, hearing them coming, turned momentarily, gave a cry of alarm and fled at a galop. When overtaken he was found to be a clergyman riding to a distant parishioner's to baptize a sick child and fled in fright not liking the look of his pursuers." Perhaps, however, tho " Star " has taken the samo view of the matter us many other people, that Winiata has given those intelligent sons of Ainik, the Auckland city police, whose logs are certainly the most important and noticnble poition of thorn, the go-by, and that he is already beyond pursuit and has anived at the King Country. Rut then another opportunity for sensation comes in. Whore is Sir George Grey that ho dors not at or.oo proceed to Hiknrangi, rub noses with Tawhiao, put a pair of h-indcuffs on Winiata, and bring him back into Auckland at his saddle girths. Wh it an oppoitimity for an ovation to Sir r/oorge.r /oorge. In what glowing description of his personal daring might not our evening contemporary indulge. T uc, tho offico of thief-taker or even of the capturer of a murderer is not exactly that usually undertaken by ex-governors, superintendents, and Knight Commanders of the B.ith. 15ut then Sir Geoigo is so obliging, lie never allows private feeling to stand between himself and public duty. He would sooner sacrifice the instincts of a gentleman and hear read and act upon the private'jlettcrs of another gentleman to whom ho was politically opposed than that anything there might chance bo in them desirable for tho public to know should not be made known. It is nonesenso to suppose, after the manner Sir George acted in the BrißsendenMacdonald affair, that he would let any mistaken scruples of pride, station, or honor, stand in the way. Ho is above such littleness. We believe that it has only to be suggested to him to cause him to start for tho King country to-morrow, single handod, and bring back AViniata dead or alive. If tho " Star" recommends it ho will go ; wo are quite certain of that, and all we ask for in return for tho suggestion is that our special correspondent, for the benefit of the readero of the Waikato Timks shall bo allowed to accompany him.

But little business, it will be seen, woa done yesteiday at the Hamilton Church meeting, the question being vovy properly raised whether ib was advis ible that the annual meeting should bo held at an hour of the day (3 o'clock) when working men, members of the church, were by their avocations naturally precluded from attending and taking part in the governing business of the Church to which they bo long. It was urged by those opposed to tho adjournment till Wednesday evening noxt at seven o'clock, that the working men of the district would prove themselves utteily unworthy of the consideration shown them, and that ib would bo found that the twelve or thirteen persons then present would bo found to be tho largest of the two. That tho working men of Mam - ilton, members of the Church of England, will give this statement of their <onemies a flat denial by their attendance on Wednesday,, evening next, we most earnestly trust. That there was only one *uch present, a workman of Mr Vialou's, shows cleaily enough that the hour interfered with tho possibility of their being there. There is too much apathy, however, shown by persons of all classes in public matters of this kind, as witness tl*» discreditable affair of the School Committee election on Monday, a disgrace to Hftoailtoa *ud a <

burlesque upon local self-government. On Wednesday night, the Church racmbors will be called upon to elect a Church-war-I den, and to decid-e whether they shall | elect, what Hamilton ought to have had all along to assist the Church-waulens aud [ keep them in check, a parish vestry or Ohmch committee of some seven members. Churehwaidenship hitherto seems to have been a sort of autocratic form of Government, a power even behind the pulpit, as witness the manner in which yesterday's meeting was called without even consulting the clergyman, whose right it was to haye oalled it. As the Auditor could not be piosent next week the meeting proceeded with Ihe business so far ns to receive and pass the accounts, the manner of keeping which, reflected most creditably on Mr Vialou, but it acted very lightly, we think, when, in opposition to his motion for proceoding at )once with the business, it agreed to tlvc amendment for adjournment, and deferred the elect-ion of church officers for the next twelve months to an hour of the day at which the bulk of the Church people could best afford the time to tako part in it. There has been enough of class legislation here in the past, but, please God, we will put our foot on its neck and keep it thero. This, however, we cannot do, if those "whoao cause we espouso will not shake off their apathy and disinclination to help themselves. It is not of Church matters alone that we speak, but of local self-government generally, Education Boards, lload Boards, and the like. It is too late to cry out when money is foolishly expended and rates are gone. Those who are called upon to find the money must lock the door before bhe steed is stolen and provide against mismanagement by the election of proper officers, and not con tont themselves with grumbling when the mischief is done.

SroHTiNa. — It is rumoured in sporting circles that a match between tho well-known horses Bcnathnl.ith nnd Bedouin i«j being negotiated for a hundred pounds a-side, nnd I hat it is probablo the event will take place during race wc'k.

Onwabb to Victory Lodge, I O G T. — The following olJice-boarerß in connection with tho nbove Templar Lodgo were installed for tho quiuter cmhng April 30 :— WCT, Bro Good ; WVJ\ Bro Kraser ; Wd, Bro J O Browno ; P.S, Bro Donovan; WT, Bro Jones; WO, Bro J Longbottom ; WM, Bro Cooke ; "WIG, Bro Be tors; WOGr, Bro Pointer; WDM, Br.j Jos Petty : RHB and LHS, Siaters Jones ; Lodge Deputy, Bro Lewis O'Neill, PWCT.

Valuable Imported Siibrf. — Our enterprising fellow settler Mr W L Martyn, has reoently purchased from Mr Alfred Btickland in Auckland, four valuable imported Lincoln rams and one ewe. They aro from the celebrated flock* of Mr Kirkham and MrClarkoof We*ton, le-Wuld-Linoolnshire, England. We are glad to hop some of tho •uporior imported stock of this clnss coming Wiukato-wards. Tho examplo » one which would not only bo of advantage at once to the purchasers themselves, but after a while to tho diitrii-t generally.

Bankruptcy Gazrttes. — A Correspondent asks us licnr it is that notice of tv recent b»nkruptcy case adjudicated upon in the local Court nt Hamilton, *aa never adrort'sed in tlio local paper, and proceeds to animadvert upon what lie calls the omission, winch in hia ouse is not to be wondered at though his remarks haro no si.nifieanco under tin circumstances. The notices were published in nn Auckland paper simply bocauie th« W~*ikato Times has not been proclaims 1 a Gazette undor tlio Bankruptcy Act. Tlie proprietors have applied more th<»u once, we believe, for iucli proclamation to be Diadf, and it certainly does seem abs'ird tliat with a Bankruptcy Court sitting in tlio centre of the Waikato di«t nets for adjudication in such ciBo3 thaMbo notices should bo published in an Auckland pap*r only. The matter is one wo can easily undi'i stand, of public inconTenience, for except for use at some of the hotels Tery few Auckland paper* enter the district, most people here caring as httlo for Auckland as for Diinodm news. Under tho circumstancts we cannot but think that llio authontics will do well to re-con-suler their deLißion and in the caie of bankruptcies occurring in the district and wticli will bo hpaid in the local court give local notice of auch intention

The Kati Kati Murder — The onlj news, says the " Herald " Correspondent, I hare to omraunicate is about tho mihresof this distiiet, who aie at tho presont timo very pouri (».f., durk) about tho murder of tho native Petera Koikoi, who was killed nt Tairua by Hipinini, a relation of Toniniha, who is supposed to have been mokuluod, or bowitchcd, by tho murdered man Koikoi Iho natives hero say that this mukes hia fourth victim by witchcraft, and that his deuth is a just one. The murdered man be longs to the Unwcras, a very powerful tribe south of Tanranga, hence the pouri of tho friends of the murderer. They aro not willing to Rive their man up to justice, and are afraid if they do not that tho Uriworas will come horo and kill some of thoir number as utu (paymont). Tho chief of this district has already telegraphed to Sir Donald McLean, asking for arms and ammunition to defond thmnselves against an attack. Tho natives are already aisoinbled at Bowentown, and expect Mr Commissioner Olarko to arrive there to discuss the matter. I might say that tho natives of this district do not muster mure than about 100 men. The settlers are not in the least concerned about tho probable disturbance, as it will be purely amongst tho natives, although the natives huvo told me that if tho pohco interfere to arrest the murderer, they will be Hrcd into, so that wo hardly know how tilings will go as yet. My own opinion is, that the murderer mil vory shortly bo handod over to the authonties, and crcntually take his trial in the Supreme Couit.

. Kkqistrii ! and now to t>o it. — 3no month out of three nllowed to duly qualify persons for the purpose of registering themselves as electors haa passed, and still we behove nothing has boon dono in the matter of organising a Koform Assocmlion, or of setting in motion any local machinery in difTeront parts of the district to secure the registration of asinanj electors as possible. There must havo been hundred* during the lato contest who felt acutely enough thoir utter inability to influenco tho return one wjiy or the other, and these at any rato, it may bo supposed, will not lot this month or neit pass "by without duly regiiUsring themselves ; and even though tho general elections havo just taken placo, no man can say how soon Waikato or Waipa may not be called upon again to return a member. At nny rato should triennial parliaments be mtroducod, tho neit general election will occur before a ponod of tho very groatest concern to (he welfaro of tho colony, the termination of the great pastoral leases, wlwu it will bo the duty of every constituencyto return men opposod to any squatting monopoly and who will sco that in tho re-leasing of the public lands tin best terms are obtained fertile people, and thut thol»nd is left, ns now, unfetterod for fret) settlement- In the matter of registering at tho present time, wo donre to point out to intending electors tint all forms of application must bo lent in addrosaed to tho Retarmng Officer, Resident Magistrate's Court, Hamilton ; or to W. N Sonrancko, Esq, the Returning Officer, at his private residence, Ngaruawahia — th<» only Registration ofiiio for tho two districts, Waiknto and Wnipa, being at Hamilton. In filling in the hoading of tho application, the district must be specified either oa Waikato or Waipa, as the case may be, not Waikato East or Waikato West. Suoh districts being not known officially, the Applications thut headed would be throw* atide u infwmii.