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Waikato Times, Volume X, Issue 752, 12 April 1877, Page 2

At the meeting of the Waikato Agricultural and Pastoral Association held on Tuesday, it will be seen that it was resolved to hold the annual Exhibition in the Autumn, instead of the Spring as last year, the reasons for making this change given by those who advocated it being, that at that season more farm produce in the way of exhibits would be forthcoming. This is quite correct as far as it goes, but then we must be content to sacrifice one of the most important exhibits of the district to secure this, namely, that of sbeep. Our prize sheep, of which the Waikato is justly proud, will scarcely be worth exhibiting in Autumn with their wool shorn. At the same time the Autumn exhibits of produce are of equal importance. Between the two there is no compromise and the only way out of the difficulty is to do that which, was proposed and rejected at Tuesday's meeting, bold both a Spring and Autumn Show, This would of course entail upon the Committee and some of the more active working members of the Association additiouul work in canvasing for subscriptions as a double set of prizes would be necessary, but surely the district is wealthy .enough and able to meet this difficulty. Nay, we need say nothing further on that score, for we make bold to say that some of the very men who voted for the Autumn Show intend that Waikato shall not be without its Spring Show, even though unconnected with the Agricultural aLd Pastoral Association. Money will be forthcoming for prises then, an 4 why not for a second annual show under the auspicious of the Waikato Association? We should be indeed

sorry if the Waikato Pastoral and Agricultural Association has been killed by a side blow, but to tell the truth it looks much like it. Local Shows, as we have pointed out before, will not be a success. The district has outgrown such a state of things, and the attempt to resuscitate it will evoke an unmistakeable action on the part of the general public that will ensure its being so. Ohaupo has been chosen as neutral ground, whether wisely or not, as the place where the Waikato Agricultural Shows shall be held, and if its isolated though central position be an obstacle to success, by all means let our Agricultural Exhibition be a peripatetic one Let the locality where it be held be even chosen by lot, but let it be a Waikato Exhibition, not a merely local one. With two Shows in a year, one in Spring and one in Autumn, we should not be long in giving each principal settlement a turn, still preserving the cosmopolitan character of the exhibition. Uuless we preserve this our Agricultural Associations will bring us more of ridicule than credit. Since the meeting, we have heard some talk of its being contemplated to call a special general meeting of the members of the Association to consider the question of having two shows.during the yeai*, as it is felt by the settlers generally that although an Autumn Show is desirable in the interests of a large number, a Spring Show is nevertheless, in the interests of sheep breeders and exhibitors, a necessity.

Elsewhere we publish the correspondence between the Thames County Council and the Chairman of the Waitoa Highway Board in reference to the opening up of the country between the Waikato river and the Thames with a good passable road. Really this means, as far as it goes the connection of Grahamstown with the Waikato counties and all intervening country, and the matter is one which concerns, not only the Thames County and Waitoa Highway district, but Waipa and Waikato counties also. The latter county will doubtless do its duty in the matter ; that of Waipa is a nonentity. In his reply Major George states that the Waitoa Board has already expended some i; 700 upon portions of this road. The full sum, we believe- would be nearer £9OO. Several miles of swamp road have, been made and four bridges of sawn timber. A considerable sum was promised to the Waitoa Board by the General Government but not a penny of it has been received, and the consequence is that the Waitoa Board, instead of being in a position to put the road into a complete' state of repair and efficiency, is in debt on account of what it has already done, relying on the promise of Government assistance towards the undertaking. '1 he keepiug the road in repair now that it is made is no slight matter, our readers will under stand, when we tell them that one week with another sixty head of cattle are sent along it from the Waikato settlements to supply the meat market of Grahamstown. The very -last lot that passed through were from Te Bapa in the Waipa County. Were Piako really a county, working the Act, it might in conjunction with the Waikato County and the Thames proceed in the matter ; but just as Waipa county is split up and excluded from healthy action by local jealousies, so the" Piako county is coffined and the lid kept down by the demon of the rotten borough system which gives to two landowners in the county the two votes which return three members to the County Council. Mr Firth owns one riding and Mr Buckland another. Mr Firth's manager is qualified to vote, and between them they return two members for Matamata. Mr Buckland is the only landowner in Patatere riding, and as he could not well propose and second himself, the matter had to be left to Government nomination. Were Piako county polled to-morrow the majority of the rattpapers would be found in favour ol working the Act.

There is no doubt that in all fairness the cost of forming and maintaining a road between the Waikato river and the Thames should fall in certain proportions on the counties benefitted, and these are the Thames, Piako, Waikato, and Waipa. To wait and see how the Act works in other counties before working it in one's own may sound very well in theory, but when put in practice it resolves itself into using the road but shirking the duty of paying for what it uses caution becomes well, we will not say what.

TENDEBB for about three miles of ditching are called for by Mr Clnlaun* dely, of the Piako. Vaccination.—Dr Beale informs us that he will be vaccinating every Monday at his residence at 2 o'clock for two or three we§ks. Lated and Kiektvood. —All accounts against the late firm of Laird and Kirkwood of Cambridge, must be enfc in to the National Hotel to Mr Hugn Kirkwood by the 20th instant when the books will be closed.

Tjsib*e for Watkato. —We understand thiit the Waikato Steam Navigation Cpmpany ejpoet to shortly receive from the Kaipara a oons-ignm-nt of 50,000 f. en of timh«-r, all h< art • f kami.

Waste Lands, Waikato Heads.— At d meeting of the Au<-klind Waste Lands Board hrld on Tue*d«y, a leLter was received from H C Young, asking the Board to off«r for public sale at an upset price of 5a per acre the Kororoum:inui Block, at Waikato Heads, 2,240 acigs in extent. The Surveyor's report haying b o en read, it was decided that the land should be termed second-clas«, an I sold by public auction in lots of 320 acres each.

A. 0. MOVEMENTS.—We understand that it has been decided by the Got eminent to move the headquarters of the A C Force in Waikato to the Frontier, and I hit Col Lyon has received instructions to fix either upon Cambridge or Alexonda as his future place of residence.

The Railway, Mercer to Newcastle. —Mr Fallon, the contractor, is getting on fast with the comp'etion of the permanent way between Mercer and Newcastle, some sixteen miles, half tho' distance between those two points, have been balasted, and a good deal of work which remained to be done about Rangiriri has been completed. Full 200 loads of ballast stuff has been taken daily from the quarry, and Mr Fallon expeotß to have ttie work finished some little while within the contraot time, when the Government will at once open it for traffic. It is satisfactory to learn that the loose and shaky | artßjof the line about Rangiriri where it passes through the swamp are becoming more firm and consolidated every day.

As Tomatoes are now ripe, the follow" ingrecipes for making sauce and "chutney may be of interest to many :—" For tomato sauce, take 91b of tomatoes, sprinkle them with salt, and let them remain for two days ; boil tbem until the skins sparato from them easily, then pulp them through the colander, leaving the skins behind. To the pulp add 4 ounces of shallots, chopped fine, 1 drachm cayenne papper, 2 do. ground white 2 do. grated nutmegs, i oz - mixed spice, i oz ground ginger. Bod the whole together for two hours j then add 6 ounces strong aoetio acid, j pint best sherry; cool, bottle, . and cork very securely. For Tomato Chutney, take 3 quartz tomatoes, 6 drachms cayenne pepper, lib coarse brown sugar, lib sultana raisins, 6oz salt, fib garlic, 6oz mustard seed, B<-z strong acetic acid. Rub the tomatoes through a colander. I'o the pulp,, when strained, add the raisins chopped, and garlic sliced very fine. . Slightly bruise the mustard seed, and mix iu a mortar with the sugar, salt, and spices j gradually add ■■ them to the tomatoes. Boil the whole for two or three hours, constantly stirring; lastly, add the acetic acid ; cool, bottle, and cork.

a. Toothsome Subject op Soahdal Before one enters upon a career of martyrdom, says the London Correspondent of the • Argus,' it is absolutely necessary to possowß a name not open to ridicule. If Mr Tooth, the Ritualist, were the most exalted character of the age it would be impossible for bitn to stem the tide of riaicule that playß about him. Suppose au Englishman of the name of Buggins —even a Cardinal Buggina—should be ma le Pope, what other , Englishman—even the most devout of Catholics—would care to kiss his toe ? Mr Tooth is never mentioned as ' Tooth ' pure and Bitnple • he is the ' Tooth that ought to be pulled out,' ' the hollow Tooth,' ' the Tooth that must be stopped.' Even if his ways were not funny, to begia with—which they certainly are—he oould never make head against these showers of contemptuous fuu. The llitualiats do not understand, of couwe, how ridiculous their behaviour i 9 to those to whom it is uot offensive ; but it is the height of folly in them to join their faith to their present idol, litt them subscribe a few pouuds to buy him letters patent to enable him to change his name, aud then run him ugain for the same stakes, like tne whitewashed three year old in Yoikshire. As matters stand, he has nut a fair chance from the starting post. It must have been at St. James's, Hatcham, or some similar place where such antics are practiced, that a lady of my acquaintance took a servant some time ago, whom she h*d lately imported from the Highlands 'Well, Jeaunie,' inquired she as they walked homo together, 'and how did you like the service?' 'Eh, maam, it was beautiful j but what an awfu' way of spending the Sabbath !'

Kefbrking to the late reported fail in wool, the « New Zealand Times ' says : There are some taeis in connection with the fall in the price of wool recently telegraphed from London which when considered will show that the prices which ruled at the close of last sales can hardly be taken as affecting New Zealand so much as be at first supposed. It will have b; en noticed that at the last sales very little New Zealand wool was catalogued, and that the deolioe in price was said to have been confined to the very inferior sorts. Now, a large quantity of Australian wool was catalogued, and in memory of the severe droughts which affected ihe sister colonies this season, it is not difficult to guess that the'wool sent Jiome from there would be of a very inferior quality ; indeed, so poor as almost in itself to account for no small proportion of the fall in pric-3 recorded. It is pretty evident that wo must wait until this season's wool from New Zealand has bten submitted to competition before we can pronounce definitely as to how far the last reported decline in the price of wool will affect this colony ; and as there has been a most favourable season in New Zealand; it is reasooa.leto suppose that we have not much to fear.

A Wideawake Pahson.—A London cou-espondenn of the Melbourne "Argus" tells the following story of a Hospital Sunday which shows that the clergy are aware*of the "tkklish" nature of commercial credit. The rector of Baytiwater parish read out, before his discourse, a letter which he said he had received from one of his congregation, it was a case of conscience—"lam apparently well off," said the writer, but 1 am in fact on the verge of bankruptcy, I should like to put my usual contribution —a £o-nute— into your plate to-morrow, but I feel that it is reall giving away the money of my creditors. What am Ito do ?" The clergyman said he advised the gentleman to j*ive nothing. " and i give tb6 same advice, dear friends, to you, if any of you are unhappily in the like position. Those on the other hand, who are in j.ojd circumstances will, I am sure,' give in proportion to their means," It proved the largest col.'e.tion that this wise rector had ever made.

In the course of the recent work at Pompeii, in the corner of a street a common inn has been excavated. There is the bar with the vessels of clay let into it, and a small back room. In wall paintings are to be seen men drinking and gambling, clad in the people's coatume. Various inscsiptious are added to it, to copy which permission has not beeu given yet. A barmaid is also represented in the painting, a flagk and a glass to two guest", one of whom," according to tlw inscriptions. Bays "Ttiat'a n>t mine," the barmaid rep'yina, " He who ikus will take it." A souffle and scrimmage between hj« two men, graspiu-.: each others hair is the suhj ot of a further painting. A third uiau pulling one of thi t*<> others out by the tunic ex claims, '* Out with you I Better, quarrel before the door J" In another bouse built ani decorated in a beautiful styl«, an inscription hud been scrawled on the wall of one of the rooms running thus : "Thyrsi 1 take care not to love Fortuna'm, Farewell!" In short these fresh exc vatious have the effect of placing the spectator most vividly in presence of Roman life—of humm life as it has been in antiquity, as ifi always has been, anJ 99 it is now.

SiMJTiiEUN Bri&an.dage —On Friday the ' Herald ' reported that the land sales in Canterbury, for the month of March, r- aohed the handsome figure of £90.000. He who says that the Land Fund, which yields in one Southern province at the rate of over a million a year, is not worth striving to make in practice what It 's in right and justice, the property of the whole co'ony, talks like one who judgez his hearers to be fools and blind. Thr Late Cambridge Spoets.—We have be"n requested to publish tho decision (f the r< •■rees, Majo>|Drummond Hay, and Mr Ctiarles Cbitty as follows : —" With reefrence to the protest entered by JR Huttou, against the decision on th<3 Cup race we are of opinion that the said protest cannot be entertained, in as much as {the race was ruu in accordance with the original arrangement made by the stewards In the walking match the judges diaqualifi}' Robert Swayne. his walking not being fair heel and toe." Messus Walsh" and Goodwin; butchers of Ngaruawahia, are it will be seen prepared to supply the inhabitants of that township and, district with meat of the primest quality. Their advertisement commences with the remark that. " Great is the fall thereof," but whether the fall spokt-n of.refers to Ngaruawahia,. the butchers their rivals, or the price of the meat they themselves sell,is left.to conjecture ; probably to the moa,t so that the people of Ngaruawahia can-indulge in the.primest quality and cut at the lowest prices, a combination of advantages which Bbould give a fair share of trade to Messers Walsh at;d Goodwin.

ASBESSMENTjCOrjRT, RAGLAN COUNTY Notice is given by the assessment Judge, W Harsant, Esq., thai, the valuation of' the outlying districts of Te Akan, Karamui, Parish of Waipa, Wangape* and Onewhero, are now- competed. All object ons must be sent in to the Assessment Court. Raglan, on or before the 7th proximo. The places where the rolls of the several districts may be inspected, and the dates on which thu Assessment. Courts will be held are notified also in the advertisement, So far as the more settled districts of the Raglan County are concerned there was buc one appeal lodged against the rating.