The Waikato Times.

Waikato Times, Volume XIV, Issue 1179, 17 January 1880, Page 2

The Waikato Times.

Equal and exact Justice to all men, Of whatever Btateor persuasion, religions or political. H^re shall the Press the People's right maintain i' - < ! I Unawedby influence and unbribed by gain

SATURDAY, JANVART 17, 1880.

We have patieutly waited, lest wq might be charge! with partiality, umil the last great feature of the Waikato festivities brought the holidays to a close) to draw attention to a matter which deeply affects *he interests of the district. As an agricultural community the months of J>ecember, Jauuary and February, are the busiest in the year. A day or two, or a week even, at seed time may mean no great -matter; bat at harvest the loss of a day even may cause irreparable injury and peril the work and outlay of a season. Christmas and New Year's Day are fixed holidays which we cannot alter, but theie is no need that we should prolong them as hah been done this season into the middle January — into Ul9 very heart of the harvest. There are none who more thoroughly enjoy a race meeting than ourselves, none who more fully recognise the value, in a national point of view, of keeping up the old sports and pastimes of the Fatherland, the exercise of which has more than anything else contributed to maintain, the sturdy hardihood and vigor which are the characteristics of the Anglo-Saxon race. But we do protest against the manner in which .these sports so, desirable in themselves, are made a positive bane to the community, and we call upon the Waikato settlers themselves to enter a sturdy protest against its recurrence. Redress lies entirely in their own hands. Let them as a body refuse to support any racing club, either with their subscriptions, or race meeting with their presence, and insist that no race meeting shall be held earlier than the end of February or the beginuing of March. It is not a matter simply of a couple or three days on which the races are actually held. The efiect this year has been that the labor market has been unsettled, not fora few days, but for fully three weeks. From Christmas Day until yesterday lus been one prolonged saturnalia throughout which many, and had money bepn more plentiful very many more would have kept up a round of idleness and pleasure, and this too in a season when the exceptional variableness of the weai her caused so much to depend on taking advantage of a single day or even hour. Nor is it alone in the interest of the settlers that we wriie, but in that of the labouring classes also. All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy, but there is the other extreme to be avoided, and numbers of families will feel the pinch for weeks to come of 'he folly which has kept the bread-wiinor idling about from one week to . another since Christmas. The early settlers knew the advantage of putting their holidays off to a convenient season, and old colonists will remember— we speak of a quarter of a century ago — when the Auckland races were held on the

Queei.'s Birthday in Conrtenay'i .H*" j* E,Hon,- Auckland then, as Waik ato is now, a farmiira district, and the pioneers of tlup day set us m example in this matt4| which we should do well to follow. 1 N tthit we arould recommend the fixing a day so late in tho season as th«24th of May, for fine weather . J \ u j j a cannot always then be depended upon. On the contrary^ it might even be more |nriidtoas< to hold ) the races and the annual "cattle * snoW at iauc ?."" u ...° , n-rx. -----jri. the same time— say in October. At any rate ! 3Q/Ui£ i" more fitting time thaa has this year been chosen must be fixqd OD, not later than the i-,4,- . ■&< i * Imiddle,pt November nor, earlier than the beginning of March, and if tHis be Insisted' upon by the settlers tkom.oltroa tViarA io irprff Hillo foftr themselves, there w very little lear that any racing clnb will attempt to run counter to the expressed wishes of the community which supports .. J ' "• ———mm—mm—mmm

Mb Bebeb, C.E., Besident Engineer at the Thamen, anired'jit Te Aroha on Tuesday last for the purpose of surveying the line through that portion of the * roha block shortly to be offered for sale, and to fix the position of the railway station. It is probable, we understand, that the township will be laid off so soon as Mr Beere has decided on the site for the railway station.

Mb Lxuesnce Cussbn returned to 'Hamilton on. Thursday evening,; a*ter a tour over the Aroha and Matamata distriot with the Lincolnshire , delegates, Messrs Grant and Foster.

Ms Hobxob Baxeb has been appointed Commissioner of Crown' Lands for the Hawke's Bay district. 1 The Honorable the Native Minister and the Minister for Public Works will arrive in Auckland in about a fortnight.

Dbteotivb Doolan, of Waikato, has been promoted ty the rank of second-class sergeant. This rise has been well earned by Deteotive', Doolan, who has shown himself a remarkably smart and clever officer of the foroe, and has become, quite a terror to evil-doers in this part of the country. Wk understand that our readers will shortly have an opportunity of visiting the celebrated Oriental Exhibition, and of investing in curios from the Holy Land. Nearly 20,000 persons visited this novel exhibition in Auckland, and universal satisfaction was .given, not only from the iinterestiug life-like 'sketches and other wonderful exhibits, but from the really valuable presents that are, given away to ah comers. We have heard of more than one lucky recipient, of gifts. If what we hear is trael everybody and his* and her children, likewise " his sisters' and cousins and his aunts," should visit the extraordinary exhibition of. the enterprwi) ing Orientals.

Pastor Cknnouy will leave Auckland for Waikato on Tuesday, and will de iver a lecture in Le Quesne's Hall on Wed nesday evening, at which the Rev Mr £ ra.o3 will preside. He will arrive by the 1 aidlday trainband ,w;ill be, met the station by thVcommitiiee, arid will be presented with an address at the Hamilton Jtlptel. He will proceed on to Cambridge* the same day, delivering an address that* evening at Cambridge, returning 1 to Hamilton on Wednesday. Th* brethren of the Sons of Ulster j Loyal Orange Lodge are summoned, to an emergency meeting on Friday evening ,qi the Victoria HaU. > ■ ; ,

A;sfcMOTJ& acoidejit , occurred the other night to one of the horses belonging to the conti actor running the railway carriages . between the Hamilton Junction iand Hamilton station. By some mischance, as the branch train was being run into the main station the man in charge neglected to turn on the brake, and the carriages ran the horse on till they jammed him up to and over the^ stop posts, outting and severely injuring bin. The lands .advertised for sale in the Waikato district, by' the Wast Lands Commission, will be offered by public

auction on Monday next. Mr Fibth telegraphs that he, yesterday, deposited 50,000 whitefish ova, in splendid condition, in Lake Kotorua.

Mb Kknnedt Hill will offer for sale to-day an eight -acre farm at Hokonui, part fenced and in grass ; also, a quantity of potatoes, kumeras, oats, galvanised iron &c.

Tbndbbs, labour only, for the ereotion of a store in Victoria-street, Hamilton, for Mr Trewheelier, will be received by Mr T. H. v\ bite, architect, up to Wednesday, the 21st inst.

Mbmbebs of the Independent Order of Free Templars will meet this evening at the "Wesleyan Church, Hamilton. Sib Hercules Kobisson, it is stated on the authority of the Australasian^ has sent to Mr Lee, of Sydney, to purchase him a colt or two for his racing stud.

INTERESTING TO BANKRUPTS. -— The Dunedin Star says : — The action taken by one of our local solicitors in the Bankruptcy Court a few days ago has excited immense consternation in certain leading circles. It appears that gentlemen who have found it convenient to take "the benefit of the Act" are by no means absolved from their liabilities, but under the existing law may be called upon, if they have acquired property, to pay up 10s in the £, at any time within 20 years from their bankruptcy. Many snug villas and handsome establishments are in deadly peril, and hungry, long-snffering creditors gaze with malignant eyes at the well turned out equipages which bear their debtors to business or pleasue. After the legal vaoation it may be expected there will be a stirring up of the dead bones in the valley of financial desolation.

Disputed Life Absubance Payment. — After two days' trial, the case of Eliza Jane Thompson v. the Australian Mutual Provident Life Assurance Society came to a conclusion on Wednesday. It was a claim for £2000 being the amount of a polioy on the life of the plaintiff's husband. The polioy was not delivered, but the life had been accepted and the i*eoeipt , given for the half year's premium. The defence was, that the life had been accepted through fraudulent oonceabnent and untruthfulness. The case was tried in the Diatriot Court, before Judge Woston, and a special jury of four. Thirty-sevsn issues were submitted to the jury, who, after four hour's deliberation, returned a verdict for the plaintiff for the amount claimed. Notice of appeal was given.

News of the deportation of the Maori prisoners to Dunedin and Hokitika haa created great exoitement at Parahaka. The feeling is said as yet to be more one of bewilderment than of anger, and the natives are wondering what Te "Whiti will say to it. It is reported that enormous quantities of food and large sums of money have been forwarded lately to Farihaka.

The Tichboubne Claimant. — A telegram published in our last issue says that a fortnight has been granted to arrange for the trial of questions which have been raided in connection with theTichboure case. The questions possibly have to do with the interview between Capt. Barry of New Zealand and tko Ctainrcnt wfcwb tools p>w at tfw pri-

son ii the pnkMnoe of Lord Rivers and Jj£r OnslonfeSHt'ij.of which. th£u following Uireljffisthe fffwiym-wf. with the following [quera^A, 'I s^^ose yp^ jdon't remember Ime JPfi^e Clg&oi^nt looked hard, ,but re,- ' big mob of cattle into Castlemaine in 184 — ?' was the next query. The Claimant looked harder than ever at the tough old vereran. Eventually, remembrance slowly dawned upon the Tichbourne. 1 "Why you must "be Berry— Barry : let me deof Barfly— i-Bei*ry ; fea, Barry ' Butf th£ ClapHaiifhad another string to nis bow. 'Do you remember- anyone -I—had with me helping me with those cattle ! After more staring, and so forth, ipore remembrance came, and thus the Claimant said — Why yes, you had a little Indian boy with you! ' (Ono^f* Barry's exploits^ re* membe^Maft^he^bjringih'giof a M&|ridia# boy from California to Australia). 'Then Tom Castro, how are you? Gentlemen, this man Arthur Orton ! This is Tom de Castro 'that I knew in Castlemaine,' &c , &c, And in the House of Commons the Government are asked ' What steps they intend to take consequent on the reoognir tion of Sir ptoger Tichbourne By Captain William Jackaon Berry. How 18 this for HiOH ? The advance sheets of the Waikato Hand-Book received contains the following in the introductory preface; — " Where the horrific war dance was seen, and the screams of tortured Captives added zest to approaching hideous banquets, the great civilizer, the plough, now prepares the fertile soil te receive the seed which is to " bring forth fruit afterits kind." No longer do its waters bear on it the war canoe,: with' its drew of de- ] moniac savages bent on the extirpation of their enemies, or on the way to scenes of the most hideous orgies of unenlightened man-eaters and the most dreadful tortures, to which those attributed to the old races of North American Indians read but as tame and peaceful proceedings ! Instead of it the steamer thrashes along, carrying with it the means of civilisation and comfort ! The mighty stream rolls along — majestic, suave, bland, and utterly unconscious of the share it had in assisting iurmsion, rapine, murder^and their hideous after proceedings. It is still the same river-— Queen of all the streams in the North Island, — but its watere now flow on errands of peace, comfort, and mercy.