AND THAMES VALLEY GAZETTE.

Waikato Times, Volume XIX, Issue 1588, 7 September 1882, Page 2

AND THAMES VALLEY GAZETTE.

Equal and ex.ict justice to all men, Ot whatsoever state or pei suasion, religious or political. Here shall the Press the People's right maintain, Unawcd by influence and unbribed by gain.

THURSDAY SEPT. 7, 1882.

After, all the speculation which has been indulged in over the .shooting affair at Alexandra on Monday week last, we are at the present as much in doubt respecting the identity of the peison who fired the shots as ever. The singular absence of any evidence sufficient to link the criminal witli the crime not unnaturally led many to adopt the theory of Barlow's complicity in the affair, and to stigmatise the whole thing as a conspiracy, the other parties to which were Tv Tawhiao and Patupatu. This theory involved the assumption that Barlow himself fired the shots. A careful examination of the locality, added to a diligent collection of all the evidence. Native and European, available, however, established the fact that, whatever the motive might be, shots had been fired by some person other than the three who ai'e known to have been on the spot, namely, Barlow, Tv Tawhiao, and Patupatu. "We use the word " established" in a somewhat restricted sense, because although the authorities were satisfied we believe there were, and are still, some who cleave to the belief that Barlow, and Barlow alone used fimirms. On Saturday we published, as an extra, a telegram from our Alexandra correspondent containing an account of the alleged confession of Tv Tawhiaoand Patupatu, extracted it was inferred, by Wahanui and Whitiora. Consequent upon this Sergt McCfovern was instructed to again visit Alexandra, and we aro bound to state that as a result of this visit the story about the confession is to our mind thoroughly disproved. In another column we publish all that is new on the subject, and our readers will be able to form their own conclusions from the evidence thus afforded. It has been repeatedly aflinned that the natives would spare no pains to shift all suspicion ofF their shoulders, but, if this be true, it is difficult to understand why they should all discredit a theory which would so effectually close enquiry. We can, indeed, arrive at no other conclusion than that shots were fired at Barlow by some one hiding in the yai'd, and who must have laid his plans so carefully as te render his detection a matter of the extremest difficulty. Havingarrivedatthisconclusion,itremainsforus to ask, Whatistobedoue now 1 That the i*elatives of Winiata would consider themselves justified in killing Barlow is well known, and consequently Barlow when he went to Alexandra knew ho carried his life in his hand, but that . is no reason why the law should not be vindicated.

Mr Halcombe was a passenger to Wftikato, en route foy Patetere, by Tue«- ( day's train. ; 3 ! ' We ar« glad to hear that Mr Jain'es Mattin, fj[|iniUt^a ? Jwho i-e^eotly; fractured nis.leg 'b^fceiujßt/ tjjjpwii from his'horae, is, prpgressMig' Jyefy" fivor^yT,

The Standard Insurance Company lias declared a dividend of 7J per cent.

for the half-year. It is the intention of Mr Clement to take an action against the Cambridg Town Board for damage alleged . to hay been done to his property in Alpha-stree through the board lowering the street. The usual monthly meeting of tb Cambridge East School Committee wa held in the school-room on Monday even ing last, but with t.he exception of tli passing of a few accounts no business o impoitance was done. A service of song entitled "Bill] Bray," will be given in Cambridge shortl; in aid of the Baptist Church Organ Fund The instrument, we learn, has already been secured, and id at present on" it* way to Cambridge. Mrs Hanipson, tin revivalist preacher, is expected to bi present on the occasion. Mr W. D. Campbell, engineer foj the Hamilton drainage, arrived fron Auckland on Tuesday, and was engagee all day yesterday in taking the levels o the localities proposed to be drained He will continue the work to-day. The nomination of candidates t( fill the three vacancies in the Hamiltoi Borough Conncil took place yesterday The following were nominated : — Messn R. Peat, R. Bradley, and T. Qualtrougl (the retiring councillors), and Mr Voi Stunner. The poll will be taken thi day week. The adjourned inquiry into th( circumstances surrounding the death o: the girl Sarah Johnson (Mrs Cleaver) will be held to-day. All sorts of conflicting reports are abroad, which it is hoped today's proceedings will in some degree eleai up. The usual weekly meetings of the Cambridge Mutual Improvement Association and the Hamilton Debating Clul will be held at the respective courthouses this evening. The public are admitted to these meetings. A telegram received from Brisbane, and dated Tuesday, states that it is understood that the Government of Queensland has received a telegram from the Agent-General in London, asking authority to grant free passages to Queensland to 400 dismissed Irish police constables. Notwithstanding the delay which has been experienced in obtaining the necessary timber for the Karapiro bridge, the men are making satisfactory progress with the work. Nearly all the piles have been driven, and part of the super-struc-ture has been erected. Much more of the work would have been done had the timber been to hand when wanted. At the meeting of the Cambridge Town Board held on Monday evening last, the chairman, Mr Wells, said he had received information from Wellington to the effect that it had been represented to the Government that the town board was erecting such a structure over the Karapiro creek, as the Government would not sanction. A gentleman deputed by the District Engineer had come to inspect the work and make a sketch of the proposed bridge so as to furnish plans to the Chief Engineer at Wellington. Considerable interest is being taken in the football match, Sydney v. Auckland, which will be played on the Auckland ground on Saturday. Much ill feeling, too, has been engendered over the selection of the team. A correspondent writing to the Star, on Tuesday, condemns the selection of Ring, amongst others, apparently ignorant of the fact that Ring, always a good player, is just now in bettor form than ever he was. There need be very little fear about the way in which the Waikato representatives will conduct themselves. The Auckland football world does not contain two better, or more enthusiastic playeis than Messrs Wood and Ring. Mr Wood was a passenger to Auckland yesterday. In obedience to a summons of the trustee in the bankrupt estate of H. Mullions, Messrs George Reid, John Knox and the debtor attended at the District Court-house, Hamilton, on Monday, to be examined touching their knowledge of the debtor's affairs. Reid and the debtor refused to be sworn except before the trustee alone, and as Mr Hay, solicitor, would not leave the room they held to their determination, stating at the same time that they were perfectly willing to give the trustee all the information in their power but objected to anybody else being present. Mr Knox objected to any questions except from the trustee, and gave information regarding the sale by auction of debtor's effects. On Tuesday, Charles Mullions, who Avas summoned to attend on that day, also refused to give his evidence publicly. In our last issue we commented on the fact that hitherto the whole cost of bringing immigrants to this country has fallen upon the colonists, We are glad to see that a movement is on foot in London to nn/id some of the unemployed here. Bishop Neville, of Dunedin, has received a letter from the Bishop of London, asking for information as to the advisability of sending the unemployed thence to this colony, a movement having been got up to send them to Canada and elsewhere. Bishop Neville has asked the opinion of the Council on the matter. It is, of course, possible that the "unemployed" referred to are not calculated to form good colonists, but if such be the cose we shall at any rate have the satisfaction of knowing that we get them free of cost. The usual monthly meeting of the Kiriluriroa HifjliWfiy Board was held at the County Council Chambers, Hamilton, yesterday, There were present : Messrs Primrose (chairman), Runciman, Swarbrick, and Lovell. Mr Swarbrick proposed that £200 be spent on the Tauhei and Piako road instead of £300 as applied for by the Waikato Agricultural Association. Mr Lovell proposed as an amendment that the request in full be entertained, providing the company pay the subsidy of £ for £ as promised to the board when required, in such sums as the board would require. Mr Runciman seconded the amendment, which was carried. Several accounts were passed for payment and the meeting terminated, The following petition, which was forwarded to the Cambridge Town Board by a number of ratepayers in the town, is an example of what are occasionally presented to the board, and to which the names of intelligent householders are frequently affixed :—": — " Cambridge, 4th September, 1882. To You! 1 Btonour Chair Man, SoG,, Board of Cambridge.— There have been many complaints maid about the foot-path by all that Goes that way. the watter lies on it, and it requires Graveling verry much, so J I hope you will make no delay in seeing to it. the footpath ix as you go down twowards Steam Navigation Coy,, in Dukestreet, North side. -™ Yours, tralyi — " Here follow a large number of names of people who, we think, might have glanced over what they were putting their signatures to. ■ A special cable message to the Press Association, dated' London,^ September 4th, informs us'that Sydney jTai-, H r aj)ga and his Maori colleaguea.now.in' London are frying to establiah; an; association, whiph pFoposei^rpu^as^^iten^ million acres of ( natives luiidf > from >» the aboriginal prppneTO^^*yw^ttr|il^yj permanent oovhmmmlf^^iiesMtfonx<iM

knowledge' of the special circumstances of the cnse, are again meddling with our native affairs. In the same cablegram we are told that the Daily Xcws, in referring to native affairs in New .Zealand, expresses an opinion that I*o Whiti should now be released and restored to his home in Farihalca. Our readers will regret to learn of the death of Mr William Walters,, of Papakura, which event took place at ( the resilience of Mi s Malcolm Banks, Gmf-ton-road, Auckland, at a late hour on Monday night. Mr Walters was in tiling a call at Mr Banks' when he was suddenly seized with an attack of apoplexy, and although all that medical 3UIII could do was tried, his case was hopeless from the first, *19 it was found that, in addition to the malady referred to, he was suffering from Bright's disease of the kidneys. The deceased gentleman was an old settler of forty years standing in the Province, and few were better known or more highly esteemed than he. In sporting circles he will be greatly missed, as one of the few racing men on whom thorough dependence could be placed. He has also done much by the introduction of pure stock to improve the breed of horses in this part of tho colony, and has left behind him a stud second to no other private one in New Zealand. Mr Walters leaves a widow and a son and daughter (Mrs W. M. Hay, of Hamilton) to mourn his loss. The funeral took place yesterday. At the monthly meeting of the Auckland Acclimatisation Society on Tuesday, the secretary reported that since the last meeting 85 brace of mountain quail had been liberated, 20 brace of which had been entrusted to the Auckland Agricultural Company (Maclean and Co), Cambridge. A telegram was read announcing that 12,000 trout ova would be shipped by the Otago Association yesterday, and it was arranged to distribute portions of them to the fishhouses at Paeroa (Waikato) and Raglan. An application waB received from Major Jackson to have the use of the Ligurian bees on certain terms. He stated that he had imported, at some expense, a number of Ligurian hives, but was desirous of crossing with the bees in possession of the society, so as to make the experiment a success. Major Jackson promised to return a number of pure Ligurian bees in the following season if successful in his proposed experiment. It was agreed to accede to the application. Tue news received on Tuesday from Egyptis comparatively uninteresting. It is as follows, under date Alexandria the 4th inst ;— H.M. s. Minotaur, the flagship of the Channel Squadron, is now daily engaged in shelling the enemy's lines at Aboukir. The work of cutting a channel to admit the sea into the bed of Lake Mareotis, is now actively proceeding. Under date London the 4th : — An armed force of 40,000 Tripolians is stated to have left on the way to Egypt, to reinforce Arabi. The Turkish forces will endeavour to intercept their advance. The commanders of Arabi's force at Mehallet-el-Kebis are meditating desertion. The health of the troops at Kassassain is improved. The quarantine regulations at Suez have been relaxed, in consequence of the protests made by the British Government. Sir Garnet Wolseley is taking every precaution to guard against the effects of sunstroke, which have heretofore seriously interfered with the efficiency of the transport ser•s ice. Sir Garnet Wolseley's supplies at the front and the means of transport are now officially announced to be ample. Very little business was done at the R.M. Court, Hamilton, yesterday, before Mr Northcroft. J. T. Camp, licensee of the Tamahere Hotel, was charged on the infornation of the police with having, on the sth August ult., committed a breach of the Licensing Act, ISSI, by receiving as a pledge for the payment of a liquor account a hat, from one Hemi Molii. The evidence of the native and Constable Wild was to the effect that defendant had seized the hat, intimating that he would keep it till Mohi paid him the sum of 2s owing for drinks. Mr O'Neill, who appeared for the defendant, submitted that the information was bad, as it had not been shown that any pledge had been 1 received. A pledge implied a contract, and there had been no contract, defendant having seized tho hat against Mohis inclination. If defendant could tie charged with anything it could only be with unlawfully detaining the hat, and the law provided the native with the means of obtaining redress. The prosecution had also failed to show that defendant was a licensed person. The magistrate said he had been summoned to produce his license. Mr O'Neill objected to produce it. Tae license was in court but the prosecution had not asked for its production. Tho Magistrate said the new Justice of the Peace Act, which had just come into force, gave him power to recall witnesses in criminal cases. He would demand tiie license. Mr O'Neill then produced the license under protest, and His Worship said he would give judgment next court day. The only other case was that of Knox v. Williams, claim £S \s for goods sold and delivered. The magistrate gave judgment for full amount and costs. The Government have received the following from the Solicitor-General relative to the appropriation of licensing fees and the dog tax :—"I: — "I am of opinion that Town Boards, and not County Councils, are entitled to license fees payable under the Licensing Act, 18S1, and also fees payable under the Dog Registration Act, 18.80. The grounds for this opinion are as follow : As tQ ljceuse fees, the 35th section of the Town District Act, 1881, is to the effect that every town district shall be deemed to be^ an incorporated town within the meaning of any enactment extending the definition of the term 'borough;' section 109 of the Licensing Act provides that fees for licenses granted in respect of premises in any borough are to be paid to the treasurer for such borough ; section 4 of the same Act extends the definition of the term ' borough ' to any town incorporated under any Act of the Legislature. As to fees for dog registration, the Dog Registration Act is administered by local authorities, and what local authorities are within its. scope are mentioned in the first schedule, this schedule includes boroughs, and section 2 defines a 1 borough ' as including every town incorporated under any Act of the General Assembly." Contrary to expectations Mr T. Spurgeon's lecture, " An Evening with John Ploughman," in the Public Hall, Hamilton, on Tuesday night, was poorly attended, "but those present appeared to take great interest in the proceedings. - The lecture consisted ' of readings from the book " John Ploughman's i Pictures," a collection of everyday aphorisms, amplified, explained and , illustrated by pictures. These Jatter yere^ thrown on a' large screen by the lime-light this portion* of the - entertainment being supplied' by;Mr W; C. Dennes of ' Auckland! -In addition to* the pictures, connec-, ted with tjhVlecture* proper',^ portraits pf Mr\C. r jH^Spurgeqn/oand^ view^ £pf . j/fre t

attempt even to enumerate the subjects dealt with, but to readers of Mr Spurgeon's works they will bo familiar enough. At the close of the entertainment two ladies in the audience sang *| Home Sweet, Home" with much feeling, .l!he proceedings closed with the hymn" Shall wo gather at the r'ver," and the Benediction, pronounced by Mr Spurgeon. The entertainment was repeated at Cambridge laat night. The pioceeds of both enter- ■ tuininents will be devoted to the Cambridge Baptist Church building fund. In the Legislative Council on Tuesday, it was resolved, on the motion of the Premier, th.it the Standing Orders besnspended for the remainder of the Session so as to euable the Government, bills to take precedence and to be passed through all stages in one clay. The Hamilton Borough Boundaries Bill was read a second time, and a number of other bills advanced a stage. The Otago Harbour Board Bill passed with amendments. The Resident Magistrates Act, 1867, Amendment Bill was thrown out. In the House on the same day, in reply to questions, it was stated that the Government had no intention of introducing any measure to amend the Gaming and Lotteries Act ; the land to be granted to Tauranga Railway Company had not yet been valued. The line had been surveyed, the estimated cost being £500 per mile ; the Government did not intend to restore ex-detective Parrell to the police iorce, nor would they hold out any prospect of giving him employment in any other department, as suggested, in the report of the Public Petitions Committee. The House went into Committee on th« Roads and Bridges Construction Bill. Clause 7 was altered to read, that main roads may be declared by Ministers, at the request of any county council made prior to the month of March. On clause 60, relative to the outlay of £20,000 on the opening up of waste lands Mr Turnbull moved, "That the money derived from the sale of lands in a provincial district be expended in that district alone." Messrs 'Montgomery and Macamhew supported the amendment, Messrs Levebtam and Connolly opposed the amendment, argning that land revenue was colonial revenue. Sir John Hall supported the amendment, stating that the taking away money from one district and expending it in another was most improper. Capt. McKenzie wished to know how they would define the word " district." The Committee divided on the question : Ayes, 32 ; Noes, 33. The voting on the question that the clause as printed stand part of the bill was : Ayes, 35 ; Noes, 33. The remaining clauses of the bill were passed without material alteration, and the bill was reported as amended. The only alteration of importance made throughout was Mr Pykes amendment on clause 2, to render all Crown lands within five miles of roads or bridle tracks liable to rates, aud to exempt native lands beyond five mfles from coach road ov highway,