NEWS OF THE WEEK.

New Zealand Tablet, Volume III, Issue 115, 9 July 1875, Page 11

NEWS OF THE WEEK.

The adjourned animal meeting of the shareholders in the Tablet Company took place on Tuesday evening last : his Lordship the Most Rev. Dr. Moran in the chair. The directors' report and balance-sheet were received and adopted, and the following gentlemen elected to serve on the directory for the ensuing year : — Rev. W. Colenian, Messrs Downey, Connor, P. Meenan, and Reynolds. The retiring auditors, Messrs M. Meeuan and Colunib, were reelected, and after a lengthened discussion regarding matters of the Company, a vote of thanks to the chair closed the proceedings. The balance-sheet will be found in another column. The proceedings at the special meeting of the Waste Lands Board, on Tuesday, were of rather an unusual character, culminating in the Chief Commissioner (Mr. J. T. Thompson) vacating the chair, and leaving the Board in high dudgeon. It appears that 7,000 acres of land in the Heriot Hundred had been gazetted to be sold on the deferred system payment on the 6th instant, but at the eleventh hour an injunction of the Supreme Court was obtained at the instance of a number of run holders in order to restrain the Superintendent in proceeding with the sale. The Provincial Secretary issued a memo, to the District Land Officer, at Dunedin, warning him against refusing any applications which might be made to him ; but in contradiction, to this, however, the Chief Commissioner had telegraphed to the Die» , trict Land Officer prohibiting the salo of the sections. This, Mr, I Donald Reid, considered to be an unwarrantable proceeding as the in*

junction had not been addressed to the Board ; and a resolution being carried censuring the action of the Commissioner, and countermanding the instructions given, the Chief Commissiener left the meeting. The members of the Board tlion despatched instructions to the Land Officers, through the Provincial Secretary, ordering them to receive all applications ; or, refuse them at their peril, Mr. A. Wills, Undersecretary, being appointed Land Officer, at Dunedin. Two much credit 'cannot be given to tha determined stand taken Uy the Provincial Secratary to break up that clique which has so long held the best lands iv the Province as grazing ground, to the exclusion of those who ■would be willing to cultivate the soil. The course adopted by Mr. Reid may appear somewhab high-handed, but it is one for which he deserves, and no doubt will receive, the thanks of the community. That very unreliable journal the Auckland • Star ' lately indulged in its congenial pastime by striving to detract from the credit due to one of the most efficient officers in New Zealand, Mr. Caldwell, the Governor of the Dunedin Gaol. This is scarcely to be wondered at, seeing that the state of our local gaol, and the excellent report submitted by its indefatigable governor, had been a theme for praise in all the journals throughout the length and breadth of the Colony, and it was, therefore, to bo expected that in the midst of such unanimity, the ' Star/ in this as in other matters, should enjoy an isolated opinion. The statements "of the 'Star/ however, were not allowed to go unchallenged, and a writer in the 'Auckland Weekly News ' bore willing testimony to the high state of efficiency of the institution over which Mr. Caldwell presides, and the amount of valuable land which has been reclaimed by prison labor. We were aware that those who might be inclined to be hypercritical might take exception to a few ot the statements in the highly interesting 1 and exhaustive report of the working of the Dunedin Gaol, but we could not imagine that even so captious a journal as the Auckland evening luminary could have found material for censure. Otte Irish files tell of the election of a representative to fill the vacancy caused by the death of honest John Martin for Meath. ! The candidates were three in number — Mr. Charles Stuart Parnell, i a Home Ruler ; Mr. Hiivls, Homo Ruler ; and Mr. Naper, Conservative. Mr. Parnell possessed a strong claim upon the affections of the Irish people, his ancestors being amongst those whose voices were uplifted against the fatal destruction of the Irish Parliament, whilst lie lias always identified himself with the interests and struggles of the country of which he sought to be a representative. Mr. Hinds was a Home Ruler because lie thought it the best flag to fight under, but as he was violently opposed to i the dis-establishment of the Irish Chuitsh some short while since, j it is scarcely to be wondeved that the patriotic people of Meath ' put but little faith in the sincerity of his sudden conversion, and he found himself in a magnificent minority. The third candidate j was a Mr. Naper, who contested the constituency manfully in the Conservative interest, and was accorded a fair measure of support j in comparison with that bestowed on Mr. Hinds. The electors of Meath have achieved a great victory for the national cause, and found a successor worthy of the seat once occupied by the immortal Grattan, the amiable and gifted John Lucas, and the patriotic honest John Martin. They have selected a candidate, whose political antecedents are a guarantee that he will represent them faithfully — a, gentleman in whose honor and integrity ' they can have the most implicit confidence. Mr. Hinds had been told that his lioj)es were perfectly mythical, and in the interest ■which he sought to serve and was supposed to wish to see advanced, he was requested to resign in order not to split the national vote. This he was unwilling to do, and a fitting punishment was administered by the following state of the poll : — Parnell, 1771 ; Naper, 902; Hinds, 138. It will be thus seen thatthe national victory ■was Avon by a majority of two to one, while Hinds was defeated by no less than thirteen to one. We notice our contemporary the ' Guardian/ in its issue of last Saturday, lias an item of telegraphic intelligence, under date London, June 24tli, in which it is stated that " Paruell has been elected for Meath by 1771 against 192 for Napier." It is quite evident that there is a screw loose somewhere, the number of votes polled for the Conservative candidate being sadly incorrect. It is also a matter of surprise that an item should be " wired " on the 24th of June, the circumstances of which took place in the middle of April. We trust, for the honor of historic Kilkenny, that a corresponding amount of reliability may be attached to the intelligence that a Manchester manufacturer has been chosen for its representative in preference to the son of its former member. Kilkenny has so often placed its trust in the hands of the late Sir John Gray, and the preseut proprietor of the only Catholic daily journal in Great Britain, has so closely followed in the footsteps of his patriotic father, that we feel convinced the people 'of Kilkenny would not dishonor the memory of the man who so long and faithfully served thorn by selecting one unknown and untried. Regarding the vacancy in the representation of " gallant Tipperary," we learn that a few hours after the death of John Mitchell the beaten candidate in the late contest, Mr. Stephen Moore, filed a petition for the seat. It may be that he will be successful, but if so, it is interesting to know that while he enters the House of Commons as the mouth-piece of Tipperary, there are but 740 electors who voted for him as an eligible representative, against 9,500 who elected Mr. Mitchell. We are glad to see that steps have been initiated for the purpose cf honoring the memory of the illustrious dead, and that the 6th of August will not be allowed to pass without respect being paid to the name of O'Connell. A meeting, under the chairmanship of His Worship the Mayor, was held on last Monday for the initiation of the purpose in view, but owing to the fact that it was mail day, the numbers present were not by any means as numerous as they otherwise would have been. Mr. J.P. Armstrong, M.P.C.,

stated that a number of the most influential men of the city~had expressed their hearty co-operation in the movement, and,though unfortunately prevented from "being present at the meeting, theobject for which it had been convened had their warmest sympathy, and they would be happy to forward the movement as members of Committee or otherwise. An hon. secretary was elected, and the gentlemen present constituted themselves a Committee with power ' to add to their number, and a date of further meeting for the purpose of determining what shape the proposed demonstration should assume having been fixed, the meeting adjourned. We see by ourVictorian exchanges that a most influential meeting was held at St. Pa/trick's Hall, Melbourne, for the furtherance of the^eentenary celebration, at which all classes of the community, independent of creed or country, were represented. The members of the Press Dramatic Club gave a varied entertainment at Port Chalmers on last Saturday evening, the proceeds of which were devoted to the establishment of an Accident Ward in that town. The attendance, though not a numerous, -was a very select one ; and, if the amount- of applause bestowed is to be taken for aught, the efforts of the visitors were highly successful. We believe, however, there were a few who were inclined to be hypercritical, and with exceedingly bad taste, while contributing nothing to the funds which it was sought to assist, made themselves conspicuous by an amount of adverse verbal criticism which, beside being quite uucalled for, was a, source of much annoyance to those who were unfortunate enough to be within hearing. A most extensive fire, resulting in the total destruction of Plexnian's tannery at Kaikorai, took place on Saturday night. The origin of the fire is as yet imexplained, the manager before quitting the premises on Saturday evening seeing that every precaution had been taken, and the fire in the engine house banked up properly.. The stock and building were valued by the owner at between «£IG,OOO and .£17,000, and we regret to learn the salvage effected { will not realize over .£2OO. Mr. Flexman was insured to the ex- , tent of .£.BOOO, but which it will be seen will but cover half the damage done. The works found employment for a number of persons resident in the Kaikorai Valley, and this unfortunate occurence will bo the means of throwing some thirty men out of employment. An accident, unfortunately attended with fatal consequences, occurred on Saturday evening to a young man named Eobert Newton, employed at Sparrow's Foundry, Rattray street. It appears that shortly after commencing work the deceased, while-_ placing a piece of board over a hole near the fly-wheel of the engine, allowed one end to come in contact with the machinery,, the result being* that lie was violently struck in the stomach with the plank, and thrown some fifteen feet into the air. He was insensible when picked up, and although speedily removed to the hospital, where his injuries were attended to, he succumbed on Sunday evening, What makes the matter more deplorable is that the deceased, although but quite a young man, was the support of bis mother and other members of his family.