ANGLO-COLONIAL NOTES.

Auckland Star, Volume XXVI, Issue 4527, 2 December 1884, Page 2

ANGLO-COLONIAL NOTES.

(Via BiiiN-nisi Mat, or Oct. 17).

[FROM OtJK LONDON COTIKESrONDENTJ.

-' London, October 17i, Personal and .General.

Sir \Viujam McAkthuk, M.P., head of the well-known colonial firm of William McArthur and Co., has announced his intention of resigning his seat for Lambeth, and retiring into private life at. the coming general election. Oeorge Darrell, described in flaming posters as tho ."celebrated author and actor," will make his first appearance in England at the Grand Theatre, Islington, next week in a drama of his own, entitled, " The Sunny Soutb." Miss Elizabeth Sprot, daughter of tho late Mark Sprot, Esq., of Canterbury; N./i , was married on the 9th inst. at Edinbro to the Rev. Eneas Macintosh, a promising voun» divine of the Church of Scotland. The capture in New Zealand of Mr Anderson, the Liverpool Workhouse master, who absconded last spring, does very little credit to the evasive powers of the prisoner, beeing that it was necessary after his where; abouts had been discovered by tho Liverpool nolico for them to-communicate with the Iforae Office, for the Homo orhco to communicate with tho Colonial Olhce, tor tho Colonial Oilice to communicate withtho New Zealand polico, and for tho. Now Zealand police to catch Andorfon if they could ho might havo made a better run lor it— at least, so tho " Cilobo" thinks. _ s Tlio mining journal, "Engineering, contains an interesting account ot tho rocent coal discoveries on tho property of Mr Fvaser, of Koltangataj Now Zealand, and sneaks in terms of highest promise of the extent and quality Of the seams. Ivaitangata lias ovidentty v prosporous future in store. , Sir Anthony Hoskins, who was for some time Commander of tho .Australian Station, is to succeed the Duke of Edinburgh in tho command of tho Channel Squadron. The "World" advises Hanlan to spend the hottest part of the antipodean summer in the couth of New Zealand. Tho new Cunard liner Umbria, which will carry tho next 'Frisco mails for New Zealand across the Atlantic, can steam 25 nautical miles an hour easily. Tho current number of the "British Australasian," which is nothing if not statistical, contains an article and table showing that Australasian securities have paid British i>ivestoiss better than any others. It gives a list of banks and companies with the gain per cent, on paid-up capital. At the head of these stands wo come^tho N.Z. Trust and Loan Company with 210 per cent., tuid tho N.Z. Loan and Mercantile,7s per'eont. The Bank of N«w '/onlnnrl IS") n«f wmt.) honds the Bunk list, followed by the Bank of N.B. Wales (75 per cent.), tho Union Bauk of Australia (UO per cent,), and tho Bank of Australasia (55 pa cent.). ! It is understood that though the butcher leasing the frozon mutton shop at the Healtheriea has made a largo profit, the promoters.of the refrigerators and N. 'A, Grill are out of pocket. When the exhibi tion closes Mr Allsup will publish n statfo ment showing the numbor of dinners served, &c. Tho Committee of Jmjiorters considci their end iti promoting a grill (viz.,.the ' popularising of frozen meat) has beet achieved, and that there would be no point in repeating the experiment at the In ventionfi Exhibition. . • Shipping nnd'Pasgengor Notes. ; Tho trial trip of tho Kaikoura, whlcl should have taken place on Wednesday, hn; been postponed till today. The Arawi will also bo tried this afternoon, anil then is some talk of a raco round to ,London be tweon the two steamers. I sincere]] hopo that tho Now Zealand Companies wil not start tho Yankee habit oi racing |thoi steamers, as it is the opinion of all sliippin{ men that ono of those days a frightfu catastrophe will bo caused by this bfc( system. Tho departure of tho Kaikoura has alfi beon postponed for two days, Sho will nov leave London on October 25. The following through passengers to Nev Zealand sailed m tho John Elder last Wed needay : For the Bluff—Mr James Senior For l'ort Chalmers—Mr and Mrs doHatfe Migsr^yer^MM,,!;,!)! TU.iU.l*- -rf ""S'lraw" Savili'B Arawa, which loaves or Nov. 5, is filling rapidly. Tho following have already booked passages : — Fo: Otngo—Hov. JNIr and Mrs Gualter, Misi Helen Gunlter, MU>a Eyangclirio Gualter Messrs Edw«rd, Aubrey, and llodclpj Gualter, Miss McKcnzio. Miss 11. MeLeod Miss Davinon, Mr and Mrs Scruttin am child, Mr and Mrs Wilson, Mrs Cookomu .'{children, Messrs Ait kin and Koss, Foi Hohart—Mr C. J. Voul. For AucklandMessrs G. A. Mahon, Stevens, Clarke, \V Henderson, Robert Henderson, anc Gilroy. For Wellington—Mr and Mrs R T. Turnbull, MrTurnbull, Mr.T. A. West For Canterbury—Rev. B. Stephenpon, For Molbourno—Mr G. S. Leo. Cable Katos. It should bo good news that in the cpiirsc of next year the cost of press messages by the centre cable to Australia and N.Z. ■ will almost certainly be reduced to-a quarter ot the present rates. The question is to be discussed at the International Telegraph Conference), and I am confidently aasurvd that tho concession willat last be granted over the' entire route. Tho Eastern Extension Company has, as, you probably know already, conceded qmrtcri''rates for press messages in plain language, but till recently the Indian, the South Australian and the Eastern Companies held out against tho reduction. The last has now openly given in, and the others are expected to follow suit at tho Conference, which will bo attended by Sir F. D. 8011, Sir Saul Snmueljand Mr Murray. An Extraordinary Foat. To those who remember that only two or threo years ago it was impossible to mal;o tho direct voyage to New Zealand umlor about 90 dayw, tho feat just accomplished by the Tongariro Beems astounding. This fast steaming liner has literally been | "three timos round the world" in eleven mouths. Her last run homo occupied 40 days 4 hours 13 minutes, including detentions, her exact steaming.time being 38 days 10 hours aiid 31 minutes. The Tongariro's feat is, I need scarcely say,, unparollellcd in the history of cceon steaming, though from what t hear of the Ruapohu it will not remain go long. Considering their size, tho steamers of tho N.Z.S. Co. are amongst the safest and speediest afloat. Moreover, they are thoroughly well: officered, a great thing in these days when Companies too often go in for cheap young men. \, * Mr Thomas Spnrgcon. Mr Thomas Spurgeon, who hus been indefatigable in his labours on behalf of his church in Auckland, delivered a loctiiro on" Tuesday evening at the Metropolitan Tabernacle, uponNewZealand,entitled "Brighter Britain." Pastor C. 11. SpurgeOn took the chair, and did yeoman's service by warmly urging the vast congregation to assist hi# son's good work. The takings during tho j evening lam uhablo to givp', Mr Thomas Spurgeon sails for the colonies early next month. The Coiirfenny Settlement. A Mr William Courtcany, who says ho comes from Taranaki, and owns a large tract of country there, is busy endeavouring d Id Veso'y Stewart to persuade a number of small farmers to emigrate and settle near one another on his land. I have not scon Mr Courtenny, nor can I find many pcoplo who know him. This enterprise will not, I fear, meet with much success. Peoplo suspect spocial settlement schemes nowadays. Depression iii the Colonies. Tho "British Australasian" of tho 9th instant published an interesting triblo showing that the commercial depression of the past.yoar has seriously affected Australasian as well as English produce. From it I gather that New Zealand lleeco wool has fallen from la 7d por lb in 1882 to Is 5d now ; that mutton tallow lias fallen 20 per ceut., baof tallow 14 per cent., flour '22h por cont., wheat 24 per cont., tin 10 per cent., and copper 13 per cent.- The Australias, of course, suffer more seriously-than Neiv Zealand. Compressed Boof. Mr Larkworthy informs mo that t!;e compressed tinned beef scut Ho no from Auckland by the Doric has torn sold with nit any difficulty whatever at Cd per lb. The only dof.ct exporis find with it is that the meat s scarcely compressed an 1 solid enough. In tho East En.t of London, and in the poorer parts' of many provincial towns, butchers sell this tinned beof by (fa slice, and unless it is hard and fir-m they cannot cut it, as tho. stuff crumbles and gets wasted. When this defect has been remedied, there will be practically an MnUmilecl market for New Zealand, compressed beef, as Libby's, tie great Chicago fmn,cannot supply the pn • sepfc demaijdi .T9,^how t wjjat a, ,quanti:y of the_ stuff isyused<! I may mcritiou tlu t the Nile expedition forco to rescue Gordon

nrotaldngwit-h thorn 00000 c^-sofLlbbg [ended 5« venture will' ifc il 8 „ ciconnvo cn'.crpn.ing persons in oX r Nov Zealand towns to start the samn indagtriel There cvi bo no reason why Zo colons firm should not presently bo able to compete with Libby s. Kotorua Railway. ' ■ Mr Ve=ey Stewart asaures me that the, long-defer Jd prospectus of the Kotorua Railway will positively be issued to the pubuo next month (November). He says all the requisite capital was subscribed ong ug o, and that the Hon. Cecil Kaikes (late 11 P. for Chester) will bo Chairman of director?. If the last named statement should prove corrtct.l think the launching of the railway will certainly be successfully accomplished, as Mr Kaikes bcais a great name in the city.and is not accustomed la associate himself with failures. Tho New Zealand Commercial Agency. Mr Vesoy Stewart having- enjoyed officeroom witli Messrs Shaw, Savil!, for a twelvemonth, has severed his more intimate connections with that firm, and taken spacious chambers in the basement of the same buildintr Here C.V.S. (over energetic and enternrisir.f) hap initiated the "New Zealand Commercial Agency," "to promote business between Bottlers in New /calcine and manufacturers in Great Britain. 1 learn from tho prospectus that tho " central ofliccs" will bo in London and in .the " various provinces of New Zealand, atid that tho " medium of communication" between buyers and manufacturers will be a "Handbook to New-Zealand," edited by Georgo Vesey Stewart, and issued in successive editions', informing tho English public of current buna fi.de openings ior settlement, and opportunities for tho employment of capital and labour in New Zealand as a whole." Mr Stewart is also general manager tor the "Now Zealand Estate Agency,'1 for the disposal of lands in the Bay of Plenty, and meditates starting o-"Now Zealand Hood-'ing-room," whoro intending colonists and colonists at Home can meef, for the mforchaiigo of business and conversation. \\ llli so many irons in the iiro, tho veteran emigration agent should be a busy man, and yet methinks ho looks back with regret to tho good old days when "special settlers" wero as easily picked up as blackberries, and English' folk drank in _ rapturously the fairy tales about Katikati and To I'uko. Intending emigrants nowadays are wily persons, and can by no means bo persuaded to- pledge themselves to a district without seeing it. Mr Stewart has booked a few passengers'by tho Northumberland (which sails quite full), and tulks of despatching his son by tho January 'Frisco mail to meet them, but I fancy the latter mu?t be merely a business " tarradiddlo." L_ The new direct liner Arawa, which malics her trial trip to-morrow, will come round to London next week. I hear she is fitted with some novel and useful improvements. In the first placo,thc beds or berths' in all the state rooms are on the Pullman enr principle—that is,they uluit completely up and disappear into the vail during tho day. This converts your little Qabln into a small but comfortable sittingroom with a sofa and writing t:ible. What a blessing these new-stylo staterooms will bo to passengers who like an occasional quiet half-hour "far from tho maddening crowd," I leave you to imagine. Another admirable feature about the Arawa is her private mess-room for children.. On many largo steamers (the P. and O. especially) eating goes on in tho saloon all day long, owing to the constantly-recurring alternations of adult and juvenile meals. Aboard tho Arawa the children havo a realm of their own. Hero they can scream, and guzzle, and fight without annoying outsiders. Albert Modale. Tho Queen hns awarded tho Albert Medal *(o Dr. Torn McGregor, C.M.U., Chief Medical Oilicor and Receiver, Fiji, for his gallant conduct at tho wreck of the £yiie (coolie ship) on the Nasalui roof, Fiji, in May last; and the Bourd of Trado havf awarded a silver medal to Mr John l'Vr.vlcr (Chief Superintendent Police), and bronze medals to Katn Joshua (a native), Constable Aprain, and Police Constable Swan, for thoir courageous services on tho name occasion. Frozen Moat. Since tho oold weather has set in, tho demand for frozsn mutton has innrpns arL satisfactory manner. 'The Tongariro's meat was placed on the market last Saturday, and fetched 6d to 6Jd per lb, rising on Monday to' 6}d and 7d. The Coptic's con Bignment vanished in no time, all except one lot believed to bo retained for tho North of England. There is consequently nothing now to meet tho London demand, save tho Tongariro's meat, till the lonic arrives. ' Tho Liguria brings* the first of renewed consignments from Australia, but sho won't bo here for wmo time, and River Plato ntutton has for tho present disappeared from tho markets. This being so, it seems probable that Cd and GJd will be tho ruling rate ior some time'to come. Home-fed sheep are at present exceptionally low. Messrs Ward and Stimpson quote :—New Zealand mutton, 4s to 4g 4d por stone of 81bs ; Homo fed mutton, ewes, 3a 8d to 4s ' per stone of Slbs; Home fed wethers, ' 4s 4d to os per stone of Slbs. ' During September, ISS4, 42,733 cwt. of frozen mutton was imported into England from Now Jfraland, as against only *3,f197 owt.last year, and from the Biver PJaio ' lO.Ccycwt., as against 740cwt. iv ISS3. These figures are very significant. \ Contrary to expectation, tho Dock Corapanics have met the proposals of the frozen £ meat importers re tho reduction of storage j dues in a very mean manner. They scout the idea of 50 per cent, or even 25 per cent. \ off. At present the price for storing is I threo half-pence per week per cvvt. Well, ™ they simply proposo that after tho moat has * been stored sovon days the chargo shall be C rcducod to five farthings a week. ?