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Auckland Star, Volume XX, Issue 179, 30 July 1889, Page 4

In consequence of the sudden death of Mr Justice Gillies, the Supreme Court cases fixed for near dates, including the August Civil Session of the Court, will most probably bo deferred or adjourned until September, by which time arrangements will no doubt have been made for the appointment of Judge Gillies' successor.

During the stay of H.M.s. Lizard at Milford Sound, Seaman Smith disappeared, and was supposed to have deserted by swimming ashore. He was arrested by Constable Joyce, in Hufcatotahuhu station, Waiau, on Sunday night, and brought to town. Smith had been staying at the Sounds for some fcime, and afterwards made his way across to Tc Anau, and then southward. He admits that he is the man wanted.

The confession of HairaTe Piri, the murderer of the Pook family on the East Coast, lias been laid on the table of the Legislative Council. There is nothing in it of interest, beyond what has been already published. It concludes: "No other person but Hohepa had anything to do with this murder. No one knows about it but myself and Hohepa. I know that lam to die on Monday. I now say that the whole of this statement is true. As lam about to stand in the presence of God, there is nothing false in it.—(Signed) Haira Te Pirt."

Some months ago we mentioned the fact that some Wellington gentlemen interested in aquatics had opened negotiations in England for the purchase of a yacht, and the only difficulty in the way of her being procured was the demurrence on the part of the shipping companies to carrying such a large package as fche boat would make, aa deck cargo. It is how more than likely that the boat will be in Wellington if not by next season, certainly shortly afterwards. Wellington yachtsmen are delighted to learn that Hi 3 Excellency the Governor has evinced a strong desire to become possessed of a yacht in that harbour, and has instructed Mr R. E. Harman, of the Thorndon Baths, to procure a fast, comfortable boat. The well-known yacht Thetis, which was originally built in Auckland by Mr C. Bailey for Mr R. E. Isaacs, is under offer.

The schooner Awarua, which reached Invercargill a few days ago from a seal-oil collecting, cruise to the Macquarrie Islands, to the far south of New Zealand, had a very rough trip, continuous heavy gales being met with throughout. She occupied nearly three weeks on the passage down, during which she met with heavy snow squalls. On reaching the Macquarries the sealing station men were all found to be in good health, and reported having seen nothing of the schooner Janet Ramsay (which afterwards reached Dunedin safely) or her crew. The opinion being that she was lost, the Awarua kept a good look-oub all round the islands, but saw nothing. When the schooner leffc finally for lnvercargill, the principal island was ono great mass of snow, "resembling a huge iceberg." On the outward voyage, the schooner's compass was found to be unaccountably affected by deviation, the error being as great as three points on some courses, and on the S.E. quadrant of the compass, the needle refused to act at all. This circumstance, combined with the fact that the sun was not seen for nine days, rendered navigation difficult and uncertain, and considerably lengthened the cruise. The deviation is accounted for by the theory that while in port previously a carpenter was employed repairing the cabin, and the iron bolts and nails used by him must; have affected the compass.

A football match took place on Saturday between Tuakau and Pokeno at Tuakau. The latter won by six points to two. Tuakau had a weak team, and Pokeno the assistance of Murray (late Selwyn) and Goble (Ohaupo). G. Dean also played a good game for Pokeno. For Tuakau, Elliott, Logan, the two McKeans, Harris, and F. Poland were best. The win of Pokeno wa3 very popular, even among the Tuakau boys, owing to their previous persistent bad luck.

The Dunedin Supreme Court was engaged yesterday in hearing the case ot Schemedes, Erbsloh, and Co. v. W. H. Burrows and Co., a claim for £114 for goods and interesb. Mr F. R. Chapman was for the plaintiffs, merchants of London and Auckland, and Sir R. Stout for the defendant. After argument ar.d evidence, Justice Williams held that the plaintiffs were entitled to interest, and the rest of the case was reserved to allow of parties ascertaining and agreeing aa to the amount actually between fcnera.

The stonewalling going on afc Wellington appears to occupy the attention of the Government to the exclusion of other matters of public interest. Resolutions passed at public meetings advocating the employment of surplus labour on the goldfields were forwarded a week since, bub so far they have not even been acknowledged.

A meeting of those interested in Association football will be held in fche Pier Hotel to-morrow evening, to consider the starting again of the game in Auckland. Correspondence has been received from Wellington, Picton and Dunadin, showing the progress of the game in those places, and suggesting a visit from an Auckland team.

The members of the defunct "J" Battery of Artillery of Wellington, who were to receive a dividend of 30s on the wind-up of the corps, have been "left" by the Treasurer, who was recently dismissed from the Bank of New Zealand. He has departed for Sydney with about £30 of the Battery funds. At a meeting of the members it was decided not to issue a warrant to bring him back.

Simonsen's Opera Company will arrive from the South on Monday next, and open ab the Opera House the same evening with " Satanella." The next opera produced will be " Les Cloches," and following that "II Trovatore " will be the attraction pub forward. The subscription list of twelve dress-circle tickets for £2 10s, now open at Wildman's, will close on Monday, and after that the ordinary rates for tickets will be charged. The box plan is now open at Wildman's in the Arcade.

Apropos of a decision given in one of the English courts the other day, we take the following from a recent number of the "Law Journal" :—" Gratuitous advice from a lawyer is seldom happy. Mr Shiel might have been contents to dismiss the summons for assault against the Duke of Cambridge on the ground that he had no jurisdiction to try it, but he added that, if the applicant's story were true, it would be better to bring a civil action for damages than to proceed in a Police Court. This was advice worth considering, bub when the learned magistrate pressed it home by saying, ' If you proceed criminally your cause of action will be gone,' his gratuity overpowered his law. There is a moot question whether the sufferer from a criminal act must not first prosecute his criminal remedy before suing for damages, but it has never been suggested tbat an injured man loses his right to compensation for the effect of a criminal act by "taking proceedings in the Queen's name, and perhaps being bound over to prosecute or give evidence for the purposes of vindicating public justice."

At the Gieborne Police Court on Monday George Hill was committed for trial on two charges of obtaining by false pretences from James Finlay, hotelkeeper, bacon and hams, to value £7 9s 4d, and £10 5s 4d. Evidence was given to the effect that accused represented that he was branch manager ot the Christchurch Dairy Company, and on such representation the bacon was supplied. Robert Ganisford, manager of the Christchurch dairy, gave evidence that he had no branch, and had never heard of Hill.

The Bishop of Melbourne has issued a circular to the friends of Scripture education in State schools, asking them to append their signatures to a petition urging Parliament to restore Scripture education to the State schools, with a conscience clause for those who object. The petition desires the restoration to the school books known as the Nelson series, of those passages relating to Christ and Christianity which were excised from it.

News from Fiji via Sydney states thafc amongst intelligence from the Ba River a report has reached Levuka that a nativeowned cutter came fco grief off the Ba coast on the 13th ultimo. During the heavy squalls which occurred on that day the vessel is said to have capsized, airhands being drowned, together with a native constable and four coolie prisoners, who were en route from Ba to Suva 'Gaol. In the same squalls the Savaii cutter loeb her mast off Bega, and drifted about for some days, when her crew managed to get her into Nukuluva passage. News has also come in tbat on the same day the Kilsvth cutter was wrecked at Vatu Karasa, between Serua and Nadroga.

Yesterday a. vary ingenious contrivance known as " Allen's Patent Safety Grip 3," for ÜBe in mining-cages and hydraulic lifts, was on view in the Secretary's room, Chamber of Commerce. Ifc is patented by Mr Abednego Allen, mining engineer of Coromandel, and is intended for use on cages to prevent accidents by chains and ropes giving way. It guards against the risk of overwinding by a mine engine and a consequent fall down the shaft, by a very ingenious arrangement at the top of the cage, which entirely prevents it from travelling downwards until the rope or chain is again in position. Another safety grip which it possesses is provided by springs which, immediately the supporting chain gives way, spring outwards and grips the side of the shaft, utterly precluding the danger of falling, The springs can be regulated and adjusted beforehand according to the amount of weight in the cage. The invention is undoubtedly a very valuable- one, and is Avell worthy of attention by mine-owners and companies. Mr Allen intends exhibiting the patent at the forthcoming Dunedin Exhibition.

There was a pleasant gathering afc the Pitt-street Wesleyan Schoolroom lasc evening, when the tenth anniversary of the Band of Hope connected with that institution was celebrated. The Rev. E. Best presided. The annual report, which was read by the Secretary, Mr J. W. Wiseman, snowed that 46 new members had joined during the year, and thab there was a credit balance £2 15s 6d. Mr J. Bigelow gave an interesting lecture »n " The Effect of Alcohol on the Stomach," illustrated by diagrams, and experiments with alcohol. He seated that hop beer, ginger ale and other so-called temperance drinks contained a respectable percentage of spirits. Other interesting items were contributed as follows:—Piano solo, " Don Pasquale," Miss Taylor; song, " Nancy Lee," Mr Johnson ; recitation, " The Bridal Wine Cup," Miss Jarvis ; song, " The Minstrel Boy," and, in response to an encore, " The Whale," Master Garrett; song, "Goodbye, Sweetheart/ Mr Slinn; recitation, "The House tbab Jack Built," Mr W. R. Cook ; song, " The Children's Home," Miss Walker; piano duet, "Le Jet d'^_au," Misses Taylor and Dickey; song, " Anchored," Mr Nicholson ; recitation," Breaking off by Degrees," Miss Bertha Souster; song, " I Fear No Foe," Mr Dryland. The accompaniments were played by Miss Wiseman and Mr Shorland.

The Fine Arts Committee of the Dunedin Exhibition have approved of the proposed arrangement to secure a Scottish collection of pictures, and have recommended the Commissioners to set aside £150 to secure them.' The Mining and Metallurgical Committee have sent an order to the Morgan Crucible Company, Batbersea Works, London, for £100 worth of laboratory requisites for the assay laboratory to be established in connection with the mineral court of the Exhibition. This laboratory is to be superintended by an assayer appointed by the Government to assay all minerals brought to the Exhibition. The Morgan Crucible Company have sent a fine selection of their manufactures to the Exhibition, which are afterwards to be presented to the Dunedin School of Mines.

A match for fche Senior Football Cup ab the Thames was played ab Parawai on Saturday last between the United and Kirikiri (Native) Clubs. After a hard and evenly contested game United won py a try, scored by McGregor, to nil,.

In reference to a paragraph in our i**,* of yesterday touching the recognition "t Mr Simon Fraser's services to the Scotchsocieties here we are assured thafc ther need be no apprehension that thia will W neglected, as the Burns Club will assured^ carry oufc their original intention iv thei own way. Our informant adds thafc tW Caledonian Society will, no doubt, do enl likewise, notwithstanding the dread ex°' pressed that the benefit performance wilt fall through.

The Rev. James Hill, speaking liefore tha Christchurch Presbytery iv acceptance of; the call from the congregation of Devon.' port, Auckland, said the call was remark* able, inasmuch as ib came from a oon^repa"l tion containing friends he had known twenty years ago, and that it offered, oniv' half the amount he was now receiving There was, however, the assurance that h* was to receive all that could be collected above the amount offered. He had twice' refused a call to a higher stipend and thrica; accepted one to a lower one. He had no' doubt as to his success at North Shore and' after earnest and prayerful consideration he concluded that it was his duty to accepfr the call from Auckland. He regretted to leave Lyttelton, and wished his congrega-1 tion there every prosperity both spiritual": and temporal. The Moderator recognised: that they could not well, as a Presbytery have Interposed in the matter. He felt he' would lose an old friend arid the Presbytery a valuable clerk and member. He was sure they wished him very much success and^ great prosperity in his new sphere of action. He expressed regret on behalf of the Lyttelton congregation, which he considered badbeen welded together by Mr Hill. MrHill, in a letter to the Rev. E., Sommer--ville, says he hopes to leave for Auckland on' either the 7th or 14th proximo.

The Rev. G. H. S. Walpole, by permis.l sion of the Bishop, will leave Auckland on' the 19th August to catch the steamship' Arawa for London. He is required to take up his professional duties at New York ab the approaching session, which commences^ on the 18th September.

A meeting of the newly-formed Cafcholfoi Young Men's Literary and Debating So-' cioty was held last evening to pass by-i laws and elect officers for the present! session. The meeting was very successful,! fully 40 young men being present. Thai by-laws and constitution were read and' passed. Mr McVeagh was elected Secre.; tary, and Mr Curr Treasurer, wifch the folJ lowing Committee : — Messrs Montague,' Lsnergan and Lundon. The election of! other officers was deferred. This Societyl seems likely to be very popular and to do a good work among the Catholic young' men: of Auckland, and Father Hackett, its pro-: moter, deserves the highest praise for the1 way in which he has worked to make it * success. ;

The firing for the medal presented tar the Wairoa rifles by Mr E. S. V. Mowbray,l in memory of his late father, took place on Saturday at the Wairoa rifle range. Theranges were 200, 300, and 400 yards, .5. shots at each range, Wimbledon regula-: tions. The conditions for winning tha medal .absolutely were thafc it should ba won three times in succession, or fourtimeaat intervals. Great interest was taken in. Saturday's firing, as several members had won it three times. Corporal R. Coutts won with a score of 4S, and as he had previously won it three times, it now[ becomes his property. After the firing an! inspection parade of the company was held under Lieutenant J. Creighton..

The Salvation Army Prison Gate Brigade report for fche fortnight ended July 29fch is aa follows:—Meals given, 183 ; beds supplied, 54; admitted, 9; discharged, 7; still in Home, 6. Donations received: Bread from Messrs Phillips, Crowe, Kent, Howie, Brown, Steam Bread Factory, and two! friends; meat, Me.srs Hulme, Hellaby,' Fisher, Badley, Garrett, Wood, Wright,; and Christian ; Devonshire Dairy, milk and butter; London Dairy, milk; Mrs Worth,' butter, cheese and vegetables; Civil Service Supply Association, case pies ; Crow^; ther, cheese; Mrs Howard, 'clothing;: Edson, books; R. Best, sack of coate;! Friend (per Captain Harlow), 10s; Sym-, pathiser, 10s. Potatoes would be thank-! fully received.—Cadet-Captain Hay.

The enormous and constantly increasing shipping trade of the British colonial port, of Singapore, of the Straits Settlemehts, is' strikingly shown by the returns for the past year just issued. The total tonnage for the. year ended March 21st, 1889, entered and; cleared, was nearly six million tons, being, an increase of over half a million tons over 1887. The value of the imports was over--108 million dollars, an increase for the year; of over fifteen million dollars, and the total value of all exports was 87,000,000 dollars,: an increase of 12,000,000 dollars.

H. M.s. Opal, Capt. Bosanquet, has arrived afc Apia (Samoa) from Havannah Harbour, (Sandwich Island), New Hebrides, having' left thafc locality, where she had been| supervising native affairs, for the Samoan Group early this month. Information received in town by a private letter from one, of the officers of the ship statse thafc she is to remain ab Apia for some ten weeks longer, when she will be relieved by the British gunboat Swinger, now cruising in Neff; Guinea waters, the Opal most probably leaving for Sydney when relieved.

When the Ascalon, barque, from London to Adelaide, was off Cape Borda the vessel was hove in stays for the other tack, and had fortunately "lost her headway when tbe cry " Man overboard !" was heard. One of the apprentices named Yeoman had been pitching the sheets out of the beckefcb and tumbled overboard. The master, Captain; Langford, no sooner made his way to tha position than he seized hold of some of the running gear and jumped overboard to the rescue, happily getting hold of the lad in good time. The darkuess of the nigh* made matters more unpleasant, but by some exertion both were got on board all right, and the danger being over the vessel was bracedup and pufc on Ecr course.

We have received from the publishers aa interesting volume of verse entitled, "A. Bush Idyl," from the pen of Captain KerK neth Mackay, a well-known cross-country: rider of New South Wales, who is also. author of "Stirrup Jingles," etc. W author lias found in his personal everyday experiences a subject of real interest, antt has bestowed upon it poetic treatment from a facile pen. His previous efforts appears have been well received, and "A bu_H Idyl" is likely to meet with equal favour. ;

The recently formed Clothing and Manufacturing Association of Dunedin have apparently taken the question of the log BW their own hands, ignoring the anti-sweating committee appointed at a public meeting^ At a meeting last night the "log w» adopted, and is to come into force on tw Ist August. It is to be printed, and a copy posted in each factory, and an effort is to w made to get manufacturers in Aoommwj Wellington, and Christchurch to adopt w same " log." Taking it all round, the J°g gives an increase on the present prices, some instances the prices have been ra__w»| but in no instance lowered.

« Words of Cheer " is the title of a cog pact volume comprising a collection oi, beautiful short poems, gathered in au p» * of the world, carefully selected an compiled by Ernest Eugster. * result is a valuable addition w poetic literature, and the au aim that " Words of Cheer Jjj become a welcome guest in every into which it may find its way, »i»W to prove over-ambitious. Young ana » . and people of all conditions, who W» pleasure in poetry, will find »n* $£rf entertainingf and much thab will afford I for reflection in this little 1"^ a also come to be especially value?i travelling companion. The COS* o_' W»»^ of Cheer" is one shilling.

Whilo tfao fate of H-M,a- Darb on er recent stormy voyage to Sydney was being anxiously debated in New Zealand, nowhere was friendly anxiety on account of the officers and crew more felt than in Devonport, where both officers and men wl resided while the vessel was underline repairs in the Calliope Dock. On the receipt of the news of the Dart's safe arrival in Sydney, several Devonport residents sent Captain Frederick a letter of hearty congratulation expressive of their friendly feeling. Yesterday the Rev. Mr Bates, as one of the gentlemen signing this letter, received the following acknowledgment from Captain Frederick :— "H.M.S Dart, Sydney, 16th July, 1889. Gentlemen,— On behalf of myself, officers and crew of H.M.s. Dart, I have to tender you our sincere thanks for the kind letter of congratulation which you have addressed to us. It is wifch the deepest gratitude that the expression of your sympathy and intereat in our welfare has been received by us, after passing through such a trying ordeal of bad weather on our passage from Auckland to Sydney. That there was no loss of life we have to be indeed thankful for, and the injuries received by several of the crew were not of a serious nature, so that they are all quite well again now. Hoping that some day we may have the pleasure of being among you again.—l remain, yours sincerely" G. C. Frederick."

A telegram received by Mr A. Porter from Mr Vizard, his co-partner in the Castle Rock claim, Coromandel, states that after driving 800 feefc in the low level at a cost of £1,500 he ha 3 tapped water in the winze from the upper level, from which some good stone was obtained about twelve months ago.

Captain Briscoe, who has arrived in Sydney in command of the P. and O. Co.'s fine mail steamer Valefcta, is a distinguished shipmaster and has seen some service in his time. His first acquaintance with Australia was in 1852 with H.M.s. sloop-of-war Juno. Captain Briscoe has a good many decorations. For services rendered at the sie^e of Alexandria he was twice mentioned in despatches to the Admiralty by Admiral Beauchamp Seymour for the material assistance he rendered on June 11, the day of the massacre. He was then in command of the Company's s.s. Tanjore, and was instrumental in collecting and protecting over 500 refugees. Captain Briscoe was also commissioned by Admiral Seymour to get the British merchant steamers and transports out of the harbour before the bombardment commenced, as the Alexandria pilots bad refused to take out any British vessels. Captain Briscoe was also complimented by the Admiral for the clever way in which he manceuvred his vessel while within the range of the enemy's guns. The medals of the Royal Humane Society were awarded to Captain Briscoe, once for saving the life of a gentleman who had fallen into a well at Bombay, and for recovering the bodies of two ladies who were precipitated into the well by the same accident. On this occasion he well nigh losb his own life. The medal was awarded him for jumping overboard at Get-ei-Tier, in the Red Sea, and rescuing a girl of 14 from drowning. The decoration in the possession of Captain Briscoe which bas the most intrinsic value is that of the Order of the Crown of Italy, which was given him by the King of Italy for saving the Italian corvette Chiozzia, which was dismasted in a gale, and was in danger of drifting helplessly to destruction. The engines had broken down, and the stern-post was carried away, and she was being steered wifch a spar rigged over the stern. The Tanjore towed the disabled steamer to Corfu. Captain Briscoe declined to receive any money consideration, and was rewarded with fche decoration.

Lodge Nil Desperandum, No. 6, 1.0. G.T., held their quarterly meeting in the Masonic Hall, Otahuhu, on Friday last, there being a large attendance of members. One of the chief attractions of the evening was the exhibition of Bro. Cunnold's little dwarf, whose performance caused roars of laughter. Ab the "conclusion, ~ ftb§ sisters presented this little wonder with a bouquet of flowers, after which the following officers were elected for the ensuing quarter, all being warmly contested : Sis. E. Harper, W.C.T.; Sis.E. Dalfcon, W.V.T.; Bro. E. Mac Donald, W. Sec; Bro. W. Dalfcon, W.F. Sec; Sis. J. Dalton, W.T.; Bro. Wilcox, W. Chap.; Bro.. A. Goodwill, W.M.; Bro. F. Wells, W.G.; Bro. Muir, W. Sent.; Bro. A. Lowe, W.A. Sec: Sis. Burrows, W.D.M.; Sis. Lowe, W.R.H.S.; Sis. Harrison, W.L.H.S.