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Press, Volume XI, Issue 1346, 1 March 1867, Page 2

Tklb&baphic CoMMtrencATiON-.—We learn that telegraphic communication with the North was suspended during the whole of yesterday, and though repairs are being effected the line ia not jet open. Communication with the South ia also greatly interrupted.

Lasd Satoe3.—The following ie the return of waste lands disposed of yesterduy at the Land-office •■ —Ashley, 63 acres ; Banks peninsula, 60 acres ; Christchurch, 3 acres ; Ellesmere, 67 acres ; Lincoln, 15 acres ; Malvern, 50 "acres ; Mandeyille, 16 acrea ; Oxford, 41 acres ; Timaru, 2082 acres ; total 2397 acres, yielding £4794

8ba.53 Band roit Timaut7.—Tho "Timaru Herald" desires to call attention to the exertions of several gentlemen in the town to establish:: a brass band. From what has been already done, it augurs a complete success to the scheme. Already about £30 bavo been collected for the preliminary expenses, and a subscription list is now open at Messrs. Knight Bros. It is proposed that the band should consist of fourteen performers, and it believes that this number has been secured, and that only practice is neeJed for the band to become an institution of Timaru.

Oamabu Racks—The " Oamaru Times" states that the following horses have crossed the Waitaki, and are now in Oamaru, waiting the race meeting on 7th and Bth proximo : — Mr Delamain'a Musician, Presto, and Atalanta; Mr Moorhouse's Knoftingly; Mr Gibson's Hnnter, Toi-toi, and The Pet; Mr A. E. B. Thompson's Camel. Stormbird and Virginia are in the vicinity. From »he South the following are expected:—Schoolboy (who was brought oat for the first time at last year's Oamaru races), Hatter, and the Hampden and

Manuherikia horses we formerly mentioned. There is some talk of Gray Doctor and Gaffer Gray also visiting us. Stormbird is reported in poor form. Theatbe Royal.—A very good entertainment was provided at the theatre last evening, but probably owing to counter attractions it was not co fully patronised as it deserved. The pieces played were " Griat to the Mill" and " The Youth Who Never Saw a Woman, with an interval during which some very excellent gymnastic feats and other amusements were afforded. We hear that" Mazeppa" will be played on Monday evening, with new scenery, prepared by Mr Maesey, who has come from Wellington "for the express purpose. The company at present at the theatre is one of the best we have Been in Christchurch for a long time, and deserve support. Salb of St. Thomas.— The New York papers announce the sale of the island of St. Thomas by the Danish Government to the United States for a naval station. The " Panama Star " doubts it. The " Spectator" says .—"The object of the Gettysburg secret expedition, which was to have left Annapolis, Md., on Christmas night, has leaked out The negotiations for the purchase of the little island of 3t Thomas, in the West Indies, from Denmark for a United States naval station are about concluded. Our Government is to pay Denmark 15,000,000 dollars in gold for the island, and the expedition of the Gettysburg, it is said, was to convey the money to the persons authorised to receive it.

Cricket.— A m-iteh which is exciting some little interest will be commenced today on the ground of the United Canterbury Cricket Club, an eleven of the Old Albion Club having challenged an eleven chosen from the United Canterbury Cricket Club, which numbers somewhere about 150 members. This is, with the exception of the match with Otago, the only one during the season that has created any amount of excitement, all the others being scratch matches between members of the United Canterbury Cricket Club. The following is a list of the plajers : —Albion Club—Tajlor, Dickenson, Young, Calvert, Bruce, Turner, Wood, Dawe, Cuff, Hobbs, and A. Cuff. United Canterbury Clubs —E. C. J. Stevens, Campbell, Mainwaring, Burnell, Cotterill, Mytton, A. Ollivier, F. Ollivier, Harley, Cooke, and Thomas.

The Cihcub . — Messrs Cooke and Co. opened their circus last evening in the marquee at the b>»ck of Barnard's repository. The circu* was well fitted up. Chairs were provided for that portion which may be considered as the " dress circle" of the house, and the seats in the stalls were carpeted and stuffed. The attendance was perhaps the largest that we have ever seen at any public amusement in Christchurch, the tent being literally crammed from top to bottom and many of those who had paid six shillings for a reserved seat were compelled to stand during the whole of the performance. The premises, including the long approach through Barnard's repository, were lit with gas, and nothing was left undone to render the place comfortable. The takings last night must have been over £100, and the proprietors, if they meet with anything like the success that attended them last evening, will have but little cause to complainr of their visit to Christchurch. The performance was really an excellent one, and was duly appreciated by the large crowd assembled, the applause being frequent and prolonged. The equestrian feats were numerous, and each in its turn, whether by male or female artistes, commanded success. Madame Toumear, an old favorite in Christchurch, was loudly applauded, and so was Madam Annereau in a very difficult and apparently dangerous feat on two horses, which however wae accomplished without any hitch, in a rery laudable manner. Signor Raphael, who appeared here about a year ago as a member of Mr Foley's company, was also highly successful ; his riding is of the most daring character. Mr Cooke acted as clown ; his witticisms are out of the common line of circus clowns, and exhibit an amount of original humor very different from the usual hackneyed circus jokes. The performance was a great success, and the accommodation really good.

Phbenology.—Mr Hamilton delivered the fifth of his series of lectures at the Town Hall laat evening, the subject chosen being the %< Poetic Faculty." We cannot congratulate Mr Hamilton on the good taste of his exordium. His attempts to illustrate the " poetry of motion" by balancing chairs on his forehead and other tricks, suggested the idea that he wished to draw an audience from across the way by outdoing the circus performers. However, as soon as he had exhaused the five minutes he devoted to this purpose, he plunged at once in medias res, and discoursed first of the organ of Hope. Hβ considered it to be the most interesting and one of the best proved facts in phrenology, that the duration of life both in nations and individuals was great in proportion to the amount of hope which they possessed. He remarked on the low development of hope, faith, and ideality in savages, and showed several skulls of aboriginal nativrs botli of Australia and New Zealand in support of liis argument, as well as one skull of a Tasmanian native, a member of a race now all but extinct, in which the organ of caution was immensely developed, whilst that of hope barely existed. As a contrast to these heads he remarked on the glorious one of Shakespeare, pointing out how immensely developed were the organs of hope and its kindred qualities in him. These three, hope, faith, and ideality, are the spring of physical as well as of moral and intellectual life. It is necessary, however, that hope should have a solid foundation, and the hope of the hypocrite perishes for want of such foundation. Also, there can hardly be hope without courage, and where courage is absent disease is likely to ensue ; and in the same way it is impossible for a child to thrive under the influence of terror. In exact proportion as hope decreases does vitality also decrease. If hope is not only alive, but fixed on a solid basis, the man who has this hope goes on his way rejoicing and conquering. Musio acts largely on hope, through the feel* ings in those who are susceptible of its influence. Men of hopeful and energetic dispositions looked ever onward and upwards, and the electric telegraph, and all the great ; improvements of the last, hundred years, originated in the minds of such men as these; whereas the people who were slow to adopt • improvements until they were forced on them had heads very like the savages. The lecturer here quoted the beautiful poem of ; 'The Summer Cloud," by Professor Wilson, stating that he wished it could be taught to every child in the land, in order to raise its mind to the contemplation of more elevated notions. iOn the subject of faith the lecturer remarked that those with little faith could learn nothing, and were far below those who, having too much faith, were deceived ninety-nine times, and then i were successful the hundredth time. He | instanced such an idea as that of a tunnel from France to England (a less surprising one to us than that of an electric telegraph would have been to our ancestors) as one which, though now a matter of faith, might become a great reality in the future, saying that the men who designed these things were those who ought to be held in honor by us, and remarked that though the individuals might die, their idea or faith would still live, and if for the good of mankind would ultimately be carried out by successors of kindred spirit. Without faith there could be no intellectual life, yet the faith which constitutes the religion of phrenology is far nobler and more wonderful than mere intellectual faith, and enables a man to remove a mountain load of sin from his own mind. The lecturer hero exhibited a cast of the skull of Burgees, the murderer, and commented on it at come length, pointing out how large the organs of self-esteem i courage, and hops were in it, and saying that at first sight it was hard to reconcile these with his known depravity, but stated that having carefully watched him just before execution, it was evident to him that self-satisfaction pervaded every movement, whilst his eye instead of showing signs of humility was glasey and cold, and his attitude defiant. Whilst not denying that a man might repent and find mercy at the eleventh hour, fie felt bound as a phrenologist to protest against the notion which seemed to 'prevail in some quarters, that if a murderer

were imprisoned for a few weeke and visited by a chaplain, therefore his nature would become changed. Of Kelly he remarked that the abuse of faith was still more present, whilst the love of approbation was remarkably strong. The morbid action of any one organ will, if undiscovered, draw away in time the energy from other organs; for instance, the organ of caution may reduce that of hope. The lecturer defined ideality as the principle which makes men seek to copy nature in her infinite beauty. It is usually shown by great width across the temples ; here again the aborigiral is amazingly deficient. He exhibited the skull of an English mate of a vessel alongside of a Maori skull, and proved by measurement a difference of nearly two inches. But inexperienced people might be deceived occasionally in searching for this quality, as its development is not always lateral, but has sometimes an upward tendency, which was the case with the skull of Sir Walter Scott. By continually gazing on beautiful objects with intense sympathy, the ideality of the painter or the poet becomes expanded. Form and color may be accurately observed without much ideality, but the power of observing them would be rendered comparatively useless by want of harmony. Mam men and many women display the absence of ideality by bad taste in dress. Chalmers' head was very remarkable for its display of ideality, and many other men of genius have had the came great width across the temples. The lecturer concluded by inviting his audience to meet him again on Monday evening ; and he said most truly that he could have lectured much more spiritedly had they been more in number, and gathered round him in a smaller room. A few men mounted the platform to have their heads examined, but the greater part seemed to sympathise with the modesty of the fatherly old gentleman with the bald but hopeful head, whose reluctance to be examined on a previous occasion formed the subject of such deep regrets on Mr Hamilton's part during the discourse.