NEWS OF THE DAY.

Press, Volume XVIII, Issue 2489, 22 April 1871, Page 2

NEWS OF THE DAY.

* The Suez mail has, we understand, been forwarded by Messrs Cobb and Co., and will arrive here this evening. The annual meeting of the parishioners of Templeton will be held ou Monday next at the schoolroom, Templeton. " Frou-Frou" was repeated last night at the Theatre Royal to a fair house. To-night the Adelphi drama of " The Flowers of the Forest" will be produced; and ou Monday a new piece, " The Time and the Hour " will be put upon the stage. The numerous friends of M. Eugene Mallet, formerly a resident in Canterbury— the Carlton Hotel, during the occupancy of Mr Georgo Oram, and the Club, being alternately his head-quarters in town —and proprietor of a sheep and cattle run near the head-waters of the Hurunui, situate on the River Esk, and known as the Lochinvar station, as well as a piece of country on the West Coast road, known the The Paddock— will be interested to learn that this gentleman has held a high appointment upon General Bourbaki's staff throughout the recent campaign, and that he has survived unscathed the many engagements in which he took an active part. The thorough pluck and extraordinary powers of endurance which he possessed, and to which many of his friends and acquaintances can testify, no doubt stood him in good stead upon more than one trying occasion. Wo are glad to be enabled to state, from private information received by last mail, and kindly placed at our disposal, that his health has not materially suffered frem the many hardships and exposures which he has undergone. The News of the World says that Mr. Vogel left for England on the Cunard steamship Russia, on the Oth of March, immediately after the consumation of the contract with Messrs. Webb and Holladay. We have received from Mr Bradwell a copy of " The Alta- California Pacific Coast and Trans-Continental Railroad Guide." We have only given it a cursory glance, but it appears to give what it professes to do, " A monthly detailed account of every city, town, railroad station, mining district, mountain, valley, lake, river, hunting and fishing ground, along the great trans-con-tinental railroad, together with an account of California, the States territories of the Pacific coast, their resources, land, climate, and how new comers can obtain public lands." A meeting of the Spreydon Road Board was held at the office, Lincoln road, ou Tuesday last. Present —All the members. The tenders of W. Hall was accepted for gravelling the following streets, viz. : —Two streets in Addington, at ls4£dper yard ; two streets on the cast side of Selwyn street, at ls per yard ; aud on section 79, Colombo street south, at Is IOJ-d per yard. A letter from the Provincial Secretary was read, certifying the Superintendent's approval of a separate rate on rural section 66. Messrs Smart and Archer stated that they had examined the creek running through the Wilderness, and from the levels which had been taken by Mr Henwood there is a fall of 9ft. 7in. into the river. The Clerk was directed to have the lower portion of the creek cleared at once, and then it could be decided how to proceed in the matter. A letter from Mr Ell was read, requesting the sanction of the Board to maintain a dam on the River Halswell. The clerk was directed to inform Mr Ell that they could not give the required permission, but if the rising of the water did not injure any private individuals the Board would not interfere ;. but that he (Mr Ell) must keep the river clear from water-cress, Sec, as far as it was affected by the rise. The clerk was directed to prepare a list of ratepayers for the purpose of levying a rate of 9d in the •£, and also to advertise for tenders to keep the rivers clear to December 31st next. Accounts to the amount of £8 3s 4d were passed for payment. The Board then adjourned. By the s.s. Phcebe, which arrived yesterday from the North, two of the English pedestrians, Messrs J. G. Harris and A. E. Bird, were passengers. Mr Hewitt, the third member of the team, will arrive per s.s. Taranaki, from the North, in a few days. We understand that they will give a display of their prowess about Monday fortnight, should they be able to make the necessary arrangements. It is their intention to make application for the use of the U.C.C. ground, upon which the late athletic sports were held. With respect to the two men who have arrived, Bird's specialty is long distance running; and during his Australian tour he always made excellent time.and for longdistance has never been equalled this side of the Line. Harris' particular forte lies in sprint running, he being exceedingly fast for 150 ot 200 yards; in fact, his running for these distances,-! in Australia, stamps him as the best in his time that has ever visited the colony. Taken altogether, the two representatives of the English ped. are each, in his particular line, really first-class men, and the cognoscenti may expect to have on their first appearance such a treat as has never been seen in Canterbury previously. The men, in the proposed athletic gathering, wish most distinctly l to place themselves in the hands of competent

handicappers, chosen locally, so that a really good day's sport- may be ■•- arranged, and that local competitors may not be discouraged from entering. We have of course not yet had an opportunity of seeing our visitors shape, but we may state that they may be seen at work any time next week ou the cricket ground from four to five o'clock p.m. Judging from the success which has attended : the athletic gatherings got up np under their auspices in Australia and Auckland, • we have every reason to anticipate that the proposed gathering here will be equally successful, the more so as the team can accommodate any class of runner from fifty yards up to ten miles. Hewitt, the remaining member of the two, is good from 300 yards to half-a-mile, and his time in the quarter and a half mile has never been equalled. He has done his quarter of a mile in 49J sees., and half-a-mile in 1 mm. 56$ sees. These performances stamp him as a pod of no mean order. As athletics just now are somewhat in the ascendant, we predict that, circumstances being favorable, the English peds will have what the Yankees call " a good time " in Canterbury. The second game in the match now proceeding between the Christchurch and Dunedin Chess Clubs (of which the first game was won by Dunedin last week) was played on Thursday evening, and resulted in an easy victory for the Christchurch players. At the ninth move they gained so decisive a superiority that their opponents found themselves compelled to resign. The third and conquering game was then begun, and continued to the fifteenth move, at which point it was postponed till Thursday next. This concluding game is, so far, very much superior to the two former ones. It has been well contested. the play on both sides being exceedingly careful, and no material advantage having been gained by either party. We have been promised all three games for publication upon the termination of the match. Last evening the series of games for Mr Wood's prize was commenced at the club-room in the Literary Institute. The competitors have been arranged in four classes, according to their proficiency ; and the match is to be played in heats, the winners of two out of three games in the first heat pairing off against each other tor the second, and so on. Nine members of the | . club have entered, who are classified as fol- , lows :—Mr Marsack, in the first class; Mr Stead, Mr A. Ollivier and Mr Veel, in the second ; Mr Tancred, Mr Martin, Mr Griffith , and Mr Johnson, hi the third ; and Mr New- , man, in the fourth. Mr Tancred and Mr : Marsack being absent, only three parties l could be formed. The result was that Mr A. Ollivier of the second class, won two games , from Mr Martin of the third, giving him * pawns and move—the latter therefore being out of the match. Mr Stead of the second > class, and Mr Newman of the fourth, each > won a game, the former giving the latter a L knight. Mr Griffith of the third class, won t and drew two games with Mr A r eel of the second, receiving pawn and move. Play will \ be resumed at the next ordinary meeting of the club on Friday. The Provincial Council is further prorogued 1 until the 20th of May. The various banks in Christchurch will .', close on Monday, the 24th instant, being St. George's Day. i The appointment of James R. Hill, Esq. t as a member of the Park and Domain Board ' has been gazetted, b A committee has been formed to arrange for a scries of entertainments to be held in , the school-room, Woolston, during the winter , months. It is proposed to hold the opening 1 one on Monday, the Ist of May, when the - promoters expect to have a very good prof gramme. 2 A notification appears in the New Zealand :, Gazette of the 13th instant, that his Honor 3 Mr Justice Gresson has reported that he has appointed Edward James Lee, Esq., to be Revising Officer for the electoral districts of " Christchurch City East, Christchurch City - West, Lyttelton, Cheviot, Ashley, Kaiapoi, " Avon, Heathcote, Mount Herbert, Akaroa, 3 Selwyn, Coleridge, Timaru, and Gladstone. 3 Mr R. Bills sails for England in the Char--1 lottc Gladetone to bring out a large shipment b of useful birds for tbe Acclimatisation So--1 ciety, and we are glad to hear that so good an > opportunity of sending home a collection of 1 New Zealand birds has not been overlooked by the society as a means of obtaining valu- - able exchanges. Further living specimens are, - however, needed, such as Blue Mountain ducks, Paradise ducks, kehas, kakas, kiwis, ' kakapos, crows, swamp hens, and wood hens, ! for all of which liberal prices will be given at ' the gardens of the society. 1 A general meeting of the Christchurch - Football Club was held at White's Hotel yesterday afternoon, at 4 o'clock. Mr A. ' Hellicar occupied the chair. The business ' before the meeting was the reception of the ' balance sheet of the past year, the election ■ of officers for the ensuing twelve months, and the fixing of the date for the opening match ' of the season. The election of officers was ' first proceeded with, when the following ! gentlemen were unanimously re-elected to ! the respective offices, viz :—President—Mr R. J. S. Harman ; Secretary and Treasurer Mr Thomas Gordon. Committee—Messrs T. ; W. Balfour, A. F. N. Blakiston, and Mainwaring. The accounts showed a balance in favor of the Club, amounting to £4 Ss 3d. The following gentlemen were elected as new members of the Club :—Messrs E. S. Bray, A. Dunnett, T. J. Grierson, S. S. Eevans, C. ' W. Todd, W. Webb, and J. Waugh. The 1 Treasurer was empowered to purchase two ' flags for goal posts, to have the Square mown, and to have copies of the Rules of tbe Club printed for the use of members. The date of the opening match was fixed for this day on Latimer square. A vote of thanks to the chairman terminated the business of the meeting. Yesterday's Gazette contains the traffic returns upon the Canterbury Railv, a y S f or | the month of April. The total amr, an t shows £6271 17s lOd, against £8161 14s 2d for the corresponding month last year, showing a deficit of £1889 lGs 4d. On the Lyttelton and Christchurch line the following are the principal items with the corresponding amounts for the same month last year:— Passengers, 11,229, £583 8s 2d, against 13,148," £811 2s 7d ; goods, including flax, 2242 tons, £796 18s 3d, against 2171, £759 19s Id ; coals, 1250 tons, £375 Is Bd, against 1725, £520 14s 4d ; timber, 538,750 feet, £269 7s 6d, against 459,750, £22917s 9d; firewood, 76 cords, £22 16s, against 113 cords, £33 18s ; grain, 188,130 bushels, £135718s 2d, against 247,674,

£1923 17s ; flour and potatoes, 309 tons £9 17s 6d, against 217, £65 4s 6d; wool, 989 bales, £111 15s sd, against 2129, £236 3s 7dwater, £33 18s, against £28 lis 7<i ; and wharfage, £334 6s 2d, against £328 7s, the balance being obtained from parcels and season tickets. On the Great South line the particulars are—Passengers, 5040, £504 15s 7d against 5499, £633 4s sd; goods, 420 tons, £180 3s, against. 559, £2SI Is 6<l; coals, 378 tons, £151 7s lOd, against 436 tons, £177 5 a 6d; timber, 88,225 feet, £61 2s 6d, against 80.175, £48 5s i)d; grain, 179/217 bushels, £1179 6s Sd, against 250.011, £1617 16s 10d; wool, 481 bales, £71 19s, against 1510, £226 4s; the balance being obtained from season tickets, parcels, and labor. The Committee of the Popular Entcrtaiument Association deserve every credit for tho manner iv which they havo initiated thts series of entertainments for the forthcoming; season, and we think the selection of Saturday evening the most judicious one that could be made, as ou that evening numbers of the very class whom these entertainments are specially inteuded to benefit, are moro than ever prone, from the fact of their having their weekly wages in their pocket, to give way to dissipation, and tbe stock excuse for this is, " What other amusements have wol" These entertainments will supply this want, and enable a man to take his wife and family at a very small cost, and enjoy a rational evening's amusement. The question of whether the entertainments should be weekly or fortnightly was not touched upon at the meeting held yesterday, but we should certainly say that to carry out the aim of these entertainments they should be weekly at least. We hope to see all thoso amongst us who can in any way aid the committee, by readings or other contributions, come forward cheerfully and work for the common cause. Another subject touched upon at the meeting was the question of levelling and fencing Latimer square, so as to render it available for sports ; and Captain Wilson deserves thanks for having ventilated this subject. For some time past it has been a matter of sir 2 prise that Cranmer square should have been favored by our city magnates, and Latimer Square, near to the heart of the city, and therefore the more likely to l>e observed by visitors, left in its native state, the only work in connection with it being an occasional mowing. The consequence has been that any sports to be carried out iv proper style, so as to secure a good course, have had to take place on the Cricket Ground at Hagley Park, a mile distant from the city. As planned out by the City Surveyor, a capital course of a quarter-of-a-mile wiil be obtained. As will be seen from the report of the committee, the expense of putting the Square in good order, is but small compared with the advantages, and, therefore, it is that we hope to see the work taken up in, earnest during the coming winter, so that it may be in tolerable condition for the first of the season.