General Intelligence.

Clutha Leader, Volume III, Issue 148, 11 May 1877, Page 6

General Intelligence.

A shock of earthquake was felt at New Plymouth, pn Monday.. , •-...

; Thi;ee boys, recently escaped, from the Auckland, training-ship, but were re- ; Captured. .;.. ,;..;•,;• , *..■--. . YNews. has been. received at Wellington t[iat the cable, between Amoy and .Shanghai js broken. i: :.,; The ; UnitedFreeMethqdistß, Christ- * ; .church,:haye com.menced io erect a new church,' to, CQSt,;L22OO. ;.,.., The, name./ o£Y the ;T.eyiot Post Office in; the Provincial .district of --Ota go -has heen changed. to- Roxburgh, ... ; „ i Mrs, J ury, a real sister of Arthur, Or.ton, has.;Co v ine.pu.t .expecting to see her ; brother in Paramatta, Asylum. . .-, f -. , ,7 A. man named Anderson vyas stabbed in the e,ye :i by_ a na,na ;n'amed .Healey,'in Queen-street, Auckland, ou Saturday .afternoon. ... . -„ , a-.- . „ „: \ ,, Great, dissatisfaction: is, expressed in Auckland -at; the rise of flour,, by the, millers :■ Southern ,to'-.L18, ; -and.-sup(fr- . , .fine-Auckland to Jj22. ,,,.., -„..., „ :' .; -.. Considerable, dissatisfaction has been . causep/in; Auckland;, by a combination of, master. bakers, to7rai.se the price of. breaclto .jsql for, tbe^lb.. loaf. „ ; .;' :, The Auckland Sash and Dpor Com- j pany has called a ; nieering (p. increase , the capital, of the .Company by the. issue | , 0f'30,000 shares, .nominally of L 5. . ' .There is every probability of. the Canterbury Spinning and Weaving, Com--pany being wound up, as all the capital is exhausted ; and though new shares, have,; been offered 'to "the, public none have been taken up. The Governor is expected to visit Canterbury in about ten/days, .when he will be invited to open. the new 'Museum building". ,, ln. connection with the llatterr r an .exhibition of works of art and vertu, extending oyer eight days, is to be held.; Therecently resuscitated, Christchurch Chess .Ciu.b is inia-flourishing state. A , handicap tournam en twill be commenced on. May 10. Mr Honk-ham, one. of the principal members, is , riow playing a., match by letter with Mr Benbow,. the champion of Wellington. . , 7; . A large and influential public meet- , ing. was held at Cardrona on Saturday niglit, \yhen. it* was decided unanimously to sever.:Connection,vvith Luke County, . and go' in. Avith Cromwell division of Kawarau County for a new. county. • Delegates from Cromwell Avere present, '- and the. meeting was most unanimous. The, Avar scare has caused attention to begiven to. the state of- the defence •of Melbourne... Sir William J ervois and .Colonel YScatchley are. ; now. both in the colonies, and will shortly commence i their duties. The Cereb.us hasj.been s frilly manned and properly equipped^ and other measures have been taken to place the defensive works in better order.

A correspondent of the Auckland Star states that Hobart Pasha, the present Admiral of .the, Turkish fleet, served on board H.M.S. Calliope in New Zealand, on which he was known as the " wild midshipman." On one occasion he was -confined for two days in the guardrrootri at Wanganui, owing to a scrape^- He Avas in charge of a gunboat in the attack on the Maoris at Porirua. '.....- At a recent meeting of the discharged Provincial officers, Christchurch, it was resolved-* — "That this meeting beingdissatisfied Avith the present .action of the Colonial Government in withholding compensation granted to discharged Civil Servants, under the Abolition of Provinces Act, resolves, by every legal and constitutional means,- to assert, and, if necessary, to enforce its chums." An association was then formed to carry out the resolution in the best manner possible.

Sig-nor Dil Vescovo ; and partner, Italian sculptors, have just- completed, a statue of the late -Dr.Featherston in Carrara marble,' 'in 'Wellington; Tlie cost is two hundred guineas, and is considered the finest work of art ever seen in the Colony. They have been specially requested to remain in Wellington till theformal unveiling next week at the Museum. They will go to- Melbourne under a contract for the O'Con■nel statue, -which is to cost two thousand guineas. .

A Melbourne telegram says : — A lamentable boat accident has occurred which has resulted in the drowning of five men belonging to the Admiralty surveying vessel Victoria, Avhich is being employed in the survey of Banks Straits. 'The : crew left for Goosh Island in order to fetch the mails from Melbourne left there by the passing Tasmanian steamer. They Avere never seen more, but the boat was found three days after on Green Island, having no doubt been capsized during a sudden squall. A rumour has g©fc abroad, based we know not on what foundation (says the Titnaru Herald),* that a formidable Opposition is likely to be- formed against the pi*esent Ministry, almost immediately on the meeting* of Parliament. The strength of the new combination, so* saith report, is he drawn from Wellington, -Sir William Fitzherbert leaving, the chair iri order to take the lead of the. party, Mr Tra vers acting as his lieutenant, and the rank arid, file comprising the whole force- of the oi devant Provincialist party combined with the 'malcontent 1 -Abolitionists.'

'A' special conference "of Canterbury school teachers, at which the members of the Assembly are 'invited to attend, Avill be held on -Saturday next' (to-mor-row) 7 The following s 'resolutions will be proposed : — "That education be free,

com pillory! , r FiTF" rel'igioul "a rid un sec - tarian, and supported by a conscience clause." "- That no certificates b&'issued to teachers. on examinatioh.ihigher than second class j first- class to be ; obtained by success as a reader ahd ''length of service only." "-That inspectors bo appointed by the central authori/y, nnd one shall be appbinted'as chief inspector, as in England, so, as .to .render, the sys-tem-'of-examination uniform throughout the' Colony;" /< That; if lsdesiraWe to form a national union 6? teachers." "•That 1 the "stahling -of teachers be definitely .defined."' 7, ; , ■ „ * > At the Magistrate's/ Court, 7 Christchurch, 1 on Mop.dayi a number -of publican's,'were sum-rW neglecting to take out licences for extra bars. Iho charge, against J; Barrett,-ofthe'Devon-shire Arms Hotel, was taken as a test case. The eyidence .sho.jved there w ( >re several half-doors,*ahdca7:stuall window, at which persons, while standing in the .passage,. ,vor,,, a, room .opening i*i;o it, could ta^spryed jvith J/qu.cV from, tiio bar/ Counsel for the defence urged that it' was absurd W call" these*sfepai*a!e bars, and no siich defi:rntion> ? Avas placed on the: word /' bar ",,in,Jliiglan(l, nor could it, .in common .sense, .be dona here. Tha Bench ''i-pplied thaf/thfl Licensing Act of 1873' distinctly said the word "bar" should he deemed to include any room, passage, or lobby opening. immediately on to -a street, and in **which thft'vpublic are-: supplied with refreshments. A-fineol-'Lo was imposed. Notice of appeal 1 wns "given*, r nnrl* ihe other cases- Were 'adjourned 'sine. die. The Timaru .Herald,' intimates the probabil i ty ■ot Sir G eorge' Grey ' r'eti ri n<r from. Parliament. That journal'says *.— -We/are not in'po?session of any absolutely authoritative-infoi'mation-oTi- this subject; butt we hear from. a ■ variety of quarters tliat there is littlelikelihoddoHhs present leader ofthe Upposifion ever taking his seat in the House, again. The gallant old; Knight* borft his burden nt the' work "'during the last / wear;? rue , .session with alUbe- courage and ar.d m of a youth, and sacrificed to the service of his party much. of . what remained of his once : vigorous constitution. Wi* are told that he has .nfeyer been in good health" since the" .Flou.se/., rose,/ a'nd that •lately, his. strength has -declined -so seriously, as to prevent his taking^any part ; iri public affairs. Should this account not prove to be exaggerated, we .rany expect at. any time to hear of his resignation of his seat, for the Thames; and there is no. saying .what boidv.ersements , of party - arrangements =* may „ ensue. The Ministry, probably,. would willingly be rid of an opponent -who was ever implacable,, indefatigable, and incorruptible. „ - .

- A fearful case of burning to death v reported , from beyond Lucas Creek, Auckland. Wm., John Peacock, <\ notorious drnukard, who has had several hairbreadth escapes, got a bottle' of rum at Riverhead, and after looming home drank the whole bottleful. Between five and eight he went to bed, and asked a youth named Nesbitt, who lived with him, to give him- "a light to his pipe. After smoking it for some time he went out and relighted his pipe. Nesbitt, who went to sleep, was soou awakened "by crackling,/ arid saw die head of Peacock's bed in flames. He could not awaken Peacock, aud tried to drag him put, but being, a, very heavy man only got him as- far as tho door of the partition. Soon afterwards a powderflask under Peacock's bed exploded, and a gnn on the wall went off, ami JNesliitt was obliged to leave the building. • .He /alarmed a neighbour, but when both returned the- roof of the house had fallen in, and' the body was burnt all but the trunk. . It .is supp.iscd that Peacock threw a match into the thatch when lighting his pipe.' ' A telegram from Oamaru says .—-"An accident, occurred, on "the. railway hero on Saturday night,* by which: a man named John Stirling Arthur lost his life. The down train from Christchurch, which is due here .at 8.5 p.m , was within 500 -yards of the town station when the engine driver noticed that the engine passed over some object. Dn arriving at the Omaru station .the circumstance was reported to the station master, Avho sent a man up the line to enquire into the matter., At this time it was^ merely supposed that a stray sheep had been run. over,, but the messenger - was horror-struck to fiud, on arriving at the point referred to, the body of a man lying alongside the track, nearly severed in two. The body, which was lying face downwards, with the arms extended, was much mutilated. The left wrist was partially severed, and the left side 'of the head much crushed. The deceased was 26 years'of age, .about 5 feet • 8 inches in height, -of- fair complexion, with short beard and whiske-s. He was dressed in light tweed clothes, but had -neither -boots, socks, or coat on. From visiting cards found on his person it appears that his name-was. John Stirling Arthur, and a pocket-book found in his coat pocket contained a memorandum to the effect that the deceased arrived from Glasgow in the ship Auckland on the 15th of February last. Me went to work as a miller in Anderson : and CoJs flour mill afc Dunedin, and on the sth March cams here to work at the. flour mill of the same firrr, situated at ;Kakanui. He: came into Oamaru- on Saturday morning.. and got the worse of liquor,-- missed.. the'-re-turn, train, and evidently * started to walk out along, the- line* but mistook his way, and proceeded .northwards instead of southwards as he should have done."