THE SOUTH.

Daily Southern Cross, Volume XXIV, Issue 3400, 9 June 1868, Page 3

THE SOUTH.

I$T the arrival of the ■.•. ' Stormbird ' in the Ma nu)(aa yesterday afternoon, we have later exchan ges from the South ; bat the news contained therein is not of a yery exciting character. The Wellington Pnrnncial Executive hare been defeated on Patent Slip Act, on the notion of Mr. Bunny, that it be read that day six months, and have resigned. Mr, Bunny van, at lait adtices, engaged in the formation of a Ministry. Vdgel's Ministry have been reinstated at Dnnedin. A motion for a general dissolution of the Provincial Council has been carried, but not by a large majority. The plague of plenro-ppeumonia is. said to be spreading in Canterbury, but effectual measures are to be taken to stamp out the disease. The whole of Mr. John Grigg's cattle at Woodend have been killed by order of tbe Superintendent, who has personally visited the infected district. I i 1 The Wairarapa gold discovery has not been productive, to far, of anything bnt the colour. Mr. Grove, the prospector, arrived in Wellington on tbe evening of the Ist instant with some samples of qnartz, which are to be tested by Dr. Hector, to ascertain whether they are auriferous or not. Encouraging statements are made in the Dnnedin papers as to the probability of tbe salmon ova experiment turning put; a tnccess. Tbe ova forwarded to the Canterbury Acclimatisation Society, it is feared, will prove opt to have been fertilised.

The usual fortnightly meeting of the City Board was held yesterday, but the business disposed of was of an unimportant oharaofcer. , A petition from Mr. B. Bartley, praying the Board to make certain repairs in front oi his premises, wu referred to' the Foreman of Worki. A letter from Mr. D. Nathan, requesting the attention of the Board to the roadway and pathway in front of Mi .stores in Custom -house- , street, was referred to the Streets Committee, as also was a letter from Mr. John Lockwood, oomplaining of the condition of Hobson-street, la ( front of j the , Prince of Wales Hotel. A petition was read, signed by Mr. W. F. Ramsay, , on behalf of the express drivers, requesting protection from material injury to their business caused by the proprietors of a number of handcarts plying < for hire without licenses; 'I he matter was referred to the Law Officer of the Board for hij ppinion. The finances of the Board were reported 'to be as follow : To the credit of the Board at the bank, after deducting the £800 -.paid -to the Provincial Government, £540 9s. 9d.; accounts to be paid, £248 ss. lid.; luring a balance of £292 3s. lOd. The report of the Streets Committee war read relative to certain 'proponed repairs and improrements in order to put the streets in proper condition for the 'winter, ' The' proposed works were ordered to be carried out, with the exception of those in Stanley and Wynyard-streete, of which estimates are to be font prepared. It was •greed that the address which the Board had undertaken to purchase for presentation to his Royal Highness the Duke of Edinburgh should be engrossed, and signed by the Chairman of the Board. Sergeant J. Reilly, Inspector of Nuisances, was appointed Inspector of Buildings pro tern. A motion was earned respecting certain repairs in Victoria-street and Waterloo Qpadpant; t and)tb«s the Secretary writetp the Provincial Government* requesting that the J sums paid on account of dog licenses be handed over to Hie Board. ' ' ' ' , , , The nomination of a candidate to represent the District of Auckland C\ty West in the Provincial Council took place, yesterday at the Old Supreme GoqrW-hotise, Queen-street. There was a comparatirely^mkir attendance, and, but ljttle interest; was> manifested iuthe proceedings. Mr. .George Staines wa% proposed by Mr.""" Ben jamin Eyans Turner,! and Veoonded by Mr.' Patrick Brahanj, as a fit and and proper pewbn to .represent tho,ejpctorf, of Auckland City West in the' Provincial Council, and, there being no oth,er candidate put forward, the Returning Officer declkred' Mr.' G. Sfcaines duly elected. The new member then briefly addressed the electors, thanking them for the. honour they -had conferred upon him, and pledging himself to do his pt'most to further their(interiestsi - A rote of thaaics was then givwi to the Returning Officer, and the proceedings terminated. We congratulate the new member on hisreturn withpnt qppo»i^op ? , r t 1 ' /. V-> ' I 'The following' was Handed to us last night for insertion :— " A new pfoces| ; 9f amalgamation, whi?h Is sa[d' Id-possess, many advantages oTerfhe methods, now" practised—^mdngs't'pthera, the, very, desirable one 'of preventing the rgreat loss now sustained by the escape of the fine particles oi gold—is shortly to be made public. Shonld this process, which, we have b««n informed- 'ii ; abo<iy to be protected by letters patent, prove efficient in securing the results we art led to expect froin^it- it wtU prore'of iaflstiinable value to our mining-population in the Thames district, many, of, whomiisustainbeaVyidfses through the inadequacy of the means now employed to effect the amalgamation of. ibe lighter particlef of go}d. We canjHjly 1 vouch, jor, .the.' fact that-experiment-has'proved the efficiency of the proceis,, whiohwe b*p>s«Qji^tose^ : <«te4onalar«ersoa|», M ",;; ']""

We were informed iMt etening that a letter, purporting to contain * disclosure of the existence i>f a Fenian organisation ia Auokland, wm pioked up iv the street, and has boon, or it to be, forwarded to his Honor the Superintendent. The dooumenfc is looked upon by tho*e who hate seen it as a Tery stupid attempt at a hoax. At the Supreme Court yesterday, before his Honor Mr. Justice Moore, William Berry, Peter Coleman, William Coleman, and Bernard Coleman were indioted for sheep-stealing. The caie oocupied the Court several hours, and is fully reported in another column. Ultimately the jury acquitted the whole of the prisoners. The Court will sit again this morning at ten o'olock. The dinner, which is to be given to-day by the bar of Auckland to Chief Justice Sir George A. Arney will, we believe, be strictly private. A meeting of the members of the Auckland Gymnastic Club was held last evening, to take into oomideration the beat means for clearing off the debt at present owing by the Clnb. It appears that the depreistd state of the 'times has had the effect of greatly diminishing the' 'number of members, and there is now over '£loo of debt owing, for which the committee is liable; and of which £82 for rent of premises in Queen-street has' been paid by the lessees. The Secretary undertook? to prepare lists of the names of the first year's members, who will ,te asked to subscribe towards liquidating the debt, and arrangements are to be made for having a concert for the same purpose. That an institution, which really might, if well supported, be most useful, is allowed to languish and die, is not creditable to jthe young men and citizens of Auokland. A sitting of the District Court was held yesterday before his Honor Judge Beokhnm. An important case of appeal against the decision of the Warden was decided in favour of the respondent, the Bench considering that the evidence in favour of the appellant was not sufficient to justify the Court in reversing the decision. A number of other cases of no public interest were also disposed of. '

Messrs. H, Gilfillao and G. B. Owen were the presiding Justices at the Police Court yesterday,, in the absence of the Resident Magistrate. Three drunkards were mulcted in the sum of ss. and the coats; and Eliza Yorke and Ann Shields, the former six and the latter -seven times drunk within twelve months, were each sentenced to three months' imprisonment, for habitual drunkeones. Thomas Jack and George Pilkjngton were each fined ss. and the costs for breaches of the Impounding Act. in information for assault,- laid by Mary, Ann Yeonjan against Catherine Shields, was dismissed through non-appearance. Adam Chisholm, apprehended ' on warrant on the charge of threatening the life of William l'udson, was remanded until this morning by consent of Messrs. Hesketh and Gillies, who hare been retained for complainant aiid defendant respectively. Defendant was admitted to bail on his own surety of £50. Johu Love pleaded guilty to having used threatening and abusive language towards Mary Steel, and was ordered to enter into his own bond in the sum of £100, in addition to two sureties of £50, to keep the peace and be of good behaviour for six months. It may be interesting to those benevolent ladies who contributed trays, and to the members of ihe Choral Society who kindly assisted at the late soiree in aid of the Orphan Home, Parnell, to know that the net proceeds of that entertainment exceed £36>> On Saturday last, a man named William Johnson, residing at Onehunga, while passing along the old Government -wharf, was seized with a fit, and fell over into the water. Luckily the ferryman was near, and rescued the unfortunate man,- and had him con* vejed home in a cart.' Daring the night he Was found to be in a precarious state, and medical aid was called in. The proper remedies being applied, he was able to be removed to the Hospital on Sunday morning. This, we believe, is the second narrow escape Johnson has had from meeting with a watery grave, he being subject to epileptic fits. The band of the 18th Royal Irish, under the direction of Mr. Quinn, will perform on the lawn in front of Government House this afternoon, at 3 o'clock, weather permitting. The following is the programme :— March ; overture, "Zampa," fierold; wal^z, " Waikato," Bergmann ; selection, "La Vie Pariftienne," Offenbach ; quadrflle," Erin go Braeb," Zabel; galop, "Die Enzflosseo," Ktihner; "Gad sare the Queen." Last evening the Rev. T< Hamer re-delivered his lecture on astronomy, at the Odd Fellows' Eali. There was a very good attendance, and the lecture was listened to with considerable interest by all present. The different subjects were illustrated by illuminated diagrama, which greatly aided the lecturer in his various descriptions on the solar system. Mr. Hamer has a very pleasing deliverj, and his subject — which was principally addressed to the young — is worthy the attention of all who desire to be well informed on that important Eubjeot-i-astronomy. , \ A Penny Reading will take place this evening at the EJwardes-street School-room. Several gentlemen hare promised to read extracts from different works upon popular subjects, and it is hoped that a pleasant evening's recreation will be spent by that class of perrons who are not able to afford to pay for a high-priced entertainment. There was an excellent performance at the Prince jf Wales 1 heatre last evening, and a good house, rhe piece de resistance of the evening was the great sensational four-act drama of " The Ticket-of- leave Man," in which all the characters were well sus : tamed, and particularly those of Robert Brierly (Mr; J. H. Clifford), Hawkshaw the detective (Mr. C OBrien), Sam Willoughby (Madame Tournear), May Edwards (Mrs. OBrien), and Mrs. WiUoughby (Mr. 1 L Hooper). The piece' 'was cleverly cast, welt placed on the stage, and played with much spirit and effect, all the parts workn* smoothly and without the slightest approach to i hitch, or mal apropos. The tableaux w«re most sffectively arranged, and tLe interest of the fine; )lot was capitally sustained. At the concluMoa of ;he piece the company received an enthusiastic call jefore the* curtain. The interlude was as usual nost amusiner';. and the afterpiece, "Paddy in Mia; "was effectively played, and sent the audience, tome in good humour. A very natural feeling of dissatisfaction prerails in Auckland at . the delay whioh has ! iccurred in the completion of , the telegraph me from Wellington, especially in view of he important debates in the General Assembly ueeting next month on provincial affairs, the result if which should be known in all parts of the colony n the shortest notice. A line through the Thames, Catikatiy Tauranga, Tauno, aud Napier, joining the i resent one through the Wairarapa,is advocated, aud ■ far as Taupo nothing can be said against the route, i'rom there we think there can be no question as to he route down the Whanganui river to this town nd thence to Wellington being the shortest and lost 'desirable, seeing that tb* Superintendent has romised to guarantee the interest on the outlay f the line from here. Cannot our representatives onfer some real benefit as Provincial Councillors n their constituents by securing this route ? — Wanga~ vi Evening Herald, June 5. The Lyttelton Times of May 30 says there is no oubt but that the cattle disease is spreading. An impromptu hunt of a staff, which escaped from io Acclimatisation Society's gardens, took place at ianterbury a few days ago.