Untitled

Daily Southern Cross, Volume XXIV, Issue 3401, 10 June 1868, Page 2

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 10.

Ir any evidence of the decay of provincial restitutions were required it might be found' ir the elections for our Provincial Council.. L Tie time is not very long gone by when an> ai dent'cbntest for the honour of representing; ra» city constituency in the Council was & common occurrence. Candidates went to the--poll in. compact phalanxes, an^electora were t urged to vote for ijhe , wh#e ' ticket and t nothing but the l ticket. ' We cannot say that tlie results were at all times equal to the, effort made to produce them. More than" once the throes of the constituency have produced representatives of a calibre almost Mouselike, and no doubt there was something, ludicrous enough in the affair. But it maywjell be questioned whether there was not an r advantage in the labour, independently of the 'result. Better, perhaps— at least more] ■■" healthy and lifeline— abortive attempts'to do something worthy in politics than no . struggles : at all. Ird it seeT^s i as though, provincial' institutions with us b & & come to this. J The mass of our electors ha ve ceased to care about electing a representative ™ the Council; nearly every suitable man na * ceased to dream of offering himself as a candidate. If this goes k on, provincialism musf; , die of inanition. 1 ; Two days ago; we /had an election for the Provincial Council. The constituency was one of thejlargest and quite the. most, central!, in the province, J.t was one^ wljichhad wit-^ nessed more exciting elections than perhaps? any other electoral' district id the province. B;ut manifestly times had changed. There was no symptom of excitement, hardly a sign of interest displayed. Two or three electors upon the hustings addressed two or three more who were not upon #ie- hustings $' and, when the proper moment for cheerf^ arrived, each elector looked. at his companion i to see whether the attempt would not TpQ> r too ridiculous. We admit tbjat the spectacle was far from pleasing, even- if it may be held! <to have been instructive. , Eor, after all that can be said about the decay of provincial, institutions, it is certain that they still exist,, and have still Borne influence upon the condition of the province. In one sense, their influence may not be great now, but in another it is important. It may be questioned he^f much good they can effect, but it can scarcely be doubted that they may yet do harm. H provincial institutions had nothing to* do bufj to die, it, would, be important that should die well. But it is not yet clear iihat, this is their position. They cannot die' until a successor is appointed to take their place.jtand if it would have been important that_ they should die well, it is surely of at least as much consequence that they should not live badly. • i ' . ."We have nothing, however, to say againstthe new Councillor on account of the mode of his election. It, was not ,his,fault that tjap ( people of the City' West' took ' no interes^ either in forwarding or opposing his election. 3lt 3 It was' not through any exertions pf his, we r can well believe, that he was not opposed 'by 1 ra jrival candidate. It may, perhaps, be considered rather ; a. smerijf/pn his part that he would not let the City West want for a mlember. Besides, -we, .jconfess ,to some admiration for Mr. Staines as a politician. 5 ; There is someiftiihg' thorough-going about him whicji is refreshing . amid tjie present * dearth of ' any6ning l3 like deci<le,d l 'opinions^ Council now possesses fttleast one^imeing-' ber on whose-. opinion it can rely, 'for Mr. SJ;aines's f truinpet J gives np uncertain sound. To members of the, Council who are troubled with doubts — and we suppose r th r er©> are l many — as to the future, tfee advent of the new member ought to be a great comfort. JLif is something/ in 'a moment • of- indecision "and uncertainty, to beable to look to a man wlio knows nothing 'of' either.' fUSuch a msg), we venture to say, Mr, Sjbaines witfbe fou&<k ' His political ere'ed is 'a simple one ; but i££s can.jOnly be re(iuced,,itoApracj!iw»T/it wjjlbe^ fdund .sufficient J> Thci/^nfe.w'l meittbeP(o(wiH»if " maintain provincial' .institiitions tuntil Tth^ 5' seat of G-overnn\entj is-, returned to Auck1" land." We are not told how Mr. Staines will retain them, whether at his own cost or at ours, but at' least'We liave^hei&et. They a^e to be mamtained=-not-for a few years longer — not until someti^ng is proposed to replace them — but until we get Jthe seat of G-oveiSinlent' HJack to Auckland., There is an ambiguity about this ( expression,^ which, ",W^ wpuli" faon- V'We^'rempve^.,,} 'D.oes' the" new "jnemb.er^ me^a., thai -v^ ' entertains the, idea" that the seat of Q-bvernm^nt is. about, to be removed from Wellingi;on to Auctland ? Or does he mean_ that he will maintauTprovincial institutions' for ever ? Thisj HoVfev^r^is'-mere Matter of curiosity on our part. Whatever Mr. Slkines thinks, there can be no doubt that the. seat; of Government foroNiew Zealand is notlikeiy.to beremoved.for lv long time tp^ clearly' that proi> vincial institutions have^a'idtig'ckreer before/* them still. T^ymost people 1^s v w^ill be a 3^ surprise, but ife^eed not be tfn i unpleasant surprise. ':'L'(the> r obly terms on'-wM6h any institutionft'canjbe maintained' ,'aTe^uch as shall render tHetoC satisfactory to Ibe people. If Mr. Staines can do this, or if he can assist t 'the Provincial Secretary?^whoSe '^res^n*' 1 ' faithheprofessesi)to,idp.is,.o, we have every reason to ba There is no real objectioQ'to'-th^ iiiun^of^roYihce ajcom-

pared with that of couifty : the only thing is that just now the public seem to fancy the new name might lead to new results. Mr. Staines is of a different opinion, we presume, op at any raW is satisfied with" results as they are. lUThas only to.^ersuade the public to be of the same mind, and he may maintain provincial institutions not only until the seat of Government comes back to Auckland, but, for aught we can see, until the crack of d00m. , . The task, however, is not a very light one, as the new member will find before long. The task of maintaining provincial institutions so readily undertakenby Mr. Staines is only too likely to mean imposing special taxation on the people, and we doubt if all the influence and high political character of the Provincial Secretary, backed bv all the simple faith and eloquence of will induce them to submit to much 01 that, j)

From a private letter received from Taupo yester- J day, we learn that the Maori King is anxious to rtlaz the restrictions hitherto impeding the settlement off jbhei interior, , A deoided objection *is however felt to /surveys, though the natives have no wish to .prevent capitalists Teasing runs, and'depasturing sheep, '• if it bo done quietly." We have traced the report of Te Whake's death to a pafty of. natives of the Ngatitautau tribe, who have lately come down to Waiheke from the North in .order to remove the bones of some of their *nfertHors. Their version of the affair is that a p«ty numbering about ten men of the TJritaniwba crossed * nnr for.the purpose of dragging their net, when tiiey were confronted by Te Whake .and a party of tha.Barawa. The Ngapnhis are then said to have taien'shelter, leaving their net in the sea, and to bare fired on their antagonists, killing Te Whake and another native named Mura. The Barawas are reported to have fled, while the Ngapuhis got into their «anoe and returned to their own side. We attach little importance to the story, but give it for what it is worth. Considerable inconvenience has been experienced By the bar ,and the public during the t past few ' days, ' dwing to the want of punctuality and 1 " dilatoriness of the Justices summoned to preside at the Police Court. On' Monday the business did not commence until a quarter of an hour after the proper time, and yesterday one of the Justices did not make his appearance untilpast 11 o'clock. Duringthe interval of half-an-hour or more several' gentlemen of the long-robe, the pubho, and the press, sat taking "no note of time, but from its loss.* Those gentlemen who are elevated to the judicial Bench, with all the honours following in the train of the appointment, ought at least to do something in return, and It would be well to remind them that " Time wasted is existence ; used is life." We need not spe»kofthe want of consideration shown by a man who. rather than perform the duties that attach to his office, even thongh such performance Involve some slight sacrifice of leisure for the public good, will put fifty people, whose time is equally valuable to them, to the inconvenience and annoyance of waitinghis will and pleasure. We understand that the Justices summoned to attend were Messrs. J. O'Neill and Newman, and that the usual notice was forwarded for them on Saturday last. Messrs. Horne and Baber were perfectly blameless in the matter: in fact, on the contrary, they rather deserve to be commended for coming forward and saving the time of the ipublio.— Since writing the above, we learn that a message from Mr. O'Neill reached the Police■tation ye»terday afternoon to the effect that the notice addwssed and posted to him on Saturday last did not reach him at Epsom until yesterday, and then some time after the hour for beginning the police bosimess. It is quite possible that the other "note may have been equally unfortunate, which Would account for the non-appearance of the Justice to whom it was addressed. Wherever the fa,ult lies, however, it.ought to be remedied. It has now been determined, we understand, by the gentlemen whose duty it is to eeenre the attendance of the Justices, to give them at least a week's warning in. order to allow for mishaps. At the Supreme Court yesterday, before his Honor Jude* Moore, John Thomss Berry was oharged with Stealing from the person of William Carruthers fourteen £1 banknotes. The evidence went to prove that both prosecutor and prisoner were miners, residing at the Thames digging*, and that on the day in question, the sth of May, they had been drinking together. In the middle of the day prisoner persuaded prosecutor to lie down, and he accordingly went to sleep for a couple of hours at on© of the hotels in Shortland. When he woke up he discovered that his money was gone and the prisoner too. This latter was found drinking at a public-house close by. He was searched, but nothing found upon him- On being nubjected, however, to a stricter search at the Police-station, it was found that he had eight out of the fourteen missing banknotes upon him, one of which several witneeseß were able to swear to, from the fact of itrbenig torn in a peculiar manner at one comer. The jury found him guilty of simple larceny, and, hating been previously convicted, he was sentenced to two years' imprisonment with hard labour. William Heald, colour-sergeant in the 2nd 18th Foyal Irish, was indicted, on two charges of forging and uttering, with a.iguilty knowledge. The j ury found a verdiot of not guilty. 866 ounces of gold, the result of a month's orushing at the Katanga Gold Mining Company's machine, were brought up ion- Saturday night by the Feter Cracroft from GoromandeL Mr J. C.Wihces announces that, should Mr. Rowe retire from the Provincial Council, as it is rumoured K. intendsito do. he will oome before the inhabitants otNewton.asa candidate for their suffrages. Mr.. John Graham is also a candidate. i)urffae the proceedings of the Resident Maglstrate's Court yesterday, a somewhat novel incident occurred in a case of nonpayment of city rates. Mr. Gillies,; who was conducting the case on behalf of the defendant, stepped into the witness-box, and, having been sworn, proceeded to give evidence in favour of his client, ilfo. Diddams/who conducted the oase on behalf of the Board (in the absence of Mr. Wynn), took exception to Mr. Gillies giving evidence in a case in which be*pp«ared'as counsel, but the objection' waVoverroled by Dr. Horde, one of the preßiding Justices. w • ' J , The eo / mpensation > Court resumed its sittings yesterday, when a^numb'er of 'native claims were re-investig»ted,,,npne of which; however, were of any TODiioimporUute. " J T,he;<fturt will nih again to-day] "A,Coroneik inquest .washeld yesterday.b'efpre Dr." Go?dsbro';M.D., and a jury of twelve, ,Mr, H. A. Thompson being elected .foreman, oh: view of the body of William Johnson, who died in the provincial Hospital. it appeared from the evidence that deceased had fallen over the Old Government Wharf, Onehunga. which in an epileptic fit, and had died from the effects of submersion in the water. The jury returned a verdiot in accordance with the evidence. A report of, $» > inquest appears in another column. ; / ~ ! ' • ' Last evening the .members, of the bar of Auckland save a dinner,. jbo- his: Honor jCfeief, Justice Sir George Aruey at Bellamy's. Some thirty gentlemen sat down to the, dinner, which was |served up ..fa Miyr Canning's best^sijyle. The affair. ,was »Jfj^y cpnfined iko the .profession, ( , „, t The late ball at Government House ha«.nofr,pawd away wittiout. leaving * wrack/, behind, focwe found vesftrday :that ■everaLoloaks* moreior l«ss the. worsen fTweav togetbeciwitha numbte* of ,«' shookmg:badhats," .were> 'hanging on/tha pegsninithe: vestibdle awaiting owners. One of the hats is labelled No. Q 56 an d f J we; : feust;that^he,publication ottbis fact will enable the owner, whoever he may be, to recover his property. '* ;!•''' ! ' ' J At tfe^sWreme Court iitting^yesterdiy rttorning, his Honor fudge Moore! informed ,the gentlemen of the bar that he should take any ; banco business that might be brought" before liim this morning, and also the, .able cpnductorship of Mr. Quinn, its, talentexL iakeg'yesttriAy triaWd'jtn^nblic to a very cHo/crf MroH! rnliic^orfthe ia'wri infront'bfGoverJmiint'iofls'e,' During^e h»ur^hd"a hWiu^hicTi they conttn&d Wdeitgtiutie ears of the mustc-16vuig' portion of the communi^" there was a considerable crowd of^^W assemnled«ntsideytlJegrdnnd«listening to the inspiriting strains—which emanated from thft&aiKfr wt well' as c* large number of ipefsonsswhtf] were allowed to enter the-enolosure. We hop© that while tbe.w»alfcer iß,tf«v ( our^le J tiijs^)j|ijd of the 18th will continue to treat us .with a weekly selection either in the BarracklSquaie, 4 the Domain, or on the Swn-%?GOTeinment' flbiise^ Th/faiowingisthe prderamme*~of performance •.—March, 1 owiHorfr, 1 '•**,* Zampa," "Herold' ; ' -waltz, <-A«^W,kikato;'?i B#rb»aa**f^fielecfaoni.ftf'lai»Vie Parisiennej"; Offenbaoh j qaadrillt; ■"• Erin'^go Gragb, w 'Zabel jjigaloft

Several cise* of non-payment of city ratei were heard yesterday at the Resident Magistrate's Court. John K'rkw od was summoned for arrears of rates to the amount of £31 16s. 5d., bat the case was dwmissed on the ground of non-liability on defendant h part, the rate having originally been due by the firm 6f D. Graham and Co., and defendant denying that he ever belonged to that firm. Messw. R. Gwynne and Richard Gardner were summoned as trustees of B. Newell for rates to the amount of £22 105. One of the co-defendants deposed that he was not in occupation of the premise* during the time for whioh the rate was ■truck, and other evidence was adduced to the effect that the rate was originally levied against Mr. I. R. Vialou, the then occupier of the property. The entry in the rate-book appeared to have been afterwards altered, the names of the present defendants being substituted for that of I. R. Vialou ; but the collector and they were directly at variance in their evidence as to whether or not seven days' notice of the intended alteration had been given to defendants under the 49th clause of the Act. This case wa^ aW dismissed, the Bench remarking that afresh summons could be issued after the necessary notice 'had been given. In both the foregoing cases Mr. Diddams condnoted the case on behalf of the Board, 'Mr. Gillies appearing for the defendants., , The preponderance of legal acumen was too great, however, !for the collector, who found himself placed at a serious disadvantage through the absence of the law offioer to the City Board. The Edwardes-street Improvement Class have determined to give fortnightly penny readings during the remainder of the winter ; and the second of the series of these popular entertainments was given in the Primitive Methodist School-room, Edwardesstreet, last evening, and was well attended. The Kev./W. J. Dean oooupied the chair. After a itpr remarks relative to the objects the promoters had in View in commencing * course of readings, the Chairman introduced' Mr. J. O. Wilkes who favoured the audience with " The Showman's Courtship," which created considerable merriment. Mr. H. Dorrington's reading, " The Death of Moses," was given in a rather monotonous tone ; but the audience were not al'owed to relapse into a state of melancholy, as Mr. Brownley came to the rescue with " John Tamson's C»irt," which did not fail to provoke their risibles. Mr. D. Goldie's rendering of "Thaddy and the Bear" was well received ; and the appearance of the "Bashful Man," in company with Mr. Edgecock, :was soarcely less ludicrous than on former occasions. Mr. H. Donington gave a recitation, "The Living Sacrifice," very expressively; and was followed by Mr. Brownley, who lead " The Banquet of 8100d 1 in a creditable style. "The Burying of Moses was conducted by Mr. J*gger in ft solemn manner, ; and was listened to with great attention. *|The Sailor's Return" was welcomed by the audience with a round of applause ; and "Whitsuntide" did not lose any of its attractions in the hands of Mr. Spicer. "The Charge of the Light Brigade," by Mr. Mann, jun., owned the audience with it. Mr. Osmund Lewis displayed considerable elocutionary powers in his reading of " The Painter s Wife j" and Mr. Wilkes's "Story without an End" brought the proceedings to a satisfactory termination. The readings were interspersed with a number or glees, which were well rendered by the ohurch choir, Mr. Culpan presiding at the piano. After singing National Anthem the audience retired, apparently well pleased with the evening's entertainment. Last evening the teachers and many of the pupils connected with the Baptist Sunday-school, Wellesleystreet, as well as a goodly number of the members of the congregation, met at the school room, and" partook . of a very ample and excellent tea ; after which several subjects connected with the chapel and school were discussed by those present. The meeting, however, was not one of a business nature, but simply a gathering of those connected with the chapel for the purpose of passing the evening in a social and friendly manner. After spending several hours most harmoniously the members separated, well pleased with the very agreeable evening which they had passed. At the Prince of Wales Theatre last evening?, the performance commenced with the nautical drama of "Ben Bolt," which was put upon the stage with entirely new scenery. There was a pretty full house, and the plot of the piece was well sustained throughout. Ben Bolt, the hero, was played by Mr. C. H. Clifford, with considerable spirit. Alice, hia sweetheart (Mrs. OBrien), was a very good piece of acting. Reuben Rags, a» the laay village rustic and peripatetic philosopher, with a small wife and a large family, was an admirable impersonation on the part of Mr. C. OBrien; while Mary, the loving little wife of this lazy gentleman, was w*ll sustained by Madame Tournear. The other characters in the piece were Ivan Ironolink (Mr. J. Hesford), Colin (Mr. W. Gibbs), and Will Watch (Mr. W. Hill), all of whioh were played with considerable ability, and the whole pieje passed off most effectively. After the first piece a musical melange was given by the members of Mr. W. Foleys terpsichorean troupe, and was loudly applauded. The whole concluded with the farce of " The Happy Man." A woman named Elizabeth Lynch was apprehended last evening- on a charge of using obscene language in Viotoiia Quadrant. At the Police Court, yesterday, three drunkards were fined, with the customary alternative in default. A charge of abusive and threatening language preferred against Adam Cbisholm, of Waihekn, by William Hodgson, wa3 dismissed, the evidence not substantiating the information. Mr. Hesketh ap peared for the complainant j Mr. Gillies for defendant. In reference to the Canterbury grain crop, the LyttdUm Time* has an article in which it says :— *' According to our former calculations, we arrive at the conclusion that, after allowing for the consumption andjthe seed purposes of this province, a balance of about 400,000 bushels of wheat would remain available for export. To this must be added the produce of the rest of the colony. The table already alluded to shows that there were 21,000 acres of wheat sown in all New Zealand outside of Canterbury. Taking the average yield, of 25 bushels to the acre— in Otago we believe it is more than that-^the result gives 525,000 bushels. From this we must deduct at least 45,000 bushels for seed. Thit leaves 480 000, which, added to the Canterbury surplus, makes 880,000 bushels in all. Upon this quantity, then, the population of the colony, minus Canterbury which is already provided for in our reckoning — has to depend nntil next harvest. Of course we must be understood to exclude foreign imports from this calculation. We can now see what are -the prospects of the wheat market in the colony for the remainder of the year." A Hawke's Bay contemporary says that enormous expense will of necessity be attended on the admission of the Maori element into our Councils. The " House" will require to be built over again, and at least over an acre of land. ■ Talking about long speeches— commend us to a M»°nfor that kind, of oratory. During an hour's oration, an energetic individual of- " the race" will positively cover, at a moderate guess, five miles of ground ; but that difficulty may be overcome fpr the ( present -by, the temporary expedient ,of, letting him loose during a fit of talk in the back yard, where the only member in the House who would probably»careto listen, or take any real notice of what is l paising-^Mr. McLeanmight gd to'hear'him: But the 1 dignity of the country could only permit, of ,this .arrangement until a new tax has been devised to meet the circumstances of 'the case.' ' U lr ' >'/,>*. j Much'ias been' written as anecdote, "and fo> illus-, trate natural history, of 'tb'e sagacity of the dog. He is susceptible of fine training-, and whether it is what iia called instinct, or .the exercise 1 of mental power, of' the same order as the human, , there is not tiftfreque.nt^y, produced a sequence of, action that affords strong inductive evidence of complexity, of ideas'.; An extraordinary instance of the sagacity and faithful,neis of the dog has jusireome to our;knowledge.'-Twb or three weeks ago a man named Waters, who was engaged on,"the 'ferry "at '^oxton, wa«, drowned through J falling'out of a canoe. The accident occurred 83SwS it wak 'HeaWtfl .M^t ni^ht On the night in question the ferryman's ilog^' Nerd" 1 maUe a most unusual' noise at the <dopr of .a Mr. Langley, wh<v when he had 'opened the door, i and 1 seen thtf<iog hold up his-head anditurn his nbse in, tbedirection of tbe river, tuipeoted there was something ;w'6n(& ! >and- went' down 'to where ■- the ' cariote > Vafci generally stationed,"" prec6ded oby . the.'fdog. rVThe dog i leTt him, and? > be,'" Ithinking' Water* tfW ■ fallen snto [ the liver, i returned to-ntohouse. . flhekext.moTningVias^onelof ' fcKe!metf»rtigiged'''afc the.' ferry -wasijgoing.\daWn' the. river, he met " Nero" coming from it. The dog«ay«' t terrible howling moan, and at once turned his head n thV^irjection^of, thy§rryv,,w^her 3 . J he. J MP^ejjded, •ollowwl by the man. f r j^TO^ was Toon* on the jank his right arm elejaitCand his position such the river, the coat on the "shoulder being all torn, and the marks of *Ke" stfiiggTeCTChtfrhadL taken place tMviaible^i The faithful .ijreature had Remained pyr WSfiffmB> a-idßhef^e I ofc&e^lit; an*W' next morning, when first seen, theVatir was running wftaiheddingteftM over the iaammate form of biM

1 best friend. " Nero" is well known in Whangamu, where he was for somn tim^ when his master was in thoOommii-ariat, and his tractability and intelligence were often the subject of wonder. "Nero is between a N ewfoundland and retriever. We hear his Konor Judge Ward has ordered him to l>e sent to Wellington to be sold. - Wanganui Evening jfferald. The Independent says that in the course of the debate in the Council on Tuesday week, on the second reading of the Patent Slip Act Amendment Bill, the Hon. John Johnston accnsrd the gentlemen occupying the Treasury benches of blindness — of course he meant to the interests of the province ; but an enthusiastic messenger, taking the words in their literal sense, and possibly thinking that the defect was occasioned by the glare of the lamps and candles on the tables before them, quietly walked up and carried away every possible candlestick near the Government and put them in the shade before the time oame when the lights were snuffed out ■ altogether by the Council. Opinions are divided on the question, whether this messenger is a wag, or acted Vith the good intention of covering the coming defeat |of ,the Executive* by darkness. ' The discovery of valuable deposits of magnetic iron bre on the north shore of the St. Lawrence, some hundreds of miles below Quebec has caused a revolution in tne value of property in that direction. The Morsee Iron Mining Company pioneered the way ; they bare created extensive works, and collected together 'some six hundred persons who can boast of •constant employment, and remunerative wages, at a period when much depression exists in otherquarters. We assume that the practical business men who are associated with the enterprise of smelting magnetic iron ore are satisfied with the result which they have •aobieved ; and if the statements communicated. to us !bo authentic, and we hare no reason to doubt them, ithe province of Quebec may boast the possession of mineral wealth that other lands might envy. Other forms of industry may need the fostering aid of a pro.tective tariff, but this ore seems a specialty, and its 'local character relieves it from competition. Its | principal rival, if such an expression can be correctly i used; is the famous Swedish steel; though it is said to 'surpass that article in its fibrous quality. The : celebrity which' the Morsee magnetic ore acquired •.stimulated adventurers to explore the region of the i Gulf and Labrador coast. For more than a year past, 1 men skilled in metallurgy have penetrated every ! oreek and river for hundreds of mile's, investigating I the mineral resources of the land. What discoveries they made they are chary of disclosing, but many facts have leaked out which justify the inference that ] a district long regarded as sterile and valueless, and ( characterised by a rugged climate and ungrateful soil, ! may ere long become the scene of active industry. ! Wherever these speculating adventurers penetrated i and discovered the object of tbeir pursuit, their first care was to mark out the bearings of the place, and, by observations and charts, define with exactitude ' the spot. Their next proceeding was to ascertain to i whom the land belonged— whether the proprietary 1 rights were vested in the Crown or privateindividuals. ! It so happens that the Seigniory of Mingan includes i within its gigantic bounds some of the richest deposits ; known. This Seigniory stretches for many leagues ' along the north shore of the St. Lawrence until it j touches the Labrador coast, but a question has been raided whether it is in reality a seigniory, whether a ; title was ever granted conveying seignorial rights, or whether the soil belongs to the Crown. We learn from Quebec that, on the 10th instant, this serious question was debated before the Executive Council ; O'Kill Stuart, Q.C., appearing on behalf of the alleged proprietors, and Messrs. Pominville and R. Laflamme as contestants. It is not to be presumed that the Executive could decide a question that legitimately belongs to the law courts, but the Government has been forced into the' discussion because numerous applications have been made to the Crown Lands Department fot patents. The adventurer*, who have devoted time and money to explorations, and discovered mineral deposits, are naturally clamorous for patent*, and, fortified with abundant means, they proffer gold in exchange for patents. It is rather tantalising for a Government possessed of no great means to see such a rich harvest awaiting the reaper, but we are confident that no temptation will induce the Executive to deviate from the striot principles of justice. An Act of the Legislature could override all public rights, but no man of honour would be found to sanction such an outrage. The best solution for the difficulty would be a compromise.— Montreal Daily Times.