THE SUEZ MAIL.

Daily Southern Cross, 7 November 1868, Page 5

THE SUEZ MAIL.

We give elsewhere the telegrams by the Suez mail, which arrived at the Bluff on Tuesday last, the 3rd November. These telegrams bring dates from London up to October 3, a few days over a month ago. This is the most rapid communication with London which Auckland has ever had, and also, we may say, with the Bluff. A. revolution has broken out in Spain, and seems to have been quite successful, the Eoyal troops having been defeated. Queen Isabella, it if stated, remained at Sebastian, but most of the provinces are in the hands of the insurgents. From England, we have the gratifying intelligence that the health of the Queen, which at last advices was rather precarious, has much improved. We regret to find that no improvement can be noted in the price of wool, and we learn that 23,000 bales were withdrawn from the sales which ended on the 3rd of September. The famous Madame Eachel, who professed to make women " beautiful for ever," has been sentenced to penal servitude for five years, for the part she played in the fraud on Mrs. Borrodaile.

We have to acknowledge the receipt of a copy of Carmica Varia, being miscellaneous poemt, by Justiu Aubrey, printed by Ferguson and Mitcbell, Prin-oe««-itreet, Dunedin, aud wLioh we shall take an •arly opportunity of reviewing. The Native Lands Court continued its sitting yesterday, in the Orakei case, which bids fair to last for a month. Several witnesses were examined yesterday on behalf of Paul. Last evening a maa named Hugh Milliken wag apprehended by constable Murphy on a charge of stealing a cheque for £47 145., the property of Isaac Walker. It seems that both prosecutor and prisoner belong to the defence force, and have been staying at Wade's Hotel, in Grey-street, for the last few days. On Sunday last Walker sewed the cheque in question in the lining of his cap, and it remained there until yesterdaj morning, when he found that it had been abstracted. Be at once communicated with the police and imparted to them his suspicions, the result of which was that the prisoner was apprehended. The case was placed in. the hands of detective Murphy, -who, on inquiry at ' the different banks, learned that a man of the prisoners description had cashed a chtque for £47 14s. He at once apprehended Milliken, and, on searching him, found a large sum of money on. his person. He will be brougnt up at the Police Court this morning. At the Police Court yesterday, before Thomas Beckham, Esq., R.M.,*two drunkards were punished in the usual manner. A man named Scollin was brought up charged with obtaining certain goods under false pretences from Mr. Dyson, draper, of Queem-street. In consequence of the absence of a witness named Clarke, he was remanded for a week. Anne "Shiels, a dissipated-looking woman who has frequently been punished by the Court for drunkenness, was charged with stealing a shawl, value ten ■hilling*, and was sentenced to three months' imprisonment. - A rather curious circumstanoe bearing upon the natural history of the oat and mouse has lately occurred at the house of a farmer at Papatoetoe, and has bean observed by a number of persons. A female cat, suckling one kitten, has adopted a fullgrown mouse, wbioh nestles under and sucks her, and remains with tht kitten in her absence When the mouse is taken ont of the box in which they are kept and laid down before the cat, she takes it up gsntljr in the same manner as she does the kitten, and carries it bsck *g*ia. Not only is the mouse per* fectly reconciled to its change of circumstances and thoroughly tamed, but the fact of its adoption appears to be recognised by another oat in the establishment, whicb, when the mouse is brought to it, merely looks at it and tuns away. There is nothing at all peculiar in the appearance of the mouse. Both'cats are excellent mousers, and are killing mice daily: Mr. T. Maoffarlane has invited his constituents to meet him in the Devonport Hall, North Shore, on Tuesday, November 17, at 3 p.m. A .horse, on which a gentleman was riding up Walrifield-street yesterday afternoon, suddenly became very restive and threw his rider on the ground, but fortunately no injuries were sustained. The animal having been soothed the gentleman again tnonnUd and continued his journey. - , Last night, the members of tbe Naval and Artillery Volunteers paraded at the Iron Drill Shed, Princes-street, for the purpose of undergoing cutlass and big gun drilL The men underwent an excellent oonrse of training for about an' hour, by their respective commanding offioers. The Na^al Volunteer band.; was in attendance, and p?ayed a number of marches, tec , r . -o - • BCwill^bVseen fttat^oif the- Decision of the ■pedal trip by the ' Royal Alfred' on Monday, the Prince of Wales's birthday, return tickets at reduced f arei Will bo issued. .

A !a ge i.a übtr of the merchants *ud busii.esH | people in town have notified by advertisement thvi their places of Uisiness will be olosed on Mo< diy next, that b^ing the anniversary of the Prince of l Wales'i birthday. ' We should think that the excursion trip to Ohino- - rauri, advertised by Captain Casey for this afternoon, , would ba largely taken advantage of by the inh*bitL antt of Auckland, the Upper Thames having be eu ■ > > so much talked about, and the exouraion being to easy of accomplishment. The ' Lalla Rookh' will leave the whirf this evening, nnd on Sunday will go . up the Thames to Ohinemuri. If the weather is at i all favourable, those who go will certainly enjoy the voyage up one of the fioeit rivers in New Zealand. The 'Lalla Rookh' will reach Auckland on Monday afternoon, and, as that it a holiday, there will be no interruption to business. The members of the Ancient Order of Foresters ' are requested t> assemble at the British Hotel, on Monday next, to form a procession to the Ot< moron ■ Gardens, on the occasion of the Prince of W ales' s hnthday. The Fire Bii,ado will hare a | racdoe on Tuesday morning, at six o'clock. This cor\>s is now complete, and in a state of considerable efficiency. A gentleman by the name of Pownill arriv< d in Wellington by the ' Kakaia.' and has received l-y the 'Electra a quantity of flax-dressing machinery. He is now at Manawatu, where he intends to commence operations, tnd we shall be glad to learn that he has not only been able to turn our native flax int> a profitable article of export, but also into those coarse fabrics which are always in demand for th» packing of our pastoral and agricultural produce, — Independent. No less than 34, 103 packages of green fruit were Imported into the colony during the year 1867, of the v»lne of £30,000. The importation of app'es, oranges, and pineapples has muoh increased during the present year, owing to the reduction in prica, and probably £50,000 will be the value of the imports Under this head for the year 1868. The increase in the jublio debt of the United States f»r the year ending l«t September amounts to 42,830,943 dollars, which *hows a very heavy inoreaie in the financial turdens of that country. The Hawlcet Bay Herald of November 3 says :— "Yesterday morning 110 men, newly enlisted in Auckland and at the Thames for the constabulary force, arrived in the steamer • Wellington,' under command of Captain Roberts. Contrary to expectation, they all proceeded on to Wellington. We believe that at the last moment 60 were ordered to remain, but the telegram arrived just too late for the steamer." Te Heuheu, a Tanpo chief of some celebrity, has arrived in Napier on a visit to Mr. McLean. Mr. Commissioner Naughton proceeded to the Stockade yesterday afternoon for the purpose of holding an official inquiry respecting the escape of the prisoner Shane. We understand that considerable evidence was taken, which will be forwarded to the Superintendent, together with the Commissioner's opinion ai to the cause of escape. A telegram received from Westport stages that the whole of the jetties on the Buller, which had just cost the province upwards of £20,000, ware carried away duting the storm of Thursday night. This i% the more serioue, happening at a time when there are no funds available to repair the damage. The Dunedin escort returns for October show an increase of 2,258 ounces over the corresponding moathof 1867. Many people in Wellington and elsewhere will learn with more than ordinary regret that Mr. R. S. F. Parsons, who was at one time chief olt-rk in the Stamp Office, and subsequently projector and proprietor of the New Zealand Times newspaper in this city, departed this life a day or two ago at Whanjjanui. Those who knew Mr. Parsons best are aware of the many excellent qualifications he possessed, and many will grieve to tbiuk that a grave i% so prematurely filled. Mr. Parsons, never physically strong, has been ailing for some time past through some internal disorder, and his death has not by any means taken his numerous friends by surprise. — Advertiser. Diggers who have returned to Westport from the Thames goldfields, describe the rush there as "a complete swindle," and stite that many more are expected to return ere long. — Otago Witness, The present number of volunteers in New Zealand, according to estimates laid before the General Assembly, is 4,967, the numbers in the several provinces being as tollow : — Auckland, 903 ; Otago, 874 ; Wellington, 866 ; Canterbury, 833; Westland, 693 ; Nelson, 413 ; Hawke's Bay, 139 ; Taranaki, 113; Southland, 133 ; Marlborough, 0. The capitation grant allowed in the estimates for this year, treating cavalry and infantry alike, is 255., which in the case of the latter is only half of the sum allowed last year, and which was then fnuud to be considerably insufficient to meet the expenses incurred by the men. A large still, iv full working order, and with all the requisite appurtsnances, has been sei2ed at Whanganui. It appears that, from information received, Police-Sergeant Reid proceeded to a certain place situate about seven miles up the Whanganui River, in the occupation of one Charles Vincent, farmer, where he fouud iv a deep gully a atill in full working order, together with a puncheon of whiskey, other liquor, and four puncheons of " wa^h " ready for use. It is said that Vincent and bis servant were discovered while working in the still-bouse. They were at once arrested, and conveyed to Whanganui, whera they await their trial. Suspicions have been for some time entertained, and it is satisfactory to learn that the vigilance of the police ! has been rewarded. Charles Vincent, S. F. Vincent, and Edward Hunt were charged, on the information of the Collector of Custonw at Whanganui, the first with having an unlicensed fctitl upon his premises, and the two latter with being unlawfully on the premises where the distillation was being carried on. All the prisoners pleaded guilty. The teotence of the Court was that S. F. Vincent be fined £50, or in defaultreceive six months' iupriionment without hard labour. Edward Hunt, £50, or in default six months' imprisonment with bard labour. And Charles Vincent, £100, or six months' imprisonmemb with Lard labour. A good illustration of the haste to get nurried which is supposed to characterise the lucky digger is given by the Gcelmg Register : — "A lucky digger — lately returned from Zealand— a few days since went to Ballarat, and, among other acquaintances, met a young woman whom he had known before going to New Zealand. The fair one told him that on the next day she was to ba wedded, and confidentially communicated the faot that she was not at all enamoured of her intended spouse. The lucky golddigging swain thereupon suggested that the matter could be easily disposed of by her accepting him as a substitute. This seemed to meet the fair one's views exactly, and forthwith they started off to Geelong, and on Sunday the happy couple celebrated their union." Considerable uncertainty still exist? with regard to the discovery of gold near Waimate, Canterbury. The correspondent of the Timaru Herald, writing from that place on the 20th, says, "There is really nothing to rely on. Speck* of -gold have been found by individuals. I shall know more in a week, as a f«w indiriduals ar« going up with sluicing boxes." The Customs return for the 1 quarter ending 30th September, 1868, hare been published. For the September quarter of this year the amount of duty is £13,477 2s. 6d., as compared with £16, 129 10s. 3d, for the corresponding quarter of last year. — Evening P»st, October 28. The following are the quantities of gold exported from the province of Otago since the year J 861 ; — 1861, 187. 6950z.; 1862 597,6020z.; 1863, 580,2330z.; 1864, 455,9270z.; 1865, 253,6970z.; 1866, 162,4770z ; 1867, 149,3640z. During the half-year ending 30th June the quantity exported has been 79,9600z. 7dwt. Since that date export duty on 34,833055. was paid. A gentleman of our acquaintance, who was attracted to the Tharx.es by the golden stories published by the Auckland press, has just returned to Wellington, It ii evident, from his experience, that the collapse which we predicted is imminent. Many hundred* of men were wandering about both in Auckland and Shortland, unable to obtain employmenfc, and the "army of loafers" was in great strength. This should act as a caution. — Wellington Eventing Post, October 29. The Westport Evening Star has the following: — " For the second time within a couple of months, Westport has b»en left without a bit of butchermeat in the market. A few days ago the butchers announced an increase in the price of meat to Bd., 10d., and Is. per pound, but now there is not a ' pound of flesh' to sell. ~ fn the items of meat, •bread, and the indispensable 'nobbier,' 'Westport is at present the moat expensive seaport town that a ma n can l^^ in, in a'l New Zealand." Tenders are required for the re-erection of St. Psjul'iPmbyteriaa Church, Wharjganui,

Mss |{ye 11 1 Hi revived a pension of £70 i \e.ir, na uccount <it h<-r effnts t<i |>r »mofce the em uiafcio i of working women to Ne?? Zealand an I ot'ur ! colonies. j ' Tha Melbourne Aryus of iho Ist instant fays :—: — ♦ * It is rumoured l>y one of fie leading c mntry newspapers that a la'ge number of the 14th Kejinent in gar.isoa here are ordered to Ne>v Zetland. The report ii so far without foun afon that the officers ->f the regiment in question have heirJ nothing of tho intention." The Thames goldfields bid fair to bring about great destitution in the province of Auckland. A correspondent, writing to a Ilawke'a Bay contempt rary, expresses the following Tery sensible ideas :— Share-buying appear* to h»ve reached its limit — in homely terms, the length of its tetber, — and shareholders soon tire of paying wages and 'reading glowing account* of the Thames goldfields,' unaccompanied by dividends paid to tha owners ; now tha general feeling i\ that some alteration in the style of working the ground is necessary. During the shinebuying mania purchasers appeared to have cast aside all ideas of caution or judgment ; * claim with a high-sounding name, or in the neighbourhood of some noted claims, was saleable, aud there appear* d no limit to the credulity of the speculators There is no doubt many of them have, in vulgar terms, "burnt their fingers." Now it is difficult to sell any claim, except yielding gold. Wages have been gradually lowered during the last fort-ighr, the average reduction probably seven or ten shillings per week. Men out of work are plenteous, and a notice, "Men wanted," would speedily attract ( a unarm ol ready men. The yield of gold is ■till ridiculously small when compared with the glowing accounts daily publi»hed in both the Auckland and Shortland papers. I would give you the export for the p«st quarter, bui the only paragraph I have noticed on the subject w*t evidently not correct, or, at lessr, so absurdly small, that I dare not quote it, as my wish it to gi»e real factt, not imaginary ones. Opinions may vary, and may prove erroneous, but facts should be genuine.— New Zealand Advertiser, October 28. By the lait Panama mail has arrived tho patent from the Grand Matter of England, the Earl of Zetland, constituting and appointing William Donald, Esq., Resident Magistrate of Lyttelton, District Grand Master of Canterbury. The ceremony of installation will take place on or about tha 16th of December, tho anniversary of the settlement of Canterbury. Ihe Salt Lake Reporter, a short timt since, pub. lished an article to which one of the Mormon organs — the Telegraph — replied as follows :— " No sensible man expects that the Mormons will stop and stoop to bandy words and filth with every miserable calumniator who, like a useless cur in the street*, makes it his business to ' yaffle ' and snap at passersby. There it one proper way to meet such human ours, to ignore their exitteuce, so long as they do not bite. When they do that, dutt is the most fitting thing that they should bite. In the mysterious dispensations of Prorideuce it frequently happens that ■uch is the course of events, and far be it from us to murmur and repine at the dispensations of Providence, for we are told that they work together for good." The Reporter* editor is not at all frightened by the cowardly threats of the Telegraph. He says : — "To the foul spirit of the assassin coiled up in this paragraph from the Telegraph we would not utter a word directly, did we not fear that reticence would be construed into cowardice by the dastard who made the threat ; and, therefore, to avoid being misunderstood, we will say that we do not intend to be driven from this Territory by threats, but intend to remain at our post and exercise the freedom of the press in the columns of the Reporter to its fullest extent. We have marie no threats, nor do we wish to drive any law-abiding person from here, nor will we be driven. We came here for business, and thousands of others will come hero for the same purpose in a very short time. This is a hard, stubborn fact which will have to be recognised by all who crave seclusion, and they will have to govern themselves accordingly. Thiß non-Mormon accession to the population will come from parts where espionage is a thing unknown, and where the freedom of speech and action knows no odious curtailment, and they will submit to no odious curtailments of their just rights here. If an attempt is made to hedge them round by violence, and drive them from the territory, such an attempt will ba met by violence, and terrible will be the day of retribution fo* those who strike down an innocent man. And now a word with you, editor of the Telegraph. You are a cowardly whelp that might bite a man in the heel, but would not dare face him; and you would only dare to bite in the heel when you were sure you could get away before the man turned round. We don't know you personally, and don't w ant to. We base our estimate of you upon the dastardly paragraph under 'consideration,' and the article from which it was clipped." The Sacramento Bee, in an article entitled "The New Industry," says : — "There is, we hear, an extensive and ever -increasing desire in this portion of thn State to enter upoa the culture of bilk. Men who have lands suited to the production of tht mulberry tree, and others who have means to undertake any new thing that offers to be remunerative, are inquiring into the business, and not a few are already preparing for it. All the information from Burope and Asia, and the successful experiments made in California, tend to but one end— the pronunciation of the fact that sericulture in this State cannot fail to be, at no distant day, one of its most extensive and most profitable industries. There are hundreds of men in the vicinity of this city eking out an existence for themselves and families by rai*ing vegetables, which they bring into town at an early and unseasonable hour, and in all kinds of weather ; whereas, if they were for a time to divide their attention between the silk culture and the raising of vegetables, they could soon, and without pecuniary embarrassment, work int> the former, and put themselves in a condition to make far more money with much less labour. These vegetable lands are, as experience proves, peculiarly adapted to the growth of the mulberry tree, and those who own them could not perhaps put them to any use that would pay ao wall. It might not be advisable to purchase lands near this city at high rates for the purpose of planting these trees ; but those who have alluvial soil, and are cultivating it, could not do better than devote a portion of it to such uses."