The Daily Southern Cross.

Daily Southern Cross, Volume XXV, Issue 5634, 12 March 1869, Page 3

The Daily Southern Cross.

LUOKO, NOJSiURO. U I havd betm o ,tingal 3 hod, yol thero riiie A. hoaiaad bo <coa , | rom kho Hp)krk x boxo>

FXIDAT, MARGHI2.

The Gold^ ci e id a members m our Provincial Council jh ave i os t no n me j u giving an accoui\ c o f their stewardship to their constituents. The custom is a good one which Appears to regulate these matters on the field, "and it is one which it would be well if other constituencies would imitate a little more than. they do. It seems to be an understood thing at the Thames that a member consults his constituents before going to the House, and renders an account as soon as he cornea back. And, although it may be argued that this is to turn representatives into delegates, we do not greatly fear the result. We do not, indeed, admire the principle of sending delegates to our Councils, because we feel that it is not the opinions of the mass, but the wisest opinions from amongst the mass, that we should aim at reaching. And this is what ■we look for in representatives. They are men chosen because, on the whole, we have confidence that they think wisely and will act well in our public affairs. But, while this is so, we cannot doubt that our main danger is not in the direction of influencing our members too much, but in that of failing to influence them at all. And this is, both for the members and the constituencies, very much the greater danger. It is the system of leaving all to our members, when they are once elected, that tends so utterly to demoralise our Legislature. There is no consistency of aim about their actions, for they have never been called on to think out any policy, or to have any consistent opinions on public matters. And the constituencies, more than the members, are to blame for this. True, the members neglect their duty ; but it is not the less true that they are invited to do so by the foolish apathy of the electors themselves. How can a member be expected to keep up an active interest on our behalf in matters ou which we show no signs of being interested ourselves 1 And it is for the opposite tendency to this that we applaud the Thames miners. Tf they are not in all cases politically wise, they are always politically active ; if they do not always display great width of view in what they advocate, they always advocate it with plenty of energy ; and this we take to be more safe, and far more healthy, than the silly indifference that characterises nearly all our constituencies besides. In the particular case of the Provincial Council members the miners have taken- a rery deep interest in the whole proceedings. They elected them by a number of votes which showed the interest taken in the question by the community, and, ever since, they have "shepherded" them (to use a mining expression) pretty closely. Nor is it surprising that they should do so. The interests at stake frere large — just as our own interests were larg©»^-but they appreciated the fact while the rest of us have not done so. The effect on the members for the Thames was all that could reasonably be looked for from it. They were assiduous in their attendance at the Council, and whilst there they made the Thames their alpha and omega of political life. As Mr. Grove shows plainly in his speech of Saturday last, they looked upon ail the time spent on the discussion of matters not connected with the goldfield as merely wasted. This, of course, was carrying matters a little too far, but it was, after all, a more healthy thing that members should have been honestly devoted to one subject, even to the exclusion of others that ought not to have been excluded, than thatthey should desert the sittings of the Council altogether, under the plea that " really they could do no good there ! " Of course vre expected to find Messrs. Butt and (Shrove explaining matters only connected

with, the goldfield, and we certainly are not disappointed by their published speeches. The results of the Council's last session are the passing of the goldfields estimates and the refusal of the Superintendent to appoint a Mining Board. Incidentally the vote of £1,000 for the city is referred to indeed, but it is only by way of apology. The Thames people might think they -were robbed by such an appropriation ; and it was to remove this Suspicion that it was referred to, and for no other cause. But, after all, it is satisfactory to find that the members and the electors are at least tolerably well pleased with the results of the session. They do not even appear to doubt the wisdom of Mr. Grove's motion about the Thames being an integral part of the province, and so entitled to a share of the general 1 revenue, although it is pretty clear that the thing may be made to work two ways. They perhaps do not see that, if the Thames is entitled to share with the rest of the province, the province is equally entitled to share with the Thames, in the matter of revenue. We do not say that the Government will use any of the gold duties for purposes outside the goldfields i we only call attention to the fact that the resolution, approved by the miners and moved by the goldfields member, directly sanctions such a use of the money, in case of necessity. And this would fitrnish a good answer to the olyecfcion about buoys and lights. There can be little doubt that they are needful for purposes connected with the Thames, but there can be no doubt at all that they are necessary for the purposes of the province, of which the Thames is " an integral " part." But, apart from this, we conceive the satisfaction of the miners to be a very well founded and reasonable one. The estimates passed are, on the whole, moderate and useful estimates. They suggest many improvements in administration and in the development of the field, and yet they leave a sufficient margin to enable the Superintendent to act without the feeling of too much red tape. The public works provided for are all, we believe, necessary, and those pi*ovided for at once are the most immediately urgent. In all these respects we see good reason to agree with the miners in their approval of the session. There was every wish to do justice to the Thames goldfield, on the part of the Council as well as on that of the Executive, and it is well that they have been so far successful as to ; gain some expiession of approval. For the j future we should advise our Thames friends to maintain the same interest in the sayings and doings of their members as they have hitherto displayed. It would indeed be well if they could think a little of the rest of the province as well as of the Thames ; but, as we have said, it is better to think of the Thames alone than to show no interest in anything.

Pursuant to advertisement a meeting wai held yesterday afternoon of persons favourable to the formation of a Chamber of Commerce for the province of Auckland, Thore were about twenty persons present. Tbe rulea drafted by the committee pro tern, wero adopted without alteration. They are for the mosb piifc a trauscript of the rules of the former Cham'er, the only amendments iutroduced having reference to the mode of election, and the imposition of a fine of 2a. 6J. for non-attenlance. Mr. T. Maoffarlane was elected chairman ; Mr. D. Nitban, vice-president; and Mr. J. T. Gar« Mick, secretary. A. committee of five was also e'eoted by ballot, It was announced tbafc tbe next meeting or the Chamber will 1 c held in the second Thursday in each month. We regret to siy that, thouoh two motions wero uoado for the iucrease of the fine of 2a. G>l.> they were both negatived. To a mercantile member such a fine rau-t be so insignificant compared with the value of au hour or two foe devotiou to important business that the fine must utterly fail to secure the object aimed at. Wo fe.'ir, anxious as we ate to set a really efficient and creditabte Chamber of Commerce in Auckland, that the Hrst elcmont of speedy dissolution has been iutroduofd, and that unless some more effective penalty b> lmj o ed for non-afrteodar.ee there will ba the B'itru ap.ithy and difficulty of securing the meeting as proved fatal to the ol i Chamber. The recQotioii soire'a t.> the Hey. J. Inglis, the indef itigd.'»le Presbyterian missionary of the New Hebrides, took placo List eveumtr, ia the new Music Hall Symonr's-sfcreefc. The affair was one of the mosi saeoessfu' of its kind we luve known for some time past, the attend-inco being laiga and highly respacfcable, and the proceedings varied and attractive. A report appears < j Lewheie. We diiect the attention of our readers to the letter of " Supplejack," published m another column, and ;vhich advocates ihe adoption of an alternative new North Road now in use in preference to the old one, Our Hamilton correspondent, writing on the 10th instant, sends us the following : — " An accident, which happily was not attended with fat vl results, whereby one of our settlefd, William Duncan McLarty, uearly losb his life, occurred laßt Wednesday. McLarty left his team in front of the Hamilton Hotel while he was transacting some business. The horses took fright at a dray passing, and, when in the act of catchmsf the leader, he wa3 thrown down, the dray parsing over the lower part of his stomach. He was picked up in an insensible state, and carried to the hotsl. l^rs. C^rey and Beale were promptly in attendance, the latu-r gentleman taking charge of the patient. Through the severe shock the system received, his medical attendant only pronounced him out of danger last evening." A. correspondent, who signs himself "Homo," Symonds-Btreet, writes to us as follow-i : — "Sir, — You say in your leader to day that the public of New Zealand have come definitely to the conclusion that taxation must, if possible, be reduced, but in any case cannot be increased. No doubb, siri these are your sentiments, but foe the public of Mow Zealand having expressed them I say it is extremely improbable, and wimpy b-'cnuse they have not the pluck. A more pusillanimous and apathetic lot of olonists never existed. '1 hey would sooner allow themselves to be trodden under foot. There ia no vox populi in this country. — Yours, &0., Homo." We have been requested to draw the attention of the lus pec tor of Nuisances to an intolerable nuisauce iv the shape of a brick kiln, complained of by residents in Wellington -street and Berea ford-street. The t>riok-yard is nituate near the junction of the two streets mentioned, and when the kiln is in full blast;, with the wind in a southerly or westerly direotion, the niephitio odours evolved are most nauseating. A correspondent some few weeks ago drew attention to the circumstance that vegetation, flowers, and fruit tree 1 ) in the neighbourhood of the kiln and iv the gardens adjoining the cottages had been blighted by the amok", but his long list of grievances appears to have pa»sed unheeded. A rare occurrence took place in Shorfcland-street ye-torday evening. A hoise and trap, belonging to Mr. Archibald 01 ark, Remuera, was standing opposite the warehouse, the reins being fastened to one of the iron posts of the verandah, wheo somehow or oth-r tbe hoi Be iuh the reins tight, so that the collar got over the lower jaw, and the pressure on the windpipe brought the horse to the ground. No efforts could remove the collar, so it was cut asunder, upon which the animal jumped up not in any way injured by the acuideot. Our .attention hai been called to a clerical error which occurred in our report of the inquest on Mr. DoitA'a child. In the latter part of Dr. Bayntun's testimony it appeared: — "The child had evidently been dead a considerable time before he arrived, th» pupils being dilated." The correct version of the evidence ia :— "Tha child had evidently been dead a considerable time before he a-rived. The pupil* wera dilated." We remind tbe settlers of OtiEuhu and tbe adjacent districts that an entertainment is announced 1 to be given in the Otahuhu Public Hall thii evening by Mr*. Heir. George Rolton wa» apprehended last evening, charged with m breach of the Destitute Penons Relief Ordinance, in having deserted hti wife and family. , The WadeJFair will take plact U*Aay in' Mr. M. K«uy'« yard", »t noog,

A publio sitting in bankruptcy vu set down fo yesterday, at the Supreme Court, bat no bU9iuei was done, And the cases on the paper were a<ijournei until next Thunday. ' The annual publio m;ettng in connection witl the Ladies' Benevolent Society will take place a Haven o'clock this evening in the lecture room of fm lioung Men* Christian Association, We hope to s« a good attendance, and though we cannot expect t< hear that the finances of the Society are in a verj flourishing codditioc, considering the strain wbicl has been placed on them, we .confidently anticipa,t< that the funds will prove to have been judioiouslj expended. During the year 1868 the Ladies' Bene. rolent Society has accomplished a great deal in alleviating the miseries and misfortune* of the poor aud distressed, and when the ordinary machinery for the relief of the poor was suddenly thrown out of gear by unforeseen circumstances the resources of the Ladies' Benevolent Sooiety were severely taxed. Notwithstanding that it was a time of i severe depreaiion they did not shrink from the responsibility that was thrust upon them, bat cheerfully and efficiently performed the task. Mr. W. £ Sadler sends us a letter expressive of his belief that Mr. S. Bright would scarcely prove a proper representative for Newton in the General Assembly ; beoaune "he recently demonstrated his exceeding weakness by heading a movement and getting up a petition having for purport totally to abstract from us all privilege of electing!" Mr. Sadler add*, "Till he get an answer to that glorious, never-to-be-forgotten petition, he would undoubtedly appear inconsistent to beg of us an exercise of franchise for his own behoof in North New Zealand," The usual weekly sitting of the Resident Magistrate's Court was held yesterday at the Court house, E.ien-street. There was rather more business than usual to be disposed of, and the Court did not adjourn till three o'olook. The cases, however, were of srery little public interest. A report will be found slsewhere, A woman named Eliza Kelly was taken into :iutody last night, and wilt be brought up At the Police Court to-day, to answer to a charge of having lommitted a breach of the Municipal Polioe Act, by ising abusive asd insulting language, with iutent to HOfoke a breach of tbe peace, A meeting of the shareholders of the Victory and ilbion Claims was convened for 2 o'olook yesterday iftemoon, at the office of Messrs. Bevendge and ttitohie, but owing, as was supposed, to the brief ntiinatioD, none of the Company made then appearmce, and the meeting was adjourned. We direct the attention of mining and goldfieid lurveyors to the publio notification by his JBonor the Superintendent, inserted elsewhere, to the effect that ipplications for licenses, or renewal of licenses, are ;o be made to th« chief surveyor of the goldfield, and he license* will be issued by the Provincial Treasurer, jioensea already issued, and for which the fee shall tot have been paid on or before the 3 1st instant, will )e cancelled. We have been requested to direct the attention of >ur readers to the* prospectus of the Marquis of iastiogs Gold-Mining Company published else\rhere. The shareholders in the undermentioned ( claims ,ra convened to attend a meeting at the Empire lotel, Graham's Town, on the eveniue; of the 17th nstant at Beven o'clock, to pass rules and transact ither business : — Duchess of Kent, Bank of England, Victoria, Golden Spur, and Duke of Argyle Claims, JVaiotahi Creek. We peroeive that the footpath at the corner of Durham and Queen-streets, in front of Mr, J. C. if orrin's late premises, where large alterations and idditions are in progreess, is being carried out to the ull width. It would be a great improvement if he whole of the narrow portion extending between )urh&m aud Victoria-streets were widened aud made miform, but we suppose the difficulty and expense >f moving tin posts and re-covering the verandahs vill prevent its being effected. We extract the following from a letter published n the Shortland Times of the 10th instant;— • Sir — Having perused the Herald of last Saturday's ssue, 1 notioed a very elaborate article written theren, condemning the proposed popular aoheme of ormii q a Mining Board for the better management if the Thames goldfield. Ihe Editor of the same mrua), who, I entertain, is either the organ of gross aisrepresentation, or tho dupe of the most pal. >able ignorauce, hunts up tbe biassed opinions that te can scrap) together from all quarters to bssist him in bis present; indefatigable task of prerontng tbe formation of * Mining Board on the Dhames Goldfield. The egotistical style of the irticle referred to is well worthy of the most careful .on.Bidera.tion, because the force of its ideas go far to point out that the intelligence of our mining comnunity is a mere myth, and that we really do not mow what legislative measures would be to our present or future good; and that as a clasß we are jjvatly wanting in the scale of humanity, and entirely lutit to be the recipients of that which an Act of t.he New Zealand Parliament distinctly provides for as. The conduct or policy of this journal Biuoe the >pening of the field Las been characterised with the noist singular and extrordiuary features of changes. When tbe field teas first opened it sjared no trouble in u-ing all its influence by publishing most unwarrantable accounts of the most fabulous nature of the field, so as to create a rush and persuade people at a distance to leave comfortable homts and steady employment for an immediate 'pile' at the 'Iharaoi. [t carried this policy so fur that its contempoiary, She Southern Cross, challenged ib on that poiut Hid distinctly forewarned them of the evil consequences, aud, like honest people, washed their hands trom the onus of all future stigmas likely to be wilfully brought on the province through such policy. Again, this journal [the Etrald] was the very first in the province to heap ptaisea on the legislative actions of those who framed our present code of mining regulations, and, in commenting, said that tbe complete manner iv which they carried on the work only showed how fit the miners, as a body, were of framing better and more suitable regulations for the management of the field than any other mude of legislation. Next, to ray great surprise, 1 noticed that after the great rush set in, and the miners became alive to tbe want of a Mining Board, and advocated tbe same, that this j mrnal wheels about and distinctly tells v* that the subject of mining is now thoroughly understood, and that a Mining Board would be actually mischievous, and that it wo ild sit on our shoulders as '.the old man of the sea ' on the neck of Sinbad. But the most of your readers, lfeel ceitain, will agree with me that this doctrine is as- rotten as i* is presumptuous. To suppose that those who only knew kauri gum and potato-digging twelve months ago should now be proficient in gold-raining U simply a fallacy which cve r y proper-minded person muss admit; and on the SAme grounds I might once forward aud tell the same editor that the subject of newspaper editorship is now thoroughly understood, seeing that tho chief qualifications required would be expertness in knowmg the exact time to act the weathercock, and by such acts to endear myself to cliques and pjrties who would for ever after stick to me through thick and thin. Still, this would be coming far sboit of performing the Bolemn duty of an editor with any honoßty, and so it would be equally on the part of the Herald and Government to suppose for a moment tbat they are now fit to frame rules and regulations suitable for the future successful management of this goldfield. That a Mining Board is greatly required ii beo-ming more apparent every day, and it will be a lasting disgrace to our Government to withhold and d«ny to vi a benefit and a privilege which the law of the country confers on nt. * * * I am, yours, &c, Expbwbnob.— Karaka, March 5, 1869 " From recent surveys made of the approaches to Otago Heads, it hat been found that the outer bar, which was formerly conical and clone in to the south head, hat shifted to tbe Wfibtward and flattened. In consequence, the leading marks or beacons for crossing the bar have been removed for the purpose of being plaoed on the sandpit inside, and to the right of the Heads. Prior to the erection of the beacons, two posts painted red have been fixed in their position; by keeping those in one, mariners will cross the bar in iafely until they perceive a red buoy, which is Moored in 16 feet of water at low spring tides, which they must keep to starboard. A beacon inside the Heads will be erected in a' few days at Tai Kori Kori Point, on opening which will haul over . port; the red aud black buoys on each side of the inner bar will then' show tbe course towards Port Chalmers, the red buoy kept on tbe starboard hand, and the blaok'tp .port. The new course over the outerbar wS.,Bdeg.W., until tho beacon in Tai Kori kori Poiafc u opened, bearing B.E.— Otago ; Daily TimM., , , . Some three hundred thousand human souls have been added to" the population of London since the censuVof 1861. ■ ;W,ithintbeborder o£ that nietro-' pMifl are gathered one-tentb part of the population ofScotland, England, 'and Ireland. It is five times more 'populous- «tban ?New York, four times more populous than ,St. Peterburg,r twioe as "populous < M? j i Constantinople/'iwitb. two-thirds - more-, people > m it;! than in PAriijwja 1 pne-fourbhonore than»the»popu)a*j tiox^ 9! Ptkin, tffery eight minutes of every d»y I

of every year ooe per cent, dies, and ever] five minutes of every day, of every yew on< u bora. The extent. o£ itt teirltory is nevei the same. * Measuring within, its girdle ninety square miles, every year some green fields »re built over, and some new suburb arises with five 01 sue hundred houses, and three or four thousand inhabitants. It is afa once the Oourfa, the seat oi Government, the centre of fathion, the home of all the chart tiei, and a general rendezvous for moat of the criminal and desperate classes of the kingdom. It; contains one hundred thousand winter tramp*, forty thousand costers, thirty thousand paupen in the union, more Jews than are to be found ia all Palestine, as many Asiatics and other heathens as are to be f>und in Poonab, with a orimina] class of whom 6f5,000 were committed last year (50,000 mftl^s'and 16,000 females), of which number only 7,000 could read and write. On Tuesday a meeting was held at the Clerkenwell vestry-hall, undetf lf the presidency of the Rer. Robert Maguire, to 'conclude ' the arrangements for compensating the poor people who* suffered personal injury. There were' in all 43 oases of personal in* jjuries oansdd through the outrage, in addition fco seven deaths. The amount in all awarded for per* sonsl id juries was £5,001, in sums varying from £350 to £10, and some of the sums so awarded were placed in trust. To the Abbot family, five of whom were injured and one killed, A 649 in all was awarded — £349 for the mother, and £300 for the remaining four children, who range between two years and thjrteen-yeare of age. To Mrs. Thompson, who received concussioa and was otherwise injured, £100 was awarded ; to the girl, aged seventeen, who lost an eye, and who was otherwise permanently injured, £390 was awarded. To another daughter, aged 13, who was injured alto by the loss of an eye, £250 was awarded. To a third daughter and the father £50 eaoh was awarded. One of this family was also killed. To Mary Young, whose life is even now doubtful, £300 was awarded y»to Thomas Wheeler, who suffered very badly from concussion and lost a finger, £100, in trust, was awarded ; to Ann Cross, who reoeived a severe compound fracture of leg and concussion, £200, in trust, was awarded ; to the widow and imbecile son of William Clutton (who was killed on the spot), £400 was awarded ; to the Moseieys (father, mother, and their son), £200 was awarded ; to Hannah Roberts, whose father and mother were killed in the outrage, and who herself received injuries, £360 was awarded ; and to Mary Ann Miles, who was greatly injured, £293 was awarded—- Lloyd's Weekly Newspaper, December 27. The Pall Mall Gazette, speaking of the failure of the attempt to establish the right of female suffrage, asks, "Is a man lawfully hanged who U sent out of theworllby the hands of a hangwoman instead of a hangman?" The question has now a merely retrospective interest probably, for amidst the modern agitation for female employment no question has been raised of competition for this office. But in one of our western provincial capitals the "oldest inhabitants" Still remember to have had pointed out to them in their ohildhood the harsh visage of an old crone who once, when ths executioner was not forthcoming, and the sheriff positively declined to perform the office which by law devolved on him, c»me forward, volunteered, and was accepted. For the benefit of future historians we may add that the city was Exeter, and the woman's name Jane Eadford. We were closing in upon a wounded tiger, whose hind leg was broken. Some Bheelo, who had run up the trail to a patch of high grass, were drawing back, now that their game was found, when the brute started up behind the elephant, and charged the nearest man, a little hniry, bandy-legged, square-bit; It oddity, more like a satyr than a human being. Away spun the Bheelforthe nearest tree, with the wounded tiger roaring at his haunches. By the prophet, sir, it would have done your heart good to see the springs the active little sinner made. J ust in time he reached the tree, and scrambled into a branch, hardly out of reach. There he sat, crouched up into the smalle t poa&ible compass, expecting every moment to be among the Houris. The tigtr made several desperate efforts to reach him, bub the brokeu bind leg failing he dropped kack exhausted It waß now the Bheel's turn. He saw that he was safe, and accordiugly commenced a philippic against the father and mother, sisters, auuts, nieces, and children of his helpless enemy, who sat with glaring eyeballs fixed on his contemptible little reviler, and roaring as if his heart would break with rage. As the excited orator warmed by his own eloquence, he began skipping from branch to branch, grinning and chattering with the emphasis of an enraged baboon; pouring out a torrent of the most foul abuse; and attributing to the tiger's family in general, and his female relatives iv particular, every ciime and atrocity that ever wasor will be committed. Occasionally ho varied his insults by roaiing, in imitation of the tiger; and at last, j when fairly exhausted, he leant forward till he ! appeared within the reach of the enraged animal, aud ended thia inimitable scene by spittiDg m his face. Ho very absurd was the whole farce, that we who were at first shoving up the elephant, in alarm for our hairy little frieod, ended by laughing till our aides ached; and it was not without reluctance that we pul an end to the scene by firing a death volley. —Campbell's Indian Journal.