The Daily Southern Cross.

Daily Southern Cross, Volume XXVIII, Issue 4506, 3 February 1872, Page 2

The Daily Southern Cross.

LUCEO, NON URO. If I have been extingutihed.yet there rise A thousand beacon! from the tpurk I bore.

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 1872.

There is a practical cast in the people ot Victoria that commands our admiration, and is altogether. dpsorvidg of our imitation. Whatever their hands find to do they not only do it with all their might, but they Bppear to use a large amount of judgment in selecting the very best way of employing their hands when doing it. While, with the exception of the Dunedin gaol, our penal establishments keep their detenits employed in a dilettante kind of labour that seems calculated only to, repel ennui, our neighbours in Australia appear to look on th.eir prisons as containing useful labourers who should return something to the State for the trouble taken iri keepjngthein from the ways of wickedness, 'yfe have formerly referred to* the harbour defences of'Hobson's Bay, *the\ earthworks of which are from the r hands of -penal gangs from Pentridge. Jsut it appears that operations more seaiHetio in their purposes are not considered iucompa- i tible with this enforced but valuable cjass of labojar. Tbe~ %t v amc r Gaslen att Geelong r ,i«-^r|Bp|s« 4ntey.'/' 4 ntey. '/' u^s ."/thfei finjest_ gardens - 3^r public- >re- " sort in ; lyiotoria," / vyjk >. fo,< -a large extent it ones Its completeness -to -that ; ! class oflabour which witK us is virtually left in disuse. Among features of interest it contains a $ne artificial lake, constructed entirely by prison'

labour, andtthe question of the utilisation of euiorced labour has been practically subjected toa test in circumstances 1 po 4 peculiar as to set at rest all doubt , as to the possibility of applying prison i labour to almost any class of public work. Of this plan of public resort we read; — "The two hundred acres "which jt covers were, in 1858, a waste " piece of sterile-looking common, on " .vhich no tree or shrub had ever been " seen to grow. The larger portion of " it is now a beautiful park, with broad " carriage drives neatly gravelled, and " winding walks everywhere shaded with " masses of varied-coloured foliage, " and brilliant with rich parterres. " The nursery, conservatory, and green- " house are everything that the botanist ; " and lover of floriculture can desire, ! " and the charm of this portion of the " reserve is increased by an aviary of " considerable extent, stocked with a " fine ornithological collection. These " gardens exist not merely as a show- '•' ground. For the last seven or eight " years we find by a published report " that as many as from 25,000 to 30,000 " plants have been annually distributed " by the curator to public institutions." It is true that all this has not been exclusively the result of prison labour ; but in its application, to such a purpose, and in ;bhe comparison afforded by one portion of the work, which, being done by prison labour, cost £100 instead of £600, the amount of the lowest tender received for doing it by ordinaryjlabour, we have afforded to us a suggestion that should not be forgotten in relation to our own public reserves. The Albert Barracks will probably soon be apportioned to the various intended purposes, including among them a public park j and in the Western district of the city there is a growing feeling in favour of the appropriation of a portion of the city landed estate there situate for the purpose of forming a place of recreation for a district large and populous, but the residents in which are virtually excluded from the benefits of the Domain and the future recreation ground at the Albert Barracks. In the formation of such works there is usually a spirit of penurious economy manifested by those who have charge of the public purse ; ' but in the available prison labour there is afforded the means of largely supplementing any funds devoted to the purpose. The Victorian example may well be adduced in proof that not only may it be applied to such rude operations as levelling and preparing the grounds, but that the taste and feelings of the prisoners might be even enlisted in a manner as benefioial to the prisoners themselves as to the community at whose expense they are maintained.

Grea/t interest will necessarily be felt in the negotiations at present proceeding between Mr. Brogden and the City Council with reference to water supply. An interview has already taken place ; and though, in a meeting of such a very preliminary character, not even a basis of negotiations could be satisfactorily laid, the meeting will have the result of eliciting the information requisite before proposals of a definite character are submitted. We have no doubt there are those who would prefer to have seen this work undertaken by a private company, and who feel a species of jealousy respecting the interference of Mr. Brogcleu ; but it must be admitted that abundant time has already been afforded for flic undertaking of the work by a private company, if it had been possible to form suck a company. But as what the people of the city want is pure and abuudaut water, it will be a matter of little concern to most by whom tlie water is supplied provided it is supplied. At the same time we believe that we echo the sentiments in the city when we urge that undue precipitatiou should nob characterise the action of the City Council, and that the utmost precautions should bs used that the interests of the city arc not jeopardised by haste to accept of very tempting -proposals induced by the present great want of water in the city. It; is necessary that careful reckoning should be made of the actual revenue possibly available for the purpose under the provisions of the Act of Incorporation, and from rateable value of property in the city. ' It does not necessarily follow that Mr. Brogden should require the whole of this amount for interest, or even interest and sinking fund. But an estimate of the popsible ways • and means will enable the contractor to know whether the desired works are to absorb tens or hundreds of thousands j in their construction. Five or six thousands a-year might pay interest on some eighty thousand pounds if invested in such public works ; but ifc does nob necessarily follow that if that sum is procurable from a special water-rate there should therefore be £80,000 expended on bringing water into the city. The two data being supplied, viz., the amount of water required, and the amount of annual income which could, if requisite, be devoted to the purpose, it will be the part of the contractor and his engi- • neers to see what soui'ce of supply will be at once within the means of the* city, and best furnish a never-failing supply of nure water. On such basis of information, a proposal will doubtless be made to the Council, which they will be competent to accept or refuse. At this, preliminary stage, it is mani festly impossible to say whether the proposals to be made will be of such a character as sho lid be accepted by the Council ; but, from the alternate forms in which this proposal is submitted to the option of the- City Council,, wo can scarcely regard the present appearance of the negotiations as being otherwise than satisfactory in the extreme. Air. Brogden proposes to 1 construct the works, to retain them, or to dispose of them after (tonstructkra to the Council, according, to! the option of the. Council He is willing to accept a gua;£ant|eed' interest on the outlay re*qti§fed, or that the .Council should, .purchase ihem at a price, as per arrangement, at the end of seven, ten, fourteen, or twenty-one years. With so varied and so satisfactory pro

posals, we are warranted , in expecting that arrangements will be definitely concluded between the Council and Mr. Brogden: at least we" do not think it possible that any proposal will emanate from any private 1 company, or auy other source, being ab all comparable to those-at present the subject of negotiation. Water is wanted — imperatively wanted—in the city. Both for domestio purposes, and to lessen the cost of insurance, and therisks of fire to which valuable property is at present exposed, a copious supply of water can no longer be denied to the city ; and it is to be greatly desired that both the pecuniary competency of the City Council and engineering expenses will be such as not to preclude the successful completion of the present negotiations.

Th© Resident Magistrate's Court, for the recovery of small»debt claims, ,sat yesterday until 4 o'clock in the afternoon, and, if several of the defended cases had not been adjourned until the next sitting, they would have extended over quite two days. The number of litigants in this Court is weekly increasing, and the cases coming are more and more protracted from the stubborn defences which are now so frequently net up. Captain Walker, of the steamer ' City of Adelaide,' and Messrs. Dangar and Gilchrist atul another gentleman from Sydney, have paid a visit to the Thames. Yesterday morning they went through the Caledonian and other mines. We understand that, in the event of Mr. Farnall resigning his seat in the Provincial Council, Major Stoney will become a candidate. That gentleman has already received a well-signed requisition, and there is every probability of his being returned should the expected vacancy occur. We are glad to learn that the Provincial Government have granted £10 to the Wade readingoroom and library out of the money voted by the Council in aid of country libraries. The members of the Wade Library Committee are Messrs. Dacre and Farnall,and Major Stoney. The latter gentleman also officiates as librarian. We aro informed by the Guardian that " A tramway has been erected across the Moanataiari Creek, joining the Caledonian with the main line of tramway, and the Tararu railway has also been connected with the Moanataiari tramway, so that in future the Caledonian mine, as well as other mines on the creek, will be able to send their quartz direct to Tararti by rail, thus saving time and expense. We believe it is the object of the llailway Company to place a more powerful locomotive on the line. At the Tararu end the rail way -station has been finished, with the exception of a few little extras, which will be accomplished within the course of a few days. The line has also been extended to the end of the Tararu Wharf, and we believe the next step will be to connect the railway with the Tararu tramway. " We notice from the Thames papers that the aerolite which was observed in Auckland about 8 o'clock on Tuesday evening was also seen at the Thames. The accounts given of the phenomenon by the Thames journals doscribe the meteor as being very brilliant, a correspondent of the Thames A dvertiuer stating that "on its first appearance it was little more than visible, but with astonishing rapidity developed into a blazing ball of tire of a reddish hue first, then quite white, nearly as much so as a lime light. As it approached the surface of the earth the ball or oval seemed about 2ft. in diameter." It is curious to notice that both papers express the view that the meteor fell in the vicinity of the Thames. The Guardian says : " Its course was from north to the westward, and it fell apparently into the water in a line with Holdship's wharf." The Advertiser says:— "lt seemed to disappear midway between Grahamstown aud the opposite coast." It is characteristic of our youug contemporaries on the goldtield to claim every couoeivable thing for their district, not excluding the existence of Auckland itself, but it is surely going too far to take credit for the exclusive possession of a meteor which must have fallen far out on the Pacific— f ull a thousand miles from the goldtield, not to mention its timber- wharf. Both of the Thamps papers contained a teleyr.un to the eifect that the meteor was seen ! falling to the west of Auckland, and, as Auckland is fully 30 miles west of the Thames, it requited but a limited exercise of judgment to have concluded that the Firth of Thames did not receive the meteor. »So far to the west of Auckland did the meteor appear that the scone of its fall is, we should think, much nearer Australia than New Zealand. We have been furnished by a gentleman in Auckland who obseived tho meteor from its first appearance with some further particulars respecting it. He says that it was fir&t seen to the north, aud described a curve of about 30 or 40 degrees to the west in its fall. When first noticed, it had the appearance of an aerolite of ordinary size, but rapidly enlarged as it approached the earth until it appeared equal in size to the full moon. At this time it burst and fell in luminous sections, similar in appearance to those emitted troin a rocket. When at full size, tho light from the meteor ! was, as the Advertiser's correspondent ex- ! presses it, quite white, and not unlike the lime liyht in this respect. "a man named Edward Calvin, who, wo understand, was lodging with John Cartwright in the house recently destroyed, by fire, was yesterday arrested on suspicion of being connected with the incendiarism of which Cartwright stands accusud. It is estimated that the City Council have saved £1,000 upon the cost; of the various city works now in progress by letting them before tenders were called for the other extensive public works, which lnve created so large a demand for labour. The Council was extremely fortunate in the choice of time, and the weather has favoured the street operations. The representatives of the several brewing nrir.s in Auckland have convened a meeting to be held at the Thames Hotel on Wednesday afternoon "to cousider the price of beer." Considering the price of beer admits of a wide interpretation. It may be that, owing to the excessive amount of thirst, lately experienced by the Auckland multitude, the brewers propose being humane by reducing the piice jof their beverages; or, as is alleged by some, the scarcity of water necessitates a rise in the article. The hotel-keepers state that they are quite willing to submit to a reduction on the charge of colonial beer ; but if a rise is contemplated, why then they themselves will have a meeting on the subject. To the Editor : Sir,— Having been in the habit of visiting the Solid Rock Bath lately, I have noticed the dirty state it was in — mud, seaweed, and other unseemly things can always be found there. Considering that tho bath at the Breakwater han been charging the same money for some time, and being itself superior at high water, and always clean, I think the least the shareholders of the Solid Rock Bath could do would be to see that it is cleaned out, &c, regularly. I may say that I have told the keeper about .these things, and he doesn't care, saying if people don't like it they can keep away. — lam, &c, Visitor. The Rev. D. Bruce and family were pas- | senders from London per ship ' Caducous, 1 which anived yesterday morning. • Weekly statement of the Provincial Lunatic Asylum, for the week ending 27th January, 1872 :— Remained l*st statement, 115 ; admitted Bince, 0 ; discharged, 3 ; remaining at present, 112 (76 males,36 females). .Distribution of Cases : Epileptic mania, 9 ; idiocy, 4 j imbecillitas, 16 ; mania, 47 ; melancholia, 16 ; dementia, 18 ; monomania, 2. A collection of magazines and illustrated periodicals, &c, presented by Mr. Crombie, is thankfully acknowledged.

The Mayot and Mr. Kempthorne were the presiding magistrates at the Police Court yesterday morniug. There were only one drunken woman and a boy thief to dispose of. The former was sentenced to pay a fine, or suffer »n alternative imprisonment ; the latter wo* sent *o gaol for 24 hours, and to be ouce privately whipped. Upon the subject of water supply i> correspondent writes as follows":— "February 3, 1872.— Sir,— ln this morning's issue of the Cross, as also in a former issue, the attention of the owners of houses has been drawn to the veiy urgent necessity of either deepening their wells or cleaning them out for the accommodation of their tenants. It would be well indeed if the owners of honsw acted upon the suggestion you have thrown '■■ out. They have an opportunity of doing this now that the wells are almost all dry, if not all actually so. The expense would not be very much, whilst the convenience to the occupiers in a sanitary and other points of view would be very great indeed, as already tenants are put to very great inconvenience in their efforts to procure water. Under any circumstances this would be a judicious step to take on the part of the owners of property, and it is likewise a duty they owe not only to their immediate tenants but to society at large." If a sign were wanted of the progressive spirit abroad at the present time, there would be no difficulty in discovering it in. an appointment which the Victorian Government has just made. A homceopathio practitioner finds a place upon the commission which has been formed for the purpose of inquiring into the causes of the wide spread of diphtheria in that colony, and offering suggestions as to the best method of curative treatment. AfewyearsagonoGovernment would have ventured to make suoh an appointment, and it would have been hard to find an orthodox member of the faculty who would have consented to sit in such company. Now, it has come to be admitted that all medical wisdom is not necessarily confined within the allopathic ranks, and that a medical man may be a heretic and yet escape being either a knave or a fool. That this is a step in the right direction mußt be admitted, and it is to be hoped that it is but the precursor of further advances. The medical profession haB too long been too conservative and exclusive, and reform does not come a moment too soon. — Australian paper. To the Editor: Sir,— ln reference to a letter in the Southern Cross of 29th January, from a settler of Alexandra, on the case of pig- worrying, &c, would you kindly inform me if the police or Armed Constabulary are not to a certain extent the protectors of public property, and, if so, by what authority they are allowed to keep dog 3 for the destruction of settlers' property ? If a poor man in protecting his property destroys the dog, a member of the force, who professes to own him, brings the man to Court, and gets judgment on his own valuation, at any price he may wish to name. Now, Mr. Editor, will you kindly inform me if it is customary for any man to value his own property without referring to a second party, as was done in the above case ? The sooner the owners of auch dogs are brought to a sense of their duty the better for the poor man and the community at large. — I am, &c, Otns ofthr Sufferers, Alexandra. We learn that the Agatha States quartette have made a great hit in Sydney, but their misfortune seems to be that they have not sufficient strength of numbers to give opera in its entirety. To remedy this, overtures have been made to the leading members of the Cagli troupe, now playing in Dunedin, to join Madame States for a season at the Princess's under the directorship of Mr. Win. Lyster. To the Editor : Sir,— lt is neither the parishioners nor the congregation of St. Pauls that wish for a new hymnal. In the good old days we used to have beautiful hymns sung to suitable tunes, but, when persons are unwilling to do anything their predecessors did, it is no wonder we have so many unpleasant changes in the services, and are missing familiar faces from the congregation. — I am, &c, Observer.

The swimming matches announced to be oompeted for to-day will take place at the Salt-water Baths, Break water, commencing at half-past one. There are eight contests. A special meeting of the shareholders in the Bank of Tokatea Goldminiug Company is advertised to be held at the Mechanics' Institute, on February 13, at 4 p.m. An extraordinary meeting of the Flagship Golden Anchor Goldmining Company is convened to be held on February 21, at Grahamstown. A call of 3d. has been mado by the direct rs of the Matawai Goldmining Company. An extraordinary meeting of the shareholders in the Margaretta Goldmiuing Company is aunounced to be held in No. 33, New Zealand Insurance Buildings, on the 20bh February, foi the purpose of electing directors, passing rules, &c. An extraordiuaiy meeting of the shareholders iv the Pride of Tokatea Goldmuung Company has been convened by requisition to bo lfe'kl in Auckland on tho 22n<l Feb ■ ruary, at 3 o'clock, for the purpose of conside! ing the proposition to purchase the Two Georges Claim, offered to the company. Strangers arriving from a journey arc often iv doubt as to which shop in Auckland keeps the most varied stock of clothing, hosiery, ties, hats, and other necessaries for gentlemen's use and wear. S. Coombes would therefore call the attention of travellers and others to the City Clothing Mart, situated in Queen-street, three doors above the office of the Dah,y Southern Cuoss newspaper, where they can select from t«he largest, newest, and most fanhiouable stock n the province. S. Coombes would specially bring befoi c their notice the tailoring department as having secured a first-class cutter and workmen, and having on hand an excellent selection of tweeds, coatings, Ac; and he is prepared to turn out garments which for fit, style, and workmanship cannot be surpassed in Auckland.— S. Coombes, City Clothing Mart, 80, Queen-street, Auckland. — Adv.] Families, coasters, traders, and others visiting Auckland during the holidays, and requiring to purchase really cheap drapery, will do well to avail themselves of the s.Ue nmv going on at S. and J. K. Vaile's, as the premises will be closed early in Jannary, Tho clothing lepartment, at 96 and 98, Queen-street, contains a very full stock recently opened and well worth inspection. —[ADV.] We observe by advertisements that Mr. R. W. Dyson, so long and favourably known in the drapery trade, is about to relinquish the business, and, consequent upon the expiration of his lease, will, for the remainder of the term, hold an unusually cheap sale, and solicits an early call to secure bargains, —[Adv.] " Berkeley, September, 1869.— Gentlemen, —I feel it a dnty I owe to you to express my gratitude for the great benefit I have derived by taking Norton's Camomile Pills. I ap plied to your agent, Mr. Bell, Berkeley, for the above-named pills, for wind in the stomach, from which T suffered excruciating pain for a length of time, having tried nearly every remedy prescribed, bat without deriving any benefit at all. After taking two bottles of your valuable pills I was quite restored to my usual state of health. Please give this publicity, for the benefit of those who may thus be afflicted. — I am, sir, yours truly, Henry Allpass.— To the proprietors of Norton's Camomile Pills. "—[Adv.] Convulsions is Tkethuto. — None but anxious mothers know the real worij of the " teething time," and the nursery has no -worthier or more innocent adjunct than Mr». Johnson's American Soothing By. up, which, easily applied to the infant's gumv, relieve! the pain and prercnts conrultions Tho experience of half a century has made this article extremely popular. Hone genuine without the name of " Barclay and Sons, Qs,Farrlngdon-street, London," it on tha stamp. Sold by nil chemist*. «t 2i. 9d. a bottle. Agent*. Vennelland Co., Auckland.— Adv. Where the digestive powers are to we&jt M to cant* imperfect Assimilation, and in many cases laying the foundation for Consumption and Wanting, the use of Savory and MoorV* Pancreatic Emulsion tndPanereatine. alrendy ao highly approved by the Medical faculty, will be found aroopg the mo*t potent Temedial agents; they effect the digestion of Cod liver Oil nnd prevent nausea, while they efficiently supply \he place of the oil when the stomich rejects it. Tries-* facts nre attested by the published records of medical men, extracts from which, accompany each bottle, price from 2«. 1 1 21s. Savory and Moore, 143, New ilonrtstrcet, London, and nil Chemists. NoU— Savory and Moon's name nnd trade mark on each bottle.~Ai*v.