THOUGHTS ON THINGS IN GENERAL.

Daily Southern Cross, Volume XXVIII, Issue 4742, 5 November 1872, Page 3

THOUGHTS ON THINGS IN GENERAL.

I think it is with a very bad grace that our Government, after giving land orders or certificates for £35 to the Volunteers who served during the war, will only allow them the choice of land which is comparatively useless, and thus these £35 certificates are only woith £5. It is a sham and delusion, which is a had reward for the work which | was no sham. Why nojb encourage those who have done their couritry 'by giving then* land which is wor'En 'BbmetKmg ? jit does not seem very yeputosble that a Government certificate for £35 ia ,only worth £s'.— t suppose our Provincial luminaries will enlighten .ÜB'.with 'their 1 proceedings, and if they would take my advice it would be jfew acts, little talk, and a short session. jThen all o>ur talking bodies, Gfeheral Aasenfbly, Provincial Council, and Synods will shnt I jup for a time. —I am in hopes we may hare "a good potato crop this season, and it certainly bias 'fair ho be 'a very good fruit season. — Somegentleme* are rery eagerly j canvassing for the Speakersnip of the Projvincial Council,' but are they gfurg that 'it fe not in order to be a .member of the Governpent and Speaker of a Provincial. Cqupcil? At fill events' it would be decent to r wiiVuntil fchd.'present -Speaker' resigns. some people care very little for decency when tbeir own interests are concerned. I should be inclined to give it to a, man who, dqwinot pk for itj— jA.nd bo we, are, actually! within a week of England by telegraph, and I suppose,, -Jbime-will' arrive when we shall be I ivithin afeW'hoursv )• ' • J " ' n,- ,l)i)t i A M.A.IA in thr Bush.

1 ' J — " -r vlx , t irr^^ v £ I During the late civil war it was considered necessary in Cynfcjdanaj^keepa few soldiers at^that -jplace^^«^ef*iriglrlfftw6eisf*itn"eni a happened" to str^ into^^ne^ church of the coloured people ' just as' *£he* "minister was tjoncluctfng am invitation to, /my- who were inclined ttvo v "conie'and. join the church/'. After he hadjfinished, ,theae two soldiers got tip, walked forward, &np. jjre^sented themselves for admissioJir; whereujfon the preacher said: "Breddern, dis~is~a cullud church, aiad I don't knowJas Ts any 'thority to ,taks in white folks;?' • Atffchia point lan elderunfele rpse in the congregation < and 1 ejaculated : "Take 'em;in,iißraddejs Jilaon', -take ! em in, d«'*kini ii white- dat« tuQt, but far burti ii jii ai bliok m own, m»b {"

NOMINATION MEETING. A meeting of the electors in the Northern Division was held yest-rday, at noon, in the Devonport Hall, for the purpose of nominating a member for the Ptovincial Council, in the place of Mr. Farnall, resigned. There were under twenty persons present. Colonel Balneavis, the Returning Officer, read the writ declaring the vacancy, and also the advertisement he had inserted in the newspapers calling the present meeting. He then called upon the electors present to nominate some one of their number as a candidate. Auy elector whose name was upon any electoral roll in the province was eligible to be proposed, but the proposer and seconder would require t» be electors of the district.— Mr. 0. Mays proposed Mr. William Buchanan as a fit and proper person to represent the Northern Division in the Provincial Council. He did so because he was a person well qualified to represent them. He had a large stake in the district, had leisure time on |b.is hands, and was well acquainted with the requirements of the district and the country districts generally. — Mr. H. Niccol seconded the proposal. — Mr. M. Shea proposed Mr. H. B. Stoney. He was an old settler, and one well acquainted with them. — Mr. A. Allison seconded the proposal, — The Returning Officer asked if there were any other canrdidates to be proposed. After waiting some time and receiving no answer, the Keturn'ing Officer called for a show of hands. For Mr. Buchanan six hands were shown, and i for Major Stoney four. The Keturning Officer then declared the show of ( hands to be in favour of Mr. Buchanan. — Mr. Shea demanded a poll on behalf of Major Stoney. — The Keturning Officer said the election would take place on the 12th November, and that the several polling.places had already been published. He would now wait a short time to give the candidates an opportunity of addressing the electors should they be so inclined.—Mr. Buchanan came forward, and said that he stood there that day asking his fellow electors to return him to a seat in the Provincial Council. Although he was an old Auckland settler, he had hitherto taken no active part in public affairs, and could not appeal to the past as an indication of what he would do in the future. He left it to the electors to aay whether they would have him. He had been a good many years a country settler, and knew well the difficulties country settlers had to struggle with. He had known a working man to work all the week, and have to carry home a bag of flour upon his back, because it was the only way the flour could be conveyed to his home. He had known one settlement where there was plenty of produce of every kind, and in an adjoining one they were in want, " although a distance of only four and a half miles separated them. There was no means of communication one with the other. It was in such circumstances he had seen the Road' Boards act moat beneficially in country districts. The principal advantage which was flowing from the estar blishment of the Road Boards was the imposition of a direct tax upon the people. Every settler, when he was directly taxed, watched with a critical eye every work done by the Road Board, and woe betide the trustees of the Road Board that had not done something for the district before the annual meeting. He thought the money set apart for the j Road Boards was well-spent money. In regard to the subject of education he had expressed his views the other evening at the j public meeting. Education should be put j on that footing here that people should feel it a bargain to get it. It should be made valuable and accessible, co that people would feel if they did not aend their children to school they would be losers. If he were returned to a seat in the Council he would represent in the Council the views of those who sent him, and not merely his own. — Major Stoney next addressed the meeting. He said he was glad of the present opportunity of addressing the electors. Un a former occasion when he had come before them he had received a large measure of success, and his only reason now in coming before them was because he was pledged to do so. H^ had been requested to do so by a most numerously signed requisition some two years ago, and he had then made them a promise which he now fulfilled. As a country settler, and as such having some knowledge of what the country districts required, he had as much experience as many. He had now been seven years a bona fide settler amongst them. For a period of three years before he had been engaged fighting for them both in Taranaki and in the Waikato, and he to this day bore the scars of the wounds he had received. His experience in the working of Road Boards -was somewhat extensive. He had been four years a chairman of a Road Board, whirch waa something more than the opposing candidate could say. He knew well the district to, which Mr. Buchanan referred, and from what he had stated he thought it would be allowed that he was likely to know a little more of the wants of Road Boards and country districts than Mr. Buchanan did. He was also oh a school, committee, and was the author of school books, so that measured by that standard he bad substantial claims upon the public, and it indicated that he was quite alive to the requirements of the country in that respect. If returned, he should not be wanting when the education question was discussed. He well knew the people of Auckland, and thought he had some claim upon the electors residing there ! for their support. There had been two or 1 three useful works oarried out there, which would not have been done had' it not been i for him. He it was who succeeded in get1 ting the Grafton Road made. He was the first to put a plough in the Government Domain. He had also got it fenced. Before ■ that it was a wilderness of teaTtree. Those ■ and other works to, which he might refer I would show that he had left his mark upon , the district surrounding Auckland, though somewhat now forgotten by the influx of ' new people. His experiencies and acquaintance with country districts were very great, and few knew their wants better than he did. Of their support he was sure. He stood before them at the expressed wish of over 200 settlers in the Northern Division. 'It was not necessary for him to refer to his political views : they were well known. In the last contest he was engaged in he had the majority in all the country polling-placei. He hkd now had^hree years' more experience since then, and that should be of some service to the district if he were elected. Of the nine country polling places he was sure there was not one but the majority of .votes would be in his favour. He did not [wish a contest on { his own behalf, but as he had- pledged himself to stand for a seat on the -first- occasion that offeredphe now "did so, and it was for thaj^purp'oae that he came before them.— The Returning Officer stated ;hat there were 1,598 electors on the roll for ;he district, and that at each of the out polling-stations there would be one table, at Which each candidate was entitled to have one scrutineer if he thought fit. At the principal polling booth there would be six ables, and each candidate would t be eniitled, to,' a scrutineer at each table. — On the notion of Mr. Buchanan, seconded by klajor Stnney, a" vote of thanks was passed ;o the Returning Officer, after which the neeting separated.- % - '•■' - '' - L

I If : " See Jherey" ,eiclainied>a returned Irish, soldier to a gaping crowd, as he exhibited with some-- pride a Tiat with a bullet it, / /'^oqk at -thaj; iiole; -will you? You see that if it had been a low-crowned hat, I should have been l killed outright." ! A Pennsylvania editor, in acknowledging the gift of a peck of potatoes, says :—": — " It is 'kindnesses as theSe 1 that bring tears to our e^es. One peck of potatoes makes the whole world kin. We have-trusted to Providence, v and this is our reward. We would, like a " little kindling wfood; and • some good turnips, but that would be asking too much, so we wintry. to j do w,ithaut;t]h.em." .'. » ">' Is D'EA.FNESS.--The nndersignfd, hnving receiv d ■ jcta po»Uive proof ofthft j ilue of tbemeili ines coropUinded by a distinguUhed AuckUnd chemist from ilie weiue rroeived by him from the Auriit-in-Chief o ■ the Royal E»r Dispensarr, Do*n-stroet, Soho, Lon don, both in thin and the other provinces, it prepared to' tupplv tha difTorant Sngredianti to anyone timllarly sfflloted, on rooolvln? & remittanos to cover expends — T. B, H»Dn*foKi, G«ssral Agsnt, af«h-jtr«et,—