The Evening Post. FRIDAY, OCTOBER 2, 1874.

Evening Post, Volume x, Issue 193, 2 October 1874, Page 2

The Evening Post. FRIDAY, OCTOBER 2, 1874.

A short time ago, we published an interesting letter detailing the work being done at home in promoting emigration to New Zealand by one of the very few good agents whose services the Agent-General was fortunate enough to secure. This gentleman entered con amore on the work, and so successfully carried it on that one of the leading Provincial papers declared at last that nearly all the inhabitants of the counties of Essex, Herts, Bedfordshire, and part of Middlesex, "Were affected more or less with New Zealand on the brain." We have now before us papers published in these counties, containing reports of speeches delivered by this gentleman (Mr H. Twelvetrees), and we must say that he seems to have performed his duty well, and under a full sense of the responsibility resting on him in the advice given to people to emigrate to New Zealand. There is little or no exaggeration in his statements of the advantages offered to the settlers in this Colony, and he by no means under-rates the discomforts and difficulties to be met with. We are not surprised that Mr Twelvetrees has been eminently successful, no less than between 5000 and 6000 of the emigrants despatched within the last year or so by the Agent-General having been drawn from the counties referred to. Some idea of Mr Twelvetrees' labours may be gathered from the fact of his having addressed ?1 public meetings, reports of which appeared in 243 newspapers, written letters on the subject in 38 other papers, and had 25,000 large posting bills, giving particulars as to passages, wages, price of provisions, climate, crops, &c, printed, in addition to 250,000 hand bills, 180,000 sheets of letters from emigrants settled in the Colony, and 5, 180 advertisements inserted in daily and weekly newspapers. Many of the meetings attracted audiences of upwards of 2,000 people. All this work was done without a penny of expense to the Colony, Mr Twelvetrees simply receiving the ordinary agent's capitation fee on all approved applicants, for passages, and out of this money paying all the expenses incurred by .himself. The labour, cannot have: proved Very remunerative to him on these terms, but. he seems to be an enthusiast in -the, cause of emigration, and on & iprevious occasion, we believe, took an active -part; in the establishment of the 'Albertland special settlement in Auckland. If the services of such men are obtainable at home, we really cannot see tbe necessity of sending home agents from the Colony, but we fear men of the stamp of Mr Twleve* trees are scarce, for he really appears to have done nearly da much as the whole of the other, ISO or 200 agents employed in the same work. One thing is very evident;, and thafris that New Zealand is now becoming a familiar name throughout Great Britain. Ifc is. almost impossible to take up a Provincial paper without finding letters or remarks referring to thig colony, and when unfounded or false statements are made to its prejudice, a -host of champions always rush into the field in defence. On the 24tb July the London Times contained a letter signed " Bohemian,", givinga very doleful account oi the writers experience in Canada and .tbe United States, and adding, "In Nevr Zealand things are much the same." A day or two afterwards our old friend, Mr E. T, Bridges, the late Manager of the Bank of New Zealand here, writing from Stoke-by-Mayland, Suffolk, gave "Bohemian" a thoiough setting down, " Bohemian" has promised to reply, but had not done so up to the date of the latest copies of the Times to hand, A late copy of the Hertfordshire News also contains two letters purporting to be written respectively from .Roxburgh and Biverton, Otago, to friends at home, giving very bad accounts Of the Colony, and dissuading people from emigrating. Both writers represent themselves a.3 diggers. These letters evoked a reply from "a Colonial merchant," who says that as one of the writers was, according to his own statement,earning nine shillings a day his advice to his friends not to emigrate appeared rather selfish. The merchant, however, makes a decided hit by showing that during the very month the letter from Biverton was dated in, 403 persons were nominated in Biverton by friends residing there for free passages, and that a large number of persons were also nominated, .from, Roxburgh, The Colonial merchant very properljr gays * — " The truth must be told that emigrants to New Zealand must not imagine they are going out to some fairy land in which milk and honey will literally be found flowing, and in which they will not have to earn their bread by tbe sweat of their brow. They -must work and work hard there as well as here ; they must be prepared to put their hands' to anything, and to 'rough' it, as those who preceded them have had to do. though not nearly to so great an extent If,, however, they show themselves willing to work, there is plenty of it for them, and good, pay, and the best of 'tucker' as a recompense. The great fault with emigrants, is that they allow their minds to become too deeply imbued with the belief that in proceeding to the colonies they will have it all play and no work ; that nuggets of gold are picked up as readily as stones, that money is running to waste, and that they have only to go out and settle there to share in the universal wealth of the Colony,, The result of such expectations k, 6( course, bitter" disappointment — but a little experience teaches them very diffe-srently-^and;thus itfwas with your Hitcfain .'correspondent when he gaveup his "golden" expectations, and settled down to the regular work of the Colony." The Colonial Merchant, however, is very wrong in bis estimate of tbediggers,x)f whom he says — "A3 a class, they are dissolute* . depraved, and good-for-nothing, and are not regarded .with favor by any other classes of society. 'No one cares about employing these thriftless rie'er-do-wella, when on tramp, as they are not worth setting to work at any price." This is afoul libel on a most steady, orddrly, and respectable class of men. The real diggers are the last' men in the world td dfcserve aach a" character, or to go "on .tramp," As the Colonial Merchant flays— '!' Even when their gains are good, they are frequently wasted in the most wanton, shameful^ manner— some have been known even to light their pipes with paper money out of mere bravado," we fear -his know* ledge 18 not derived from acquaintance with the inhabitants of our goldtields, but from descriptions of the doings on the goldfields of Australia and California before gold* mining became what it now is, a settled industry, *> The diggers of 1852-4 were a very different class to those who now follow that occupation. pi(t . * . ¦ Humours were afloat in town yesterday that a patient bad been grossly ill-treated at the Lunatic Asylum,. On making enquiries, we find that a complaint was made to the Inspector by the brother of a patient, and a f nil investigation took place, the result of whiob will b* epmmt-sieat«4

in due course to the Government, and probably will be made public. At present we are in a position to affirm that the reports have been greatly exaggerated, and that a satisfactory explanation has been given. i Telegraphic information waa received to- | day by the police to the effect that a party of surveyors had come across an illicit still in the bush between Palmerston and Awahuri. They reported the discovery to Constable Donelly, who duly seized the still and conveyed it to Palmeraton yesterday. We learn by private telegram that the fUnds still are very heavy in the Manawatu district. The whole of the tenders received by the Government for the supply of timber for the erection of the new Government offices here have, we believe, been declined as too high. 16 ia whimpered that the prospectus of a new morning penny newspaper, to be published in this City by a joint stock company, will shortly be published. The weather shows signs of improvement to-day, the barometer having risen all over the colony, but it still is blowing a heavy gale from the S-VV. on the Otago am' Southland coa^toj and iii seV'gfal places the Sea continues rough. The rivers are falling generally. In Wellington a change of wind to the northward took place during the night and a stiff breeze from that quarter has been blowing all day» The following tenders were received at the Public Works Office, Wellington, for the Mataura contrast of the Clutha and Mataura Railway :— Accepted — McMenamin and Co, Invercargill, £19,588. Declined—J. A. Ross and Co, Invercargill, £23,187 ; J. Brogden and Sons, Wellington, £24,008; W. F. Oakes, Wanganui, £25,918 ; J. and N. Campbell, Invercargill, £26,648; Matheson Brothers, Dunedin, £27,703 ; W. P. Pearce. Dunedin, £27,922 ; T. M. Hardy Johnston, Wellington, £28,607 ; David Proudfoot, Dunedin, £29,423 ; A. Hunt, Tokomairiro, £29,734 ; Charles Abbott, Dunedin £31,367 ; A. F. Dawson, Invercargill, £34,000. At the Police Court this morning, two drunkards were fined, George Thomas, for refusing duty on board the barque Ashburton, was committed for 4 weeks, with Hard labor, and Christian Messer, for drunkenness and absence without leave from the barque Malay, was committed for one week, also with hard labor, James Roberts, brought up on remand, charged with stealing two rails, value one shilling, was committed fer one calendar month with hard labor. There was a very strong muster of the Choral Society last night, and the chorns practice was excellent, so far as the voices were concerned, but the instrumental accompaniments were far from steady. It was announced by the conductor that the next concert would be given on Thursday, the 29th inst. There will, therefore, be only three more practices and one full rehearsal, A special meeting of the Managing Committee is called for Monday afternoon, to arrange the preliminaries for the Christmas grand oratorio. At the Royal English Opera last nighty Offenbach's extravaganza, "The Grand" Duchess of Gerolstein," was performed, • Miss May taking the title-role. When this tissue of buffooneries was played last season we expressed the opinion, which we see no reason to modify, that the part was one utterly unworthy of Miss May's rare talents. We hope to have no more of M. Offenbach. This evening, on the other hand, an exceptional treat will be bestowed on all lovers of good music, good singing, and good acting. Balfe's " Rose of Castile" is to be given. This opera not only is its composer's finest work, but also is by far the best performance in the company's repertoire, affording Miss May unlimited scope to display her versatile genius, both in the vocal and in the dramatic effects — enabling Mr Hallam and Miss Lambert to appear at their best, and providing all the members with good and effective parts. Among the well-known and favorite airs we may mention " The convent cell," "The muleteer," "'Twas rank and fame," "Hark, the clarion sounding." &c. The part music also is charming, and there are several excellent tableaux. " The Rose of Castile" ought to draw another crowded house, and no doubt will do 80. We regret to notice a tendency in this province to adopt the termination " ville," appended to the names of well-known public men, in the nomenclature of new townships. This horrible Yankeeism is dreadfully offensive to "ears polite," the absurdity of adding the French word "ville" to such unmistakeably English names as Brown, Jones, Robinson, Johnson, or Hunter being palpable. It is to be hoped that these objectionable titles will be altered, and that we may not see any more Johnsonvilles, Huntervilles, Brownvilles, Jonesvilles, or Robinsonvilles on the map. The Church of England Diocesan Synod met again yesterday, but little more than mere routine business was transacted. Mr C. P, Powles was elected Diocesan Treasurer, vice Mr C. D. Barraud resigned, and on the motion of the Yen Archdeacon Stock, seconded by Mr Quick, a vote of thanks was passed to the retiring treasurer. The Synod will meet; again, this evening. The following are the successful tenderers for the supply of stores to the N.Z S.S. Co : — Meat, J, Gear ; bread and biscuits, S. S. Griffiths ; wines and spirits, J, Dransfield ; vegetables and poultry, D. Bell, The members of the Wellington Star Cricket Club held their annual meeting at the Pier Hotel last night, when the follow* ing office-bearers were elected for the ensuing season :— President, Mr W. Bromley ; Vice-president, Mr W. J. Salmon ; Secretary and Treasurer, Mr J. A. N, Salmon ; Committee, Messrs I, J. Salmon, Turner, Waters, Mason, and Mace. I Arrangements were made with reference to the coming season. We observe in onr morning contemporary's report of the proceedings of the Diocesan Synod, that a dignitary rather new' to this city took part in the deliberation* of that reverend body. We refer to " Alderman Stock," who on two occasions is recorded to have proposed certain motions in the Synod, We can only corjecture that this municipal dignity has been bestowed on- the respected Archdeacon, possibly in recognition of his an* doubted services to science. We heartily congratulate the worthy alderman on his appointment. Long may be live to wear the diric gown 1 A fire occasioned by water is not, says the Otago Times, an everyday occurrence. Messrs Findlay and Co's timber yard and mill had another Harrow escape from being burned down late on Saturday night. It seems that extensive brickwork alterations are being made in connection with the mill, and the workmen doing the work very carelessly left three bags of lime leaning up against the wall of the building in Cumber-land-street. The rain which fell on that night, fell from the roof of the building on to the lime, which soon ignited the bags

'111 they Mazai up against tLe iron wall "f the building. The lire had even proceeded so far as to ignite the sawdust under the building Fortunately a man going by at the time raised the olarm, and with the avl of a few buckets of Water from the Auld Scotland Hotel opposite, the flames were quickly subdued. Had it escaped notice for a very short time longer, a serious conflagration might have been the result. With the narrow escape from fire experienced lately in the case of Messrs Batterworth's premises in High-street from the same cause, it should be a les3dii to those who have to do with lime to see that ifc ia put out of the -ft-ay of doing harfn. Mr J. Reid Mackenzie, in his share report ia the Otago Guardian, speaks as follows of the National Insurance Co :—: — Nationals have changed hands at £1 10s to £1 Us, at •which latter figure they are firm. On the 30th current the second half-year will terminate, and in a week or two thereafter the results wiil ba made known j meanwhile it is generally understood that a bonus of 2s 6d per share will be added to the share capital, in addition to an excellent dividend. V erily insurance companies are a paying concern. In the year of grace '76, what will Nationals be quoted at ?— £5 (10s paid ttp). This is nob at all unlikely, as many large shareholders confidently expect ; and South British will be the same, or not far from it. Until then the happy moneyed men who can hold out can let the shares go up and down as suits speculators who are eontfent With tile turn, or the tips and downs of the share market. South British have been done at £2 9s and £2 10s in some pretty large parcels. Standards have relapled to 10s 6d, at which there have been a few transfers. The total receipts on the Canterbury railways for the month of August were £10,620 Is lOd, as against £G667 Us lOd fer the corresponding month of 1873. At a late meeting of the members of the Hokitika Literary Society, it Was decided \ by a majority of 36 to 32, and after a long discussion, that the reading-room shall in future be kept open from 2 to 6 o'clock on Sunday afternoons. A police raid, says a local journal, has been made among the drapers in Greymonth Under the Employment of Females Act. Messrs Thomas and M'Beath were recently fined 5* and costs for keeping a young woman in their employ at work, trimming a hat, after 2p. m on Saturday. Messrs Manson and Co, for a similar offence, in employing two young ladies on the dfty named, Were fined in a similar amount } and Messrs Smith and Barclay, judging by the previous cases that technical defence availed nought, admitted a similar offence, and were fined Is only, with costs of Court. The discoverers of the Palmer goldfield, in the North of Queensland, were Mulligan and party, who underwent great hardships and had many narrow escapes from falling victims to the blacks. They have been rewarded by a grant of £1500 from the Queensland Government, and the people of that colony find no other fault with the grant than it is not enough, considering what the party endured. A very handsome lectern, the product of Chinese art, ha 3 been presented to the English Church at Queenstown. The local paper says :—": — " It consits of an eagle with outstretched wings, on the back of which rests the Bible. The bird itself stands upon an orb which bears the sacred symbol in the front. The lower portions also are elaborately carved ; and on the four panels are engraven the keys of St Peter (to whom the church is dedicated), intersected by the sword of his martyrdom, the alpha and omega, the sacred monograms for the word Jesus,- as well as that for the word Christ. The whole has been most cleverly produced in cedar by Mr Ah Tong, and presented by him to the chu. oh. It is stated that the sentence of eight years' imprisonment, with hard labour, passed at the last September sittings of the Supreme Court, Hokitika, upon Peter Mulvey for shooting, with intent to murder, Hugh Calder, at Ahaura, some months ago previously has been commuted ta four years' imprisonment. Some other sentences passed about the name time are also said to have been commuted. With reference to Sir James Fergusson's portrait the South Australian Register says :—": — " At the meeting of the Upper House on Tuesday, Bth September, it was resolved, on the motion of Sir Henry Ayera, 'That the portrait of his Excellency the Right Honorable Sir James Fergusaon, Baronet, a former Governor of South Australia, be hung in the Legislative Council Chamber. ' Steps have already been taken to carry this resolution into effect, the lifesize portrait of his Excellency, painted by Mr Sydney Hodges, of London, and which arrived here 25th August, per Pak Wan, having been removed to the Council Chamber for that purpose. The likeness is admirable, Sir James is represented in the Windsor uniform in a standing posture, with an official document in his right hand. The toning of the picture and the management of the whole subject are thoroughly artistic. The cost, including freight, &c, amounting to about £200, has been met by the private subscriptions of several of Sir i James Fergugson's personal friends and admirers." A burning' coal-pit near Balclutha has, according to the local paper, been burning for the last 18 months. The English correspondent of the Otago 1 Times says : — A massive stone monumcat has just been erected in front of Greenwich Hospital, in memory of the officers and men of H.M. ships Curaepa, Miranda, Esk, Harrier, and Eclipse, who fell in the New Zealand wars of 1663-5. The monument is erected by their surviving comrades. On one side it bears the words " New Zealand," and on the other the names of those in commemoration of whom the monument is erected. J , The Creswick Advertiser reports :— There resided at Spring Hill to within a few days ago a youug man named Dominic Sonae, afflicted in a most remarkable manner, for althongh twenty-three years of age, he is only twenty-one inches in height, and his weight only 451bs. He has no use whatever of his legs, which are only about nine i or ten inches in length, and very small, j The arms are proportionate to the body in j length, but do not possess sufficient strength .to lift their own weight. If Sonse were lifted up by his arms they would break. Mis method of locomotion is by the aid of two small crutches and a tin basin, which he. has fastened on to the lower portion of bis body, the legs hanging out and just touching the ground. He rests on the basin when not in motion, and without its aid he would be unable to remain upright. The height of his ambition seems to be to possess a pony and cart to enable him to sell books or some other kind of merchandise. He is very fond of making toys out of deal wood, and is rather expert with a knife. His mother has been afflicted for the past seven years with almost total blindness, but is now slowly recovering.

The Nick of Time—A wrinkle.