Hawke's Bay Herald. SATURDAY, APRIL 14, 1877.

Hawke's Bay Herald, Volume XX, Issue 3898, 14 April 1877, Page 2

Hawke's Bay Herald. SATURDAY, APRIL 14, 1877.

A cablegram informs us that war between Russia and Turkey is now inevitable. It may be so, but we have heard that so often, and seen war still put off, that we are beginning to be sceptical on the subject. It is satisfactory, at any rate, to feel that even if war does break out between these two nations, the chance of Gn.iu Britain's being involved in it !>iay r-ow be regarded as remote.

Tt 15 f.-u* iL'om impossible that the site for ill'-. i:i<-.3tiiig3 of the Waipawa County Council will, after all, be moved back to the Waipawa Court-house. Tlie matter is one which, we think, the Waipawa members of the Council have much more at heart than the Waipukurau members, and if the concession will enable the work to be gone on with smoothly, it will probably be felt that it will be as well to make it. From the tone of Mi- Levy's remarks at the last Council meeting, we should judge that the Waipawa men may possibly find in

him, at next meeting, an ally. He will certainly not be prepared to vote for renting the Waipuknrau Town Hall for county purposes, and the feeling is becoming stronger that some larger building than Mr Montieth's office is required. As it happens, the public have not attended the Council meetings held there in any number, if at all, as yet; but some question of general interest might any day emerge, which would draw together a large attendance, and then the office would be felt to be manifestly unsuitable for a Council chamber. Lieut. -Col. Herrick's proposal to move the Council to Takapau is, we suppose, more a joke than anything else, though, certainly, at first glance, it is surprising to remark how many of the members might possibly go in for it. The three Waipawa members would vote for it if Waipawa is lost, and it would suit Mr Levy and Mr Johnston better than any other place, though we do not by any means presume, on that account, that tliO3 r would vote for it.

Mil Ormond appears to have had a tolerably lively time of it down South. The extraordinary quantity of grain brought in by the trains into Lytteltoii and Timaru threatened to block the Government stores. Mr Onuond's remedy for it was to increase the rates of storage, but this did not appear altogether to meet the views of the Chamber of Commerce, with whom he took' counsel on the subject. The Lyttelton Timti Sympathises ironically with the Government in the difficulties which, it says, it has brought upon itself, by undertaking duties which it should have left to the provinces, but speaks, at the same time, with respect of Mr Ormond. Another difficulty has arisen with the Harbor Board. It appears that it is open to question whether the Lyttelton Harbor Board Act legally vests the wharves, jetties, &c. , in that bod}-. Mr Ormond appears to have given satisfaction by informing the Board that a Bill would be brought in to set at rest any doubt that exists, next session. And in the meantime the Board wo\xld be put in a position to carry on precisely as if the wharves were legally vested in it.

We observe that the subdivision of the Homewood estate is still progressing. It was sold some years ago by Mr Tiffen, in blocks of a few thousand acres each in extent, and since then the blocks have been continually changing hands, becoming each time divided into smaller blocks. An instance of the kind is presented in the announcement by Mr M. P» . Miller in our advertising columns, in which he offers for sale one of the thousand-acre blocks. If other of the large runholders were to follow the same course, it would prove advantageous to the country, and. we should say, not at all unprofitable to themselves. The usual monthly inspection parade of the Napier Artillery Volunteers was held at Captain Itoutledge's store last night by Major Withers. At the conclusion of the inspection Gunner Bear was presented with the silver lace badge of crown and cross cannons for the best shut for shot and shell practice for 1877, won by him at Waipukurail. The company then adjourned to Sergt. -Major Gray's for the purpose of electing a lieutenant and sublieutenant. At the suggestion of Captain Routledgc it was decided to leave the office of sub-lieutonant vacant until some future time. The nominations were then taken for the oiiieo of lieutenant. There were two candidates proposed, viz., Sergeant-Major Gray and Sergeant Garner, and the ballot resulted in Sergeant Garner being elected to the olh'ee of Lieutenant. It was then resolved that a Dramatic Company be formed for the purpose (.if giving entertainments for raising funds on behalf of the battery. A committee was also appointed to confer with the Napier City Band to consider the advisability of their joining the corps as a band. A few suggestions were also thrown out respecting the propriety of the vacancies of noncommissioned officers being filled by competitive examinations. We were glad to observe that the Waipawa Council did not reduce the wages of the man employed by Mr Burgess at Bs. The reason of the difference between his remuneration and that of the other men was, we belive, his length of service. The Hawke's Bay Council in taking over the provincial cmjiloi/ccs have made some reductions of this description, and thus, we take leave to say, have inflicted grave injustice. In some instances, men who had worked for years steadily at the provincial roads in the hopes that they might obtain a rise of wages, and had at last obtained it, found it cut away as soon as they changed masters. We are in receipt of the first number of the Now Zealand Reformer, a weekly newspaper published in Wellington in the interest of total abstinence. In its opening leading article it avows its intention to advocate the entire suppression of the liquor traffic. "We start with the proposition," it says, " that the only way to suppress intemperance and vts attendant evils is to stop the manufacture and importation of that which produces intemperance." It, however, professes its intention to conduct the warfare temperately. ' ' We intend the tone of our columns to be respectful, dignified, and courteous, even to those who may differ from us ; no bullying or slang will disgrace our pages. We shall not confine ourselves solely to temperance reform, but shall shall also give political and general news, including education, religion, social and physical science, agriculture and commerce. Our object is to educate and interest the people, and to help in building up a mighty South British Empire —mighty in material wealth, in social greatness, and moral grandeur." The number before us is well printed, but nearly the whole of its pages are devoted to subjects in connection with, or having a bearing upon, total abstinence from intoxicating liquors. Yesterday afternoon a hunt of a somewhat novel character occurred at the Spit. A pig had been brought over in a boat from Petane to the Spit, and was doomed for the butcher's knife, lie had exhibited very good behaviour until the boat's arrival at the Spit, when, catching sight of the butcher, in waiting to receive him, he quietly took a header over the side of the boat, and, much to the chargin of the bluef rocked gentleman , rapidly made track s from the scene of torment. Chase was at once made, but whenever the boat came up with the swimmer, the pig turned round and made off' in the opposite direction, amidst the loud laughter of the spectators. Two more boats put off, and after a lively hunt the pig was hemmed in between the boats and the .shore. Iraz again managed to elude his pursuers ; eventually a man jumped into the water, and brought the animal ashore in triumph. The return match between the Star C.C. and the Commercial C.C. will lie played this afternoon on Clive Square. The following have been chosen to represent the Star team : — Messr.-s Ingpen, sen., Gilpin, C Reardon, Peters, Mogridge, Tilly, Luke, Vance, H. Martin, .)'. Martin, Laurence, and Kingston 12th man. Players are reminded that the wickets will be pitched at 2 p.m. sharp. We arc requested to make the following correction in our report of the Waipawa Resident Magistrate's Court sitting of Wednesday last, published in the Hki'.ai.J) of the 12th instant. The case there stated as " Pritchard v. Olley, £3 1-is 3d," should have been " Pritchard and Olley v. Hebden, £13 14s 2d." It will be seen by a notice in our advertising columns that a green light is to be shown at the end of the Eastern pier at the harbor entrance, as the work proceeds. We hear that a light of another color, red perhaps, will be shown on the western pier as soon as it is in a line with the pilot's house. _.. „••_>-->_

We have been requested to call attention to Mr W. K. M'Lean's sale at Farndon on Monday next, the ] 6th hist. , at 1 o'clock p.m. , of horses from the station of J. D. Canning, Esq., of Oakboume. The following telegraphic communication (says the Pout) purports to be a message received by the manager of the Kaitangata coal mine from Sir Julius Yogel. We leave our readers to judge whether it is genuine or not. "The telegram reads as follows: — "London, 2nd April, 1877, 10 a.m. — My congratulations to the people of Lawrence on this eventful day in celebrating this occasion, viz., connecting the city of my love — Dunedin — with the future groat city of Lawrence (by the prophecy of that great American poet, Shakespeare, the ' Iron Girdle') ; and it only now remains for your future development and genuine domestic happiness to use Kaitangata coal ! — Julius Yogel." The residents of certain portions of New South Wales are in arms against the present extraordinary sales of country lands to squatters, and a correspondent writing from Moulemein to the Daii/iquin Chronicle urges that a petition be presented from the children of the colony — that is, from those under sixteen years of age and able to sign — to his Excellency the Governor* or t-j Parliament, on the subject. It is argued that if the present course is persisted in the result must inevitably follow that they will be driven from their native land, as there will be little or no employment in the country, whilst the towns will contain a surplus population. The liijitellon Times is exceedingly wroth because the Hon. Mr Bowen gives no indication of his intention to immediately address his constituents. Because Mr Bowen thought of opposing Mr Rolleston some years ago for the Superintendency, it is assumed that in those days he had faith in provincialism ; and it is considered necessary by the 'Times that he should address his constituency and explain "what may be presumed to be a change in his political opinions, and the share he has had in introducing the new system of government." — 2u'W Zealand Time?. An extraordinary decision lias just been arrived r*t by tiie civil tribunal in Paris. Seven years ago a lady purchased £2000 worth of jewellery from a firm in the Palais Royal, the agreement (made in writing at the time of payment) being that if the articles were not approved of they might be exchanged. The purchaser kept ftiul Used the jewellery for move than six years, at the expiration of which time she intimated to tile jeweller her desire to exchange it for other articles. Upon his very naturally declining to entertain such a proposal she commenced an action for the purpose of compelling him to do so ; and though his advocate urged that he could not be called upon to accept, at the full pi'ice originally given for them, articles which had been in constant wear for several yeai's, the judgment of the Court was against him, upon the ground that in the agreement "he had failed to define the period during which the oxchange might be made." — 'Pull Mall Gazelle.