TELEGRAPHIC NEWS.

Hawke's Bay Herald, Volume XXI, Issue 5368, 29 April 1879, Page 2

TELEGRAPHIC NEWS.

(.By Cable.]

[BEXTTER'S TELEGRAMS.] \ LONDON", April 25., The motion in the '■ House of Commons for unseating Sir Brian O'Jjoghlen wa» carried' by araajority of 180 to 11, not by a .majority of 11 as previously telegraphed.

[SPECIAL TO THE MELBOURNE " ARGUS.'']

LONDON, April 26. : ' Money is. in large supply, but the mercantile demand shows no sign of revival. THe Bank minimum is unchanged. The market for Australian securities shows great strength and activity. Wool is quiet, pending the approaching sales, which commence on the 6th of May. „ ••■'.•• Corn is heavy and inactive. New Zealand, 40s to 455. . .

MELBOURNE, April 28. Mr Berry telegraphs that he has had a final interview with Lord Beaconsfield and Sir Michael Hicks-Beach and has obtained the decision of the Cabinet. The Imperial Government decline to legislate at the present juncture, and propose that Mr Berry submit the issue to the country, and if that fails, the arrangement is that the Home Government will invite the Imperial Parliament to amend the Victorian constitution.

Mr Berry proposes to accept the Peninsular,and Orient Company's tender, and the Victorian Cabinethave authorised Mr Berry to sign the contract. ' The embassy returns to Victoria on the 7th of May.

[SPECAi TO THE .MELBOURNE "AGE."] LONDON, April 27, Mr Berry telegraphs; that he has,qb-j tamed a reduction of the Imperial share ; of postages to twopence. He- proposes; to accept the Peninsular Company's fortnightly contract, the Orient Company , being unprepared with a definite offer. Ho alleges .that the views of the Imperial Government coincide with those of Lord Hartiiigdon's and are generally favorable to the Victorian Assembly's claims. He believes the Legislative Council will »be warned not to court Imperial assistance. Mr Berry Jand Professor Pearson return in May. HBy Special Wibe.T

AUCKLAND, April 28. Sir George Grey and Mr Sheehan, finding on their arrivel in Auckland ' that there was no invitation frbin Tawhaio to attend the Waikato meeting, have deemed it advisable not to go. They are expected to proceed, to Hamilton on Thursday, to cut the first sod of the Thames and Waikato railway at the Hamilton end of the line.

At the Police Court to-day the Captain of the steamor Enterprise No. 2, was prosecuted under the Post-office Act for permitting the mail bags to be tampered with while in his possession. The mail was being brought from the Thames on [ a Saturday evening, and was not taken from on board the boat until the following Monday morning. It was then found that they had been tampered with, and a number of letters abstracted. He was fined 40s and costs, which amounted to 10 guineas. This, afternoon an inquest was held upon, the body of a well-known charaoter commonly called Bangitoto Jack. His name was Jackson, and he and hii wife were the sole inhabitants of the island Bangitoto, where they have lired for many years. On Saturday evening, ,he left the North Shore with a supply of, provisions, and yesterday his boat was discovered with the provisions in it,- but he gone. Subsequently his body was found drowned. A verdict was returned by the jury of accidental death. By the morning train a large number of Ngapuhi chiefs went to the Waikato Maori meeting, in charge of Spencer Von Stoome, R.M. of Hokianga. He will probably leave the chiefs at the confiscation boundary. He is expected in town again about Wednesday or Thursday. The Ngapuhi chiefs will make proposals to the Waikatos, which read as follows 1 : — "These are the' proposals of Ngapuhi and Te Karawa to Waikato. Ist. Tawhiao should consent to the seven proposals made by Sir, George Grey to him at the meeting held at fiikurangi on the 10th of May, 1878, because the old pakeha proverb says that half a loaf is better than no bread. 2nd. If the Waikatos persist in demanding the restoration of all the lands confiscated, 'these are the words of Ngapuhi and Te Karawa. The great laws of England are open to Waikato, and they can lay their grievances before the British Parliament. The international tribunals of Europe are also open to them to determine all difficult questions in dispute such as the disputes about lands in Waikato and Taranaki, which oan be settled in the same manner as the disputes between Turkey and Eussia were by arbitration, by the representatives of the European Powers by the Berlin Treaty. 3rd. These are the words of the ISTgapuhi and Te Karawa to the Maori King- and Te Whiti, neither those two nor their people should attempt to obstruct the construction of railways and telegraphs over lands which have been lawfully purchased, because those great public works are for the beuefit of both Europeans and Maoris." These proposals will be read at the meeting at Te Kopua, and will be supported by the great body of representatives of the Ngapuhi and TeK arawa, who have been specially elected by Maori committees.

CHRISTCEURCH, April 28. The Now Zealand Shipping- Company have receive^ cable advice of the arrival at London of the Eangitikei and the Opawa from Lyttelton, and theJLebu from Auckland.

-The Native Land Commissioners met .this afternoon in the Oddfellows' Hall. There was a large attendajS^Qf^ Maoris and Europeans, the latte^flwral principally by curiosity, but ffit(/pj|c'eedings were almost immediately adjourned till Monday, at Kaiapoi. p?i| The body of a man namejiJsttsh.;Was ifound in the Avon to-day. '^U-fc ''appears fijoin a letter in his pocket that he corn-;; mitted suicide. The letter was addressee^ to his father in England, and referred to an appeal for assistance which had been refused. It mentioned a wife and child, and wound up with — " You will soon be rid of one that you liked in the time gone by to, call;^ son." , The letter was addressed and ready stamped for trans T . mission to F. W. Bush, Soho-squ&re, London. The police are endeavoring to find out ' more about the unfortunate man. . .

The City Council to-night determined to erect three triumphal arches .for the Governor. ■■.••■

A passenger who arrived by the Hawe'a on Monday informs the Lyttelton Times that he visited the Taupo on Wednesday last, and considers that she is in a, very fair way of being floated should the weather hold fine.. The contractor for the work of floating the steamer has got on well with the earlier part of the work. Eight chains were passed, round the stern of the vessel, which is sunk, and were attached to spars laid across her deck. The greater part of the coal and ballast had' been removed^ and everything promised to go well. The amount of the contract is £6500, which the insurance companies will pay on the arrival of the steamer iri dock at Auckland.

DUNEDIN, April 28..; During his stay in Queenstown the Governor ,was presented \srith an address from the. Chinese of the district. In the course of it they said :— r" We are sons of the Celestial country, and only slightly acquainted with the English tongue, yet we have heard the pleasant and favorable reports of your Excellency's, just and generous dealings with men of all races, and that you 'treat all races with loyal, impartiality. "We desire to congratulate your Excellency, and to render to you v j the best wishes of our hearts. Much ' disquiet has been ours of late by reason of this 'bill against Chinese immigration, but we desire to beg from your Excellency a fair consideration, of .our position, and. to point out that now we have, thro wn ! j open ionr flowery and blessed country to the enterprising English, so also we may hope to be permitted to make our home in this part of the corners of the English colonies. We desire to. convey; to your •Excellency, the and confidence ; we have, ,in .the kindness ,and . justice--^with which you will regard oiir interests," .His Excellency is reported to have replied ' that. he had spent some years "in/ China, and was therefore well acquainted with the character of their countrymen, arid' during his administration in this. colony^ he should favorably .consider the request of their petition. ; . , , " Owing to the state of his health, his. Excellency has been compelled to ask the reception, committee to relieve him'of the Tiecessity of attending the banquet it had been arranged' to give, in his honor tomorrow evening at the Garrison Hall. The committee announce by advertisement that it has been deemed advisable to postpone the banquet until his Excellency can, without inconvenience, partake of > the hospitality of the citizens of Duhedin. The Governor will probably re-visit Dunedin in about a month. '„.... ; GREYMOUTH, April 28. A tidal wave came up the river last night at 6.16. The only vessel in port, the tug Dispatch, had her three mooring, ropes, one of them •4£ inches,' snapped.' Some .watermen's boats were swamped; and stove in. The wave was over three feet; bigh. -■ : ... '•'■'. HAWERA,' ApriI 28. 1 The Maoris have stopped M'Lean's ; men falling bush on the .mountain road, ' about a mile up the track from Retermara. That action was taken by? the Maoris who ] own this block as a reserve from the: Government, whioh extends four miles up the mountain road. Since the Maori reserve was taken and a less valuable one given in its place, near Strathford, the natives say they do not , know when this block may be taken and one of lesser value given in its place. The sooner a commission or something of the sort settles this, vexed question. of reserves throughout the district the better. NEW PLYMOUTH, April 28. Mr Driscoll, employed in connection with the Public Works Department surveying the railway line at the back of the mountain, between Strathford and Ma- ; ngawhero, r was waited upon on Friday by some Maoris who informed him that he. would have to remove his men or. that ;they would be cleared away the following day. It is generally current that prac-; tical effect to the warning was given by the natives on Saturday. The Government have been informed of the circumstances. • "' . . OAMARTJ,. April 28. On Saturday afternoon, at- about 4 o'clock, the residence of Mr JST. M'Gillivray,at Otepbpo, was burnt down to the. ground. Such was the rapidity with which the. fire Bpread that not a single article could be saved. A table was taken out/ but before it could be moped far enough away it caught fire agaiixand was consumed. The only reason that can be given' as to the origin of this fire is that two young children, aged 4 and 2 respectively, were in the house at the time, and it is suspected that they must have been playing with the fire, or that some burning wood fell off the oven and so set fire to the place. The ; proprietor had the greatest difficulty to save the ohildren. The house was insured for £lj)0, and the furniture for £25 in the Victoria and New Zealand Insurance Companies.

WELLINGTON, April 28.

At the meeting of creditors of George Thomas, auctioneer, it was resolved to assign the estate to Messrs Capper' and Baker.

' The City of Sydney, with ; the London mails of the 27th of March, J left San Francisco on April 14, the contract date. The Australia, with the March colonial mails, arrived at San Francisco on April 23, one day in advance of contract date.

From the. Wakitipu to-day there was obtained a copy of the Sydney JEoenhiy News . of ■ Monday, in which the forged telegram respecting Yogel would have appeared if published in Sydney, as it purported to be dated " London, Saturday," ,and was transmitted from "VVakapuaka here at 3.35 p.m., on Tuesday, which, by difference of time,' shows it must have been lodged in Sydney before 2 p.m. on Tuesday. The Evening News contains no telegram of the kind. The Sydney agent of the Press Association is using every effort to discover the sender.

.Captain Peterson, of the Taiaroa, was to-day fined 40s for carrying an excessive number of passengers, and a penalty of Is per head was imposed for sixteen passengers in excess of the legal number. The Collector of Customs did not press for a heavy penalty, and the magistrate, in giving judgment, said that there could be no doubt that an offence had been committed, but under the circumstances lie did not think it ■would be necessary to inflict a heavy penalty. At the same time it was nc excuso to say that the officers had no power to prevent people from going on beard without tickets. There could be no doubt that defendant had carried sixteen passongere in excess of the number allowed by law. He found that in accordance wiih the terms of the Act, he would have to inflict two penalties. In the first place he would have to impose a fine for carrying too many passengers, and, in the second, the defendant would have to be fined a certain sum per head for each of the extra passengers. The following is the statement. of Mr Geo. Thomas' assets and liabilities : — Total liabilities, £13,940/ Assets, book j

debts (good). £3431; Fditto (doubtful), £T25; stock, i £2276';>s'hares, £300; bills for collection. '■ £1500; total, £8232. Deficiency, £5708. The deficiency is made up as follqw;s;; — v-.Bad debts, £5000; loss on vessels', :1£2500^ There is no truth in the 'staWnent made that Mr Thomas's failure is^ue^im 1 anT way to undue pressure on'the'part of the banks. On the contrary, the Bank of Australasia treated Mr Thomas in the most fair and liberal manner, and he finds '-no fault at all with the way in> which they have acted. ' • ''!'■..

It is stated that ah attempt will be made next session to so amend the Debtors and Creditors Act that^ certificated accountants in bankruptcyisihall be done, away with, j .;i ; The Government have decided to call for tenders immediately. ,f or. ,th? reclamation of ten acres of land on tne other side of the railway station site. ( The work will be pushed on .with speed, and the land when reclaimed will.be.used as the site for a statiori.and buildings in connection with' the- railway. „.„,.,.<. , .^3 The first pile of the new railway wharf „ was driven to-day.; • ,'S, M