RAILWAYS IN THE NORTH ISLAND.

Hawke's Bay Herald, Volume XXI, Issue 5458, 12 August 1879, Page 2

RAILWAYS IN THE NORTH ISLAND.

Sixch our article of yesterday was written a Gazed c containing tabulated results of tho working of tho North Island railways for the last financial year has come to hand. The bost-paying lino per niilo is that from Wellington to Foatherston, on which the receipts for tho 45 miles now open wero £;K),401, or £701 per mile, and the expenditure £22,917, or £57(5 per mile. Wanganui ranks next, 95 miles of line producing a gross revenue of £35, 171, or £408 per mile, whilo the expenditure was £22,(514, or £202 per mile. The Auckland lino is 97 miles long, tho gross receipts wero £52,477, or £451 per mile, and tho expenditure £41,521, or £428 per mile. In Hawke's Bay wo have 05 miles of lino, the receipts being £'29,503, or £423 per mile, and the expenditure £19,259, or £276 per mile. The gross proiits, irrespective of mileage, wero : — ■ Wanganui, £12,557 ; Auckland £10,950 : Napier, £S2JS ; and "Wellington £7,4a2. Tho sixteen mile Kaipara lino gave a profit for tho year of £2 Ms per mile, and the New Plymouth line of 21 miles yielded ;C2l per mile as profit. The per-contagc of working- expenses to receipts was: — "Wangiinui, (>4'3o; Napier, 70-10 ; Wellington, 7(V.'S9 ; Auckland, 79 12; New Plymouth, 8955 ; Kaipara, 99-20.

Mr It. D. Manoy, of Wairoa, has, wo understand, decided to offer himself as a candidate for the Napier Klcctoral District, and a preliminary meeting of his supporters was held at the Criterion Hotel last night to ai-rango a plan for the campaign. Mr Manoy, will, wo wo believe, stand in the Liberal intoi'est, offering a warm support to tho programme of the present Government, but declining to pledge himself to support Sir George Grey personally. In one poiut ho will probably bo at variance with that policy, viz., in supporting State aid for denominational schools. It will bo remembered that at the last election Mr Maney came forward as a cancli-

ttdte, out was obliged to retire, as lie had entered into a contract with the Government for the supply of railway sleepers, thus disqualifying himself for election, We remind our readers that MrsNeilTs popular concert will take place this evening in St. John's, sbhqol-r'ooin. . Tho programme -will be fduhd in our advertising eolumnS. , An ordinary mooting of tlie Hawse's Bay PhiJqsoijbio-sM Institute Aviis Held last BVening at the Napier Atlienseum. Dr. Spencer was voted to the chair. Mr Colenso road some interesting passages from the memoirs of the late Mr Allan Cunningham, tho .eminent botanist, AVith whom Mr Colenso had been on terms of intiniato friendship; and was therefore 1 Enabled td relate edme ititjhiblislicd particulars in cdnnectidn. with Mr Cunningham's Visits to New Zealand iv the pursuit of scientific researches. . Mr Colons.)' also gave^ouio acc'O.unt df Mr Richard Cunningham, brother to Mr Allan Cunningham, including a narrative of the circuriistances that led to Mr Itichard Cunningham being killed by Australian b'lacks^ At the conclusion a hearty vdte . of ihdnkS was unanimously passed to Mi- Colonso. The Chairman stated that it had been his intention to have shown some specimens from tho bod of the Antarctic Ocean procured by H.M.S. Challenge, which he Had receiv-ed from T)v. Hector, but it was too .1 rite td do fid thenj and ha would therefore postpone it until next meeting. There Avas a very good attendance, particularly of ladies. Yesterday evening the licensed victuallers of Napier held a preliminary meeting at tho > Criterion Hotel, to consider what action should he takon by the trade in the ooniing electidns to secure their interests in Parliamdnt. Mr E. Ashtori was voted to the chair. The proceedings wcro of an informal nature, the iricoting facing' mer'oly a preliminary one. it was decided to call a more general meeting by circular for Friday evening next. The District Grand Master of tho North Island of , Now Zealand has offered the distinguished post of " Grand Chaplain " . to the Head Master of our Grammar School, the Rev. G. M. D'Arcy Irvine, M.A. Wo understand the reverend gentleman has accepted the appointment. Mr D'Arey Irvine has been for some years a Grand Officer of the Craft. As one of tho domestic chaplains of Hia Grace the Duke of Lcinstor, Grand Master of Ireland, ho was, c.v qfflcio, an officer in tho Grand Lodge of Ireland. Our three Hawke's Bay members returned to Napier by tho Stella yesterday. "We hope that out representatives did not induce the Ministry to place the Stella at their disposal in order that thoy might havo another thunderbolt of tho " dreadful extravagance" type to launch at tho heads of Ministers when the House re-assembles — that is, if the gentlemen in. question return to the haunts of legislators. Yet, ronioinberins their strong condemnation of the use of the Hinemoa for Ministerial stumping tours, and also bearing in mind the fact that they could have come up in the Wanaka by delaying their departure for one day, we are almost tempted to beliovo that they have laid a cunning trap to catch unwary Ministers. For tho credit of the district let us hope that the future will not reveal so strange a tale of base ingratitude. A meeting of tho oroditors of Mr Baldwin, late of the Waitangi Boiling Down Establishment, was held yesterday, Mr M'llroy in tho chair. The premises and plant had been seized by the NewZealand Land and Mortgage Agency Company, to srtisfy their claim on tbe estate. Putting this debt aside, Mr Baldwin estimated his liabilities at about £180, and liis assets at £38. As tie appeared to have been forced into his present position by heavy trade losses the creditors present decided to give Mr Baldwin fiis discharge at the earliest opportunity.

Dr Spencer exhibited last evening?, at the meeting o£ thePhilosophicall.astitute, a curious specimen of masonry. It was a nost of the spider-wasp or mason bee, which Dr Spencer had received from Ruatani wha. He explained that it was the habit of these wasps to build their nests under tho eaves of houses, like the martins do at Home. They digest the material with which they perform their building operations, and then reproduce it and construct colls somewhat in the form of those in a beehive. In these cells the wasp deposits its eggs, and then hunts up spiders, and putting them in a torpid state by stinging them, places them with the eggs, sealing up the openings to the cells. "When the wasps' eggs are hatched they have spiders at hand for their food. The specimen shown by Dr Spencer was contained in the top of a tin cannister, which had evidently been utilised for the occasion by the spider- wasp. Several of the colls had larvse in them, and remains of spiders could also be detected by examination with the aid of a glass. Mr Oolenso related an instance that had come under his notice of a wasp attacking a spider, rendering it senseless, and then pushing it along into a cavity in a hole that had been made in Mr Colenso's garden by the pulling up of an apple tree. There lias been a good deal of mystery attached to the exclusion of Mr Eees' name from the Napier electoral roll, notwithstanding that ho put in. a claim to registration. The explanation, however, is very simplo — Mr Eees omitted to sign his claim to be enrolled as an elector. The only surprising thing about it is that such an omission should have been made by a gentleman learned in the law. "We understand that Mr De Lautour was nearly in the same fix; that lie sent in a claim without signing it, but discovering his error sent in another claim in time to get his name on. the roll. There was no criminal business at tho Resident Magistrate's Court yesterday. On the civil side judgment was given for the plaintiffs in the following cases : — O'Brien v. Carr, £15 ; Price Bros. v. Blackburn, £20 (by consent) ; Barry v. Schultz £10 (by consent) ; Jensen and 00. v. Pedersen, £8 0s 6d. Judgment was delivered in tho adjourned case of Rotter v. Rhodes, in which plaintiff sought to recover £13, of which £10 was the valuo of a cow purchased by plaintiff, but not delivered to him. The plaintiff had purchased a herd of cows from Mr Ehodes, for which he was to pay £10 per head. He thought at the time that there were 20 animals, forgetting that one of the herd had been sold a short time before. The magistrate took time to consider his judgment, and yesterday delivered a lengthy decision, quoting authorities to show that it had been held in similar cases that whore money had been clearly paid under a mistaken impression as to the number or quality of any article purchased it could be recovered. Ho therefore gave judgment for plaintiff far the £10, but disallowed several of the smaller items to the amount of £1 ss. Mr Cornford (for Mr Macdonald) appeared for tho plaintiff, and Mr Lascollos for tho defendant. In Caldwell v. Eettor, a claim of £5 10s Gd for trespass, and Dinwiddie, Walker and Co. v. Jjascellcs, a claim of £oS, nonsuits wero entered. In the latter case tho objection taken was that the account in part related to a time when Mr Morrison was a member of tho firm, and this portion of tho money should have been sued for by the present iirm as assignees of the debts of Dinwiddie, Morrison and Co. Mr Lascelles stated that ho intended to pay tho account, but lie refused to do so when the money was applied for as he had heard something to the effect that unless the account was settled at once it would be sued for, because he (Mr Lascelles) had taken an. active part in getting up certain

libel proceedings against the Hera-ld, when. the exact contrary was- the fact. A member of the firm who was present said that this was the first time he had heard of any such threat, and it had not conic. from the firm, as the prdrjrietdrs of' theHERAii) had noi fedeircd any ridtice dbdirj; prdoedings fqr libel having been instituted by anyone" „x . . , A meeting of $\e ,Petarie,. Ro.ad tioard AVaS balled for Saturday, but fell through as only two wardens put in an appearance. The Napier correspondent of the Wairoa Free Press says in the last issue of that paper ;— " I have been confidentially informed that they arc having some large poster^ printedi and, 4s iie'ar as I can trust to 1 my" nienidry arid the 1 f efadity df my inforniant, they are somewhat its, follows :— On the upper part of the poster is seen a sketch of the Hci;etaunga block, with sTieop grazing; arid in the background are seen.the snowy ranges, niapped out into small farm associations. Beneath this are the following words : — Electors, vote for Russell aiid Sutton, Who represent land-sharks,' jobbers, and liiuttdnj .'.-., And, to prove you really love your neighbor, Vote Russell, Sutton, and Chinese labor ! Of course, I do not assort the foregoing to be literally a fae simlleoi the poster, as my memory is not entirely unimpeachable ; but it is something like it." We fancy that we detect an old friend in disguise in the following tale told by the Wellington correspondent of the Lyttelton Times : — Those who have been in Boston know all about the great organ, and those Avho have not should read Mark Twain's — -or ia ib Artenius Ward's. P-^capital burlesque upon the Bostdnian's weakness; Wellington also possesses " an drging" in the shape of that huge matchbox— the Government Buildings* The stranger coming up the bay in a steanier in which there is a Wellington nian, is Certain, to be buttonholed, and treated to something like the following :— " Do you see that building, sir ?" THo stranger intimates that he can", t very" well help seoirig it. " That, sir;" continues the Wellingtoniau, " is the largest wooden building in the world !" and then he pauses for the applause. But the other day a certain stranger, who " had been there before," took the wind out of the inevitable Wellington man's sail. Going up to him just as he was primed for the attack, he said to the Wellington man, pointing to the matchbox, " Can you tell me, sir, if that •place is to let." Wellington man — " To 'let, Sir ; why that's the Govrnment building, and it's the largest woo— " "Oh," interrupted the stranger, " don't mention it ; you see my family is rather a large one, and Under any circumstances I don't think the place would be big enough, My wife likes plenty of room in the house, and also prefers a brick one." The Wellington man hasn't yet recovered his breath. One 1 of the Saddest and most vexatious trials that come to a girl when she marries is that she has to discharge her mother and depend upon a hired girl. Our readers may remember that some months ago a most terrific "yarn" about a Frenchman having discovered a method of " suspending animation " in sheep or bullocks, appeared in the Brisbane Courier. The discovery was supposed to be applicable to the exportation of Australian beef and mutton to England. A certain chemical was injected into the animal's veins, when it at once went into a sort of trance, in whioh state it remained until landed in England, when it was dipped into Warm Water and instantly came to life again. Of course the tale was intended as a clever " skit" on some of the alleged wonderful scientific discoveries of the age, and as it was very cleverly written it went the rounds of the Colonial press. At last it got to England, and was actually narrated as a sober fact by the London Times. The Spectator saw the hoax, and unmercifully belabored the Thunderer for a blunder which even little colonial country journals avoided.

An Australian up-country paper stated that a canal project was on the tapis, and a correspondent has written to the editor contradicting the assertion, and stating that it is on the Witnmera. He is astonished at the editor's want of local knowledge. The following humorous incident occurred in the Emerald Isle. A singer in a church, where the use of instrumental music is tabooed, lost his teeth, so that he could not sing. In his dilemma ho applied to a dentist, who supplied him with a false set, but in starting the tune in the church on the following Sunday he was somewhat surprised to find that a dead silence pervaded the assembly, and the musical part of the service was confined to a solo. On asking an explanation of this strange conduct on the part of the congregation, lie was informed that he was surreptitiously introducing an instrument into public worship, and that his services as singer would therefore be dispensed with. A fellow-feeling makes us wondrous kind. A drunken man succeeded in entering a tramway car in Glasgow, causing considerable annoyance to the other passengers. At length it was proposed to eject him, when a kind-hearted clergyman, who was also . a passenger, interposed in his favor, and soothed the roused inebriate into good behaviour. Before leaving, however, the inebriate scowled upon the other occupants of the car, and muttered some words of contempt, but shook hands warmly with the rev. doctor, saying, " Good day, my friend ; I see ye ken what ie is to be drunk." A petition is, the Free Fress understands, now going the rounds of the "Wairoa county for signature, praying the House of Representatives to amend the Education Act so as to permit the reading of the Holy Bible daily in the public schools under a" Conscience Clause." A correspondent of a Christchnrch contemporary wants to know how the funds collected for the " unemployed " in the city have gone. He says that, according to the returns, £118 was subscribed, by the citizens ; £77 had been distributed, and that the balance £70 odd had been swallowed in expenses ! £27 of that sum, it seems, was spent upon collectors ; or 20 per cont. on the sum raised. The pension list is not pleasant reading for the British taxpayer, as a few gleanings will show. One young gentleman, who is stated to have retired from the Mint at the somewhat early ago of 19, on the modest sum of £150 per annum, has already enjoyed £4050. The law departments are well cared for ; an official of the Irish Court of Chancery, who retired at 39, has already received a pousion of over £59,000 in 38 years. Another retirod at the age of 31, with two pensions, one of £1383 per annum from the Court of Chancery, which he has held for 36 years, and another from the Court of Exchequer of £184 per annum, which he has held for 41 years. Another gentleman, more fortunate sfiill, retired from the Court of Chancery on his full salary, as Taxing Master, of £4580, 36 years ago, and in 1871 was further gratified with £354 lGs lid per annum as retired "Sworn Clerk." This gentleman has already received upwards of £1G7,000 of the public money. " Ex-"Weigh Master of Butter" (whatever that may mean), who is the son of a Peer, has been pensioned more than 48 years, at a cost to the proson t time of about £o2,000; and"ox-Chaff-wax" (quite a quizzical title), as a solatium for his duties, whatever they may be, has received a pension of £1145 for 31 years. There are instances of appointments being given to gentlemen over 50 years of age who retired a few years afterwards from ill-health, As a.

rule, and in confirmation of the general belief, all these pensioners live to a good old age, in compliment to the luxurious ease .provided for them by a grateful Gountry.-^VwM.