NEWS AND NOTES

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume I, Issue 31, 28 July 1880, Page 2

NEWS AND NOTES-

The Press Association reports that the cause assigned by this paper for the fencing of the road by the Maoris was officially declared in the House to be incorrect. We wore at some trouble to obtain reliable information from gentlemen whose authority and veracity are quite beyond question, and had no reason whatever to doubt the correctness of the information furnished. It would have been more satisfactory if those who denied the correctness of the reason assigned by us had been able to furnish some other satisfactory explanation of the cause of the latest outbreak of lawlessness on the part of the Maoris on this coast.

Matters are progressing favorably in connection with the inquiry into the New Plymouth harbor scheme. We learn by telegram that two sittings of the committee have already been held, and that Mr. Rees, the harbor enginoer, and Mr. Bauchope, the secretary, have been summoned, and are expected in Wellington in the course of a few days.

The further arrests of the Maori trespassers or malcontents bring up the total number captured to thirty-two. We candully confess that we are unable to divine the object or intentions either of Te Whiti or of the innocent victims who have to suffer for obeying his behests. It would be easy enough to offer conjectures by the score, but we prefer to leave such guesswork severely alone.

It will be soen from our report of the meeting in reference to separation, which appears in our fourth page, that no definite action was taken, and that it was resolved, on the motion of Mr. F. J. Gane, seconded by Mr. W. M. Thomson to postpone the discussion for five weeks. We consider the adjournment for such a long period rather an unwise step, because, as Mr. Finlayson and others pointed out, the interest in the movement is likely to die out by that time, unless the promoters display a considerable amount of energy. At the same time, it is preferable to wait even longer, rather than rush through such an important matter hurriedly. It is to be hoped that every ratepayer within the proposed boundaries Will give the subject due consideration before the next meeting takes place.

If building goes on at the present rate in Hawera, it will not take long before there will be the reqiusite number of householders to form a borough. Mr. Eastwood has finished a cottage in Regentstreet, and is putting up another close by. Mr. Baker has dona the same in Barnford's paddock, and is busily engaged in completing tho second one ; whilst lower down, on the opposite side, Mr. Melnemey is building a house fer Mr. Coslett Johnston. The porch at the Presbyterian Church, which was very badly required, is nearly finished ; and yesterday the directors of the Hawera Town Hall Company accepted the tender of Williams and others for lining the hall. We understand that Mr. W. T. Watt also intends putting up a residence in Sweeney's paddock.

On Sunday morning, two young men went on a shooting excursion to the Plains. They did not go far beyond the Waingongoro biidge, when they saw a large number of pigs gambolling on a clearing near the sea-shore. Pheasants were rather scarce, and the sportsmen, not wishing to return without " bagging " something, determined to try their skill on the porkers. Having knocked a couple of old boars over, they came away quite satisfied. The fun, however, was all on one side. There is a Maori fishing station between Waiugongoro and Inaha, and there are two or three whares on the clearing. It appears the Maoris do a trade in pigs, and they take the trouble of fattening them for the market, and, we presume, for Panhaka as well. Our reporter, with two other gentlemen, rode there on Sunday afternoon, and the Maoris were loud in their complaints as to the pakehas shooting their " porkers." The pigs x - an about the whares in quite a tame fashion, and there was a cart containing potatoes, some of which were thrown to the " unclean animals" by a Maori woman. One of the men complained that he had been nearly shot, and produced a cartridge in proof of his assertion. However, the sportsmon did not see the whareß, and, being strangors in the district, were quite unaware that they were doing any harm ; indeed, they openly stated at ono of the hotels the same evening what they had been doing. The Maoris have lodged complaints with Major Parris, but, under the circumstances, it is to be hoped that no proceedings will be taken in the law courts, and that the matter will be settled by arbitration. It will be obsorved that there is a notice in our advertising columns, cautioning parties against either shooting or stealing pigs on the Plains ; but we trust that there will be no more complaints on the subject. We feel quite satisfied tlio young men would not have shot the pigs, if they considered they wero doing any harm ; but thoughtless action sometimes produces serious consequences. The notice in the Star, we dare say, will have the desired effect, although it might he desirable to supplement it with another one on the Waingongoro bridge, as there are so many strangers going to and fro at the present time.

It is reported that the Plains natives intend going to Parihaka this week. This is much earlier than usual.

Major Noake inspected the Normanby Rifles on Saturday. The corps is getting very efficient : the men went through the various evolutions in capital style. The Officer Commanding the District is much pleased with the progress the corps is making, and expressed himself to that effect to our representative.

At Wanganui, on Monday last, Edward Clarke, one of the Georgia Minstrels who performed have Jast w«ek» was charged witli stealing from the Victoria hotel a cash-box, containing articles and court valued at £35. Billy Wilson, another member of the same troupe, was afterwards charged with, receiving the stolen money, but a remand was asked for and granted.

The Patea Harbor Loan, now being applied for through the Harbor Board, is likely (says the Mail) to be the subject of injuryu ry before a parliamentary committee. Evidence will be required as to the state of the bar, the capacity of the harbor, the progress of the breakwater, the number of vessels entering the river now as compared with a period prior to the harbor scheme, and other particulars. The following tenders were received by the directors of the Hawera Town Hall Company on Monday for lining, &c. : — C. H. Williams and others £27 0 0 J. Goodfellow 33 14 0 J. H. McKensrie 38 19 0 Broderick and Saunders... 42 17 6 G. Syme 43 8 0 T. H. Weddle 45 0 0 McGuire and Potts ... 46 7 0 Robson and Boird ... 49 5 0 The tender of C. H. Williams and others was accepted. During the past week (says the Taranaki News) Messrs. Webster and McKellar have imported 1500 sacks of wheat. The continued importation of agricultural produce into this district is alarming, .and shows pretty clearly that our farmers need an earthquake, a cataclysm, or something ot that sort to aroiise them from the deep lethargy into which they appear to havo fallen. We can remember the time when flour was exported to Auckland from New Plymouth, and ship loads of potatoes to Melbourne from New Plymouth and Waitara.

Bonnor, the Australian giant, seems to have excited some sensation in England, at the matches played by the Australian cricketers, both on account of his proportions and his batting. He is about 17st. in weight, and stands 6ft. 6in. in height. He is only between 22 and 23 years of age. During the match with Nottingham, he made a hit fully 120 yards, the ball dropping in the street leading down to the railway station, and nearly alighting upon an omnibus waiting to take up passengers. On another occasion, by an off-drive, he sent the ball on the top of a house in the town, and a worthy inhabitant had to " shin" up the water-pipe to recover it.

The Taranaki News thus discourses :—: — " The harbor obstructionists have a letter in the Canterbury Weekly Press, of the 17th instant, endeavoring to excite the Canterbury members to take up arms against the Harbor Board, and to assist the West Coast settlers to overthrow the galling yoke under which they now rest. — We have now only one line of egress to the outer world left us. The emissaries of Te Whiti are daily engaged in barricading our southern road, and the Liliputians of Hawera are blockading our harbor, and we have only the Mountain line left for communication with the outer world. With forests, ocean, and foes, we are hemmed in on every side."

Mr. Hall, in the debate on the Payment of Members BiUj gave the following definition of what he thought the Upper House ousht to repi-esent : — " He entirely denied, with regard to the other branch of the Legislature, that it was a House that did or ought to represent property. There were many things that it was of much greater importance to the Government of the State should be represented there. Good services to the Ssate in days gone by should be represented : education and pre-eminent ability should be represented, and these might be, and often were, accompanied by a great dearth of property." Considering that, so far as this session is concerned, the Upper House has some four or five times as much legislative work as the Lower, there is clearly much need for education, ability, and public spirit to be well represented in the Legislative Council.

Eighty-eight telegraph stations in New Zealand have not been paying expenses, and in future messages of ten words will be charged one shilling and sixpence, instead of a shilling. Waitotara, Waverley, Manntahi, and Stratford are included in the number. From the sixteenth annual report of the Commissioner of Telegraphs, we leurn that 6351 messages were despatched from Hawera during the nine months embraced in tho r. port, 1688 from Normanby, 758 from Manntahi, 6379 from Patea, 16,489 from New Plymouth, 2563 from Waitara, 1158 from Inglewood, and 834 from Stratford. From Opunake 1803 messages were sent, 627 from Okato, 794 from Oakura, and 192 from Werekino ; being a total for the nine months, in the Taranaki provincial district, of 39,636 messages, the cost being .£3114 Is. 10d., from which £1798 Bs. 3d. had to be deducted for cost of stations ; leaving a balance ot £1315 13s. 7d. The cost of the Hawera station was £206 10s. 2d., whilst the value of the messages received amounted to £472 15s. lOd. The Patea station cost £234 15s. lid., the value of the messages being £482 175. lOd. The value of the messages received at Normanby was nearly double the cost of the station, the figures being £139 15s. 5d., and £86 7s. lOd. respectively. New Plymouth shows well up in the list, the value of messages representin" £1478 18s. 9d., and the cost of station £734 11s. lid. At Waitara, £162 9s. 9d. was received, and the cost was £139 4s. tnglewood — Messages, £69 9s. 4d. ; cost, £44 Bs. Id. Stratford— Messages, £56 25. ; cost, £88 os. lid. Manutahi— Messages, £46 2s. lOd. ; cost, £78 ss. 6d. Opunake — Mossages, £168 4s. 2d. ; cost, £125 15s. Bd. Oakura— Messages, £60 18s. 6d.; cost, £58 10s. Bd. At Okato £59 2s. 2d: was received, and at Werekino' £17 10s. Bd., but the cost of those stations is not given. The cost of the line from Patea to New Plymouth, via the coast, is set down at £7178 14s. lOd. ; and the line from Hawera to New Plymouth, via the Mountain road, at £8837 4s. 4d.

After the rehearsal of the Choral Society on Monday evening, nine honorary- and three working members were admitted. The society bids fair to be a very strong one before long.

We have been requested to state that Messrs. O'Connor and Wiley, Ketemarea, have appointed Mr. Beresford sole agent for the sale of then? shingles, posts, rails, &c.

The new police-station, recently built at Manutahi, is not likely to be used for the purpose intended. We understand tbflt tliß GoveMyß&&»t aie abont to difipßUSß with the services of the " man in blue" at that township. Could the building not be removed, after the Yankee fashion, to Hawera? The shanties here " are a disgrace to the service," as the First Lord of the Admiralty, in " Pinafore," would say.

Mr. Kimble-Bent (he says that his name is always spent Kunball-Bent, which is wrong) paid a visit to Hawera on Monday last, and our reporter had a short interview with him. He speaks remarkably good English, and the yarns told about his forgetting his mother tongue are utter rubbish. He informed our reporter that he was by trade a confectioner, and would be willing to take employment, if he could get it. He also spent two years at the watch-making business, but did not follow it up. Hq ridiculed the idea of the special correspondent ol the Lyttelton Times having gone through any risk in order to see him, and was rather sore because the "special" once disappointed him, as Mr. Bent states that he had gone to some considerable trouble to prepare for his reception. He asked our reporter it the Europeans were afraid of war, and was told that the fear was much greater in Wellington and other places than in Hawera. Upon which he said — "The pakehas need not be afraid: the Maoris do' not want to fight any more." Our -reporter asked whether he had not a longing, during all the years that he was amongst the Maoris, to be back amongst his own people, and ha an excited manner he replied — " Yes, very much so." He did not appear to be the least afraid, and rode, on his way home, through High-street. He is a man of about 5 feet 6 or 7 inches in height, of sallow complexion, and looks about 40 years of age. He was very chatty, and pleasant to converse with.