Local Intelligence.

Lyttelton Times, Volume XII, Issue 734, 19 November 1859, Page 4

Local Intelligence.

J^l/t thei'?T g 011^ so far as it has gone, has been of the most delicious kind-the very beau ideal of Swing, not forgetting that inevitable adjunct ofa real sprui g, a touch of the partingwinter--" Winter lingering in the lap of May "a? poets have euphoniously expressed it in the old country. _ There has been a tolerably plentiful supply of ram, which, with the intervening warm sunshine has given growth to every vegetating thing. All the crops look well, except, perhaps, the oarfy potatoes here and there on the plains, which have had theiivtops blackened by the light frost of Sunday night last. There is a large breadth of wheat sown this year through the country, and it looks lemarkably well The dry weather of winter and early spring has been rather in favor of the crop, and on well-cultivated lands, even a continuance of similar drought upon our low lying districts would, in all probability, have secured an. excellent harvest. I

Tho rain lias, however, corno at a most opportune tiino to nourish and strengthen tho young plant; and it may safoly bo said that so far evory possiblo advantage of weather lias been granted to tho fanners for tho production of their most marketable grain. The gardens also are in good order as a vvholo; and though we have seen most singular discrepancies among the different orchards, some showing a great abundance of small fruit and an equal deiioioncy in large, and others tho exact contrary, wo have reason to boliovo that tho promise is of a fruit season above tho average. Strawberries and chorries have ripened in early spots during tho past fortnight. The earliest gardens of all have suffered in their small fruits, especially strawberries, from tho early drought, but tho later plants will havo received a fully compensating advantage in the rains of the past fortnight. ' Apropos of the weather and the crops it may be worth while mentioning that any one" anxious to have tho best view of the country, embracing the town of Christchurch, the farms' and homesteads, the river navigation and trade, and the cultivation upon the country districts, can find it on the " Hills Road" between Christchurch and Lyttelton, from the slight elevation given by the road crossing the spur of the hill above Eiverlaw. This is,decidedly the best view of the country—we might say, without exaggeration, of the province—for the range of vision extends over the whole improved portion of the plains, and embraces even the pastoral districts as far south as the Rakaia, and up to the western and northern hills. To the point indicated old settlers' ought to go, to see what changes have passed over the face of the plain in nine years; and thither they should take with them their newly arrived friends to show them at a glance of what Canterbury consists. Inwood's Christchurch Mill, of which we have heard so much in a legislative way, has assumed practically the status of a finished work, having been set in motion during the past week. Its prominent position in the town of Christchurch, as well as the importance attaching to the increase of mill power in the province, have attracted to it a large number^ of visitors. The first point which strikes the eye is that the water power is superabundant. Even with the very slight fall which is gained in so level a river, the stream which passes through the waste gate proves that the applicability of the- site for mill purposes has not been misjudged by Mr. In wood. Inside, the grinding apparatus consists at present of only a pair of" stones, bat the number is, we understand, to be increased. The work as a whole in all its parts is creditable to the constructors. "We understand that, to prevent the danger of terrifying passing horses, Mr. Inwood will not set the power in motion again, until he has walled in the river side by Oxford terrace. The Waimakariri, it seems, will not be constrained to flow in its old channel. The river has broken out again at the point at which so much pains were taken last autumn to defend the bank by a breastwork of piles. It appears that the current has carried away a portion of the piling in the lower part of the curve over which it extended, and has of course rendered,all the remainder below useless. It has also broken in above the upper end of the defended part. Mr. Dobson, the Provincial Engineer, visited the place last week, and found it in such a condition as to render useless any attempts at repairing the breastwork. The river may, and no doubt some time or other during a freshet will, rise over the bank in this corner, and send out a few inches of its water upon the plain. This water will of course draw gradually towards one of the old river beds, having its course determined by any^ accidental obstructions which it may meet with, in.. its way. The ultimate possibility is that the channel so taken may be worn deep, and become the exit for a great part or the whole of the waters of the river. Whether this new course be to the Purarekanui, towards Lake Ellesmere, or down to Christchurch, depends upon circumstances hardly to be calculated on. The most that can be said is that human skill will to all appearance not succeed in retaining the Waimakariri as it is now flowing, but that a little trouble may suffice to guide it when first breaking out into some equally innocent direction. ' . The Avon Steam Navigation Company held a general meeting at the Golden Fleece Hotel, Christchurch, on Tuesday last; Mr. Longden, Hon. Sec. to the Company, announced that by the Zealandia the packages containing the first steamer ordered for the Company had arrived. Discussion arising upon the best plan of proceeding, it was determined to commence at once to build the boat on the shores of Lyttelton harbor, which process would occupy about two months. The Engineer engaged for the boat, it was mentioned, had arrived in the Zealandia, and having taken a part in her original construction, would also superintend the work of putting her together. To provide funds for the work to be undertaken preparatory to getting the boat afloat, a final call of £5 per £20 share was ordered. We are informed that a proposal has been made to theProvincialGovernment from a private quarter, undertaking to construct a deep-water wharf in Lyttelton harbour, to give accommodation to large ships and steamers. As such a work would probably be undertaken at one or other of the horns of the bay on which Lyttelton stands, there would in either case be some distance from the shore end of the jetty to the town; which space would,be taken m and improved, in connection with the lar°-e work. We understand that the terms of the proposal aresuch as to require no outlay in cash from the provincial chest, but simply a concession of laud, and a certain scale of tolls. We hope that the public and the parties immediately concerned will not permit this matter to drop. The Council.—What is to be said about the Council ? How can history fill up her pages with the transactions of a body which sits three times in three weeks, for half an hour each time, and then not.talking but being talked to ? And as to what js taking place in the antechambers—important as is no doubt the influence it exerts upon the world at Ja-rge—ifc changes so rapidly that no newspaper published at greater intervals than two or three hours canpossibly give any satisfactory information. It is not to be endured by any journal that iss columns should be ready filled up with the " latest particulars " of ministerial combinations, and with learned disquisitions thereon, only to be obliged just before going to press to insert a paragraph, stating that everything is changed, and what has been said does not apply. It is necessary therefore, to refrain almost entirely from comment and to let gossip tell her own tale from hour to hour, which she does in her usual unhesitating way. Of course our readers are perfectly well acquainted with the main facts of the campaign of 1859—the battle of Hagley Park, the slaughterous affair of the Eace Course, and the deadly struggle at the passage of the Supplementary Estimates; and how like the days after Solferino, just when the victorious' armies were expected to occupy in triumph tho enemy's strong position, a sudden lull occurred in the roar of battle, and peace was proclaimed. As in real war, so in political combat, there are tew who are not glad of a repose from conflict whether tho truce be lasting or of short duration, and whatever cause may have produced ifc. Ifc jg pretty certain that both tho Council and the public are tired of the stoppage of public business for the sake of attempting to put in motion the misfitting joints of tho dry skeleton of a constitution. The question becomes prominent—why enforce a change in the servants of tho State except to obtain more active officers. It is all fair and very proper to pull up tho Government officials, and reprimand them if

they havo dono wrong; and to use any means for avoiding mistakes for tho future. But when the charge brought against them is in tho shape in which it stands now, —viz., first for having spent raonoy which the Council had not voted; secondly, for not having any more money to spend when it was wanted —it is hardly probable that any good result could accrue from sending them about their business. Of course the two accusations havo

nothing to do with ono another, for the orders of tho Council might liavo been more widely departed from than they were, and still the revenue have shown a surplus; and on the other hand, even had the votes been strictly attended to, tho deficiency might have existed. If the conviction was on the first offence, what remedy is provided by letting the offenders go about their business; or what security is taken against future errors of the kind by putting in others in their loom ? No doubt, those who would take ofHco would be very well meaning men —all new ministers are; perhaps they would have taken care to avoid the offence by which their predecessors fell; but they would have found some means to incur the wrath of a Council critically disposed, in the first session. Like the ! Scotch boy, they would promise not to play the bawbee away at pitch-and-toss, but it would come out that they had " gamed it awa' at neevyneevy-nick-nack," As to the second offence—of having been in office when the revenue fell off—this of course deserves the severe punishment of loss of office and responsibility; but the question arises— What have the new men done that they are to be saddled with a financial difficult}' —and is there some virtue in inexperience which will enable them to f^et particularly well out of it ? The best result to be anticipated is, that after a severe bullying the Executive will take care so to conduct themselves as that they shall not have to endure such an ordeal again. As to the formation of an Executive, which is the present difficulty, would it not be wise, instead of-a thorough Eadical change of official advisers, which would go far to destroy the efficiency of government altogether, to, secure an infusion of new blood from the Council, so as to modify the differences lately existing between the two bodies? Good practical government is what we want; as small "political crises" do not help us to this, we shall surely have sense enough to avoid them.