THE Mount Ida Chronicle. AND St. Bathans Weekly News. SATURDAY, JANUARY 11, 1879.

Mount Ida Chronicle, Volume IX, Issue 495, 11 January 1879, Page 2

THE Mount Ida Chronicle. AND St. Bathans Weekly News. SATURDAY, JANUARY 11, 1879.

The elections of members of the Mount Ida Water. Kace Trust, have now been completed! and as it is understood that the Warden will be. the Government nominee, it will be composed of-the following gentlemen: —Messrs. H. W. Robinson, J. Ewing, S. M'Cullougb, 14. Glenn, and W. Inder. The Trust have a heavy and important undertaking; committed to ;their- care, and we have no doubt but ihatthe members will individually and collectively put their shoulders to the wheel. Their first act should be to make an effort to secure funds. The respectable sum of £50,000 was last session put on the Estimates for waterworks on Goldfields, and the Trust should" make early application for a good share, of this, and insist that a liberal grant for extension of new works. We understand that the Government have issued instructions for the payment of all moneys owing to the 31st December into the Public Account. As theirs is a considerable Bum outstanding, the matter wou.d be worth looking into. It is not very clear what has made the ! Government take this course, in the I faco of section 2.1 of the Trust Act I " All moneys accruing from the said ■■water-race shall be paid, to the Trust, 'and form part of the. Trust funds; and the Trust is hereby empowered to sue for and recover all moneys due in respect of any matters connected with the said water race and unpaid at the time of commencement tf this- Act, and thereafter. ... "We | wish the Trust succt fl*, and. look | forward to tho works becoming very 1 Ruccvtssiul bofora loit;£

Thf, Australian Eleven won the match, at Melbourne with the English team by 10 wickets. .

Thb i.S.lf, sailors have resumed work; the Company having yielded, as stated in our telegrams of last Saturday.

A telegram: firom Melbourne states . " The .seamen here have struck for £7 per month for the vqyage to London, or for £(j all,round 130 wen are now out, and the number is increasing. Several of the ships are idle."

Messrs. Kinross have been nominated for the vaceat seat in the House of Representatives for Mataura. There is a uice state of things in Japan. The last information to the Press Agency states The editor "of. a native paper- ha 3 :been aentenced to one year's imprisonment because lie gave publicity to a rumor in the capital that four Ministers had resigned, or were about to do bo, though he added that he believed the rumor to be unfounded Criminals condemned to imprisonment are not allowed-to read newspapers, though formerly allowed to do so. Messrs. H. G. Brewer and John Morrison have been gazetted as valuers under the Land Tax Act, the former for the Borough and the latter for the County. •

. Wb have received from the Bev. J. Hobbs of St. George's Church, Naseby, a small religious periodical entitled the " Dawn of Day," which is about to be circulated ia connection with St. George's Parish. It emanates from the Society for the Promotion of Christian Knowledge, and although mainly got up in England there is a page devoted to general parochial and diocesan news, under the editorship of Mr.. Hobbs. This little magazine iB intended chiefly for children and we think it may be fairly recommended to parents as a publication having substantial claims upon their encouragement and support.. The present number contains a collection of short and very pleasantly written articles and sketches upon church history, bible natural history, and general knowledge ; and it is illustrated with woodcuts, fairly executed, which add very much to the attractiveness of the paper. On the local page are a few short editorial notices one of which gracefully and modestly introduces the magazine to the public—and other 'statistical information in connection with the parish. Although chiefly intended for children as we have already said, some of the articles may. be read with - great advantage by grown up people, as for instance a short astronomical sketch" from the text- -" The Heavens declare the. glory of God and the firmament shewetli his handiwork," which is written in a very-easy and popular style, and accompanied' by a drawing of the courses of the planets which is admirably adapted to impress upon the mind of either adult or child the true position and movements of the bodies composing the solar s system. But there is a special reason why this little periodical, coming into the district at the present time, should be considered as coming opportunely. We cannot but think that it will at any rate help to impart that religious education to the youug which, is now no longer imparted in the schools. Sueh a consideration ia a very serious one to parents and if they can regard St. George's Parish Magazine in the light of a religious educa-" tional agency, as we have little doubt they will, it behoves them to give it in its infancy a hearty and generous support. This is only another instance of the zeal and energy which has characterized Mr. Hobbs since the first day of his coming among us. Mb. Wakefield, M.H.R., during his address to the electors of Temuka on the 3rd. remarked . —" With regard to the future, he believed people had lost confidence in the Grey Government, although Sir George Grey had had the best chances of any man of introducing reforms. He believed that next year a strong stand would be made against them. During the last recess, and at the present time, the Government were wandering about the country and riding their own hobbies. He was convinced a fresh Sfinistrv. would be placed in power, wlio would honestly, steadily, and impartially attend to the public business."

The Hon. J. Sheehan thus referred to the i Chinese question, while addressing the Working Men's Club at Auckland on the 3rd instant:—" He personally had no affection for Chinamen. This country was too good for any part of it, upon which Englishmen, Irishmen, Scotchmen, or other Europeans could settle, to be delivered up-to-the Chinese invasion, and was not too large for all our own people who were likely to come to it. Chinamen did not come to "settle, but to make money by self-sacrifice, which some people would do well to imitate, but what they made they saved, and only, thought of taking it with them to spend in their own country. The. case was not the same as if the colonists had no other people whom they could bring here, or if labor could not be got elsewhere than from China. There were millions of our own people who could flock to these shores, and fill the country with labor if required. He (the Hon. Mr. Sheehan) would object to an alien race coming to New Zealand and taking up land. He would not deprive Chinamen of a living. There were large tracts of country and other fields of enterprise suited to Chinamen vhere Englishmen did. not thrive. There was Queensland for instance, but New Zeal and was so peculiarly suited to the H ritish people and should be colonised by those who had the best right to come."

Tenders arc called in- another column for the erection of a residence for the teacher at Kyeburn Diggings School. Tenders are to be lodged with the- Secretary of the Education Board, Dunedin, ou Saturday, 25th curt.

The Home mails via Su?z, close on Tuesday next, 15th inst., in time to catch the steamer leaving Port Chalmers on the 17th. The Good Templars at Hamilton intend celebrating their anniversary on Friday, 17th inst., by a teameetmg and concert. It is expected that there will be a large attendance from the sister lodges iu the district. The. three members of the Education Board who retire, but are eligible for reelection, are Messrs. Keid, Fraer, and Green. The contractor (Mr. Henderson), for the Oamaru Water Works, having thrown* up his contract, the Council has agreed to complete the work, partly by tender and partly by day labor. The large number of men thrown out of employment by the stoppage will probably again be employed.

Tereible as is the disaster of the Scotch Bank failure (remarks a contemporary) there was one characteristic incident with a gleam of humor in it. An old maiden lady," who was post-mistress and telegraph agent at Wick, had all her savings in the local brarch of the City of Glasgow Bank. A message came through early addressed to the manager, instructing him not to open the doors, as the bank had suspended payment. The sld lady presented herself at the branch at the opening hour, and drew out all her cash. She ther proceeded'to the bank parlof and informed the manager that as au imrortant telegraphic message tiad arrived for him she had just brought it along herself!

The Wellington correspondent; of the ' Evening Star' sends the following —The barque Courier has returned from- New Guinea witli the JJew Zealand expedition. The affair was a, doad failure. The vessel, purchased . from' an- Amercian named Stanwood for £-4,000 by Wellington aud Duaedin capitalist*, loft on October 27 in charge of Captain Moory (who repreaenied the Wel.'ingk'.n.inleresty -jritb thirteen liund£, Sir.

Allen renresenled the Dmc-rin irtf-r<si Two post traders had been induced to buy by Stanwood repjesenting that he hnd been trading jn New Guinea-for fourteen years, and had three trading posts established at Astrolabe Gulf, and (hat a large business had been donf> by the Natives. He also ptorr.ised to. meet the expedition, and having secured the cash went to Sydney. He never turned up again, and frke expedition found 7 no trading posts; the Natives had no idea of trade and possessed..nothing they could exchange except bone nnd arrows. All the produce that could be obtained was one piecu of green ginger weighing hnlf an ounce, and sugar cane 9in. long. Intercourse vraa only carried on by signs, the natives not understanding the English language. The climate 'is intensely hot, and a number of the orew, including the cap: i tain, are suffering fronr'owfever. Mr. Allen ; prospected and found that there was not the slightest trace of gold or other valuable mineral. The hills are apparently impassible, being 6,000 feet or 7,000 feet high. Traces of the Dove, schooner, fitted out at Bydney, ■were found, the nsrae being discovered carved on trees. The men could not understand 1 from the Natives whether they had s. en the vessel or not. The Natives were very friendly and of fair intelligence, end made no attempt to steal anything. . The anchoi age was very bad. The expedition, after remaining a fortnight, finding-nothing to be done, left. Tab land in the neighborood of the Wanaka and Hawea Lakes is fast being taken up and settled on. To keep pace with the progress made by the district it is -contemplated to start a flour mill near the Luggate, the prospectus for which has been issued. Capital, £2,500 in 1,000 shares of £2 10s. each. Licenses issued under the Slaughterhouses Act lfist year expired :on 31st Dece'mbar. Those persons following the - avocation of Slaughtermen, are reminded that a breach of the Act is committed if not in possession of a license for the current year. . Foe public libraries maintained wholly or in part by public subscriptions, the sum of £l,lOO is available for distribution. As; the money, will be divided in proportion to the amount contributed by subscription, committees, desirous of participating in the grant are requested to furnish the Education Board with the amount of the voluntary subscriptions for the year ending December last.. . The report about the good fortune recently fallen to a Napier pakeh'a- Maori named Chase seems to have Bome truth in it. Later particulars say lie io a brother of the lat o Secretary Chase of America. He came to New Zealand on a whaling cruise, and bolted from tii9 ship owing to ill-treatment. Eventually he took up his residence in Hawke's Bay, and married a Maori woman by whom he lias had several children. He sank to the position of a Maori-Pakeha, and ; has on several occasions when visiting the town made his bow. to the Resident Magistrate. Nevertheless he was known to possess . great influence among the Natives, and on many occasions the late Native Minister, who recognised his position, consulted him on various matters during the American war. His only brother in America amassed a very large fortune and died a millionaire. He died recently, and has left the whole of his property j over a million sterling, to this brother in New Zealand. The following may not be of any use-'to our readers, as regards aiding justice, but as a curious commentary upon the reputed good deeds and general excellence of a certain body of men it will, be read with interest. It is : the notice issued by tlie City of Glasgow Police ■ Cit ? of -Glasgow Bank Frauds. Wanted, on warrant, in conncc ion with the City of Glasgow Bank frauds, James Nicol Fleming, merchant, of 115, St. Vincent street, Glasgow, and Kiel, near Campbelltown, and lately director of said bank. Description— About 48 years of age; about 5 feet 11 inches in height; black straight hair, very Blight black whiskers and. moustache, aquiline nose, sallow complexion, full face, well built, portly appearance j dressed generally in dark fashionable clothing,j satin hat. ?olice officers and otuera r eaueeted to make immediate search and inquirv for tu« above-named, and those stationed at seaport towns arc ]?®rtxc : u-. lar.ly requested to-search outward-bound vessels,; and,' should he be arrested, or the slightest trace obtained, to communicate with W. A. Brown, Esq., advocate, Procurator-Fis-cal of Lanakshire, at Glasgow, or with the subscriber, A. M'CALii, Chief Constable."

We understand that Mr. do JLaufcuur, M.H.il., intends coming south in a -week or ten days, and purposes addressing his constituents at Naseby and St Bathans on the 23rd and 25th. instant, respectively, if it is possible for him to reach the district by those dates.

" "We understand that action, by the ad-rice, of the Attorney-General, will be immediately taken by tue Naseby Corporation against the Extended Company, for injury done to Broom Street. The learned counsel also considers the Company is liable for damages sustained by'property holders. Wb understand that Mr. H. 0. Brewer, Mining Registrar of Mount Ida, has been promoted to the Deputy Registrarship of the Supreme Court, Dunedin, in place of Mr. Gordon, who ha 3 been appointed ActingRegistrar, Mr. Ward having resigned. ■ While Mr. Brewer's many friends in this district can do no other than congratulate him on his-promotion, they will regret that it will compels him to "leave the district. His uniform kindness and general disposition to oblige, combined with unremitting attention the duties of his office, have made him very popular with (hose who: have bad anything to do with the Warden's Court. During the short time Mr. Brewer has been amongst us he has made many friends, who will join with us in wishing him every prosperity. We believe that Mr T. L. Shepherd, late M.H.R,. for the Dunstan, has been appointed to the vacant office.

A late cablegram states that the City of Glasgow Bank will pay a dividend of- 5s on February 3rd. Under the same date it is stated that advances are still being made successfully by the British troops in Afghanistan, and that four of the Ameer's regiments have deserted. Tee 'Times states For some..time past there has been a likelihood ot a public debate on a theological question being arranged between the Rev. M. W. Green, minister of the Bang street Chapel, and Mr. Charles .Bright, and last night a committee meeting was held, ?t which a subject was decided upon. Mr. Green and Mr. Hislop, on. the one side, met Mr. Bright and Mr. Stout on the other, and after some discussion the following proposition wa= agreed on : " The Divine origin of Christianity," accepting the following definition of terms ; 1. By " Divine Origin," it is understood to be of Divine origin in the sense in which no other religion is. ■ 2. In the term " Christianity," it is understood that there are included the Deity of Jesus and His death as an atonement for man's sin. Mr. Green affirms ; Mr. Bright denies.: A working committee is to be appointed to make the necessary arrangements, and the debate will probably take placo the week after next."