North Otago Times. SATURDAY, JULY 20, 1878.

North Otago Times, Volume 1944, Issue XXVI, 20 July 1878, Page 2

North Otago Times. SATURDAY, JULY 20, 1878.

The particulars of a case wa publish in our report of the R. M. Court of yesterday point to the existonce of an ovil which it would bo to the interest of all concerned to put a atop to without dolay. That captains of ships do with impunity bring their ships into hnrbor without ao much as a thought about making the necessary entry and report at the Customs, and that in spite of ropeated warnings from the authorities, is perfectly apparent ; and the danger which muat result from such a course is, wo need not point out, one of considerable magnitude. A short time ago, a case similar to that hoard and disposed of yesterday was brought before the same Court, but the dofendant'a action in that resulted solely, wo believe, from his ignorance of the course proper to take. He had always been in the habit of making the shortest stay here possible, and had, in order to savo time, entered and cleared hi& craft on one and the aamo day. At the particular time referred to, howovcr, he had found it necessary to remain hero somo time; and hence the cause of his neglect. Taking this view of the matter, the Customs authorities, very properly, did not press the charge, and the defendant escaped with little more than a caution. In tho case now undor notice, however, tho whole of the circumstances weir a far worso aspoct, and wo are constrained to put down tho cause of tho maatev's act na that of wilful negligence. Tho defendant denied that ho wilfully neglected to enter his vessel, and gave as an excuse tho mo3t piltry of reasons, adding that ho did not think there was any necessity for prompt action on his part, as on his previous trip ho had been permitted to remain in port three days before his papors wero demanded. Now, wo think it only bare justice to the local Customs authorities that auoh a statement as this should receive the fullest and most public denial, and to that end we will shortly state tho real facts of tlio cv<e. The- Vixen on her last voyage (Mine into this po«*t on a S'lturd.iy afternoon, after the Customs House had closed, and had of necessity to remain till tho following Monday morning before she could bo entered, as indeed slip was on that day. We have never had occasion to remark on the part of tho authorities the existence of anything that would lead to tho belief that they wore wanting in their duty, and charges such as tho ono implied in tho statement of tho dofondant are only preferred by men such as ho, who are either too culpably careless or too ignorant to comply witlj tho laws made for their guidance. Wo havo referred to this matter becauno, as wo stated abovo, it is one that requires attention. Masters of ships ought to tako warning lest they perpotunfo a eystom auch as this, and one that will not only put othcrg to inconvenience and loss, but will also tend to their 'own disadvantage,

jS".O.A. ANb P. Associ \tios. — Wo are roqiiojtecl to intimate to the members of tlio

I Committee that, after the meeting on Tuesday, 23rd inst., for the purpose of inspecting grounds suitable for h ,stio\^ site, a goneral meeting will be held at 1" p.m., in the Secretary's offico, for tho purpose of appointing judge*, and other important Immncsj.' Tho change from Thursday to the preceding Tuesday iv necessitated in consequence of the steeplechase meeting.

Oamaru Harbor Bo'arp. —Tho fortnightly mooting called for yosterday morning lapsed, thero not being a quorum of members in attendance.

Maekewhenua Ploughing Match.—This annual event is fixed for tho 30th August, when r. large prizo list i« sure to be offered, as upwards of LlOO have been, it is said, already subscribed.

Football.—Tho return match—Colonials v. the World—will be played this afternoon; game to commence at 230 o'clock sharp It is hoped that thero will bo a largo attendance of players.

Oamaru Steeplechase Club.—A meeting of the Committee of this Club for tho transaction of goneral business is called for Monday evening at 8 o'clock, at the Empire Hotel.

Onb fob tiik Lawykh.— •' You're a pretty smart fellow," sneered a lawyer to a witness the other day in court. " I'd return tho compliment if was not under oath," replied tho witness, preparatory to being told " that's all."

Dinner to Mr CRAiu.—lt Avill bo seen from a telegram received from oui' Otepopo correspondent, last evening, that it has been decided to invite Mr W, Craig to a complimentary dinner at Otepopo, tho dato on which it shall tako place to be fixed by the recipient.

Oamaru Steeplechases.— The privileges of tho forthcoming steeplechase .meeting were sold by auction yesterday, under tho hammer of Mr Greenfield. Tho prices obtained wore muoh smaller than usual, tho following being the vespectivo amounts, viz.:-No. 1 booth, L 10; No 2, L 5; No. 3, 1,7; refreshment booth, L 6; stand, L 7; cards, L 5 : stalls and baskets, L 5. Total, L 45. Tho gates and saddling paddock wore bought in.

'County Roads.—The Chairman of the County Council (Hon. R. Campbell) has proclaimed tho folWing to be County Roads, viz.:—l. Tho Road leading from tho County Road to Uxbridge Railway Station. 2. Tho Road leading from tho County Road to Awamoko Junction Railway Station. 3. Tho Road oxtonding from opposite Whitstone to tho Junction of the fivo roads in Section 22, Block 111., Kantoo Survey District. 4. Tho portion of Shrewsbury street, in Hampden Township, lea ling from Main North road to the Railway Station.

Odd-fellowship— Loyal Oamaru Lodge. —"We have to acknowledge the receipt of a copy of llio balance-sheet of tho Loyal Oamnru Lodge, Manchester Unity, for the prcseut half-year, from which wo cull tho following :—The receipts of the Sick Fund, with tho balanco from last year added, amounts to L 986 4s 9d ; and tho disbursements for sick pay aud levies amounts to LIS ftn (id, leaving the handsome balanco of L9G7 19s 3d to tho credit of the Sick Fund. As this fund is available only for sick purposes, tho lodge undoubtedly must stand high Tho receipts and balanco of tho Management Fund amount to L 142 9*» 6d, and tho payments to doctor, chemist, and incidental expenses generally, is LlO2, leaving a .balance of L4O 9s, ■bowing an addition to this fund of Ll9 0i lOd for tho halfyear. From the Statement of Lodge Proporty, we find that thoro is LGOO invested on freehold mortgages, L 192 19s lOd inland, L 215 8s f>d in bank deposits and current account, and L 450 in buildings, giving tho grand total of L 1458 8s 3d as tho nett value of tho lodge.

The New Pronunciationl. — A correspondent of " Notes and Queries " writes :—: — '* I liavo much pleasure in roporting an anecdote, not yot, so far as I know, in print, of which the present Bishop of Manchester is the hero. ' A class of school-girls, says tho story, highly educated on tho newest principles, were pouring forth to his Lordship a list of Latin words, with the English equivalents; and they came to the word which wo elders should call viclisim. 1 We-kiss-im,' s-tid the girls ; ' wo-kisa-im — by turns." 'Oh, do you?'answered tho Bishop; ' then I don't at all wondor at your adopting the now pronunciation.' "

Mining in Victoria.—The mineral statistics of Victoria for the year 1877 have been presented to Parliament. The Minister of Mines reports that tho mining industry during the past year has not been so prosperous as usual. Scarcity of water, through lnntj-continued drought, has militated greatly against alluvial mining operations. The return of gold also from quartz-mining shows a decrease as compared with preceding years, but thero does not appear to bo any ground to fear that this branch of mining is on tho wane, for veins are being steadily worked at increasing depths ; and, as regards alluvial mining, it n hoped, wilh a better supply of water, there will during the next year be an increased yield of gold. Tho estimated 3'ield of gold for the past year was 809,6.")30z., or 104,1070z. less than the quantity obtained during 187 H.