Local Intelligence.

New Zealander, Volume 13, Issue 1156, 16 May 1857, Page 3

Local Intelligence.

Auckland Choral Society.—The second "rehearsal" of the present season took place on Thursday evening;. The attendance of honorary subscribers and their fr.ends was numerous, and the performance, as a whole, was fully equal to any that the Society has before given. The selection of music was of a miscellaneous character, and comprised a large amount of instrumental music. Tin' band of the 58th, under the able direction of Mr. Davis, performed two overtures wth great spirit, and some of them also assisted some amateur members of the Society in the instrumental accompaniments to some of the vocal pieces. As the Society's rehearsals partake somewhat of the nature of private gatherings the admission being only by subscriber*' tickets, and as it is now so well established, we shall not enter into so detailed a notice of the performance as we have before done; but this much we may say, that of the various sections of the choir, the ladies deserved tile most credit. We

were also glad to see that, in the labour of accompanying the pieces, the Conductor had the efficient assistance of three of the lady members —a new feature in the arrangements which we think will be productive of great benefit to our female amateurs, by leading them to practise more sedulously as accompanists. We were also glad tu see that there were several "first appearances" among the male members in the performance of

the concerted music, ami one as a soloist. There were two encores—one, the duett "The Flower Gatherers," well sung hy two of the lady-mem-bers, and the other, the duo concerlante for violin and pianoforte, hy Capt. Balneavis and the Conductor (Mr. J. Brown). The rehearsal was brought to a very successful close hy the sinking of Saville's spirited and ever-welcome madrigal-chorus, "The Waits," and the Nationa Anthem, verse and chorus, with full band accompaniment. Tiii' New llullah Singing Class, in connexion with the Mechanics' Institute, was opened on Monday evening by Mr. J. Brown. Between 70 and 80 pupils entered their names, and received their first lesson after a succinct introductory sketch by Mr. Brown of the theory of music. The meetings of the clas? wi 1 he held on Monday

evening.

Auckland Mechanics' Institute.—Mr. It. Hill gave a lecture on the life and writings of Tom Moore, on Tuesday evening, in the hall ot the Mechanics' Institute. The audience was numerous, and they appealed much pleased, especially with the more comic illustrations of the lecture.—The next " paper" of the series will be read next Tuesday hy Mr. Mathieson, who will take for his subject, " Magneiism." The Cobomanpel Diggings:—Fatal Accident. —Mr. G. do Thierry has brought us word of the accidental death of Dennis Campbell, a boatbuilder by trade, an elderly man, in consequence of the falling-in on him of a mass of about two tons of earth, while he was excavating one of the hanks of the Waiau Creek in search for gold. His two mates had warned him of the risk he ran, but the " prospecting" so far had been so encouraging that he persevered with his labours, and so met his death. One of his legs and his ribs were broken—the latter completely smashed in , yet the poor fellow, when dug out, was hardly conscious of having sustained any injury. His companions obtained all the assistance they could from Messrs. Roe, Street, & (Jo's, mill, and paid him all the attention in their power; though suffering very little actual pain, he died in the course of a couple of hours after being extricated from his fatal auriferous bed. We understand that, in compliance with a very laudable desire on the part of the settlers to inquire into every casualty, an inquest will be held on the remains of deceased ; and we trust that this time there will be no such violation of the feelings and common-sense as led to the unnecessary exhumation of the bodies of the two poor fellows not long since drowned in this stream, and the bringing up the corpses and all the witnesses to Auckland. With respect to that double casualty there could be no doubt that it was purely accidental; a formal and carefully conducted investigation into the circumstances had taken place : yet the farce of a second inquest was gone through in Auckland—forty miles from the spot where the accident, happened—and in order that this cruel farce might be played out, the witnesses were condemned to the horrible companionship for some days of two putrescent corpses on hoard a small coasting vessel. It is possible that the holding of the second inquest might be legally justifiable—possibly legally compulsory —but in no other sense was it so; and we trust that those with whom the power rests will take care that Deputy Coroners are appointed in various districts of the Province—and thus prevent the recurrence of a procedute only tolerable in cases where then; is 1 resumptive ground of death having resulted from foul-play of some kind or other. Another Fabricated Cash of AbsenteeVoting.—ln the Southern Cross of this day, there appeared the mountain-born-mouse of a list of alleged double and treble votes, dead men, and absentees polled for the present Superintend nt. Even supposing every such case had been proved the total would not have amounted to a fourth of the votes thus improperly polled by the opposite side. But on a scrutiny, we have already had to knock off several of those alleged double and dead

men and absentees —to show that their votes were genuine. Here is another instance. Mr. S. T. B. S. Nash; of Shortla.mi-street, is alleged to have been personated at Scott's Inn Mahurangi, though an absentee. Mr. Nash has called on us to say that he was not out of the colony at the time of the election, and that in his own proper person he polled for Mr. Williamson at Scott's Inn.