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New Zealander, Volume XIX, Issue 1845, 15 April 1863, Page 2

Albion Gold Mining Company.—An extraordinary meeting of the Shareholders of this Company will take place to-day, at the office of Mr. Cox, Solicitor, Queen-street.

The Queen-street Fire Blouc —There is a rapid change going on in the appearance of this block; so nearly all the sites of the old buildings new ones are being constructed in their place, und some are drawing near completion. Perhaps one of the greatest improvements on the past is the extensive horse and carriage bazaar of Mr. Hardington. Large handsome coach houses have been built at the rear of the block fronting High-street; and the enclosed space along Victoria-st., where formerly stood the old theatre, and the former yard has been su.rrou.nded with a high brick wall against which rows of stalls subsiantially built, and covered in with a metal roofing, have been erected capable of affording separate stabling for fifty horses, with all necessary conveniences for fodder, corn tvC. A row of carriage houses still remain to be built, when, we may safely say, that the equalof these extensive premises will not be found in New Zealand. The fact that the whole of the new buildings in course of construction on this block must necessarily be built of stone or brick, will add considerably to the substantial and thriving appearance of this city.

Boat Building on the Wade.—A boat built by Mr. Hanson, for Mr. Maukioe Kelly, for the purpose of timber canning, goods traffic, and the accommodation of passengers, was launched on Easter Tuesday at the Wade. The launch was successfully accomplished about high-tide in the morning. The vessel is named the Four Sisters, is a fine specimen of boat-building, and does great credit to the builder. She m about 40 tons burden, and promises to be a good sea-boat, and well adapted for the coast. A large number of the settlers in the Wade, Orewa, and surrounding districts were invited, and a party of about eighty persons were most hospitably entertained by Mr. and Mrs. Kelly, and enjoyed a good dinner in a large tent errected for the occasion, and most gracefully decorated with ferns and other ruris honores. In the course of the entertainment, the happiness and sue cess of the host, hostess, and their family were drank with enthusiasm, and songs and other social sports filled up the remainder of the day's enjoyment. Facilities for getting down to the Wade, Orewa, Hot Springs, Mahurangi, and other districts north, are now almost daily offered, as boats are continually running to the Wade for the purpose of bringing up timber, bricks, sand, and lime. A new store-house, and jetty, has recently been built at the landing place on the Wade township, and a tariff fixed for the conveyance of goods and passengers. This district promises before long to become of considerable importance as a body of Austrian Germans, who have been induced to come to this Province by the representation of our respected fellow-settler, Captain Krippner, may be shortly expected to arrive, and a large number are shortly to follow these. A special settlement block has been alloted to them at Puhoi, a few miles north of the Wade ; and th e nearest road to Auckland is by the Wade bridge to Stokes' Point, North Shore, or by water in one of the Wade boats. It is, however, to be regretted that while government are spending money extravagantly on the South and North roads, properly so-called, and distributing public funds by way of compensation to some of their friends, the North road (which is also the mail road) from Stokes' Point to the river Orewa, and the Northern districts is likely to be entirely neglected. Notwithstanding that, almost all the passenger traffic North goes by this road. In driving cattle, however, round to Auckland it is necessary to join lite Great North Road, and a saving of about seven miles could be effected if government would c lear and cut a short road down a hill, known as Slippery Hill, or by putting a short bridge, about 500 yards to the right of the hill, it could be avoided altogether. " Slippery Hill" is, in winter, nearly impassable for cattle.

A Man lately escaped from the gaoi at Lyttclton during the morning parade of the prisoners. He was it appears, amusing himself by walking over the heads of the others, and in doing this he accidently fell over the wall, so that, says the Press " it was not so much an escape as an escapade." Insecure as our own gaol is, and heavy as the calendar at the late Criminal Session at Auckland undoubtedly was, we have not at any rate, like our friends at Canterbury, so crowded a parade of prisoners as to form a platform for the exercise of the acrobatic propensities of tiny one of them, even if such a breach of discipline were allowed by the authorities. Feats of agility, as the editor of the Press will himself reco'lect, are in this colony, not confined to prisoners, but have been executed, r» eleterlf« by 9«nßtor« in ! ' imttthei ptefoij"

Whales Ashore.—Peter te Rnpe, of Koputawaki, just arrived in the steamer Taxmanian Maid, reports

that large numbers of whales, from forty to fifty feet long,were found by thenatives lyingon shoreatCabbage Say. The natives are said to be busy with their tomahawks and knives cutting up the monsters, and are collecting a great many casks to contain the oil. As the blubber is a favorite dish with the Maories, they are likely to gather it in large quantities, and each tribe carry home its share of the spoil. We cannot vouch for the truth of this statement, but it is given from the lips of the Maori named above.

Arsenic is still used extensively in the preparation of when for seed, and this occurs about the present season of the year; for although the use of copperas or bine stone is more general with farmers for that purpose, arsenic is used by many as proving destructive to the rats and mice which infest the fields, at the same time that if is useful as a preventive against smut. Many cases of poisoning have occurred at home through the use of this preparation; portions of the seed not used as such, becoming inadvertently mixe 1 with clean whea* and sent to the mill or sold. "We extract the following account of an accident which occurred lately in in Lincolnshire, as a caution, from an English paper:—"About a fortnight since several members of the family of Mr. Maidens, of Kast Kirby, narrowly escaped an untimely death: they had at dinner partaken of an egg pudding, which had been made from flour recently ground, and which it was subsequently discovered was strongly impregnated with arsenic. How the wheat became impregnated with the deadly poison has not been clearly ascertained, but it is believed that part of it hod been put into a drill, and not being used for seed was taken out and afterwards ground : the drill had before been used with poisoned wheat. Shortlv after dinner six of the family were taken ill with the usual symptoms of having taken poison. Dr. Walker, of Spilsby, was immediately sent for, when the proper remedies were applied. All the sufferers are now convalescent."

Tory Degeneracy.—ln the course of a speech made by Mr J. *Vestern, M.P. at a recent diiyier of the Maldon Independent Liberal Club, he said:—"A time there was when a true blue Tory was the most intelligible, though, perhaps not always the most intelligent of politicians. (Laughter.) He was known at any rate as a thorough going Protestant," with ' No Popery' as his favorite war-cry; yet we have liad Mr. Benj. Disraeli in the House of Commons during the past session not ashamed to stand up for the independence of the Pope, and courting Irish votes as the price for betraying Italian liberty. (Hear, hear.) Look, too, at his treatment of the question for religious freedom at home, and you will find the Tory Proteus transformed from the advocate of Catholicism to the champion of the Church of England. (Laughter.) A time there was when to be a Tory was at any rate to be a lusty denouncer of servility to France (hear, hear) ; yet we have heard the Tory leader, unchecked by the groans of his followers, stooping to lament that an English Premier is not guided on the Italian question by Napoleonic ideas. (Cheers.) Consistent only in his dislike to freedom, be England or Italy the scene; banding himself now with one section, and then using the watchwords of another ; a master of mystification in his use of language, carrying the arts of faction to such an exrreme that more than once his more independent followers have been driven to hoist the standard of revolt—who can tell what policy this master of legerdemain would have actually pursued if he had succeeded in his manoeuvres for office? (Hear, and laughter.) Well might poor Mr. Walpole and Sir John Pakington now and then kick against being made parties to such transparent treachery. (Hear, hear) I quite think their insubordination did them credit. (Cheers.) No one has ever accused the Tories of being conjurors, and one can't be surprised that they sometimes betray their disgust at having a conjuror for their chief."