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New Zealand Herald, 30 March 1876, Page 2

That great fetid pool known as the intake, is rapidly having its area diminished by the carting of mullock from the works of Fort Britomart, and there seems to be a probability that ere long the death-dealing miasma may be absorbed by the earth thrown" into the sink. Earth is one of the best disinfectants. A reference to the Book of Leviticus will shew that Moses, the great law-giver of the Israelites, was aware of this fact. Earth closets were not known in the wilderness, but Moses made a provision of a very similar character. However opinions of those who know far more than Moses may differ from the inspired writer in ' regard to the disinfecting and deodorising qualities of • earth, there can be no question that even the small amount of filling in which has been done, has made a vast difference in the comfort of the inhabitants in the locality. Bad smells, as some say, cannot affect the human organisation in any manner—good, I bad, or indifferent. Homooepaths say differently, and say triumphantly, how is it that certain fumes, not appreciable by weight or measure, can act the part of emetics, and how can the infinitessimally small portion of diseased substance rubbed into an arm protect the owner of that arm from virulent diseases 1 However all this may be, and whether good or evil is to arise from stirring up the mud in the intake, it is certain that the comfort gained by throwing mud into the gap, will be much appreciated by the neighbouring residents, and that after a few weeks 1 time, passers-by will not have to hold their noses or pinch their nostrils with clothes pegs when passing along Custom-house-street. At a meeting of creditors, yesterday, in the estate of Clement Witheford, the discharge of the debtor was refused. This is the first case in which the resolution to close the liquidation and grant the discharge to the debtor, has been refused. The principal 1 liabilities were law costs. The facts of th* case are peculiar, and will be found detailed in another column.

At a late hour last night, much disturbance ■was caused in Queen-street by a party .of drunken sailors returning to their vessel^-:' the Brodick, C;u;tfe v/ \-,) The police endured • much from the men iutlic shape of vile ; blasphemous language,until reaching the Waitemata Hotel, when one fellow, who:had | made himself conspicuous by his.vituperation and attempts to incite his comrades to turn up the street again; was arrested, a proceeding which was the signal for a regular freefight. After a good deal of struggling, the police secured their man and conveyed' [ him into the Waitemata Hotel. Detective Jeffrey then appeared upon, the scene, and with his aid, and under. his direction, the ' remaining seamen who had proved obstrepol rons were handcuffed. The men, after the E ringleader was taken in charge, begged to L be removed along with him, declaring they would not be separated, or, to use their own 1 language, it was to be "all or none." Much i credit is due to Sergeants Castles and Mul- > ville, and Constables Gillies, Haslett, and . O'Reilly for the manner in which they conducted themselves during the affray. De- ' tective Jeffrey arrived just in time, and his r presence was successful in effectually quell- ! ing the remaining elements of rowdyism. L The vessel now building by Sir. Robert L Stone, of Shortland, has so far been completed, that she presents to the eye one of the . handsomest models that could well be desired, ; and promises to be well adapted for the . trade for which her owner, Captaid Burning- > ham, intends her,—the Thames and Ohinemuri passenger and goods transit. The E vessel is 75ft. keel, SOft. over all; lift. Tin. . beam; with a depth of hold moulded oft. > 6in. She has been constructed of pohuta- > kawa ribs, with 2 coats diagonal and 1 longitudinal planking of heart of kauri, the ' deck'of the same charocter, and from her . lines should draw but little water, and : the same time attain great speed. She is ; to be fitted with engines and sida-paddles, j the two cylinders beitfg lOf inches diameter . each. The machinery may be expected to j arrive from England during the month of > May. In the meantime, the craft will be j fitted with masts and cabins, and forwarded L as much as possible, so that her entrance upon the water may take place with as little | delay as possibla after the machinery arrives, i In builder's . measurement she will be about [ 45 tons, and a credit to owner and builder. ' A meeting of the committee of the Auck- ' land Rifle Association was held yesterday 1 evening—Mr. C. B. Stone (Vice-president) '. in the chair—when it was resolved to hold 1 the next matches on the 21st and 22nd of ' April next, the rifles to be used in the 1 matches to be the short Sniders only, as ' issued by the Government. All subscrip- [ tions to be paid on or before the 15th April ! proximo, after which date no entries will be j allowed. Amongst the list of prizes we may I mention the following, viz. : a handsome : Bilver cup, valued at £26, presented by Mr. 1 Richard Beck; a valuable cup and star, 1 presented by Mr. JB> Brett, and the As- ' sociation medal. A general list of prizes J will be arranged at the next meeting, to be held on the 17th April. 1 Section No. 4 of the Thames waterworks —the contract taken by W. Sims, including i the dam at Waio-Karaka and the piping in I connection therewith—has been well begun. The old dam erected by the companies has • been sluiced out, the soil for the most part being deposited on the flat, while the water i from the race finds its way to the beach, i The clay subsoil will form part of the embankment. • Quantities of stone have been carted to the site, as well as some cf the large pipes cast at Judd's foundry. In the i sub-contractor's shed (Mr.s Casely) about a t dozen men are employed in converting the iron fluming imported by the Government ! for the race, Of which there is a large over- ; plus, into the desired shape and size for piping, and having the requisite appliances fixed for cutting and punching, as well as a • furnace for treatment of the plates of iron, , to subdue them to any desired curve. It will not be long before a very good show is made in the performance of this contract.— [Thames Correspondent.] ! A Provincial Government Gazette was pub- ! lished yesterday. A proclamation by His ; Honor Sir George Grey declares that native I pigeons may be shot during the months of May, June, and July of the present year, and that all native game, except the native i pigeon and curlew,' may be shot during the months of April, May, June, and July. It is notified that Mr. P. McNair has . been elected Chairman of the Newton Highway Board, vice F. Jones, resigned ; and thafc'Ed-" ward Constable ha? been appointed Chairman of the Waiuku Highway Board, vice Caleb Hosking, resigned. It is also notified ■ that , tenders will be.received at the Superintendent's office,, until noon of the 13th April, for the lease for three years of the Market Reserve, Oneliunga. The schedule of poundage fees, an extract from the General Government Gazette, a proclamation by the, Superintendent of Auckland, imposing penalties under the Auckland Waste Lands Act, 1575, for breaches of the regulations for granting water rights, and a number of mining, land, and legal notices, also appear in the Gazette. Sometime ago we gave an elaborate description of the ropa-making establishment on the Ponsonby Road, conducted by Mr. Neil Lloyd. Since that time, further arrangements have been made, and both the machinery and stock considerably enlarged. In particular, it may be mentioned that measures have been taken to keep up a constant supply of yarns on spindles, ready for working into strands at a moment's notice. These yarns are composed of Russian hemp, Manila fibre, and New Zealand hemp, and any party requiring ropes constructed of either can be accommodated without delay with ropes of all gauges and any material. Some time ago we stated that the wreckage, consisting of cedar wood, cabin fittings, &c., found on the beach near Cape Brett, might possibly belong to the schooner Blanche. Fortunately, all doubts are nowset at rest, as far as this vessel is concerned, by her arrival in harbour safe and sound. The question, therefore, remains, to which vessel does the wreckage belong Captain Farquhar stated lately that he would willingly take the lona in, and bring the pieces of wreck washed ashore up to town for identification, but the coast was too dangerous for the steamer to go near. The Revenue cutter Ringleader is now lying in port, and might, be sent up the coast for this purposee. The annual general meeting of the Warehousemen's Football Club was held on Tuesday evening, at the warehouse of Messrs. A. Clark and Sons, when there was a large attendance of members. The office-bearers of the previous season were re-elected, rules were adopted for the government of the club, and the new uniforms were distributed. ' A scratch match was arranged for Saturday afternoon, in the Domain, between the members of the club, when a large turn out is expected. A meeting of the Endowment Committee of the City Council was held yesterday afternoon. Present: His Worship the Mayor, Councillors Daldy, Holdship, and Buchanan. The question of increased accommodation had been referred to this committee by the general ; meeting of the Council. The Mayor referred to the miserable accommodation in the pre- ! sent offices. After some discussion, a sub- ; committee, consisting of the Mayor and Councillors Hurst and Buchanan were ap- ' pointed to enquire and report upon the question ofjoffice accommodation. i The last of the lectures in aid of the Mount Eden Sunday-school will be de-, livered this evening in the Rooms of the" - Young Men's Christian Association by Mr. - William Eastwood of Onehunga. Consider- ' ing the good object for which the lecture is given, and the interesting Bubject to be 1 spoken upon, there should be a large atten- i dance to hear of the varied events during i the reign of .the Virgin Queen. i Tne Independent Order of Good Templars ' at the Thames held a very successful gathering on Monday eveningT The occasion being i the third anniversary of the Northern 1 ! Pioneer Lodge. <

A meeting of the Streets Committee was held yesterday. Present: —His Worship the Mayor, and Councillors Hurst, Brett, Prime,and Buchanan. The petition from residents in Napier-street was read,*and it was resolved/ That it is not /advisable, .so late Jin the "present season, td undertake .any permanent work in this street,, but' that earty in the ensuing spring it. be one of the streets recommended to be permanently formed_aiid 'made." With referenceVto the ventilation of the main sewer, it was resolved to order six of Latham's charcoal sewer ventilators, at a price of £7 16s each. These ventilators" have been highly recommended by the New South Wales Commissioners of Sewerage. The editor of the Coromandel Mail cautions his readers not to think lightly of the labours taken in the issue of a newspaper. He says:—ln this day's issue we give our readers the creme dt let creme of news culled from between forty and fifty of our exchange newspapers. These items refer to events •rhich have occured throughout the Colonies. They will probably be read in about as many minute as, it took the compiler hours, to get them together. People will read a paper, throw it down, or cast on one side saying there is nothing in it, when it may be that half a dozen experienced heads have been working through the day, and half through the night, in collating news and completing information. for easy and pleasant reading. To those who say there is nothing in the papers, only let them try the editing or sub-editing for a month and they will think there is a precious deal too much in them. . Leaving our own little one-horse afiair out of the argument and not to go too far afield we will take such daily papers, for instance as the New Zealand Herald or • the Southern Cross. Enter one of these establishments late at night, and there will be seen a great number of fellow labourers hard at work, while most of you are comfortably snoozing in your beds. But before the compositors can handle the type, the matter has to be prepared by the. literary staff of the paper. Go into a morning newspaper establishment. at midnight, and there you will see all hands laboriously engaged under the unwholesome smell and glare of gas. The editor engaged writing his leader upon the latest topic that has agitated the public mind. The sub-editoris revising or re-writing matter sent to him from out of door correspondents, or he is selecting and rejecting, clipping extracts and condensing them ; writing sensation headings for telegrams making it out that they are stupendously important, which generally speaking is very far from the case. Reporters are writing out the occurrences of the day obtained from the law courts, from the police, from officials and from other sources which only experienced* presshands know how to get at. All this time, and for long hours after, the compositors by gaslight are picking up the single letters which make up words and sentences put together by brain work, the fireman is getting up steam, the pressman is getting ready for printing. The fly boys are being aroused from their slumbers, and in the small hours of the night, when most others are in dreamland, all in the printing office is life and activity. Every man and also every lad engaged on the mechanical department of the paper, must possess considerable intelligence and a thorough knowledge of his work. So then, oh stupid foolish reader, when you take the damp morning sheet in your hand, don't throw ifc down contemptuously on one side ; don't call it a rag and say there is nothing in the paper. At Green Ponds, Tasmania, they have devised an excellent method of bagging a drunkard without exposing the arresting constable to the risk of a personal encounter. The local watch-house is at an outskirt of the village, and is furnished with an outside lamp, such as is displayed by publicans. When the wandering tippler, staggering from tavern to tavern, finally reels into it in search of one more drink, the door is closed upon him, and he is cdmfortably caged for the night. That scarlet fever has been hanging about the Thames for some weeks is evident, and a few fatal cases have boen noted, confined to children. • The Health Officer's report on the subject shows that it is still in the neighbourhood, and in consequence of a fatal case in the Waiotahi Creek, the public school there has been closed by the Committee, till such time as the disease may be considered extirpated. His Honor Mr. Justice Gillies sat yesterday in banco. The case Bucholz v. Meyer was adjourned. Tapp v. Purchas and Armstrong, the Onehunga Will case, came again before the Court. His Honor • ordered the declaration to be amended so as to bring all the children of the late Mr. McCutcheon within the proceeding. An application * was made to dismiss the action in the case of Osborne v. Buchanan, but the application was refused upon certain grounds of legal practice. We are pleased to announce that the efforts which have been made by the Committee of the Kapanga School District to secure from the Government a site for a School Building hasat last been successful. Theyliave also obtained a grant for the Board of £175 towards the erection of a School on condition that the District raised an additional £75. This will no doubt be done without difficulty and we hope to see a School built within threemonths equal to the importance of the place and sufficient for - its requirements.—Cor.omandel Mail. . We publish elsewhere the scale of charges proposed to be made for the supply of water to different classes of property. These have still to pass the ordeal of the City Council, and may perhaps be altered. We observe that the charge of Id is to be made for every bucket of water taken from the standpipe. The object of this is, of course, to compel parties to take the water into their houses; but we should think that it would be somewhat difficult to levy such a charge, and also that the object might be attained in an- , other way. The local authorities in Coromandel have been instructed to serve no less than ten distress warrants for non-payment of the Education rate. We have made strict enquiry and learn beyond all manner of doubt that in six of these cases, the parties are not able to pay, but are absolutely living upon charitable relief, or upon credit given to them by those who know their desperate circumstances. Is this right in a Christian landj? Is it human or is it—what ..shall we say? Is it an exercise of legal brutality. The local officials have nothing to do in this matter. Who then is answerable ?— Coromandel Mail. The Stains Wellington correspondent telegraphs : —"lt is understood that the directors of New Zealand Times will carry on the paper as usual, and that the changes to be made in the literary and clerical staff will not be so sweeping as was at one time anticipated. They wUI merely retrench sufficiently to prevent loss in the undertaking. The directors are on the whole more satisfied with the prospects of the concern than was supposed, owing to the damaging rumours that were circulated, chiefly by dissatisfied and interested persons." The report and financial statement of the Auckland Acclimatisation Society, for 187576, which were read and adopted at the last annual meeting, have been published in a neat pamphlet form by Air. William Atkin. The particulars of the report have been made public through these columns. The Engineer Volunteers and Cadets underwent their inspection last evening, in the Drill-shed. There was a first-class muster—over thirty men and forty Cadets being present. The drill was, on the whole, fairly performed. A march-out was afterwards indulged in. The man John Evans whose name has been for so long past intimately associated with amalgam cases has we are informed left Coromandel for good,' he is said to have done sufficiently well to enable him to clear away fromthe district.—Coromandel Mail. We were glad to hear late last evening that Captain Eyre, the Governor of the Gaol, was much better, and that some Hopes were of entertained his ultimate recovery.