Untitled

New Zealand Herald, Volume XVI, Issue 5350, 9 January 1879, Page 2

The half yearly general meeting of the New Zealand Insurance Company was held yesterday, and the report of the proceedings will be found The directors were enabled, notwithstanding the keen competition prevalent amongst insurance -companies, to present a most satisfactory report and balance-sheet, aud declare a dividend of 15 per cent. The confidence of the shareholders in the board of directors was evinced by their re-electing the three retiring members, and passing them a vote ot thanks. A deserved vote of thanks was also accorded to Mr. G. P. Pierce, general manager, and the officers of the company. Wo are glad to hear that there is no truth in the rumour in circulation here for the pa3t few days, to the effect that the new detective department now iu course of formation was to be placed under the control of Superintendent Thomson, of the Auckland District. This chaDge, if carried out, would of course entail Mr. Thomson's removal to Wellington, and for this reason the rumour in question did not, on the face of it, appear to us to be feasible, as the Government could scarcely retain three superintendents at Wellington, when only one officer of that rank is allotted respectively to Otago, Canterbury, and Auckland. In compliance with a request from a number of cit zens, the Mayor of Thames has called a meeting to take measures for suitably entertaining the Hon. J. Sheehan. The banquet will probably be held on the evening of Monday next. The criminal business of the Quarterly Circuit Court was concluded yesterday. There are no civil cases set down for hearing, and the Court adjourned sine die. The P.M. s.s. City of New York, for San Francisco, carried away the following heavy mail from this city on Tuesday, exclusive ot that from other ports :—5551 letters, 36G books and parcels, and 5170 newspapers, contained in 26 bags. The mail service has increased so much of late that it has been found necessary to provide the mail agent an assistant, and Messrs. Andrews and Morton, from the Auckland office, were the officers iu charge on this occasion. The Post-office Department bad an unusually busy time of it on Tuesday, what with the arrival of the mail steamer from Sydney and her departure, and that of the Tararua, &c., besides the ordinary mails. We learn that a movement has been initiated to bring under the notice of the Government the desirability of removing at stated intervals the. various officers connected with the Customs department. The recent changes of a similar kind in another portion of the civil service, viz., the police, are admitted to have proved beneficial to that force, and there is a wide-spread feeling abroad that if the same system were extended to some other branches of the Civil Service, a greater efficiency in the departments would be the result. There are a considerable number of small debt cases set down for hearing at the R.SI. Court to-day, but none of them possess any features of special interest. There were no arrests made by the police up to a late hour last night, although the street was more thronged than usual. The fineness of the night, and the clear, bright moon offered many inducements for outdoor promenades, and at every street corner there was a crowd of greater or lesser magnitude. At the corner of the British Hotel, Durham-street, at about 9 o'clock last night, pome surprise and a good deal of fun was occasioned by an amateur ventriloquist, and a considerable crowd collected around the place. A correspondent asks : " What horse was placed third in the race for the Auckland Cup, when Kingfisher ran first and Guy Fawkes second ?" Mr. A. Buckland's Ariel, 3yrs., Gst. olbs. ; ridden by J. Matthews. The racehorses, Piutiro, Repo, and Ariel, which ran at the Auckland meeting, were shipped yesterday, by the s.s. Prettj Jane, for Gisborue, and Eversley and The Agent went in the s.s. Wellington, from the Manu kau, to Wellington. The vessels in harbour and many of the mercantile houses were gay with bunting y> sterday, in honour of the marriage of Mr. Edwin Stone, son of Mr. C. J. Stone, to Miss Gertrude Larkins, daughter of Mr. Fredk. Larkins, of the firm of McArther and Co. The ceremony took place at 1 p.m. at St. Mary's Church, Parnell. The marriage was solemnized by the Right Rev. Dr. Cowie, Bishop of Auckland, assisted by the Von. Archdeacou Maunsell, in presence of the parents, relatives, aud friends of the bride aud bridegroom. The following ladies were the bridesmaids, each of whom were presented by Mr. Stone with a handsome necklace : — Misses Emily, Francis, Rose, Florence Larkins, and Misses Mary and Amy Stone. The "groomsman" was Mr. Richard Morrow, attended by Messrs. H. B. Morton, A. Aitkin, J. Marshall, D. Tonks, Master Russell Larkins. At the conclusion, the numerous circle of relatives and friends who were present offered their congratulations to the bride and bridegroom, amidst which the happy pair wore driven away to enjoy tho honeymoon. The name of Mr. John Gordon, of The Willows, Otahuhn, was omitted from the list of grand jurors at the opening of the Supreme Court in io sCriminal Jurisdiction. There is an incongruity about the police regulations, if, as seems to be the case, the policemen on duty at night during the present hot weather are compelled to wear their heavy friez: watchcoats. They have no heavier clothing during the severest weather of winter. We are sure it is not from choice they wear this heavy clothing, aud perhaps, if they represented tho matter to their ofiicers, they might be allowed to do duty in less oppressive costume. It could not fail to impair their usefulness iu tho event of a struggle or a chase at night. Wo believe no member of the force would prefer a heavy frieze coat on such nights as have recently been prevalent to a light blue tuuic. Tho authorities may take the matter into • consideration, and make the requisite conce=sion, for though moderately.heavy clothing may be desirable in the colder South, it is altogether out of placj iu the District of Auckland. The United Prayer Meeting, hold iu tho Hall of the Young Men's Rooms, was well attended last night. The Rev. Mr. Macnicol presided, aud gave an interesting aud instructive address. Tho llev. Mr. Kirk will conduct this evening's meeting. The subjects suggested for prayer are :— " For tho effusion of tho Holy Ghost upon all flesh" ; " For the continuance of peace '; "For tho establishment of righ'eous government"; "For the spread of enlightenment, good-will, and the love of justico among all nations, aud for their conversion to Christ"; " For the removal of intemperance and other social evils" ; " Sps - cial prayer for the nation, its Sovereign, aud all iu authority." A case of scarlet fever has occurr. d at the Thames. His Worship the Mayor of the Thames sent tho following telegram to Sir George Grey oil Saturday last:—"l have great pleasure in forwarding this day by Rotomahana, for your acceptance, a case, containing the barrow and spade used by you in turning the first sod of the railway. I trust thit you injy be long spared to see tho successful result of your labours that day, and that the possession of the spade and barrow may recall pleasant remiuisceuces of your last visit to the Thames.—W. McCullough." The following reply was received today :—"Wellington, January 7. His Worship tho Mayor, Thames: I received your kind telegram just as I was leaving Waiwera for Wellington, which place I was obliged to proceed to at once. I feel grateful to you for having forwarded the spade and barrow to me, and for the encouraging expression which you made use of upon that occasion. I shall keep them both as reminiscences of my connection with tho Thames people, which I trust may result in benefit to them, and of the pleasure which I enjoyed on my last visit there in inaugurating a work which, I feel satisfied, will result in great advantages to the whole of that part of New Zealand, so rich as it is in minerals and fine soil.—G. Gkky." Mr. C. E. Haughton has come again before tho public, as- the prosecutor of an old woman for stealing a watch from his house in Pitt street, Dunedin. The woman was committed for trial. Mr. Thomas Miller, of Wellington, ib preparing a fine bust of Te Hapaku, the famous Maori chief. The bust has reached the plaster of Paris stage. It is to be worked in Cararra marble. The Illustrated New Zealand Herald publishes with its number of January 2 a fine coloured plate of "Tho Stockrider." It also gives on the first page of the paper portraits of the members of the Grey Ministry.

With reference to a statement- that a strike had occurred on board the s.s. Argyle and Rowena, we are in a position to give the following version of it :—The simple facts of the matter are that the articles of the seamen on board the s.s. Argyle expired at the end of the year, and in response to the men, who had been receiving £6 per mouth, the captain agreed to give at the rate of £7 per month for the holidays, and the run down to Whangarei and back. When the settlement took place on Tuesday, the men, before signing articles for a further term of service, demanded £7 a-month, which was refused, and a fresh crew immedia'.ely pnton at the old rate. The articles of the men on board the s.s. Rowena do not expire until the 11th instant, and what they will do remains to be seen. We hear, however, that besides the four men from the Argyle, there are two from the Pretty Jane, two from the Rotomahana, and several from the Southern Cross—in all about a dozen— whose places have been readily filled up at the old rate of £6 per month. Those who have stood out for the advance have been promised the assistance of several boarding-house-keepers, who will do their utmost to prevent men engaging under £7 per month. With respect to the agitation, we care not to go into the merits of the case, but when men enter into a struggle of this kind they should have some organisation to carry out their object, but as yet there is nothing of the kind. We think the movement ill-timed, aud we are sure that it will end in the dofeat of the men, so far as regards Auckland. Yesterday applications were received in abundance from men who have been accustomed to a seafaring life until within the last few years, and since then have taken to the bush or the Thames. As there is likely to be a dearth of employment at the latter place for some time to come, applications were received yesterday, from a3 many persons as would man the whole of the coastal steamers which sail out of the port of Aackland. The Thames Advertiser says "It seems that his Lordship the Bishop of Auckland is not satisfied with the Education Act at present in force, and wishes to replace it by a denominational one, and for this purpose has been lately canvassing in Auckland to get up a meeting for the purpose of forwarding his views in this mat'er, but from all we can hear he has not been so successful as he anticipated, many of hia co-religionists being of opiuion that the present Act is not only suitable, but that any alteration in a denomiuational direction will be against the wishes of a majority of the inhabitants of the colony. We trust that the good sense of the people of the province will shew his Lordship, or any person of the same views, that they are not to be hoodwinked by the fine promises held out to them in favour of denominational instead of a secular system of education for the youth of the colony, but will reject with scorn all attempts to upset the present Act, which, with all its faults, has been found to be one of the best Acts ever given to the colony, and (at least, so far as the Thames ia concerned) has been most successful, and is becoming more so every day. If his Lordship is anxious for the religious training of the yonth, he can Barely find time to give them religious instruction in any or all of the public schools, as they are only occupied Bome 35 hours during the week, but at any other time are open to him if he is anxious for the spiritual welfare of the rising generation." Many are apt to sneer at the usefulness of matrimonial agencies, but it would seem they serve a use even in New Zealand. For several years Mr. T. B. Hannaford has acted as a matiimonial agent, and we learn that up to the present time 6S couples of those he has been the means of introducing to each other hive become married, and that all are as happy as the general run of married people. (Some people will say that that is not saying much ) A mouth or two ago a well-to-do farmer in the Waikato district called upon him on a Wednesday at aoon respecting a wife. On the evening of the same day he was introduced to a respectable widow on Mr. Hannaford's list, and the bona fides of each party having bsen inquired into and proved satisfactory, and the candidates for matrimony being satisfied with each other, they were married on the following day. Several weeks afterwards they severally wrote to their friends in town, and each seemed to be as woll satisfied with their mate as if ihey had carried on a course of courting for a lengthened period. About three weeks ago an elderly gentleman from a west coast settlement called upon Mr. Hannaford on a similar mission on a Saturday morning. On the evening of the same day a lady was brought from Onehunga, aud introduced to the would-be Benedict. Each beiug satisfied with the other, and the enquiry into each other's circumstances having proved agreeable, they were married at the Registrar's on the following Monday, and are now happy and contented in each other's affection. Tuesday's Thames Advertiser has the following :—A very painful case of sudden death occurred on board the s.s. Rotomahana shortly after the vessel left Auckland wharf yesterday on her trip to the Thames. It appears that Mr. J. M. McLaren, the Mining Inspector, with his wife and family, were returning to the Thames after the holidays, and when the vessel was in the harbour, the infant child suddenly expired. No symptoms of illness, beyond a slight feverishness arising from teethins.', had been noticeable, but it is believed the cause of death was an attack of cholera. Although the heat was very great, mother and infant had been exposed to the sun for some time prior to the vessel leaving, and from thi3 fact it was thought probable the child died from a sunstroke. Dr. Kilgour, the coroner, wa3 communicated with on arrival at the Thames, but ho did not consider an inquest necessary, and a certificate of the cause'of death will be given. The Sydney Jfoni'my Herald records a very sad occurrence which took place at Hawkesbury. It appears that Willie Huey, one of the mo3t accomplished of our light weights, wjb doing a swoat, in order to reduce himself to ride at the ensuing mecti iDg, when he suddenly stopped and fell, and expired almost immediately. The following telegram, addressed to his Worship the Mayor of Wellington, by the Secretary of the Seamen's Union, has been published:—"Sydney, 3rd instant. The strike has euded in our favour. Please stay further subscriptions. We tender our grateful thanks for the assistance rendered.— (Signed)—J. F. Poole." " in the Australasian, writes:— "Of course I dined with Alderman McArthur, and perhaps no one present had longer acquaintance with the guest of the evening. In the ancient city where he laid the modest foundation of his future fortunes, I was a small and smooth-faced schoolboy. It is an interesting fact that some 20 prosperous men of business present oa Monday l«st had been brought up in Mr. MoArthur's establishments. Conuested with his place of business in the venerable city to which I have alluded was an excellent library containing thousands of sterling books. Aud to the literary opportunity thu3 afforded, as well as to the rigid discipline enforced, is greatly due the success of many young fellows who took pleasure in entertaining tbeir former chief." Terrible as is the disaster of the Scotch Bank failure, there was one characteristic incident with a gleam of humour in it. Au old maiden lady, who was postmistress and telegraph agent at Wick, had all her savings in the local branch of the City of Glasgow Bank. A message came through early addressed to the manager, instructing him not j to open the doors, as the bank had suspended payment. The old lady presented herself at the branch at the opening hour, and drew out all her cash. She then proceeded to the bank parlour and informed the manager that as an important telegraphic message had arrived for him she had just brought it along herself ! —Australasian. Mr. R. N. Adams, of Dunedin, has written a pamphlet entitled, " Who are the Saxons ?" A Dunedin paper, in noticing it, says :— "The author endeavours to shew by historical and Scriptural testimony that tlie British nation is identical with the Ten Lost Tribes of Israel. Queen Victoria is declared to be a lineal descendant of King David, and the_ writer points to. an important change which is to come over the world three years hence, or before the leases of the Canterbury runs expire."