LATEST WELLINGTON NEWS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XVIII, Issue 6064, 25 April 1881, Page 5

LATEST WELLINGTON NEWS.

.[BY-TELEGRAPH. —SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT.] Wellington, Saturday, c RAILWAY CONSTRUCTION SCHEME, n A Cfiristchurch telegram, received by the n Press Association, states that 44 Government have determined to introduce a TSill next session embodying the principle of conceding h land to the promoters of railway construcr- tion." As this positive announcement is calh culated to produce an erroneous impression, o it may be as well to explain that absolutely >f nothing is " determined" as yet. Ministers i, have under consideration the desirableness of y such a'measure as that indicated, h and it is believed that they are very favour- ; 0 ably disposed toward the plan, but the ques- | e tion is still an entirely open one whether it will be carried out, or in what way. There e is probably not much doubt that something : t will be done in this direction if it is clearly ;. shown to the Government that it is really t desired, and if the public prove their own 5 earnestness and bona jid?.s in the matter e by tiie exertions they make, and the extent S to which they support the efforts of the proe motors of the various schemes. 1 THE REVENUE. j Complete returns of the Customs revenue a •ellected in New Zealand during the financial year ended the 31st ult., are now to ' hand. The total amount is £1,309,5t8, or a £59,54S above the Colonial Treasurer's esti--3 mate in his last budget. The Customs re- [ turns for the year just expired show an increase of £126,307 on the preceding year, a \ very substantial improvement, even allowing » for the difference made by the higher taritf , now in force. The total result thuß very } closely approaches that of IS7B-9. All the 3 ports exhibit a marked advance on the prej ceding year. i THE RUMOURED NATIVE i PLOUGHING. It has been ascertained that the last native ploughing canard arose from a mistake of a 7 Government officer imperfectly acquainted with the Maori language. This officer inis- ; understood a remark by a native, one of the discharged prisoners, who mentioned that f he had positively refused to allow his i " children" or "young men" to plough, ! not only on the road line, but even on some land near where they had an undoubted right I to cultivate. He was anxious to run no risk I of infringing the law. This remark was mis- " taken as meaning directly the opposite, ! hence the blunder.