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New Zealand Herald, Volume XXIV, Issue 8066, 6 October 1887, Page 4

Our cablegrams to-day contain some interesting news. It is expected that the French war in Madagascar will be renewed. Austria is strengthening her forces in Bosnia and Herzegovina in cousequence of the triumph of the Anti-Austrian party in Servia. Tne Austro-German press is delighted at Italy having joined the alliance. Malietos has arrived at Cooktown, where he was transferred to the Albatross, which left immediately, it is surmised, for German New? Guinea. The King is accompanied by hia son and some chiefs. News from Samoa states that he surrendered to the Germans in order to avert bloodshed.

The case Rhodes v. Kerr, which has occupied the Supreme Court and jury since Thursday morning last, was brought to a conclusion at half-past eleven o'clock last night. The jury returned a verdict on the issues in favour of the plaintiff, for whom judgment was given for £539 and coats on the highest scale. Leave was reserved to the defendant to move for arrest of judgment or for a new trial.

The old man, Francis Conway, who died go suddenly on Monday last at Itiverhead, was an old pensioner of the 88th. Regimen.}:, and had resided for some years at HowicL He was no less than 44 years in the Imperii! service, and served right through the Wui. kato war. He was 93 years of age at thv time of his death.

At the Chamber sittings of the Supreme Court, held on Tuesday, before Mr. Justice Gillies, an application for probate was made in the will of Frank William Foley, late of Devonport, but Mr. W. 7. Napier opposed the application on behalf of the widow of the deceased, and h»d lodged a caveat, and it is probable that the will will be contested on several grounds.

It is a pity that such a valuable industry as gcmdigging should be the cause of damage to tile land, in consequence of reckless turning up of the soil in huge heaps, leaving deep holes, in some cases wantonly uprooting large trees, whereas by fair dig. ging more gum could be extracted, and the ground improved. The roads have not escaped. Water-courses have been filled up, and the sidings dug up. A visit to Birkenhead and Lucas Creek will convince anyone that it will be costly to the owners to restore their properties to a fit condition for settlement, independently of the loss of native shrubs and trees, which remained from a once famous forest.

It is not often that we get at the political views of our merchants, but we find from our South Australian files the following, which the leading journal in Adelaide in«erts under the heading of "Protection from the Politicians." The Register says :— " The fears of true progressive South Australians regarding the stumbling block of protection which our legislators are now engaged ia laying for us, are finding a re-echo in the mercantile community of New Zealand. In that colony there appears to be a growing worship of the protective chimera, but amongst the far-seeing in our sister community there are also those who honestly point out the fallacies of the theory and i;s blows to true progress. Messrs L. D. Nathan and Co., of Auckland, write to a mercantile firm at Port Adelaide as follows :— * Wo observe that your legislators are determined to shut out our produce, and are of opinion that the surest way to ' bring about intercolonial reciprocity is to have such a war of tariff* between the different colonies as to reduce the thing to an absurdity. The feeling for rabid protection is getting the upper hand in New Zealand, and this move of yours in shutting out our butter, cheese, bacon, etc., will probably be met by further levies upon your wines. Last American mail we refused to handle California wines, on the ground that we would not throw over our South Australian neighbours ; and it seems to us that you should rather encourage the growth of mutual feeling, instead of doing exactly the opposite. We fear that both ot our respective colonies are being ruined by the politicians.' "

Amongst farther very numerous testimonies which Dr. Laishley has recently received to the value of his report, the following extract from a letter to him by the Vice-Chancellor of the Oxford University may be noted, especially as showing that he considers the work or world-wide importance " I find the-contents of your work extremely interesting and well arranged. As far aa lam aware it brings together information that cannot be found in any other book. I have deposited your book in the Bodleian library, with a view to its being generally useful." Dr. Laishley has ■ also received eulogistic letters from Mr. Matthew Arnold (who is very pronounced in his admiration), the Rev. Dr. Stainer, the Earl of Meath, Professor Meikltjohn, the Right Hon. G. J. Goschen, the Hon. G. C. Brodrick (Warden of ilertoa College, Oxford), Viscount Cranbrook, the Hon. E. Lyulph Stanley, and from the rectors of several German universities. The .Rev, Dr. Stainer in his letter says :—" I have perueed it with much pleasure since my return, and am convinced that it is the most valuable work in the English language on the subject ever published," and again, "Allow me to congratulate you on the honorary degree which has been conferred upon you, and which you so highly merit." As an instance of appreciation, of the work by the Germans, a quotation from tho letter dated 31at July last, from the rector of Marburg university may be given "By your report you have rendered a great service, not only to your native land, but to the whole edu» cated world."

At the Police Court yesterday, a man named Charles Wilkinson was brought before Mr. Baddelay, R.M., on a charge of vagrancy, and also of maliciously breaking a fanlight, worth 20s, in Dr. Hooper's residence. Several witnesses were examined, and their testimony showed that Wilkinson had been caught in the act of throwing the stones at the wiodow. It was also proved that he had been previously convicted of larceny at Welling ion, and of wilful damage to property in Auckland only last week. His Worship commented strongly upon the wantonness of accused's conduct, and sentenced him to three months' imprisonment on the first charge, and two months on the second, the terms to run consecutively, or five months in ail—a decision which appeared to greatly astound the prisoner.

Quite a large crowd of sightseers were attracted yesterday in Queen- street to observe the reeving of the flag-halyards in the truck of the flagstaff of the Victoria Arcade. They . were not, of coarse, interested much in the question of whether or not a flag was hoisted there, but no one could help admiring the agility and dexterity of the young man who climbed up the pole at that great height time after time, and his task was made all the more difficult by the tangled and twisted manner in which the lines were sent up to him. It was with a certain feeling of relief that those who watohed him saw him complete his task,and climb down the dome to the parapet beneath, and this perhaps was the most daring feat of the whole as he trusted entirely to such projections as he could lay hold of for his safety.

A lecture on the subject, "The Reign of Cant," was delivered at St. James's Hall yesterday evening by the Rev. R. Sommerville, in aid of the funds of St. James's Presbyterian Church. There was a meagre attendance. The Rev. R. F. Macnicol pre* sided. Mr. Sommerrille pointed oat that it was a fact beyond dispute that cant reigned in the world, and remarked that it was not found only within the sphere of religion, since it might be practised by the ' merchant selling his goods, or by the lawyer stating his case in Court. If they looked down the ' advertisements in any newspaper they would find abundant illustration of the cant of trade and the cant of labour. The lecturer read a number of the answers received to a cfrcular issued by a London agency on March 17, ISS6, setting forth the heads under which failures in ; ife might be classed. Many of those who forwarded replies attributed their failure in life to the fact of being reared as " gentlemen," and taught to think that they must not work. These answers were instanced by the lecturer as showing the prevalence of social cant. The subject of religious cant was dealt with at great length, and the lecturer in conclusion, earnestly advised his hearers to discourage shams in whatever garb appearing. The Christian religion did not require to be bolstered up by cant and make-believes, which were uttely opposed to the teaching of the Great Founder of Christianity. A' vote of thanks wag accorded to the lecturer, and the proceedings terminated with prayer. The following musical programme was submitted during the evening, Mr. Baxter conducting : —Part song, " War," Messrs. Peace, Cousins, Sims, and Bartlett; sonJ, " The Blue Alsatian Mountains," Mr. LaMonts ; song,. " Cleverly Caught," Miss Edmonds ; duet, " When the Wind Blows in From the Sea," Mr. and Mrs. Bartlett; glee, •' By the Taper's Light," Miss Edmonds, Mrs. Bartlett, and Messrs. Peace and Bartlett; song, "Silver Rhine, 1 ' Mr. Peace; duet, " Starlight on the River," Misses Davies; song, "The Fisher Hero," Mrs. Bartlett.

We have received the following from the secretary of the New Zealand Frozen Meal and Storage Company : —" I&m instructed by the managing director to furnish to you as matter of interest to readers of your paper, and for insertion if you think fit, particulars of our recent tallow and tinned meat consignments Per ship Hermione, from this port, we shipped to London 3000 cases preserved meats, weighing 178,S001bs nett; 332 casks tallow, weighiug 110 tons nett. Per s.s. lonic, leaving Wellington this month, we are shipping 1800 cases preserved meats, weighiug 110,4001bs nett. Per 8.8. Coptic, le»ving Wellington next month, wa are arranging to ship 15 tons butter, All those shipments are consignments for London.

We have received from the Auckland Sun-day-school Union a copy of a new work on Second Advent truth, entitled "The Days of the Son of Man," by tho author of " Maranutha."

• The annual benefit tendered to St. Mary's Convent;, Ponsonby, was hold. yesterday evening! at the City Hall, and took the form of a concert and dramatic entertainment. There was a large attendance. The following programme was submitter!, several of the items being encored: Overture, cflvatina from "II Barbiere " (Hossini), orchestra song, "My Sweetheart when a Boy," Dr. Erson ; song, " Alia Stella Confidante " (violin oblignto, Herr Tutschka) (V. Eolandi), M' sa Rita Tole; song, " .-Soldier's Dream" (orchestral accompaniment), Mr. Ferriday; song, " White Wings" (Pinsoti), Miss C. Lorrigan ; grand duo brilliante from ."Tannhailser" (Wagner), piano Miss C. Wright, violin HerrL. Tntschka ; song. " La Berenata" (violincello, AerrTatschka) (Braija), Miss Halstead ; song (selected), Mr. Worrall; recitation, "The Razor Seller," Master Erson ; banjo nolo and song. Mr. G. W. Dennis ; waltz, "Krolls Ball KUnge," orchestra. The lecond part of the entertainment, which was introduced with the overture, " Monotrier de St. Wnast" by the orchestra, consisted of the operetta, "Red Riding Hood,'' performed by the pupils of St Patriot's Convent Schools, the cast of characters being as follows: —Rod Riding Hood, Mis 3 Fernandez; Mother, Miss Glover; Hugh (woodman), Miss Bond; Wolf, Miss Jackson ; Robin, Misses Darby and A. Lynch ; Rose, Miss Gleeson ; Buttercups, Aliases Little and Brown. The accompaniments during the concert were skilfully rendered by Misses Shanaghan, I Kirby, Wright and Lynch, the orchestral j pieces being.contributed by the following gentlemen : —Messrs Hiscocks, Mahonoy and Smaleii (violins), M. Shoahan (clarionette), J), Shoahan (flute), Murnford (alto), Kingsford ('cello), Borthwick (double-bass). The efforts of the Albert Park gardener are almost useless. Dogs are spoiling'his work. The damage is generally done in the early morning by dogs from tho vicinity. Mr. Wells intends to obtain authority to lay poison, as dogs are not allowed in the Park under a penalty of 40s, so that persons who j ' take them in must take the responsibility. , The monthly meeting of the Auckland Acclimatisation Society was held on Tuesday afternoon, at the Museum. There wore present: Messrs.. Barstow (president), Bull, Bartt,, Hill, and Harrow. The minutes of last meeting were confirmed, and the financial statement showed the receipts to be £2 18s, and the payments £35 3< 3d, leaving a credit balance of £130 16« sd, was adopted. The secretary stated that the consignment of 10,000 brown tront ova, which had buen received from the Otago society, had been hatched in the Domain fishponds, with a result of about 8500 healthy try. Some discussion took place as to the advisability of distributing the fry, but it was decided to wait until they attained a larger size, and the matter was accordingly deferred till next, meeting. Instructions were given to tho secretary to make inquiries as to the cost of laying down a connection from the city mains to the society's present water supply. A rabbiter named Frank Lewis was drowned while crossing a flooded river At Akiteo, in Wairarapa, Wellington. This evening, at Abbott's Opera House, Mrs, Greenwood and her talented daughters will give a farewell concert, prior to their departure from Auckland. The programme U replete with items of rare merit, and the entertainment should on that score alone be well attended. Apart, however, from this, there is . the fact that the Greenwood family are setting out upon an artistic career throughout the world, and the public of Auckland should therefore assemble in large numbers to bid them an enthusiastic adieu.

Seldom have the residents of Otahuhu and neighbourhood had a better opportunity of listening to 'a high-class concert than was afforded them last night when the annual Entertainment provided by the direotore of the Otahuhu Public Hall was given. There was & good attendance and a capital programme was gone through in. a manner that proved highly pleasing both to the audience and to the performers. Several ladies and gentlemen from Auckland and Onehunga kindly assisted. The platform was tastefully decorated with flowisrs and plants, and arranged in drawingroom style. The first part of the programme was opened by Miss Franklin, who gave a piano solo, " The Spinning W2ieel," which waft well received and skilfully played. " The Flying Dutchman" was vigorously rendered by Mr. J. Mitchell, and contrasted pleasantly with Sullivan's "Oace Again," which was sweetly sung, by Mrs. Hunter. Thin. was followed by "The Last Watch," capitally sung by Mr. A. L. Edwards, and a recitation, " Pastor MoKnock's Address," by Mr. W. F. Wilson. A.pleasant feature in the entertainment was the introduction of two overtures by Eady's band—" Trovatore" and the " Carnival"—both of which were

performed splendidly, and must have proved a great treat to the audience. "True to. the , Last"-,received careful rendering from Mr. F. Yonge. The next item was a duet, ■ " When the Wind Blows in' from the Sea,," which .. was tastefully rendered by Mies Wallace and Mr. Mitchell, and re-demanded. A violin solo by Captain Halse showed- the gentleman's command over the instrument to ' advantage. • The Grafton Orpheus Club contributed two quartettes, 1 both of which Were sang very harmoniously. A piano solo, ''Kathleen Mavonrneen," by Mrs. Swears . received a highly cultivated treatment. " Will o' the -Wisp," sung in capital style by Mr. T. Charters, concluded the first part of the programme. The second part was as follows trio, piano, Mcsdames Swears, Mitchell, and Franklin ; song, Mrs. Hunter; duet, 41 Comrade, to Arms," Messrs F. Yonge and J. Mitchell; song, "The Skipper," Mr. Charters ; quartette (A — Horace ode, B — 44 Gome Boys Merry Be,") the Graf Orpheus Club; duet, Mesdames Hunter and Brnssey ; overture, Eady's band ; song, Mr. Hookey; solo, Mr. Edwards; song, "The Angel's Serenade," Miss Wallace; song, "Qaeonie," Mr. ,W. Martin; "God Save the Queen." On the whole, the concert was one of the best lever. given in the Otahuhu Public Hall,' and the directors are to bo congratulated upon the success of the entertainment. After the concert dancing was kept np to the small hoars, the musio being provided by Eady'a band. The monthly meeting of the Waikato Hospital Board wan held yesteaday. Present : The Chairman, and • Messrs. Gwynneth, Chepmsll, Primrose, Seddon, Hunter, and McDonald. A letter was read from the mnnager of St. Mary's Industrial School, Ponsonby, stating that two more children of the Vallily family had been sent to the St. Mary's Orphanage, and sending an account for their maintenance for payment. It was resolved, " That the chairman and committee draw up a memo, to the members for the Waipa and Waikato districts, to introduce Legislative provisions to deal with such cases, providing that the maintenance of sbildren committed by Resident Magistrates to a reformatory should be borne by the Government in the same way las in the case of ordinary prisoners. A letter was received from Mr. flay, of the 4th Ootober, saying he had just heard from Mr. Cotter, who said that he does not think proceedings can be taken to set aside the award of the Auditor-General payable to the 1 Auckland district on the severance from it of Waikato, but that the Board must wait until the award is sued upon, and plead its invalidity as a defence. Mr. Hay recommended the Board to place the matter in tho hands of their Parliamentary representative in order to endeavour to prevent any subsidy due to the Waikato board being paid to the Auckland Board. .A resolution was passed instructing the secretary to write to Messrs Whyte and Jackson asking them to look after the interests of the Waikato hoard in this matter, especially to prevent the payment of any subsidy till • the question in dispute had been settled at law. The report • of the charitable aid department showed that 49 persons were receiving relief at a cost of £6 3a 9d per week. Accounts to the amount of £133 9s were passed for payment. The Chairman gave the following notice of motion for next sitting day:—" 1. '1 hat the Board decides that the present Hospital site is the beat site for a permanent Hospital for tho district of Waikato, and take the necessary step* to complete the purchase of the same; (2) that this Boardrespectfully urges upon the Government the necessity for inserting in all railWay and other Government contract works a clause to compel the contractor or contractors to provide for an accident fund as ft means to secure greater safety for the Workmen employed upon the works, and to provide the means for paying the cost of 'hospital treatment in ease of accidents or •sickness befalling them during their employment on the works."

On Wednesday morning one of the Avondale omnibuses met with an accident at the corner of Wcllesley-Btreet. When going round the corner one of the horses slipped and fell under the other. With the assistance of Detective Herbert and others the nnimal wan righted, and the omnibus piojeedod on its journey,

Last evening Miss " Georgie Smithson, assisted by Mr. Lauria Dunbar, gave the last of her olevor Maocabean performances to an audience that • was not at all commensurate with the merit of the entertainment. Apart from the lightning changes made by her, and tho gorgeous and correct oostuming of each character, the incidental songs and sound advice upon political, social and domestic topics given by Miss Smithson earned well deserved applause.

The monthly meeting of Paparata Band of Hope wad held on Friday evening, September 30. Instead of the usual programme, the service of song, '* Buy Your Own Cherries," was rendered. The choir was assisted by several members of St. Peter's Church choir, Bombay. Mr. Lindsay presided ; and Mr. R. French, with his usual ability, read the narrative. The solos were nicely rendered by Miss Kate Sawyer and Messrs. A. Sawyer and G. Mackey. At the close, a cordial vote of thanks was accorded to Mr. French for tho pleasing manner in which ha performed his duties, also to the Bombay choir for their kind assistance. Messrs. Cornthwaite and A. Sawyer officiated at the harmonium alternately.—[Bombay Correspondent.]

The Wesleyau quarterly meeting of the Paparoa circuit, was held on the 27 th September,, at the parsonage. The question of an independent and legislative conference for New Zealand was brought before tho meeting, and received unanimous approval. Arrangements for the Homo Mission Services were made. Tho Rev. Mr. Marshall, Wairoa, is to be the representative this year. The services will commence about the 22nd October.

The Auckland Weekly News occupies the position of the premier weekly journal of New Zealand. Its popularity in the town and country districts of the North Island is attested by the large circulation which it enjoys, while in other parts of the colony, in Australia, and the islands, and in America, and England, it is widely known and read. As au advertising medium it thus possesses advantages which no similar newspaper in the colony can lay claim to. Its country news, si.pplied eaoh week by a numerous staff of reliable correspondents, is complete and impartial. Considerable space is devoted to the practical work of the farm, and to all subjects relating to agriculture. This department of the News is; under the charge of a gentleman of groat experience and knowledge of all matters connected with the cultivation of the soil, and to render the information given as useful as possible, the subjects treated on are illustrated by skilfully-executed engravings. The sports of the field and turf are fully chronicled, and attention is devoted to the pleasant and interesting games of chess and draughts. As a family journal and general newspaper the News ranks equally high, and the greatest care is exercised to maintain tho wholesome tone and character of its reading matter—nothing that is offensive to good taste or cherished convictions being admitted to its columns. It contains a weekly history of the news of tho world, and special contributions on a wide range of subjects, from the facile pens of accomplished writers. 'Its serial tales are of absorbing interest, and are contributed by some of the foremost novelists of the day. A sermon by an eminent divine, and some well-selected Sunday reading, is also published each week.

A sale of Crown lands takes place to-day, at eleven a.m.,- at the office of the Crown Lands Board.

Messrs. Arthur and Buddie hold a sale of furniture in Albert-street to-day.

A concert will bo given in Holy Trinity Schoolroom this evening.