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New Zealand Herald, Volume XXV, Issue 9139, 22 August 1888, Page 4

General Bonlanger's star is again in the ascendant. He has been returned by large majorities for the departments of the Nord, Charente-Inf<srieure, and Somme. This result proves that the General's popularity in these districts has not decreased, in spite of the ridicule which has been heaped upon this stormy petrel of French politics. His supporters are accused of tampering with the Army. In the course of a speech, the Emperor William stated that the present relations of France and Germany afforded cause for uneasiness. The annexation of Massowah by Italy is giving rise to .the interchange of diplomatic notes on the subject. Affairs in Zuluiand appear to be settling down.

We publish elsewhere the second letter of our special correspondent at the Melbourne Exhibition. In the first place he deals with the mineral exhibits, showing conclusively (what is indeed now universally admitted) that it is most imperfect, and unfair to the mineral resources of the colony. He then passes on to notice several pther classes of exhibits sent from New Zealand.

It is notified by the officer in charge of the telegraph office that mails for the Australian colonies and China, via Sydney, will close at Wellington on Friday, the 24th day of August, at two p.m. Ordinary telegrams for the above should be lodged not later than a quarter past one p.m., and urgents not later Chan a quarter to two p.m.

The s.s. Manapouri, which sail l for Sydney last night, again took away a large number of passengers from this port, who were, as usu , t ] attended to the ship's gangway by a' equally numerous throng of friends and acquaintances to bid them farewell. Th steamer had in all 218 passengers, 2ti beinr» booked from Southern ports, the balan " (84 cabin and 108 steerage) being Auckland. The bulk of the Auckland saloon passengers were evidently on pW sure bent, making a " little trip" to see th* Melbourne Exhibition, etc. Amon» th " could be noticed Messrs. C. C. MeXliiia! 11 It. Arthur, J. A. Pond, R. A. Cart- j' Buchanan, A. Featherstone, 3. I»ere" Smith, and other well-known citizens. Th majority of the steerage passengers," how* ever, evidently belonged to the worlds classes, and were making the voyage to Australia with a view to improve °their prospects and seeking better times than have been their lot of late in our city.

A report has been received by Inspector Broham from Constable Rist, Coromundel with respect to the search for the man' William Cummings, who was lost in the bush. It was thought that Cummings had gone in the direction of Manaia, and Constable Rist, who set out on the 17th inVt made inquiries at the goldfields and native settlements, without success. He then travelled by the coast to the Waikawau on the Thames Road, and he also searched at the Mahakarau, where he met Constable Walker, with a party of twelve men who also reported an unsuccessful search' Parties of two men each were formed, ami the bush searched up to 4 p.m. on the *20rh instant, when the parties again met, nosi'ni of Cummings having been seen. The mining man was prospecting in company with two other men, Acton and Rogers, and had worked with them up to Saturday, the llt'n instant, when, taking a gun, he lett ! ie camp to shoot, and has not since been seen. In conversation with Cummings, Acton asked what he would do if he l«sr his way? Cummings replied that he would go into the creek, and follow it down. The pros, pect of Cummings' being found alive is now considered almost hopeless. Mrs. Cummings, his wife, resides in Auckland, and the poor woman is almost demented at the thought of the face which may have befall.-n her husband.

Our Wellington special correspondent telegraphs that Mr. Matthew Barry, the well-known mining prospector, is in \V e lington, and is to be seen gliding about the Native and Mining Departments. it j s rumoured there are two applications for discoveries of new goldfields in the vicinity of the King country, but Barry declares that he is not in either of them.

The usual meeting of the Progressive League was held in Robson's Rooms on Monday evening, Mr. F. Renshaw, evident, in the chair. There was a large attendance of members. Mr. Micky reopened the debate on Freetrade v. Proteclion. Most of the members had something to say either for or against, but the majority seemed to incline to the Freetrade side. The chief weakness of the League appear* to be that there is more talk than argument. However, the society is young yet, and certainly the debate was lively if not argumentative. Finally, after a few words from the president, the debate was adjourned until next Monday evening, when Mr. T. West will re-open on the Freetrade side.

It is reported that the expense to which the Times has been put in defending thy libel case brought against it by O'Donnvll amounts to between £30,000 and i'-kUXH). Without exactly specifying the figure, there is no doubt the outlay must have been large, and the only value for the money they have had has been in their coun.-el setting out various letters damaging to Mr. Parnell and others. The costs that they are entitled to they will in all probability never see.

Two coursing events of considerable interestare to be contested to-day at l'lumpton Park, namely, the All-aged Stakes, and the St. Leger Stakes, and should the weather prove tine there should be a good attendance. A special train will leave Auckland for Plumpton Park at twenty-five minutes to ten a.m., and will pick up passengers at, intermediate stations.

The figure of a saint carved In wood, which belonged to the late Mr. Albin Martin, was examined in the Art Gallery yesterday by a number of visitors. It is an exquisite piece of workmanship, an achievement of genius and of enormous industry and skill. It is believed to be by Grinling Gibbons, who was probably the best wood carver who ever lived. The figure was, we understand, highly prized by the late Mr. Albin Martin, who was a first-rate judge in all matters of art. It was presented to the Art Gallery by Mrs. Albin Martin, in accordance with the wish or her late husband.

Shortly after eleven o'clock yesterday morning, a collision between two vehicles occurred in Queen-street, opposite Haslett's chemist's shop. It seems that a youth named John Morrison was driving a spring cart belonging to Hulme, the butcher, down the street, one of his wheels running in the groove of the tramrail. He pulled the wheel out, when the cart swerved and collided with a trap belonging to Mr. \\. E. Knott, of Wairoa South. Morrison was thrown out on his head, and the wheels of the cart passed over his legs. The horse was stopped after bolting a distance down the street, while the trap was seriously damaged, both shafts being smashed and the harness injured. Morrison was taken into Mr. Haslett's shop, where he was at-, tended by Dr. Purchas. It was found that; his legs were badly bruised, but luckily no bones were broken, and after resting for a while in the shop he was removed to his home in Icefield-street.

In a leading article on the San Francisco mail service the Sydney Morning Herald says :—" A service ria San Francisco, under the conditions of swiftness and punctuality that are implied when it. is maintained for the carriage of mails, is no longer necessary in the sense that it was necessary tiiteen years ago. If it be said that there is a far better prospect of trade now than there was then, the inference should be that a subsidy will be no longer required. The growth oi trade will provide the means for rendering the enterprise profitable. The trade can be carried in steamers built for trade purposes, and not tied down by the conditions as to arrivals and depart which attach to a mail contract. The service hitherto has been carried on almost^ entirely by the enterprise of New South V\ ales ancl New Zealand, with scanty assistance from the Government of the United States : and we are not therefore bound by any feelings of grateful reciprocity to continue the subsidy if it should be no longer required. There is one consideration which should not be left out of sight, and that is the desirability of having a mail service by ay of the Pacific available in time of war. But that consideration now presents itself in a different aspect. The completion of the Canadian Transcontinental railway brings before us the possibility of a Pacific mail service that would pass on 'an through British territory only, and voul be throughout in British hands. It is contended that, for mail purposes, a mail service by way of Vancouver and i Canada would be shorter, more expeditious, and less costly, than a service by »■'! ° San Francisco and the United States. scheme has vet to be examined ; but there is at least enough in the prospect.it otten to render the Government cautious a? any proposal to commit itself further to support of a San Francisco line.

The Seacliff Asylum (says the Christchurch Telegraph) is slowly and ste.ii moving towards the sea. Since rebni' j last the north wing has steadily aawntt. nearly three inches seaward. W he'ther north wing is towing the rest of the "0 <• ing and decrepit structure after it c 0 early and watery grave, Mr. P. • . inspecting emissary from the Public Department, litis not stated in his rc P But all things considered, it is niuc 1 probable that the north wing is not inar ing to its doom alone. It is more 1" . enact the part of a tug than t a scout in its eccentric journey ovei i „ It is not exactly making ' que' - but even at the rate of three mc 1: » months it will, if it persevere, undoubted y reach the precipice some day. The Sydney Morning Herald of the J™ instant contains the following . ui; s hed sage received from Auckland, an i . t;tia in yesterday's Herald, relative o [0 Hay ward, of the Mariposa, eot "'"° d and Sydney in the Zealandia to super crea ted watch over his employer smtere:. s, bgrS no little surprise, although some dguC of the Union say that they anticipate a course."

J — — A social gathering in connection with the Birkenhead and North cote Fruit-growers' Association was held in Zion Hill Schoolroom Birkenhead, on Friday evening. The tea was provided by the committee and friends of the Association. There was a very fair attendance, considering that it was a very wet night, the room being comfortably filled, and it would have been packed had the weather been fine. The tables were presided over by lady friends of the Association.. The end of the room was decorated with fruit, flowers, and vegetables. After the tea and a few remarks from the president, Mr. Porter gave a very amusing and profitable address, at the close of which he offered, as a first prize, a copy of the Home and Farm Manual, value about two and a-half guinea.?, for the best essay on the subject of "Our Association : The Best Means of Conducting it to Promote the Greatest Good." Recitations, readings, etc., were given by the members, which were well received. A hearty vote of thanks to all who had helped to make it a grand success, brought a pleasant meeting to a close.

As cne of a course of winter evening lectures and entertainments, the Rev. J. Chew, of Beresford-street Congregational Church, delivered a very interesting lecture yesterday evening in the Congregational Church, Parnell (The Oddfellows Hall). The weather was very unfavourable, but there was a fair attendance, and the Rev. H. M. Livens presided. The subject of the lecture was " Query : or Notes of Interrogation,"' and the Rev. Mr. Chew kept his audience amused and instructed while treating i f this novel subject.

Speaking of the recent terrible weather in the South, a Kurow correspondent of an Ota go paper says :The suspension of the rabbit poisoning was among the first of the evils which the bad weather brought about, but the real effect of this will not be visible fer some months. Suffice it to say, that while snow hides the poison and drives the rabbiters from their tents, it does not materially inconvenience the rabbit. The destruction of stock, too. although it is impossible as yet to appreciate its full extent, must have been exceptionally heavy. In several positions which seem well sheltered from the terrible wind I have observed sheep dying or dead, and on the bleak wastes in parts of Benmore and Omarama I fear the country must be almost depopulated of its wool-bearing inhabitants, while there is a rumour afloat that at Ben Ohau Station " confusion now hath made its masterpiece." and the entire stock has been annihilated. In the frost which followed the second great fall of snow the thermometer at Benmore Station marked six degrees above Fahrenheit's greatest possible cold, while at the same time six degrees below zero was marked on the centigrade scale at the Rugged Ridges Station. At this temperature gums 00 feet high were killed, while at the neighbouring Aviemore Station the water pipes were burst, and the very eggs frozen solid.

Dr. Bond delivered the final lecture of his very instructive course oil ambulance work at the Young Mens Christian Association Rooms last night, and there was a large attendadce, mostly of young men, who listened with great attention to the instruction arlorded them. Dr. Bond dealt with burn? and scalds and their remedies, also with poisons (narcotic and irritant), and then gave useful information as to the best means of removing or assisting a person sintering from accident, such as a broken leg. A cordial vote of thanks was accorded to Dr. Bond at the close of his interesting and instructive course of lectures.

The secretary of the Melbourne Metropolitan Gas Company, in view of the impending strike of miners, has telegraphed to New Zealand to ascertain what likelihood there is of obtaining a regular supply of coal from Grevmouth or West port, the coal obtainable at. Russell not being regarded so suitable for gas-making as the West Coast coal.

The following notifications are from Lloyd's Weekly of July S : —Walter Allen, who left the London docks in October, IST-, for New Zealand, is inquired for by his sister Caroline ; when last heard of he was at Waiuiate. H. C. Wakefield (sometimes known as Sydney Osborne) left England about 13 years ago in the Fernglen for Hawke's Bay: he was last heard of in Auckland, New Zealand ; his aged mother would be grateful for any information respecting him.

The performance of the "Pirates of Penzance by the Amateur Opera Club was repeated last night at the Opera House, and was as successful as on previous occasions. Notwithstanding that the Opera Club had generously devoted the night's proceeds to the funds of the Auckland Benevolent Society, the audience was a poor one, comparing very unfavourably with the bumper houses that have patronised the previous representations of the opera. It is probable that the rough weather was in a great measure accountable for the falling off. The committee of the Opera Club desire to thank Mr. W. Crowther for providing cabs for last evenings performance free of charge, also Mr. W. Patterson for supplying a 'bus, Mr. E. Waters for refreshments, and the proprietors of the daily journals for gratis advertisements.

A writer in the Melbourne Argus thus pours forth the agony of his burdened soul on the subject of the " cook" : Sir, — i'ou'll be glad to hear that at last we have ;ecured a cook who is almost certain to stay the week out. She can't cook (that does not matter, my wife does it), but she is highly respectable, her grandfather was a doctor, and she has a brother behind the counter, but she's modest and unassuming, notwithstanding that, as she puts it, " she 'ates pride." When I heard the conditions, I suggested we might as well go without one, but my wire was horrified. "A house without a took, the idea !" " But, my dear," I suggested, "you do all her work." "What Joes that matter when the world does not know it?" This argument, as you will admit, sir, was unanswerable. The conditions upon which this young lady contented to join our household I consider rery reasonable. She has £1 a week and •he spare room. She goes out three nights i week, and has the use of the piano, just to keep up her music." She drops m about 9 p.m., just as we are comfortable over our coffee, with " please Hiaam, may I play a bit?" We are afraid to say no, and so the whole of us retreat to ft den of my own at the back of the house, 6ft by Bft. We have allowed her to establish a complete form of domestic communism as to the ownership of linen, &c. And yet we are not happy. This walking about on tiptoe, this constant self-restraint, this necessity of always addressing her in words and tones fitting her worth and her position, lest she should give notice, is undermining the constitutions of all of us, mclad ing—Vours, Anxious. The eighteenth annual report of St. Joseph's Society of the Sacred Heart, Mill "'ll, London, is to hand. In this document. the directors state that a marked development in the missionary work of the society took place during the year 1887. f-he most prominent undertaking was the Maori mission of New Zealand, the Rev. Others Becker and Madan having been sent to labour amongst the Maoris. Other priests are, however, to be sent out, the ''umber being in proportion to the means at the disposal of the mission authorities, i.ie second great advance which had been ®a f ie in the society's work was the taking cnarge of the new Prefecture of Kafristan, Cashmere, and Northern Punjaub, and a third undertaking was the establishment of * house of study at Baltimore, for the special training of priests for the coloured People of the United States. Brief reports ! 01 the progress which is being made at J.anous missions conducted are also pubished in the pamphlet, and interesting etters appear from Fathers Madan and e °ker, of the Maori mission, who are unanimous in declaring the need for a greater number of priests amongst the - -ioiis. The former says:—"Not only goners, but nuns, who will be willing .. ' lv on potatoes, pork, fish, and eels— A*' what the Maoris can give them "I be Wan everywhere." Several neat \' e illustrations appear in the pamphlets, £ one of St. Teresa's Convent, Kuching, rhj* showing a number of Chinese nkiren at study under the care of the 'sters, whilst in the foreground a child is prayer, is an excellent little engraving, Y m'?, evening, in the Social Hall at the Work V ' rs ' Harris, whose literary of .. J llß appeared under the nom de. plume Unn-. " ? ny Wren," will deliver a lecture hnn, • . e ,' Life, a nd Labour." Mrs. Harris coirm,. *• Wl, ' oW > a nd is obliged to leave the ho, J se '}rch of employment. It is to be well '■ :. theef , ore . that this lecture will be so tial • i as to realise for her a substantia with which to meet her exuenses.