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New Zealand Herald, Volume XXV, Issue 9184, 13 October 1888, Page 5

Up to the time of going to press cable communication with Europe had not been restored, and, in consequence, our despatches from England and the various capitals of the Continent had nob come to hand. The mail steamer Mariposa is expected to arrive from San Francisco to-morrow. She wings. English correspondence up to September Sth. We understand that the payments made this week, and those winch will be made next week, by Mr. George iloldship, on account of the Kauri Timber Company, to l"'i-''iis having interests in the property bought, will amount to over £'250,000. Tile shareholders of the Auckland Timber Company receive a considerable portion of t.'.i- money. The regular meeting of the Board of Education was held yesterday, at which a pood deal of business was transacted. The involutions fixing the scale of teachers' salaries, which were moved by Mr. Cooper •'"- the last meeting, were brought up for discussion, but the debate on them was further adjourned for a fortnight. An extraordinary letter, received from the chairman of the Tuakau School Committee, coiimionunff on Mr. Coopers remarks in reference to the seventh standard class in that school, was read, and replied to by Mr. Cooper, who remarked on the gratuitous insult conveyed in it. A detailed report of the proceedings appears in another column. The class for agricultural chemistry, to be conducted by Mr. Pond, will be inaugurated on Wednesday evening next at "'« \Veilesley-3treet East School, when preliminary arrangements will be made, *»ud Mr. Pond will srive his first lecture.

It appears that although tho whole accommodation nt the Hospital is absorbed, it is deemed preferable to placing extra patients on the floor to utilising the wooden fever hospital at the rear of the Hospital proper, as it entails extra work upon the nursing stall", and it is considered advisable to keep the fever hospital to the purpose for which it. was built. Though now empty, it is not likely long to remain so, as the typhoid season sets in in November. A letter from a resident in Wellington appears in a recent number of the Buenos ; Avres Standard, inquiring on behalf of some New Zealand colonists as to facilities for settling '" the Argentine Republic. We are informed, on good authority, that labour is very plentiful at Buenos Ayres, and any number of men can be got at. from •2s to :>s a day, and that the French and Italians work hard and appear to thrive on that small pittance, and think it good pay, and in corsequence are much preferred to English labourers. In another column will be found an advertisement, calling n special general meeting of the shareholders in the Bank of New Zealand for Friday. October 19, to confirm certain resolutions passed at thespecialgeneral meeting of shareholders held on the 1 Itli inst. A notice is also published in regard to the issue of "25,000 new shares on the colonial registers. Applications for these shares will be received at any otlice of the Bank up to the 30th inst. from shareholders at par; from the public at Ul premium. Particulars respecting the application and allotment will be found in the advertisement. The case of Cartwright v. the Committee of the Auckland Poultry Association was concluded yesterday. The plaintiff w<s nonsuited, the Magistrate holding that the committee had acted according to the rules of the Association and within their powers. The costs amounted to i's 11s (id. so that Mr. Cartwright is plucked as well as his bird. A special meeting of the Trades and Labour Council, to which the members of the Bootmakers' Union were invited, was held last, evening. The various trades were represented. Mr. Tudehope (president) presided. The meeting was convened to receive the reply of the Messrs. Garrett to a letter sent by the Council containing the demands made by the Bootmakers' Union. This letter, it may be explained, was forwarded at the reddest of Messrs. Garrett Brothers, who desired to know specifically 'he demands of the Union and they would then be prepared to reply. The letter was forwarded on the-'27th September, and the Messrs. Garrett replied on the 10th October,* saying that they saw no necessity for any correspondence on the subject. A lengthy and desultory discussion took place on the letter, and considerable surprise was felt and expressed at its curt tone. The meeting adjourned for a week, and the secretary (Mr. Farnall) was desired to write again to the Messrs. Garrett, requesting a more specific answer. An open meeting of the Gem of Auckland Lodge, 1.0. G.T., was held last evening in the Temperance Hall, when a programme, consisting of songs, recitations, and addresses, was cone through in a highly creditable manner. A pleasant evening was spent. There was a fair attendance. In a report to the Wanganui Education Board by its Inspector. Mr. W. H. VerekerBindon, M.A. (formerly head master of Xewton East School, Auckland), he thus refers to the reading books in use in standards TV., V*., nnd Vl.:—" I am afraid the reading books generally in use in standards IV., V., and VI are partly responsible for lack of intelligence in reading, for the mechanical difiiculties presented by some of the pieces therein, outside the ordinary ciitticulty of reading itself, are often very great. Many of the pieces teem with difficult and pedantic words : and of how little help to the pupils are the meanings given the following, taken at haphazard from the book, wiil show: —'Luxuriance' = 'prolificness,' " civilising '= ' ameliorating,' predecessor '= ' precursor, , ' gigantic '— ' stupendous," • illustrative '=' expository." ' reflecting '= ' animadverting,'' receptacle = ' repository,, " invincible '— ' invulnerable." \\ hat a feast here for the lover of the ' highpolite' style of English! but what terrible words to" inflict upon a poor, harmless schoolboy, and, too, for no fault of hi~ own! I* tru?t the new 'Southern Cross Readers' will not be so 'prolific' in 'stupendous" words a? their 'precursor?.' To my mind, most publishers of reading books'make rt great mistake in endeavouring to teach by means of the reading lesson too many subjects, as history, science, and geography ; for these subjects tax the attention of the pupil so severely that the chief object of the lesson—the teaching of readine—is put in a secondary position. In the higher reading books there is not a sufficient amount, of interesting narrative and dialogue." Yesterday, the officers of the Diamond were entertained at dinner at the Auckland Club. An institution, the need of which has been much felD in Auckland, has been found in the establishment of a swimming club. A preliminary meeting has been held, when the following officers were elected : — Committee, Messrs. G-oldwater, Moore, and Brown: treasurer, Mr. Peters; secretary, Mr. 11. Nicholson. It is intended that the use of the public baths for the holding of practices and races shall be applied for, and the large number of persons who have already signified their intention of joining the club will doubtles= be greatly augmented when the warmer weather sets in. So useful and healthful a recreation as the natatory deserves to lie popularised, and no doubt the club will soon become a powerful and successful body. The unfortunate man, George Herbert Ludlow, clerk of the Court at Helensville, died yesterday morning at the District Hospital of his self-intlioted wounds. An inquest will be held to-day at half-past, two o'clock, at the Hospital, by Dr. Philson, coroner, to inquire into the circumstances surrounding his death. A correspondent " Mango," sends a note in reply to the letter of Mr. Aldis on art matters, of which we give the following material portions. He says :—" 1 cannot agree with Mr. Aldis as to the un.surpassability of the pictorial beauty of the British I a le?. It is the British spirit of conservatism in art that 1 combat, and claim for our colony attention. Scenery studded with the architectural ruins of abbeys, castles, cottages, &c, is certainly beautiful, but, however beautiful what of human creation may be, it cannot, to my mind, equal Nature itself, and 1 maintain that for varied natural beauty, New Zealand cannot be surpassed, if equalled. Before Mr. Aldis puts up an unsurpassed English scenery, he should travel our colony more, when lie would become cognisant of the fact that we have all the varied forms of natural loveliness in forest, lake, mountain, and sea. If our artists would bo a little patriotic, and whilst painting as many pictures as they may for remuneration, I think each one might produce, annually, one work of art, painted solely in the interests of art, to form part of a national collection of New Zealand pictures. A work of such nature would benefit the community, and greatly enhance the artists' reputation. In conclusion, I have a small enquiry to make. What, may I ask, has become of the drawing by William Blake, entitled, ' Lot and His Daughters.' presented by Sir G. Grey to the Art Gallery? As a .study, it is very raro and valuable, but in my perambulations through the Art Gallery, I could not come across ifc." The production of Watts-Phillips'drama, " Lost in London," at Abbott's Opera House, on the 25th instant, and two succeeding evenings, already gives promise of being a great success. In addition to the attractiveness of the programme, the philanthropic object to which the proceeds of the performances are to bo devoted should secure a continuance of the already rapid sale of tickets. The management are resolved to spare no pains to make the production as complete and effective as possible, and Mr. A. Ashton's services have been secured to provide the necessary scenic and other mechanical effects. Wo understand that amongst the performers are several ot those ladies and gentlemen who played so successfully a few evenings since in Byron's comedy of " Partners for Life," at the Choral Hall. A correspondent states that the framed photographs of the directors of the South British , Insurance Company, which appear to have so disturbed the peace of Mr. Goldie's mind, did not cost the company anything, the cost having been defrayed by I the directors theuicelvas,

An interesting lecture on the subject, "The Great Rameses," was delivered ab the Young Men's Christian Association Rooms yesterday evening. There was a large attendance'. The lecturer in an entertaining manner, and by the aid of limelight illustrations, sketched the Egyptian dynasty from Ahmos to Rameses the Great, briefly outlining the characteristics of the monarchs, and the principal features of their rule. Specimens of the colossal sculptures and statuary erected by the kings and queens, and the ruins of which arc the wonder of the traveller of to-day, were illustrated, as well as copies of tablets recently brought to light by excavations in Egypt. The pictures were clear and fine. The annual general meeting of the Auckland Yacht Club was held last night in tho Waitemata Hotel. There was a good attendance, and Mr. A. Buchanan presided. The report of the past season, read by the secretary, Mr. W. Lind, proved it to have been a very enjoyable and successful one. The consideration of the accounts was deferred owing to the absence of the treasurer. The election of officers resulted as follows : —Commodore, Mr. J. Waymouth ; vicecommodore, Mr. A. Buchanan ; secretary, Mr. W. Lind ; treasurer, Mr. G. Cozens ; committee, Messrs. C. Gibbs, 0. Wiseman, F. Cramond, R. S. Reynolds, O. B. Waymouth, J. Kinsey, F. J. Sanderson, E. Mace, J. Duder. It was decided that for the future the members'subscription should be £1 Is per annum and honorary members 10s 6d. On the motion of Mr. J. Wiseman, it was resolved that the handicapping for the club's race be entrusted to a committee of tive instead of to two as previously. The date of the club's annual cruise to Homo Hay, Motutapu, was lixed for the 9th of November, and it is expected that a large number of craft, will assemble at that, favourite anchorage, when a picnic, to which all the honorary members are to be invited, will be held. A vote of thanks to Mr. Featherstone for his kindly assistance to the club during the past season was carried by acclamation, and a similar compliment, to the chairman terminated the proceeding's. The belief in witchcraft (says a Wairarapa paper) would seem to be still pretty rampant among our Maori * friends. We are informed that the Wairarupa Native Committee recently came from farcy town, and held a sitting at Masterton, for the express purpose of investigating a case of alleged sorcery. The allegation is that a married woman, at the Alira Pah, being the daughter of a Tohunga, or Wizard, inherited the black art, and that some time ago her son, having made love to a native girl at To Ore Ore, and his attentions being scornfully rejected, she threw a spell over the girl in question, causing her illness, and eventually her death. Before her death she stated that she felt a huge stone being rolled on her, and after her demise Wi Waka (the venerable) having examined the body, declared he had found the witch's mark. The committee, after hearing all the evidence, found the alleged sorcery proven, and the supposed witch and her husband have, in consequence of their unpleasant position, changed their camp from Masterton to Greytown. A meeting was held on Thursday evening at Waite's Hall, Mount Eden, of the friends and sympathisers of Mr. James Champion, formerly in the employ of the Remuera Dairy Company. Mr. H. F. Sheppard was called to the chair. He read the report of the committee appointed at a previous meeting to inquire into Mr. Champion's case, and to take into consideration what steps should be taken to clear his character from the imputation cast upon him. It is proposed that Mr. Champion take legal proceedings for slander, and a sum of money has been subscribed to aid him in the matter. On the motion of Mr. H. Waite, the meeting adjourned till the •2nd proximo, when a progress report will be submitted. Asuccesfnl rehearsal was held last evan- | ing at All Saints' school-room for the Pon- j sonby Cncral Society's concert on Monday next. The programme, which appears in our advertising columns, is a varied and attractive one, and as comprising several novelties, should bespeak a largo attend- j ance. It is contemplated three weeks hence j to have a popular concert in aid of the funds I of the society at St. James's Hall, when the ' best items of the present programme, and some miscellaneous items, will be given. The members of the Auckland Burns' Club enjoyed a musical and literary " Twa Hours wi' James Hogg, the Ettriek Shepherd," on Thursday/ Mr. 1). B. McDonald presided, and gave a brief but pleasing ! introduction on the peculiar merits of . Hogg, and subsequently read a graphic passage from the "Queen's Wake. 1, He .said the paper to which the audience would | listen was in accordance with the objects of the club, viz., to impart a knowledge of Scottish history, poetry, and .song. The proceedings of the evening were commenced by Mrs. Angus, who gave a series of pianoforte selections, chiefly Scottish, in her best style. Mr. Blackmail read a very interesting paper on the "Ettrick Shepherd." in which ho was frequently applauded, descriptive of Ettrick and its surroundings, Hogg's boyhood, character of his earliest teacher, his life and habits among the mountains, his limited educational" advantages, his failures as a farmer, his struggles for fame, his visits to Professor Wilson and Wordsworth, his "Queen's Wake' (with extracts) nights ab Abbotsford, his visit to London, and weariness of it? noisy streets, with sundry intervening anecdotes and absurdities, closing with an account of the shepherd's peaceful death, and a general summary of his works. Tho following songs from Hogg were contributed during the evening:— "Come O'er the Stream, Charlie," Mr. Carter " W'ha Will Ride wi' Gallant Murray," Mr. Smith ; " Bird of the Wilderness," Mr. Lankham ; " When tho Comes Hamc," Mr. Lyle. Other pieces were rendered as under : — Recitation, "Animosity," Mr. Parker; " Gala Water," Miss Smith ; pianoforte solo, Miss Parker; "The Little Hero," Mr. Armstrong; "Little Nell," Mrs. Leers ; duet, "The Crookit Bawbee," lady amateur and Mr. Carter. The proceedings terminated with votes of thanks, i on the proposition of Captain D. H. Mac- i Kenzie, and " Auld Lang Syne." i A Canterbury paper, referring to the improvement in the demand for land, says : — " Evidence of this was plainly given in the land sale held at Tcinuka a day or two ago, when prices ranging from £10 up to £21 l.j.s pur acre were obtained. The prices were indeed too high, for notwithstanding that the land in question is first-class, and has the advantage of proximity to the railway, it will require high prices for produce to make farming pay when the j cost of the land ranges up to these figures, ! As our Timaru contemporary remarks, the | values at which tho Temuka farms sold j 'show a return to that speculative spirit | which brought about the downfall of so j many well-to-do persons,' and, we may add, j also show that, notwithstanding the sharp ' lesson of the past few years, returning good ; times will be the signal for the sanguine to j plunge again as others have plunged before j them." : The Newton Social Union terminated the j season on Thursday night in the Foresters' j Hall, Karangahape Road, with a plain and i fancv dress ball. The affair was a most ! unqualified success in every way. There ; were fully sixty couples present, and the ! costumes" and dresses were unusually at- j tractive and tasteful, many of those worn I by the ladies being elegant and beautiful, j The music, which was all that could be j desired, was supplied by Messrs. Reed and , Davis's band, and the introduction of an i occasional vocal waltz, well rendered by the ■ musicians, was thoroughly appreciated by ! both dancers and spectators, the latter > crowding the stage, and evidently viewing j the proceedings with great interest. The j catering was undertaken by the committee ; of the Union, and the result was satisfac- j tory to themselves and to those who par- j took of the good things provided. Messrs. ! J. S. Fotheringham and W. L. Hobson ' wore efficient and attentive M.C.'s. The ball opened with a grand march, _ and during its progress coloured limelights were thrown upon the dancers with excel- i lent effect. The light was kindly supplied | by Mr. W. C Dennes. The dancing was kept up with great spirit till nearly four o'clock on Friday morning. Professor Anderson gave another of his agreeable and mysterious entertainments at | the Opera House last night, and his feats of necromancy and spiritualistic manifestations were very heartily received by the audience. In order to afford children and j others who might be unable to be present at night an opportunity to witness the entertainment, a. matinee performance will be given to-day at reduced prices to all patted the hou-a?.-

An impudent case of horse-stealing has been reported to the police. The owner of a horse turned it out yesterday morning into a M'ell fenced paddock at the junction of Sentinel and Jervois Roads. At midday he missed the animal, and thinking that someone, hnrd-up, was desirous of making his passage to Melbourne, by disposing of the animal at the ealeyards, ho went down to one of the saleyards, and found that his horse had been duly numbered and sold. He has put a padlock on that pate, but of course the steed was stolen. A man named James Collins, aged S6 years of ape, who resides at Newton East, was found last evening on Shelly Beach Road in a swoon, suffering from bleeding cancer. Constable McConnell had him removed to the Hospital.

Special attention is directed to the extensive sale of freehold properties in city, suburbs, and country by Messrs. D. F. Evans and Co., at their mart, Queen-street. _ ino 12 acres at Avondale have great facilities for subdivision, having fiontages to three roads. The volcanic allotments at Mount Eden are worthy of attention, while the villa and grounds at Mount Albert aro all that could be desired in the shape of a pretty place. The 4k acres of land at Avondale are of the finest quality, level, and fenced. The section corner of Park and Carlton Roads is, without doubt, first-class. The 5J acres of land at Balmain, Takapuna, are situated close to the water, and of easy distance from Birkenheari. The houses and other properties are all worthy of attention, and being for absolute sale, offer a rare opportunity for a safe investment. The sale takes place on Monday at noon. Notice is given that it is the intention of the City Council to fix the levels of Wynd-ham-strcet, between Hobsou and Nelsonstreets. Plans can be seen at the Engineer's office, and objections will be heard on Thursday evening, the '22nd prox., but objections must be sent in ten days previously to the Council.