THE New Zealand Herald AND DAILY SOUTHERN CROSS. THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 1891.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXVIII, Issue 8716, 5 November 1891, Page 4

THE New Zealand Herald AND DAILY SOUTHERN CROSS. THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 1891.

Long residence in the overgrown cities, so numerous in this modern time, has suggested many things besides General Booth's noble Salvation Army work, and his accompanying emigration project, less skilfully planned. Within that monstrous space of town and of country, which has ceasad to be country but is not yet exactly town, that space containing the mighty metropolis which in turn, unfortunately, encloses what we hear of as Darkest England— within that wilderness of brick and mortar, stretching "deep into Middlesex on the one side and Surrey on the other, and which the statists say now holds six millions of; inhabitants, difficult indeed it is for anybody long residing there to escape the belief that r,he world at large is getting overcrowded, and may some day be found too small for the ever-increasing population. • In this age, even new countries have

likewise their monster cities, and the opinions which were put forward by Malthus about the world becoming too full to support its inhabitants, we find nowadays sometimes echoed by the impressions of certain writers in New York. Perhaps it is no wonder they should be frightened ; for, 1 while Nature has left vast deserts on 1 the face of the globe, man has, by careless treatment of the soil, too frequently turned good land into bad —a : fact witnessed in various new countries, but most conspicuously in the United States. , No part of the world has been: endowed with' such a wide extent of

fertile soil as that great Republic, her resources in this way appeared so illimitable that they. have been reck-' lessly dealt with. In a bygone time the

11 lucrative demand for the tobacco- • growing of Virginia, for- the cotton crops of the Carolinas and Georgia, and for the sugar raising of Louisiana, was' responded to in such hasty - careless; > fashion as to inflict sterility along the Atlantic seaboard. Another eminent agricultural authority has assured us the abuse of the privilege of free selecl tion—exhausting one piece of ground,' only to repeat it on a fresh' piece— I has created whole zones of barrenness in. the interior.. In conseI quence of all this waste, there is . now a difficulty in: finding land for new settlers. = So last year a tract was taken from what had been marked out by treaty as the Indian territory, but no sooner was it opened' for selection, than it was rushed by so many that there was bloodshed between them ; and we learn that the same scene has just occurred again. Another traofc in the same quarter opened to accommodate 5000 selectors, the' .New York papers say, is already rushed by five times that number. It teems strange that Congress did not suppress flagrant abuse of the free selection principle. None the less, however, on this question of population outrunning the world's food supply, the pessimists are wrong, as they so often prove to be, on debatable questions." Prince Krapotkin, a recognised authority, has made it plain that by the application of science to agriculture -as now understood in France,' ; Britain, Flanders, and the United , Statesthe production of food I can be increased 75 per. cent., and the cost of production decreased 50 per cent. He points to the extraordinary results j thus obtained at Saffalese, in East Flanders, from 37,000 acres of naturally poor soil, and with - an indifferent climate, by a population of. 30,000 persons; and now. in..'the Channel .Islands, the annual produce:averages in 1 value £50 an acre and upwards. He ! says the recovery of • worn-out : lands )

mil hold an. husbandry, and. that skilled < are already taking up some of IV ** Virginia and Maryland. Lp! remark .that among those world wluch. now await E 1 the. husbandman of various J?** Western Asia and Norther^'° ! which were ancient Beats of civil- S but have long been i n grR IS ?S they are sure to h 65 day acain populous and culti fine, the delusion that the w o ril' 15 become- overcrowded could «i S arisen in minds labouring Un d • IVf mare in the overcrowded citiol name to-day is Legion. * llo *

It is something quite of a novels W have a native disturbance n * hands—to have pas erected and ° Q oill forces despatched to "the , action." But at the preset £ « rave actually two infinites!,,,, V lions in .course, of pretni-, ; the.East Coast, Tota SZ»t satisfied with the decision of tbL vf Land Court, takes possession of ~ 4? i v« ot land by a demonstration in \ plec « and the colony has to go to a 1 i able expense in sending down n der " j the Permanent Force and of the 511oi bulary to keep the peace. Tut- R f--been for many years a Sm N famous man in ; the district i li! quarrel with the Government s?° has no disagreement with an'v «r European neighbours. But he Up? l that Ins opponent has maimed.? I'*1'* fully to get a decision of the v Land Court in -his favour for -i ki ,' V( land, and he cannot stand that v demonstration is made, however -7 out any idea of bringing on Wit 1 . Tula, no doubt, honestly l>eliev,ff he has a right to some part of tk A and he thinks that lie may KPt i '[■to? by a bold act of bounce ft should be handled with care Tin* • no need for acting rashly or iJj,* He has not done much harm as! and if he is treated firmly, he ill doubt ultimately retreat quietlv « i home. In. the difficulty at K ' European is involved, but the matter' not _ serious, and will easily be » \ straight. . * P v

I The quarrel between America and Cli has, not yet been settled, but there i,, likelihood of its being adjusted withoresort to what the ancientscalled the ultix ratio regum. As jve pointed out the oth day, the present difficulty is wholly ' tributable to the American-Irish Mink» of the United States, Mr. Patrick ]•>. who appears to have been more um. t ) secure personal wealth than to pr« amicable international relations. Thesto page of Maverick's Bank, in America, hasjn to the arrest of the president and' twcoi the directors who are accused of embezzb half a million of the funds. As fuller nr. ticulars of the earthquake in Japan arm the appalling extent of the catastrophe disclosed. The loss of life is now estimjted at four thousand, while the number of tJox injured is put down at five thousand Fifty thousand houses are said to h\ve been destroyed by the shock. L Melba scandal is at present the absorbing _ topic of fashionable and operatic gossip. Mr. Armstrong, the husband o the popular Australian prima donna, a;> pears to be bent on ventilating his supposed grievances in the Courts, and the action which ho has instituted will be opposed by his wife, who has engaged th» services of an eminent Q.C. Public Ming is on the eido of the lady, who is up. parently regarded as the victim of bas? and unfounded calumnies. Party feeling still rages in Ireland Attention for the moment is directed totheCorkelection.Thrce candidates have been nominated, and the contest is likely to be the keenest that his occurred in Ireland. Mrs. Parnell, the widow of the late lri?h leader, is stated to be in a very critical state of health. Healv lias been thrashed by a nephew of the late Mr.-Parnell. The municipal elections, wliicj take, place annually on thetirstof November in England,' and which are, as a rule, conducted on party lines, have this year resulted in a Liberal gain. The HePuVLD monthly summary will be published to-morrow; and will be of unusual interest to Home readers.' As many are unable to personally mail the summary, we shall be nappy to do so for them on the receipt of 3d and address.

It is expected that the direct mail from England per the R.M.s. Tongariro, which bears dates up to September 19, will be delivered here early this morning. The mail was forwarded by rail from Wellington, and reached New Plymouth on Tuesday night, but owing to heavy nor'-wesl weather the s.e. Mahinapua did not get away Dili noon yesterday, so that the mail was delayed somewhat. The San Francisco mail steamer Monowui, which is expected about Sunday, will bring in London matter up to October 3.

Monday next being the Prince of Wales Birthday, we are requestedto state that the Post-Office will observe a close holiday or that- day, and the office will be open for the delivery of _ letters only, on the previous Saturday night (7th) from seven to eight p.m.

In reply to a telegram from Mr. Sliera, M.H.R., the Minister of Public- Work? has

informed that gentleman that he is making inquiries ae to the amount of work which can with advantage be pub in hand at the nothern end of the Main Trunk line.

Among the visitors to town recently was ■ Mr. 'Roberts, ex-Mayor of Dunedin. The Town Clerk showed him over the Freshwater Baths, and ho stated that he had not seen anything in the colonies equal to them. Last year there was an increase of WD visitors to these baths over the year preceding, and of 1000 extra to the Saltwater Baths, so that the Aucklanders apparent'? believe in the aphorism that " cleanliness is next to godliness." A motion lias been tabled by Councillor Luks for next meeting of the City Council, namely, that property-owners in the different localities bo notified to cat dow branches of trees overhanging the public roads and footpaths." The following pieces of land have been reserved for the purposes stated: Township of Russell, lots 7, 8, 9, 17, section 15, containing 2 roods, for a site for public buildings town of Russell, lot 9, section 9, containing 35 perches, for a site for public buildings; town of Russell, lot'- 1 , section 5, containing 1 rood, for asitfl fo' public buildings ; lot 14a, parish of I'uhoi, containing 12 acres for a cemetery.

Among the passengers by the R.M.& Tongariro, arrived at Wellington frora London, is Mr. F. I) Clayton, oldest son Captain M. T. Clayton, of thi# city,wW went home to secure the highest medical skill in consequence of an injury which he received to his knee on the Queen-street wharf. He went to England and placed himself under the care of Sir Edward Listed, an eminent surgeon, but it wa j necessary after all to amputate the leg, wj 3 Mr. Clayton is. now on his way back to Auckland.

. . Mr. James I'aton Thomson has been gazetted clerk of the Licensing Commit for the district of Cambridge, twee 41r> Thomas Kirk, f The annual examination in the subject 0* music, in connection with the Aucklai) :University College, was held yesterday the Choral Hall, and was conducted y Herr Carl Schmitt Twenty-four studenttook part. The examination fortheseni students comprised harmony, counterpo" . canon, fugue, form, instrumentation, » history ; and they were required to * monise melodies in three and four pa't' i transpose subjects, to score a melody , full orchestra, to write a minuet and tin . the form commonly adopted by Haydn, , to write examples of chords, ids, _ • triple suspensions, besides answering • , ous other questions ; whilst under tlia f of history the life of Karl Maria von was dealt with. In the junior division, harmony, counterpoint, and history the subjects. : The certificates are to M' sen ted on Wednesday afternoon nex<, three o'clock, when Sir G. M. O'Rorke probably deliver an address.; The ex.i tions for the Onslow medals, and the land Amateur Opera Club Exhibition , , to ..take place on. the 23th and 26tn° November. „ , , . .. '■> ■

J * A* was reported to be raging nfcStrey jjjfhis morning as we we&t to pre*, ; MfSi3JSSfi?SS ■■ to tbotion of ll currieleft a min . ] ! f t hn"lives in a settlement twenties # who t E *" no house on th seet'TZ,ucHs •*"' 60 acres, (fed, tw '.i i has six years to run. It is « ;«l tune the natives have plowed : fclio hit tl d ove (jurrie'e cattle This j onllonday last. The le&e * resi e«a on bo A Maori namoire f j 6 claimed that Taora, whoL {; it ipff his interest in the InnVo '> Kpra Kdh'iu and this accounts fori 0 ]vpic ' i .... i tl the dispute. % * nixed P as Vfiti iflSUe noT 0 "hoi to bodcS « *&, Vovillo, ill opening the Anglica J 0 U-nedin, delivered ft length. iif 1 Dealing with tho education que; B . fkl «t , n ?i' Svin.'all the circumstance!*' nx"' ho co.Hd hardly think rf. Chur would be acting wisely or rightly, ft it mi a general demand for a return o J , .Winn-ilUm. It should make » j 1 lilerfind tinner demand than ever £• . liberty to teach religion within soh«I / ; lDeny md ho believed- that if it was so I SChurch generously recognised theoxo / WO of muh that has been provided « o| h "d no dtsire for what might appear aelfj Volition, and would only, its a very It d( SUe, increase tho cost to the coram (U SSVWtinp up schools of their ow there would bo no great difficulty mo h S..L' the facilities required to onab b( them to aid the State by the contribute of their influence for tho public weal. ; . La? t evening, Sergeant Bernard an c , Constable Russell, of Newton, arrested \ Sun named White, with several «Wj tf| £ -eel with drunkenness and also allego< et larceny There were found in his posse* "ion two odd boots, apparent y wmplfc, boot? from a boot factory, with labels an^ 1 numbers on them. - ~ 1 Tie friendly Benefit Society of the'} i Union Steamship Company's employees now ; c comprises SOU members, and its first annual I meeting tor the election of a committee of , mvniK'enient takes place next month. Th© men elect half the committee, and the com- ( mnv the ot her half. There are said to be a f I score of applications for every vacancy in , 1 the Company's service, which says much , for the reputation of the Company as to . liberality of treatment. Among the appli- , cants are secretaries of the ex-Federated , Seamen's Union, and men have even re- . moved to Dunedin in order to secure the £ first opportunity of getting back again into . the service. The Company has dealt very , honourably with its " free labour" nil of it ; which has proved competent being re t tnincd, both on the steamers and on the , wharves. < yesterday at a meeting of the committee i of the Auckland Society'for the Prevention c of Cruelty to Animals, the following ad- a dress (handsomely illuminated) was pre- ' seated to Captain Webb, one of the vice- o presidents, he having been a very active member of the Society " Dear Sir,—On , the eve of your departure from Auckland, ' te desire to express our rep-ret at being' tVprived of the great assistance you have ® invariably rendered to the humane cause \« all have at heart. Implicitly believing due do, that the operations of our society ? hie not only prevented a great deal of c crkelty to the lower creatures of the Creator, but are also fostering more humane* „ sc/itinientd in the rising generation, thai V loss of your valuable help is a public one; . We feel convinced that wherever your In r rosy be cast, your kindness of heart ar* " humane principles will, as they have been p Auckland, be a blessing to the communLy ? by which you may be surrounded. Wi/h- - ijg you every happiness and properity,Ave V are, Ac."—(Here follow the signatures). Captain Webb expressed his gratification n at receiving the address, which he assured the committeo would be highly priced not only by himself but also by the members of e his family. / d At the Dunedin Presbyterian Synod, -a P large representative meeting of ladies made c representations of their willingness to raise d funds by means of vhich the children of t clergy engaged in mission work might be P brought to New Zealand for education, n The Synod accepted the proposal with en- 11 thusiasm. F

Yesterday morning, an old man named Timothy , Baano, aged, 78, residing in Clarence-street, Ponsonby, was found dead in bed. He ha.* been feeble of late, though not ill. Mrs. Dtuine informed Constable Foreman, who made the necessary investigations, that her husband retired to bed on the previous evening in his ordinary health, and about one o'clock in the morning he

awoke and spoke to her, appearing to be all right. When .Mrs. Dunns got up, about live o'clock in the morning, and began to dress herself, she noticed there was something wrong, and on examining her husband, she found he was dead. For the past year he had been troubled with a bad cough, but had not been attended by any medical man during that period. Dr. JJeaie gave a certificate that deceased died from senile decay, consequently there will be no inquest. The negotiations between the Northcote Ferry Company and the Devonport Ferry Company for the purchase by the latter of the interests of the former company huve fallen through. As a result the Devonport Ferry Company have determined to inaugurate a service on their own account between Auckland, Northcote, and Birkenhead, two of their .-team are taking up the running next week. The steamers to be put on are being overhauled and refitted for the summer passenger traffic. The new Northcote ferry tee. advancing to completion, will greatly facilitate the traffic, as it is within a stone's throw of the terminus «'f the tramway system. Under the projected arrangement the residents on the o 'her side of the harbour should be well served, having what they have long desired to possess, two strings to their bow. A singular case came before Mr. Kawson, K.M., at In vercargill, yesterday. Some I time back, a school teacher named Kllburn wrote to the press regarding alleged gross ill-treatment of a cow, and the police, acting on the strength of the letter, prosecuted a settler named Duranb. Kilburn's wife was the principal witness, but the evidence utterly failed to substantiate the alleged cruelty, and the case was dismissed. lhirantnow sued Kilburn for £2 14s costs incurred in his defence. The magistrate held the action to be one for malicious prosecution, and the Court therelore had no jurisdiction. Plaintiff was nonsuited. - ; - The unfortunate man Newell, who was drowned while bathing at Ngaruawahia, "as a son of the late Mr. anil Mrs. Hamil too Jewell. Hy district orders the Auckland City guards will parade at two p.m. on Saturday at the riiie range for volley and independent firing ; and the Auckland Engineers, Victoria, Newton, and Royal Irish Kifles at half-past three p.m. at the Drill* shed for inspection and drill. General Booth (says the Hobart Mercury "'October 21) has received an offer from ih-. Kiiipo, a Melbourne auctioneer, of a sufficient quantity of freehold land to start an " Deer the-sea Colony." He is, in fact, offered an island, which he can occupy all to himself, and where he can reign supreme over the waifs and strays whom he may desire to initiate into all the delights of farm lite. There is one condition attached: 10 the prolferreil gift, however, which has undoubtedly led to its being received, with less rapture than might have been expected, and that Is that those who are to he reclaimed are to be Australians. The donor has recognised that there is in all our large cities, ju.«t as there'is in all large cities elsewhere, a certain percentage of those who either cannot or. will nob work, or who have been unable to find remunerative labour of a. 'kind suitable to them, and it is to the rescue of these, if the salvation Army leader will help them, Mr. lyiipe lias come, and not to the refuse the London streets. There would be Some sense if Mr. Booth were to ask Australians to put their hands in their pockets to further such iv scheme as this. These unfortunate people who seem to have missed the marl: in life's journey are actually with us, forming a very dangerous element in the community. To convert them into decent' ] hard-working tillers of the soil would not j surely be harder than to change the London' rouirh in a like direction. The offer of n. us Island is an Instance of great and .1-timed generosity, and if General Booth is not too far-sighted to see the work now •ying at his very door he will do well to accept it, and so make his Antipodean visit real benefit to the community, though it toay not realise his first ideal. .

The Ota© Daily Times and the Dunedin Star had leuling articles on Bishop Selwyn in coiineotici.with the laying of the foundation Bton of the Selwyn College. 'The Times, in lonoluding its article, says " The nam«jof Bishop Selwyn is less vividly familiar in 1 Otago than in other parts of New Ze&lsii'd. but it is henceforth to be associated Ivitn an Institution in our midst. The foundation stone of a Theological. College, to to, known as Selwyu College, for the purpo/e of training young men for the Anglican' ministry, will be laid to-day. I It is well tnown that the project has long lain very close to the heart of the Bishop of , Dunedin, who must now feel gratified that his desires are entering upon the ntage of pract/oal realisation. The ceremony will | gain additional interest by the presence of the gifted and popular Bishop of Christshurch It is only to be regretted that the balf-contenary , of Bishop, Selwyn's episcopacy is synchronous with more than one Gainful experience in oonnootion with his jhurch. The health of his son, the gallant md winning successor of Patteson in the Mehnesian Bishopric, is a ' cause of conit»nt anxiety ; his friend, tho aged Primate, iiplays marked symptoms of advancing -ailty j while physical collapse has just ocessitotcd the retirement), of another ighly respected bishop at a comparatively »rly age. To-day, however, the thought >f misfortunes may well be banished ; the taine of Selwyn suggests confidence, not lespondoncy; and hope, courage, energy re the words which, being dead, he yet peaks to the church and the colony which io loved. For * Ood buries His workers, ut carries on Bis work.'" A few days ago the Countess of Onslow isited the studio of Mr. C. H. Manning, Ihrisichurch, When hor New Zealand-born on, Huia Onslow, was photographed .with he greenstone ornaments, feathers, mats, to., presented to him by the chiefs on the ecent visit of His JSxcellenoy and the j 'ountesa to their pa. Mr. Manning sue- 1 eeded in obtaining five excellent cabinet egabives, pictures from some of which the ionntess of Onslow intends to send home o Her Majesty the Queen by the mail. ' , A number of members of the Executive Committee of the Provincial Agricultural ssociation visited Potter's Paddock yesteray to take measures for furthering the rrangementa for the forthcoming show on j riday and Saturday In many respects je arrangements are already in a forward ;ate, and judging by the plans to which le men are working the best possible use ill be made of the opportunities afforded y the grounds. The whole of the lower ortion of the grandstand accommodation ■ill be required for the committee and idges, and the liquor booth will , have to e a separate building erected on a con anient site, which was fixed yesterday, o far as can be judged at present the eneral arrangements for the snow will be unilar to those made last year, but the ommittee intend to again visit the grounds o-day and arrange final details. Meanchile the sooretary and his staff arei pressing letters forward in their departments. At the Police Court yostorday morning hree persons were dealt with for drunkeness, a woman was sentenced to three aontbs* imprisonment for larceny, and a ailor to two months for having stolen a extant from the . barque Brussels. Two oys admitted having stolen a quantity of owers, and the Court granted an adjournment to enable the police to make inquiries sto their character. In two cases orders •ere granted against parents to send their hildren to school. Another case of a |ainful nature was also heard, a mother pplying to havo her boy, aged eleven and hlialf years, sent to the Industrial School n the ground that he was utterly beyond er control. His Worship (Dr. Giles, R. M.,) -djourned the case till next day, in order definitely ascertain if the father would to" the order of committal being male. A a meeting of dairymen, in the Foraster!? Hall, Newton, last night, it . was iecidei not to hold a picnic during the present"season, but in lieu thereof to play a cricket mt<«h during the New Year holidays, between players over and under thirty years ot age. A committee was appointed to make the necessary Arrangements. Mr. H. H. Burton presided at the meeting, and about a dozen gentlemen were present ' " ' W : ;"

In addition to the official terrors vhich bo«et. tin unfortunate' Constable in th« 'performance of his duty, it takes him ill his time to keep out of . the legal meshes of the law. As a ea*e in point, it may be slated that Constable Carr, of Durgaville, has received a writ for £200 damages for alleged alse imprisonment of a man at Otaki, Vellington, when the constable was sta-

ioneri there four years ago. The man, ii a stated, was under sureties to keep tin peace for a term, and before the perioc expired ci'cumstances arose which in th< opinion of Constable Carr justified hin in taking the man into custody. The writ is >erved by Mr. Jellicoe, solicitor, Wellington Constable Carr, we understand, has heart nothing of the affair since that date to th( present time. It is stated that the Polict Force Act, 1886, provides that actioi against a constable for anything done it the execution of his duty must be taker within four months of the supposed offence so that it seems difficult to see how at action can lie. Constable Carr goes t( Wellington next week in connection with the affair, and the Government have in structed the Crown solicitor to defend th( officer. Constable O'Brien, of Helensville will temporarily relieve Constable Cnrr, and another constable will be sent up tc Helensville by Inspector Broham to attcuc to the duties of that station. . The Lyttelton Times states that while the K.ahn was at the Chatham Island.' doing her usual round, Captain Roineri' took a party of natives off to a rock called Motuhara, or the Forty-fours, on a birding expedition. The party consisted of tei natives, who were lauded at eleven o'clock in the forenoon, and were back on boarc the Kahu by five p.m., having in that time knocked down 1/500 albatrosses, each bin! on an average weighing 17lb, or a hum total of ll£ tons. They were nearly at young birds. Some were measured, anfi the average from tip to tip of wings wot from 10 feet to 10 feet 6 inches. One ol the natives brought tho captain half of f cartdlo picked up on top of the rock, and evidently carried there by one of the old birds for her young. The monthly meeting of the ladies whe are interesting themselves in New Hebrides Mission work was held in the Young Men'* Christian Association Rooms yesterday. There was a good attendance, and the afternoon was spent in making articles of clothing, with occasional intervals for devotional exercise. The rain which fell on Tuesday afternoon and night was very welcome, but the quantity was quite insufficient. After the prolonged drought we have had wo could have done with an inch or two of rain, whereas what fell only amounted to *18, not a quarter of an inch. Yesterday tho wind went round to the south, and the clouds cleared from the sky. " , Y A matter which should receive the attention of school teachers was mentioned at yesterday morning's sitting of the Police Court. Two small boys were charged with stealing flowers, aad the mother,, of one of them stated that, they had taken the flowers to decorate their school room, and so please their teacher. She expressed the wish that teachers should be warned against inducing children to take flowers to school, as it was a temptation to those who could nob get them at home to try and obtain them elsewhere. His Worship said that doubtless the mere mention of the matter would be sufficient, as it probably had not occurred to the teachers in question that the children might steal flowers in their anxiety to take them to school. The case was adjourned to permit of inquiry being made into the character of the boys. Yesterday afternoon Professor Carrollc Was engaged at the gymnasium of ( the You Men's Christian Association in training some 50 lads from the St. Stephen's Native School, Parnell, in the evolutions in which they are to take part in the athletic sports to be. held in the Domain shortly. The professor - gives t them great credit foi aptitude in learning, and the readiness with which they submit to discipline. Ir fact, he states that in these two points they excel the European lads. It will be seen by, advertisement else where that the p. 9. Te Aroha, in addition to her regular timetable, will make cheat excursion trips to and from Waiheke.. On Saturday she makes the first trip, ahd on I Prince of Wales's Birthday will leave Auckland for Awaroa Bay, Waihekoi returning J In the evening: ; ;

| , The following additional, assessors under the Land and Income Assessment Act have been appointed Samuel Pascoe, Ellerslie; | Wm. Hy. Wall Is, Okete; E. P. Dumerque, Opotiki { C. M. Buckworth, YVhakatane.

' -The Heefton Guardian states that the Hon. Mr. Seddon, in passing through "Reefton, evidently recognised that he was in enemy's territory, and he did not leave the coach except for the purpose of changing from one to the other. Tho utmost coolness amongst- the people in the town seemed to prevail, and the Minister was not greeted with any demonstration of any sort beyond a few groans from a number of persons assembled in Broadway. *, Mr. R. Foster, until recently chief sheep and cattle inspector for Canterbury, has severed his connection with the stock department. The recentehangos in the department resulted in Mr. Foster being offered an appointment at a lower salary, and involving an enormous amount of hard work, which he decided to decline. The Christchurch Press, referring to the matter, says:—" Mr. Foster's services to the district are well-known and highly appreciated. His career, extending over a long poriod, hap proved that he was the right man in the right place. As chief inspector for this district he did an enormous amount of work, and brought to the discharge of his duties a wide knowledge and ripe experience. All this is lost to the district through the blundering incapacity of the Minister at the head of the department."

"Civis" writes as follows in tho Otago Witness:—The essential irroiigion of the dairying industry was painfully brought out by a discussion this week in Synod. It ,*as not about putting water in the milk ; nooody said anything on that point. This was passed over, I suppose, as bolonging to the mint and anise and cummin of the mattar. What really exercised the .synod was the Sabbath-breaking habits of cows in producing milk on Sundays just the same as on >,eok days, and the incapacity of Sunday's milk to no do what the manna of old did— Keep good till Monday. Cows must be milked «ii Sunday, and milk, as Mr. George Daweon (Woodlands), remarked, is a perishable article." It must be sent on Sunday to the luctory, or be made into butter at home, and in either case what becomes ut the " Sabbath On this question the Synod was by no means clear in its mind, chiefly, I think, because laudably anxious to prove that a thrifty dairyman might still be a good Presbyterian. " Milk is a perishable article," said Mr. Dawson. He might have added that the human soul is also a perishable article, but he didn't. On the contrary, his remarks wore to the effect that milk must be saved in any case. I tremble at the inevitable inference, but the Synod, strange to 1 say, took no alarm. It even greeted with " laughter and applause" a demoralising argumentum ad homimm to which Mr. Dawson next proceeded. Sunday's milk was a seventh part of the dairymall's income—" it was from that they made their living and the living of the ministers whom they supported." " Either they must do that"—break the Sabbath by sending Sunday's milk to tho factory— "or throw the business up; and if they threw the business up, it would bo impossible for them to live, or tho ministers either." This was conclusive on tho main point. The milk must be saved in any case nothing clearer than that; but what is to become of the "Sabbath" and the other perishable articles the Synod noglooted to say. .

Constable Carr, of Dargavillo, brought down two prisoners yesterday from Kaipara. The first was Charles Crowell, tor non-payment of a fine of £1 for drunkenness and disorderly conduce at Dargaville ; the alternative was a month's imprisonment. Also a man named Anderson, who had been sentenced to two months hard labour by the Helensville Bench for a brutal assault on Captain Helander, of the schooner Welcomo. It appears that Antlerson left work and got the worse for liquor, and on Captain Helander remonstrating when the man returned, he was knocked down and kicked in the eye. As Constable Carr. en route for Auckland, he took over the prisoner from Constable O'Brien, and landed him, with the prisoner from Dargaville, at Mount Eden Gaol.

We understand that the Streets Lighting Committee of the City Council intend re s commending that additional gas lamps be placed in various parts of the city. A carpenter mimed Downie, working for the Railway Doparttnent at Oroua, has had a serious accident, lie having'hud his hand completely crushed by the monkey of the pile-driver falling on his hand. The accident seems to have been occasioned by the man in charge of the monkey misunderstanding the order of Downie, who was adjusting something on the pile, and gave instructions to raise the monkey, but it was dropped instead.

Complaints ore made that among other forms of larrikinism being developed is that by yonths of drawing or writing obscenities in chalk on the public footpaths It may be well to notify these hoodlums that the offence is punishable with a month's imprisonment, and that the police are on the look out to detect the offenders. . The prize awarded at the recent Blind of Hope Union competitions for temperance tales nob exceeding 1500 words, has been won by Miss E. li. McKerras, of St. James' Band of Hope. There were four competitor?. Owing to the fact that several of the candidates in the reciting contest for girls under 12 years of age are very young, and as the competition was a close one, prizes are to be given to the following children, who gained over 100 points each :— Daphne Flossie Clarke, Vera May Paisley, and Eva Bullen.

Additions have jusbbeen made to the Grand Hotel, Princes-street, with a view of more completely equipping this popular resort of tourists. The improvements include a large kitchen, additional bedrooms, and further accommodation for the household. All the varnishing has been done with the Now Zealand varnish (Avondale Work«) which is coming increasingly in o use. Mr. Julian was the contractor, and the alterations and additions have been carried out under the supervision of Mr. Skinner, architect.

.Miss Amy Vanghau's company will reproduce on the Prince of Wales' Birthnight the historical operatic burlesque, " Little into Christo," which met with great success recently. The burlesque has since been rewritten and re-arranged, and will be strengthened in the production by a powerful cast, whilst the staging is recoiving every attention.

Mr. George R. Wilkin has been duly licensed as an auctioneer.

The Star of Auckland Lodge 1.0.0.F.A.C. will have a harmony meeting this evening.

- The Master Bakers' Association have decided to observe.Monday (Prince of Wales' Birthday) as a holiday.

A meeting of shareholders of the Crown Gold Mining Company will be held at Lamm's Hotel, Kitaotunu, on Saturday, November 14, at eight p.m. A dividend of two shillings and sixpence has been declared in die VVniotalu Goldmining Company, which will be payable to shareholders on Tuesday next.

The house steward of the District Hospital desires, through our columns, to thank Mr. C, J. Moses and Mr. Abbott for gifts of illustrated and other pipers for the use of the patients. . The Medical Annual advises practitioners to remember that when recommending Cocoa da a food and beverage for invalids, the namCAftUnHY on any packet of Cocoa is a guarantee of purity. - ' ; : Inspection Is invited by Messrs. D. Tonks and Co. of a very extensive collection of marble statuary and artware, and the sale takes place at. Brunswick Mart on Wednesday, October 11. ' Nominations for the mayoralty of Newmarket must be delivered at the Borough Council office before noon of Saturday, the 14« inst. In the event of a contest, Wednes-day,-the 25th inst., is the day of polling. It will be seen by advertisement elsewhere that Mr. Alex. Aitken hasßeceived instructions from the City Council to sell by auction, on November 18. at eleven a.m., on the premises. Western Springs, mill buildings and machinery.

At the Young Moil's Rooms' this evening, at half-past seven, the Rev. H. O. Meyer will give an address. Subject; " Figurative Language of Scripture." Mr, Meyer leaves by next steamer for Sydney and Melbourne,' oh his way to England. ' ' , ' :

One trial will prove the superiority of the Sterling £ and the J A brattds of Fresh Butter. The best money will buy.—London Dairy Cempany, Victoria-street and Mount Kclen Road. Dr. Soolh's American; Hop Bitters have had a host of imitators, but they stand to-day £ unrivalled, -* ; . 8