LOCAL AMD GENERAL NEWS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXXI, Issue 9628, 28 September 1894, Page 4

LOCAL AMD GENERAL NEWS.

A QiRTEP.LY meeting of the Chamber of Conferee was held yesterday afternoon, whe an able address was delivered by Mr. A. i Nathan, the President, who reviewed affrfs of trade and commerce during the lasfthree months, together with the legislatin proposed during the present session if Parliament. Resolutions condemning /hepropoaals of the Government in regard Jo Advances to settlers, and calling attention to the deplorable state of the " roadless North" were unanimously passed, and ordered to bo forwarded to Wellington.

The annual general meeting of the National Association (Auckland Section) was held yesterday evening, and in spite of the inclement weather there was a large attendance. The Council's report was unanimously adopted, and it- was decided to petition the Legislative Council against the Advances to Settlers Bill, and the borrowing proposals of the Government.

Yesterday two steamers arrived from Fiji with considerable consignments of raw auger from Fiji for the Colonial Sugar Refining Company, the Union Company's steamer Taupo and the Sugar Company's steamer Fiona. Suva papers to hand are up to the 2'2nd instant, bub they contain no news of importance. On the 21st inst. the American barque Elsinore bound from Newcastle to Honolulu with coal put into Suva, leaking badly, and her cargo will have to be discharged in order to find out the position of the weak spot. The Austrian yacht Tolna, with the Countess Tolna on board, was at Suva, having arrived there from Samoa. The yacht was to bo cleaned and painted, after which she would cruise in the group, and may be expected to visit. Auckland shortly. At the Onehunga Police Court yesterday, before Dr. Erson and Mr. li. J. Jackson, J.P.'s, a man named Frank Gardner was charged with assaulting Annie Ternahan, of the Hibernian Hotel, on the previous evening. From the evidence, it transpired that the accused had been staying at the hotel for a couple of days, and on Wednesday night entered one of the bedrooms, when an alarm being given, Mr. Ternahan detained the prisoner till the arrival of Sergeant Greene. The accused pleaded not guilty, and said he entered the room by mistake. Alfred Pranglo, Robert Ternahan, and Sergeant Greene gave evidence, when the Bench fined the prisoner £5, or, in default, one month's hard labour.

A request having been received from aiuku that some officers of the American Order of Oddfellows should visit; that township for the purpose of explaining the operations of this institution, the Grandmaster, Brother John Burchell, accompanied by Grand Marshal Brother E. R. Piggott, held a meeting at that place on Wednesday, 26th instant, Mr. A. M. Barriball being appointed chairman. The brothers above-mentioned having addressed the meeting at considerable length, the following resolution was moved by Mr. May, seconded by Mr. Rossiter "That in the opinion of this meeting it is desrable to establish a lodge of the 1.0.0. F. (American Constitution), and that a committee be now appointed for the furtherance of this object." This resolution was put and carried unanimously. The petition for a charter was signed by the majority of those present, and the committee then met and being satisfied that a number of young men who had expressed a desire to join had been prevented by the threatening aspect of the weather from attending, it was decided to issue a oharter for a lodge, the officers being of the opinion that the district contains thfl requisite material for a good healthy lodge. Votes of thanks were passed to the brothers from Auckland for their able addresses, to the chairman, and to the trurtees of the hall for their kindness in giving the hall free for the occasion. The Grand Master personally thanked Brother John Flavell, who is a P.G. of Kaeo Lodge 41, for till efforts he had put forth to bring about the result.

The spccial meetings in connection with the Congregational Union of New Zealand were continued at the CongregationalChurch,Newton. The Rev. F. Warner presided. The Rev. Geo. Burgess, F.R. A.S., gave an eloquent address on " Aggressive Christianity. The speaker first of all pointed out the importance of nggrewive Christianity in regard to civic and political matters, and everything affecting the moral life and welfare of the people. Christianity was essentially aggressive, but aggression was not necessarily Christianity. Ib was nob to be active by merely novel and ?ensational methods. The people say the Church and the minister ore all very good to keep it going, bub a travelling expert is necessary if any great success is to be achieved. Ha held that the sphere of Christianity was every sphere of intellectual, moral, and social life. - There can be no antagonism between religion and science. That figment has happily passed away from us, but there is a need to show the spiritual significance of the facts thab science reveals. They had to make aggression against the indifference and Agnosticism of the day, much of the latter being an affectation of intellectual power. If they had some of the Agnostics with them, and tried the Socratic method, they might find how well many of such men deserved the name by the reality of their ignorance. -Aggression with regard .0 gambling, drinking habits, social impurity and practical indifference. The Church ir> its corporate capacity and in its individual, members must find its appropriate sphere, and regard aggression as a condition at spiritual existence and the fruit of spiritual life. To-night's meeting will ha heW lalh Congregational Church, Onehunga, when addresses will be given by the Re*. E. v. Horfcon and Mr. Kekwick on "For Chaw and the Church."

Tbe KniVhts of Labour are inviting the ; oper9 tioi\of the other labour organise tions: in eet»(Tup a monster petition to the Governments the Shop Houra Bill. At a spe<Vl meeting of the Parnell Borough Coufeil, a by-law was adopted dealing with ie regulation of the public halls in the bofiugh. The new by-law will be brought umfor confirmation within a month. A notfte respecting it appears in our advertising ilumns. A boy was t*ken to the Hospital after midnight, for radical treatment, suffering, it is understood. h\m poison. It is stated that the poison was\aken by mistake. The Hospital authorities declined to give any particulars of the caso^ The president of thApitt-street Literary Society (Rev. S. F. PriY) gave an address last evening on " Do nVt be too sure" to the Society. There w\ a good attendance. Mr. Arthur Rosfer occupied the chair. The lecturer oxhVted his hearers not to be too sure of whatYhey heard and gs w and read ; appearanceatvera deceptive, and many were the mistaka made in consequence of a serious character. The habit of " cock-3ureness" was to \e deprecated, 3s even the newspapers anmthe historian were caught tripping somebitkn, and their statements found to be unreliable, as being based on inaccurate data. T«re was one thing certain in this worldaH that was that there was an over-rulinmProVldence controlling its affairs. The higW wisdom was to put the brief span of lifehllotted to us to the best uses in the intofest of our common humanity. The lecturl_ was racy and humorous, and illustrated\by anecdote?, the result of varied andfextensive reading. On the motion of St Scott, seconded by Mr. Ambury, a coqial vote of thanks was accorded by acclanktion to the rev. lecturer. \

There is now on view at Partridge and Co.'s tobacconists' shop, Queen-sleet, a very handsome production in kau| gum, which is the work of a Thames manlwho is a cripple. It is a model of St. Paul's, London, and the details are wortyd out with great nicety. It is about 16 itlhes in length, and the cross on the dome ilabout the same height from the floor, thikvholo being enclosed in a glass case. ( At their weekly drill, last night, thj" A" Battery of Artillery mustered 44 if all ranks," under the command of Ctotain O'Brien, and Lieutenants Lipscomb* and Eos worth. The company were put thnugh their new drill in cavalry movements by Sergeant-Major Bush, of the Permanent Artillery ; and, considering the shorttime they have been at the drill, the company displayed considerable aptitude in the formations. 1

The usual entertainment of the Club took place last evening, in the Mastic Hall, Newton, Mr. Home in the chSr. There was a large attendance. The Charuian read a letter from the Dunedin But\s Club, couveying a vote of thanks and expressing their warm appreciation of tip hearty welcome given to their esteemed patron, Mr. A. J. Burns, accepting it as » compliment to the Dunedin Burns Club. The following programme was gone through with much acceptance :—Overture, Mrs. 1 Angus; songs, "The McGregors Catherine:," and "Mary of Argyle." Mr. Tait; "jock o'Hazeldean," and "Flow Gently, Sweet Afton," Mrs. Leers; " The Old Brigade,"' Mr. Cunningham; "Happy Moments," and "The Gallants of England," Mr. Patterson; "On the Banks of Clyde," Mr. Leslie; "The Sea is England's," Mr. Hampton; "Juanita," and "Ora Pro Nobis," Mr. Higgins; duett, Mi?s Bain and Mr. Higgins ; and two excellent comic songs were given by Mr,' May son ; MissOlpherb recited The Hanging of the Picture," and "The Church Organ." The meeting being brought to a close with the singing of " Auld Lang Syne," by the company.

Over 1000 members of the National Association have their names upon the Auckland Electoral Roll.

A meeting of St. Matthew's Mutual Im provement and Friendly Society was held last evening in the schoolroom. The Rev. L. FitzGerald, the incumbent, presided. Mr. W. Crosher gave a very interesting lecture on Electricity," bearing on its past development, and the probable use of this mighty power in the future. Many highly interesting experiments and illustrations were given, by means of a number of electrical apparata, consisting of batteries, electric lights, the celebrated Winshurst lightning machine, etc. All present seemed very much interested in the lecture, and had ib not been such a wet evening a large attendance might have been anticipated. On the motion of Mr. Dunnage a cordial vote of thanks was accorded to the lecturer.

The usual fortnightly meeting of St. Alban'a Literary Society took place last evening, in the schoolroom, Mount Roski'.l Road. Mr. T. Wigg presided. There was a large attendance in spite of the inclement weather. Mr. F. G. Ewington delivered a highly-instructive and interesting lecture on "The Treatment of the Insane Historically Considered." The lecturer briefly sketched the treatment of lunatics in the Middle Ages, and dwelt in terms of commendation on their improved condition today. He cited many instances of barbarous practices as late as fifty years ago, and expressed an opinion that ib was a happy omen that these atrocities were a thing of the past. He referred to the excellent arrangements in the Auckland Asylum, and ihrew out some suggestions which, he thought, if adopted, would tend to increase the comfort of this afflicted section of the community. The lecturer concluded by narrating many personal incidents as to personal treatment of the insane which had come under his notice during his term of cffice as Official Visitor. The following musical items were contributed :—Song, M Hard Times come again no More," Miss £. Ewington ; duet, " The Gipsy Countess," Mrs-. Garrett and Miss James; song, "Auld Robin Gray," Mrs. Bradstreet; song, "The Arab's Farewell to His Steed," Mr. James McGregor ; pianoforte solo, Mr. Scott.

Professor Beaumont and his two daughters open with their swimming entertainment at the Opera House this evening. Exhibitions of various forms of swimming will not only be given, but of the most approved methods of saving life. The Professors Bays he is open to give £50 to charitable institutions if any fraud is detected, and he particularly wishes swimmers to investigate as closely as possible. _ Tomorrow afternoon a special matinee will be given, at three, for the benefit of schools mid of people living out of town.

Notwithstanding the very inclement weather, there was a very large attendance in St. George's Hail last, night to witness the second performance of the Akarana l'raraatic Club Messrs. E. Fort and C. Allpretd ably fulfilled the duties of stage managers, and Mr. 15. Coleman the post of secretary, Miss Collinys playing the accompaniment.?. Tho first part of the pro gramme was the comedietta, entitled " Withered Leaves," the cast being as follows Sir Conyer Conyers, Mr. S. E. Coleman ; Tom Conyers, Mr. E. Fort; Arthur Middleton, Mr. F. C. All press; Cecil Vane, Mr. L. M. Morrin ; Lady Conyerß, Miss D. Elsmore; May Rivers, Miss S. McQeehan. After the interval, Mrs. and Mis* Morrin rendered the duet, " The Harp and the Wind ;" Miss C. Morrin, " Whisper find I shall Hear and Mr. A. Smith, the recitation " Pat Molloy in London other 'onus being contributed by Miss Falknor *nd Messrs. E. Fort and Woodward. The comedietta, " Popping the Question," concluded the performance, the characters being as follow :—Mr. Primrose, Mr. E. Brookburn ; Henry Thornton, Mr. R. Clarke ; Miss Ellen Murray, Miss A. Reynolds; Miss Biffin, Mr. Allpress; Miss Winterblossom, Miss Lizzie Evans; Bobbin, Miss K. Mclieehan.

The Columbia Skating Rink was well attended last evening, being Club night. To-niirht is the last of the season, and is a fancy dress carnival, with prizes for dresses. It to intended to have a masquerade carnival, but by special request the project has been abandoned.

The West Coast correspondent of a southern paper writes :— 1 regret to say that Reef ton is reported by a friend of mine •i!-? ' las jut-t been frozen out of that erstwhile flourishing centre) to be in an unprecedented state of depression. Lasb week he amount of the amalgam yields saddened everybody, and he adds thab many business i? 8 ar anxiously watching a chanoe bo scoot." Another cruel nail in its coffin is e cessation of the receipt of all outside capital wherewith to work upon. Everynn " i laL line is «ow entirely depeudenb on local produce."