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New Zealand Times, Volume XXIX, Issue 4182, 15 August 1874, Page 2

We are requested to state that Lady Fergusson will not be able to receive visitors to-day. '-' Sir George Grey, who was stated to have been a passenger by the steamer Luna, to Wellington, did not arrive by that vessel yesterday. | The Provincial Public Works Advances Bill, the Immigration and Public Works Act Amendment Bill, and the Railways Bill, were read a second time last night, and ordered to be committed on Tuesday next. The Commissioner of Customs (Mr. Reynolds) had on the order paper last night two notices of motion for leave to introduce bills—• one to increase the Excise duties, and the other the Wanganui Foreshore Grant Bill—but, at the suggestion of Mr. Richardson, they were postponed till Tuesday. The second reading of the Pacific Islands Trade Encouragement Bill was postponed yesterday to Friday next. Mr. Vogel stated that it was probable the measure would not be further proceeded with this session, as the Government considered the adjourned debate, fixed for Monday, so important that they desired to concentrate the attention of hon. members upon it. The claim of the Province of Wellington to a sum of £15,265 against the General Government, in connection with the original purchase of the i Manawatu-Rangitikei block, and the settlement of the difficulties connected with it, were the subject of a very long discussion in the House last night. The claim was brought forward by Mr. Fitzherbert, opposed by Mr. Vogel and Mr. McLean, explained by Sir Francis Dillon Bell, and rejected by Mr. Fox (who dealt Bomewhat severely with the hon. member for the Hutt). Mr. Fitzherbert, in reply, stated that Mr. Fox had himself held a brief from the Province in regard to the purchase of the land in question, and he (Mr. Fitzberbert) had the paying of it; it was £2OO. " No,";replied Mr. Fox, "it was £4OO, and Dr. Featherston who paid it." Mr. Fitzherbert further charged the hon. member for Rangitikei with having taken care—always in connection with this matter—that the railway should approach his property there ; that roads Bhould be formed there, a large and handsome bridge built, &c. On the third side of the triangle was the tramway constructed by the General Government. Mr.Foxthoughtitwasunnecessary that he should reply to these charges. What he had objected to was that the hon. member for the Hutt should have charged the Government with having given the AttorneyGeneral instructions to draw a Bill expressly to avoid their liabilities. On a division, the motion by Mr. Fitzherbert, that an address be presented to His Excellency on the subject, was agreed to by 29 to 25. Mr. Vogei intimated last night that the Government proposed to give effect to the report, so far as they understood it, of the Select Committee of the House appointed to inquire into the question as to what compensation, if any, should be given to the distillers of Dunedin and Auckland in consequence of the proposed action of the Government as to the Excise duties. He stated that it was proposed, as far as possible, to put a stop to distillation in the Colony. For that purpose an arrangemenfT*S":l been mare?~subject to the approval of the House, under which the Dunedin company would receive a sum of £20,000 as compensation, having leave to distil to the extent of seventy thousand gallons between tho Ist of July last and the 30th of June next, when their operations will entirely cease. The Auckland company will receive £7500, and will be allowed to work up their present stock of materials. They also will then cease distillation. Steps will now be taken to equalise the Excise and Customs duties on spirits, should the House approve of the arrangement. It is notified in the Gazette of Thursday that His Excellency the Governor has been pleased to issue letters of naturalisation under The Aliens Act, 1866, in favor of Gustav Ludwig Theodor Von der Heyde, merchant, Auckland. The notification is signed by the Colonial Secretary, and dated August 11th. Notice is given in the Gazette that all claims to land which have been preferred before the Land Claims Court by persons of the halfcaste race have been transferred to the Native Land Court, where they will be heard as ordinary Native claims ; and all such claimants are desired to make application to the Native Land Court for the hearing of their claims, in the manner prescribed by "The Native Land Act, 1873."' . The following tenders were received at the Public Works Office, Wellington, for the West-port-cpntract of the Mount Rochfort Railway (formation and permanent way) : —Accepted : John - McLean, Greymouth, £16,795. Declined: Stephen Lowin, Westport, informal; E. B. Garven, Greymouth, £16,818 ; William Smith, Hokitika, £17,373 ; Walton Pell, Westport, £17,697 ; J. B. Eteveneax, Westport, £19,182 ; Keith Bros., Greymouth, £25,526; Alex. Stitt, Westport, £28,741. Several friendly merchants and importers in Wellington, recognising the able mamier in which Mr. Hackworth, lately Collector of Customs at this port, but recently removed to Dunedin, had carried out the duties of his office, collected the sum of sixty guineas, and forwarded a cheque to him for the amount, receipt of which has been acknowledged. The rule in the service is that Buch presentations should not be mado ; but in Mr. Hackworth's case it was relaxed. The news will be satisfactory to his many friends. • At St. Joseph's school, Boulcott Street, yesterday, Mrs. 5 Sharp, to whom the children had been indebted for many acts of kindness, was presented by them with a gift and an addrefs, in expression of their thankfulness and appreciation of the attentions which they had received. The gift consisted of a beautiful oleograph of Raphael's Holy Family, about three feet square, and was ordered through Mr. Jackson, of Stationers' Hall, Lambton Quay, in whose window it might have been seen about a fortnight since. The presentation was made by Mr. Lee, School Inspector, who read also the address, as follows : —" Madam—We pray you to accept this small token of our esteem and gratitude for the very many acts of your kindness we have experienced, and for the unabated interest you have taken in our school since its foundation. We are only sorry our present cannot take a more substantial form, but we are sure you will accept it as worthy of us considering our number, as we deem the subject of the painting worthy of you." The school presented a very gay appearance, tho children being all in their holiday attire for the occasion. The school is under the Education Board, and is attended by children of all denominations. The Very Rov. Father Forrest, Father O'Reilly, and others were present on the occasion. The Loyal Combination Troupe were passengers by tho steamer Taranaki from Nelson, and are advertised to appear at the Theatre Royal on Monday evening. Whoreever they have been, in this Colony or in | others, their performances have been spoken of I as being of extraordinary merit, as exhibitions of gymnastic skill and daring. Mddle. Zuila is described as equalling, if not excelling, the feats of tho fair and far-famed Lottie ; and Messrs. Loyal, Verlotti, and others of tho company contribute to make the entertainment one of very great attractiorj

The steamer Alhambra is expected to leave Dunedin at noon to-day, the 15th inst. Telegrams for the Australian Colonies or Europe, via Java Cable, will be received at the postoffice, Wellington, for transmission to Dunedin, up to 10 o'clock a.m. this day. As the fine weather has apparently now set in, football practice is being well kept up. This afternoon a scratch match of considerable interest will be played, the game commencing at 2.30 p.m. sharp. Thirty of the immigrants who arrived at Nelson by the ship Adamant-were for Greymouth, whither they were at once conveyed by the steamer Wallace. The passengers by the Adamant are described as altogether a wellbehaved and useful body of people. It was-very pleasing to notice the large attendance at the Theatre Royal last night, on the occasion of Miss Raymond's benefit. The house was well filled in all parts, and the manner in which Miss Raymond was received showed that the compliment tendered ■was one which the audience considered her well deserving of. The "Flowers of the Forest," although well played, went flatly, and this may be in some measure accounted for by the fact that the scenery was not at all suitable to, or in accordance with the piece. The scene shifting, too, was blundered through in a most slovenly manner, but notwithstanding these drawbacks, the audience could not fail to be pleased with the manner in which the leading" parts were played. Miss Rosa Towers, as Lemuel, the Gipsy boy, acted with her usual feeling and effect, and Miss Raymond's Cynthia was an excellent representation, for which, at the close of the piece, she received a call before the curtain. Mr. Burford, who played the part of h,er gipsy father in a inost able manner, alsoreceived a call. The comic characters of the piece were impersonated by Messrs. Towers and Hydes in that amusing manner inseparable from their acting. As Maggie Macfarlane Miss Raymond appeared to great advantage, her capital Scotch accent and 'clever acting frequently eliciting applause. The other parts were well played, and the piece went without a single hitch. To-night is the last of the season, and as it is a favorite with the public and two fresh pieces are to be played, there will doubtless be a good house. Yesterday at the Resident Magistrate's Court, two cases of drunkenness were dealt with in the usual manner, and the adjourned cases of nuisances came up for hearing. Caleb Whitehead, against whom there were two charges, and E. Toohill, were charged with breaches of the Municipal Corporations Act. Mr. Travers, City Council Solicitor, appeared to press the charges, which were at the instance of the Inspector of Nuisances. The complaint was that the defendants kept dirty back yards, and the evidence of Dr. Johnson, Health Officer, showed that the cases were of a very aggravated nature. Whitehead was fined 20s. and costs in each case ; and Toohill was fined 40s. and costs. In the civil business three cases were heard, verdicts being recorded for the plaintiffs in each one: —McDowell v. Smith, £l3 Is. lOd—judgment for amount and costs. Simpson v. Miller, £2s—verdict for £lB, and costs £3 7s. Hunt v. Calvert and Campbell, £l6 17s. 6d.—order for amount and costs. The directors of the Poverty Bay Petroleum and Kerosene Company have issued their report for the past year, in which they state : "Your directors made last Christmas a personal examination of the springs and the roads to them, accompanied by Mr. Winter, surveyor; and, contrary to their expectations, were so far successful as to discover a practicable dray road to the springs. Several other adjacent springs have since been discovered. The unavoidable detention of the Splendid in consequence of having been dismasted by a hurricane, has delayed the manager, who is a passenger by her, and has prevented the commencement of boring operations at the springs, as it was considered imprudent to attempt works of that nature, save under the supervision of a man of practical knowledge and experience; he may, however, now be expected at any moment. All that could have been done in the meantime, has been done; everything has been for months in readiness for immediate operations on his arrival; and it is more than; probable that a very few weeks—perhaps only days—of boring, may produce the long-hoped-for flow of oil." The Wairoa correspondent of the Poverty Bay Standard reports that the inhabitants of that district felt a very smart shock of an earthquake on the morning of the 3rd August (Monday). Time, 4.35 a.m. Direction of the shake, from west to east. Very little damage was done, but it frightened many people out of their beds, and into the open, for it positively seemed as if some of the houses must fall, so marked was the rocking. Such a severe shake has not been felt for a long time. Several small shocks were felt the same day. Gold-mining leases are now being asked for so extensively along the course of the Lake Hochstetter and Nelson Creek Water-race, that a memorial has been prepared, stating that those signing it are " alarmed at the rapidity with which the country is being taken up." Mr. Warden Whiteford, to whom the memorial was shown, said that he would hot recommend any more leases during his terni of office, for it was one of those questions which, whoever would have charge of the district in future, would have to take into his serious consideration. The following report of a hearing in banco, in the case of Eyes v. Dodson, appears in the Colonist: —On the 3rd of July last Mr. Pitt (instructed by Mr. Couolly, of Picton), obtained a rule nisi calling on the plaintiff or his solicitor to show cause why a writ of execution issued herein for plaintiff's costs of demurrer should not be set aside, and why the plaintiff or his solicitor should not pay to the defendant the costs recovered under the said writ, and .the costs of the present proceedings. The rule was argued on Tuesday last by Mr. Travel's, of Wellington, for plaintiff, and Mr. Pitt for ■defendant, when His Honor reserved judgment. His Honor has since delivered judgment, making the rule absolute against the plaintiff, but not against his solicitor, without costs. The South Australian Government has received a telegram from Mr. Little, superintendent of telegraphs at Port Darwin, speaking very highly as to the* prospects of the Northern Territory. Seven steam engines are going night and day. Perfect order prevails on the diggings. The alluvial diggers are doing well, and have work for the next two years. The Minister of Justice has expressed an opinion that a favorable turn may be discerned in the history of the territory. Tho unfortunate schooner Marion Rennie has again been very near becoming the scene of another tragedy. She started on a labor cruise, talcing with her about one hundred return laborers, some of whom she landed at Tanna by means of the ship's boat. After the Natives had reached the beach they loaded their guns, and without any warning fired deliberately on the boat's crew. Fortunately they did not wound any one. During tho hearing of a case in the War- | den's Court at Cobden lately it transpired that I ground of more than ordinary richness is now being wrought in the locality of the Razorback Range. One person declined to state his opinion of the value of some of the ground in a certain claim, giving as a reason that he could not expect anyone, who had not tested the washdirt personally, to believe in the richness of it. The escort which left Reef ton on Saturday last, convoyed 14620 z. of gold for transhipment at Greymouth, forwarded by the Bank of New Zealand. The quantity was mado up as follows : Anderson's, 311 oz. ; Ajax, 140 oz.; Wealth of Nations, 850 oz.; sundries, 161 oz. Total, 14620 z. Tho Butter Ncios informs its readers that the retrenchment policy of the Nelson Government has been developed another stage. The solitary policeman who had hitherto been stationed at the Police Camp at Westport has been removed to the gaol, whereby, we are informed, the expense of lighting will be saved. Truly, there is nothing like economy. Miss Clara Stephenson and her comedy jvnd burlesque company gave a series of performances at New Plymouth, prior to proceeding by the s.a. Taranaki to Picton.

A new telegraph office is being erected at Hokitika at a cost of £I3BO. Floating break-waters, moored to the river bank, are being constructed at Westport as temporary protection works. Mr. McLean, the contractor for the construction of the Westport and Mount Rochfort railway, has called for the services of 400 men. From a trout recently caught at Palmerston, Otago, the enormous number of 16,550 ova were taken. A Timaru telegram informs us that Mr. W. A. Chapman and Miss Ada Bonnifon gave an entertainment there on Thursday evening with immense success. A quartz reef is said to have been discovered recently in the neighborhood of the Greenstone rush, and a party is being fitted out to prospect it. A number of Californian quail have lately been received in Greymouth and Hokitika, and liberated in suitable situations in the neighborhood. Good results have been obtained from a crushing of quartz at the Turner mine, Marlborough. About 140 tons were crushed, yielding 114 oz. of retorted gold. Captain Hart, who lately died from injuries received on board the steamer Beautiful Star, has left a widow and four little girls, the youngest only a few months old. Mr. Lyster now intends to meet Mr. Sothern in London, and although the original plan has fallen through, he expects to have the pleasure of introducing the accomplished actor to the Australian Colonies next year. A young man named Brown, 18 years of age, lias had the flesh of one of his arms wholly stripped off from the elbow, while oiling some machinery at the Union Sash and Door Company's works, Auckland. An old story about Robert Heller, the magician, being killed in Mexico, is repeated by some of the Victorian papers. The Argus says he has never been in Mexico, and is now performing in the English Provinces. A public meeting has been held in one district of the Grey Valley, to consider the increasing price of butchers' meat. The butchers were represented; but they could not promise a reduction of price, and the meeting ended in nothing. Mr. Adams, the emigration agent for the Province of Otago, is said to have had instructions to procure 200 young women for a clothing factory in Dunedin. He had refused 300 applicants 'as emigrants on account of their being unsuitable.