TELEGRAPHIC NEWS.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXIX, Issue 4237, 19 October 1874, Page 2

TELEGRAPHIC NEWS.

A MAORI MURDER. [Piibss Telegraph Agenct.] Auckland, Saturday. Paora Tuhare, a friendly Orakei chief, brought intelligence to the police to-day of a barbarous murder that had been committed at his settlement. Adeteotivewas immediately sent udth him, and the following facts were elicited, A young woman named Henrietta Tepuni was, on Tuesday evening, going from one whare to another, when a native known by the name of Newton called her to return and go with him to the whare. She at first refused, but eventually went until him to his whare, which was 200 yards from that where the young woman’s friends lived. A little girl followed, and found them sitting on the sward together, apparently in angry altercation. The man was importuning the woman to marry him, but she would not consent. Soon afterwards the little girl heard the man call out, in the native language, that the woman was dead. There was a great consternation among the natives, and the murderer was at once seized and secured. It was found that the body of the woman was literally covered with bruises. It is conjectured that, as there are no cuts about her body, her neck must have been broken. The natives have held an inquest, and returned a verdict of murder against the prisoner. On the arrival of the detective, Paora gave the accused into his custody, and ordered a boat to be manned to convey them to town. By this means the prisoner was brought to town. The murdered woman was about twenty-five years of age? and the prisoner, who is short in stature, and heavily tattooed, is about thirty years of age. Ha seems to be very unconcerned about his position. At the nomination for the Provincial Council, for the district of Eden, Messrs. Rees and May were proposed. The polling takes place on the 27th inst.

It is reported that the Commissioner of Customs visited Alexandra, on the frontier, to prevent grog manufactured in the King country coming over the confiscated boundary into Auckland. He received a deputation relative to the improvement of public buildings at Kaipara and the Waikato railway, and promised to lay the matters before hi* colleagues. Messrs. Buckland aud May addressed their constituents at Waiuku on Friday. Mr. Buckland said he regarded the policy of the Premier as bad, it would work misery unparalleled in the history of the colony. Mr. Vogel acknowledged that he had to pay a million and a-half of money for which he had got nothing, but which he had to pay to carry out his policy. His Polynesian scheme, however, must ultimately benefit Auckland greatly. He condemned the scheme of State Forests as absurd.

Mr. May, in his address, confined Iris remarks mainly to the measures of the late session. He voted against the abolition of provincialism in the North, because he thought the new system, whatever it was to be, should be applied to the Middle Island as well. Mr. Vogel had said that Mr. J. B. Gillies would oppose anything brought down by him, but he thought that the Premier was measuring other people’s corn by his own bushel. He next spoke of the Licensing Bill, which he thought was an improvement on the law as it stood. Various other measures were referred to, and at the close of his address a vote of thanks to both candidates was passed. Grahamstown, Saturday.

About two thousand ounces of gold were received by the Bank of New Zealand for the week. There are some heavy parcels still to come in. 22180z5. have been shipped. An application has been made to the Warden for permission to construct a tramway near Mata Creek, for the purpose of working a newly-discovered coal-field. Samples shown have been pronounced to be very good. The coal is of a bituminous character, and it is in close proximity to the goldfields. It is in great abundance, and will effect a saving in the cost of crushing at the quartz mills. Napier, Saturday.

The ship Queen Bee, which arrived last night from London, has brought only a few passengers, and sixty-eight prize sheep, out of seventy-two placed on board. She had also a lot of birds of various kinds, but all of them died excepting a pair of owls. The Queen Bee had very rough weather off the coast. New Plymouth, Saturday. John Dunn, twenty-two years of age, a sergeant in the New Plymouth Volunteer force, died yesterday. He was much respected. Westport, Saturday. A preliminary inquiry was held by the Collector of Customs yesterday, re the Alma disaster. The captain of the Kennedy claims salvage. The Alma will be towed to Greymouth to discharge, and for repairs. Cromwell,’ Saturday. Dr. Carse, the coroner, and a justice of the peace, was charged before the Magistrates yesterday with perjury. At the conclusion of the evidence the solicitor for the accused raised a fatal objection. The Bench, in admitting the validity of the objection, said they would have dismissed the case on its merits. The affair created a great deal of local interest. Invercargill, Saturday. The private residence of Mr. W. Blackwood, of the firm of Cochrane and Blackwood, was totally destroyed by fire last night. Only a few articles of furniture of trifling value were saved. The house was insured in the Australian Alliance office for £2OO. Post Chalmers, Saturday. The Blanche leaves for Wellington this afternoon, and sails thence to Sydney, where she should have been on the ISth, according to orders received.