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New Zealand Times, Volume XXXI, Issue 4888, 21 November 1876, Page 2

There arrived at the port of Wellington during the past week 28” vessels, of a tonnage combined amounting to 8228 tons. Of these 20 were steamers, whose carrying capacity reached 7894 tons, and the remaining number, 8, were sailing vessels, whose tonnage amounted to 334 tons. The number of vessels that cleared at the Customs during the same period amounted to 25, and of these 13 were steamers and 12 sailing vessels. The tonnage of. the steamers was 6965, and that of the sailing vessels 427 tons.

The first meeting of the Central Board of Health as newly constituted under the legislation of the past session, was held yesterday at 11 o’clock in the office of the Colonial Secretary. The members present were the Hon. Dr. Pollen, Colonial Secretary, (in the chair), Mr. G. S. Cooper, Under-Secretary, Mr. W. Seed, Secretary of Customs, Mr. W. R. E. Brown, Registrar-General, Dr. Skae, Inspector of Lunatic Asylums, Dr. Hector, C.M.G., F.R.S., and Captain Johnson. Under the statute the first meeting of the Board was declared by the proclamation of his Excellency the Governor, published in the last General Government Gazette. A resolution that his Excellency the Governor should be advised to declare by proclamation that cholera, smallpox, scarlatina, diptheria, enteric or typhoid fever, typhus fever, and measles, should be deemed to be “ infectious diseases” within the meaning of the 20th section of the Public Health Act was carried nem con. A motion that a circular should be issued to each of the Local Boards of Health, in which term municipalities and road boards are included under the Act, requesting them to report to the Central Board on the Slat March annually was also carried, it being decided that a printed form should be prepared for such returns to he made, in order that when made they might be identical in form. The provisions of the Act give the board power to fix the i dates of all future meetings, and there being no other business to dispose of the meeting was adjourned sine die.

The civil business at the Resident Magistrate's Court yesterday was confined to the hearing of a case, Valentine v. Newman. The case was very amusing, or rather the witnesses were. It was a claim for £l4 balance of purchase money for a horse, upon which £lO had already been paid.: Mr. Buckley appeared for the plaintiff ; Mr. Stafford for the defendant. The real point consisted in the question of whether defendant had concluded the purchase satisfied that he had obtained what he desired in the shape of a horse. He deposed that Mr. Valentine had stated that the horse was staunch and sound, whereas after trial he had discovered the horse to be otherwise, and in fact utterly useless. It appeared,. however, that on the day of purchase defendant had paid a pound deposit in earnest of his sincerity, and had then subjected the horse to a trial by making him drag a load ef sand from the beach to Mr. Valentine’s Hotel in Tory-street, and that then he expressed himself satisfied, in proof whereof he handed over £9, which made in all £lO, and promised to make up the balance in a fortnight, which he had not done. A number of witnesses were called for the defence to give evidence as to the character of this horse, which appeared to be yery well known. Their statements were of a very funny character, and of a horsey flavor. A. gentleman named McCarthy bore strong testimony to the wickedness of the animal, which seemed to be like the historical donkey that “wouldn’t go,” Further ho had an unhappy knack of taking repose at inopportune moments, just in fact when ho was required to exercise himself in the interests of his

master. It seemed, however, that the statements of this gentleman had reference to a period some two or three years back. At the conclusion of the 'evidence; which took , some time in hearing," the . Bench decided that the plaintiff had a fair claim to the £l4, he having given defendant a fair trial of the horse, and also having given him the written guarantee which he himself in purchasing the horse from a third party had received. Therefore, judgment was entered for plaintiff for amount claimed and costs.

Thomas Coleman was brought up at the Resident Magistrate’s Court yesterday, charged with attempting to murder his wife by shooting her with a revolver in the breast and arm. It was decided to take part of the evidence at present at the command of the police. Dr. Diver was examined, but there was nothing more in his evidence than appeared in the account of the affair which we published on the day following that on which it occurred, namely, Sunday, the 12th inat. The evidence of John Apliu, the second and last witness, did disclose one or two facts not hitherto published. It appears that Coleman had been seen prowling around the house prior to the shots being heard. When the witness became alarmed by the noise he proceeded into the front room, and there saw the prisoner lying on his back, and heard him say something about a bad woman, presumably referring to his wife. On witness being called by his wife he went into the kitchen, and there she told him that Mrs. Coleman was dying. He went into the bedroom, and in order to get in Mrs. Coleman had to move from the door, as she was sitting on the floor against it, to prevent her husband pursuing her. Such, at least, is supposed to have been her intention. She said that prisoner had shot her, and that she was dying. Dr. Diver was then sent for, and information conveyed to the police. Nothing further was elicited that is not already known, and the case was remanded for a week, on the application of Inspector Atcheson. A gentleman started a new industry yesterday in the shape of little balloons full of some gas lighter than atmospheric air, which he sold for sixpence, the price including a string, by sticking to one end of which the buyer could contemplate his purchase floating in the eternal aether at say a distance of three feet and a half. Master Simpkins, of Cuba-street, purchased a balloon, but having his attention presently attracted by Master Spooff, who was taking a kitten, along with a brick, in a bag as far as the end of the wharf, he let go his string and the little balloon ascended into illimitable space. For some time,’ beyond the heartrending outcries of Master Simpkins, the affair attracted no notice ; but presently Mr. De Symth Smith Smytheries, of the Audit department, walking along Willis-street with his friend Captain Flareo (of the Feejee Fusiliers) carrying his nose in the air lest any young lady in the prevailing fashion might be fool enough to think that he was looking at her contour, clutched Captain F. by the arm, and pointed towards heaven with an imitation bamboo cane, price Is. 6d. This caused a policeman who was hurrying past at a snail’s gallop to pause, and, having run his eye along the cane, to join Mr. Smytheries and Captain Flareo in the contemplation of an unbounded zenith at an imminent risk of dislocating his neck. Then two gentlemen connected with journalism came along. Of these one seemed to have got into his clothes as sausages get into their skins, and to be practising for a walking under difficulties attendant upon bursting his garments. The other looked like a gentleman to whom it would be no matter if an enormous tax upon the import and manufacture of soap were imposed. They exchanged a few hurried words, and whilst the latter rushed away to his office to write the preliminary remarks, thejformer remained to bring the exact particulars of a verbose local about a singular atmospheric disturbance. By this time a son of one of Mr. Howard Wallace’s early settlers (pioneers of the colony) with a horse, a cart, and a load of firewood, endeavored to guide his animal and see what was going on up above at the same time. As a result he came right in the way of an omnibus going to the end of the Adelaide road and nearly ran over a promoter of a company, who was looking after a man with a chain and a telescope on three legs in connection with the proposed street tramways. (N.B. —Ten per cent, for two years guaranteed to the shareholders). Another gentleman saw with grief an employe on a horse, whom he had started off quickly to a customer with a plate of lamb’s sweetbread, get entangled in the little obstruction, caused by the before-mentioned circumstances, and in despair joined a crowd of some hundreds who had by this time united in using emphatic language to each other, and asking what was up. The answer would have been simple. Master Simpkins’s balloon was floating gently at an elevation of 300 ft. in the direction of the Hutt, and was conjectured to be, indifferently, “ a comet,” “ something to do with laying the cable,” “ an experiment by W. T. D. Travers on serial navigation,” and “ a speech of Sir George Grey in its native element.”

The case of assault, Quee versus Butler, was heard yesterday, before the Mayor and Major Paul, J.s’P. Mr. Buckley appeared for complainant, Mr. Ollivier for defendant. It appeared that Butler, who is a foreman painter, struck Quee, an apprentice working under him for Mr. Martin, because the lad had said to him, “ You are another.” This was the literal aggravation ; and Quee was induced to make the remark, which in itself would not be particularly offensive, because Quee had called him “ a liar,” when he denied having destroyed a certain piece of sponge. The case occupied some time in hearing—a number of witnesses being called —but the testimony of the complainant was not shaken to any material extent, the only part of his evidence which was not corroborated being that defendant had referred to his mother insultingly. Counsel on either side solemnly treated the question from his own point of view. Mr. Buckley pictured the indignity done to his client, a youth of superior intelligence and sensibility, and the necessity for protecting all youths employed as he was from employers who had a weakness for taking the law into their own hands and administering summary chastisement for offences'real or imaginary, trifling or grave. Mr. Ollivier treated the question from a different point of view. While acknowledging the impropriety of boys being struck by their employers, he thought that there was a point at which an action of this kind became absurd, that is to say, he regarded the offence as not being great enough to warrant complainant in taking bo many men away from their work to give evidence of the details. Counsel having concluded, the Bench delivered itself of some sentilnent.. Boys, said the Mayor, were apt to take liberties, and to forget the respect due to those in authority oyer them, and employers were apt to constitute themselves judges, and, so to speak, castigators. In this case the defendant acted unwarrantably however. Therefore he was fined 20s. and costs, and required to find security that he would keep the peace for three months. Defendant, whose countenance had worn a hopeful and virtuous expression when the Bench began to talk of the failings of youth, looked anything but amiable at the conclusion of its remarks, wherein he was informed of the penalty he must pay for his correction of Quee, and he said, “ What is the alternative f" “ Fourteen days imprisonment,” he was informed, and he thereupon declared that he would "serve it.”

Mr. B. M. Smith, says the Budget, is again busy with others in endeavoring to float a company to work the iron sand on the mile and a half of beach fclying between the Huatoki and Henui rivers—capital, £20,000 ; shares, £1 each ; calls, 2s. 6d. The plan of working proposed to be adopted is said to be an improvement on that followed in the late experiment at Henui. Several hundred shares are already promised to be taken up. It is believed that the necessary plant can be manufactured in the colony, and that smelting operations may be commenced within twelve months if the shares are promptly taken up. The number of passengers who arrived at the port of Wellington by sea during the past week amounted to 231. Of these 141 came from the South Island, 85 from the North Island, and 8 from Australia,

“ Blow for Blow ” was performed at the Theatre Royal last night. The price of the four-pound loaf is now elevenpence in Masterton, instead of tenpeice, the rate previously ruling. A committee meeting of the Chamber of Commerce will be held at the Chamber, .Lamb-ton-quay, at 3 o’clock to-morrow. Mr. Lee, the Inspector of Schools, has, during the last few days, been engaged in examining the various schools in the country districts surrounding Wanganui, and generally he has been well satisfied with the results.

By the outward English mail, which left on Sunday, the number of letters, papers, and book packages were;—Via Suez; 506 letters, 15 book packets, and 136 newspapers. Via Brindisi : 240 letters, 4 book packets, and 2 newspapers.

We would again draw attention to the fact that the spring show of the Wellington Horticultural Society will be held to-day, the doors of the Odd Fellows’ Hall to be opened at 2 o’clock. During the afternoon Mr. Kohler, the talented musician who is associated with Mr. Bent, will perform, and will no doubt attract many who would not otherwise attend. A meeting of the Caledonian Society was held at the New Zealander Hotel last night, when the programme for New Year’s Day sports, as arranged at the previous meeting, was, with one exception, finally passed. It was decided after due consideration to make the bicycle race a fiat handicap instead of a steeplechase as originally intended. It was resolved to publish the programme as early as possible, and with such liberal prizes as have been announced the entries should be large.

Two seamen named Charles Nicholson and William Avery had a slight difference of opinion (as a pugilistic encounter is sometimes facetiously termed) on Sunday last, and the result was that the latter, who considered himself the aggrieved party, laid an information for assault against his opponent, Nicholson, who accordingly made his appearance in answer to the charge at the Resident Magistrate’s Court yesterday, Mr. Allan appearing for him. Evidence having been taken, the Bench came to the conclusion that one party was as much to blame as the other, and therefore dismissed the case.

Messrs. Kohler and Bent gave their second entertainment in Palmer’s storeroom last evening. There was a very large attendance, and the programme, being the same as that of Saturday evening, was gone through with signal success. Mr. Bent evidently suffered from a cold, but succeeded in entertaining the audience as few could ; while Mr. Kohler delighted his hearers. The entertainment lasts fully two hours, and considering that it is provided by two performers, it will be well understood by those who have not had the pleasure of visiting Messrs. Kohler and Bent since their arrival here, that those gentlemen must be very clever indeed, succeeding as they undoubtedly do in providing real amusement during that time. The new reading-room and library of the Wellington Athemeum were opened yesterday, the office being 'in Mr. Bowden’s rooms, Brandon-street, opposite the New Zealand Insurance Company’s offices. No time was lost in removing the books, papers, &c., and in fitting up the rooms, and great credit is due to the active members of the committee and Mr. Mould, the secretary. The reading-room was largely patronised last evening, and the secretary was kept busy during the day changing books. The library is commodious, there being two rooms, one leading into the other by a door, and eemmunication is obtained with the reading-room (which by the way, is rather small) by another door. Until the new building is erected, the present one will answer the purpose tolerably well.