The Evening Mail. FRIDAY, JUNE 16, 1876. LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Oamaru Mail, Volume I, Issue 48, 16 June 1876, Page 2

The Evening Mail. FRIDAY, JUNE 16, 1876. LOCAL AND GENERAL.

A spfictally convened meeting of the Municipal Council was held ycatcnlay afternoon to consider Mr. M'Lcod s water scheme. There were present—his Worship the Mayor, Councillors Falconer, CJalbraith, Headland, Morton, Scott, Sinclair, and Mainland. After the Engineer had answered a few questions, it was proposed l>y Councillor Galbraith, and seconded l>y Councillor Scott, "That this Council approves of the scheme of water atipply from the Waitati, now submitted by the Engineer, and that he lie instructed to have the necessary plans, as required by the Act, prepared, with the least possible delay ; and that all necessary provisions of the Act be complied with." The resolution was carried unanimously. The Council then went into Committee.

The concert and dramatic entertainment in aid of the cemetery funds will be given this evening, in the Jlasontc Hail. The musical portion of the programme contains some items which we know will be creditably rendered. " Slasher and Crasher " is an excellent farce, and judging from the cast, we are inclined to think that it will "go." The object of the entertainment is a most deserving one, and should command a bnmper house. Some queer names occur in Taranaki. The "Budget" says :—"Amongst short men we have a Foote, an Inch, and one still Smaller; but the man that caps all lives in the aiwakaiho District, for he is but a Speck. His children, of course, put the set on the lot, because they are much smaller Specks than their father."

A Wellington telegram informs us that Parliament was opened yesterday by Commission. The lion. Mr. Waterhouse raised the question as to whether it was nccessary that members of the Council should take the oath and be sworn in at the assembling of a new Parliament. The Speaker thought it was optional. The lion. Mr. Watcrhouse and others declined to take the oath. On the motion of Sir Julin3 Vogel, seconded by Sir George Grey, Mr. Fitzherbert was elected Speaker of the present Parliament. Mr. Stafford expressed briefly his sense of the excellence of the choice made, and his firm conviction that if anyone in the country more than another possessed the necessary qualifications to preside over the House, Mr. Fitzherbert was that gentleman. Among the members sworn in was Mr. Shrimski, our local representative. The House adjourned till 2 p.m. to-dav, when the Governor's speech will be delivered.

A very interesting lecture on " Botany Bay and its Martyrs" was delivered at the Masonic Hall, last evening, by the Rev. P. P. Agnew. The attendance was good, especially in the gallery. The lecturer rivet ted the attention of his listeners all through his discourse, which was interrupted occasionally by marks of approval. Of course our space would not permit us to follow the reverend gentleman all through his lecture, so we will merely content ourselves by stating that the sketches of early life in New South Wales were most heartily appreciated by the audience. At the close of the lecture, Mr. Agnew stated that he intended to hold Sunday sen-ices, morning and evening, for the next three wcoks, in the Masonic Hall. A second lecture will be delivered next Wednesday evening. Mr. A\ ansbrough proposed a vote of thanks to the Chairman, the Rev. Mr. Todd, and the proceedings terminated-

The following instance of getting out of a fix neatly is given in the "Manawatu Times": —"An individual who was infringing upon the bye-law 3 by riding upon the railway line the other day was stopped by the men employed npan the works. Descending from his horse he coolly told one of them to hold it, and commenced making a survey. 4 ls this work passed ?' he asked; and, on receiving a reply in the affirmative, he declared that it should not be allowed, and would make bis report to that efiect. The men, taking him for a super-super, were amazingly civil, whilst the person referred to remounted his horse and was allowed to prosecute his journey. The next time one of the ' big wigs * arrives, unknown to the men, we pity him, for they have discovered the deception that was practised."

A special telegram in our shipping columns informs ns that the three-masted schooner Garronne met the full force of the gale on Wednesday night. She -was bound for Wellington, and left here early on Wednesday morning, in company with the brigantine Endeavour and the schooner Isabella Pratt. When off the Peninsula she was struck by a squall, and her sails and rigging were damaged. She refits at Lyttelton, and sails for Wellington to-day. A fire occurred yesterday afternoon — shortly after the dinner hour—at Mr. Angus M 'Donald's farm, Marewhenua, whereby about 160 bags of wheat were burnt. The threshing machine was completely destroyed, but the engine escaped with very little injury. It was saved through the exertions of the men at work. We have been informed that the wheat was insured in the New Zealand office. The threshing-machine was covered for £250 in the Trans-Atlantic. It is impossible to say how the fire originated, but it is generally supposed that a spark from the engine caused the conflagration. Mr. Ross, the owner of the machine, estimates his loss at £l5O, in addition to the amount covered by insurance.

Some little fuss (remarks the " Post") has been made by persons apparently ignorant of Parliamentary usages about the fact that Parliament will be opened by Commission, instead of by His Excellency the Governor in person, who 'will not deliver his Speech until the following day. This, however, is the regular and ordinary practice in opening a new Parliament. The Speaker, of course, cannot be chosen until Parliament has been opened, thus it is usual to open it by Commission, and then, when tlie Speaker has been duly elected, for the Governor afterwards to deliver his quasi-Royal speech, containing the customary outline of the Ministerial policy.

The business transacted at the Resident Magistrate's Court this morning was confined to three civil cases, which are devoid of public interest. Mr. T. W. Parker was the presiding magistrate. A "special" to the "Times" from "Wellington, dated the 15th, states that G. M. Reed, of an Otago paper, was to-day, on his arrival per Taupo, served with a writ for £SOO damages for libel, at the suit of J. M. Perrier, of the "New Zealand Times." The "South Australian Register" records a good jump. Our contemporary says : " Considerable amusement was caused at Port Adelaide on Saturday evening, the 22nd ultimo, by the freaks of a horse which was being shipped to Wedge Island per the ketch Lotus. The animal submitted quietly enough to being slung, and walked to the placed appointed for liim without hesitation. The man in charge, thinking him safe, left his head for a few moments to assist in raising another horse which was being shipped and evidently disliked the operation. Seeing himself free, the first animal evidently thought it was a good time to escape, which he did, much to the consternation of the onlookers. He walked on the vessel's poop, looked up, evidently measuring the height, and with one bound landed clean on the wharf, and made for his stable, where he was recaptured. The tide was rather low, and from the poop to the wliarf must have been a height of quite seven feet. What made the jump more difficult was the fact that the craft was close alongside the wharf, and the deck giving poor holding ground to start from. The jump was quite perpendicular, and had the steed missed his goal and come with his forefeet against the wallpiece of the wharf, he must have broken his back. Mr. Levi was so struck with the animal's pluck and jumping powers, that lie shipped another horse instead."

The committee of tlie Waiarelca Belief Fund "will meet this evening, at eight o'clock, for the purpose of receiving the report of the Disbursement Committee, re the proposed allocation of the funds. A meeting of the Oamaru School Committee ■will be held this evening, at the usual time and place, for the purpose of taking into consideration the applications for the appointments of second master and school-mistress.