The Evening Mail. SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 1876. LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Oamaru Mail, Volume I, Issue 181, 18 November 1876, Page 2

The Evening Mail.

SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 18, 1876. LOCAL AND GENERAL.

»'W«rt*antthJJvr».ancl«. drop of ink falling npon » thought may pretests that which nv»l<c» thousand* think."

"A Squatter "-felt somewhat indignant at oar remarks in a recent i.*»ne with rvgard to tie di.'*p Üble practice more.l to by a eerta n portion of his ctasi in the pre-'ent straggle : bat wc ne;jd only refer otir readers to a letter iu rjpTy, published in another column, to crntirm the; statements we then made. As we intend in onr nest isatie to reply at length, we leave him in the meantime to digest the titter pitl famished by " A Shearer" before administering another dose. The BaM'trlast evening was wcM attended, and the articles sold re.iliied a very satisfactory amount. Mr. Forrester wa3 the fortu-

Date winner of the unique and valuable suite of furniture, and as a tribute to the favors of the fickle Godless, presented £5 to the Bazaar funds. The auctkn of the valuable plants, and of the large collection of articles of utility and beauty which still load the stalls, will commence at seven o'clock this evening. A crate of flower-pots, in lots to suit purchasers, will also be offered, and a valuable wcdding-cr.ke will be drawn for by expectant brides and bridegrooms.

In rifpondiug to ths toast of "The Ladies" at ths Agricultural Dinner, Mr. Neil Fleming referred to the absence of the fair sex on sucli festive occasions and ex. pressed it a< his opinion that were the table at such events gr.iced with their presence, it would he a step in the right direction. V* e perfectly agree with .Mr. Fleming, and also wh-jn h.j stated that there was a deal of twaddle spoken at such gatherings (always excepting that of list night). Tlr; practice was initiated ;:i Victoria some years ago, if we mi take not during the visit of the Duke of Kdinhurgh, at the opening of the Town Hall' Melbourne, and so well has it worked that it i 3 now- the rule, not the exception, for the ladies to be present at public banquets and dinners.

Our Special Correspondent in Dunedin *cnt us the following items of town news, but it arrived t<>o late for publication in our ii3tie of last evening :—A deputation of the residents of the North-east v alley waited on th« Commissioner of Customs to point out the unfair representation of Waikouaiti County, of which their riding formed part. Mr. M'Lean pointed out that the Government, in fixing ridings, had adhered as eloselv a l * possible tn the old road districts. —At the meeting to-day, »r the Bulgarian atrocities, nothing was done beyond appointing a committer! to draft resolutions for a future public meeting.

Notwithstanding the inclement state of weather the Ma-onic Hall was fairly attended Irsst evening, and the programme loudly applauded. Mr. and Mrs. Hart appeared in new character songs, and Professor Heunicke introduced some cap.tal tricks of conjuring When th- Professor invited two of the audience to superintend the tying up of the cue*! for Mdlie. Zclinda, a brace of burly sons of toil stepped up on the stage, but notwithstanding a number of nautical knots were put upon the ro:-c, one alone of which tli: manufacturer sail could not be undone in less than live minuses, in one minute under that time the la ly had mile her entry i'.ito the h»x. As the '■ g ntl.m.in : ' who la' dine i th - knotty operat 0:1 had. made use of some ; tall talk during the performance, declaring f that " th- was g >ing to be (adjec- | tivej W.-I1 euchre!,'' hi* temper was someI what rulll.-d when Zeiinda stepped forth and f smilingly acknowledged iier thanks for his f trouble. As in every other circumstance j through life th-.! man's failure was tiic signal I t\n- r.for.Fach. and tha,e who had ehee-ed him ! in r .{'rig by cries of "Go it, Bill; that's the I reov.T. old man," now jeered him for his dis- | comfiture. As tiierc is every prospect of there being a line night we expect to sec the house well patronised this evening. The larrikin pe>t is getting something unbearable, and nothing is safe from their saeriiigh'us hand:;. We understand that, alter the Show last evening, or between live and six o'clock, a number «if hobblc-de-hoys, ra-.if.'in'i- f«" ;i u» twelve to eighteen, were amusing themsflvos in dragging about the j I'rze Bugffv which had been exhibited the t ilay previous by Mes rs. Groves Brothers, of i f hitiedin. We have boon informed that the I vehicle was injured to some extent by the ! rouirh to which it had been subjected. ! bat we hav.; not been able to learn if such is ' really the ca-e. Certainly, if the police could succeed in making a capture of a few of the class, it would be well to teach them a lesson which would have a wholesome effect. If some check be not put to the nuisance, Oamaru will have the unenviable distinction of being the premier town in the Colony for ruffianism. A gentleman con nceted with the theatrical profession has told us that in a twelvemonth'.-* tour, during which he has visited every place of any note in the Colony, he would, without hesitation, award the palm for rowdyism to this town. An important error in the Counties Act is pointed out by our Queenstown contemporary, which if not rectified in time will practically disfranchise for the first election a large number of property-holder?. In the clause setting forth the qualification of county electors, among others enumerated as entitled to vote arc those who have a right to vote "at an election of a member of the House of Representatives upon a qualification in any outlying district in the riding/' Commenting on this, the Mai', says :—" Xow, as < a horoush is not included in a county, it is I equitable that any person simply the owner !ofa lo ongh qual.fieatkn hrald not be an I e't c or, but there are numbers of persons on \ the electoral roil possessing large property I botfi in a borough and in the County who will be disfranchised because they have been j content with qualifying themselves merely !on borough property. This is very unfair, : and must be set down to the confusion 1 created by the lighting over the Bill and the ! numerous amendmenU and erasures that i took place during its passage tluoagh both j Houses."