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Oamaru Mail, Volume II, Issue 380, 12 July 1877, Page 2

ill 1 . Stafford addressed liis constituents at Timain last evening, but his speech contains but littL- of interest and nothing that was new. For this reason we do not deem it advisable to publish a report of the speech to the exclusion of more interesting matter. It would seem that a little energy has at iast been infused into the members of the Miiiiitry. In our Tuesday's issue we recorded the fact that the Mayor of Dunedin had telegraphed to the big-wigs located in the Circumlojution 01 rice at Wellington, sug L'e-tiiig that the construction of a portion of the Itailw.->y should be commenced with the view of ailbrding employment to the 4'.:0 men in Dunedin. We then expressed the opinion that nothing would be done beyond the acknowledgment of the letter, with an intimation that the Ministry would take the matter into consideration. We have been agreeably disappointed, for the Government have replied already that they will comply with the request by commencing work oil the Ciinton-Balclutha section of the. southern railway. Here is energy and promptness of action ! For the first time since its accession to office, the Ministry have acted as became men entrusted with the government of the Colony, It would be too bad indeed to imagine, for oiie moment, that ilie promptness of the action taken by the Government was to be attributed to the near approach of the meeting of Parliament, and not to a very great desire 011 the part of our " rulers " to <lo their duty. The Mayor of Dunedin is deserving of praise for the forethought he displayed in suggesting a means of finding work to hundreds of unemployed in Dunedin, and is to be complimented on having aroused the Ministry from their normal state of sluggishness and indifference to the welfare of the people.

The telegraphic news contained in another c ilumn headed " Wonderful! ' will be road with exceeding satisfaction by the subscribers of the iJAiL. When the intelligence reached our oilice ive danced a fandang >, and our effervescence only subsided when one of the compositors came to our pigeon hole and called out " Copy, sir ! : ' " Copy," we said

"rather. Ob, that we had time to write volumes on such an occurrence." What the result "would have been if the JSfew Zealand Times had not had the telegraph wire carried into the editor's room for the purpose of taking off Mr. Stafford's speech it is appalling to contemplate. The walls of our sanctum vibrate with the shudder that creeps through our anatomy as this terrible contingency occurs to our mind. The portentous " Colonial Journal " could not descend to the commonplace method of procuring slips from the Telegraph. Office like other unimportant and obscure prints. Our readers may not know that it is the newspaper par excellence of the Colony, although ignorance of this fact could scarcely be possible considering its universal circulation—some 900 or ICGO copies. We congratulate the Times, and tender it our thanks for the benefits that have accrued to us on account of its unheard-of enterprise, and to the Press Agency for having relieved us of a little of our superfluous cash by wiring it. The Calcined Corkonians have provided an almost entirely new programme for their second entertainment in aid of the Hospital, to take place to-morrow evening. The programme, which accompanies our present issue, w r ill be found to contain many very excellent items almost altogether unknown in Oamaru.

At the Resident Magistrate's Court this morning, John Sullivan was charged with having been drunk and disorderly, and dismissed with a caution.

The inspection parade of the Oamaru "V olunteers appointed for to-morrow evening has been postponed until Friday, 20ch instant, in order to give Volunteers an opportunity of attending the entertainment in aid of the Hospital.

A special meeting of the Municipal Council will be held at 7.13 o'clock this evening, for die purpose of opening tenders for the works in Chelmer-street. Another special meeting of the Council will be held at 11 a.m. tomorrow to confer with the members for the district with regard to various matters to be brought before Parliament during the forth-

coining session. The annual general meeting of the Loyal Alfred Lodge, 1.0.0. F., was held last evening at the lloyal Hotel, at which the following officers were duly installed, the officiating officers being P. G. Brother Reid and D.D. Brother lies :—Brother D. Moodie, X.G. ; Brother !]. Leaney, V.G-. ; Brother W. C. lioulston, Secretary. Five new members having been proposed for initiation, the meeting closed.

The adjourned half-yearly meeting of the North Otago Horticultural .Society was held last evening at Albion House, when there was a large attendance of members, Mr. ."Steward being in the chair. The minutes of the previous meeting having been read and confirmed, the annual report and balancesheet were brought up, read, and adopted, the latter showing a balance to the credit of the Society of LiU 7. lid. Votes of thanks were passed to the retiring officers and Committee. The following gentlemen were then elected office-bearers for the current year : President, Mr. Henry Connell; Vice-Presi-dent, Mr. W. J. Steward ; Hon. Secretary, Mr. Leigh ; Treasurer, Mr. Paterson. The

Committee chosen was as follows :—Gardeners : Messrs. Heywood, Simpson, Kidd, and Steniion : Amateurs : Messrs. Ireland, Spratt, O'Meagher, and Lemon. A lengthy discussion took place as to whether there should only lie one or two Shows—one in spring, and the other in autumn. The meeting then terminated with the customary vote of thanks to the chairman.

The New Zealand Mail says : —The gentleman who writes " Passing Notes " in the Otayo Witness does not rely sufficiently on his own intellectual resources. In his last lucubration he copies without acknowledgment a very funny story told by "Atlas," in the World, of the ridiculous answer given by a midshipman up for examination to a question about a Daniel's cell.

Anna Maria, who is that rarest of persons a good ssrvant, had honestly earned wages from the Joneses for several years, and had become attached to the family and the family to her. With privilege accorded to a trusted domestic she reproved one of the male olive branches a-tat 12. The young took the opportunity of his mother being out one evening to put on some of her clothes, and having knocked at the front door, asked Anna Maria, who answered to the knock, if Mrs. Jones lived there. "Yes," said Anna Maria. "Oh, that's all right," said the boy; "I'm the new servant." He walked in, sat down, and let Anna Maria cry until her mistress returned, over the parting|which she fancied was imminent.—N. -Z. Mail.