The Evening Mail. MONDAY, OCTOBER 29, 1877.

Oamaru Mail, Volume II, Issue 468, 29 October 1877, Page 2

The Evening Mail. MONDAY, OCTOBER 29, 1877.

The amount collected in Oamaru for the Indian Famine Relief Fund has reached over L4OO, L 368 12s. 4d. of which has been paid into the bank. The collections on Saturday at the table in Thames-street amounted to the sum of L 43 odd, whilst by similar means the sum of L3O was obtained in Dunedin. It will therefore be seen that Oamaru is doing her duty in the matter. The Bill introduced by Mr. Shrimski to amend the Oamaru Harbour Board Act provides for the Board being constituted in the following manner :—The Mayor of Oamaru, the Chairman of the Waitaki County Council, and the Chairmen of the Waiareka, Papakaio (? Waitaki), and Kakanui Road Boards for the time being ; the Collector of Customs for the Port of Oamaru ; two members nominated by the Governor, and to hold office for three years ; and two members to be elected by the ratepayers of Oamaru under the Local Elections Act, 1876. The Bill amongst other provisions declares that should any member accept any_ office of profit under, or become interested in any contract with the Board, or be absent without leave from four consecutive meetings, he shall cease to be a member of the Board. Mr. James Borrie, who was one of the oldest settlers in this Provincial District, and universally known and respected, met with a fearfully-sudden death on Saturday last. He was proceeding to his home at Otepopo in his buggy, when the vehicle, from some as yet unexplained cause, was overturned. It is believed that he was last seen alive by Mr. Thomas Duncan, with whom he had some conversation. The sad occurrence was first discovered by Mr. Donald Borrie, who was also returning home with his wife and family from Oamaru. Seeing a vehicle upset by the roadside, he alighted, and became acquainted with the shocking reality. Dr. Fleming, who was shortly in attendance, pronounced life extinct. It is supposed, from the bruises on the head, that death was caused from injury to the brain. The deceased, who was 39 years of age, was brother to the Mr. Borrie who met his death m a noble endeavour to rescue a family from drowning during the great Taieri floods. We believe that he was a good father and settler, and not only have his family of seven children had to suffer a dotible bereavement within a short space of time—having been deprived of their mother about two years'ago—but the people of this district have lost a man whose absence will be keenly felt.

The firing in the first match of the season by the North Otago Eifle Association was continued on Saturday afternoon, when three members competed. The scoring was not very good, the highest total made being 42 by Mr. E. Harding. We have had the pleasure of viewing some pictures which are to be seen at Mr. Ferrier's, the handiwork of Mrs, W. E. Brunton, of this town. They are varied in style and subject, and all so cleverly executed that we found some difficulty in determining which we liked best. There is one—a beautiful crayon drawing pourtraying a "Winter's Scene," the frigid appearance of which caused us to button up our coat and shiver, whilst we almost envied those who, our imagination pictured, were snugly sitting around the capacious blazing fire within the snow-covered cottage in the foreground. No better test can be found of the excellence of a picture than that it causes a forgetfulness of the paper and paint, and leads j one into contact with reality. The pen and ink sketch of "The Palace of Caligula" is no less a work of art, although belonging to an entirely different branch. We have seen ' crowquill work before this that has called forth our warm admiration ; but this effort of the paintress far surpasses anything of its kind we have ever witnessed. So delicate are the lines of which this imitation engraving is composed that, viewing it with the naked eye, they seem to merge one into the other; but when brought under the scrutiny of a powerful glass, each line is distinct and as accurate as those of a steel engraving. Another style is the water-colour painting, "I Cannot Sing the Old Songs." This picture evidences very high-class talent. The position and countenance of the lady standing at the piano speak as eloquently as the words explaining the subject. " Indian Flowers," "PortMoeraki," "On the.Alert," and the " Natural Archway " at the Oamaru Breakwater, are pictures of great merit; more especially are the two latter excellent specimens of the painter's art. We are glad to hear that Mrs. Brunton contemplates opening a olass for tuition in the art she pro« i f«s«)», and in which she *o muoh ©xc#ls.

Since Saturday, 34 horses, 12 trucks of sheep, and a large number of settlers have left Oamaru for the Timaru Agricultural Society's Show, which takes place to-morrow and the following day. The railway employes commenced cricket practice on Saturday. The game was entered into with spirit, but the scoring was, as might be expected, not high. We hope.to be able to report well of this Club before the end of the season. A meeting of the directors of the Caledonian Society of Oamaru will take place at the Royal Hotel at S o'clo»k this evening. These meetings are to be held weekly, at the same time and place, until further notice. There was another large audience at the exhibition of the diorama of the American War on Saturday evening, when the entertainment passed off with the usual amount of success, the ventriloquism of Lieut. Herman creating great amusement, and eliciting the warmest applause. The usual distribution of prizes took place. The panorama will be exhibited again this evening, when a lady's gold watch, in addition to a number of other valuable prizes, will be given away. In another column will be found a notifica- * tion from the officer commanding the Oamaru district, to the effect that Volunteers are prohibited from firing on the headquarters range until further orders. The violation of this order will be followed by the dismissal of the offender.. From what we know of the circumstances that have necessitated _ the issue of this order, we understand that it is considered unsafe to engage in practice at the butts until a signal staff has been erected. It is most desirable that care should be exercised, or loss of life might occur. A meeting of the Range Committee will be held to-morrow evening at the Volunteer Hall at S p.m. The following requisition is being sent to A. J. Burns, Esq., M.H.R., by his constituents:—"To Arthur John Burns, Esq., M.H.R.—Sir—We, the undersigned qualified electors for the Roslyn District, express our strong dissatisfaction with your conduct in deserting the party with whom you were elected to act, and in withholding your support from Sir George Grey and his administration ; and call on you either to support the present Government, or at once resign your position as representative of the district, so that the constituents may have the privilege of electing a representative in whom they can have confidence."