The Oamaru Mail. TUESDAY, MAY 11, 1880.

Oamaru Mail, Volume IV, Issue 1277, 11 May 1880, Page 2

The Oamaru Mail. TUESDAY, MAY 11, 1880.

Tmz report that reached os by telegraph some <3*y« ago relative to an accident on the railway was incorrect, for whereas it wm stated that a woman fell off the train was taken to the Timaru Hospital, having received serious injuries, the woman was not at all badly hurt, although the accident might have been a good deal worse. The unfortunate woman was travelling by rail from Ashbnrtonm route for Oamarti or Waimate, and having be-1 come "awfu' fa'" on the journey, lost her balance while standing on the carriage platform taking stock of the " siller" in her parse, and fell with some little force to the ground, where she was found in the " rectum bent posture" alongside the line. Beyond a few face braises she was uninjured, and not a whit the worse for her misadventure, and having been escorted, not to the hospital, but to the quarters provided for inebriates prior to their aopearing before the court, she became the tenant of a drunkard's cell, getting her discharge with a* caution on Monday morning. This is not the first occurrence of its kind, neither will it prove the last; for serious accidents will moat certainly oeear, increasing in a proportionate ratio with the population until the railway •athorities take the necessary steps for the prevention of persons nnder the influence of drink travelling on the railway.

While American cars with open platforms on which passengers may stand at pleasure are used on our lines, no intoxicated person should be allowed to travel. Every guard should be. ordered to strictly prohibit the entrance of such into the carriages, and either heavily fined or dismissed the public service for any breach of orders in this respect. Such a course is, we apprehend, the only one that can he safely adopted for the safety of those who are such enemies to themselves.

We commend to the serious consideration of the farmers of this district the remarks contained in the letter of our Timaru correspondent regarding the dulness of the gram market. His antidote is that which we have on several occasions suggested to growers, and is, we believe, the only one that would prove efficacious. Combination may not produce full advantages until the harbor is sufficiently advanced to accommodate, without the slightest risk, English vessels; but we would again impress upon growers that they should endeavor to reap as much advantage from being their own exporters as is possible under the circumstances. They will then be ready to reap the full advantages of a matured system when we, without any fear of consequences, are able to invite Home vessels to visit our harbor. We know the difficulties of forming an association such as that indicated, and usually given the expressive title of a Farmers' Club. Farmers wait for one another to take the initiative, the result being that it is neither taken at all, or not until after unnecessary and damaging delay. When some two or three of their number, realising the advantages that are slipping by, are perhaps at last carried away by circumstances, energy suddenly permeates the whole of their class, the necessary action is taken, an association is formed, and everybody wonders why it was not done long ago. Captain Edwin telegraphs: "Bad weather is approaching from any direction between north-west and west and south | during the next 12 hours; but the glass will then rise, and a heavy gale between west and south, and considerable sea, may be anticipated." Mr. John Smith, of Papakaio, informed us to-day that he had realised 106 bushels of Danish oats per acre off 14 acres of land. This is one of the most extraordinary yields it has ever been our pleasing duty to chronicle.

No. 1 Combany's Band will meet for practice this evening, after which a meeting will be held to consider several important matters.

We regret that through want of space we are nnable to give a lengthy report of the excellent lecture on "Dr. Guthrie" delivered in St. Paul's Church last evening by the Rev. Mr. Paterson, of Invercargill. Our representative had taken volnminous short-hand notes of the discourse with the intention of fully reporting it, but we were unable to find room for it in extemo, while to give a condensed report would be an act of injustice to the lecturer, whose admirable handling of the subject would be robbed of many of its beauties. Suffice it therefore to say that the church was filled with a most appreciative audience and that from first to last Mr. Paterson held the attention of his auditors. The chair was occupied by Mr. John Falconer, who, after the meeting had been opened in the manner usual in such occasions briefly introduced the lecturer. The rev, lecturer then proceeded with his discourse, dealing minutely with many matters connected with the work of Dr. Guthrie, his education and first appearance as a preacher, his happy manner of approaching to the human side of nature, his eloquence as a preacher, his >voluminous writings, and his acts of charity. At the close of the lecture a hearty vote of thanks was accorded to the rev. lecturer, who in acknowledging the compliment, said the audience present was the largest he had even seen at a lecture in New Zealand, and spoke of the kind reception given to him in Oajnarn. A vote of thanks to the Chairman having been passed, the meeting was brought to a close. Yet another Native Land Bill is to he introduced into Parliament. We learn that during the course of next session another attempt will be made to facilitate the alienation of native lands. The provisions have not yet been made known ; but the nature of the measure and the author can be pretty shrewdly imagined. Last night we wrote about the republication by our contemporary of one of our articles without acknowledgement. We now find that the Lyttelton Times of May Sth ha 3 followed suit, having reprinted it! under the heading of " A Tangled Tale,' the original heading having been "The Kinder Case." As we said last night, this article was written by us, and first appeared in the Mail, and the gleaning of the facts therein stated cost considerable trouble. We were, therefore, not gratified at seeing the article in our contemporary without any acknowledgement as to the source whence it was derived. We admit that it is a subject about which a New Zealand journalist would be expected to know much less than we published, and that the article appeared in a portion of our paper that is generally devoted to extract matter in the majority of colonial newspapers. For these reasons, we presume, our contemporary concluded that we had been guilty of doing what it subsequently did—of inserting the article from another paper without acknowledgment. When our contemporary becomesawareof the fact the article was an original one wheg it appeared in the Mail, we have not the least doubt that it will hasten to make amends for what we are sure was an unintentional breach of one of the rules of journalism. The several Volunteer Companies will meet for Government Inspection on Friday evening. They will afterwards be practised in the several movements intended to be gone through at the review on Queen's birthday.

Mr, J, W. Jago, the well-known temper- | ance advocate, is announced to deliver a lecture in the Primitive Methodist Lecture Hall, Oamaru, to-morrow evening, on the subject, "What the Doctors said in the Contemporary Review." Mr. Jago is a welLrcad, thoughtful, and philosophical exponent of the physiological evils of intemperance «uid the benefits of its antithesis, and we feel sure that his lecture will be both entertain-1 ing and instructive, I

A meeting of the Committee of the Oamnru Jockey Club was held List evening for the purpose of preparing a programme for a steeplechase meeting. There were present,— Messrs. Greenfield (in the chair), F. W. O. Grant, 31. Grant, Paterson, and Hardy (Acting-Secretary). After discussion it was decided that a steeplechase meeting tihouM be held on the I2th June, and a programme was drawn tip consisting of the following events:—Maiden Steeplechase of 50 sovs, Oamarti Handicap Steeplechase of 100 sovs, Selling Steeplechase of 25 sovs, and a Consolation Steeplechase- of 30 sovs. The 22nd instant was fixed as the Oamaru Handicap Steeplechase, and the 11th Juno

as the day of general entry. Messrs. Paterson and Shalders, the lessees of the course, agreed to give the use of the racecourse for the meeting. Messrs. Greenfield, Paterson, and Shalders were appointed a Ground Committee. Some other matters were dealt with, and the meeting terminated. - .. The Philharmonic Society's rehearsal will take place to-morrow evening, in the Volunteer Wall. We are requested to state that a full attendance is desirable. The New Zealand Herald, writing of the probable tactics of the Opposition next session, says:—''lt seems to us that the safest party tactics -for the Opposition to | adopt would •be not to organise themselves into a party at all with a recognised leader. The' Government, in the absence of an organised Opposition, will be certain to get into difficulties with sections of their own supporters, and thus there will be quite enough opportunities to inflict humiliation and annoyance. The country has no expectation of obtaining from the ranks of the Opposition better administrators than at present hold office, and the attempt to form a party for the purpose of effecting any constitutional change must, in the present state of affairs, end in failure." We compliment our contemporary upon its superior knowledge of what are the " expectations of the country." But are three-fourths of the Press of the colony groping in the dark as to what are the expectations of the country ? We thought otherwise until we read our contemporary. Whilst appreciating its superior judgment, might we be permitted to express a suspicion that there is a probability that our contemporary may be in error.

The Lyttelton Times publishes particulars of an important experiment which has been satisfactorily accomplished by the agency of Messrs. Maling and Co. Samples of fresh hutter have been brought from London in good condition, and it is now proposed to prepare some large experimental packages for shipment from this Colony. The extreme simplicity of the method for preserving the butter in good condition cannot fail to commend itself to producers.