The Otago Daily Times. WITH WHICH IS INCORPORATED THE OTAGO GUARDIAN. TUESDAY, JUNE 18, 1878.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 5096, 18 June 1878, Page 2

The Otago Daily Times. WITH WHICH IS INCORPORATED THE OTAGO GUARDIAN. TUESDAY, JUNE 18, 1878.

Whatever may be the result of the pending election, the City is certainly to be congratulated on the candidature of Mr Richard Oliver. The large and influential preliminary' meeting of supporters which' last night received Mr Oliver was, we think, an indication of the general acceptance which his candidature will meet, .'for the assemblage, so far as it went, was thoroughly representative, combining many of the foremost of the Provincialist party, with many of the best known supporters of the Abolitionist movement. There. seemed in the meeting quite a representative blending of the parties which now in Dunedin ' are generally unanimous in support of the^ present Government. The candidate: did not put himself forward as an extreme man, but he very unreservedly; expressed himself as a. supporter of the Ministry. Indeed, the wisest and best, well-wishers to the present Government! are not those who in the present posi-j 'tionrof'affairs would clamour for"candi-j datespreparedtoswearunsweryingfealty. to the Government whatsoever measures the Government may bepleased to pro-i pose. The time is past for. that. The: battle is fought' and won, and the position; of the Ministry is sufficiently secured to1 make., it no longer necessary, to swell' the Government ranks "with any un-, reasoning supporters. The position of the Ministry .will now be strengthened by the accession of_ men of commercial standing, who will-bear with them the confidence of the people in their integrity and possession of distinctive and positive principles, and we do not hesitate to say, that in Mr,, Oliver, if elected, the Government' will have an intelligent, discriminating, but Hone the less staunch supporter, "and the city will have a representative of which it will have no reason'to bo ashamed.

Although the meeting was simply preparatory, the candidate was last night put through a preliminary canter to show his paces. This was reasonable and "right, for although Mr Oliver'^ personal character may be known to all; and his views on politics -familiar enough to those personally acquainted with him, it was only fair that those intending to give him their aid should be acquainted with what ; they were doing. The first subject taken up by Mr Oliver was education, and on this the candidatespoke with no uncertain sound. He spoke strongly and unequivocally in favour of secular education,' as the only feasible system in the Colony,. at the same time he thinks that the existing system might be administered in such a manner as. to allay a good deal of the dissatisfaction that is expressed. He sees no. difficulty in the way of religious instruction .being' imparted, in, houra anii on dayß' not devoted to seciilar instruction; by the school buildings being ou such occasions made available for the purpose to such churches or denoiiiaations as may "be disposed to pay a reasonable'amount for the iaccommodation.; --On" grounds of justice" one can hardly find fault with';this,-and probably it .would'be about the! best solution of the question with which so many are at present vexed. But in this Mr Oliver in no way meant to imply the least interference "with the purely secular character of the existing system, of which he very distinctly and unequivocally expressed himself-a warm supporter. . '

The next point on which Mr Oliver explained his views was the incidence of taxation. He^admitted that he waa one of those unfortunate persons who have acquired property, but held that it was the duty of property to bear its fair share of taxation, and expressed himself as strongly supporting1 such a change in r,he incidence of taxation. On the question being put by an elector desirous of having a clear statement of the views of the candidate, he distinctly declared himself as being in favour of a land tax, and stated that in his conversations with those similarly situated with himself as the owner of land, he had failed to meet with one opposed to the views on this subject put forth by Mr Ballakce as the exponent of the Ministerial policy.

On the question of manhood suffrage, Mr Oliver candidly stated that he had been opposed to the views which he and others had regarded as being the views put forward by Sir Georoe Grey, but that on seeing the detailed policy of the Government disclosed by Mr Ballance, necessitating a certain residence in the Colony, and *n educa-

tion. test as applied ii( each voter being required to sign^his- name-asj ti pre-r liminary to exercising, the franchise, he was-prepared to give hia 'entire support to:,the principle:embqdjed in ithe.,;-..in-teniiedexfension of the'electoral; franchise. On topics of min6r ; importance he briefly expressed his views, reserving more detailed and general exposition for a public mooting to be shortly ma: —■•■-—••■-—■-■.■.,,,

Identified! as Mr OiAvER; Las bisen' ■with the -views of the. Provincialists, he naturally expressed a-.v?arm leaning to everything-tend ing to the extension of the -powers .of" local; .self-government The battle of Provincialißm and Centralism, as formerly fought," is of course now among the things of the past, but while Mr Oliver gives a'loyal adhesion to the .established birder of things, his views in, favour 'of increasing'- the ipowers of local bodies- to administer, their own affairs will meet witb. general sympathy; -• ''■■ ■ -■ ; Judging from the. views on general i policy, expressed by Mr OuvEHy he ■ may fairly calculate on. .the. 'suppprfci.of all those ,who earnestly ..desire to see the 1 hands' of' the existing Government sus- j tamed by intelligent, discriminating, and reliable support; apd from' the number of those present whose .past career has been identified with faithful and earnest adherence to the now lost cause, we,.venture to think that he will find very general support from them even though he , does not resort to any gushing declarations of living and dying a Provincialist. As oueof our leading citizens, and tiil recently Chairman of the Chamber of Commerce, Mr Oliver, in Btanding,mob:lessthau character, aptly represents the leading commercial centre in New Zealand, while his views -on ■ general policy are decidedly those entertained by the great body of the people.. The Government might possibly find a more demonstrative supporter!; .But if .stability "in views and honesty to convictions* are the best handmaids to- faithful and valuable service, neither Government nor citizens will, we think, have reason to regret the return of Mr Oliver. *"

A sitting of the Supreme Court in Bank ruptoy was held yciterday, when several applications for ordera of discharge Were adjourned, and a debtor, Donald M'Donald, was; on a creditors'petition r Ijudicat: I a bankrupt

A special meeting of the Dunedin School Committee was held last evening, at which the last letter from the Education Board re: the appointment of teachers was considered., ' The Chairman of the Committee made a statement in reply to the remarhs of the Chairman of the Board, and the re Darks Jiade by several members, of the Committ'o evidenced; continued dissatisfaction With the action of the Board. A Bub-committee, consist'rig o£ Messrs Ramsay, Bell, and JTisb, waa' appointed to meet, and confers with the' Committee of.the Board as suggested in the Boards letter, the nub-com-mittee to leport to the School Committee. The question of a conference with other, committees was referred to by one of the Committee, but it was considered best.that nothing should be done ponding the meeting of the. sub-committees. A report of the proceedings last evening' is given elsewhere.: . , , ■ ; ■ . ■■•-,■ ; ; ...•:

We understand that the writ for tlie return of a member of the Assembly for Dunedin City, to fill the vacancy caused by the resignation of Mr Larnach, was received in town last night by the Eetutr:, g: Officer, Mr tire. THe date of nom'iation and polling has not yet. been fixed, but wiM probably be announced in: afewdays. • ' • •' ■'• ~ „.. •

The process of taxing the bill o£ costs in the! Oamaru libel erse was ye;t:rday conducted by MrE. ffraß. Ward, Registrar of the Supreme Court. The sum o£ about *L 620 was struck off! the total of L 2117; being about in an equal ratio .wit£i the sum struck off in taxation in the celebrated Waka-Maori libel ca?e.:

The .'/evangelistic meeting in the! Queen's -Theatre- on -Sunday wa -addressed-by-Mr Robert Wood and Mr E. J. Gardner, Mr D.! Wright prc:idin~. i

Yesterday afternoon, on information sworn by Mr G. M. Beed, a summons ri served in a criminal prc"cution for libel on Mr James Macassey, for writing and publishing a letter bearing his signature which appeared on Tuesr day last. Both the cases—Macassey v. Eeed,' and Beed v. Macossey—are fixed for hearing to-morrow, Mr Dennistoh, of Stewart, and Denniston, being retained by Mr Macasseyj and Mr James Smith, of Smith and Anders son, instructed by Mr Sievwright, for Mr Beed.

The meeting of Justices yesterday was divided in opinion regarding the manner in which the judicial work at the Police Court is hereafter to ba overtaken. Tho resolution eventually come to was that the Mayor of the City should preside every day when the Resident Magistrate is- absent, but this was only carried by a majority of nine votea t© eight. Those in opposition appeared to resent the proposal as a victual re-establishment of the Mayor's Court. It is_ intended that two other Justices shall ait with the Mayor, and these will be chosen alphabetically.

The meeting for prayer in connection with the' United Evangelistic Committee, held in the V.M.C.A. Booms, wo-jso largely attended yel.--terday that the place was full to the door. The Bey. James Mirams presided, and several clergymen and others took part. • -'■ i,. ;

At the Police Court, Port Chalmers, yesterday, before Mr W. Elder, J.Pi, the "sitting magistrate for the day, five inebriates were dealt with—one being discharged, three fined 5s each, and one fined IC-. ... . :

The total amount collect' 'i at Knox Church on Sunday, in' aid of the Benevolent Institution, was LS4 123 2d, and not L1C9.03 6da3 stated. The mistake arose through oar reporter mistaking the total amount for the evening collection only. ' • , ; ' : ■...-:. ■ ■

Juvenile crime appeara tp.lbo on the increase in the city, frequently of late lads, and sometimes mere children, have baen brought before, the Court on charges of petty larceny. Yesterday, again, there were two separate charges of this kind against boys. In one, two lads were accused of the theft of scholars' overcoats from the hall of a school. It appears that there have been frequent complaints of this sort of thing lately, and on the occasion under notice Detective Hendeißon found one of the lads accused wearing a stolen coat. Both lads, however, pleaded not guilty to the accusation, and the' case was remanded to allow of further enquiries. The other charge was one against three boye— one of them nine years old, the others eleven— of stealing lead:from a firm of plumbers. A similar case was before the Court a week or bo ago, and, in both instances, the boys had gone to Chinese dealers to sell the stolen goods. Evidently, therefore, the thing has to Bor ne extent been a practice, for lead is one of the most unlikely articles children would steal with a view of turning it into money, and the police would do well to turn their attention to discovering whether any inducements are held out to the youngsters in the matter. In the case yesterday, the Chinese dealer's version of the affair to the police was, that the mother of the eldest of the lads had, upon his refusing the money to the boy, come to claim it; but the mother, who was in Court, gave contradiction to this, by stating that she went to "give the Chinaman a bit of her mind." Mr Watt discharged the culprits with a warning. ;

• A woman named Mary Corston, -wife of John Coraton," a labouring man working with a threshing mill at Mount Stewait, died at Milton, under very peculiar and distressing circumstances. Early on Sunday morning hwt, between 2 and 3 o'clock, she gave birth to a child. Tliero waa no one in the house to render any assistance whatever. She managed, however, to call the eldest of her children, about 13 years of age—(there being ten sleeping in an adjoining apartment)—to run and bring a neighbour, who arrived soon after, and found that Mrs Corston was suffering from want of sufficient food and proper covering upon her bed. There was a very small fire burnipg in an ad-

joinicg room, but nothing to give any warmth to any one Bitting -before" it, let alone being in another room. The covering'upon the bed was, of the slightest description,:!"being! a! ragged: counterpane and some old olpthes. The children were, if anything, woia'p off. ; Upon proceeding to search for some! kind jof nourishment suitable for the wouan, it was found that there was literally nothing in the house, not even us much as a handful of oatineaV . Mrs. Simmons, the neighbour who was clled in, then sent one of the children for a little stimulant in the shape of sixpenco worth of brandy bub the child returned without it,' having applied to .& publican' in the townshipi'who refused to' [give any without'the money.' Mrs Simn ons ■then ran to her house, which is some distance [away,..* and ;got adme1 moneys--and A again [sent the'child with a similar resrlt,' although iths child-had knocked for nearly an hour, [calling out that it was a case of sickness, and that her mother; wasdyimr^: Dr,Peter StawirS was soon after sent for, and came at once, bat larriyed too late, Mrs Coroton baiog doa3;,,.Th« 4 husband, Mr Corston, had been; away all the !week, and wa? expected home by his w.;fe and ! family the night previous, but did not come. jAs far as can be ascertained, no, steps had been ; taken by Mr or Mrs Corston to procure medi!cai assistance'for the expecird birth. As soon !as the sad affair became known the neighbours and residents in the township did all they poaißibly could to relieve the immediate and press ■ ling wants of the .'unfortunate children, and ;food,.clothingj and bedding were provided, the ■Rev. Mr'Ohißholm being most prominent in this good worki The .affair, has cast; quite a, gloom over the township.-as no one knew that there was a family in theplace literally starving .to death. ' " '~..,'. •' .. ... .'.'.■

Referring to tho appointment by tho Wellington Corporation of an inspector under "The Dangerous Goods Act," the New Zealander says:—"Hitherto the duty ofinsp2«ting dangerous gjo la hp/» devolved upon no one in particular and evei-yone in .general. What is eveiybody's business is nobody't;, and the result as regards kerosene inspection was up to lately, when the Corporation took the matter in hand, veiy unsatisfactory. Ir Seed, *it wag only when public opinion yew very sfc/jiig that th 9 Corporation were induced to deal with the subject at all.1 Now that body has commonced, it is satisfactory to find they do not intend to be satiified with half mean v.:s, and have resolved to ;take such steps rswill prevent the recurrence of accidents sim?>r.r to that which caused the death of Hannah Barnc-. The Americans are a keen-witted race, ana it is just likely they have discovered New Zealand to be somewhat loose on the matter of dangerous goods, and bo have shipped off their rubbish to these watei;. Not only hag the bulk of thß kerosene imported here of late been under the minimum standard allowed by the Act in New Zealand, but, it has actually; been .under the American standard, , Now, however, "petro. • leum', IB not likely to be sent to us marked for .'kerosene,' and when the present supply;is ÜBed ■ up, the danger of using kerosene will be considerably ksienrc1. We hope someone will be -appointed as inspecting officer,' and that someone will not only be competent to fill ithe position, but will attend fes his duties thoroughly.?'

, The"West Coaat Times of the 13th instant; Bays:—" Yesterday, Messrs Tarnley and C.i Smith, who left Holiitika by the steamer Maori in March last, on a prospecting oxpedition to the Sounds below Jackson's Bay, te-\ turned by the seme vessel, hay" 1g m j with success in their search. They bror^ht with them about Ccwt. of marble of two qualities. One is fine, white, and apparently of the best class of statuary marble, while the other is of a blue, streaky kind, not of so much value as the first, but uwfil! for many pu , bh. Two .quan.'es have been found, but; the precise localities are not, for obvious reasons, divulged. In each instance there is deep water close to thefinds, so that shipment will be comparatively easy. The discovery'promises to be of great importance, as we are led to believe the marble exists in largo quantities,"

Since the accession to office ot tneprcstnt .Government (says the New Zealand Herald) rumoux'S have • been current that they intended to test before the Supreme Court the legality of some of thosa titles of land which-l'-gr-' ■ •.■» so zealously attacked while the late wovernment were in office,, and whils the pr esenfc Ministers constituted the leaders of her Ma jeaty's Opposition. The most famous, case was of coiirße the ever memorable Piako Swamp, about which so many diverse statements wore made, all cappci by the fjertion of Mr Howe that he had sailed over it in a boat! The company was, however, somewhat stronglj entrenched behind a Crown grant which had been ordered to be issued on no less authority than a resolution of the House. But the company had subsequontlypurcba^cd several paicela of land adjoining the ori^!ual estate, "and'"fdr" them they held "ceifc'ficates "of title from the Native Lands Court. Eather more thai ~* • fortnight 7ago, theTcompliny took; steps: for. exchanging 'their CrbWn grants and their Native Lands.Court's certificates for a title (indefeasible) under the Land Trans, fer Act. We are informed that the Registrar 'referred the question to Wellington pre-. sutne, to the Regi&fcrar-General), as to whether he should proceed in accordance with the ap. plication.' -He. was, .we! believe, instructed not to issue a title for; 14 days.. Why this delay,, .we cannot say, but it may have buen for the purpose of taking opinion as to whether the titles for any of the outlying pieces which had been recently acquir; d irom natives were open to exception... At all events, it seems to have been concluded that nothing uhould be done; for on Thursday•»"title wss issued to the Piako Land Company, under the Land Transfer Act, Surely we have now heard the last of the Piako Swamp, and of all the ugly and angry aspects which it presented as a field of battle for contend-., ing politicians. Henceforward we shall, we hope, only know the Swamp as a reclaimed waste, as a place where gross is caused '- to grow for cattle, and herb for the service oi man, that he may bring forth food out of the earth.'.'

A writer in the Whitehall Be vie w says :—" It is not only probable that Baker; Pa^ha will : be reinstated in the army, but also extremely likely that he will, in case of a war, be appointed to the command of the cavalry. Qf course the Duke of Sutherland's dinner was a* feeler as to the .popularity of his re-instate-ment; but-1- have reason to believe that, not.' withstanding contraiy. assertions, Her Majesty is by no means opposed to the step. She, like her meanest Bubject, knows that gallantry is not taroished by; an expiated fault. • By the way, it is not true that General Bakerhas refused to be re-admitted .to. the' Bag.' On the contrary, I think I am correct in saying that in a Very short time the name of 'Valentine Baker1 will be found-on the list, of the members, of-the gallant establishment in question^ where, by the way, on se butte toujours."

An- English payer says that H.B.H. the Duke of Connaught is desirous of seeing service should we become involved in war, and that he would express a wish to proceed out either in command of the Bifie Brigade, or on the Staff; but it is doubtful whether it would be doomed expedient to allow His Boyal Highness to take any active part in the operations. The subject would have to be considered by Her Majesty in consultation with her Ministers. ...

There is a young baronet at present in London whose case. deserves commiseration (says the Whitehall Review). Sir Chandos Stanhope Hoskyns Reade, ninth baronet, is the aon of a Madras officer, and great nephew of the late Sir John Chandos Reade, of Shipton Court, Oxfordshire, and Oddington Park, Gloucestershire, who in his dotage disinherited his heir in favour of his footman, a man of the name of Wakefield, who ha? since assumed the nama of Reade. The story of Sir John Reade'a life remains yet to be told. He inherited large landed estates in Berks, OxoD.,and Gloucestershire, waa a Harrow and Ch. Ch. man, and married a niece of the then Lord,Elibank. For yeats his drunken habits were a by-word, and when he served the office of high sheriff, at a din ncr at the "Star" at Oxford hia intoxication took the form of dancing on the table. His wife died of grief; hi 3 only son, Compton, of the vice to which he was addicted. Lastly, he was suspected of having got rid of his butler—a man called Sinden—by foul play, and some months after the death the butler's widow inscribed on his tombstone the words, "it was a mortal hand that did the deed." This led to a coroner's inquest, but the body on being eyhumed was found to be decomposed, and

toldnotala. For ttie/liist twino^y 'fcifaXot ;tis.; life he'Uvedat Snipton Opajri' ik complete' seclusion; bis .only w^iata.fbeing^WakeSisjd,; to whom he bequeathed his entire possessions,: including the pictures of Chiof Ju'atic'o Eoatlo, temp,; Henry VII., md^fSir.Oompjlxinl^adr,'1 the first baronet of tho second creation; together with ,valuable records illustrfttiiig the past*history" of a family which, beside«"*the Chief Justice, counts among its worthies Mr John Edmund Keade, the poet, and Mr Charles Eeade, -the --novelist ■■■■ and-: dramatist-. Sir Chandos Beade is engaged at present in ascertaining whether there are sufficient grounds to enable him to'movb"the :law "cbarts'ihi''ariy j ! special directioa;Cana(liam r informed that, , ;. should the case bo-thoroughly - exploited,- some ! very strange'sud' dramatic details willbe'mode public. t It should be added that Sir Chandps Beade's light'to the baronetcy Ka^ been already decided by a" lawsuit in his favour, thei date" of. creation being 1660. , ;:; J -_;.,,,,.., J, ; . s V1j . : ,.,.-.

One of those miserable stories which so''often follow Hhe rush of .emigrants from'Tfrorthern Europe to, a trbpioal climate on the ] representa-i tion of interested agents is'told'from Venezuela (says-the'Pall Mall Gazette). A few months '-'ago'some 570.German emigrants from : Dantzic. were -induced to embark at Antwerp for Venezuela, in'the hope of finding there all, : and more than all, that they could obtain in ,the TJnitcd 'States.' Their future'wa'i fainted : for them in the x most glowing colours, and, alt i sorts of prop 'ies were by the 'agent at; Antwerp pa ,the part,of .thefVenezuelan Government.. On: arriving :- at.tlieir;destination! hewever, ;they soonJ found'out the truth. All pledges on behalf,of,' the' Government were disavowed, and they were sent up to Carcocas to cultivate coffee and cocoa—a branch of agriculture about which they were of course wholly ignorant, and in a climate altogether unsuited to their constitutions.,'* In ; . a- very, short time 115 died, 44 more were helped off to America by the-United States—not the German—consul/and the remainder, or, as many of them as survive,., are still. in'iVenezuela. It will be remembered that similar ills befell those unfortunate persons who : were induced to emigrate from "EiigHrid, to Paraguay"some', few yeais ago. The fact h that nearly the whole of South A aeri.a is wholly urisiiitsd' to "English or Ger jan colonists, and this1 ought to be made known far"an.il>ide,;' Even Australia is not in nil parts adapted for immigrants from I Northern Europe. ' •''•"■ ' ■ ' '" ''■"...

Letters from'Bussian officers in Turkey are cited by the St, Petersburg correspondent of a German paper as expressing the strougest do. aire for peace, and painting in very dark"colours the condition of the Eussian army in Bulgaria. Even the companies which have suffered the least from the war are reduced from two hundred to seventy men,".' ( The iiyant of officers ia very great; while the transport coips.the artillery,-and the: cavalry'have lost most ot their horses, and find it impossible to'replace them. It is added that a strong' impression prevails in Russian military circles that if war were to break out between England and Russia the Rußsian> troops at SanStefano would not bo able to make any resistance, but would have to retire to Adrianople; The correspondent; 'adds that there is good reason to believe that this is the course which in such event the . Russian commandets have decided to adopt.

Esquimalt Harlour, to the. importance off •which it is satisfactory to be told that the GoTemment are now fully' alive, says an English; paper, is situated on the south coast of Vancouver Island, about forty miles inside the entrance to the Strait of St. Juan de Fuca,; which separates the island on the south from the mainland. The entrance to the harbour is barely three cables in breadth, the harbour itself opening out immediately within into a magnificent and landlocked sheet of water. The most convenient anchorage, and that where English men-of-war invariably lie,- is in ■ Consta ice Cove, on the eastern side of the har- j bour, the general depth of water at tKis part j beinn; b!x fathomr, with: a bottom affording good hold'ng-ground; but there is also safe anchorage in any part, and nearly up to the head of the harbour there is no less than 4J, fathoms of water. There ia, therefore, ample room in VEsquimalt Harbour for th? .whole of the "'EngHsh' fleet in r the conveniently.- at anchor. The entrance, also, being ■ very narrow,' ■ might easily .be fortified; so as ■to render ii impossible for a hostile vessel to force its way into the harbour more formidable works and heavier gung would/be required to prevent: a man-o'-war lyWg outside in'the •Straits bom'iding .the.'.existing iiaval store-, yard, .which;isjßitnated-iclose tetheentrance, of the h.-rbowy and even'reaching; by curved or.yertical .fire, ships, anchored.in_thislatter, especially as the masti of sthe vessels would be visible to the enemy over the"intervening' ground. A, broad; and.;good carriage-road ■ j connects-Esquimalt with Victoria, the capital !of Vancouver Island, about four miles distant. J Altogether, Esquimalt'is admirably adapted to become a'maritime stronghold, and to afford a secure and convenient' basK of. operationsior the cruisers which, in the event of w;ar, wpuld be required for the protection 'of bur Pacific commerce. ■»■ i-'-i ;■■■.■■ ■■'.'.„. ■{■:■;. *■' [ '

The rAnti-Tobacco Association of France is' sorely disturbed at the umoking which now.goes on in railway, stations and carriages in, that country, and is about to address a memorial to the Minister of Justice begging himlto insist; on iths.rigorous enforcement by railway officials of tho provision of the law which forbids smolurig on the platforms, in the ■waiting-rooms, or; in ,ftny other compartments of carriages than those specially, allotted for the use of smokers. There is no doubt (says the Pall Ma'l Gazette) that in France, as in England, a wide latitude as to smoking is allowed to railway passengers, and that the position of those travellers. to ■whom even a whiff of tobacco is odious- is not always a comfortable one; but, on the other hand, as.pointed out by one of jthe papers, it is unfortunately .a fact that, in:_ these degenerate days, 'the- number of 'those who smoke is greater.-: than , that of- -the . nonsmokers. It becomes, therefore,! a question whether, it.would not be desirable; to alter the present system, and, instead of reserving certain carriages specially for smokers, to reverse the arrangement by allotting one or two carriages in each traiiiTor non-smokers, and giving up the .rest to the majority. The habit of smoking has/ in fact become bo general in spite of the' solemn warningsi,bf the Aati-Tobacco Associations that there is some danger ot the non-smokers being ignqminiously hustled' on one side by their opponents;'and on this ground alone it may be bad policy for them to.assert too boldly what they consider to ba their -rights. • The - world - isj however, according to their view of the matter, fast destroying.itself by a deadly 'poison, and if this theory is correct the evil will bring its. own remedy by the gradual extinction of the smoker. : i

Some time ago it was stated that " The Vagabond" intended to bring an action to recover L2OOO damages for slander againßt Joseph Thompson, the well-known Australian bookmaker. Referring to the case, a writer in tho Newcastle Morning Herald says:—" In the exercise of what we consider a very laudable desire to purge the turf of its uncleanness, and rescue a noble sport from tho clutches and machinations of a gambling gang of unprincipled knaves, ' The Vagabond' has more than once hit out light manfully against the bookmaking element, which has: doria more than anything else ..to degrade the turf and heap odium on racing and all connected with it. A Triton among the book-making minnows hrs Been fit to resent this outspokenness, and in the truly courteous and gentlemanly manner pecu. liar to the gang, has indulged in invective, the result being an action for slander, which will be heard in August next. It is likely to be unc cause celebre. Messrs Butler, Q.C., and Want will be counsel for plaintiff. Damages are bid at L2COO. I hear that ' the ring' have subscribed a thousand pounds to defend their fellow bird of prey ; and books are opened cm the double event of the verdict in this case and the result of the Melbourne Cup. lam <decidedly of opinion that the journalistic world should not be beaten in esprit dc corps by a gang of bookmakers. 'The Vagabond' is de" serving in this matter of the moral support of the united Press of tho colony. He is fighting a battle for the liberty of freo speech and honest criticism, which should ensure him the good wishes and sympathies of every public writer. He has fearlessly exposed a crying scandal which has of late been attaining shame ful dimensions and threatening the very existence cf the national sport both here and at

■home; and, in his spirited attempt to resist coercion and abusive threats, he deserves tha Bupporfc of every brother/'bfi *;the p'en.";':;jMorepbwer to him, say II" *«f '■'i3';fj X?; £;* JnTheSpectator learns from ;a private-letter that the telephone has been s adopted-by the Chinese, the telegraph being;'useless,fas;they, have no alphabet. Five huridra'dimiles.Mve Already been spoken over in China.' , \

Among other items in the manifest of the steamer, Mondego, which recently arrived at Southampton from the River Plate, are upwards of IpQO. case 6, containing between 40,000 "and 50;000 ox tongues, from Messrs M'Call's ■fadtbrieß "at 'Payflitiidn.'" This will give some iidea of tba enormous slaughter of oxen, which • supplies so much of the export trade of the Ar- ! gentine and.Uruguay Republic*, the-hides for (the most part 'finding their way/t<S /tlie;.;con'tinent of Europe through Bordeaux and Antwerp, the flesh in the form of '•cljarque" to Brazil and the West Indies, and.the tongues to itheßrittsh'pubJic; ,-:s'li: «• ■ /

Therewos.no small excitement during toe week (says the Auckland Star) caused by tbe appearance in our midst: of a foreign-looking gentleman of the stature peculiar to" the descandants of -Magog-tho Russians of the present day. Notwithstanding his well dissembled air of " nonchalance," to the more acute of observers his "mufti" by no means became him j and by. the shrewd manner in which he ogled the manly deportment of our man-o'-war's men ashore '(marines especially)j; as we!V as the ; fact that the City of Sydnej^ was in our waters,, it was at once concluded .that this gentleman was none other than Count Kickhisownwhiskerofl, a Russian spy, whose presence"', has' of late been daily lookedfer. : "When at tho Drill-shed—for ha evidently wished to ascertain the number and efficiency of our local Volunteer JTorce-rhe secreted himself in the. dark shadow' of/the doorway, and Bhewed decided signs of .surprise;. mixed with admiration, at the soldierlike .appearance of the Scottish, Whose' name1 (wo'are, informed) is used as a bogie to frighten children in his native country, He Visited most of' the local "bars," and "shouted" in a manner that only tended to confirm the suspicions of his vigilant watchers, associating .himself more especially with ex-military men,, insurance agents, and bankers. ; 3?inaljy, one more'dtaring than the rest came to the front, and in the tnid die of Queen-street and in- tho -presence -of - a guardian of the peace demanded his " passport" and address, when to the astonishment of all he proved to be a humble, breeder <3f pigs on a visit from the country

The Saturday Keviewsays,:—"Ladies made their appearance in the cricket field so Jong ago as 1797, when eleven married women of Bury beat eleven unmarried \yomen py 80/ notches. In the British Museum1 there :is a sketch by Rowlandson of a match that took place in 1811 between-two female eletfen^ of, Surrey, and Hampshire for ooo« u ta e as j'and Mr Box tells us that "the performers".w&oif^u ft g ea and sizes, from 14 to 60; the young had-ehaiw],-and the old long oloaksV 'The'^fcatoh- wa3::w6tto.(;'. 3 o'clock on the third .day by the Hampshire eleven, one of the;latter malangJa score of 40 before Bhe was thrown out.'.' ■~There is said to be a girls' school in SomeroetsflirQ where cricket is allowed, and where a: special; dress is worn for the purpose; and it: is added that the best cricketers make the best scholars. The account of ladies' connection with cricket is, however, very limited, for, with the exception'of these particulars and, two or'three matches in 1823, and one in Australia in 1874, there is'nothing else recorded of them. From gentle remarks overheard at Lords during the University 'picnic,' we should be inc?;hed to think that ladies had not made much advance of recent years either in their appreciation or knowledge of cricket." ......

•-■; This evening the; Princess Theatre will be opened for a dramatic season, and Mr H. E. Walton and Mra' I'itiwilliam ysiXL make their first appearance on the Dunedin stage. The programme consists of A'.bery's comedy, "The Two Boses," and the entertaining sketch " The 'Widow's Victim." ' Mr Walton comes with an excellent reputation as a juvenile actor, and Mrs Fitzwilliam has also a name and credit to sustain. There is reason to. believe thatthe leading actors will be well*supported, and that the entertainment will be,such as the theatre-going p'ublichavea right to'expect, andtDbe3atisfied Wltha : . ' ■ , -.:.-;;■

The closing performance of the Elder Family was'given last night at; the Princess Theatre. There was a.fair ..dowastairs house, and the different items on the programme were received, with great applause., The peitorm&ncn"are clever and enjoyable: throughout,.the younger of the boys being amußing by reaspnof nis perfect Eeli-possession, if ,no thing, else. , The distribution of gifts brought the entertainment to 'a'closev ': :'. '■; " ; ':.;..' "-" "'-'',.' f'.~'• '' .

■MrC. sjHeeves's friends and supporters arc re■quorted to meet at 8 o'o'ock this evening, in the lower nail o[ the Atberiaum;" . ;v -; ■~ '..'i ■