AUCKLAND.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 7158, 24 January 1885, Page 1 (Supplement)

AUCKLAND.

(?BOM OUR OWN COBBESPONDENT.)

January 15,

The curiosity of the public has been greatiy exoiciaed during the yuat week or so by tho mysterious movements of tho Hinemoa in our waters, but, being kept on the tenterhooks of expectation of glorious deeds by sea and land, it is regarded as rathor exasperating that all should have ended in a fizzle, tbrougu tho attitude assumed by the Imperial Government, on Samoan affaira. Whou sha came iuto port, | witb her brass cavronade, but-niched up, poeriog through a port-hole, the sergeant's guard aboard, and arms and ammunition to spare — to say nothing of hurried Cabinet meetings of Ministers at Waiwera—everyone feit that business was on hand. Captain'Fairchild, who usually is "as mild a mannered nun as ever scuttled Bbip or cut a throat," bestrode the whatf strong iv the conscious possession of IG Btand of aims, and with a fierce annexation look upon his familiar features, which is somewhat foreign to them. Even the crew became mysterious, and affected a diplomatic reticence, though Jack was bursting wilh bis secret. Public opinion here is pretty well divided aa to whether the annexation of Samoa by New Zaaland would be a politic and judicious step. Many think that iho Colony should be able to govern itself bsforo undertaking the responsibility of governing the other isles of the Pacific. Auckland is perhaps the most interested in tbe mutter, owing tohar trading rela tions with Samoa, and it is satisfactory to find that, annexation or no annexation, she is determined to have a fair sharj of the trade. Already steps have been taken to initiate regular communication between Auckland aud Samoa, aud the first vessel sailed this week under the new arrangement. One suggestion whioh has been thrown out as giving New Zealand a foothold in the Samoan group, and aa overreaching the Germans in thuii present policy towards the S^mcius, ia the proposed purchase of tho blcck of 250,000 acres of laud at Samoa at present in dispute between Messrs M'Arthur and 00. and Xvir Cornwall, It is contended that, with this block in tho possession of the New Zealand Government, ahe would possess sufficient leverage to have a poteutial voice in Samoan affairs.

Hints have been thrown out that Sir Julius Vogel may possibly addreas the citizens of Auckland on leading questions of the day during his stay in the province. Since his laßt momorablo address in the Choral Hal! a conBiderable revulsion of popular feeling bas taken placa towards bim, and it is believed that he would receive a fair and attentive, and even courteous hearing.

The visit of the American warship Iroquois to our waters has drawn to a closa, and tc-day she left for Valparaiso. Quito a friendship has been cemented between the officers and crew and the citizens of Auckland, her departure being viewed with regret. The men bave behaved themselves on shore with credit to themselves and to their country, and the valuable servico they rendered at the recent destructive fire on the reclamations, when £10,000 worth of property was snatched from destruction by the united efforts of the Auckland Fire Brigade and that of tho Iroquois, will long be remembered. Captain Stirling and his officers have made the most of their stay here by visiting and inspecting everything of interest in the city ahd neighbourhood. The Calliope Dock early claimed their attention, as giving facilities for the docking and repair of American warships ou the Pacific station, and they were satisfied that it will ba able to accommodate any veasel that is ever likely to fly the flag of the Great Republic in these waters. The Auckland Stud Company's estab lishment also eamo in for a share of their attention, tbeir sporting proclivities being manifested by a paiuting of the famous American racer, Iroquois, beiug hung up in the officers' mesa-room. The Iroquois takes away a quantity of New Zealand seeds, shrubs, and plants for naturalisation in the United States.

During the visit of the Hon. Mr Buckley, the Colonial Secretary, to Auckland, his time waa taken up in inquiring into the manage ment of local institutions, more particularly the Hospital and charitable institutions. It is to be hoped that his visit will result in some reforms, as the management of the Hospital could scarcely be worse than it is in somo respects. If the following is a sample of what local management leads to, the sooner it is abolished tbe better, as nothing approaching it ever occurred in Dr Philson's administration under the old regime. The day before last Anniversary Regatta the master of a cutter met with an internal injury in fitting up his boat, and was removed next morning from his residence to the Hospital. Being a holiday, the regatta was uppermost in some minds—tho housa surgeon is said to have been on leave, or quasi leave, from the Hospital Committee—and the poor fellow lay till evening, suffering from strangulated hernia, beforo an operation was performed. In some 24 hours or bo the poor fellow breathed bis last, whatever chance of life he had being possibly lessened by the delay. Some time afterwards a Volunteer shot himself, and his wounds being mortal, it was not deemed advisable to remove him to the Hospital, but had he bean taken there the house surgeon was down the town lecturing, and the man would bave been dead before his services could have been procured. A few months later another man attempted to poison himself with "rough on rats," and being taken to the Hospital, it appears to have been the house Burgeon's evening out, and the lady superintendent had to tackle as best she might, with the stomach-pump, an inebriated would-be suicide. At the New Year races a man named Patterson received fatal injuries. On being taken to the Hospital it was found that the house-surgeon was out in the country, at Ramuera; tha lady superintendent away on leave for her holidays; and the Hospital porter apparently installed temporarily as medical officer in charge, aa he was master of the situation when the bearers of the wounded man laid him down in the Hospital surgery. This latter affair appears to have exhausted the patience of a long-3uffering public with Hospital Committee management, and a warm Press controversy ensued. _ Two hours before poor Pattoraon breathed his last the house surgeon proceeded on a water picnic and fishing excursion, the last momenta of the dying man boing soothed by a young surgeon who came out in the Kaikoura. The evil was not yet. At last meeting of the Hospital Committee it came out incidentally for thefirst timo, through an applicationof the houae steward to have lightning-rods affixed to the Hospital building, that a patiant had been instantly killed by lightning during a thunderstorm a fortnight previously, and who3a death was found to be registered " concussion of the brain," The House Committeo were not only enlightened but electrified by the announcement, as there had been neither post-mortem, nor inquest, nor report. It only needed tha climax of absurdities and anomalies of hospital management to be completed by the house surgeon, at the same meeting, making application to be permitted to act as referee to one of the life assurance societies. The incidents above mentioned need no comment, and they reveal a state of things utterly discreditable to all concerned—to the Hospital Committee, which has not the moral courage tograpplo with affairs, and equally so to tha Government which tolerates the scandal. It is but simple justice to say that no one doubts tho professional ability or impugns the Drivata reputation of the houso surgeon. All that is felt is, that as a young man he appears scarcely to comprehend the gravity of his position and his responsibilities, and that in the flush of health and strength tha love of pleasure and recreation appears occasionally to overmaster the sense of duty. Tho publio may be wrong, but they regard prominonce at football, lawn tennis, evening " hop 3," and social junkattings as indifferent recommendations to a resident house surgeon in a district hospital where 100 lives ara entrusted to his medical care, The session of the New Zealand Educational Institute, held in this city recently, was viewed with much interest by the public, principally on account of its bringing together in Auckland a numbar of men of ability associated with or interested in the work of national education from all parts of the Colony. Thore were apprehensions at first that the Institute would develop some of the features of a tradaa' uuion, On the whole, however, the various questions were approached in a broad and liberal spirit. Tho bast cf feeling prevailed throughout the sittings between those who represented primary and secondary education, as well as between thoae representing North and South. In these respects the New Zealand Educational Institute made a very favourable impression. Many of the speeches were of a very thoughtful and catholic character, and that cannot fail to raise tho tone of tha institution. At tbe banquet given to tbe Southern delegates, graceful reference was made by the chairman to the servico which Judge Gillies had done to the cause of education here by the gifts made in the Gillies and Sinclair Scholarships,

Our criminal sessions have just concluded, and tha calendar was an unusually heavy oue, there being no less than 2fi prisoners, nnd the indictments numbering 3G, There were several cases of indecent assault, which havo attracted a great deal of publio attention owing to the surrounding circumstances and the social position of the accused, one of whom waß a professor of music of considerable distinction, and another a clergyman, Ona waa discharged, and the other acquitted under direction of the Judge, on tho ground that there was no resistance—rather consent—and consequantly no offence technically known as " assault." The decision ha 3 caused a good deal of oritiei3in, but Judge Gillies has always tho courage of hia opinions, aa those who have read his deliverances on cases of attempted suicide will remember. His Honor intimated that additional legislation would be needed to meet some phases of thi3 class of crime, as the particular acts referred to were not specified or defined in the statute law at present. The accused, -although thus discharged or acquitted, go forth into the world again with all the social disabilities which would bo entailed by conviction, and with a brand upon them like that of Cain, which is rathor a new way of illustrating the legal maxim that a man is innocent until he is proved to be guilty. The most curious part of the whole affair is that in the years gone by several men have found their way to the oublieltcs of Mount Eden Gaol for similar offences, which goes to prove onoe more " the glorious uncertainty of law." It seems as if crime begets crime, and that an epidemic of thia class of offence had broken out, for immediately after the preliminary trial of the above accused, and the appearance of the reports in the Press, similar acts are perpetrated in a country district, The accused was, however, allowed to clear outof. the district, owing to the tendei^-ae*--*- "*''^ victim making a conviction doubtful. Of late we have exf^rienoedalmojLS^^j^ii -.iwUHQityfro^ra^^i^^M^fl^H

one on the reclamations v.. s i H the community, and a*oketio. V i H ing danger arising from the cotiv. \ J. ■ enormoustimberestablishmentsen tht>. \. _. H t.inns, with agaswnrka adjacent. Had an*\ \. ■ Easter been in progress, as wns the .case on tu\ ', I niuht of the burning down of the Union Sasni \ ■ and Door Cnmpanv's timber establiahmifttA \ ■ tho firing of four million feet of timber, with" y<\ I factories, would bavo driven the employes of j \.\ I Iha Gas Company's works from their posts in a \y 1 few minutes, besides sweeping the reclamation ! II clear of tha industrial works established there i_ t. 1 from end to end. !.; I I At tbe goldfields matters are still quiet, the\ : I miners haviug scarcely yet Bettled down to the y >. I ordinary humdrum of life again after the New ! ■ ; Y»<>r holidayr, The month's returns are under \: '. 2000:.z. So fir as tbe returns have been made j up, the yield of gold for the paat year is quite J I equal to that of 1883, about 50,000nz, and bo y j far that is encouraging. The question of the J*_..r^,payableness or otherwise of the deep levels haß yet to be decided, but the operations of tbe coming year will probably solve the problem, as tho deep levels now being opened out are at 740 ft below the surface. There have been within the last fewdays a reported lindof gold in ths Waikato country, 45 miles from Kihikihi, tbe precise locality of the find being kept secret by those interested. The specimens exhibited are water-worn, as if obtained from washings in a creek. Whether anything will como of it remains to be seen. It has been known for somo time back that quartz reefs and copperlodes exist at Rangitoto—a mountain in tbe King country,—and it has always been believed by diggers that the Pirongis ranges would yet prove to be auriferous; but so far the jealousy of the Kingites has prevented any effective prospecting operations ia the above localities. The discovery of gold in thia southern section of the province would speedily settle Kingism and the Native question. i In the way of amusements there is little to record, Mrs Lewis' dramatic company are playing a very successful season at the Operahouse, tha pantomime which had a Rplendid run, having been succeeded by the legitimate drama, "Jane Shore" baing selected as the opening play. It has been on the boards for over a week, and seems likely to run as long --.-JSt again, Mrs Lewis is nightly caliod"before i&b""" —■*-*^ curtain, amidst the enthusiastic plaudits of the audience. It is understood that at the olobo of \ the season tho company leave for Australia \ and tbat Mrs Lewis bids farewell shortly to rthe stage for good.