News of the Week.

Otago Witness, Issue 1160, 21 February 1874, Page 18

News of the Week.

Additions are being made in wood to the Female Ftefuge which will provide accommodation for twelve more inmates. Dr Hobhouse, formerly Bishop of Nelson, has been appointed Chancellor of the Diocese of Lichfield, vice Dr Law, resigned. It is anticipated that the returns from the crops in the Wakatip district will be far beyond the average of any previous year. A tender has been accepted by the Government for the erection of tlie Court House and Land Offices at Lawrence. Work is to be commenced immediately. Mr Petrie, Inspector of Schools, left town last week on a tour of inspection of the Goldfields schools, which will probably ex Lend over seven or eight weeks. Wo learn that Mr G. Ross, farmer. Blue Mountain, had a barn burned down last week, and property to the extent of £700. Mr Ross, unfortunately for himself, was not insured. Two handsome cart fillies, bred by Mr Holmes, were shipped in the steamer Otago on Monday for Wellington. Mr Dodson had charge of the animals, and superintended their embarkation. Mr Beissel, hairdresser, has invented a preparation for the hair called Cantharadite Fluid. It is pronounced by persons who have tried it to be superior to anything produced in this line. At a meeting, ]iro re nata, of the Presbytery of Dunedin on Wednesday week, the Rev. Mr Gillies applied for moderation of call to the North Taieri Presbyterian Church, and the application was granted. The horses brought by the schooner Agnes Jessie, from Hobart Town, were landed at the old wharf, Port Chalmers, yesterday afternoon. They were sent on to Dunedin, and appeared to be animals of the right stamp, and perfectly quiet. The Rtverton Star says :—" The staff of life has been reduced a penny the 41b. loaf in Riverton, it being now sold at 9d instead of lOd. A quantity of bread is imported from Invercargill, which fact scarcely redounds to the credit of the local bakers." It will be seen from an advertisement in another column, that the Royal English Opera Company announce commencing their season at the Princess Theatre on ihe 9th March. The subscription list is now open at Messrs Begg and Anderson's. Early on Monday evening a fire occurred at Hawksbury, Waikouaiti, whereby a stack of oats containing 100 bushels, the propeity of Mr Peter Bell, uninsured, and valued at £20, was totally destroyed. A little boy of Mr Bell's caused the Rre by lighting a match near the stack. We were shown on Saturday some very fine potatoes grown by Mr Crowhurst, of Leith Valley. The sample we saw averaged over 21bs each, and were of the kind known as Flukeo. Mr Crowhurst informs us that be expects to get from ten to fifteen sets from each potato. Amongst other numerous jobs in hand, Meters A. and T. Burt, brass founders, are constructing a refrigerator, 12 x 6 feet, of twgnty.one tubeß j two patent mashers, a»q

* double-action force-pump, for local breweries ; a steam-press for culinary arrangements, several soda-water machines, and about four hundred yarda of fluming, for sluicing purposes. In alluding to the crops, the Dunstan Times observes :— " The harvest is now all cut and housed, and to all accounts it is an excellent one. The grain crops are not only good in quantity, but in quality also, the oats (which is the principal crop) being very full and. plump. We notice that new oats are coming into the market." The latest bulletin from the Quarantine Station is of satisfactory tenor, no more new cases of sickness having occurred, whilst the invalids are fast progressing towards recovery. At a meeting of the Board of Health on Wednesday,, it was resolved to admit all the healthy immigrants to pratique, providing nothing unfavourable to such a providing took place in the meantime. We are in receipt of the New Zealand Postal Guide for 1874, a work giving the fullest information on poßtal matters connected with New Zealand, and a list of the various Telegraph Stations and Government Annuities Agencies in the Colony. The arrival and departure of the English mails via San Francisco and Suez are also given, together with rates of postage by these routes. The Cromwell Argus remarks :—": — " There is more sickness prevailing in the township of Cromwell at the present time than has ever been known to exist since Cromwell was a township. The extraordinary heat we have been exposed to for the past week or two has no doubt had something to do with it, but we are strongly inclined to believe the insufficient and iilthy supply of water has a great deal more." We would urge upon the city authorities the necessity of having t ie path gravelled over which persons approaching the Pelichet Bay Railway Station have to travel. After rain it is with great difficulty that females can pick their way through the mud. Perhaps the indefatigable Councillor Barnes, in whoso Ward Albany street is, will see that the ground for complaint is at once removed. Prom a private telegram we learn that the Bteamer Tuapeka, lately sunk at the mouth of the Molyneux River, and raised by Messrs Jackson Bros., of Port Chalmers, has been effectually repaired and re-launched by Messrs Bassett and Mason on behalf of the underwriters. She is reported to be as staunch and strong as ever, and steamed up the river to Balclutha without the slightest hitch. A telegram from London, dated February 4th, announces the death of Lord Colonsay. His lordship, who was no doubt better known to our readers as the Right Hon. Duncan M'Neill, was Lord Justice General of Scotland and President of the Court of Session from 1852 to 1867, in which latter year he was created a peer, and bscame a J member of the Judicial Committee of the j Privy Council. It is probable that an alteration in the months for shooting ducks and other native game will shortly be made. Last year the season extended over the four months _ commencing with March, but this year it is not unlikely that April, May, June, and July will constitute the season. Under any circumstances the season, according to law, will have to be proclaimed in the Provincial Government Gazette. The Wakatip Mail says -.—"Recently the Town Clerk served notices on parties owning property through which the proposed water to supply Queenstown will pass, and one of the chief parties interested returned the notice with this complimentary endorsement : « hopes the Councillors are in possession of brains and money enough to accomplish what they propose, but has grave doubts on the subject. " His Excellency Governor Weld has made a short stay in this Province. He arrived at Fern Hill about one o'clock on Monday, and, accompanied by His Honour the Superintendent and Major Richardson, visited some of our public institutions, including the Gaol and Hospital, afterwards being conveyed to Port Chalmers by special train, at half -past three, and took, his departure for Lyttelton by the Otago. With regard to Mr T. L. Shepherd '• meeting at Arrowtown, which was noticed in our telegrams last week, we have had the following information, which has been sent by telegram, placed at our disposal :— " Mr Shepherd's meeting was not advertised. Attendance very poor. Only one question asked about two heads of water. Mr Vincent Pyke was referred to as a c new broom,' in no very complimentary terms." In the case in which Mr J. Hunt sued Dr Sorley for £100 damages for improper treatment of an injury to his leg, judgment has been given for £100 and costs. A num bar of medical men were examined, and there were all sorts of differences of opinion where unanimity might have been expected. The case lasted the whole of the day, and Mr Strode gave his judgment immediately after the conclusion of the evidence. The quarterly meeting of the Lodge Pride of Dunedin, 1.0. G.T., was held on the 11th instant, when P.D.G.W.C.T. Bro. Carr installed the following officers for the teim ending Ist May :— W.C.T., Bro. Wicks ; WVT., Bro. Trotter; W.S., Bro. Crawford; W.F.S., JBro. Wilson ; W.T., Sister Wilson; W.C., Bro. Selby; W.M., Bro. Robert Brown; W.T.G., Bro. Neison; W.0.G., Bro. J. Brown ; L.H.S,, Sister Driver; R.H.S., Sister Stohr; W.A.S., Sister Nelson: W.D.M., Sister Trotter. After a hearty vote of thanks to Bro. Carr for presiding, the lodge was closed.

As the proposed cultivation of beet-root is occupying some attention in Otago at the present time, it may be of interest to state that, according to a Mincing Lane corresSondent of the Times, France, Belgium, rermany, Austria, and Russia produced last season (1872-3) over 1,100,000 tons of beet sugar, worth fully £25,000,000. In France alone the crop amounted to 409,000 tons, which was produced by 520 factories. About fifty of the Surat's passengers — males and females — met in the lower hall at the Athenaeum on Saturday night, to elect a committee to make the best arrangements for recovering the luggage. The chair was filled by Mr J. Robinson, and a warm discussion ensued, several persons speaking at one time. Messrs Robinson, Isitt, and Fountain formed a Committee, and the passengers each agreed to pay Is towards the working expenses. The delay in going on with the erection of the new Grammar School at Port Chalmers, has been owing to no active steps being taken I for the excavation of the site. As the tender from Mr Proudfoot, accepted by the Government the other day for reclamation at Port Chalmers, provides for stuff being taken from che site, it is probable that the Bite will soon be brought to the proper level, and, on it being reduced, building will be immediately commenced. The numerous friends in Dunedin of the Rev. E. H. Granger will be interested to hear that a letter from him dated Decem- j ber 17tb, hai been received by a gentleman here, who has kindly placed the following extract from it at our disposal :—": — " I hope to return to New Zealand about thb beginning ot March, and not unlikely may tan c my. passage to Dunedin (if a better ship offers), though my ultimate destination is Wellington.' 7 The s.s. Mongol waß admitted to pratique on Thursday. The cabin passengers came to town during the day, ai\d about 100 of the immigrants are expected to come to town on Saturday. "It is an ill wind that blows nobody good," and Otago by the detention of the Mongol will have now at least 100 passengers instead of fourteen, many of those nominated for other Provinces having, from what they heard of Otago, preferred to remain here. At the Port Chalmers Police CourtonWednes lay— Mr Rolfe, J.P., and Capt. Thomson, J.P., on the Bench — an untortunate fellow, named Patrick Dunn, was brought up on the charge of lunacy. The police stated that he had been in confinement before fr»r the same cause. Drs Drysdale and O Donoghue gave medical testimony tonching the mau's mental condition, and pronounced his case to be one of melancholia. The Bench ordered his removal to the Lunatic Asylum. The 18th being Ash Wednesday, there was morning prayer at St. Paul's Church, and in the evening a sermon was preached by the Rev. Mr Leeson, the curate of Port Chalmers, who chose for his t-xt, "The goodness of God laad us to repentance." At St. Joseph's Church the ceremony peculiar to the day, of the distribution of the ashes, took place at morning mass. In the evening, in addition to the usual evening devotions, there was a sermon by the Right Rev. Dr Moran. I We understand that a meeting of the \ Theological Hall Commiteee of the Synod of Otago and Southland took place on the 11th iust,, at which, after due consideration, the Convener, Mr E. B. Cargill, was requested t > write by the next outgoing.Suez mail to Principal Fairbairn, of Glasgow, Professor Rainy, oE Edinburgh, and the Rev. Dr Cairns, of Berwick (the gentlemen appointed by the Synod to select a Theological Professor), requesting them to proceed with the selection without delay. The Ray. Dr Copland is about to be absent from the Colony for a period of eight months. At a Presbytery meeting which took place on Wednesday week (of which no notice had been publicly given) the rev. gentleman ap- j plied for leave of absence for eight months in order to visit Britain for the good of his health. The Presbytery granted his request. His absence, even for a time, will, no doubt, be .universally regretted. The Church Extension Committee has undertaken to provide supply in the meantime. How some letters miscarry received an illustration the other day, when a gentleman in Dunedia was surprised to find inside a newspaper posted in Edinburgh a letter duly Btamped and addressed to a lady in North Shields. The letter had evidently been posted in the same box with the newspaper, and probably was pushed inside the latter when the box was being cleared. The letter will be posted once more by the outgoing English mail to its rightful owner, who must long ago have given it up for lost. The concert in aid of the Episcopal Church to be erected at Anderson's Bay, came off on Monday, according to announcement, and in almost every respect proved as successful as could be reasonably expected. The attendance was very good, the Masonic Hall being quite full ; and the entertainment provided, making due allowance for a few drawbacks, was really first-class. Before its conclusion, His Honour Mr Justice Chapman conveyed the thanks of the promoters to the lady and gentleman amateurs for their successful efforts to please, and to the public for their liberal patronage. Speaking as one of the audience, he passed a very favourabld sentence upon the entertainment itself, and bestowed judicious praise upon the promoters for their punctuality in commencing the concert, and' for their strict observance of the " tea minutes' interval "—a virtue as commendable as it) ia rare.

What in salt water phraseology is termed a breeze in harbour, occurred on board the steamer Mongol on Wednesday night, and resulted in a series of free fights. It appears [that somebody obtained a case of brandy (from the store-room, and a. general drinking bout ensued in, bumpers deep to the release of che vessel from Quarantine. There was a tremendous hubbub in the morning, and the boatswain, who was said to have been exceedingly obstreperous, had to be delivered over to the care of the Police, and was conveyed ashore in rons. In the R. M. Court, on Wednesday last, some very lively descriptions were given of a certain " desirable suburban residence " that bad been taken down to be re erected. The iirst witness said that he had stood outside the house and looked right through it, there were so many large openings in the walls. Another stated that the doors would neither open uor shut, and that the house was leaning over into another man's property. The next informed the Court that it had taken him and another man four hours to solder up the holes in the galvanised iron roof. By the Suez mail, brought by the Otago, the Athenaeum has received its customary parcel of books, and an unusually large number of magazines and Christmas publications. The Books comprise :—": — " The Life of J. C. Pattesoii, Missionary Bishop of the Melanesian Wands," by Charlotte M. Yonge; "The French Humourists," by Walter Besant, M. A. ; " Problems of Life and Mind," by S. H. L»wes ; " Mysie's Pardon," by Jauifs W. Hay, in 3 vols. ; "Nancy," a novel, by Rhoda Broughton; and "Lady Heater," by C M. Yonge. Messrs Cargills and M'Lean have kindly furnished us with <ihe following extract from a letter received by them from Messrs Patrick Heuderson and Co., Glasgow, relative to the safety of the ship Wild Deer :— "A terrific gale sprang up after the Wild Deer left on the 6th December, but as she took the South Channel sne got quite beyond its influence. Seveial ships were brought back disabled, and a report got into the papers that she was among them. We mention this in case the report should reach the Colony, so that you may be in a position to contradict it." A deputation representing the passengers by the Surat waited on His Ho tour the Superintendent on Tu< a lay in regard to the much agitated question of getting back their luggage. It appeared that Mr Larnach had offered to give possession of it on payment of half valuation, and that the passengers were willing to subscribe something towards it. His Honour stated that the Government was willing ' to contribute, and promised to endeavour to get the Relief Committee to give some of the funds it had in hand, towards the same object. Poor Sir James, you must greatly have offended the Riverton aristocracy when the Star is compelled to ask — " Will it be believed that the people of Riverton are asked to pay the horse hire of the Governor ? We confess we could not credit the statement when we heard it made, but subsequent enquiry proved it to be correct. We wonder what manner' of men His Excellency imagines reside in this district ? He first treats us with contempt, snubs us, rejects our proffered hospitality, ' sits upou ' our wellmeant demonstration of loyalty, and then coolly asks us to pay £6 5s for the four horses that carried him away ! What next ?" The hot springs at Taupo bid fair to become as famous as the pool of Siloam, if half that is said about their efficiency be true. Here is one of the latest " perfect cures " effected by them, as recorded by the Wanganui Chronicle :—" The miraculous cures etleoted from bathing in the hot springs at Taupo are daily increasing in number; the latest that we have heard of, as related by a gentleman who was lately there, is that of a man who had been used to wearing Bpeotacles for some eighteen years, but after spending a week at the lakes, and indulging in a few baths, can read easily small print without the aid of glasses." By the Wild Deer, which sailed from Glasgow on the sth December, there are to arrive 198 passengers for Otago. The occupations of the adults are as follows :—Domestic servants, 18 ; farm servants, 8 ; labourers, 8 ; painters, 5 ; blacksmiths, 6 ; carpenter, 1 ; saddler, 1 ; joiners, 4 ; boilermaker, 1; coopers, 3, "slaters or shoemakers, " 2 ; engineer, 1 ; machine-worker, 1 ; machine-printer, 1 ; boat carpenter, I ; baker, 1 ; shoemakers, 2 ; plumbers, 2 ; masons, 3 ; watchmaker, 1 ; farmers, 2 ; filecutter, 1 ; carter, 1 ; porter, 7 ; tailors, 2 ; shepherds, 3 ; housecleaner, 1 ; fishermen, j 3 ; " fishermen and carpenters," 2 ; dyer and ' labourer, 1 ; weavers, 2 ; gardeners, 3. Stringent measures will be required to keep down — not to Bay reduce — the growing larrikin nuisance in. Dunedin, which, if. allowed to go unchecked, will become as notorious here as in Melbourne. What it leads to in the end was foroibly illustrated in a case of vagrancy dealt with at the R. M. Court on Saturday, and when such a degraded state is reached, reform is almost hopeless. Nearly every evening mobs of boys proclaim themselves by their rough conduct near the Market Reserve and Caledonian Grounds, using profane language, and insulting passers by with their insinuating remarks. The streets of the town are not excluded from their haunts, and on Saturday night about fifty of this genus collected, about the vestibule and back yard of .the, Princess Theatre,, until scattered by a man who chased them with a horsewhip, at whom they made unearthly yells and howls

I On Tuesday evening a few of the numerom ! well-wishers of Mr James G. Scott met that gentleman at Mr Samson's residence, and presented him with an address, neatly engroßsed on vellum, expressive of regret at his departure from the district with which he was so largely associated for nineteen years, and took an active part in promoting its interests. Mr Scott came from Melbourne by the Gil Bias, which craft was then chartered under, the agency of the Hon. W. H. Reynolds for introducing immigrants, when the" Province was .almost at a standstill for want of labour. Mr Scott having Bold his land, leaves, we understand, for the Argentine Republic. A case of .considerable interest to the holders of bottle licenses was heard on Thursday, before Mr I. N. Watt, R.M. James Russell, the bolder of a bottle license, was charged by the Revenue Officer with having said a bottle of ale that had not been capsuled, contrary to law. It was proved that the defendant allowed his customers to bring their bottles to his shop, filled them with ale from a cask for fourpence, then corked them and wrapped a piece of tinfoil round the neck of the bottle. The point in the case appeared to be whether this tinfoil could properly be called a oapsule. Mr Watt was of opinion that it could not, and a fine of 20s was inflicted. The following important piece of information will be read with interest by the mining community. On Monday morning the Pr«« vincial Government telegraphed to the various receivers of gold in the mining dis» tricts of the Province, instructing them to receive gold from the miners for transmission to Australia, where it will be coined into sovereigns at the Mint, and its full value returned to the depositors in cash. Complaints have been made for some time past that the Banks have been giving too low a price for the gold, and the aotion on the part of the Provincial Government will no doubt have the desired effect of making the Banks offer the miners a couple of shillings more per ounce. The following are the eight highest shots in the first stage of the Colonial firing in this Province, and who are to have free passages to and from Napier :— Creagh, No. 1, 90 j Wales, No. 1, 90 ; Wilson, Port Chalmers, 88 ; J. Buchanan, West Taieri, 87 ; Richardson, North Dunedin, 87 ; Beal, Waikouaiti, 86 ; Lieut. M'Cartney, Portobello, 86; Robinson, Riverton (of his score we are not at present aware). The representatives embark on the 3rd of March from Port Chalmers in the steamer Wellington. The proprietors of the Wellington have agreed to take those who will be allowed to compete at the firing, but who will have to pay their own passages, at a reduction of 30 per cent, on the usual return ticket. A very sad case of juvenile depravity cama • under the notice of the Resident Magistrate, the other day, when a girl named Lawson, not quite fifteen years of age, was brought up on two charges of larceny, both of which were clearly proved. What made matters worse, however, was the statement made by SubInspector Mallard to the effect that the girl had been for some time past loading a life of immorality, and had stopped one night in the house of a most notorious woman. He described her language to the police, after her arrest, as being most horrible^ This is the girl said to have induced the little girl Carroll, brought before the Court a few days ago, to obtain a quantity of jewellery from Reuben Hart by means of false pretences. The prisoner was sent to the Reformatory for the space of three years. A narrow escape from instant death ia reported by the Murrurundi Times: — ''A young man named Henry Squires, a carrier, arrived at the railway with his team, having four tons of wool on. There being some delay in unloading, Squires drew his team across the rise to ease the bullocks, and laid, the day being very hot, down under the dray in the shade, his body being just in front of the wheel. By some mischance * branch fell from the tree above, and caused the polers to start and plunge, in spite of all efforts to stop them. The wheel bruised and grazed Squires in a very severe manner, and, as he says, ' the bullocks did their best to take the four tons over him ;' but in oonsequence of the heavy load, and the leaden remaining quiet, he escaped with a sore body." The Melbourne Evening Herald describes very graphically a cricket match which was supposed to have taken place in that city between the Bookmakers and the Brokers. Judging from the account, the match must have caused immense excitement, and a glance at the score made by the Bookmakers will justify us in stating that, considering the few opportunities afforded them of practising, their score is perhaps unparalleled in the annals of cricketing history. The following is the Bookmakers' score : — Joe Thomson, b Brown, 0; D. Barnard, runout, 0 ; M. Barnard, c Cropper, b Brown, 1 ; E. Gough, hit wicket, 0; Jack Thomson, b Brown, 0 ; J. J. Miller, st Evans, 0 ; Ned Fagan, b Brown, 0 ; B. Thomson, run out, 0 ; Ike Lyons, st Evans, 0 ; I. Parnard, b Brown, 0; J. Galloway, not out, 0 ; Extras, 28. Total, 29. The regular meeting of the Oaversham Road Board was held in the uohool-house on Thursday week. In the unavoidable absence of the chairman, Mr M'lndoe was called to the chair, and there were present Messrs Carey, U'Ren, Read, Bennet, and Bridgman. isv Carey, paid to the treasurer further subscriptions to the amount of £8 in aid of Hillside Road, and a subscription of £4 towards St. Kilda road. It was resolved to call for tenders for the formation of Kill-

»ide,roadfromSt. KildaßoadtotheForbury I Boad.' The Inspector was instructed to report on 'the drainage of Seafield Road from St. Kilda road to Anderson's Bay road ; to have the metal spread on the streets of KenBington ; and to employ day labour to scour the'ditches along both sideß of Hillside road. Several accounts were passed for payment, and the Board adjourned till Thursday, the 26thinst. Now that His Excellency the Governor has reached Wellington, we may expect to hear soon that the Hon. Mr Bathgate h»s been appointed Mr Strode's successor. As the elevation of Mr Batbgate to the Bench will render his retirement from political life necessary, steps have already been taken, we hear, to bring forward candidates for the seat in the House of Representatives and the Provincial Council which will thus become vacant. For the former seat there is a desire on the part of a number of the citizens, we learn, that Mr George M'Lean, who has recently returned from England, should become a candidate ; while for the vacant seat in the Council we are informed that Mr E. B. Cargill has been asked to come forward and is likely to stand. Bailiffs are almost universally looked upon with disfavour, but a "man in possession" on Christmas Day would, we imagine, be more than ordinarily obnoxious in most family circles. Two days before last Christmas a creditor sent a bailiff to a debtor's premises to take possession. The " bum " sent in a pretty heavy bill, which bis employer refused to pay, thinking that the bailiff was one belonging to the Court, and only entitled to receive fees according to a certain scale. The result was an action in the Resident Magistrate's Court on Wednesday, in which tbo bailiff came off successful ; as being "on his own hook," and not connected with the Court, he had a right to charge what he thought fit, and perhaps, as Mr Strode observed, thought that, considering the peculiar nature of his occupation, and the particular time of year, he was entitled to a little extra compensation. Mr J. C. Maynard, Inspector of Schools for the Braidwood District, N.S.W., speaks thus of School Boards :- "Of the majority of local boards I cannot say much that is complimentary. Local boards have three main duties to perform. The principal is, to keep the building in order, and to provide for the physioal well-being and comfort of the children; the next is to use every possible effort to prevent any child, living within walking distance of the school, from being absent without cause ; and the third, to stand by the teacher in all his difficulties, and to protect him as much as they can from being worried and harrasaed by unreasonable or vicious parents. All other duties are trivial in comparison with these. The Boards that have given their time and labour to perform these three duties, well deserve not only the thanks of their own districts, but of all right minded people." It would be well if the School Boards of this Province follow these sensible suggestions. Another addition is being made to the yery extensive premises of Messrs Guthrie and Larnach. The new building will have a frontage to Princes street of 41ft., by a depth towards Bond street of 90ft. The building is to show a double storey elevation to Princes street, whereas it is tv have three floors. The new store is to be used for holding general merchandise. A new office ia being fitted up in the present premises. It is of spacious dimensions, being 50ft. by 33tt. The large premises of Messrs Guthrie and Larnach, and the various businesses carried on therein, have been described over and over, either in Whole or in part, so that a full description could by the general public be hardly regarded in the light of news. Suffice it to say, however, that the building extends from Princes street to Bond street, and has with the new addition a frontage of 164 ft. to Princes street. The ground occupied by the firm's timber yard and buildings consists of 20 sections between Princes street and Bond street, having a frontage of 222 ft. to Princea street, and 660 ft. to Bond street, and 11 sections between Bond street and Crawford street, having a frontage to each of the two last named streets. Two prisoners were received into the gaol late on Saturday evening from Oamaru. One is the notorious George Parker, alias Mulvary, alias Mahoney, alias Flanagan, an Englishman, of strong Yankee appearance, who delights in Hibernian abuses. Flanagan is a man who with a ring planned and carried into execution some cleverly arranged robberies in Duuedin, for which ' c was tried | and punished at the Mayor's Court in Mr { Fish's time. Ho was sentenced at Oamaru on the 10th inst. by Mr J W. Parker, j R.M., to two months' imprisonment, with hard labour, for stealing a sum of money from one Thomas Proctor. The other prisoner is William Duggan, who was sentenced by Mr Parker on the sth mat. at Oamaru, to four months' imprisonment, with hard labour, for violently assaulting Grace Ann Rickards. The Magistrate was of opinion that the assault was of so aggravated a nature that it could not be sufficiently punished under the provisions contained in the 39th section of the Ordinance of the Offences against the Persons Act, 1867, as to common assault. He, however, got all the Magistrate could give him The Timaru Herald, in a leader on the release of the murderer Sullivan, remarks :—: — " He was not chained, or even made to share the ordinary labour of the gangs, but was kept a good deal in doors, and employed for amusement and exercise in light work about

the yards and gardens. It was a strange sight ; this frightful nightmare of coagulated wickedness— blistered with horrors; indurated with the life stream of victims ; blasted by the isolation of his unique enormity ; deafened by the sobs and shrieks of agonised despair ; quivering beneath the rigid grasp of dying hands ; branded by the burning gaze of eyes, which looked their last on this world, and their first on God— quietly standing in the sun with a rake, weeding polyanthuses round the gaoler's door. If ever innocence and guilt, beauty and deformity, Heaven and Hell were brought together into contrast, they were so there. Well, well — he's gone, and the sooner he's forgotten, the better. We only hope the Californians won't pay back the compliment, and send us a ship load of offal in return." Our Auckland correspondent writes: — " The gale referred to in my Saturday's letter has done great damage. At the wharf Bmall steamers and cutters are lying smashed up in a heap, while the big ships are blown out of their places and scattered over the harbour. At present only three lives are known to have been lost, but there is too much reason to fear the number will be increased as reports come in from the coast. Ashore the damage done was comparatively slight, but it cannot have been less than £12,000 or £13,000 afloat, in Auckland harbour alone. The Winona dragged to the upper harbour, where she fortunately brought up. The losses fall, lam sorry to say, as usual in such cases, chiefly on the small craft, whose owners are uninsured. It was feared that the body picked up on Takapuna Beach was that of young Waymouth, who left on Saturday with others for Waiheke in the yacht Pearl, but though extraordinarily like him, we have since heard of his safe arrival at Waiheke. The body must therefore have been that of one of the crew of the boat washed up at the same time — the Challenge — whose loss involved also that of one of the sailors of the Wave Queen, who had gone to their assistance. Dr Bakewell has published a pamphlet, entitled " Observations on the Growth and Keproduction of the Red Corpuscles of the Blood." Accompanying the work is an excellent lithographic plate by Mr George, of Messrs Mills, Dick, and Co. We believe that this is the first medical monograph published in Otago. We should like very much indeed to have given a more extended and professional notice of this handy little work, but unfortunately the gentleman in our office whose duty it is to review medical works is now suffering from a severe attack of Trialibus Sorleibus j consequently our readers must be content with the following short, but very instructive extract from the pamphlet under notice: — "But little is known respecting the mode of growth and reproduction of the corpuscles of the blood. The recent discovery of nucleated red corpuscles in the marrow of mammalian vertebrates has thrown some light on the subject, but it is only necessary to read the numerous and conflicting hypotheses as to their formation, which may be found in even the most recent compendia of physiology to show that nothing certain is known of the matter. The red corpuscles of mammalia are somewhat of an anomaly in the body." Two of those presentations which remind us of voluntary and rarely recognised services were made at St. Paul's Sunday School on Sunday afternoon. The Yen. Archdeacon Edwards, on behalf of the teachers, presented Miss Coxhead with a handsome Family Biblej and referred in praiseworthy terms to the services that lady had rendered the School for a considerable number of years. He expressed his regret, and that of the teachers, in losing oue who had always displayed such active interest in the welfare of the School. The reverend gentleman also presented an elaborate Commentary on the New Testament to Mr A. M. Webb, who has been connected with the School for nearly five years, and in now proceeding to Christchurch. An elegant gold pencil case wa» given to the same teacher on behalf ef the members ef St. Paul's Young Men's Association. In thanking the donors for their gifta, Mr Webb expressed hia regret in parting with the School, and said that the services he had rendered were always given gladly and willingly. St. Paul's Sunday School sustains a great loss by the retirement of the above-mentioned teachers, having been previously insufficiently supplied, bu f it is anticipated that several volunteers from the members of the congregation will come forward and assist in this noble work. The Wellington Evening Post in an able article contends that the two Houses of Assembly are now in session. We quote the following remarks of our contemporary on the subject :— " This extraordinary session might be regarded as a good joke, were it not that very serious consequences to the members of the House of Representatives are involved. The Constitution Act provides that any member of that House who absents himself for a whole session without leave Bhall forfeit his seat. This provision is one which the Colonial Legislature cannot alter without the Act so altaring it being reserved for her Majesty's pleasure. Thus, if the Governor now issued a proclamation proroguing Parliament, the seat of every member of the Representatives, except the half dozen who were presentyesterday, would be ipso/ac to vacant, and it would be the duty of the Clerk of Writs to immediately issue new writs. This ia a difficulty which no legislation can surmount. Unless a quorum can be got together to grant leave to the absentees, what { is equivalent to a general election throughout the Colony must ensue immediately on Parliament being prorogued. Probably the Government, if it comes to that, will advise

the Governor to dissolve Parliament, so that a real general election may take place this year, instead of the year after next, when the term of the present Parliament expires." A curious swindle — curious by reason of the extreme simplicity shown by five publicans at Balmain — is described as follows in the Sydney Morning Herald :— Charles F. Hamilton and Charles Allen were brought before the Bench at the Water Police Court yesterday on five different charges of steal- j ing money. It appeared that the prisoners went into the different public-houses in Balmain. and asked for two nobblers. The prisoner Hamilton acted as spokesman, and put down a half-sovereign, receiving 9s 6d change. On seeing the amount of change, Hamilton professed to be surprised that it was only 6d he had to pay, and asked the publican to give him oack the half-sovereign, as he had a6d about him. The publican, of course, returned the halfsovereign, and prisoner produced the sixpence, which he placed on the 9s 6d, and then observed that he did not care to carry so much silver about him, and would the publican give him a note for the change. Strange to say in each of the five cases the publican failed to see that 10s of the amount on the counter was his own property, and fave prisoners the £1 note as requested, 'risoners immediately walked off on receiving the note and proceeded to another public house for the purpose of playing the same trick. The following remarks by "Sinbad," about some of the Canterbury horses that are being trained for the Dunedin races, will no doubt be read with interest by many of our readers : "I hear Bob Ray is going down South shortly with the 'Bush Inn" team. In the 'old shop' by the course, Mr Redwood's trio are located under the care of Dick Mason. Lurline, who had done a smart gallop the morning I saw her, looked well and healthy. She is doing steady work, and . Dick says he is quite satisfied with her, and thinks her anything but a bad thing for the Dunedin Cup, in spite of her nine stone nine. Terenga looks well enough, but has been amias lately. His 'poor feet' are not quite what they should be, but it is to be hoped it is only a temporary indisposition, as there are many who fancy him better than Papapa, and would like to see this undoubtedly fine colt come fit and well to the post. Spritsail has recovered from her accident, and has been doing plenty of work. She is an exceedingly fine powerful mare, and with her light impost ought to show well for the Dun-, edin Cup. Mr Delamain has Templeton and two " Champaignists " in work under the tutelage of Sam Haines. Templeton has grown and improved wonderfully since the Metropolitan, and looks uncommonly well. With his six twelve he ought to be very near winning the Dunedin Cup, and the course there will suit him well." The New Zealand Herald publishes the following description of Dunedin, which has been sent by an Auckland gentleman to a friend: — "This is, without exception, the most unsociable hole I ever put my foot into. Socially considered, we of the South are a century behind you of the North ; whilst commercially we are a century in advance of you. Port Chalmers is a pretty place with a damnable smell. Climate : The effluvia from decomposed sea-weed and whale at times is absolutely sickening. I never felt such a smell in my life. Whenever the wind sets in from S. W., my wife closea doors and windows and gets the scent bottle under weigh. It is not unusual to experience two or three changes of climate in the course of the day— hot or cold in the morn, as the case may be, and the reverse in the afternoon ; and, as for wind, we are better off than Wellington. House rent and living are cheaper than at tha Thames. I pay thirteen shillings per week for a really good house in a lovely situation ; and food is reasonable and good — dairy produce especially so. A glass of Dunedin beer, which you pay threepence for, stands at sixpence here— an anomaly, is it not? Business is grand. Our harbour at present is thronged with first-class vessels, and wool is coming in at a great rate. Labour, however, is very scarce, and rules high." A cottage situate within the timber-yard of Messrs Black, Thomson, and Co., Manor Place, and at a distance of a few feet from large piles of shingles and other timber, was found to be on fire at about half-paat two o'clock on Tuesday afternoon. The men engaged in the timber-yard and others soon gathered round, placed a ladder against the side of the house, and with the aid of a supply of water which was brought in buckets from a tap soon put out the small blaze that was seen coming from the roof. The building is a very old one, and the shingles with which it is roofed are patched up and much decayed. From an examination of the place, it would appear that a spark, probably from th-J funnel of the adjoining sawmill, in the boiler furnace of which shavings and sawdust are consumed, hadgotin between the shingles and set fire to them and to the calico lining of the roof. Only a small hole was burnt through the roof, but the occupant, Mr George Reany, who works in the yard, must have been subjected to inconvenience and loss by having his house flooded with water. There was no fire in the fire-place* of the house when the fire broke out. Work ■was suspended in the adjoining flour mill, but the saw-mill was at work, and it is probably by a spark from the saw-mill tunnel that the fire was caused. While no damage worth speaking of was done, yet had the fire broken out at an hour when there were not so many about, or with a strong wind blowing, the consequences would have been more Berious. One thing that was

I strikingly noticeable was the absence of a | common hose-pipe, necessitating the water to be brought in buckets. Mr Walls, ironmonger, Princes street south, is just about completing an addition to his premises, which is larger than those in which he has for the past twelve months done business. The new building is of brick, has a frontage of 40ft. to Princes street, by an average depth of about 40ft., is two storeys high, and is a great improvement on the old wooden erection which it supersedes. The business to be done in the new building on the street floor will be chiefly of a wholesale nature, while the upstairs will be set apart as a show-room for registered grates, bedsteads, and in fact all the household furnishings that are procurable at aa ironmonger's. Both shop and show-room are high and commodious. These additions give Mr Walls more room for displaying his stock, and more convenience for conducting hia business. His premises have now a frontage altogether of nearly 100 feet to Princes street, and also a frontage of 50 feet to Walker street. Yankee horses are fitted up on the premises, and there is a door in the new part from which heavy goods are brought in by a truck running on rails. The contractors for the building are Messrs Bateman and Stait, and the architects Messrs Mason and Wales. It is now about eight years ago since Mr Walls commenced business in a little wooden building at the corner of Princes and. Walker streets, which occupied part of his present site, and the floor of it was below the level of the street. Twelve months ago he had this taken down and replaced ty a good brick building, and to the latter an extension larger than itself has now been made. The annual general meeting of the Commercial Building and Mutual Investment Society was held in the Friendly Society's Buildings on Wednesday, the President, Mr Thomas Callender, in the chair. There was a large attendance. After the minutes had been confirmed, the Secretary, Mr William S. Douglas, read the annual report of the Directors for the year ending Bth December, 1873, and which was as follows :—: — Your Directors have pleasure in laying before the meeting the fourth annual general statement of the Society, ending Bth December, 1873. The result of the year's business is satisfactory, considering the abundance of money and the launching of two new similar Societies in Dunedin. The shares taken up during the past year number 696, making a total of shares issued from the commencement of the Society to the present time, of 4214. The different properties over which the Society holds mortgages are 124 in number. The net amount of profits for the year, as shown by the annexed statement, is £1912 3s 4d, and the directors recommend a bonus of lO^fper cent, to credit of members, leaving a balance of £44 19s 3d to be carried forward to next year. A general financial statement was appended to the report. The Auditors' report was as follows : — "We have carefully examined the books of the Commercial Building and Mutual Investment Society, and certify that the above balance-sheet is correct. All the receipts for cash paid have been examined ; the interest calculations on advances, debentures, and shareholders' accounts have all been, checked, and the mortgages in the possession of the Society have been inspected and found intact." The report was adopted. Messrs Callender, Lees, and A. H. Jack, were elected Directors for three years, and Mr William Wright, a Director for two years. There are other methods of settling libel cases without the assistance of intellectual jurymen, and as the following incident occurred in an editor's room not a hundred miles from Dunedin, it will probably be read with interest. As a certain editor waa busily employed iv his room writing a leader, a loud thumping was heard at the door, and in came a rougbish specimen of a regular Down Easter. Addressing himself to the editor, he said :-~"Say, ain't you the cusg that drives the nibs in this rag factory?" "I'm the editor, if you wish to see him." "Precisely, you are the man I'm looking for. I intend to go for you. Fact is, I've travelled overland to pound you." "Indeed, sir," the editor coolly replied; "how have I given you offence?' 5 "Well, you've called me an assinine abortion of stupidity, which slightly kind of riles me." The man of letters looked at the Yankee, and then requested him to wait till he had finished his article on "The Advantages of the Noble Art of Self Defence." The subject of the leader was hardly in accordance with the stranger'B idea of the man he had travelled overland to pound, still he was determined to see the matter out. On the leader beinj? completed, the editor rang the bell, and then turning to the Yankee said "Now, sir, I will attend to you." " Well," said the stranger, "as I want this little affair to be private, what have you pulled that bell for ?" "Oh, that is to send the boy for some lint, and bandages, and a cab, for to tell you the truth, the last three men that I have thrashed here have lain in the office two or three days, laid up with wounds and fractures. Now, as the directors meet here to-morrow I want to get you out of the way sharp." This remark flabbergasted the would-be bruiser. He turned to the editoi*, and Baid, "Why, you must be the man that whipped the 'Slasher.'" "I'm the identical party. " " Well, as he can give me two stone and a licking I'm sorry I spoke. Good day." The above incident is strictly true, and is undoubtedly a much better way of settling a libel than *U the publicity »n4 expense of law.