News of the Week.

Otago Witness, Issue 1191, 26 September 1874, Page 14

News of the Week.

The members of the Dunedin Club have, we understand, acquired Fernhill House as a club house. We learn by telegram from Queenstown, that Mr E. Clarke, M.P.C. for that district, has resigned his seat. From Naseby we learn that water is plentiful in the district, and that sluicing is being carried on vigorously. We understand that it is the intention of Sir Dillon Bell to address his constituents at Invercargill on an early date. Our Lawrence correspondent telegraphed on the 17th that a miner named Carr had been killed at Wetherstones by a fall of earth. We are informed by the Telegraph Department that a telegraph station is now open at Wainui, in the Province of Wellington. Mr T. A. Mansford presided at the R.M. Court yesberday, and disposed of the business, which was not very heavy, before one o'clock. The Clutha Leader says that pheasants are now very plentiful in the Kaitangata district, and are flushed daily in the gullies adjoining the coal pibs. The proposed extension of the wharfage accommodation at the Bluff is pronounced by the Southland News to be wholly inadequate to the requirements of the port. We learn that the weather has been very stormy for the past week in the Tokomairiro District, and that the severe frosts have done considerable damage to the fruit trees. By the Otago there arrived an acceptable present from the South Australian Institute for the Museum, consisting of a collection of South Australian birds, shells, fishes, &c. We understand that rapid progress is being made on the railway works between Tokomairiro and Waihola. It is expected the iron horse will be steaming along the plain in a few weeks. The Christian M'Ausland, from London, with immigrants, is now due, and the Invercargill, also having a complement of immigrants for this port, should be nearing her destination. We have received from Mr F. Bei<»sell a pamphlet entitled "A Treatise on the Human Hair," written by himself, and published by Mackay, Fenwick, and Co. The Treatise is an interesting one. A correspondent of the Nelson Colonist recommends the Government to assist in the planting of the larch, as a tr»e which will materially improve the soil and add largely to the wealth of the country. In consequence of the large number of concerts advertised to take place this month, the St. Paul's Young Men's Association notify that their entertainment will be postponed until the 7th October. The hull of the ketch Glimpse, wrecked at Moeraki during the gale on Tuesday, was insured with the Victorian Company for £400. The cargo of railway iron was insured for £680 with the Standard Company. The Dunedin Museum appears to be a special object of attraction during the fine weather, and as a resort it is evidently much appreciated by those who visit it. The Chinese are particularly partial to its novelties. Mr Petrie, Inspector of Schools, has left on a tour of inspection of the Northern schools, commencing with the Merton school and ending with those of Oamaru and vicinity. He will be absent for more than a month. One of the newly-arrived immigrants at Wellington has introduced what the New Zealand Times regards as a new industry. Ha has set up in business as a street shoeblack, and is largely patronised, especially by the Maoris. The shearers of the Oamaru and Waitaki Districts have held a meeting and determined that the price to be charged for shearing shall be £1 per 100, with rations, and that an extra allowance shall be made for stud and paddock sheep. A telegram was received in Lawrence yesterday (says the Tuapeka Times of Saturday), to the effect that the Mayor of Clyde and Mr Hazlett had made a satisfactory arrangement with the Government for the erection of a bridge over the Molyneux at Clyde. The long existing difficulty between the Green Island School Committee and the former schoolmaster, Mr Allan, has been brought to a close. Mr Allan has now left the school and school premises, which will shortly be occupied by the teacher elect — Mr Duncan. A passenger by the Cyphrene3 from Dunedin to San Francisco, writing to a friend, says that on the arrival of the mail boat at Kandavu, all the lemons offered by the natives for sale were eagerly purchased for the manufacture of John Collinses. What is a John Collins ? We learned by telegram that a destructive fire occurred at Waimate on the morning of the 18th. The following shops were destroyed : — Molloy, butcher's shop and house ; Gascoyne, tobacconist ; Dixon, baker ; Watkins, chemist ; Hobbs, tailor. The cause of the fire is not known. "Sinbad," the sporting writer of the Press, says that the Dew racecourse at Christchurch has been finished, but it is not the intention of the Jockey Club to use it at the forthcoming meeting. A large number of horses engaged in the different events of the Christchurch meeting are now steadily at work. In the District Court at Lawrence, Mr Wilson Gray, on a petition of shareholders, adjudicated the Havilah Gold Mining and Water Race Company, Registered, defunct, and ordered the affairs of the same to be wound up. A meeting of creditors is fixed for Wednesday, 7th October, 1874, at the Court House, Lawrence. An American newspaper, called the Pittsburg Republican, having received a copy of the Auckland Weekly News, is of opinion that that journal rivals the London Times and New York Tribune, and further says, speaking of New Zealand :—": — " It is one of the wonders of the world how those lonely islands have emerged from barbarism into a condition of such civilisation and enlightenment."

Tenders are invited by tne Provincial Government for the erection of two bridges over the Teviot and Clutha at Roxburgh. They will be of timber, ia single spans of 83ft. and 174ffc. respectively, the arch of each being on the laminated principle. The abutments will be of stone. The first of a series of religious revival meetings at Tokomairiro was held on Monday night in the Presbyterian Church, when the Rev. Mr Gillies, of West Taieri, the Rev. Mr Chisholm, and several other members of the Church, took part in the proceedings. It is hoped that the meetings will be productive of much good. A correspondent of the Daily Telegraph visited Bazaine while in captivity. He seems to have been much struck with Madame Bazaine, whom he describes as a "Mexican, with dark hair, lnstrous eyes, dark eye lashes, and eye brows beautifully curved, a mouth indicating unusual resolution, and a radiant, lovely face." The coming transit of Venus in December next will be especially interesting to thia Colony, in which three expeditions are to be located. In another column we give a brief outline of the arrangements attending the American expedition, the chief assistant of which, Mr Bass, arrived in Dunedin by the last San Francisco mail. "Cameo," a writer in the Weekly News, in commencing a story, says that "everybody knows everything about Hero swimming over the Hellespont to court his Leander." Until now we were always under the impression that it was Leander who did the swimming and courting part of the business, and that Hero was the young lady. A fuel called white coal is now used in Australia. It is said to consist of felted cabbage-tree fibres, like peat, which contain interspersed between them fine grains of sand. It is easily combustible and burns with a bright flame. The white coal covers large tracts, requiring no mining, and it S said to be already used to a large extent for fuel. * S The Wellington Tribune, of the 17th inst., his the following mysterious paragraph :—: — "A small piece of news, that will astonish the public, in connection with Wellington Provincial arrangements, may be expected in a day or two. Meantime, we only act cum sale discretionis in withholding even a hint of of what it is, or in what precise shape or shapelessness it may appear." In the letter on the subject of the abolition of the Provinces, published in our issue of the 19th inst., a mistake occurred through the omission of a word. The writer was made to say — " When I became, as I did on a very large scale, part owner in the good ship— her name is the Otago," &c. The sentence should have read — "When I became, as I did on a not very large scale." A serious accident happened to, Mr Austin of the Sawyer's Bay Saw-mills on Tueßday. Whilst explaining to a visitor the working of the mill, his left hand was caught by the saw, the thumb and palm of the hand being ■ severely lacerated. Dr Drysdale was called in and it was found necessary to amputate the thumb. The other wounds were dressed, and last night the patient was reported to be doing well. It is stated in the Northern papers that the Rev. B. T. Dudley refused Christian burial to aa unfortunate woman who lived a disreputable life, and died through excessive drinking, and that she was lowered into the grave by a policeman, the Provincial undertaker, and the sexton. It is to be hoped that this is not true. These are the things that call forth many a sneering remark about " Christian charity." As regards the outgoing of the Suez mail, an alteration in the day of departure, it will be seen, takes place this month. During the last six months the outward Suez mail has left Dunedin every fourth Monday, During the next six months, however, the mail will be made up every fourth Wednesday. The first mail by this route, therefore, « leaves Port Chalmers by the Tararua on Wednesday next, the 30th inst. The fine three-masted schooner Mera, which has recently arrived from England, to the order of a small Oamaru company, has met with severe injuries at Auckland. She was lying alongside the wharf yesterday, on the weather side, while a heavy gale was blowing, and it is possible that she will sink where she is moored. She cost £4000, and is insured for £3000— £1500 with the National, and £1500 with the New Zealand Co. His Hon. Mr Justice Chapman gave judgment on Wednesday on the motion for the attachment of the Directors of the Guardian Newspaper Company for contempt in commenting upon the case Macassey v. Bell. The motion for attachment was not granted, but the Directors of the Company were condemned to pay costs. The argument of the rule n'm for a new trial, &c, in the case of Macassey v. Bell, was not concluded when the Court rose. Good progress is now being made with the premises which are being erected at the corner of Princes and Mange streets for Messrs Brown, Ewing, and Co. Two-thirds of the brickwork is up, and the firm expects to open business in the part now in course of erection in the beginning of November. It is already evident that the new building will be a great improvement on that which it superseded, and that it will have a handsome appearance. We understand (says the Southern Cross) that the Provincial Government intends to have views photographed of all the. principal seaport towns and centres of population in the Province, which, together with the statements having reference to the capabilities of the country for settlement, which are published and disseminated throughout the old couutry, will, it is expected, induce intending emigrants to the Colonies to choose Auckland as their future home. We learn (says the Dunstan Times) that the Waikaia Station in Switzers district has changed hands, the adjoining runholder, Mr Thomas C. Low, of Hyde Home Station, being the purchaser, the particulars being as follows, viz. :— 20,000 sheep in the wool, 100 head of cattle, and all horses and plant, together with 30,000 acres of leasehold, and 92 acres of freehold, and substantial improvements, for £19,500 sterling. There are nine years of the lease to run, and the country 1 is' of very superior character.

The first show of this season's lamb at Port Chalmers was displayed on the 18th at the shop of Messrs Marley and Co. Saveral remarkably fine lambs were exposed to view. As an illustration of the grazing capabilities of this Province, we may remark upon four sheep, each weighing over lOOlbs, which were hung up in Mr Forsyth's shop. The sheep were reared by the Australian and New Zealand Meat Preserving Company, Kakanui. Some days ago we were informed by telegram that before the departure of Sir James Fergusson from New Zealand he would probably extend the clemency of the Crown to Alexander M 'Donald, an adopted member of a Maori tribe, who was lately sentenced to a term of imprisonment for having shot a coach horse that was being driven over a disputed road. The New Zealand Times understands that the Government has no knowledge of such an intention. During the week ending 19th September twenty-nine patients were admitted into the Dunedin Hospital, and thirty-one were discharged therefrom. Three deaths occurred, viz., Malcolm M'*Guiggan, from injuries in falling over jetty at Port Chalmers ; James M'Carthy, aged 28, seaman, native of Prince Edward Island, from consumption ; Catherine Chaffey, aged 46, native of Ireland, from fever. The number of patieDts at present in the Hospital i 3 168, of whom forty-one arc females. A correspondent writing to the Arrow Observer on the auriferous resources of the district and the departure of miners for the Palmer, says :—": — " If the resources of our district are to be developed, we must try and infuse both capital and new blood. The old idea of tradesmen waiting for the miner is gone by ; let them help the miner to carry out his more extensive ideas. The repeated checks from the tradesmen keep the miner too close to the primitive tub-and-cradle principle." As an instance of the ignorance that still prevails in' America with respect to the Australian Colonies, we may mention that the San Francisco Bulletin, under the heading "Australia," tells its readers that "the Parliament has been prorogued," following this with information as to the length and business of the session. As there are seperate headings for Queensland and Victorian news, we may .surmise that the Bulletin is under the impression that these Colonies are not in Australia. The Southern Cross is of opinion that there is a want of interest manifested in the developement of our mineral wealth, especially as regards coal and iron. Last year, that journal states, iron was imported into the Colony to the value of £514,005, and coal to nearly £200,000, or, together, over £700,000. The consumption of iron in the Colony will steadily increase, but the present demand for that article shows that a very extensive market is already open for the local manufacture. With reference to the visit of a Victorian cricketing team to New Zealand, we are informed that a well-known resident of Dunedin has undertaken to bring a team here himself, and to supply the necessary funds. We understand thatthree gentlemen have already taken the matter up, and that one of the number is at present in Melbourne endeavouring to make arrangements. Should h i fail to bring the matter to a successful issue, the plucky offer above referred to will, no doubt, be taken advantage of. r-ws Speaking of the appointment of Mr J. L. Gillies as Secretary to the Otago Harbour Board, the Clutha Leader says: — "The Speaker of the Provincial Council being by virtue of his office a* member of the Board, it is to be presumed he will at once resign that office. Whether he cHn hold the Secretaryship to the Board, and also his seat as member for Waikouaiti in the House of Representatives, remains to be seen. Should it be ►^necessary for him to resign we can only say / the country will be the loser." The following new works have been received by the mail for Wise's Library — "Clytie" by Joseph Hatton ; "Rough Hewn," by Mrs Day ; " Young Brown," by the author of "The Member for Paris;" Emilias Inheritance," by E. J. Worboise; "My Mother and I," by the Author of "John Halifax;" "Uncle John," by G. J. Whyte Melvill; "Waldfried," by Berthold Auerbach ; "Journeys in North China " by the Rev. A. Williamson ; "The last of the Jarmnghame3," by A. E. JST. Berwickie, &c, The projected railway to the Heads is occupying the serious consideration of the Natives at the Kaik and settlers round about, who appear very anxious that the works may soon be commenced and satisfactorily completed. The whaling season —the last five months— has been wholly unsuccessful, not one having been captured. ' The season terminated here on the 30th ult. ; after which the Natives and others commence potato - planting. Many have already got crops of wheat and oats in. A deer that was picked up by some fishermen in the Lower Harbour last week was taken to the Port on the 17th and lodged for safety in Dodson's bonded store. It was a handsome, full-grown doe, and is believed to belong to Mr Larnach ; at any rate, it has been surrendered to that gentleman, and , Will be removed to his estate on the Peninsula at the first opportunity. The creature was seen swimming past the Quarantine Island as if it had come from Portobello It was picked up below Deborah Bay, having been carried so far by the ebb tide. Some important resolutions were passed ny™e Harbour Board on FiUay, when Mr J. L. Gillies was duly installed as Secretary. It has not yet been decided how far Mr Gdlies s acceptation of the post will affect his political relations. A vote of thanks was passed to Mr R. Stout for having acted as Interim Secretary. His Honour the Superintendent, not being desirous "to walk six miles in the rain," re3igued the chair before the business was concluded. The Mayor then presided. A report of proceedings appears elsewhere. Telegraphic information was received from Cromwell on Saturday morning that Mr Logan, whose. rather strange disappearance WflS mentioned in pur Wj»u§ of fttfurfoy, had

been found. It appeared that the surmise we made in our last issue was correct, as an accident did occur — Mr Logan being thrown from the buggy, but not seriously injured. The gentleman, made his way to Marsh's farm, which is off the road, and the horse continued his homeward course along the road until hi 3 progress was barred by the intervention of the punt. An inquest was held here on Friday (writes our Lawrence correspondent) into the cause of the death of William Oarr, miner. Wetherstones, who was crushed by a fall of earth from his claim on the 17th. The medical evidence showed that the head and neck, and upward part of his chest were much crushed, and that the lungs were ruptured. Suffocation must have ensued. A verdict of "Accidental Death, caused by a fall of earth," was returned by the Jury. Deceased leaves a widow and nine children. He was 43 years of age, and has been resident in the district for about 11 years. About forty wool-shearers held a meeting ! last Saturday evening to agree upon the price to be paid during the ensuing season. A resolution was come to, fixing the rate at £1 per hundred for ordinary sheep, and £2 for rams ; stud sheep to be as per agreement. A number present expressed their opinion about learners being employed in the .«ame shed as shearers, but nothing definite was agreed upon. It was agreed to form a union, and a committee of seven was appointed, and bills containing the resolution ordered to be printed and circulated among shearers going up country. The Press has a leading article strongly condemning Mr Vogel's absence from the Colony. The conclusion is as follows: — "We are astonished that His Excellency has not thought proper to interpose. Sir J. Fergusson, who understands conbtitutional usage, must recognise the flagrant impropriety of Mr Vogel's conduct. We wonder, therefore, that he has countenanced it. As Governor of New Zealand he owes a duty to the people, and we are surprised that, at so important a crisis, he should have thought it consistent with the obligations of his office to allow the Premier leave of absence. "£ The Knox Church congregation's annual collection in aid of the Benevolent Institution was made on Monday. The sum of £37 3s was collected. This is rather below the usual mark, the average yearly collection for this laudable object being £50, but the wet weather, which had the effect of diminishing the usual attendance, no doubt accounts for the amount being lower thau usual. It is hoped that subscriptions from those of the congregation who were absent will be given in, that the sum ollected may be so augmented as to be brought up to at least the average amount. Says "Atticus," in the Leader: — "I do not think that Mr Coppin should have been sat upon so completely when he suggested that Sydney's difficulty was Melbourne's opportunity, and that the present was a mighty convenient time to engineer a service from Melbourne to San Francisco by way of New Zealand. I happen to know that Mr Michie had an offer from the agent of General Burnside to run a line of steamers from San Francisco by way of Wellington to Melbourne for a very small subsidy from Victoria ; but perhaps the Agent-General did not think it worth his while to communicate the offer to the Victorian Government." Mr Patterson, of Pelichet Bay, has just put the finishing touches to a very handsome four-oared racing skiff, built to the order of the Dunedin Excelsior crew of boys. The skiff is moulded in admirable lines and is built of cedar, with Oregon pine gunwale. Both ends are covered in. She is expected to prove the fastest craft of her kind belonging to the aquatic section of the Dunedin and Port Chalmers community. We are pleased to observe that some little attention is being directed to the coming Regatta season, and hope that early preparations for a properly-organised and liberallyendowed regatta will be made. Major Ropata, the celebrated friendly Maori chief, who accompanied Sir Donald M'Lean on his recent visit to Australia, thus writes in the Waka Maori of his visit to the zoological collection at Melbourne :—: — "I went to see the reptiles and beasts of which we have heard accounts — the lion, the bear, and the enako. I could not consider them with attention, from the dread with which they inspired me. I trust such things may not be brought to this country ; let them remain where they are. I strongly deprecate their introduction here." We scarcely think the Major has anything to fear on this score — at any rate from our Acclimatisation Societies. The annual report of Mr Horigßon, Inspector of Schools in Nelson, has led the Colonist to make some comparisons as to the conditionsunder which education is promoted in the different Provinces. According to our contemporary's calculations, in Otago about 25s is raised in the various districts for every child attending the schools ; in Wellington, where a school fee of £1 per head, in addition to the household rate of £1, is proposed, about 35s is paid by the inhabitants for each scholar ; while in Nelson less than 10s is contributed towards the education of each child sent to the school, the balance of the cost being thrown mainly on the general Provincial revenue. The Southland Times oays that the local Acclimatisation Society received by the Alhambra, last week, per favor of the Nelson Society, a case of starlings. It being the laying season, in which the birds cannot bear long confinement, one died on the passage and four shortly after arrival. The remainder being strong and healthy, wsre set at liberty in the neighbourhood of the North Road. It is the intention of the Society to import, when the season for removal arises, a large number of English and other birds. The pheasants introduced are multiplying fast, and are frequently to be seen in the Wallacetown district, and there is but little doubt that the quail is successfully acclimatised. We regret to hear that measles has become prevalent in the northern parts of the town. From the Stone School, nearly 200 children are now absent from this cause, about 50 of them from one class. Hardly a family in the district but has had one or more <jases. 8o for, the dmm ip gi a mild form, It j$

evident, from the suddenness of the outbreak, that our quarantine authorities have been too lax in the cases of some of the recent Bhips from home, which had the disease on board at some part of the voyage, although there were no cases when the vessels arrived. The cloches of the passengers ought at least to have been waßhed or fumigated before they were allowed to mix in the resident population. _ Writing on the subject of fish acclimatisation, the Dunstan Times says: — "As our neighbours at the Wakatip are exerting to stock the waters of their district with fish, it occurs to us that, as trout ova almost on the point of hatching may be obtained from the Otago Acclimatisation Society merely for the trouble of asking, the people of Clyde and Cromwell might not do better than set themselves to a similar task. Lakes Wanaka and Hawea, and the clear mountain streams of the Upper Olutha, Lindis, Nevis, Bannockburn, and the Fraser River, want badly stocking with edible members of the finny i tribe, and there can be no doubt but that, if once introduced, they would thrive amazingly." The twelfth birthday of John Grey Taiaroa, eldest son of H. K. Taiaroa, and future chief, was celebrated at the Kaik on the 16th inst. by a dinner at Mr Taiaroa's house and a ball at the Council-hall. Over 100 sat down to tables filled with varieties of meats, poultry, puddings, ana pastry ; after which dessert followed. Teetotalers and non-tee-totalers sat at separate tables, the former talc ing tea, &c. ; the latter whatever liquors they wished. Dancing commenced at 10 p.m., and was interspersed with sougs given by Europeans, of whom there were a goodly number present, some being visitors from the surrounding districts. At about 5 a.m. the party broke up, this little change being apparently appreciated. Captain M'Lean, of the steamer Otago, is to be thanked for the action he has taken to promote the acclimatisation of the Australian magpie in this Province. The worthy Captain holds sundry acres of land on the shore of the Lower Harbour, and on this, the latest of his many visits to Dunedin, he brought over ten pairs of magpies, aud has had them set at liberty nu hi& land. The birds were carefully selected in Victoria, and if they only obtain a little fair play to begin with, will no doubt thrive and multiply. It is to be hoped that the settlers in the locality will refrain from molesting them. The magpie is an insectivorous bird, and therefore should be regarded as a friend and ally by the agriculturist. The Timaru Herald, in describing an Auckland mob, says:— "It is a very sentimental mob, always gett ; ng in go a state of passionate excitement ovur matters which do not affect it practically at all. It reads newspapers and listens to orators. Ita idols are rag, bone, and bottle merchants, gentlemen who have ' been in trouble on the other side,' and anybody who bawls very loud, and looks very dirty. It does not object to wealth so long as it has been earned by the 'sweat of the brow,' and its possessors have taken no steps to remove the proofs. Many of its favourites are very rich, but they never wash the filth off their lucre of themselves. These are the people who used to throw stones and mud at Sir George Grey in the streets." * It is rumoured (says the Wellington Post,) that prior to Mr Vogel's departure he made things pleasant with His Excellency the Governor, byprovidingsuitable billets into which the Private Secretary, A.D.C., and Assistant A.D.C., are to be drafted when the Gubernatorial staff is broken up. We fail to see what these gentlemen, or the Governor, have done to entitle them to be provided for at th 3 expense of the Colony, and to the detriment of officers already in the service. It is said that his Excellency's anxiety to provide for his followers extended even to" his chef de cuisine, for whom a billet in connection with Bellamy's was asked, but as this was not within the gift of the Premier, the request was declined by those to whom it was made. The Poverty Bay Herald, commenting on a leader of ours, on the subject of police officers acting as Crown prosecutors in crim inal cases, says:— "ln large towns, where the criminal business is extensive, and comprises important cases, it is most necessary that a Crown prosecutor should be appointed, as we can easily imagine that justice miscarries unless every point is carefully worked up by a professional man, and, although it would be superfluous to nominate a Crown prosecutor in every district when a magistrate holds sittings, it is most essential that the police should be invested with that power, which will enable them to carry out this necessary duty without being hampered by the knowledge that they are merely acting on sufferance." Messrs M'Kenzie Brothers, the contractors for the Deborah Bay tunnel, are making satisfactory progress with that section of the Dunedin and Moeraki Railway. Work is being pushed ahead on both sides of the range, and keeps between eighty and ninety men employed. On the Dunedin side the tunnel has been driven some eight chains, and the face of it is now in hard bluestone, that has been penetrated about thirty feet, and is still very compact and refractory. _ On the Moeraki side the tunnel is in a chain and a half or thereabouts, and is advancing apace through the ordinary conglomerate formation of the locality. On both sides of the range the approaches to the tunnel are completed, and ready for the laying of the permanent way. We learn that correspond' nee has been received from the Rev. Father Coletnan, which shows that four priests from the diocese of Cloyne, Ireland, are on their way to the Colony for the Diocese of Duuedin. Two of them — the Rev. Michael Walsh and the Rev. Patrick O'Leary— left in the Calypso, which sailed from London on the 2ad August, and two others were to sail by the E. P. Bouverie to Canterbury, or by the May Queen. Tbe Rev. Father Coleman was to start with the remainder of the party he is bringing to the diocese in September, after he had placed a number of youths in college to be t>ained aa priests for the Province. The rev. gentleman wrote under date 27th July, and at that time he was about to start fpJP ftOK?,

An accident occurred to a waggon on the Stuart street Jetty on the 17ih instant. The team, we hear, was n. six-horse one. Through some cause the hind wheels went over the jetty, falling on the deck of a l'gbter which happened to be alongside. Had it not been for the lighter being at the spot it is likely that the waggon and team would have gone over the jetty into the mud below. As it was, with the aid of assistance given in men and material by the manager of the Distillery, the two wheels were raised from the lighter's deck to the jetty, and the driver, with his team, went on his way rejoicing. It does seem somewhat strange to take a waggon and team down a narrow jetty where experienced wharf carters have often I difficulty in looking after their horses and drays. An inquest was held at Milton on Tuesday on the body of a young man known as "George." It appeared that he left Dunedin about a week ago for the purpose of recruiting his health, as he was then suffering from a severe cold. A waggoner who was an acquaintance of his took him up country as far a* Tapanui, and then they started back for Dunedin. " George " got worse and worse, and when near the Tokomairiro Junction toll gate he died in the waggon. Information was at once given to the Police, and the body removed to the Milton Hotel. The medical evidence given at the inquest showed that the deceased had been suffering from bronchitis, and that the immediate csuise of death was congestion of the lungs. The Jury returned a verdict in accordance with the evidence. In a leader having reference to the anticipated sale of the Wakatip commonage, the Mail says:— "There can be no doubt that the Superintendents of the South Island have returned back to their several Provinces determined to reap as much as they can of the harvest before the fields fall into other hands. In our own Province we may expect to see the country distiicts ' looted ' for the benefit of Dunedin schemes— that is, if their residents stand quietly by and allow it. There are, in any such case or emergency, two remedies. The one that given to the people of Auckland the other day by Mr Rees, the barrister, to agitate and keep in a semi-revolutionary state ; the other was already once successfully tried here about this very run question, in 1867, namely, to appeal to the Colonial Government for protection." The return of Madame Arabella Goddard to Melbourne (says the Argus of the 10th inst.) was signalised last night at the Operahouse by a grand attendance. The house was full from gallery to stalls, and His Ex cellency the Governor, accompanied by his suite, occupied his own box in the midst of ihe crowded dress circle. The Melbourne public, who were the first to welcome this renowned artist in Australia, know her value, and they know how to treat her. The Sydney Evening Post, referring to Madame Goddard's letter giving her reasons for her abrupt departure, says: — "The letter, which we publish in another column, was so flattering to the natives of Australia, that we promise Madame Goddard that, if she pays us another visit, rotten eggs will be dear, and she will get the reception she deserves.' Our Wellington correspondent telegraphed on Friday as follows :—" The Barrister of Colonial reputation referred to by Mr Vngel is understood to be Mr Moorehouse. — The Provincial Government intend selling by auction, in a single block, on the 21st of December, the 40 acres of land now under contract for reclamation. — The General Government have agreed to lend Mr Halcombe, Manager of the Colonists' Aid Corporation, £5000, at 5 per cent., for improvements in the Fielding Block. The transaction is attributed to Mr Fox's iuflueuce. — The Provincial Government of Wellington want to sell every rood of land owned by them, and it is said that Messrs Bunny and Fitzherbert intend to exhaust the Provincial estate before the abolition of the Provinces takes place. — His Excellency's brother will re-join his regiment. With reference to the death of Dr Dick, of Naseby, we have received the following letter from our correspondent ; — " The circumstance has cast great gloom over the district. Dr Dick was a young and rising man in his profession, and had obtained the confidence and respect of the community amongst which he has been practising for the past two and a-half years. The immediate cause of death is stated to have been inflammation of the bowels supervening on a cold caught in his hurry (in a half-dressed state) to attend on the unfoi tunate patient who attempted suicide. The district is left in a very awkward position, there being no medical man within CO miles of Naseby, and several patients lying in the Hospital and elsewhere requiring professional skill and attention. Since writing the above Mr Brown, a medical practitioner from Palmerston, has arrived, and is, I understand, to take temporary charge of the Hospital." The anaual installation of the officers of the Kilwinning (Otago) Royal Arch Chapter No. 116, S C, took place on the 23rd, in the Masonic Hall. The following brethren were installed in their respective chairs :—Companion S. T. Kerr, M.E.Z. ; Companion J Stables, Ex. H. ; Companion Court, Ex. J. ; Companion J. L. Ferguson, S.E. ; Compa- ■ nion T. Moodie, S.N. ; Companion R. Greenfield, Ist So. ; Companion G. Greenfield, R.W. Mk. M. ; Companion Dr Bake well, S.W. ; Companion J. M. Brown, J.W. j Companion G. Smith, P.Z. Janitor. The ceremony of installation was conducted in a j very impressive and efficient manner by Com- ! panion Calrlwell, P.G. Superintendent of New Zealand, who was ably assisted by Companion J. H. Sanders, P.Z. There were ! also present Ex-Companion Jas. Mills, P.Z., S.C., and Principals Eldridge and Stout, of the Otago Royal Arch Chapter, EO. After the ceremony of installation the brethren adjourned to Dunning's, and partook of supper. This is the first time Mr Dunning has catered for a Masonic body, and the repast was considered an excellent one. The Revenue Officer, who would appear to have been on the qtti vive of late for food adulterators, summoned four persons before j Mr Bathgate on Tuesday — one for vending impure milk, two for adulterating bread, and another for neglecting to comply with the provisions of the Bakers and Millers Act, to ptamp tbe wheaten, bread sold by him with

a Roman H. Reports of the articled sub. mitted to Professor Black for an.Jysation were read, which showed that while the bread was greatly adulterated, or contained deleterious substances, defendants were not necessarily the agents of such mixtures, and might reasonably be ignorant of the impure quality of their goods. The Dunediu water and clay both contained the substances found in the bread, while a sample of the salt which had been used was strongly impregnated with the noxious particles. With regard to the milk, it was found to contain nearly a fourth of -water, which His Worship, while overlooking the present offence, gave it as his opinion to be much in excess of the proper quantity. One offender was fined 10s and costs, and the other cases dismissed. j Contrary to expectations, the whaling ! season has not terminated this year without a " catch" on the part of the Port fishermen. Saturday, the last day of the season, was marked by the tir«t take that has occurred during the last two years, and we are glad to hear that the fish is a prize of some value — its capacity of yield being estimated at between four tuns and six tuns of oil. On Saturday morning the sienal of fish in the offing was made at the Waikouaiti Station, and was immediately responded to — Innes, Wallace, and Genrgn liobinson mustering their crews, and stai ting in pursuit in two boats. The whale was Vi ry soon sighted, fastened to, and killed, and towed in triumph towrrds the laud ; but when the boats were off Blueskin— fortunately, in shallow water — their tow sunk to the bottom. All that could be dene then was to buoy the carcase and watch the place, and wait until the fish floated. That happened on Sunday, and then it was taken in tow again, and couveytd in safety to the trying-out ground at the Kaik. The fish was of the Right Whale species. The successful introduction of the three furrow plough (says the Southland New*) is chronicled from Corowa. The trial of the three-furrow plough took place at Glenlee, on the farm of Messrs Martin Bros., containing 500 acres, 400 of which are without a tree. The piough is now at work on lands one mile in length, turning over three furrows of ten inches each, and from four and a half to five inches deep, neatly and well cut at the edges, and perfectly level at the bottom. The furrows from one end of the onemile land to the other are as straight as it is almost possible to plough. The dej>th or width can be regulated by a single turn of a screw, done in an instant. Four average horses can do, in an ordinary day, about five acres in pretty stiff soil. Instead of requiring a skilled ploughman any active lad, i"ho can drive horses aud regulate the screws, can manage the implement. The superiority of the work, and the saving of labour effected, were the subject of g : n«ral comment at the trial. What has long been a felt want by the citizens, namely, a place within a short distance of town for holding pic-nic parlies, and where dancing in the open air may be in» dulged in, is shortly to be provided. The reserve on the opposite side of the main north road to the Botanic Gardens, and which covers a large extent of ground, is at present being fenced in by prisoners, and improvements will soon I c commenced on it under the supervision of Mr M'Gruer, the curator of the Botanic Gardens. Walks and playgrounds for pic-nic parties and holiday, seekers generally are to be made, and it ia proposed to build a laige rotunda for dancing. Swings are also to lie erected between the trees. The ground will be ornamented, but its features will be those of a pleasureground rather than of a Botanic Garden. In clearing the bush great consideration will be given as to what is most judicious to retain and what to take away. It may be mentioned that the Town Belt road will end in the reserve. When the improvements are effected, the ground will no doubt become a popular place of resort. A gentleman writing from America to a friend in Dunedin, says :—" When in New York I went to hear the. Rev. Henry Ward Beecher, of Plymouth Church. The Congregational ministers have held a convention to put him out of the Church. He laughed at them ; he said the church was his own, and he would preach any doctrine he pleased. Next Sunday he <Ud preach, and no mistake. An attempt was also made to turn Swing, the smartest minister in Chicfig >, out of the Church, bat he resigned, and his flock immediately raised one hundred thousaud dollars to build him a new church. Spiritualism is spreading as rapidly as ever, but I have had !no opportunity as yet of witnessing the latest and most wonderful phases of the phenomena. Only think of being enabled now, not only to shake by the hand, but converse with your old friends who left thig earth years ago. I find quite a change in, the people here since I saw them five year.B ago. Swearing and whisky are entirely played out. The atmosphere here will not allow me to use either in any way. I always considered them injurious to my health and morals, and I must say that I ft el all the better for the change." A correspondent from the Ashley district (says the Lyttelton Timep) sends us quite a curiosity in the way of a polilic.il novelty. It appears that Mr John Evans Brown, the member for the Ashley district, instead of calling his constituents together to explain his conduct, has adopted the novel plan of sending each a copy of M v Vogel's speech on provincial changes — probably to prepare their minds for lm forthcoming address. The speech is printed at the Government printing office, Wellington, and ia enclosed in a printed cover, headed "On public service only, New Zealand Gazette, exempt; from postage," and signed "J. Evans Brown." Now, we should very much like Mr John Evans Btown to explain upon what terms the Government Printing-office supplies him with copies of Mr Vogel's speech for each and all of his constituents, aud how he obtains the use of the Post-office free of charge to circulate the aforesaid speech under the title of a New Zealand Gazette, and by authority of his own sign-manual. Unless he can explain this matter satisfactorily, it would appear that the Post- office and Government Printing-office are at the service of zealous Government supporters, to enable them to do their election busmen at the public expww e,

We had an opportunity last week of inspecting a valuable lot of merino sheep which have just been received from Boston by Mr »S. L. tiise. The sheep, which came in the Blinker Hill, consist of two rams and ten ewes. They are all of the same strain of blood — descended froni merinos introduced to America from Spain about 60 years ago — and have been picked from three of the best flocks in the United States. They are deep round sheep, with short heads and legs, showing compactness and symmetry and plenty of constitution. Th< j y are heavily fleeced, with long thick wool opening up with great brilliancy and style. The wool on the helly, head, and legs is nearly as long as that on the back and sides. Both ewe 3 and rams are models <>f lieauty aud compactness. In June last Mr Siso imported eight rams of the some blood, amongst which was the ram Favourite, a vet y valuable animal, who has proved by his progeny in America to be a most excellent sire. The sheep now in Dunedin are intended for Mr Sise's stud flock at Moeraki. Since 1865 Mr Sise has imported to this country upwards of 100 pure-bred merino rams and ewes, and we have no doubt that in time he will reap a substantial reward for hi 3 spirited efforts to maintain the breed of first-ciass stock. The quarterly meeting of the Caithness and Sutherland Association was held on the 18th in Murray's Temperance Hotel, the Vice-President, Mr Matheson, in the chair. The Secietary, Mr Elder, read the minutes of last meeting, and also intimated that several new arrivals were met and welcomed, and situations procured for them through the influence of the Society. After some other business was disposed of, Mr Stout, M.P.C., addressed the meeting on the desirability of altering the constitution of the Society, so as to include Orkney and Shetland. A number of new members were proposed. A Committee was appointed to make arrangements for the annual social meeting of the Sucitty. It was also proposed that thu Secretary of the Society be requested to Write to the Committee of the Athenaeum, Rsiving that the Northern Ensign be ordered for the Athenaeum. The mover of this resolution expressed a hope that the Committee Would see the desirability of ordering this paper, as there is now such a number of natives of the northern counties members of the Athenaeum as to enable them to have a paper representing their native counties. We are glad to le-irn that this Society now numbers upwards of fifty members, and considerable additions are being made to the list at every meeting. The Defence Minister (says the Wellington Post) has just administered a most practical snub to the late Inspeotor of Volunteer?, Major Gordon. Amongst this officer's recommendations in reference to the Otago Force, was one that the commissions of Majors Bathgate, Jones, and Steward should be cancelled, as they had not learned, and were not capable of learning, their duty. Sir Donald M'Lean has shown what he thinks on the subject by appointing Major Steward to the separate command of the North Otago district. This appointment is notified in orders published by tho Officer Commanding in Otago. The appointment is quite justified by the fact that Major Steward is one of the oldest, jnost zealous, and most efficient volunteer officers in the Colony, the InBpector notwithstanding. In reply to a telegram from Capt. Copeland, of the North Dunedin Rifles, representing that his Company were just about to procure new uniforms when the Inspector's recommendation fov its di^bandment was published, the Defence Minister stated that there was no intention of acting on the Inspector's recommendation. If it be true, as reported, that Major Gordon is likely to be transferred to Otago, to be replaced in Auckland by Major Atkinson, we fear that the ex- Inspector's position will be a decidedly uncomfortable one. The Argus, writing of the horses brought by the Otngu, which arrived last week, says: — "The shipments consist of thoroughbreds lately purchased by Mr Combe. They consist of Flying Dutchman, one of the best and gimest horses of hiß day ; Barwon, also an acknowledged good horse; and Right Bower, who has run well, though he never was properly brought out. Mr M'lntosh sends the draught stallion Conqueror, for which, at Messrs M'Culloch, Campbell, and Co.'s annual sale, he paid 600 guineas, and RenfreAV Jock, a remarkably active young draught stallion. Messrs Blair and Blews sent 30 first-class mares, which they have selected from the best studs in the Colony. Two of these mares are bred by Mr Steele, of Newbridge, and are considered very fine animals. The pair cost 250 guineas. There is also a flue black mare, bred by Mr Cartuichael, which has taken several prizes. She has a foal at foot by Pride of Scotland, and a colt rising two years by Prince of Wales. There {iro also on board 10 draught geldings for ordinary work. In addition to the horses wentinned above, Messrs Lawson and Crosbie vnjnt to Invercargill by the same steamer 23 \nvr3B and geldings, several of which have taken prizes at Victorian shows. Mr Blair Rent the mare Young Heather Bell and the horse Young Emulator, both rising two years." Our Clyde correspondent writes :—": — " A case was heard in the Magistrate's Court here, the result of which should be a warning to deputations. Mr D. M'Pherson sued Messrs Hazlett and Hastie for expense incurred in going to Dunedin sojae year or more ago on a deputation to the Superintendent re the sale of land in the Wai Keri Keri Valley, The plaintiff averred that the defendants guaranteed to pay his expenses, and that he refused to go until ho got the guarantee from thorn, and that Mr Alexander, who was a member of the deputation, called on the defendants at his request and told them that MrM'Pherson would not budge an inch till he was paid. The defendants called at his house and guaranteed to see him paid, and on these eonditionsheconsented to proceed to Dunedin. Ou the other hand, the defendants say that they were only the collectors appointed at a public meeting when the deputation was chosen, and admitted that a curtain sum was collected aad hauded over to one of the deputation, and believed thafc sufficient would have been raised to have defrayed the cost ot fia deputation. A letter was put in and "read wherein thu plaintiff called on the defendants to get the money to pay hira Tjis $t&gi»tr»l® «ftid #»© evidence &$ a yvove a

guarautee, and tho letter tended to show that the defendants were looked upon as only collectors and not responsible, therefore gave a verdict for the defendants." Jn the course of a legal argument in the Supreme Court this week, a short discussion took place on the subject of advertising by professional men. His Honour the Judge remarked that it would doubtless be considered libellous to describe a doctor as an "advertising man," seeing that a medico with a penchant for advertising was generally regarded as a quack. To say that a barrister was an advertising man might also be regarded as a libel in Victoria, where bariisteis and solicitors occupied distinct positions, although such a statement might nut be ao regarded iv this Colony, where the two branches of the profetsion were amalgamated. In the early golddigging days of Victoria, however, barristers had recourse to advertising. His Honour remembered one gentleman, a very respectable barrister, who got a sign traced in Chinese characters to the following effect :— "Very good bnrrister — very. Takes difficult cases m Court." This was stuck up at his doorpost for the benefit of the Celestials. Another advertising barrister who adopted the same expedient was not so fortunate. The name was perfectly rend ere •!, but the interpreter translated the sign "Him no good." His Honour's anecdote was not inai>propriate, seeing that the case before the Court at the time was Macassey v. Bell, which may be said to owe its existence to the very uncertain translations of the famous Chinese petition. A gentleman having occasion to go to hie office on Wednesday night about ten o'clock, noticed, just as he was about to unlock the door, a sack lying across the doorstep. He laid his hand on the sack, and feeling something within it move, exclaimed, "A baby !" The sudden discovery took his breath away, and, recovering himself, he with beating heart rushed off for a policeman. "Policeman," he Baid to the officer he met, " somebody has left a baby on my doorstep !" The gentleman's tone was very excited, and very serious ; but that may have risen from the sudden start, and not from compunctious visitmgs of conscience regarding paternity. The policeman, who was not of au excitable disposition, accompanied the gentleman to the office, and as he waa about to open the sack, which was tied at the mouth, the gentleman said : " Policeman, do not open it till I get a witness?" The man in blue, seeing that the gentleman feared all manner ot dreadful tumgs against him in prospective, did not open the sack till the gentleman went to an office, in the window of which he saw a light, and returned with a third person, who proved to be an overworked clerk. The gentleman was then satisfied that ho had testimony in his favour should the police attempt to bring him up on any dreadful charge. The bag was now opened, and 10, and behold, there jumped out a big black cat, who showed himself fleet of limb on regaining his freedom. We do not know if the gentleman was amused at the climax, but his witness and the constables were. It is said that he has had a lively time of it explaining to his wife how he got so excited. A remarkable and ferocious-looking sea animal (says the New Zealand Times) is now on view at the Odd Fellows' Hall, where it will remain until Thursday evening. The curiosity is a fine specimen of the leopard seal, measuring nine feet five inches in length and three feet in girth, and has a beautifully soft sil^y hair coating, marked like the leopard, and in other points resembling that animal. The fore fins aro used both for swimming and walking, and the hinder limbs, whicn are particularly strong and muscular, and let into the body on remarkably powerfully-jointed hips, ara used to walk on and spring from. It was killed on the west coast of this island, near Otalri, by two men who were travelling with a mob of cattle. When fi rst seen it was busily engaged in devouring a sheep, and when one ot the bullocks approached it, it immediately sprang up and attacked It, chasing th-J animal for some distance. The man then rode up, and the seal stood on its hind limbs and showed fight in a determined manner, showing his immense tusks ferociously. The men tried to capture it by throwing a rope j over the head ; but as fast as it was put round the neck it was bitten through, Finally, the death of the seal was effected by one of the horsemen riding behind it whilst it pursued the other, and by striking it over the head with a stirrup-iron. In the absence of tha men for a short time, some Natives commenced skinning the monster, consequently the skin is a little hacked, but the cuts have been sevvn-up, and those who wish to see it will lind it in its entirety, and well worth a visit. The owners propose showing it at the Hutt on Friday, and offering it for sale in Wellington on Saturday. Our Qaeenstown correspondent writes :—: — " Our winter is over at last, aud is succeeded by a very dry spring, heat and cold rapidly following one another. The fruit trees are blossoming, but run great danger from frost and bleak winds. It is, however, a very favourable season for harvest work. Our agriculturists have overdone it last year in wheat sowing, holding now, I am told, enough for two years' consumption. T.'iey probably will sow none this season and overdo it in the other direction. Of course this state of things will come to an end as soon as the railway is finished to Kingston. There iB little local news to chronicle. Our tradespeople and others are despondent over the Palmer rush. A great exodus is anticipated from the district. The depression will, howover, only be temporary. Miners are nearly all making fair wages, and are almost certain to return. Mr Worthington, Receiver of Gold Revenue, &c, is indefatigable in his attentions to the trout ova received from Palmerston, and hopes this time to be successful. Out of 500 there are 450 hatched. Mr Vogel's great scheme of forest planting aud conservation has given our Corporation an idea. They have resorvud to them, one way and another, 1350 acres for the use of tbe town, nearly three acres for every man, woman, and child in it. Like wise legislators, who have an eye to future requirements, they have voted £1 for planting. Thiß vote was expended, j aftor much debate, in cutting some poplar j brandies in the park There, J. suppose, the

extent of the estimates failed. It seems the vote only went far enough for cutting— for cut they were, and left. A thrifty citizen, thinking it a sin to see Buch waste of municipal resources, picked them up and planted them in his own garden,, You Bee they have gone a step further than Vogel. I hope his scharae will not end like that of the Queenstown Corporation." A deputation from the Peninsula Road Board, consisting of Messrs Hooper, James Smith, and A. Stewart, waited upon His Honour the Superintendent on Friday, the 18th. The object of the deputation in the first place was to lay before His Honour a proposal to construct a road to Mr M. Braid's piopeity at Anderson's Bay from the Portobollo road. Some time ago the Board had agreed to give Mr Braid a road in consideration that he would allow the road to pass through his land to his neighbours' properties. Mr Braid refused to comply with that condition, and thereupon the .board refused to give him a road iv the direction he deBired. The Government intimated its intention to stop the subsidy unless Mr Baird got his road. The Board on two occasions appointed committees to report as to the best Jine of road to Mr Braid's property, keeping in view at the same time the accommodation required by his neighbours. According to instructions, Messrs Barr and Oliver had prepared a plan which was now submitted to the Superintendent by the deputation, and was approved of by him. The second object of the deputation was to bring under His Honour's notice the fact thac uuder the Ordinance of the Provincial Council amalga* mating the various Road Boards, about one-third of the North-East Harbour subdivision had been added to the Portobello Road District. The Peninsula Road Board had thus lost a poition of their district upon , which some hundreds of pounds had been expended. The members of the deputation asked His Honour to advise them at to what steps should be taken to remedy the mistake, which was believed to have occurred through a wrong description. His Honour replied that as Superintendent he could do nothing in the matter unless it was referred back to the Provincial Council. With reference to our report of the Thames Goldfield in last week's issue, and which particularly alluded to the Bright Smile mine, we may observe that later intelligence respecting that mine has reached us ihrough Mr Sully, the legal manager of the Bright Smile Company, who is now in DunediD, en route for Melbourne, where he is commissioned to procure a powerful engine to drive the new crushing mill that the Company has decided upon erecting. It is to be regretted that Mr Sully has to go farther a field than where he now is for what he requires, but we hope that the day is not far distant when New Zealand will be able to supply its own wants as cheaply and efficiently as it is now being served, with machinery at any rate, by the go-ahead Colony of Victoria. The when and the how is merely dependent upon the time that will be taken to dcvelope the practically inexhaustible magnificent coal and iron resources with which this Colony abounds from one end to the other. For the present, however, we have to obtain aid from across the water, and it ia gratifying to know that a sister Colony has made such marked progress in one of the principal of the industrial arts as to be able to successfully compete with the products of the mother country. That the Bright Smile Company is justified in making extraordinary exertion to develope the resources of its mine has received further and late amplification by the discovery of another good lode within the limits of the Company's ground. The discovery was made a few days ago, and the fact was wired to Mr Sully here. The new lode is described to be 18 inches thick, and visibly gold-bearing ; iB situated parallel with, and about 30 feet south of, the No. 2 lode, in country never previously pro spected. High hopes are entertained of the find proving a rich prize. There are 200 feet of backs to work above the level at which the lode was cut. The present main working level of the Smile mine was opeued at 290 feet, whilst the shaft is still being sunk, and is down about 340 feet in capital country. The next level will be opened at about 400 feet. The New Zealand Times thus concludes a leading art ok on Mr Fox and his resolutions with respect to barmaids :— " A waitress in a tempermce cafe or in an eating-house is indispensable. Females are bt tter fitted for the business than men; their services are more in consonance with nature, more pleasant to those who require to be waited on, and cer tainly much more acceptable to the ladies who have to be attended to in confectioners' rooms and cafes in ' empire cities ' than those of men would be. Yet we have never heard it argued that the bu-in<3«B of a waitress was one which it was degrading for a young woman, not born to fortune, not educated sufficiently to earn her living as a teacher or governess, and without influence to obtain employment in the new departments opened to them in the Qovernmeut service, to follow. In a bar a young woman may be exposed to more meaningless flirtation than in a coffeeroom ; but it is beyond a doubt that, but for the opportunities that are so presented to young women whom circumstances force to seek a living for themselves, and possibly for helpless and dependent friends, by service in a bar, much greater evil might follow. Many of these young women have made admirable matches, though their acquaintance with their husbands may have been made over the bar j and, as wives, they have not been leBS industrious, honest, and faithful — good wives and good mothers — than if they had been born with a silver spoon in their mouths, and had been privileged to think when in their teens of nothing more serious than the fabrication of slippers or braces for a favourite curate, or to try to the death the strings of a piano in their attempts to master a mystery for which nature gave them no natural endowments. It is not ignorance, but sheer and wilful blindness, which induces Mr Fox and his friends to profess a belief that the barmaid is necessarily less moral than other women of her age, because ehe requires to dress a little moro smartly, and to chatter a good deal more, than if she sat all day over a sewing machine, or tried to please a hard mistress by scrubbing floors and cooking dinners. If these particular 'friends' of the barmaid. »voul4 look a little nearer Jw»e, they

would probably be forced to acknowledge that domestic circles are sometimes not more free from scandals than the hotel bar ; that even those societies which attempt and profess most in the best of causes have not been free from their black sheep. They should weigh well their secret souls, those, who, like the temperance reformer of Rangitikei and his well-meaning but injudicious friends, attempt to cast the stone ot reproach at the barmaid," The Kaitangata Coal Company have been boring for coal in a gully near their present workings. At a depth of rather nvp r forty feet coal was struck, and on the 16 h. the drill reached the bottom of the seam, which is over twenty-seven feet iv thickness. The coal appears 1o be very bright and hard, and will give the Company much encouragement to extend their operations, as the location is uf easy access from the river, and a drive can be made into the seam from a point some yards further down the gully. Referring to the prospects of the Company, the Clutha Leader of the 17th sayß : — "The only obstacle now is the want of efficient means for the conveyance of the coal to Dunedin. Two courses are open to the Company, and one or both of which they no doubt will adopt. The one is the building of a steamer for the coastal and river service, and the other the laying down of a railway or tramway from the Kaitangata junction of the Southern trunk line to the pits. The extent and quality of the coal, coupled with the demand throughout the Colony, i 3 sufficient warrant for the Company incurring the expense which would thus be entailed. That it would be reproductive cannot for a moment be doubted. It may be mentioned that in the newly discovered seam there is no blaes — it being the finest coal throng . It may be added as a good evidence of the superior quality of this coal that notwithstanding the exceptionally vigorous efforts put forth to raise the character of tbo Tokomairiro coal, the proprietor of the Milton pottery works, himself the owner of a Tokomairiro coal pit, sends all the way to Kaitangata for coal. From Tuapeka and elsewhere there is a regular demand, and everywhere the quality of the coal has given statisfaction. With improved communication, and the magnificent seam which has now been discovered, the prospscts of the Kaitangata Coal Company are most hopeful. The perseverance they have manifested in the past merits success, and all will be glad to know that a rich reward is apparently in store for the shareholders." Our Auckland correspondent writes : — " The New Zealand Reform League has been organised here, and numbers among the Committee many of the most influential people in the place. The Committee have convened a meeting at the Choral Hall for Thursday evening, and have invited the members of Assembly to attend. The only basis on which the League rests is the abolition of the Provinces throughout New Zealand. Of course this will not be acceptable to Provincialists, of whom there are a good many in the Province — i c , Provinciatists from the conviction that tho Assembly is a very unsafe body to have supremo control Mr Swanson is one of these, and is likely to give the League some trouble by his opposition. The Superintendent and others of like influence hold the same views, and my own belief is that they are much more general among the people, and much more acceptable than is supposed. They have no sympathy with the General Assembly, but they have with the Council. Mr Thomas Russell is exerting himself very actively to get opinion round to Mr Vogel's proposals, but bo far without effect. Neither the League nor the public will have them at any price. I fear, however, the League have narrowed their basis too much. If they had made it a Constitutional League, and devised means for a convention of delegates to settle whether the people are in favour of a Central or a Federal form of Government, they would have been welcome to many who will not now take part with them. No one is satisfied with things as they are ; but if the change is to be acquiesced in when it comes, and to be received as final, it must be arrived at deliberately and with due consideration to all. If the Provincialists are fairly beaten, they would no doubt acquiesce. In the other case, they will be a thorn in the side of the Centralists, and a cause of division in the camp, which will prevent the settlement all so much desire. 1 fear that, on its present basis, the League will not be widely, though it may be influentially, supported, and will not carry with it the hearty sympathy o£ the mass of the people." The Timaru Herald of Monday gives the following account of the destructive fiiethat occurred at Waimate on Friday last, by which five houses were destroyed :— " The flames were first observed issuing from the building occupied by Mr Hobbs, tailor, Queen Btreet, and the alarm was at once given. The fire spread with great rapidity ; so quickly, indeed, that the inmates of Mr Hobbs's establishment, and the young man in charge of Mr Watkins's chemist's shop adjoining, who were in bed at the time, had hardly time to get a few clothes on, or in their hands, before they I were compelled to quit the buildings. The ringing of the school bell, and the glare of the fire, soon attracted the inhabitants of the township, who went to work with a will to save goods, and endeavour to stop the progress of the fire. As soon as the fire com* menced the whole of the block on that side ' of Queen street seemed doomed, but the buildings being damp from the previoue night's rain, and the wind keeping low, a number of men, who worked most praiseworthily, succeeded in pulling down Mr Molloy's butcher's shop, thus cutting the fire off from Mr Slee's Waimate Hotel. The fire extended to this gap, burning in its course in addition to Mr Hobbs's and Mr Watkins's buildings, those occupied by Mr Dixon (baker), Mr Gascoyne (tobacconist), and Mr Young (watchmaker). Mr Slee's buildiug was uninjured by the fire, but a quantity of his goods were damaged by removal. A correspondent at Waimate gives the following as the losses as near as can be ascertained :— Mr Hobbs's stock uninsured, loss about £100, insurance on building doubtful ; Mr Watkins, stock of the value of £100 uninsured, insurance on building uncertain ; Mr Dixon, furniture insured, loss about £90. *toek insured jn the N/atiojiaJ &n# bjiildjog

in the New Zealand ; Gaacoyne, stock damaged by removal, loss £20, insured in tbo National ; Mr Molloy, stock which was rsmoved was uninsured, building insured ia the New Zealand ; Mr "i ounc, stock saved, building insured in the New; Zealand. The origin of the fire is unknown. " The promoters of the Dnnedin Cricket Club concert, which came off on Monday .g the Temperance Hall, may fairly be congratulated on the result of their efforts. The concert was an unqualified success, both in a musical and a monetary sense. The promottrs had almost ensured success in a musical point of vhw by securing the services of some of our most popular amateur*, and they were also very fortunate in obtaining the assistance of others who made the acquaintance of a Dunedin audience for the first time last evening. The instrumental portion of the programme was committed to Mr A. Anderson, who, it is needless to say, performed hia arduous duties with great satisfaction, playing all the accompaniments and two pianoforte solos — selections from "Faust" and "Les Huguenots" — with his accustomed brilliancy. A young lady amateur made a most favourable impression by her rendering of tbe "Sonata Pathetique" (Beethoven). Her splendid execution and skilful rendering of this difficult piece of music fully compensated for its extreme length, which is a serious drawback in so full a programme. The duet, "The Happy Hunter," was sweetly sung by two lady amateurs, one of whom fully sustained her high reputation as a vocalist by her rendering of the songs, " Lo, Hear the Gentle Lark !" and "The Last Rose of Summer." The quartette "Come where the cowslip bloweth " was rendered with precision and with pleasing effect, its success being only equalled by the trio, "O, Memory/ which was a perfect gem Mr E. Towß*ey contributed largely to the success of the concert by his rendering of one or two songs ; but he was heard to still greater advantage in the duet "Love and War," and the trio "O, Memory," in which he displayed more confidence and less affectation. "Ah fors c lvi" was very sweetly sung by a lady amateur, who also took part in the duet "I would that my love" — one of the pleasantest items in the programme. A northern visitor, who appeared before a Dunedin audience for the first time last evening, created a "sensation by his rendering of Benedict's fine song, " Rage, thou angry storm. The audience applauded him enthusiastically, and insisted upon an encore, although encores were specially forbidden. The breach, of the rule, however, was quite excusable in this instance, and in reply to the demand, " Only to love her " was given with almost equal effect. Tho concert was pleasantly concluded with a weli-known comic song called "The Complaint," which was sung in firstclass style. The length of the programme must be our excuse lor not noticing each item in detail, but we have no doubt all the performers felt sufficiently compensated for their efforts by the warm applause co liberally bestowed by the audience. We notice by the People's Journal of June 6th, that Mr James Adam, the Emigration Agent in Scotland for Otago, has been lecturing at Alford and Inverurie. Of the Alford lecture it was reported :—": — " Perhaps' the most interesting part of the lecture was a reference to the prncessS by which Mr Adam proposed to turn five hundred Alford ploughmen into as many [Otago] farmers in five years. At first Bight his statement has an exaggerated-like look about it j but it was presented in such a feasible and sensible-like mßunner that doubts as to its tiuthfulneßS seemed to be completely removed. Mr Adam put ifc in this way : Suppose 500 ploughmen emigrated at next term, and land in the Colony of Otago in 80 days. Government provides them with house and food till they find work. Ploughmen will be engaged i» a day or two at £55 a year and good substantial food, getting mutton twice or tbrice a day. At the end of the first year the ploughman can have saved £45, and going on in thin , way, at the end of four years he will have about £200 to begin with. He ca* then apply to the Government for about 50 acres of land, which is paid for by instal ments spread over ten years. The £200 of saved wages can be laid out in fencing and breaking up new Jand, which any man with a pair of horses can do at the rate of an acre a day, and when the land has lain a year f allow, the new farmer is all ready to sow his crops, and be numbered among the farmers of Otago. During the last three yeara, 700 new farmers have been added to the list of Otago farmers, and Mr Adams ventured to affirm that 500 of them weie servants five years ago." In his lecture at Inverurie, speaking of the prosperity of Otago, the lecturer s-aid it waa not dependent upon one industry. There were 4.000,000 sheep, bringing into the country £800,000 annually from tho sale of wool. The mineral resources (chiefly dug out of the mountains) were equal to one ton of gold every seventeen days ! Agri* culture was represented by 3700 farmers, who tilled their own land, one of them pay* ing annually £8000 in wages." A large poster distributed by Mr Adam sets forth in« « big letters "Free Emigration to Otago, New Zealand," Much being said about the repri« sentations on which immigrants have, been | induced to come to the country, we give the contents of the poster :— " A leoture will be delivered in the Publio Hall, Alford, on Monday first, at half- past 7 p.m., by Mf James Adam, farmer for the past 26 years in New Zealand." The poster thea set forth, under the head of "wanted," ploughmen,. £50 to £60 per annum and board ; good agri* cultural labourers, 8s per day ; blacksmiths, carpenters, shoemakers, tailors, &o.a 12s to 14s per day of eight hours j domestic servants and dairy-women, £<X) to £35 per annum; cookß, at £40; 300 needlewomen wauted, 18s to 25s per week of eight hours per day. Mr Adam wishes to engage a working grieve for a farm of 500 acres, wages £80 per annum; and six ploughmen. Persons wishing ior any further information on the subject may call upon Mr and Mrs Adam, at the Haughton Arms Hotel Alford, from nine o'clock a.m. to nine t) m' on Tuesday first, June 2." * *

A bad egg ie not a choice m, toil it U hard