LOCAL AND GENERAL

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume VI, Issue 815, 21 June 1879, Page 2

LOCAL AND GENERAL

A correspondent of tho Napier He\ writes that a meetfug of settlers was ca for Monday night at Frasertown, Wai to ask the Government to strengthen the Constabulary post, and to issu supply of arms and ammunition to settlers that they may be prepared if present lead to war on the V Coast. The measure is a precautionary i and is not intern! ed for the purpose of harassing th e G o vern ment during this cr There are two hundred stand of arms the barracks and a quantity of ammuni in the magazine, without a sufficient n ber of men to form a proper guard. ' arms would be better distributed am the Bottlers, or moved altogether, than where they are to fall into the hand; disloyal natives. The Aucklaud Star says: — "A spe reporter at' Te Kopua made a car examination of the arms in the posses: of Tawhiao's so-called army, and estim* them at 180 guns, the majority being < and their number included three or 1 EnfieUVs, some fowlingpieces, and a sporting rifles, a half-dozen revol\ some old horse pistols, two infantry offic swords, one cavalry sabre, with e scabbard. About forty men of the 'an had only long sticks for spears, reporter estimated that thirty marks: with Sniders would be more than a mi for Tawhiao's entire guard. The King stated that Moffat made three tons of { powder, which is stored inland, natives were very sparing of powder at late meeting." j

The humorous "Loafer" of the Christchurch Press recently made fun of Timaru journalists, expressing great sympathy for them because of the approaching completion of the breakwater, which has hitherto provided an almost inexhaustible store of "locals." The Tivw.ru Herald enters into the chaffing contest with equal zeal, and thus turns the tables on the " Loafer :" — We do not know, of course, what straits we may be driven to, if the times do not cheer up soon ; but we have not yet had to shoot a warder in a highly sensational manner, when only a blank cartridge had been fired at a cow, nor have we yet performed the .melancholy duty of fiuding a dead body jwasbed ashore sewn up in canvas, which turned out afterwards to be a bundle of old; bedding. We are not blaming our Chrisjiphuroh friends, be it understood. On the contrary, we admire their energy and ingenuity in thus keeping the wolf from the d^or, and trust that molehills may never b» wanting for them to make .mountains opt of. Anything is better than the stereotyped church meetings and gratis advertisements. The shooting pf the wardel was fairly done by both papers, and so vas the dead sailor; but we don't like thi way the LyUtlton Titrm Works up its luaar rainbows.