LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume VI, Issue 899, 19 September 1879, Page 2

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Mr. J. S. Macfarlane has telegramed that he will arrive in Gis borne by steamer on Wednesday. We believe Mr. Maufariane's coming is to settle matters in connection with late Captain Head's estate. Messrs. Bromley and Buller will sell by auction, at their mart, at 2 p.m. to-morrow a quantity of furniture and ettecta. Ferris aud Pitt have been instructed by the mortgagee to sell by auction at their mart, to-morrow, at 2 p.m., sections 17 and 18, situate in .Roebuck Koad. Mr. W. Ratcliffe as trustee in the bankrupt estate of Peter Sorry, is to be commended as the first of the trustees in Gisborne who has had the courage to bring a case of fraudulent insolvency before^-the Court. The bankrupt Sorry has received a light sentence in two^ months' imprisonment with hard labor, for an offence which has only been too common among insolvents throughout the Colony. It would have beeu much more severe but for the recommendation of the jury, and it being the first offence of the kind here brought before His Honor tiie District Judge. The uext charge which may be sheeted home will probably not be dealt with so lightly. Of course it was very excusable an j might well be overlooked. The W i gentlemen, practising in Uisborne, had n o+ all of them, imported wigs and go W r,R enabling them to appear as full-fl C( j " i barristers. His Honor J udge Kenny f%~ all allowances j iu fact, he appeared p a infirl that apologies should have beeu tendered him uuder the circumstance. At the Bame time he could not but have felt the r esDe ct which the members of the Bar p a id .%. Bench. There were seven lawyers a t the opening of the Court, but there were on] three wigs among tuem. So when one had occasion to address his Honor on legal questions he borrowed the wig of his brother professional for the occasiou, transferring it to him again, only to be lent to some other wigless brother. It had a funny look of course this changing of wigs. A man appears altogether different without a wig to what he does with one. The man who sits in a Court in the same hair he has slept in is quite a common- place looking individual- No one would think it likely as paying him any disrespect if he were to ask hiin^to go out and have a sherry and bitters;-. but the same face and head with a well-curled horse-hair wig on the top of it makes a wonderful difference. Then the countenance assumes an austere look, and to ask that man as he stands or sits be-wigged if he will come out and have a liquor, would make one feel as if he would be committed for three month ,s hard labor for contempt of Court and intentional disrespect to the profession. There was a meeting of the members of the Agricultural and Pastoral Society held this afternoon at the Masonic Hotel, Mr. J. B. Poynter in the chair. About thirty-five were present. Mr. Sunderland was elected president for the next year ; Mr. George Scott vice-president. The balance-sheet showed rather more than £20 in hand to credit of Society. Messrs. Matheson and Dufaur were elected auditors. The proceedings were not closed when we went to press. There will be no District Court business to-morrow. His Honor will sit for Chamber business. Archdeacon Stock of Wellington lately made reference to the Victoria Loftus Company thus : — " Man's judgment is held to be of such authority that it can be safely followed ; the plain statement of the word of God is ridiculed as cant and bigotry ; practices which are opposed to common morality are sanctioned, or very carefully condemned with mild words of gentle rebuking. Our walls at this time are pictured with full length portraits of immorality, yet scarce a word is raised to cry out shame on the offenders ; and while on every side there is a cry of distress, yet night after night those who make a profit to themselves by these things are applauded to the echo. 'All is well.' 'Evil be to him who evil thinks'— is sufficient answer to put down those who are ready to aßk ' What is written on this in the Word of God ?' Oh, brethren, what would Jesus Christ, if walking in our City, have aaid to these things?" The Rev. J. W. Stack recently read a paper on " The Color Sense of the Maori" before the Canterbury Philosophical Institute, from which it appeared that the Maori race had no perception of blue or green before the advent of European population.

The Christian Record makes the following remarks regarding Sir George Grey aud the working men: — "We would further direct the attention of the country to the fact that the present head of the Government (Sir George Grey) travelled last Sabbath from Dunedin to Lyttelton by a special train. What special pressing need there was on the part of the Premier thus to trample on the law of God and the rights of man we fail to see. The man who has so much to say of the serfdom of the working classes is doing his utmost by such action as this to reduce the men whose self-elected champion he is, to the darkest and dreariest slavery of a working week of seven days. We are no political partisans, but we have no hesitatiou in saying that we trust that the reign of wickedness in high places is drawing near its close." An extraordinary case of suicide has occurred at Gawler, in Adelaide. Two men, named respectively Neville and Adamaon, who have for some years past been in partnership as fishmongers and gardeners, and were evidently much attached to one another, were found hanging in their wine-cellar this morning, face to face, about 18 inches apart. Both were inoffensive men, and monetary difficulties are supposed to be the cause of suicide. There was an action against them, and as they could not be found it was thought they had left by the Ridge Park, but a bailiff, who was in possession of the house while walking over the premises found the bodies hanging in the cellar. Mr. Murray, who was re-elected for the constituency of Bruce in Otago, gives his views in the following concise manner, from which will be seen that he is a strong opponent of the present Premier : — "lt is whether the couucry is to be governed by the representatives of the people, constitutionally according to the laws, or ruled by the personal will- of one or two men, who kuow well how to utilise Shakespeare's advice, 'assume a virtue if you have it not.' " " The foxes have holes, and the birds—" read a little girl on Sunday night. " Hold on there," interrupted the father, who is a thorough Greyite ; " that old Fox has been put out of his hole at Wanganui, and I don't think that he will tiud another hole in a hurry, so that you see there are exceptions from all rules, my dear. Now read away." It may be useful information to the boys of Christchurch (says the Press) to state that the only reward for riuging the tirebell for chimney tires is a soun.i wacking. All such tires will 'be attended to by information given to either of the stations, or the superintendent, and there is no necessity for ringing the firebell. . A Mr. W. Goodwin, a late candidate for the Heathcote district, pointing out that he was rated three times as much as Sir GeoJge Grey for carrying the same number of sheep, he indignantly exclaimed, "Is this universal suffrage ?" It cross-examin-ing the Hon. J. T. Fisher as to the intentions of Government towards the Maoris, Mr. Goodwin spoke of Tee Whiteeye and Rye* wye !