NEWS OF THE DAY.

South Canterbury Times, Issue 3335, 10 December 1883, Page 2

NEWS OF THE DAY.

The Inspector of schools has reported favorably on the Waimate Public School. An ordinary meeting of the Borough Council will bo held this evening, at 7 o’clock.

Very few intending excursionists have as yet handed in their names for the projected run to Akaroa by a special steamer on 17th inst,

Judge Maning’s remains were buried at Auckland on Saturday. There was a large attendance, 22 carriages being in the cortege.

The transfer of the license of the Arowhenua hotel, from L, Tombs to J. W. Garland, was sanctioned on Saturday by the Licensing Committee for the Levels District.

Captain Haddock, the diver at Auckland, announces his intention of performing a novel diving feat, being no less than a walk from Auckland to North Shore, along the bottom of the harbor.

The Minister for Public Works with several members of Parliament and others, proceeded on Saturday to Mosgiel from Dunedin to visit the Woollen Factory, and the Drug Company’s Works. Mr Hepburn, an old and repeoted resident of Dunedin, died suddenly yesterday morning. He was the father of Mr Hepburn, of the well-known auctioneering firm McLandress, Hepburn and Go. A meeting of the Timaru Tradesmen’s Racing Club was held on Saturday evening. Mr E. Smith occupied the chair. Various acceptances and entries, published elsewhere, were received; the tender of Mason and Roberts, for totalisators, at per cent, was accepted, and a quantity ol other business was disposed of. A coroner’s jury at|Waikaia returned a verdict of incendiarism against some persons unknown, in respect to the fire which destroyed Kelty’s old Royal Hotel on October 24th, They added a rider that insurance companies should have all buildings inspected before taking risks on them,

A bicycle race from Christchurch to the Hurunui and back, took place on Saturday. The start took place at 430 o’clock on Saturday morning. Six started. The distance is 114 miles. F. W. Fainter was first and J. W. Painter (only a few yards after), second: The time was llh 9m,

The complaint of Sorensen, at Masterton, re the condition of bis children at the Burnham Industrial School is, that when they entered the school they were we 1 1 clad, clean, and healthy; and on being restored to their parents at Masterton recently,they were ragged, filthy, crawling with lice, covered with sores, and with dirt ingrained in the cracks of their skin.

Mrs M. L. Rowe, late Mistress of Temnka, School, died on Friday afternoon at the age of 44. The deceased lady was the wife of a former Master of the school, who died in 1878, after which his widow continued her labours in the school till quite recently, when her health utterly failed. Her younger children are left virtually unprovided for, Mrs Rowe was a highly capable and popular teacher. A Ratepayers’ Association was formed at Christchurch, on Saturday, to use every effort to obtain an amendment of the Bating Act 1882, so as to compel the Drainage Board to strike a rate on the old principle of annual letting value ; to obtain the extension to all local bodies of the clause in the Bating Act exempting boroughs; and to enquire into matters of local interest that need reform.

Among the correspondence read at the last meeting of the Taieri County Council were several letters from Maoris, who claimed to be exempt from country rates, and their right of exemption was unchallenged. One of the dusky chiefs in his letter, advised the Council to stop sending him papers demanding the payment of rates, as he never had paid and never would pay taxes,

The Seamen’s Union at Fort Chalmers recently jjcommunicatei with the Otago Trades rud Labour Council respecting a grievance which seamen visiting or resident at that place were experiencing. The purport of it was as follows :—That nearly all the J.P’s in the town were more'.or less directly interested in the shipping business, and as such it was not just that they should sit in judgement over men they were in many cases employing.—With the view [of remedying the grievance, a report was drawn up and forwarded to Mr Vincent Fyke with the request that he would bring tbe matter under the notice of the Minister of Justice. This has been done, and a reply has been received by Mr Fyke from Mr Oonnoly (Minister of Justice), in which he says the matter will; receive the consideration of the Government.

If China is arming, New Zealand is contributing a number of arms which will make the heathen soldier of the Flowery Land look as formidable as the celebrated Bedouin who protected the Innocents of Mark Twain during a portion of their journey through Palestine. There have been shipped, ex barquentine May, for Hongkong about 500 muzzle-loading long and medium Enfield rifles, for which, it is presumed, the New Zealand Government has no further use. Some of these are in a fair state of preservation, hut with regard to others, we should be inclined to toss up to decide which end we should put to our shoulder before we fired it off. The Chinese troops will no doubt have every confidence in the efficiency of these weapons, which must in every case prove less dangerous to themselves than the old muskets which are still in use in some of the districts.—''N.Z, limes,” A very sad and painful accident occurred at Abbotsford, five or six miles from Dunedin on Saturday. Four lads left town in the morning on a rabbit-shooting excursion,', among them being William Street, aged 15, son of the Mayor elect. In the afternoon a large number of gentlemen visited by invitation the Saddle Hill Company’s quartz mine, where some new machinery was being started. This is in the neighborhood of Abbotsford. Amongst these gentlemen was Mr Street, who had arranged to meet his son at the mine, The lads all arrived at the mine in due course and whilst in one of the buildings, one of them named Hawkes, accidentally discharged his gun, shooting young Street in the head, and killing him almost instantaneously. Mr Street was informed of the occurrence, and a very painful scene ensued. The accident threw a gloom over the festivities at the mine, and has been the subject of much sympathising comment in the city.