The Southland Times. PUBLISHED DAILY. Luceo Non Uro. SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 1.

Southland Times, Issue 3313, 1 February 1879, Page 2

The Southland Times. PUBLISHED DAILY. Luceo Non Uro. SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 1.

'•' ' ♦— The .balancersheet of the Corporation of Invercargill, which appears in another column, will be read with interest probably by. all, for it exhibits in a very clear manner the. total transactions of the several'departments of the Corporation during the past' year. It is, moreover, well worthy of consideration by those citizens who take a lively interest in Municipal matters, for if analysed and compared with the balance-sheets published in previous years, it demonstrates in a remarkable degree the steady progress of the town, and the important position the Corporation is assuming amongst the chief cities of the colony. The total receipts from all sources since the constitution of the Municipality, as exhibited by the animal balance-sheets, maybe summarised as follows : —

If frpiii.tliiß amount be deducted £30,0 M raised-" by debentures for ordinary Municipal, works, £30,000 for the gasworks, and £1891 vlss 3d, the present overdraft at .the Corporation Bank, it will be seen that the revenue from all sources— ri'ates, licenses, subsidies, &c. — since the incorporation of the town, reaches the hand some sum of £70,469 Is 7d. If we except the items for day labor for surface work, which must be maintained, and which expenditure is a question that ve^es the soul of almost every member .of municipal bodies, wherever they are constituted, and such unproductive expenditure as that of the Public Baths— which remain unaccountably useless, because never properly completed for the accommodation of bathers ; the Nith street bridge or culvert, that will some day have to be replaced by a structure capable of admitting the free flow of the water when the creek is in flood — it. will, we think, be admitted that the Corporation have obtained pretty full value for the money expended. It is also to be acknowledged that the monies that have flowed into the Municipal exchequer, including the gas loans, must have been of considerable assistance to the working community of Invercargill and the immediate suburbs, for upon., enquiry we find that perhaps only about £20,000 out of the total sum of £132,360 have been sent out of the colony for gas and other plant. One hundred and twelve thousand three hundred and sixty pounds thus circulated during the past seven or eight years, has no doubt materially assisted in promoting the rapid progress the town has made. Independent of this phase of the expen- ■ diture, which, however, is worthy of more than passing . notice, the very great improvement in our highways which has followed the inauguration of municipal government must have long since reconciled even the most exacting ratepayer to the payment of the amount he is called upon annually to disburse for civic affairs. Comparing the several heads of revenue as shown in the balance-sheet for the past year with the same sources of revenue received for 1876 and 1877, it is not difficult to predict that, tlie Corporation will receive a very decided addition to its funds during 1879, and it would not be risking very much to assert that the total revenue of the Corporation, excluding loans altogether, will not be less than some £10,000 for municipal affairs, and £5000 from the Gasworks branch, or nearly one-fourth of the total indebtedness of the Corporation. Such a position must be highly satisfactory to the ratepayers generally. But while this much can be honestly said, we would not be doing cur duty were we not to urge that considerable caution should be exercised in finance during the next year. Whilst the latest advices from home are certainly less sombre than those preceding them, and restoration, perhaps an early oiie, of confidence, in colonial securities, both public and private, is exceedingly "probable, yet it must be admitted that it would be scarcely prudent to immediately attempt to float a municipal loan on the London market. At the same time we are amongst those who take a hopeful view of the early future bearing upon money matters. British securities proper have received a tremendous shock, from which they are not likely to recover for some time, but it is otherwise with those of British dependencies, and as is pointed out in our money article in another column probabilities are very much in, favor of their receiving early and marked attention on the part of home capitalists. But it would neither be judicious, nor in keeping with sound business principles, to calculate" too surely on this. The course of events must be carefully noted, and not before " the predelictions of capitalists for colonial investment become decidedly apparent should any attempt be made to float another New Zealand loan of any kind. Meantime the Corporation of Invercargill will require liberal advances to complete the Gas Works. There will be very little difficulty, we imagine, in providing for this by arrangement Avith the local banks. With regard to the water supply scheme we must advocate moderation. Obtaining advances upon a notably reproductive undertaking is another affair altogether to raising a heavy loan to carry out a water supply scheme. Calm .unbiassed consideration of the state of the money market can lead but to one conclusion, viz., that it would be wiser to wait a while, .and meantime to prepare the water loan debentures for presentation to the London market at the first favorable opportunity, than to rashly incur heavy responsibilities that would place the town at the mercy of any bank that might happen to be the lender. Me Conyeks.— Telegraphing^rom Gore last evening our correspondent said: — "No change has taken place in Mr Conyers to-day. He is quite rational and inclined to be drowsy."

Held Over. — : An interesting report of the annual meeting of delegates of the 1.0.0.F.M.U. is unavoidably held over. ' Education Board Vacancy. — The poll for the election of a member to fill the vacancy on the Education Board, caused by the death of Sir John Richardson, closed last night at twelve o'clock. The result will be declared on Tuesday next. R.M. Court.— The business was of a light character at the R.M. Court yesterday, Mr H. McCulloch presiding. A- charge under the , City Bye-laws was withdrawn. Antonio Bogden, on a charge of larceny, ,vas remanded, and several small civil cases were disposed of." Visit of Ministers. — It was expected that Messrs Stout and Ballance would arrive here yesterday afternoon, but it was subsequently decided to delay the journey till today. They will arrive by the through train from Dunedin this afternoon, and will, we understand, proceed to Riverton on Monday. Cricket. — Weather permitting the match begun last Saturday afternoon between the old and new members of the Invercargiil Club will be resumed on the cricket ground, or, more strictly speaking, a return match between similar sides will be played, as some of the names will be different from those" in the game last week. Play will begin- at two o'clock. Presentation. — An interesting presentation was made on the 24th ult. at the Woodlands school house to Miss Mary Milne, who had acted for three years as pupil-teacher there. The gift took the form of a handsome gold lever watch, bearing the following in-, scription :— " Presented to Miss Mary Milne by the parents of the children attending Woodlands school, in appreciation of her services while acting as pupil-teacher there for nearly three years." Hospital Grant.— A meeting of the Hospital Committee was held at Mr Willoughby's office yesterday afternoon, for the purpose of considering what conld be done towards forwarding the completion of the Hospital buildings. It was resolved that the committee' should wait upon the Hon^ Mr Ballance and the Hon. Mr Stout, on their arrival at Invercargiil, to urge the payment of a grant of £1200, for the completion of the Hospital buildings according to the original plan: ■:'■'.".. -.-' ' ': '■.'■' A Disappointment. — There seems some doubt at almost the last moment; Of Southland being- represented at the Henley Interprovincial Regatta, on the 2 1st 'instant.- The Bluff Boating Club decided on sending a four oared crew, but it now turns out that the inexorable heads of departments refuse to accord the needful leave of absence to the officials, some of whom are active members of the club mentioned. Perhaps a prouer representation of the facts of the case might induce a trifling relaxation of the' rules of the service, and permit the district to compete for aquatic honors. The Raphael Family.— There was a moderate house at the Theatre Royal last night, when the ' talented Raphael Family appeared before an Invercargiil audience. The main points in the bill-of-fare provided by this company are acrobatic feats and ropewalking, but the minor features necessary to ensure the entertainment going off smoothly are not neglected. The feats of the boys on the single and double trapeze and slack- rope are exceedingly clever, and fully merited the hearty plaudits showered upon them. Miss Salina, too, in her performance, exhibits careful training and great power, and her Highland Fling was much appreciated. The company will appear again to-night. INVERCARGILL SCHOOL COMMITTEE. —The first meeting of this newly-constituted committee was held in the High School last night at half -past 7 o'clock. Present — Messrs Lnmsden, Froggatt, Matheson, Henderson, McKay, and GoodwLdie. The business transacted was merely formal. On the motion of Mr Matheson, seconded by Mr Goodwillie, Mr Lumsden was appointed chairman of the committee for the ensuing year, and Mr Nutter was appointed clerk and treasurer on the motion of Mr Henderson, seconded by Mr Matheson, The following visiting committees were also elected for the ensuing quarter : — For February, Messrs Henderson and Matheson ; for March, Messrs Froggatt and McKay ; and for April, Messrs Hall and Goodwillie. After resolving that the future .meetings of the Board should be on the first Monday of each month, the meeting adjourned till Monday, 3rd February, at halfpast 7 o'clock. Delay in Transit. — Our attention has been called to a matter indicative of culpable negligence or carelessness on the part of some one connected with or responsible for the carriage of goods from the north to Invercargiil. The case in point is really serious, and should receive attention at the hands of the proper authorities, whoever they may be. It appears that a delay of six days has occurred in bringing goods (sent by a well-known firm) from Dunedin to luvercargill. From what we can learn there is no blame attached to the railway ofiicia-ls on ttie SoiatliLaxLcl line- and as tb.e goods were in due order conveyed from the ship to the railway station at Dunedin, there would seem to have been neglect on the part of the railway department there. But whoever may be to blame, it is certainly monstrous that merchants should be put to serious inconvenience and possible heavy loss by reason of such delay, for which (for this is not a solitary instance) there does not appear to be a particle of excuse. Awkward. — A person named Antonio Bogden recently arrived at Invercargiil, en route for Australia, with plenty of money in his pocket, found himself suddenly placed in a very awkward position. He was arrested on a charge of larceny, the amount alleged to have been stolen being £7 in goods and money. It appears that a lady was at the bottom of the mischief : and this " fair one," who is the wife of a man in Wellington, has since gone to Melbourne, carrying with her a garment of some kind, answering to the description of one Bogden is said to have stolen. He was brought up at the R.M. Court yesterday, and remanded till the 4th, iv order to give time for the arrival of the warrant. In the meantime bail was allowed, on the application of Mr Finn, who appeared for the prisoner, being two sureties of £50 each. Bogden is a respectable looking man, and is known to possess over £250, drafts on the ißank of England, and cash, representing that amount, being found on him at the time of arrest. He will probably be remanded to Wellington. Equal to the Occasion.— A smart stroke of financing was accomplished by a Wellington gentleman last week. He had more than a thousand pounds worth of bills, which his banker refused to discount. He had a few hundreds to his credit, and these he drew from the obdurate bank that refused to accommodate him, and dividing it into three equal parts, opened acccunts m three other banks. He then got a third of the bills discounted at each of these banks without difficulty. The Weekly Times of to-day wilj be found to be a thoroughly interesting and instructive .paper. It contains full reports of local meetings —including the Southland Hospital, Chamber of Commerce, Waste Lands Board, Town Council, Election of School Committee, &c. The local news otnerwise is very comprehensive, and the news by calogram from Europe, India, and Australia are exceedingly full and important. A special report of the ceremony in connection with the turning of the first sod of the Waimea railway is given. Of original matter there are sis pages — comprising the commencement of a new serial" 'by Wilkie Collins, two columns of specially selected poetry, an article on domestic matters, addressed to the ladies, by "Eliee/* and a number of useful domestic extracts dealing with the fashions, recipes, &c. The Farmer's Gazette is remarkably varied and instructive ; and an article upon Afghanistan, from the Saturday Review, should be read with interest. Commercial affairs are commented upon freely, and full commercial reports from all parts of the colonies are published. The Times, of twentyeight pages, is the largest paper of the district and should be found in every household. The Rev. Mr Ward will .conduct divine service in the Methodist Church, Don street, to-morrow morning and evening, and at Mavis Bush in the afternoon. A remarkable electoral address to the electors of Campbelltown, by Tom Noody, will be found in our advertising column. Mr E. F. Kemp, a candidate for a seat on the Bluff Harbor Board, wilTdeliver an address at South Invercargiil, on Monday evening. Messrs Trew and Hall notify the arrival of a number of the Marsh reapers and bindeis. Tenders are required for the erection of a residence near Winton. - -• „„ • The funeral of the late Mr John "Hamilton is to take place on Monday afternoon,

1871 ... .... £173 210 1872 3,093 0 5 1873 10,201 18 0 1874 14,946 14 8 1875 19,847 18 8 1876 26,374 15 2 1877 27,686 0 2 1878 ... ... 30,037 611 Total ...£132,360 16 10