SOUTHERN TELEGRAMS.

Thames Advertiser, Volume VIII, Issue 2023, 19 April 1875, Page 3

SOUTHERN TELEGRAMS.

(PBE PBESS AGENCY.) *_ Weiungton, Saturday, 6.30 p.m. Major Palmer's report upon the surveys of the colony consists of 28 pages of closely printed Government paper. It gives a sketch of the history of each survey separately, and of the manner in which it is being carried out, his opinion of its worth, and a statement of progress made. Eeferring to surveys of native lands, he says that from various causes a general system became impossible, and the work fell iuto the hands of an incompetent set, many of them ignorant of the commonest rudiments of scientific surveying. The consequence was, the work was done in a slovenly style, and at a frightful cost to the natives, so bad in some cases that the whereabouts ot certain claims could not be determined within several miles. A high compliment is paid to Mr Heale for his efforts to create an accurate and uniform system of trigonometrical and detail surveys of the confiscated land claims. He says none of them are good; indeed, those in the Waikato are as bad as bad can be, and the greater part of these lands have been sold upon a basis of these worthless surveys. He says the history of Auckland surveys is one of lamentable confusion and negleefc and want of_ system, and accuracy. He briefly reviews the mode of dealing with the large blocks of land acquired from the Crown in 1856, and- subsequently thrown open to free selection, after being roughly surveyed in blocks, without any attempt to connect the various blocks together. A single section might be taken up anywhere in a block, There was no obligation upon the surveyor to connect his work with previous surveys, or with any fixed point whatever, and the whereabouts of a section could only be guessed at until the intervening areas became filled up, and a sort of connection formed, It is almost incredible (o think that such a system should be allowed to prevail for two years without any attempt at improvement, and while large areas of land were being sold and granted. After detailing the resort in 1858 to the cheap expenditure of "paper surveys," and subsequent surveying by contract, he says: " Thus the work, badly begun, and never really improved upon, has drifted on from year to year, error being piled upon error as each new survey came to be grafted upon previous ones, and the evil consequences, as might be expected, becoming more embarrassing every day. Matters have now reached a stage which Mr Tole considers to be beyond redemption by professional skill, except at considerable cost. While admitting the many extenuating oauses of such an unsatisfactory state of things, he finds that the surveys from beginning to end have been radically bad, and that consequently many of the record maps are next to useless for public purposes. He gives the following general summary of the subdivision of the land' and the state of all surveys, colonial and provincial, in the Auckland sub-division of the land:— Native lands surveyed and mapped, 2,330,760 acres j under survey for purchase, 520,000 acres; uudealt with, 9,833,240 •, confiscated land, 1,916,000; provincial lands, 2,400,000; area of Auckland, 17,000,000 acres. State of survey : Triangulated General Government, 7,500,000; surveyed and mapped native claims, 2,330,760; confiscated lands, 1,916,000; provincial lands, town and section, 1,474,000; block, 850,000; total surveyed, 6,570,760. All these surveys need some revision or verification, or additions, to fit them for cadastral maps. Hawke's Bay is described as in a little more satisfactory state than Auckland, but with a legacy of many inaccuraties and shortcomings from its earlier surveys. Credit is given to Mr Jackson, the chief surveyor of Wellington, for sweeping away the inheritance of blunders and chaos left him when ho took office, in 1865, so that now two-thirds of the lands Bold and granted in the province can be brought under the operation of the Land 'Iransfer Act. The general want of system and accuracy which affected the early operations in most of the provinces seems, he says, in Nelson to have prevailed to a greater extent than in any other. The Marlborough surveys exhibit similar defects to those of Nelson. The Westland surveys are not unfavourably noticed, while in respect of maps it is ahead of other places. The Canterbury surveys, or a very largo portion of them, are described as very inaccurate, especially the whole of the work north of the Hangitata. The Otago surveys are said to have been mainly carried out on a safe, steady system, and are now, on the whole, in a better state than those of the other provinces.— Major Palmer recommends the adoption of the following plan, should political circumstances admit of it :—(•!.) That, as soon as practicable, the General Government take charge of all the survey operations in the colony, abolishing for this'purpose the present provincial grant to stations. (2,) That the whole be then placed under the Surveyor-General at Wellington, whose duty it will be to organise and superintend all details as well as trigonometrical operations. (3.) That those of the existing staff who may wish to take service under the new system at present rates of salary to be retained subject to approval by the Surveyor-General, who may, if he wishes, introduce a test examination as a condition of their remaining. (4.) That the existing system of centres and chief surveyors bo adhered to for the present at least (should the abolition of the provinces take place, it might be desirable to re-arrango the areas of the district surveys and perhaps to change the titles of superintending officers.—lt is rumoured in mercantile circles that a complication has arison in Auckland between the Government and a colonial insurance company, which may lead to litigation. It appears that latterly a quantity of railway material was shippod coastwiso, and the company's demand of If per cent, insurance paid thereon, but on accounts beiog placed before the Hon..

Mr Reynolds, who is acting for the Minister of Public Works, he demurred to such extortion, and having caused inquiries to be made, he ascertained that it was more than double the ordinary charge. Similar results had some time since been found on looking into the English agencies. Payments for insurance, when charges were in no case less than double, and in some treble, what merchants were paying for the same class of goods.—The Rev. Charles Clark has closed his third season here, and leaves for Nelson to-morrow en route for Auckland.

Sunday, 5.15 p.m. Arrived: The ship \ Edwin Fox,' from London, with immigrants, all well; particulars of voyage not to hand.

Napieb, Saturday.

The annual value of rateable property in the town of Napier is £45,000.—Tw0 schemes of water supply are now before the Council, one by artesian wells at a cost of £8,000, another by gravitation, at a cost of £20,000.—Mr Ormond, member for Porangabau in the Provincial Council, does not come forward again.—Much sickness prevails still, though it is on. the decline.

Westfobt, Saturday, 5.5 p.m. Exceedingly rich stone has been struck in the Halcyon claim, at Mohikinui. Twenty ounces of loose gold were obtained in one blast of rock. The body of stone, it is calculated, will yield 15ozs to the ton.

Chbistchubch, Saturday, 5.5 p.m. H. M. Goodyer, a cab-driver, who was arrested by order of the Mayor some time ago for removing a portion of the first fence around the cab-stand opposite Cobb and Co.'s office, has instructed his legal adviser to bring an action for £500 against the Mayor for false imprisonment. —It is stated that the convict Mercer has altered considerably in his demeanour and habits since he was sentenced to death. Before his trial he used to indulge freely in exercise in the prison yard, but he now scarcely takes any. He is quieter and more subdued in manner than formerly, and partakes but slightly of the food supplied to him.—The Christchurch Archery Club will fire a match against Wellington to-day.—Forty applications have been received for the appointment of head-master, and 24 of head-mistress, for the East Christchurch District School, many being from Melbourne and Sydney, and frompersons possessing very superior attainments.—A new athletic club has been formed* with a view of encouraging working men. All prizes will be given in money instead of in plate or jewellery, like the present club.—Arrangements are being made for his Excellency's visit. It is not known yet whether his reception is to be private or public—Great complaints are made of the. rise in the price of milk. 'I he Star urges the institution of a scheme for bringing in milk from outlying districts by early trains, so as to destroy the present monopoly.—At an inquest this afternoon a verdict of manslaughter was returned against Janet McKinlay, for causing the death of her infant child. The circumstances of the case are these:-On Monday last the husband of Janet McKinlay was sentenced to three months' imprisonmeut for brutally assaulting his wife, who had only been confined ten days before. On Tuesday Mrs McKinlay drew a sum of money owing to her husband, and laid about in the house drinking whisky, which she sent her children for, until Friday, when, acting on information received, the police went to her house, and found her in bed very drunk, with an infant lying behind her, dead. The whole place and the children were in a filthy state. The evidence at the inquest showed that Mrs McKinlay first found the infant was dead on Thursday morning, or about thirty hours before the police went to the house. During this time she was continually the worse for liquor, and had taken no steps for the removal of the dead body. Medical evidence proved that the child died from want of food and general neglect.

Donedin, Saturday, 7 p.m.

At the Police Court, James Sullivan, a seaman, was charged with sticking up Andrew Hill in Melville-street last night. Sullivan tried to decoy Hill into a house of ill-fame, but the latter refused, when the prisoner threw him down and nearly strangled him, and rifled his pockets and stole his hat. The prisoner was'committed for trial. We quote the following from the Auckland Star's correspondent:— Pobt Chalmers, Friday. Arrived, last night, ' Eedron,' barque, from Liverpool. She left December 13th, and had a long passage of 123 days. She encountered heavy weather in the chops of the Channel, and again in the Southern Ocean. On March 8 was a tremendous westerly gale, during which seas swept the vessel, and washed a seaman named James Cook overboard. Ho was not seen afterwards. It smashed the bulwarks and longboat, and started the main chainplates. The barque strained and leaked, and had to keep the pumps going. It is feared the cargo is damaged.—The 'Jessie JNiccol,' in her search of the' Euphroysne/ went north as far as Castle Point, then to the Chathams, but no sign of the schooner was met. She has been given up for lost.