Local and General.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 238, 16 April 1869, Page 2

Local and General.

Ltttelton Winter Readings.— The Committee of the Colonists' Society hare resolved to commence their winter entertainments, which proved such a great success last year, earlier this season. Last night was advertised for the first of the readings; owing, however, to the inclemency of the weather, it was determined to postpone the inauguration until next week. Alien i>" High Street. — A meeting of persons interested in the erection of this arch was held at the City Hotel, last evening, Mr Ruddenklau . presiding. The erection of the arch in High street, f. om the old Wesleyan Chapel, was con6rmed. It was reported that over £25 had been collected towards the expense, and it was expected that £5 more would be procured next day. The decoration of .the arch, with evergreens, &c, was entrusted to Mr J. C. Brooke. The Prixce and the Orangemen. — Some dissatisfaction is felt by the loyal OraDgemen with an announcement inti- ;• mating that the Duke of Edinburgh will not '.. join in any procession which included Orange- [ men as a distinctive body, or in which any | party emblems were displayed. We would . remind those who feel aggrieved at this , determination, that the Prince of Wales [ adopted the same course when he visited \ Canada and the United States, and that his conduct was very generally approved at home. '. Where all are treated alike, we think it ; cannot be said that there is room for corns plaint. j Supreme Court. — The Registrar sat in , Chambers; at 11 o'clock this morning, when the following business was transacted:—John- | stone v. Mullaghan. — Dr Foster applied for '. an order of discharge from custody. The [ Registrar ordered the application to stand over until next day, when it will be made before his Honor the Judge. Re Francis ' Pitt.— On the application of Mr Cottrell, an order of adjudication was made in this case; [ creditors to meet on Monday, April 26, at 12 I o'clock. Re William Bryant. — On Mr Co wI lishaw's application, a similar order was made in this case; creditors to meet on Monday, April 26, at 11 o'clook. Re George Robert Hart.; — On the bankrupt's ; application, \ the date of last examination was fixed for • May 6. i Lyttelton Borougii Council.— A special i meeting of the Couucil was held in the . Council Chambers last evening. Present: — | Councillors England, Allwright, Balestiee, Woledge, Hargrcaves, Ward, Hawkins, Chalmers; his worship the Mayor presiding. The '. object of the meeting was to consider a letter \ received from his Honor the Superintendent, [ respecting the. reception of his Royal Highr ness at the Colonists' Hall. After some dis- ; cussion, it was resolved that the address of ) the Mayor and Councillors of the Borough of Lyttelton be presented to his Royal Highness ["• the Duke of Edinburgh on his landing at '; Lyttelton, and that the Superintendent be [ informed of this decision and requested that [ a fitting place be appropriated for the Coun- • cil at the landing-place to carry out this p object. ' Aquatics. — We are informed that in con- . sequence of his Honor the Superintendent being quite unable to give any kind of prof. raise to the rowing clubs, that 11.R.11. the Duke of Edinburgh would attend to view their proposed procession of boats on the Avon, the idea of doiiig honour to H R H. in ' this form has been abandoned. This is to be regretted, as from what we saw of a similar display on the occasion of the late visit of his « Excellency the Governor, we have every reason to suppose that a full attendance of i members, and the manning of the new boats , of the Christchurch clubs, as well as the i hoped-for addition of the other clubs from Kaiapoi and Lyttelton, would have materially r[ added to the spectacle then presented, and 1 have afforded both H.R.11. and the public a J very pretty and interesting sight. In con- - nexioh with this matter, we have been requested by the Arrangement Committee of E the Christchurch Clubs to state that communit cations with the more distant clubs, inviting t them to join in the demonstration, only -. waited a favourable reply from his Honor the Superintendent, as to the probable attenl dance of H:R.H,; •'':;. '

The Gourlays. — Mr.3 M'Gregor's Levee was repeated to a pretty numerous audience last evening, despite the Inclemency of the weather. We understand that two more performances will conclude the present series in Christclmrch. There will be no performance this evening, owing to the inclemency of the weather. V Tows Hall. — An adjourned general meeting of shareholders was held in the Town Hall side-room at 2 p.m. yesterday. Present — Messrs Packer, senr. (chairman), Packer, junr., J. C.Wilson, C.8., John Anderson, Joseph Hadfield and Tombs. The chairman stated that Mr William Wilson was engaged at the Resident Magistrate's Court, and was therefore unable to atteS^T The accounts were not before the meeting, and the business for which it had been convened was to pass the accounts and elect new members of the committee. Mr J. C Wilson thought that even if the accounts were on the table, it would be inadvisable to pass them, considering the thinness of the attendance It was decided, in consequence of the unavoidable absence of the secretary, to postpone the passing of the accounts and the election of members of committee, until a day to be fixed after the departure of his Royal Highness the Duke of Edinburgh. Before the meeting adjourned, Mr, Anderson asked whether it was the intention of the committee to clean out the Hall prior to the arrival of the Duke of Edinburgh, and put it in a befitting condition for His Royal Highness' reception. It was resolved that Mr Anderson's suggestion should be carried out at a cost not exceeding £5. The meeting then adjourned until Thursday, the 29th April. Extraordinary if True. — One of the most important discoveries that, in the annals of quartz mining, has ever taken place in the colony of Victoria, has been made at Pleasant Creek. An extensive and payine: horizontal reef has been discovered 350 feet below one formerly worked at 560. The existence of these horizontal or flat reefs gives quite a fresh interest to quartz mining. ■j^Mail Communication to the Chathams. £— Mr Ritchie writes from the Chathams: — The Post-office authorities do not seem to be very p.ttentive in the matter of the Chatham Island mails ; although 1 have had a vessel running regularly hero for stock from Dune din eve y month since October last, yet ih p ost-office people seemingly ignored the c.ir cumstance, time after time, till at last tiny suddenly woke up. We, a few days ago. received an ac-.umulated mail of five months I merely mention this for fear the like might occur again, as it is not so satisfactory re ceiving -o much stale news, so unavoidable in papers of < )ctober, November, &c. A Nelson Production fob the ' 'rince — A specimen of Nelson p oduction and manufacture is to be preseu ed to the Duk--of Edinburgh by Vlr James Smith, an old soldier of the 58th regiment. It represents wood, gold, copper, and leather, the production of the province. It consists of a stick made of ake ake (or everlasting wood), tipped with Nelson copper, having a ferule at the, handle; made of Nelson gold, a tassel of leather, and topped with a turned piece of bone, believed to be a whale's tooth taken from tickets pah in the -early war of- 1845.' Th? chasing of the massive gold ring roun •• the junction of the handle with the stick is very lich and well executed, and in the flowered scroll work of the chasing are distinguishable the words " Nelson Gold." Countersunk op the top of ihw handle is a gold plate, on which is engraved the following inscription, surmounted by a figure of a sphinx, the badge of the 58th regiment :— " H.K.H. the Duke of Edinburgh, from James Smith, an old soldier of the 58th Kegi rnent, Nelson, N.Z., 1869." The Thames Goldfield. — The following portion cf a letter from a mining surveyor of great experience in Victoria has been placed at pur {Wellington Independent") disposal: — -Shortland, M trch 29, 1869.— 1 have now been ten days located here, and have had a good look round me. I must say that 1 think very highly of this as a reefing district, and am much mistaken if the Thames Goklfield, in a. year or two more, does not stand amongst the richest fields yet open. I was all over Hunt's claim a few days since, which appears to me the best worked ground in the field; it has a very strong well-defined reef, with four or five rich leaders, and has yielded 33,d00 ounces of gold. The Golden Crown is another claim equally good, and there is not a das passes but some claim or more strikes quartz of fabulous richness. Machines are going up every wherp, and a few very good ones amongst them. Stone yielding anything less than an ounce is not looked at. This is on account of the difficulty of getting it to a machine. The Government are constructing trams to the different reefs, when the miners will be enabled to bring down their quartz for a few shillings per ton, and very many of the present duffers will then be found to pay handsomely. The : diggers here are guarding against any disturbance from the natives, by forming companies of volunteers. Six hundred have already been enrolled. East Coast.— The Yen. Archdeacon Williams, writing from Napier on the 13th ult., to the Yen. Archdeacon Govett, says : — My dear Archdeacon — I received your letter a short time ago at Turanganui ,' and in reply to it I must tell you that lam happy to say we have no really destitute persons in our district, and the fund which has been subscribed in various parts of the colony for the relief of the Poverty Bay sufferers has now reached the handsome amount of over jC7OO. Under these circumstances, I feel that it would not be right to take the money which you so kindly offer, especially as it seems by no means impossible that you may be in need of something of the same kind before long in your neighbourhood, if you do not require it already. I may take this opportunity of expressing the thanks not only of myself, but of the Poverty Bay settlers generally, for the very kindly sympathy which you at Taranaki have manifested towards ua in our troubles. The whole country is in a very unsettled and unsatisfactory state. I trust that it may

please God to preserve your district from the miseries of war again. It seems to be impossible to tell where the flame will burst out next. Poverty Bay is quiet just now, but we o.mnot tell how long it will continue so. Kooti is in the Urewerti country, and we hear of anifher Mp.ri having been murdered last •v cic ;t i)liiwa. lam just about to take my \"ite ami part of my family to reside in Auckland till quieter times. A New Province. — The following circular is, says the Wellington Independent, being largely sent round i . the districts to which it refers: — Auckland, 29th March, 1869. Sir, — A few persons interested in the Northern pirt of 'he province, but resident in Auckland, have observe I with indignation the total neglect of the thre.f Northern Electoral Districts by the Superintendent and his Executive — a neglect which has been carried to such a degree that the members for tho-e places have considered it absolutely useless to attend the meetings of the Provincial Council, — thus leaving these important districts without »hy direct interest in the proceedings of the Provincial Government. In these circumstances, they are of opinion that immediate steps shonld be taken to remedy: suchastate of affairs, which,if much longer continued, must greatly retard the development of the lesources of the North. And, having met and fully considered the present position of this neglected portion of the province, i hey deem it advisable to lay the whole matter seriously before the settlers in the North, that they may set about some kind of organisation, having for its . object the establishment of a new Northern province, to include Mongonui, Hokianga, Bay of Islands, and Mnrsden, with a s uthern boundary extending from the Whangaparoa Peninsula across to the West Coast Without attempting in any way to dictate, they would respectfully suggest, that an association be formed for this purpose, having its head-quarters at the Bay of Islands, with auxiliary branches at all convenient places ; and they eirnestly solicit your iufluenco and co-operation in accomplshing this most deeirable object. I have, &c, J. L. Pinclaik, Secretary to the Preliminary Committee. Colonial Defence. — An article on the Reorganisation of the Military Sj'sreui which appeared in the Pall Mall Gazette of the 29th January, contains the following: — We have yet to spuak of the forces which would be neefssary for the defence of our colonies. This question may be regarded as buiii£ even at thi9 momentum.a transition state. The opinion that the dolpnie3 ought to be made, as soon as possible, and as far as their size and oircumstauces may permit, selfreliant .for the purposes of military defence, is fast crystallising into a conviction. And suppos.ng this view to be adopted, the larger colonies could hardly do better than imitate the home system which we have recommended by the establishment, according to their several needs and means, of colonial armies. The Impeml Government might with advantage undertake the training of officers for these forcc'3, and otherwise assist them in alllegiti.uate ways _„ But the principle of independent colonial defence is one which has so much to recommend it th it we can, hardly ikuibt i a ultimate a ueptance. - Pdblic Opinion at;odt New Zealand.— - The Morning Post of the 29th of January observe" — "At the banquet given to the Colonial Treasurer «f New Zealand there were some remarkable expressions of opinion, showing how the political w'ud is blowing with regard to that country. Mr Fitzherbert is in England for the purpose of rearranging some of the financial affairs of the colony, which he has so ably done that he 'has re* lieved the revenues of New Zealand of-, an annual charge of £30,000, and obtained a large sum of ready money besides. But, having done so well in this respect, he is inclined to try a further flight, and in expressing his opinion that the mother country will come to the assistance of thj colony in her distress, he intimates that he expects us to guarantee New Zealand Bonds. It is not quite clear from his speech whether Mr Fitz Herbert also expects us to assist his^ colony with men as well as in money matters. He. say 8 'Remembering what sacrifices Kngland has recen \v made to liberate some twenty Europeans from captivity in Abj'ssinia, he would never believe that she would remain indifferent to the agony of a young colony, where not only men, but women and children, of her own race were exposed to the brutal tortures of the Maoris.' Does this delicately hint that England should reverse the policy deliberately entered on at the request of New Zealand ? We hone not; but Abyssinia isan unpleasant allusion!jjj{j\t any rate the colony has not entitled herself to this material aid. She asked to be left alone to deal with her suvoges, and when, through her own unaccountable remissions, she fails lamentably in her first encounter with the natives, she ought only to expect aid at the last extremity, when the sovereignty of the Queen 'is in and then not with good graejp Major Atkinson, who had served with the raiiitia and volunteers in New Zealand, was reassuring in his views. He said, • Notwithstanding the late disasters he was firmly convinced that the colonists were capable of taking care of themselves,' and he only asked for the ' sympathy. of the people of England,' which he may be quite sure liis colony will receive. Sir George Grey expreseei a wish that the Government would ' turn its attention to the formation of a sound scheme of emigration, which would alike arrest the increase of pauperism at home and prove advantageous to the colonies.' riuch a scheme would undoubtedly be desirable, but it presents more difficulties than is generally supposed. It is not sufficient to ship the people out from this country to a colony and leave them to shift for themselves. Money is the real 'difficulty ; for to prevent these emigrants from becoming a burden to the colonies it would be necessary, in most cases where they were of the poorer class in question, to give them a good start and pecuniary aid. Are we expected to do this for the colonies ? Whatever may be the views of the

Government on those questions, Lord G< arH ville did not give much clue to them. Indcr» it may reasonably be supposed that no deflnit J conclusions will be come to until the effectM of the reaent successes in New Zealand aqjj the tardy efforts of tlie colonists are moifl fully seen. But, whatever assistance we maaH render by way of guarantees or otherwise, <n is greatly to be hoped that we shall not bH compelled to send back our troops to Ne^B Zealand." . M The Fijis. — The progress^ of the Fifß Islands is thus noted by private letteiH quoted by the Ballaral Star :— The whitjfl population- has more than doubled itself iaj four months, and now number's • 1258, oHB whom 150 are ladies. Good schools havHj been established, the stipend of a' clertfymaHß in the Church of England has been guarantcecjH and matters religious and educational arH extending themselves most sritisfactorili^B The nucleus of an excellent library has beeHß formed, contributions to which" nave beeßß received from the colonies, and many prdjH mises liave been made ixom various quartenH of valuable books in addition.— The sanaH journal adds : The weather has been favouflH able for the season of the year, and a lar JH accession of planters is looked forward to iHi May. The Galrttea will call with the Princß and the cession of the Islands will be agai^H offered to Great Britain through him. nl the event of the protectorate being formed,^B capital opportunity occurs of re-naming tlßjg group, by calling them after the Queen's so^fl Alfreda or Alfred land. Land is going i^B rapidly in price, the last sales having beaH 580 acres on the Rewa at £1 per acre. AH count sales just received quote Fiji cotton lid' to 4s per lb. There is no doubt tljH climate and soil of Fiji are better adapted the growth of cotton than Tahiti, the beHH proof being the value of the article in tJHI London market, the latter being 2s Bd, whflH th<a former sells readily at the prices bofolH quoted. HB