Local and General.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 577, 26 March 1870, Page 2

Local and General.

Lyttelton Amateur Theatricals. — A second performance will be given in the Colonists' Hall on Tuesday evening, when a new farce, " No. 1 Round the Corner," will be added to the bill of fare. *£ Electoral. — Mr Wm. Wilson informs ihe electors of the City of Christchurch that he does not intend to offer himself for reelection at the approaching general election for members of the Provincial Council. — Theatre Rotal. — Last night there was a very fair attendance at the Theatre Royal. The performances consisted of " All that Glitters is not Gold," and " Lalla Rookh,''. both of which appeared to give satisfaction. Borough Council. — Yesterday was the day fixed for the nomination of two ratepayers to serve as Councillors, but there was no person nominated. It would appear that no one will take office, for although several have been requested to come forward as candidates, they have declined. Presentation. —At Kaiapoi yesterday, Mr C. E. Dudley presented the crew of the Tui, winners of the late mateh — Kelpie v. Tvi — with five cups, on each of which the following inscription was neatly engraved: — Four Oared Race, won by Tui, H. Kerr (1), H. Feldwick (2), A. Simpson (3), J. Feldwick (stroke), G. Wright (cox.) Art Exhibition.— The improved attendance still continues, somewhat over 350 persons having visited the building during yesterday. The Committee, in compliance with numerous requests, more especially from country people, have obtained permission from the Government to keep the Exhibition open for another week. It will be open only during the day, and one or two special musical entertainments will be given. Apologt. — We have been requested to publish the following apology in reference to the case of Doyle v. Raphael, which was heard at the Resident Magistrate's Court yesterday ; — " We, the undersigned, tender to Mr A. J. Raphael our sincere regret that we should have laid an information against him, or caused him any uneasiness in reference to our estate, for which we had not the s'ightest foundation ; but being ill-advised hy solicitors and friends caused us to make or commit this great error, for which we tender to him this our apology. To Mr A. J. Raphael. Augustus Doyle, Doyle Brothers." Inquest. — An inquest was held on Wednesday last on the body of Margaret Torrens, aged two years, who died from the effects of a severe burning on the 2 1st inst., at the residence of her parents, Windmill Road. It appears that on the 12th inst., Mrs Torrens left her house for the purpose of bringing some water. She was absent about three minutes, and on her return discovered that the child's clothes were on fire. Dr Frankish was immediately called in, and did all he could for the little sufferer, who lingered until the 21st, when inflammation set in and the child expired. The jury returned a verdict of " Accidental Death." Telegraphic. — The following changes will come into operation on and after the Ist of April next. Ordinary telegrams will be forwarded from any station to any station in New Zealand, at the following rates : — Ten words, one shilling ; and sixpence for every additional five words or fraction of five words. The signature of the sender will not be charged for in either instance Henceforth, the arrival and departure of sailing vessels will not be reported ; interprovincial steamers will only be reported at the port to which they are directly bound, and on arrival the port from which they come will be stated. Steamers carrying the mail, and Australian steamers will be reported as hitherto. New Milk Oh I— A capital joke on the lovers of " cheap new milk" was perpetrated yesterday. It appears that Mr Dean, of Purau, has for some time past missed a quantity of milk from his cans, which he left on the Government Wharf. He resolved to give those a lesson who were guilty of the practice of abstracting it. Yesterday morning a can of milk, prepared for this purpose, and nicely suited to' the taste, was left on the Wharf, and we need hardly say that, on Mr Dean's return, he found that. the greater portion of the milk had disappeared. A short time only elapsed before the secret was out, ahd the rueful contenances of those who had partaken of the beverage told the tale. We trust those who suffered will profit by their experience. Polick Reform — The Auckland evening paper of a recent date says:— The Auckland police force ia to be incorporated with the Aimed Constabulary, in terms of a resolution passed during a recent session of the Provincial Council, which gave the Superintendent discretionary power to effect such «n arrangement. The police will be taken over by the General Government, and enrolled as Armed Constabulary, but the number and distribution of the force will still be subject to the will of the Provincial authorities, who 'will pay for the maintenance of the force at a rate to be agreed upon. The General Government will, in fact, supply police for the use of the Provincial Government, and the foroe will be organised by the officers of the Armed Constabulary. Leithfield. — The Carandini company appeared at thiß place on Wednesday evening, and gave a performance of ballad music to what, for so small a town, must be considered a tolerably numerous audience. The programme, which, with some old favourites, comprised several new pieces, was gone through in such a manner as to receive warm and well merited applause. The most noticeable successes of the first part were " The green trees whispered," sung most expressively by Miss Fannie; Curschmann's trio " Ti prego," by the Misses Rosina and Fannie and Mr Sherwin; and "Tell me my heart," by Madame Carandini, the latter being encored and responded to with " Home, sweet home." The always appreciated " Trust

her not" duefc,%as' sung ;by the young ladies in their :>iisual bewitching style. In the second part-Miss Rosina was equally successful in " { 7Wheu * the roses bloom again," land was encored, as was also Miss Fannies perfect rendering of Blumenthal's Scotch ballad " I thought to he your bride." The evening's amusement included several other songs and duets, and wound up with " The Gipsies laughing trio." "Vice-Rkgal Luxuries.— The Wellington evening paper of March 19 has the following: — A--- sample of the advantages we derive from our connection with the Imperial] Government. and its illustrious representative, Sir_George Ferguson Bowen, G.C.M.G., was furnished yesterday hy an auction sale. When the visit of H.R.H. the Duke of Edinburgh was in contemplation,! the Stafford Government bought from Captain Benson a very handsomely finished six oared boat, 35 feet long, and fitted with; all the appliances deemed requisite. The price paid for the boat was €80, and she was used on two occ isions, and, no further use appearing likely to arise for her, she was sold yesterday at auction for £28. so that the two trips made by the Queen's representative cost the colonists about .£25 each, or say, fifty guineas for enabling Sir George to pay two viceregal visits in state. Claims to Vote. — We again remind those who may intend to send in claims that: the period for doing so expires on Thursday next, March 31 . The leading: Wellington paper of March 17, speaking perhaps with authority, | says on this subject : — At the present time, too, it is more than ever necessary to remind [ the electors of New Zealand of their duty in this respect. Important changes are pending, and large questions will probably be I submitted to the constituencies during the next few years, the decision of which will materially influence the destiny of the | colony. The future relations between . this I young dependency and the mother country — the regulation of commercial intercourse between New Zealand and the other Australasian colonies — the question of provincialism and centralism — of free trade and protection —of unity and separation of the two islands, are all matters which in some form or other will certainly be raised during the present or next Parliament, and on some of them a decision will have to be arrived at which will | permanently commit us to a distinct line of future action. And if before another general election the redistribution of the representation comes before the Assembly, it will he well for our representatives to meet their political enemies in the gate with a good quiver full of registered electors. Native Allies. — The Wellington Evening Post of March 18 says :— lf we must employ friendly natives, what is the best way of doing so ? This question is assuming large proportions every day throughout the colony, as we find that the expense, is being continued, and the results nothing. We were told that the natives were only to be paid on the. principle of piece-work. Is it so ? or ratber.'have we. not the evils of bo h systems ? We suspect that there are some still paid hy the day for doing nothing ; while others receive advances on their contract before they have themselves made any advance towards its completion. We have no knowledge as to who is the real leader of our forces — native, or.other. What does "detriballzation " mean ? We seem to be condemned to have long dictionary words inflicted upon us, while we are deprived of common parts of speech. This long word is said to mean " the system of employing a few selected natives of a tribe in another part of the country where they have no local connection ; and their management on the Kuropean system, under . European offi .-ers, or even native officers, when, like Kemp (Te Kepa), .they are fit for the purpose." The Nelson Examiner thus recommends this system! and condemns the opposite one — though preferred by Mr M'Lean— of levying a tribe as a body under its own chief to fight against its native neighbours allied to them in blood and by old associations. This sounds to us very like the well-known want of distinction " twixt tweedle-duni and tweedle-dee." We might as well bother our heads about whethor the eggs we want to hatoh should be set under their own layers or some celebrated chieftain ess of the fowl-house who was innocent of iheir production. Commanders and commanded alike, of whatever colour, seem to be utterly deprived of reason, and equally useless for result. In the next session of Parliament, those of our members who are not paralysed by Auckland influence, must insist on the necessary, work for quelling native rebellion being done by contract— -on the tenders; being open to Europeans as well as natives — and on those tenders bding opened in the presence of the public. Dunedin Races. — The. Otago Daily Times of March . 24 has the following account of the first day's racing : — Yesterday, the course at Silver-stream looked as •' gay, if not gayer, than it has done on any previous occasion. The weather was beautifully fine, and the day being observed as a general holiday, a large number of spectators was present. To the disappointment of some pessons, Mr F. Mansfield's Hir Charles, which had been entered for the Maiden Plate, of 65 soys, was scratched. A pretty good start was effected; Tomboy carried his colours to the front for a short distance, ani was then overtaken by Southern Chief, and a capital race to >k place between them. Water Witch ultimately headed Tomboy, and a spirited struggle ensued between Water Witch and Southern Chief, the latter coming in a winner by about two lengths. . For the Handicap Trotting Race, of 40 soys.. Magic was the favourit-, but irsoon became evident that the distance given to the other horses could not be overcome. There were some who took exception to Straggler's style of going, it being freely stated that he cantered a great part of the distance. At any rate, the defeat o l Magic, as he had evidently been well backed, caused great disappointment. When Straggler passed the post, Ranger was 70 yards in rear, Magic having gained during the race

about 300 yards. The Match for. £20^beft tween Mr Welsh's Little Tim Mjr JC Williams' Sir Hercules, was an-ek-iy victory for the former. In the Duoedih. Handicap of 130 soys, the greatest interest appeared to; be centred ; and public opinion .was almost wholly divided between Southern Chief, Miss King, Atalanta, and Lady Ellen. At the start Southern Chief obtained the lead, closely followed by Lady Ellen, whose rider appeared to be under the necessity of keeping her very tight in hand. The other competitors kept well together for several hundred yards ; in passing the stand a secon 1 time, Southern Chief and Lady Ellen, between whom it had now be.ome evident the race lay, were running in a most spirited manner, almost shoulder to shoulder. On again approaching the post, Lady Ellen made a gallant struggle for first place, but Southern Chief won by about a length. On the fall of the flag for the Taieri Stakes of 60 soys., Wildboy got away with the lead and the inside running, the others being close on his quarter. After they had proceeded.^, short distance. Atlas went up and raced with and passed Wildboy, who appeared to be hard held. Between Atlas and Wildboy, a splendid race took place ; the excitement as they neared the stand for the last time was immense, and they flew past the post, Atlas half a length ahead. The other competitors had little show in the race. Mr Moore's Don Pedro was entered for the Ladies' Purse, of 50 soys., but was afterwards scratched. At the start, Musician shewed slightly in front. For some distance the horses kept pretty well together, and the second time round Banjo was being punished without avail, Tantrum coming in about three lengths ahead of Musician. For. the Hack Race, of 15 soys.. eleven horses started, and a capital race ensued. Jenny came in winner, and was afterwards sold by auction for £25, thereby realising .£lO for fhe funds. Mr Weld on Self Government.— Mr Weld has been making a tour through Western Australia, of which colony he is now Governor, and he has been everywhere received with the utmost enthusiasm. He appears to have journeyed on horseback, and we are sorry to observe that he met with a somewhat serious acccident. His horse fell with h'.cn, breaking one or two of his ribs. Altogether, the journey he made must have been a very trying one, for the local papers intimate that his Excellency was much exhausted when he returned to the seat of Government. In addressing a number of settlers at Chaoipion Bay, who gave a publio dinner in honour of his visit, Mr Weld ia reported to have said :— He had been but a short time in the country ; he had as yet visited only part of it; they would see that he could only be called upon to say as much as he thought right to say. They had with much consideration for his position abstained from pressing this question on him or ■ittempting to hurry him ; had it been otherwise, he should simply refuse to be hurried. Naturally they wished him to say something ona matter upon which the people of this country apppeared to have formed a decided, and, at the same time, quite a reasonable opinion He thought such an opinion worthy of respect, and should not be fulfilling his duty, did he not give weight to an opinion temperately urged. He only proposed that night to remind them that it was necessary thoroughly to realise that self-government means work, self-reliance, self sacrifice, and self-taxation; that the whole superstition that a governor or a government can do everything must be discarded; that sugar plums would not fall into our mouths under any system; that party divisions were inevitable; but that whatever might be its disadvantages, at least,, it led to political life. Again, be would remind them that, though they considered that this colony was not now ready for responsible government, yet that having representative government, they might any day drift into responsible government. It might come at any moment; it could only be delayed for a time, by mutual forbearance and cordial co-operation between the representatives and the Executive. Let them consider all this calmly, fully, and in a businesslike spirit; but they must not think that because he asked them to do this that he was averse to representative institutions; to be so would belie his whole life; from his early days he had studied representative institutions; for years he had helped to work them. At a dinner which had been given him by men of all parties and of the greatest distinction before he left England, Lord Granville had stated that in selecting him for the post he; now held, he had selected him as one who had advocated in the colonies those principles of self-reliance and self-government which had made England {what she is, and which alone could raise the colonies to a high position. He (the Governor) could not therefore but respect and sympathise with those whose aspirations tend in that direction. He must be careful not to go too -fast, but he would always remain true to theae principles, and aim at the end. It would be to him a very great disappointment to leave this country without seeing those principles in full and safe operation. A great leader once j'poke of having tducated his party; he would not use the word education, but, if they would permit him, it mi^ht not seem improper in his position and the experience gained elsewhere in the introduction of representative and responsible government, for him to say that he would help to guide and lead the people of this colony as speedily as he safely could to thut self-government which is of all others the form of Government mast adapted to Englishmen. Mount Egmont. — The following is from a recent number of the Taranaki- Herald :— Those who have a little spure time to enjoy a ramble among tlie wild aud majestic works of Nature, would do well to spend a few days up n and about the lofty and beautiful Mount Egmont, which rises to nearly 9,000 feet from its rich level forest-clad plains. To ascend its lofty cone is a matter of toil, the gradient being very steep, and composed of small stones and sand which slip downward with

thffjfeet. In clear weather, the prospect from 'the aumraifr is magnificent. With the assistance of a good glasß, a large portion of the country is visible, also the active rplcsno Tongariro, vomiting ita black smoke; and .the Ruapaho mountain with its snowcovered crest rising to the height of 9195 feetviftbove the sea. On a very fine day, the country round Wellington and Wanganui, all the Kaikoura mountains, Cook Straits, from end to end, and round the coast to New Plymouth, also the Nelson, Canterbury and Otago Mountains, in the. Middle,. Island, may be seen. The base of this lovely mountain is rich in vegetation, — trees, shrubs, ferns, and flowers of every hue. There is, also, a fine water-fall there, which is naraci after Mr Dillon Bell (Bell's Falls), having been found by. that gentleman many years since. It is on the Hangatahua or Stony River. This beautiful unbroken sheet of water falls about a hundred feet from a narrow opening in the rocks about six feet wide into a large basin. The cliff* on- each side form a half-circle, and rise to about three hundred feet high, are richly clustered with shrubs, ferna, and flowers even to the highest peak. Near the same locality, exists a spring of warm water which runs from beneath a high cliff into a swift running stream, as cold as the ice itself. Around this place are some valuable interesting trees, cordylincs, &c. The Cordyline indivisa is a very striking tree, from thirty to fifty feet in height, and is surrounded with beautiful foliage, its leaves being from five to seven feet in length, and eight te nine inches broad, and is composed of a strong flax fibre.- It is free from gum, hardy and fast growing, and might be planted for its fibre apart from ornament, at the rate of 800 or 900 trees per acre. This ia considered by Mr Buchanan to be a distinct species from the one found in Dusky Bay, and is much more \ ornamental and branching. A very fine sample leaf has been given us by Mr Henry, of the Spring Bank Nurseries, showing the fibre cleaned. The Senecio olseagnifoliua, a very ornamental shrub, something of the Rhododendron habit, with specks of yellow flowers, and the surface of its leaves covered with a white thread network, ia also very hardy and fast growing, and is to be found on the tops of the rangea 500 feet above the sea level. In the same neighbourhood are to be found the beautiful Ourisia macrophy 11a which resembles -the Chinese primrose, — besides many of the most lovely and rare ferns that are to be found in New Zealand. We might mention that on the heights of Mount Egmont, plants of the Scotch heather, sown some two years since, and many blue currant plants, between eight and ten inches high, are to be seen. They have been planted there for the purpose of gathering the honey. The Wealth We Waste.—" It needs but a glance at the statistical tables," says the Wellington Independent, "to .see what ample immediate employment New Zealand itself can provide for an enormous addition to ita producing population. With its gold mines in every part of the colony, and the certainty of a rapidly increasing development of the flax industry, it is apparent that New Zealand has little need to fear the want of a market within herself, for any quantity, not only of the necessaries, but also of the luxuries of life which she can grow, and the consumption is likely to increase in a far more rapid ratio than the production, unless an enormous addition be made to the agriculturists, who are already far behind the requirements of the colony. Taking a most cursory glance at the statistics of 1868— What do we find imported which could ba equally well, probably better and more cheaply produced by our own small farmers within the colony, if they had only the roads to get their produce certainly and rapidly to the numerous ports? Imported beer, which we have every facility for making for ourselves, froths in our face to the extent of £85,000 a year. New Zealand cows by thousands ran unmilked, while £28,000 . worth of foreign butter melted in our mouths. New Zealand m cc had the opportunity of nibbling £12,000 worth of : foreign . cheese. ; Australian hens cackled to the tune of £11,000 worth of eggs cracked on New Zealand tablea. £146,000 was expended on flour, to be consumed in the shape of New Zealand bread and puddings, to which was added £9000 worth of bottled fruit to make New Zealand pies. New Zealand dessert Was furnished with £20,000 worth of fresh fruit, ahd £3000 worth of musty nuts. £93,000 was taken to pay for foreign grain, and in addition to the bill for beer, an item forjnalj;. appears of £44,000, besides £48,000 more for hops. Importations, chiefly from Australia, of cattle, horses, and sheepamounted to £119,000. Nearly £4000 was paid for meal, aud while New Zealand pigs ran half wi.'d by thousands, and potatoes were rotting in the ground, £18,000 was spent for Australian and English bacon, £25,000 for hams, and £7,000 -ior pickled pork. — New Zealand pasture was sown with £14,000 worth of English grass seeds } £22,*.00 was spent in soap tp.wash away New.Zealand dirC, while the materia's for. its, Tnanufacture':are wasted wholesale. -on every Neyr, ., Zealand homestead. The farmers surely might appropriate some of the £293,000 which went in the purchase of sugar, or at least the, could produce honey in endless quantity to supply its place. £78,000 was paid for t-'mber.'cer-tainly not better than our own jush lands produce ; and the purchase of £90,000 wortli of tobacco has. absolutely ended: in smoke, as far as this colony is concerned. £87,000 was paid' for wines, though gooseberries and rhubarb are almost weeds, in every garden in these islands, and_would make as good aDd far purer champagne than that which gets into the fortunate miner's head. But last — and tbe item which should make our little farmers blush — £22,000 went the year before last to pay the market gardeners of Victoria for fresh vegetables imported here. We might add largely to our list. We might fairly complain, for instance, that New Zealand farmers gain no benefit from the grain which must be used from which to distil £218,000 worth of spirits im-^"

ported in 1868 ; but we do not think it necessary to go any farther, especially when it is remembered that the bulk of all the imports to which we have referred, come from, the neighbouring Colony of Victoria, which, with a far inferior soil, not at all to be compared with that "which we possess, we allow . successfully to compete with, us in. our own ; markets." '._■■■. : . JProtection , and Free Tbade. — The fol-i lowing is. from the limes of a recent date: — : Agitation in, France, agitation in England, and agitation in America combine at this moment, to : . form -.an extremely, interesting spectacle, especially as the subject of uneasiness is everywhere the came. Trade is bad at home, it ia bad across the Channel, and it is bad oh the other side of the Atlantic. In each, country, too, the unsatisfactory prospects of industry are ascribed to the same source— an error in the adjustment of imports and exports. In France, as our readers are aware, the commercial relations of the State, with England are regarded as objectionable and disastrous. The. wine and bilk trades, it is admitted, may be doing well, bnt they did well before the Treaty, whereas the cotton and iron trades, which then managed to hold their own, are now ruined by British competition. Accordingly, an enquiry has been demanded, and tbe demand has been granted, In England the silk trade, among others. is represented as half extinct under tbe operation of the Treaty, . while the cottoß trade, so far from being, as it ought to be, more prosperous, is in a state of notorious stagnation. In England, therefore, an inquiry is also prayed, and a popular advocate of Free Trade has now concurred in the prayer. Perhaps it may be in- the recollection of the public that a month or two ago Mr George Odger protested with some warmth against certain remarks of ours on the Protectionist leanings of working men, but his own address to the electors of Southwark now admits the truth. What he thinks of Free Trade himself he does not say, but .he unhesitatingly acknowledges that " much uneasiness '.' exists on the subject, and that in his opinion a thorough investigation of the case is imperatively required. So much for England and France. From America we learn that on the: 2nd of this month the New York Chamber of Commerce received the Report of a Special Committee appointed to inquire into the "decline of American Commerce," and that the Report recommended immediate and comprehensive legislation on the subject. - But the strangest part of the story has yet to be told. If all three countries agreed in denouncing the same system, -the unanimity of opinion might be conclusive ; but the fact is that the grievance as put forward by each nation is utterly inconsistent with the grievances alleged by the other two. France and England are dealing with each other not on the principle of free trade, but on terms specially adjusted half way between free trade and. protection. They gave and take according to the arrangements of a treaty of commerce, and while the French say they are .losers by the bargain, our working men loudly declare that the loss is entirely on their own side. Mr Cobden did his best to establish a fair Reciprocity, but tbe cry is, both here and in France, that there is no reciprocity, and that one side gets all the advantage, to the prejudice of the other. In the United States the ruling system is that of protection, and it is of tbis the New York Chamber complains. The particular trade in question was the vast and formerly lucrative business of shipbuilding and shipowning, which has now, it is said, disappeared, laving been "transferred to English and German houses.*" The remedy proposed is the removal of protective duties, so that the materials of shipbuilding may be received free in American yards, and also that foreign-built vessels may be imported bodily on the same terms to carry the American flag. Irish Towns. — The Times special correspondent on the Irish land question writes as follows: — Belfast, the centre of the linen trade of Ulster, and the chief place for the export of the mnnufacture, is the most flourishing town I have seen in Ireland. Dublin, half a capital and half a seat of commerce,' has. a magnificent yet rather a slovenly appearance; Cork has a look of long settled wealth, but not of daring and brilliant industry. Compared with either, Belfast is what Glasgow and Greenock are to Edinburgh, what Leeds and Birmingham are to Bristol — a spot where new wealth and enterprise have rapidly made a noble creation, and are eclipsing the . more stationary growths of older and more slow of civilization. The town, built on the , banks of the Lagan, where it opens into its . • fine estuary, was possibly of very ancient origin, but it owes its first, rise! to a Huguenot colony, which, after the Revocation, of the Edict of Nantes, planted on what was then a desolate morass the germs, of a manufacture that had thriven in their hands along the slopes of the Loire and the Seine. Yet the settlement of the. exilea.was not very, successful j. and Belfast in the days of Arthur Young was a town of some 15,000 souls only, which, though known.for its linen fabri s, and* already, possessing an increasing trade, was probably not a third the size of Cork. A circumstance notj *.ithb,ut r interest to a student of the Land ,-.'■ of Ireland is said, to have afterwards, given, a sudden 'impulse „-.; tOr.ihs prosperity of .the place, and to have launched it upon tbe path of progress. Belfast had pieviout'y been under the tutelage of ; the Donegal family, but towards the close of the last century it was .emancipated from. the. restraints of short leases, the Lord Donegal of that' generation haying granted a number of perpetuities, and what hitherto had been a mere county town grew speedily into the capital of a province. The rest was done by the gradual concentration of tbe linen manufacture into a few spots, and by the improvements made in machinery'; and at present Belfast is not only the second city in Ireland in population, but it excels all the cities oi the island iv the sign 3of

flourishing wealth and industry. The architecture of the houses in the principal streets is particularly good, and even attractive; the marts and shops are well laid out and gay ; and the* busy haunts of the citizens' toil lead to retired terraces and villas, occasionally admirably planned and decorated. The chief features of Belfast, however, are the rows of shipping that throng the quays, and the chimneys soaring from the factories below — the material proofs of the energy and skill which have given the place its deserved renown." A few of the churches are not without beauty; but you miss, aa usually is the case in these modern centres of civilized life, the glory of the mediaeval city, the spire, high above the square massive tower, and commanding the landscape on every side. Belfast is situate on tbe confines of Antrim and Down, which, almost separated into a distinct county by Lough Neagh and the line of the Barm, form the eastern division of the province of Ulster. This magnificent tract, in ancient times the land of the O'Neills and other Celtic tribes, was subjugated and came under the power of the Crown in the reigns of Elizabeth and James 1., Down having been colonized under the first Sovereign . and Antrim under her Scottish successor. In both instances I English and Scotch settlers took possession of the conquered territory, the Plantation, however, effected by James being more methodical, and regular society grew up in a great degree upon the same type as it has done in Fermanagh and Londonderry. In Antrim and Down the invading colonists became a class of proprietors and occupiers, established in the land as landlords and tenants. They have shaped the fortunes of. the whole community, and here, as elsewhere, they gradually extended to the vanquished aboriginal race the benefits of -the kindly usages which bad beeu formed in their mutual relations. The result has been considerable social progress, the diffusion of civilization and wealth, and, with rare exceptions, general tranquility. Agriculture in Ireland. — The Times special commissioner on the Irish land question supplies the following information : — The superficial area of Ireland is, in round numbers, 2 1 ,000,0 V. 0 acres, and though a fifth of these even now are waste, more than 2,000,000 acres have been reclaimed and enclosed since 1341. If the breadth of land devoted to tillage has not extended since that time, and has even contracted within the last few years, there i'l reason to believe that farming of all kinds is more profitable than it has ever been> and it is certain that the staple produce of the country has been immensely developed. The value of the live stock of Ireland was estimated in 1841 at rather more tban £21,000,000 ; in 1861, at the same rates of price, it had advanced to nearly £33,500,000; and it has been calculated that, at current prices, it would have exceeded £45,000,000. Simultaneously, a decided progress in the opulence of the country has become manifest, and all clasaes have had a share in it. The rental of Ireland was probably not £12,000,000 in 1841, and was often liable to great reductions ; it is now not less tban £15,000,000, is relatively a less burden than it was, and is as well paid as that of England or Scotland. In 1845 the Devon Commission could only report that the "large farmers " were "tolerably" well off. and that the " small farmers " were "in a very wretched" state ; at' this moment it has been supposed that the accumulated savings of these classes amount to £20,000,000, and as a rule, except the very smallest holders, they are in reasonably easy circumstances. As for the agricultural labourers who, in five-sixths of the country, were in a state of abject destitution, unparalleled, perhaps, in any other part of Europe, eking out existence on 4s a week, their wages have been very nearly doubled; and if they are still too poor in some districts, they are rot on the whole in a bad condition. The face of the country fully attests this general progress of the landed classes ; the agriculture of Ireland, though still backward and very imperfect in many districts, is, nevertheless, a great deal better than it was when the Devon Commission described it as "in the highest degree defective ; " and the exertions of not a few landlords who, since the events of 1846, have devoted themselves to their estates, have contributed largely to this change. . It should be added that every statistical test — investments in Government stock and railways, returns of probate and legacy duties, deposits in banks and their circulat'on — shows that this improvement has been universal and has pervaded the whole nation; but I shall notice two proofs only, which seem to me especially remarkable. The habitations bf tbe better class in Ireland were only 304,264 in number in .1841; in twenty years afterwards they were more than 416,000; and, though the population within this period declined from morethan 8,000,000 to 5,790,000 souls, the consumption of almost every article that forms a luxury for the humbler classes has increased in an extraordinary manner.