WELLINGTON ITEMS.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 5463, 15 January 1896, Page 2

WELLINGTON ITEMS.

[FROM OTTB OWN COEEEBPONCENT.] - WELLINGTON, Jan. 14. You remember .the Horowhenua, no doubt, for you heard enough about it during the session. It is well, for you are likely to hear, a good deal more about it before it is allowed to be forgotten. It is • rumoured in the big building that Ministers have now very nearly fixod.jm the.Eoyal Commission authorised by the Act -of last session. • Several names are spoken of as -likely 'in conneoti6n\with.the commissioner- ' ship* -amongst others thai^of jttr/ff,. C. Martin anjj Judge . Wardi;, Tt wjjiL not be : long, l-,fanoy,befb^ the netfc stftgie ,'of thi| : caute ciUVre is before the country. '.;■ t Talking of Horowhenua naturally 'rei.. minds dne of Sir Wfiitef Biille,fc, . ; .He on hi&^ide, isiot by' any' me^g •inactive.- '■ He -•■ has. tssiice^y©)! the project of p^nOing,. lor ; a wnßtitiienojr at'the gOTeral jjlebtioiyand he has announced his ■ candidature at once. In connection with this appeal to the electors (of Otalri I should have -said,* Mr J. G. Wikon's present constituency) ..he has sent* out some 1000 or 1500. of his pamphlets, in which the yhole history of last session's episode is narrated. ' More examples are, I hear, to follow. ■■■■.■ <.\ Mr Blpw, tl»eUnder-Seore.tary fwiPublic WorkB, ; g6es south .to-morrow on,;*., tour of inspection of the various railways v and other public works. .Mr, Blow, who has not been on the east of the South Island' for three years, purposes returning to Wellington early in February. . : ; , , . ;- v There is, another move in the>matter of placing wnat might be called au> uitercolonial light oi; the Snares, Some tjine ago the Governments of New ;South? Wales, Tasmania, Victoria and New Zealand, agreed to join in erecting a light on that distant commanding rock, and a, site was.,acoording^r surveyed, but the site proved, for some reason, unpleasing to the . Government of Victoria, and the matter -dropped. Since then wrecks and rumonvß) of wrecks at the Auckland Islands to have pressed on the Victorian consoienoe. At any rate ..the, Victorian Government lately.. sent: over* a oreqw^tj. for another 'survey, and that request has been favourablv received r -;Mr, Hales, the iEngineer-in-Chiefi and Captain AUinari, of the Marine Department, are to, start for the, Snares, in the Hinemoa, on Jan.22, to make the new survey. , it '../. ■' : !"■■■/.,'.'. '..'.,'", >.■-,■ A message from the sea, not in any .way tragic at all, just the result of an in^nt on ocean curfeiits : On 0ct..w)j1894, thg. captj^i - of- time B.S.V Southern Gtosb, \bojinid for Melbduxiei when his, .Vessel. was about seven, hundred miles sou^h of , the !Leu^iii-^to ,be exact, ia latit\i«i^ ;47,deg 26 min south and; longitude 114deg 16min east, threw a bottle, containing a message into the sea. ,The other day this .bottle.. Came ashore on the Karamea beach, pii tjie^est ; Coast, was picked .up by a,*omo'.«wi{iren there, and forwarded to the Marine £tejpa?tment. The bottle took jnearly- fourteen months to do the distance, but gp£ £here all right, and has given' seamen i.sojnething to think about . in the. matter of cuirrento. At jGreytown to-day, the Native Land Court finally settled the di^culty,, of tho Wairarapa Lake by vesting the fee,, simple thereof on, her Majesty. , Thei di&culty is 3ike thair of your Lake, Ellesinere aß r^? the necessity for . periodical ; outlet, and is aggravated by: ]the ,= conflict ; betyreen. the fishing 'right* of the Nativel(>nd the occupation rights of the settlers^; '■ „, ... v' '.ThV,l^nuef,w^nt.^•.£%^niai^ {^i»•day with the Engineer-in-Chiof '/to \inspect a new railway briige, (.lately, completed. He will return on Thursday. i r -v, , ( •