WELLINGTON.

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume XVII, Issue 2502, 4 August 1874, Page 2

WELLINGTON.

(From our own correspondent.) July 29. The proceedings in the Upper House on Tuesday only call for brief notice. The Hon. Colonel Russell made a long explanation relative to his connection with a transaction in land held by a Maori woman, and declared, '* upon his word of honor, that he had beeu engaged in no discreditable transaction." Mr Man tell introduced a Wellington Burial . Ground Bill. The Colonial Secretary obtained leave to introduce a Bill to amend the Constitution Act. This Bill provides that any Bill which has been passed by the Lower House and subsequently disallowed by the Council, or any Bill 'vice versa, may be brought before a I Qombihed Chamber consisting of 35 raem-

I bers of each House, and there carried or the contrary. Bills going through this practice will be considered to have paSsed just the same as if they had been assented to by both Chambers in the ordinary way. A , motion was carried to the effect that the births of Maori children should be registered, and the remainder of the sitting was occupied by a long discussion on the Canteibury Domain. ' "' ' In the iiouse of Representatives Mr McLean the Native Minister made his first appearance and laid upon the table a batch of papers referring to Native population. Some Bdls were introduced and on a resolution from the Committee of Supply being reported to the House, Mr Thompson winplained that salaries over £500 were beinoincreased. Mr Yogel explained that the increases referred to certain special gratuities. Mr Yogel then moved the sucmd reading of the New Zealand University Bill, stating its main feature to be that the Naw Zealand University would no longer be a teaching, but simply an examining institution. The University would consist of the Senate and Convocation, the Senate to consist of 24 members. The reserve for the Otago University would pass into the actual possession of thit body and the other reserves for University purposes would be unreserved. These reserves which are no longer to be set apart for University purposes include large blocks of land in the Auckland and Taranaki Provinces.. The Bill was read a secoud time. The House then went into Committee ot Supply on the Estimates, the whole of the . remainder of which wero hurried through with unexampled speed, the work of voting the money being finished by 9 o'clock. In discussing the vote for the Telegraph Department, Mr Luckie enquired whether it was the case that Mr Lemon, the General Manager, had invented and put in practice a system ot duplex telegraphing by which two currents of electricity could be sent in opposite directions along a single wire at the same time. This elicited from Mr Yogel that Mr Lemon had established such a system of duplex telegraphing which was of the greatest value to the Colony inasmuch as it doubled the working power of the Cook's Straits cable. Other hon. members spoke, and the praises of Mr Lemon were rung all through the House. Mr Lemon is to have an increase of salary, and '. some sort of bonus for his invention besides. There was a pretty brisk discussion on the item £100 for establishing a Naval Training School in the Auckland Province. ' It appeared (hat the arrangement proposed was to hire the mission buildings at Kohimarama and the mission schooner ' Southern Cross' for the sum of £100 a year, and establish a kind of training school, where boys might be taught seamanship A great variety of opinions was elicited from honor : able members on this matter. Mr Macaudrew moved as an amendment '" that the item be withdrawn." Mr Luckie wknted to know if the Government did not contemplate purchasing an English man-of-war of a somewhat ancient date to use as. a training ship, which caused Mr Reynolds to explain that the Government did not mean to purchase such a vessel at all,, but fco apply to the Imperial authorities for one. Iv the meantime they proposed to mak6 a beginning in a small way by «eting a number of boys together, giving them some nautical training in the little schooner, and teaching them navigation in the mission house building. After some further discussion the item — which had rather a suspicious complexion of being a job — was agreed to. With reference to the item " Volunteers in the South Island " there w&s a good deal of adverse criticism, several members asserting that the Volunteer Force was inefficient and useless, and that therefore the vote should not be passed. The Defence Minister, Mr McLean, came to . the rescue, and admitted the deficiencies of the volunteers, but stud that, if the vote were passed he would have the force immediately placed under such strict r: regulations as would soon bring it into a proper state. The vote was then agreed to. The remainder of the business consisted of a discussion on the second reading of the Qualification of Electors Bill. Mr Andrew moved as an amendment " that the Bill be read that day six months," while Mr Reader Wood gave notice of his intention to move in Committee a Beries of amendments which would of themselves almost constitute a new Bill. He contemplated having the electoral laws consolidated, the franchise extended to all male persons who had been six months in the Colony ; spacial electoral provision being made for the Natives, and provisions introduced that members of the House accepting office in the Executive should go to their constituents for re-elec-tion, and that Parliaments should be triennial. Ultimately, at midnight, Mr Stafford moved tbe adjournment, of the debate till Friday evening, which was carried, and the House adjourned. 1 think it is a pity that when the City Solicitor was drafting the bill providing for the election of Mayor of the City of Wellington, he did not make it applicable to Wanganui as well. However, there is nothing easier than for the Wanganui Corporation to frame a bill of their own on the model of the Wellington one, and- get your member to introduce it. The Wellington Bill is a very simple affair of 7 clauses, the chief of which provides that when the present Mayor's term of office shall expire his successor shall be elected by the ratepayers. The elections are to be openly. The last clause provides that save in the matter of electing a Mayor, all the provisions of the Act relating to Municipal Corporations in New Zealand are still to remain in force with respect to Wellington. The Ward-Chapman committee is still sitting, and the members thereof are up to their eyes in an accumulation of jevidence and records. Judge Ward wdl reach Wellington this week and be examined before the Committee, while it is understood that Judge Chapman will also attend. It is reported that the Committee have £,ot upon the track of the delinquent who divulged the telegrams to the ' Otago Daily Times.' It is understood that he is one of the officials in the Southern office. The enquiry promises to be a lengthy oue. An extension of 14 days has been given to, the Committee to bring up its report. Some time ago Mr Yogel arranged with the Provincial Government to get a number of immigrants cottages built out on a site close to the Adelaide road. Mr Yogel in his letter on the subject expressed an opinion that good 4 roomed cottages of the required kind could be built for £100 each. Mr Bairn", the Provincial Engineer, drew up plans aud specifications for ]2 such ' cottages^ but of a very complete kind, including verandahs > and some little ornamental additions. Tenders were duly called for and received, the result being

(hat the lowest tender was £270 for each cottage. Common sense might have taught Mr Yogel. that goo'l 4 roomed cottagf s could not be built in Wellington City f- r £100 each. A sort of 2 roomed unlim d cottage with " a lean-to " at the back mig! t be got for £100. I don't t ank the cottagi-s will be built at. all. After all their somewhat boastful talk it seems likely that "t c leading Wellington merchants," including the famous " nine best business men," are going to let the fleet of the New Zealand Steam Shipping Company be broken up and scattered over this Colony and Australia, without making any efforts to form a new company with Wellington as its head quarters. The sale of the steamers is announced for Friday and should there be no satisfactory offer it is understood that the Phoebe and Lady Bird will be sent to Sydney, and the Taranaki and Wellington to some other port for sale. Even yet something may be done to form a new company. Passing for a moment from political to social and domestic matters, it may be said that " the beer and beef questions" aro exciting a considerable amount of interest here. The beer question is connected with Mr Voxel's new Licensing Bill, inasmuch as two public meetings were held on Monday of the supporters- of that measure, at the first of which a committee was appointed to prepare a petition to the Assembly in its favor. At the second meeting held s»t night in the Odd Fellows' Hall, there was only a limited attendance, a fact mainly to be accounted for by- the torrents of rain which poured down without intermission. However the draft petition was read and approved bf by the meeting, and nearly everyone present signed it. The petition points out the hardships and inconveniences created by Mr Fox's Bill of last session — alike to the trade and the public — expresses cordial approvalof the changes contemplated by Mr Vogel's measure, and impresses strong ly upon the |House the advisability of its becoming law in its present shape and without any material alterations. On tho question of Sunday trading— with which Mr Vogel's Bill does not deal — the petition expresses a desire that the Legislature should establish a uniform law and practice for the whole Colony, by either allowing public houses to be open for a specified period on Sunday, or forbidding all such trade whatsoever under heavy penalties. The petition sets forth that the adoption of the former course would meet the requirements of, the community. |It does not appear to me that this movement has as yet been either very earnestly or generally taken up. People, growl terribly at the injustice 'of the public houses being closed on Sundays while the clubs .are open, and well to do citizens can have recourse to their abundantly stocked private cellars, but they don't. as a general' rule take any practical -action to have their grievance redressed. These meetings represented the publicans rather than fche public, although a tolerable number of the latter were present. Still I think the agitation will gather strength, and a largely signed petition be presented to the Assembly in favor of Mr Vogel's Bill, and of a limited amount of Sunday public house traffic. I cannot help thinking it strange that svhile all hotel bars are closed on Sundays, yet if I should happen *-o make a friendly call upon an M.H.R. at the library on that day, the hospitable portals of Bellamy's are not closed against us, nor is refreshment denied. Yet tradesmen and workirtg people who can only dine with their families on one day in the week, are preveuted from obtaining, a pint of beer. I am doubtful if Mr Yogel willadd the required Sunday opening clause to his bill, because he will probably consider that the Provincial Legislatures had better deal with the question. "The beef question'" resolves itself into the fact that the meat trade is almost monopolised by two big butchering firms, who buy all the cattle, supply the small shops, and rule the retail market prices. These firms having, recently raised, the price of meat a new " Cattle Buying and Meat Dealing Company ". is being' formed on tho Limited Liability system, to break up the monopoly and then enable the public toobtain butchers meat at moderate prices. I hope the project may succeed as tho butchers have certainly been making exorbitantly high- profits for a long time past. News reached here some, time ago tha" the Oroua difficulty had been satisfactorily settled, and that the road would be open for coach traffic from, last Saturday, the 25th inst. I xloubt, however, whether things are quite so far advanced. Somo four chiefs are expected down here by the coach to-night to have an interview with the Native Minister relative fco the matter in dispute. Ido not dou bt that after some further diplomacy the difficulty will be arranged and the road permanently re-opened. 1 saw Mr McDonald this morning working amongst the hard labour gang. It is much .to be deplored thst a man like him — a gentleman by birth and education — should be subjected ; to all the degradation of being associated day and night with criminals of the worst type, There should be some general classification of prisoners, and failing that something might have been done to ensure that McDonald's sentence would be carried out in some less public way. Since his imprisonment, Mr y McDonald has written to the Ngatiraukawa Natives counselling tbem to abstain . from violence and trust to the law for the redress of their (alleged) grievances.

An Eccentric Character. — A curious case of eccentricity is reported by the Herefordshire papers in recording the death of Mr Johnson of Colwall, who has, it is stated spent his whole fortune, estimated at £100,000, in attempting to dig up the Malvern Hills. He persevered, it is said, year after year, towards the accomplishment of his project, and made a considerable hole in the Herefordshire Beacon. The work involved him in a lawsuit with the Highway Commissioners, iut he still, proceeded, and the result of hi 3 labours is to be seen in the vicinity, of his house. Waikato Railway. — Works on the Waikato railway are being proceeded with aa expeditiously as possible between Rangiriri and Ngaruawahia! Somewhat under 200 men, under Major Cooper's supervisioh, are being actively|engaged in forming the permanent way for the rails to be laid, in making embankments, cuttings, and in filling up swamps, which are very plentiful in that part of the oountry. The work, (says the 'Southern Cross,') is being done thoroughly, and when finished r«ikot credit on the-nawy abilities of those engaged on it. Between eight and nine miles are now finished. . A good deal of bush opposite to Ngaruawahia. has also been cleared away, to permit of-tUe, passage of the line..