SYDNEY.

Wellington Independent, Volume XVII, Issue 1735, 27 June 1862, Page 3

SYDNEY.

(from the daily times correspondent.) Oar local Parliament was formally opened on the 27th ult, by His Excellency SirJolm Young and honorable members are now up to the neck in tlie business of the country, as it is commonly termed. The only great measure that has as yet engrossed attention is the vexed question with regard to the church and school lands. These lands, which embrace about 400,000 acres in all, wove granted' in 1826 to a Corporation for the promotion of religion and education, ac« cording to the tenets of the Church of England. In 1833, ov thereabouts, the Corporation was dissolved, and the great dispute now is — Did thai act of dissolution abrogate the trust? Itis contended by a large majority of the Assembly that it did, and llsat on the passing of the new Constitution Act, these lands became public or waste lands, subject to the control of the Legislature. On the other hand, the Premier (Cowper) and a majority of the Council hold that the lands reverted to the Crov\n for the purpose of the original trust, and that the proceedsabereof must be devoted to the promotion of religion and education generally. We have had all sorts ofpinions from law officers and judges, both here and in England, on the point, but they differ widely, ami only tend further to complicate the dispute. To settle the matter so faros he was concerned, the former took occasion to send home a statement of the case, with a request to be instructed bow he was to proceed, as the representative of Her Majesty. In reply to this despatch, the English law officers have sent an opinion to the effect that the trust continues but that the Legislature bas power to deal with the lands, devoting- the proceeds to the objects of religion and education. With this opinion the Duke of Newcastle transmitted a "separate" despatch, which the Government decline to produce, and tbe Assembly now iusist that the opinion was obtained on a false representation of the case, and that the Duke's despatch supports their side of the question. And they piove this by referring to tbe liberal and independent course* pursued by bis Grace in tbe case of the Canada clergy reserves. However, the Government have Fecured the second reading of a Bill to authorise tbe sale of the lands, and il\e applying of the proceeds to "religion and education,' 1 as against the measure brought in by Dr. Wilson for declaring them waste lands, in the ordinary meaning of the term. I should slate that most of those who voted fov the Ministerial measure did so on tbe distinct condition, that the words "religion and" should be struck from the Bill— theieby giving the funds in aid of education — the appropriation of course to be made on some general system to be hereafter sanctioned by Parliament. The only Bill of importance at present introduced, is one providing for tbe abolition of state aid on tbe death or retirement of the present incumbents. Ie is broadly hinted, however, that the Government .merely introduce this as a bliud, and that they do not intend that it should pass. It certainly will not lie assented to by the Upper House. You will remember that some twelve months ao-o, Messrs. Parkes and Dally were each sent on a mission to the mother country as emigration lecturers, receiving each £1000 per annum, with 'an allowance of £1500 for expenses. The two gentlemen named were well qualified for the work, having extensive acquaintance with the position of the colony, and its advantages as a field for British immigration. Their exertions, however, have not had tbe effect of increasing the population of the colony by a single soul, probably from the fact ihat those who would immigrate have not the means of doing so, while Canada with its ''free grants" and short passage completely shuts us up in the estimation of those who are making a shift to better their fortune. Satisfied, then, that the experiment has proved a comparative failure, the Government have decided to veeall the lectxrers by Ibis month's mail, and a resolution giving them the necessary authority was submitted on Tuesday last to the Assembly, and passed after a long discussiou. I may add, while on the subject, that the Victorian Parliament have just negatived a like proposal for sending home four lectureis. Turning to matters local, some excitement has been occasioned in Sydney by the publication of a communication signed " Thomas C. Bently."

The gaoler at Paramatta (Mr. Allen) has been suspended by the Sheriff, under somewhat singular circumstances. It appears that a person was confined in the gaol, in whose behalf a writ of" habeas coif us" was issued from the Supreme Court On presenting the writ at the prison, Mr. Allen refused to liberate the prisoner unless he was paid the sum of three guineas, demanded as fees, on what authority no one knows. The messenger accordingly returned to town, and received a letter ordering the immediate production of the prisoner. The gaoler again refused, and it was only on paying the £3 Is. 9d. (all the mouey lie had in his possession at the time), that the officer of the Court was enabled to bring away the person for whom he was sent. Since the suspension of Mr. Alkn, a charge of obtaining the money wrongfully has been instituted at the Police Court, but resulted in an acquittal — the Magistrate not conceiving that the facts supported such an accusation. It remains to be seen whether there is not some ' Old Act or regulation under which thfs payment was demanded, for we cannot suppose the gaoler would willingly have made a charge which be was not entitled of right. The body of a man, known as a hawker, in the country districts, was found lately in the bush near Liverpool, under circumstances that leave no doubt of his having been murdered. He was in the habit of travelling about with jewellery and nick-nacks, and was very rarely without money on his person. Since the coroner's iuquesf, a foreigner, who was missed about the time when the body was found, has been apprehended, and is now in custody awaiting the productien of evidence. The great expectations formed of the new Goidfield on the Lachlau have not been realized. Recent experience has proved that the field is limited in extent, and that it is only on the Caledonian Lead, and in the ground fiist opened that the deposit exists in any amount. The sinking, moreover, is very deep, ranging from 100 to 800 feet, and of course to undertake a claim of this sort a large amount of capital is required. I do not mean to say that surface deposits do not exist in the neighbourhood. On the contrary some few patches have been found, but they soon run out, and the Lachlan, so far as is yet known of it, does not come under the denomination of a " poor man's" diggings. People who may contemplate rushing thither, should ponder well on this fact, and recollect that though 10,000 or 12,000 ounces a week may seem a large yield, still it bears no proportion to the number of persons at work. The Board on the Sydney General Post Office have just issued their roport. It contains several recommendations for promoting the efficiency of the department, aud goes tv show that the mismanagement and failure hitherto has been the result in the first place of a want of proper accommodation, and in the next of an absence of unity and good feeling amongst the clerks and employes in. the different branches of the establishment. A meloncholy case of suicide has just occurred, the victim being a person named Wigg, late chief officer of the barque Caroline Coventry. It seems that amongst the passengers from England, there was a lady on board for whom deceased entertained a violent attachment, though it is alledged he received no encouragement from her. Hearing that she was about to be married to a gentleman in the colony, Wigg fell into a state of great despondency, became unable to discharge his duty, and eveutually took a draught of laudanum, from the result of which he expired on board the vessel on Wednesday last. The coroner's jury found a verdict of temporary iusauity. Business generally has received a slight impetus of late, and we hear less complaints of the hardness of the times and the slackness of trade. Tbe tobacco market has undergone quite a revolution—the " fragrant weed" having increased to about 100 per cent, in value. The war in America is the immediate cause of this sudden change, from which it is known that two Sydney houses. (Watkins andLsighand It. Towns and Co.) will nett an immense sum. The weather holds up well, .and as yet we are without those pluvial visitations that are customary at this particular season of the year. Next month, however, we may " look out foi squalls," according to the meteorologists.