WANGANUI.

Wellington Independent, Volume XVII, Issue 1804, 16 December 1862, Page 3

WANGANUI.

The following extracts are from the Chronicle of the llth :— The Natives.-- We understand that a party of Waikatos, including perhaps the King, is expected in this neighborhood about the end of this month. Their object is to advise their countrymen as to their behavior among themselves and towards the Governmeut Maories aud Whites. ' A rather serious disturbance took place on Monday the Ist inst., at Jerusalem, a pa about 60 miles up the river, at the extremity of the Wanganui Native Resident Magistrate's Dis trict. On that day a parly of King's policemen came to Jerusalem, and laid hold of a Government Maori whom they accused of criin. con. with a King Maori's wife. His sister was helping to to resist her brother's Ciipture, and was pitched against a fence, coming against it with such violence as to have one of her ribs broken and to be otherwise seriously injured, so as now to He in a dangerous state. A boy was also thrown some distance and considerably hurt. The natives in the pa were about to join in the fray, but the chief raau forbad them, saying " Let the wrong not be on our part, but on theirs." The man was taken away and brought before the King's Runanga, by which he was fined £2 10s. which some of his King relatives paid for him. This will be a case for Mr. White to take up when he returns from Auckland. The Government natives say that if anything of the kind occur again, the attempt will be forcibly resisted. The great difficulty iv carrying out the Governor's institutions is in dealing with such acts of violence. The Government Natives must be protected ; and hovr can tliey be so without endangering a general collision ? The Wanganui Steamer. — This steamer will be ready for departure from Dundee, where she is being built, in March next, and as Capt. Linklates proceeds iv the Asterype to bring her out, she may be expected here at the earliest date anticipated since no delay will be caused by her not being ready as soon as Capt. Linklater goes on board, The next trip to Wellington will be the last Mr. Linklater will make as master of the Tyne, and we understand it is intended by a few of his friends to give him a farewell dinner to-morrow evoning. Oub Flocks. — We understand that there are now 59,087 sboep in ibis district distributed as follows: — in Manawatu 4,063, in R&agitikei

13,544, in Turakina 7,670. between the Wan- > ! guehu and the Wanganui 13,286, and on tbe lj right side of the Wanganui 20,524, The wool v may amount to 820 bales, the value of which a here should be about £15,000. t Mr John Jordan of Rangitikei has addressed C a letter to the Chronicle stating that a serious , disease has appeared amongst tbe sbeep in I Rangitikei. It appears that last week no less than 15 per cent oi the flocks were affected. It i is believed that the disease was introduced by c some sheep brought from the Ahuriri about six j months ago, and it was then supposed to have < been caused by fatigue. The disease is so serious as to call for immediate measures being taken by the Government to prevent its spread, j The following paragraph from the letter in question describes the symptoms — " The disease appears to commence with inflamation of the eyelid, and a thin watery running caused thereby. The eye itself appears + then to become gradually opaque from the j edges towards the centre, generally coiumencing from the upper edge. This opaqueness < spreads over the whole eye, and is of a milky \ color with a slight blue tint. As soon as the ( whole eye has become dimmed, the most acute < incarnation sets in, the eye swells considerably, i and finally bursts from corner to corner, dis- ' charging a large quantity of thick milk-colored matter. The sheep, of coarse, totally losing * the use of the eye. _ i . i