LOCAL AND GENERAL NEWS.

Wellington Independent, Volume XXVI, Issue XXVI, 31 July 1871, Page 2

LOCAL AND GENERAL NEWS.

The Luna.— -His Excellency the Governor ia expected to leave Auckland to-morrow in tbe Luna. On her arrival afc the heads the Union Jack will bo hoisted at the customhouse, as an intimation that his Excellency is on board. City Council Election.— On Satnrday afternoon a number of gentlemen, electors of Lambton Ward, waited upon W. M. Bannatyne, Esq., to request that gentleman to allow himself to be nominated for the vacant seat in the City Counoil. No doubt when Mr Bannatyne considers in what estimation he is held by his fellow-citizens as ehown by the result of the polling at the last election, when he waa only beaten by the casting vote, he will consent to stand, so that the burgesses may have a choice of candidates, Our municipal body has very heavy work on hand just now, and good councillors will be required to steer the city through a contraot that may or may not be a bargain, according to the manner in which it is carried on by our civic body. Mr Bannatyne gives his answer today. We hope it will be in tbe affirmative. R.M. Court.— One trivial drunk case was heard in the R.M. Court on Saturday morning. The Wangaehtt Fire. — Inspector Atcheson left town on Saturday afternoon in the steamer Wanganui, for the purpose of conducting matters connected with the prosecution of M'Donald, the landlord of the Wangaehu Hotel, who 6tands charged with arson and murder. A witness from whom important evidence is expected also left with the inspector. Never Despair G-oldmining Company.— The contractor for the works of the above company came into town on Saturday last, and gave Mr Wright, the manager, the pleasing intelligence that they had struck gold in the drive, 580 feet from the mouth of it. Mr Cooper brought in a prospect from the drive, simply panned off, without crushing, which looks most promising. He also brought in several pieces of stone, in one of which the gold can be distinctly seen. The prospect still improving as the drive is boing proceeded with ; rock dipping cast. The Bell/. — The mould was not sufficiently cool to bo broken out on Saturday afternoon, so that the complete success of the casting cannot yet be verified, although there is no doubt entertained but that it is perfect, but the opening o£ the mould to-day will set at rest all anxieties. The site for the erection of the bell-tower has not yet been decided upon, and although one or two persons have offered sites free of cost, we hope a little expense in such a matter will not be allowed to interfere with the selection of the best position, which, independent of all other considerations, should bo selected in as central a position a3 possible. This nutter rests with the joint committee of the fire brigades, who, we aro informed, do not quite see their way clear to liquidating the entire expenses connected with the casting and erection of the bell, so that a call on the public will likely be made for tho purpose of wiping off any balance the brigades do not feol themselves equal to. Bird. — Tho champion long-distance runner has commenced training, and will run every afternoon on the Canal Basin Eeserve, weather permitting. Bariow's Troupe. — One of the best tests of the ability or stability of a company ia to be found in the conduct of its performances iv the face of the dispiriting effects of empty benches, and judged by this ordcnl alone tho gentlemen who compose the troupe now playing at the Odd Fellows' Hall have established themselves as being mado of genuine material, for in spite of the poor house, caused of courso through the miserable weather of Saturday evening, the programme was gone through with even more care and exactitude than on the first occasion. Those who have been present at many professional performances at the Odd Fellows' Hall must remember the sneering remarks they have had to submit to from the stage on account of thin houses, as if the courageous few who plodded through the rain to pay away their money were responsible for the conduct of those who choose to prefer fireside comforts, bnt no feeling of this kind was visible on Saturday night, and those who were present were treated with tho same consideration as if tho house had been a crowded one j the lack of numbers was compensated for by the amount of applause, which seemed to create a sympathy between the auditory and the performers, the result being that the entertainment was as agreeable a one as the company is likely to give during its stay in Wellington. With moat professional companies there is a flash and glitter at the opening performances which generally subsides into nothingness, or next to it. There is also a flash and glitter about this company, but, contrary to the usual order of things, we seem only to be coming to it. The first performance seemed not to go vary well, and we said so ; but the second has completely removed our mental reservations as to the merits of the company, individually or collectively. There was nothing new in Saturday night's bill — nothing added to catch the tastes of doubting ones ; talent has carried the day. Mr Bromley's songs, characteristic of persons in all diversities of rank, combine the attractions of good singing, wonderful versatility, and a marvellous rapidity of change, which, added to a graceful mannerism when not in " character," will undoubtedly secure to him the favorable opinion of all theatre-goers in Wellington. Mr Barlow took better on Saturday night that on the previous evening. " Tho Prickly Heat" met with vociferous applause, and the " Blue Tailed Fly" waß never done better before, even by Barlow. Of Feuillard's playing on the violin, we can add nothing to our remarks of Saturday, except to say that Mr Feuillard does not play enough. Hia bagpipe imitations on Saturday took the house by storm, and had to be repeated. For hints in harmonics, and the effects of mute power, our amateurs may obtain many valuable lessons from Mr Feuillard's playing. Holly and Buckley's " Blooming Morning Q-lories," and the " Troublesome Servants" kept the house in roara, such inexpressibly funny things not having been seen for a long time. Another feature of the entertainment hitherto unnoticed is the pianoforte playing of a diminutive youth, which is well worth hearing. During the evening Mr Barlow distributed some prizes in the shapo of toy ware, a great deal of fun being created in the back seats in the scramble for possession of the trinkets thrown in amongst the occupants. The performance for this evening will be entirely new, and will be under the patronage of Captain Moraley and the ofQcerß of the Basilisk. For particulars see advertisement. Tenders. — An advertisement elsewhere calls for the supply, and delivery at the Hutt within a week, of a quantity of timber, boulders, and fascines. Engineer Wanted.— The County Council of Weßtland are advertising for an engineer, at a salary of £350 per annum. Considering the scarcity of engineering talent, and the multitudinous duties to be performed on the West Coaßt, the probability ia that some little difficulty will be experienced in obtaining the services of a gentleman competent for the duties, particularly at tke rate of remuneration offered..

The Weather. — From all directions we have news of the unusual severity of the weather and its destructive effects on property ; but fortunately for ourselves we have enjoyed a thankful immunity from danger or destruction of any kind, if we may except the lamentable death of Captain Taylor, which can hardly be said to come within the range of the weather experiences of Wellington. From distant and from neighboring provinces we hear of destruction to valuable property, both publio and private, the floods in Borne cases having assumed such proportions as to endanger life. Indeed, Wellington seems to have been the centre of a system, outside which the furies have raged with relentless and incessant rigor. But although we have so far escaped the wrath of Boreas, we have within the last day or two had some heavy and steady rain. Our rivers have been flooded, as they usually are at this time of year, but fortunately, bo far as we have heard, there has been no great amount of damage, though the inconvenience entailed on our inland settlers must be very aggravating to those who are compelled to travel from the upcountry districts to town. An instance of this difficulty was given on Saturday morning last. On the arrival of the coach at the Upper Hutt the river was found to be very much swollen ; but, as the driver had no passengers, he determined to risk crossing, although warned by the flag at the crossing- place that it would be dangerous to do so. However, the love of hazardous adventure, for which so many foolhardy but worthy men have sacrificed their lives, was so strong that the driver persisted in the attempt, and the coach, getting snagged or chocked by a boulder, stuck fast in the middle of the river. Of course the whip, the only remedy in such cases, was applied with vigor, so much so that the horses pulled the fore-carriage clean away from the after part, leaving the driver still on the box in the middle of the river, but the opportune presence of a cart at the crossing enabled those who saw the accident to rescue him. The little excitement was nothing more than amusing, since there were no serious consequences attached to it, but there have been so many of these "incidents" at the same place that we fear if people persist in disregarding the warnings of the person stationed at the bridge we may have to chronicle something worse. On Saturday morning a heavy rain set in, which has continued without the smallest intermission up to the time of our going to press. The performance of out of door duties was rendered a very unpleasant task during Saturday afternoon and evening, and yesterday the streets were loft in the undisputed possession of the policeman on the beat, and a few other persons whose wanderings seemed to have no definite object or direction. The PoLLiNa for the Provincial Council candidates will take place to-day between the hours of nine and lour. Two booths will be provided, one at tho Court House, and tho other at Betlmno and Huntor's store. The Athen^u.u. — Those of our citizens whodesireto become membersof the Athenasum can now tuko out their tickets of membership for tho ensuing yeai 1 , tho Ist of July being the commencement of their year. Tho subscription — £1 Is for tho year, and 10s 6d for the half-year— must in all cases be made in advance. The Pout Chamiers Railway. — Tho " Otago Daily Times" says tho fencing along the line is being proceeded with as the earthwork and pitching are finished. Notwithstanding the violenco of squalls and the newness of tho ground, the pitching — throe-fourths of , which has been iaid — has stood remarkably well, much better in fact than anticipated, although a considerable subsidence might-, | under, the circumstances, have been expected. I Tho works are being pushed on as rapidly as possible,' from 300 to 400 men — including those in charge of tho horses — being now on an average employed between tho promoters and contractors. Night-shifts, excepting in the deep cuttings and tunnels, have been discontinued for the present, bat the work goes on without interruption and as quickly as possible, abundance of good labour and good weather favoring rapid progress. We are informed that the practice of the contractors hns been to give effect to the recommendations of his Honor the Superintendent and othor Rontlomen who desive to find employment for laboring men. About three weoks ago nearly thirty men, of a class not to be confounded with real working men, professed a great anxiety to get work. To their discomfort they were taken at their word and sent, down the line. Of these only five accepted work, and of the five only two remained two or three daya. Not one remained at work beyond a week. An Accident. — The " Grey River Argus" gives the following account of an accident in that district :— An accident occurred on Thursday, at the Little Grey Junction, by which Mr John Eeid, at the Ahaura Saw-mill, lost a valuable horse and other property. Mr Reid's driver was taking a dray, drawn by two horses and loaded with chaff, across the Grey River, at the ford above the junction, when, in the deepest part of the stream, the dray and horses were carried away and taken some distance down the river, which was ruuoh swollen at the time, owing to the heavy rain tho previous night. A horseman on the bank, seeing the perilous position of the driver, went to his assistance, and succeeeod, after some difficulty, in taking him off the dray and bringing him ashore behind him on his horse. By this time tho ferry-boat reached the struggling horses. Those in the boat managed, by cutting away the shafts of the dray, to free the horses ; but it was found that the leader had been drowned. The chaff was all lost, and the dray is rendered useless. This is one of the accidents which are continually taking place through the bravado and foolhardiuess of people rushing into creeks whenever they happen to lie in their track, without enquiring as to whether tho fords are passable or safe. Such conduct is the result of stupid ignorance, and not pluck or courage, as the parties who are guilty of it try to make out. The driver in this instance had a nurrow escape, and it is to be hoped it will be a warning to him to be more cautious for the future. A Japanese Newspaper.— Tho " Mai-nichi Shiu bun" is the title of a native Japanese newspaper recently started. The contents of tho first number are of a very varied com plexion. There are advertisements in plenty, notices of ships sailing, a list of the mercantile marine in port, the men of-wav, and a price current of all staple articles. The printing and got up of the paper would drive an EugHsh master printer to distraotion, but as tho Japanese have not had much experience in these matters, ita advent must be hailed as a step in the fight direction. The West Coast.— The "West Coast Times" has tho following additional romarks on the weather: — There has not been the slightest abatement in the severity of the weather during tho last twenty- four hours. It has blown, rained, snowed, and thundered in succession or simultaneously all day and all night, and there is yet nothing like the appearance of a change for tho bettor. Communication is cut off in different directions by floods, tho currying away of bridges or beach tracks, and the stoppage of coaches, and there is no saying when we may see tho coach from Ohristchurch, as the weather among the ranges must be something fearful. Greymouth it will be seen has suffered somewhat from floods, and thore is no doubt that from other quarters we shall yet have accounts of " moving accidents" both by flood and field. A Wauning to Doctors. — Dr Bealo has been committed for trial at Braidwood, Now South Wales, on a charge of manslaughter, one of his patients having died through his leg being improperly sot. A Jump in Hops. — The publicans aud brewers of Adelaide have combined to raise the price of colonial beer on account of the price of hops, The Scott Centenary.— lt is proposed to celebrate the Scott Centennry in Melbourne with a fancy dress ball, the costumes to be reBtrioted to those of characters in the great novelist's works.

Thh Fijian Nation. — The Hawaiian Govearaent intends recognising the new Fijian Government. Value op Bread in Western Australia. — In Western Australia a man has been sentenced to three years' penal servitude for stealing a pieoe of bread ! Conscientious Scruples. — A rather ingenious device was resorted to for settling conscientious scruples, by tha Adelaide coroner, recently at an inquest ona man named Patrick M'lnerney, who died from an acoident on the road. Having sworn the wife, of the unfortunate man, who was a Roman Catholic, upon a Protestant Bible, he asked her if Bhe considered the oath binding upon her conscience. She replying in the negative, Mr Hare obtained a piece of tape, wbioh he tied round the Bible in the form of a oross. He then administered the oath, and directed her to kias the book, remarking that that would have to be binding. Darwin's Descent. — A German translation of Mr Darwin's " Descent of Man," haß just been published at Stuttgart, A Smell of Down Below.— ln Canterbury a small meteor was observed to fall in a paddock between Papanui and the Styx, on the North road. It was of a brilliant bluish color, and descended at an angle across the road. The persons who saw it, on arriving at the part of the road it had crossed, noticed the Btrong sulphurous fumes it left in its wake. Dante's Works. — Miss Maria Rossefcti has an elaborate commentary on the " Divina Coinmedia" ready for the press, thus perpetuating the Dante tradition of the family. A New Novelist. — It will surprise many who only know Mr Maguire, the Irish M.P., as a very matter-of-fact writer and a sturdy Ultramontanidt, to hear of his being about to appear among the novelists. In his forthcoming work, " The Next Generation," he will show the results he anticipates from " progress" in this. Atlantic Cables. — One of the old Atlantic cableßhas finally been fidhed up, and is being re paired at Heart's Content. A Noble Girl.— Tho " New York Herald" Boys a young girl, Maggie '.Gregory, daughter of Mr Walter Gregory, of Long Island City, was drownod in Dutch Kills creek, under peculiar circumstances. Maggie was a good swimmer, and, together with a young girl who could not swim, was bathing in the creek. The younger girl, in watching Maggie swim, ventured beyond hex* depth, and, becoming frightened, called for help. In trying to help her companion Maggie became exhausted. A younger brother, hearing the cries of tho girls, hurried to a boat and managed to rescue the younger girl with the aid of his sister 5 but that aid seemed to take her remaining strength, for she sank to rise no more alive. Her father was soon at the scene ; but when the body was recovered life waa extinct. Coroner Tewkesbury held an inquest, and rendered a verdict in accordance with tho facts. A Valuable Library. — The very valuable library of Baron Seymour Kirkup, of Florence, has been consigned to London for sale by auction during the present season. Tho collection is particularly rich in Dante literature, and comprises several MS3. of the " Divina Comcnedia" of great importance. It includes also several very important MSS. of French Romances of Chivalry, aud an extraordinary assemblage of rare books of all kinds. Garibaldi. — Colonel Bordone, late Chief of the Staff to General Garibaldi, is engaged on a work entitled " Diary of a Staff Officer," in which he will expose the behaviour of the ¥ronoh Ministry to the General. Cruickshanks 1 Works. — Messrs Sotheby nnd Wilkinson, London, sold by auction a few weeks since a collection of the works of Mr George Cruickshank. The collection comprised hia early and rare productions, caricatures, and broadsides, forming a satirical history of the early part of the present century. Amongst the subjects treated upon and tho persons satirized, are Pitt, Sheridan, Jonner's discovery and the prejudice excited against it, the Regency and tho Regent, the First Napoleon, &o. A Sufficient Cause.— A 1-i-yoar-old girl was a witness in a recent Indiana divorce suit and a portion of her evidence was as follows : Father got mad because mother starched his Btockous. Mother picked up the stockons and hit father on the head with them, and it sounded as though they were sticks of wood. Father then stuffed a hob wheat cake down mother's throat ; aud then mother set the dog on father, ant? twisted the clog's tail to n,ake him bite harder. A British Weakness. — The following is from the "Pall Mall Gazette" :— lt is stated that on Good Friday the police found it nejessary to direct the removal of a ' grand stand' erected at Chislehurst to enable excursionists at a small charge to witness the Emperor Louis Napoleon proceeding to church. With every respect for excursionists, whose refinementofraannorsisbeyonddispute.wemust aay that this is going a little too far. Fallen freatness is not a thing to be inspected by ourishing smallness from the top of a van improvised into a grand stand, and greeted with the popping of gingerbeer bottles. It would have served theso people perfectly right if they had all been captured, placed in a large cage, and themselves inspected by the ex -Emperor as specimens of British excursionists. To have his footsteps dogged and all his movements watched by a parcel of inquisitive persons who will not even let him perform hia devotions in peace must be extremely painful fco one who above all others yearns for rest. His bitterest enemies will, at all events, admit that in the treatment he receives from hia admirers his "punishment exceeds his offence." "His Majesty wishes for seclusion," remarked a gentleman tho other day to an excursionist at Chislehurst, whoso gaudy neckcloth formed a pleasing contrast to his unwashed face. " Seclusion be 1" rejoined the excursionist; 'Hooray! viva Lumperer !' While this good feeling lasts remonstrance is of course useless, but it is evidently no joke for greatness to fall into the hands of a 'largehearted and generous people' like the British. The Citt of New York. — The Mayor ( Hall) on 12th June last, made a long speech at the City Council frem which wo loam that. The streets, roads aud avenues measure 460 miles. Two hundred and ninety-one miles of these are paved j169 miles are unpaved. Ninetoon thousand gaslights are burned every night at the public expense to light this area, water front and extent of streets. Beneatk tho surface of the city there are 3-10 miles of Croton water pipes and 275 miles of Bowers. If we accept the last federal census the number of our constituents is 912.252. One thousand horse railway cars, 267 omnibuses, about twelve thousand licensed vehicles and nearly quite as many moro private vehicles continually traverse the thoroughfares and subject them to increasing wear. It is claimed that 40,000 horses are constantly stabled or used within tho city limits. Nearly sixty per cent of tho daily business inhabitants of New York own or rent their residences in tho adjoining country, and while their wives and children are practically under the government of other cities and counties and even States, the business interests and soourity of persons and property of the family men aro practically under the government of Now York city, and they are more disposed to blame where they have no domestic interests. By an aocurato calcuj lation it is demonstrated that the Sinking Fund, with its accumulations from interest and its rovonuo from other sources, will furnish means to pay the entire funded debt of the city of New York outstanding December 31, 1870, as it matures, without recourse to a dollar from taxation for that purpose. The capital of the sinking fund at that date was $18,000,000. This sum compounded at six per cent interest per annum, with an allowance of $500,000 per annum to bo derived from the revenues by law pledged to this fund, and I retiring tho stocks and bonds as they become due, will pay the entire debt of $47,638,300, • and leave a surplus of $27,235,939, on the Ist day of August, 1911, which is the remotest date al which any of the debt is made payable. The real estate of tho city, valued at more

than $200,000,000 is also" pledged for the redemption of the oifcy debt. The Mayor expresses the belief that " the great body of the people ia willing to incur a much larger debt in order to improve the water front, rep&ye streets, finish boulevards, supply defects in sewage and drainage, and by widening, cutting and extending streets to adapt our thoroughfares to the future demands of the great American metropolis. — " New York Herald." June 13.