LOCAL AND GENERAL NEWS.

Wellington Independent, Volume XXVI, Issue 3377, 21 December 1871, Page 2

LOCAL AND GENERAL NEWS.

An attempted murder of a Chinaman took place on the Adelaide Road between ten and eleven o'clock last evening. As far as we are able to loam it appears a quarrel arose between two Chinamen, and one of them, named Ah Fook, stabbed Ah Gee with a knife in the left side near the region of the heart. The attempted assasin is in custody, but we are sorry to say the wounded man is not expected to live. Dr Grace was in attendance a short time after and used all the professional skill available. He will bo brought up before Mr J. C. Crawford to-day at 10 o'clock, aud we hope he will receive the sentence due to such a dastardly attempt. The weapon with which the murderous assault was com mitted is in the hands of the police.

The speech of his Worship the Mayor on bis re-election yesterday, though clouded by an event to which we shall attach no remarks of an anticipatory nature, was full of hope that the large engagements to which his energy alone has committed the city will bo brought to a termination beneficial to the interests of the city in every way. Mr Dransfield expressed himself in terms very sanguine, but we think he committed himself to nothing in exceas of what the prospects justify. The due allowances for the primary losses or shortcomings which usually accompany the entrance upon a new enterprise were accompanied by the calm thoughts deliberately expressed of a shrewd man of business. The Mayor based his highest hopes on the income likely to accrue from the wharf property, and in this, if we may be permitted to add the opinions of less experienced persons, his prognostications liayo every probability of being verified. Time alone will substantiate or disprove these expectations, but we cannot see how, if the various matters connected with the late purchase are judiciously managed, any other than a permanent source of income can bo the outcome. The present City Councillors as a body have marked themselves as being in every way equal to the extended functions which they have imposed upon themselves, and we look forward to a period of municipal prosperity during the ensuing and future years. A rehearsal of the music to bo given at the Roman Catholic Cathedral on Christmas night took place last evening. There was a very full attendance of choristers, who gave great promise of a successful rendering of the piece selected.

Yesterday being the Hutt visiting day, the Itesident Magistrate did not take bis seat on the Bench, The only business transacted was the sentencing of two deserters from the Electra, who were each treated to six weeks' imprisonment with hard labor.

The City Council will meet again on Friday to discuss the position of its accounts. Applications for the lease of portions of the reclaimed land must be sent in before four o'clock this afternoon to the City Council Chambers.

The distribution of prizes to the pupils of the Wellington Grammar School will take place this afternoon at the Odd Fellows' Hall, at three o'clock. His Excellency the Governor will distribute the prizes. Mr Borlase gave notice at the meeting of the City Council, yesterday, of his intention to move in a matter which it is strange has not occupied the attention of the Council at an earlier date. Contrary to all usage his Worship has hitherto been expected to dispense the hospitality of the city with one hand and to meet charitable calls with the other, the wherewithall in both cases coming from a pocket dignified conventionally by the title "the private puree." Why the mayor of Wellington should form the solitary exception to a rule which every where obtains, no one has, to our knowledge, ever made any strenuous effort to prove, and we are glad Mr Borlase has given intimation of his intention to move for the voting of a sum which means not that the mayor shall derive a salary from the position he occupies, but that ho shall bo enabled to fulfil ono of the functions usually understood to pertain to the office, namely, the relieving of distress in whatever form it may prevent itself to him.

" And some have greatness thrust upon them," which was the case at the meeting of the City Council yesterday.- The Mayor, while announcing that the time had again arrived when the city authorities should evince a bounteous disposition by dispensing the usual annual allowance of cakes and ale to those persons on whose personal biographies Inspector Atcheson doth delight to descant, nominated Councillor Moss to superintend the proceedings at the festive board ; but Councillor Moss, weary of honors, after the fashion of Lord Brougham, suggested that some junior seeker after fame should bo elevated to the distinguished post of aiding Mr Micaiah Reed in feeding the ravens. His Worship accepted the hint, and casting about him, fixed intuitively upon Councillor Krull as a person fitting in all particulars to maintain the dignity of the civic body at the banquet. Councillor Krull expostulated, gesticulated, and, mentioning the many reasons why he thought he would not be able to minister to the fastidious palates of the inmates of Cook House, expressed himself wholly unequal to the task. But while Councillor Krull was thus apostrophising the motion was put, carried, and entered on the minutes of the proceedings of the day. This was cruel, but the incident has afforded Councillor Krull an opportnuity of emulating the fame of Howard.

The boating fraternity have gone in with a will, with the intention of repeating their victories of last year over the aquatic people of Nelson. By the Taranaki, which leaves Wellington for Nelson on Saturday night, will be sent over the whaleboat Tito Kowaru with a professional crew and an amafeur crew. The names of the former crew are Woods, Lennox, Walden, Jones, and Coffee, who will be piloted by the veteran O'Meara. The amateur crew are not yet definitely settled. A pair-oared skiff will be sent over to compete in the amateur skiff race, and also two single outriggers, which will be rowed in the race for professionals, one by Woods and the other by Lennox; in the race for amateurs in single outriggers the boats will likely be rowed by 11. Johnson and Brown. At the Nelson regatta it is customary to insert in the progrmame a race coufined to members of fire brigades or volunteers, the crew of four to be selected from one company. It is highly probable that a crew will be obtained from No 1 Company Wellington Rifle Volunteers to go over to Nelson to compete its race. Altogether Wellington forwards to the Nelson Regatta this year a formidable band, who have every expectation of repeating their performances of last year, when they beat the Nelson boats so triumphantly in the waters of Wellington harbor.

Birdists have positively asserted that the thrush will not breed when in confinement. The idea is exploded. Mr Denton, of Willis street, has in his uviary at the present time a young brood of thrushes, hatched on his own premises, and, moreover, this is the third lot from the same parentage. The whole of the young birds are to be seen flying about in the enclosure in which they were hatched.

The offices of the solicitors of Wellington will be closed from Saturday, 23rd December, to Tuesday, January 2nd, 1872.

A gentleman informs us that the supposed young blackbirds recently seen in the neighborhood of the Wesleyan Chapel are Minas, a bird indigenous to Australia, a number of which were introduced recently and released from the Botanical Gardens. They are domestic in their habits, preferring the outside portions of the habitations of men as places whereon to lay their heads to the unrefined inconveniences of forest life. The boys living in the neighborhood of the chapel have been very energetic in their efforts to drive the young birds from their new abode, but with a faithfulness which it has hitherto been supposed was confined to one Dog Tray they refuse to give way to these importunities. It is to be hoped the juveniles will confess themselves beaten and cease to molest the interesting strangers

The Opera Troupe will arrive here by the Taranaki, and, as advertised, will appear at the Odd Fellows' Hall on Friday evening. The demand for tickets has been so greal that already tickets are unprocurable, Mr Bell having had great difficulty in cramming in the audience on paper space. As already announced, the piece to be produced is II Trovatoro.

The Blanche left the harbor at two p.m. yesterday to visit the northern ports, her cruise terminating at Auckland. The date of her return to this port is uncertain. During the fore part of the day the town was inundated by the men from the ship, who, following the example of the officers, passed the last few hours in bidding adieu to the various connections formed during their visit to the port.

The various courts for the hearing of Divorce Cases, for the disposal of cases within the jurisdiction of the ViceAdmiralty Court, and thoso in the Bankruptcy Court, were formally opened yesterday and adjourned till the 12th January next, for a reason wo have already announced.

The Ground Committe of the Caledonian Society met a committee of tho Foresters last evening, and during the meeting it was arranged that the latter society should have the use of tho rods, poles, and other necessaries belonging to the former society. The preparations of the Foresters are very extensive, and a successful day's sport is anticipated.

The ministers of the various Protestant denominations waited yesterday on the city members — Messrs Pearce and Hunter, to request them to join in a deputation to tho Postmaster-General. It was understood that Mr Webb would shortly be in Wellington to re-arrange the English postal services. The object of the deputation is to ask that such an arrangement be made as to prevent or to reduce as far as possible the present Sunday work when the English mail leaves. We believe that they will wait on the Postmaster on an early day in next week.

A correspondent of the Melbourne " Argus" writing on the subject of the Polynesian labor traffic contradicts many of the statements made as to its abuses. With, regard to the murder of Bishop Pattesou he says :— lt seems to have been taken for granted by Bishop Perry, and the other rev. gentlemen, that the murder of Bishop Patteson was in revenge for natives having been kidnapped from Nukapu, and that the cocoanut leaf with the five knots, which tbe rev gentlemen styled a " palm branch," signified the number of natives stolen, while it was not proved that any natives whatever had been stolen from this particular island. Numerous other murders that have happened in savage lands, and in those very islands, at times and under such circumstances that kidnapping could not be alleged as tho cause, were not even alluded to. The murder at Erromanga, of Williams, the first missionary to the New Hebrides, before ever the labor traffic commenced, has never been asserted to have been caused by kidnapping. The Eev Mr Baker was murdered at Fiji, where tbe labor traffic has never been carried on ; and Spiers and M'lntosh, two quiet and unoffending settlers, were lately murdered at the same place by a tribe that they had long traded with, and been friendly with. While I was on Tanna I had a white overseer killed and eaten by the adjacent tribe, which was hostile to the tribe I was living amongst, but I well know that kidnapping was not the cause. Savage natives are very superstitious, and a very slight cause might arouse them to murder. I was once very near getting into trouble at Tanna because I had been observed by some natives to put an insect in a bottle for the purpose of examining it, which caused them to imagine that I did so for some purpose of sorcery, of which they stand in great dread. Natives may have .'eft Nukapu voluntarily, but against the wishes of their relations, and that may have aroused them to the murder of Bishop Patteson; but I have never found or heard of natives so indiscriminate in their revenge. Or sickness and mortality may have recently occurred on the island, and as they do not understand religion, ignorant natives are very superstitious about it, and are likely to ascribe any calamity to anything they do not understand. While on Tanna, I was desirous that a missionary or teacher of the Presbyterian mission should be located near my place, but the ns.tives would not hear of the proposal, as it had somehow got into their heads that the residence of a missionary or teacher in the neighborhood would cause all their wives to become barren. It is not therefore at all clear to my mind that Bishop Patteson's death must be ascribed to revengo for kidnapping ; and the fact of their not keeping and eating the body, as they would have been likely to do if the murder was from revenge, would rather suggest some other motive.

We learn that New South Wales, with its area of 300,000 square miles, and its population of half a million souls, has found out that its existing land laws have not fulfilled the expectations of their authors, and so the Government proposes to mako a clean sweep of the existing statutes, and to embody in one act the whole of the land legislation of the colony. One of the cardinal principles of the bill is free selection before survey, combined with a system of extended credit. The free selector pays one fourth of his purchase money down. He is not called upon for any further instalments during the next three years ; and at the expiration of that interval he commences the liquidation of the balance by ten annual payments, no charge being made on account of interest. He may take up a "frontage block" of ClO acres at £1 per acre, and a " back block" of a corresponding area at os per acre. Within the throe years just referred to the selector must effect improvements of the value of £1 per acre on the front, and of that of 7s 6d per acre on tho back block j and he must also habitually reside upon his allotment. But for non-resident selectors a proviso of a somewhat novel character is introduced. In consideration of the residential condition being waived in their favor, they must pay 50 per cent more in the shape of purchase money, and expend a corresponding addition in improvements. Failure to comply with these conditions before the end of three years from the date of selection involves the forfeiture of the land in all cases. Conditional pur chasers under the act of 1861 will have an opportunity of bringing their purchases under the new law, and the amount they have hitherto paid in the shape of interest to the Crown will be credited to them as part of tho principal. With respect to what are called •' pastoral homesteads," the lessees of Crown lands are to be allowed to purchase not less than 3200 nor more than 16,000 acres, at the rate of one pound per acre for all land within one mile of a water frontage, and five shillings per acre outside of that limit ; but in no case is there to bo moro than one mile of water frontage for every five miles of depth. Similar conditions as to residence is imposed on tho pastoral as on tho agricultural selector, and his mode of payment is tho same; but he is not required to expend more on improvements during the three years than 7s Gd por acre. Where he seeks from exomptiou from the residential condition he is authorised to obtain it on an additional 50 per cent on his purchase-money, and on the sum he lays out in improvements. We observe that a power of appeal to the Supreme Court or to the Circuit Court of the district is to be allowed to lessees of runs who may be dissatisfied with the appraisement of their runs by the Minister of Land. The administration of the public estate is not to be placed above, but is to be subject to the \aw.

Apropos to tho Srayfchie's case we may mention that the Supreme Court of Victoria, on tho Bth instant, struck off the roll an attorney named Maley, on the ground that he had been convicted of forgery.

The Treasurer of New South Wales estimates a surplus at the end of the year of £21,000, and anticipates noxfc year's revenue will amount to £2 ,417, '125, 1eaving for tho two years a surplus of J655.172. He estimates receiving £100,000 from the border customs.

A young man named Edward Harris, formerly a reporter on Uie " Otago Daily Times," and latterly connected in various cnpacitieß with Westland papers, died a few days ago in the hospital at Wostport.