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Wellington Independent, Volume XXVIII, Issue 3532, 24 June 1872, Page 2

Another instance of the good fortune enjoyed by this city in the matter of fires was furnished by Saturday evening's fire —there was no wind to fan it. About half past fire the Te Aro fire bell sounded the alarm, and there was. little difficulty in discovery the whereabouts of the cause from the volumes of pungent smoke which overspread the, upper part of the flat in the neighborhood of Cuba street. A large crowd of people,'amongst whom were a number of firemeo in uniform, congregated about the premises of the Wellington Brewery Company before any of the engines arrived. It was seen (hen that the fire had originated in the engine room of the building, and by thai, time had broken through the roof of the lean-to, where the boiler is, aud was seizing upon the eastern roof of the building. But owing to the age of the building and the late rains perhaps too, the shingles seemed to be thoroughly soddened, for notwithstanding the.ample ventilation and other conditions favorable to the spread of the firo, the flames burned as lazily and quietly as if in a kitchen grate. Buokets were being plied with some briskness about this time, but it was painfully apparent that the supply of water was more plentiful than that of buckets; nor was there any evidence, of organisation. Very little of the latter, with a judicious application of water then, would have squelched tho blaze in a (ew ininutes; but, no doubt, the awkward height of the main roof made it a difficult matter to project water upon it by anything else than an engine* In a very (ew minutes the Wellington and Constabulary engines were upon the ground ; but as each took up a different position —the Welliugtou at the side of the creek and entrance to the brewery, while the Constabulaiy look theirs through the fence in Ingestre street—ii is rather -difficult to say which was upon the ground first. The Wellingtons certainly seemed to throw Iho first water, aud five minutes would have sufficed could they have kept it up. But after a few strokes, crack went the hose ! and the spurting of water amongst the crowd did not help the more methodic movements of the members of the Brigade attending to the hose, nor of those who held the branch when tlcy found tho supply so cut off as to be useless. For the next few minutes ill was hurry scurry amongst the Wellingtons replacing bad lengths, only to see another burst in another part; and so it xrtnb. on for four or five times, thus rendering the efforts of the Brigade useless ftr all practical purposes. The Centrals took up a position in Ingestre street outside cf the Constabulary engine, which vras being worked steadily, As their gear seemed to be in excellent repair there was no mishap with them. Ooce the water was fairly turned on to the fire, a very fovr minutes sufficed to drench it into blackness. In less than an hour the engines were on their way home, and the neighborhood hutl resumed its usual quiet appearance. The damage on the whole may bo considered slight. It is understood thai, tho building and plant are insured, though not fully. Strangely enough, the moment the fire was put ouf. a breeze sprang up that a quarter of an hour before would have been a dangerous auxiliary to the flames. To meet the anxious desires expressed by some members at the last annual meeting of the shareholders of the Wellington Mutual Investment Society, the committee have convened a meeting of the shareholders in Class No. 2, to consider the proposition "That the rale of additional contribution on realised shares, iv this class, be reduced from ton shillings to eight shillings per share per month." As.those interested in iho effect of this change will no doubt be aware the proposal is one in reality affecting the rule of interest charged to members who desire to raise money by means of then 1 connection with the Society. The result of the existing rate has been to drive shareholders to other sources where money was .cheaper, and, as Die Chairman, staled aii the meeting held a few evenings ago, tho legitimate business of the Society has almost ceased, the committee being forced into the anomalous posiliou of seeking investment for the accumulations outside, while ihe shareholders were &% the same time soing abroad to oljtajn advances. Shareholders who djSv're to beTefit themselves hy the adoption.of the proposal for the reduction of tfiecontribulion on realised shares are reminded that the Act slipulates a minimum in the number of shares, as well as of shareholders, to be represented at the meeting, and in accordance with this provision 127 or more shareholders holding 2249 shares must be present aL ihe meeting, which is convened for Tuesday, 9th July, The football malch played on Saturday afternoon at Clapham's paddock drew together a more numerous gathering than had assembled at any previous match played this season, probably not fewer than five hundred people being on the ground. This extra interest was no doubt created by the announcement that the team who represented the club in tho Nelson contest were to be pitted against another team, comprising some of (he best players on the club's list of mem bers. The general desire on the part of the spectators lo see this match played, and the Nelson team vanquished as a compensating set off to the recent defeat across Ihe Strait was nob gratified, as some of the Nelson players failed to put in an appearance. Sides were then picked up by Messrs Werry and Gore, and after a capital contest, a goal was obtained foe his side from a touch down by Werry. A meeting of the members of the Wellington Bowing Club was held on Saturday evening at the Union Hotel. The prospects of the club were staled to be in a very satisfactory condition, and after a statement of accounts several new members were enrolled. The members of tho newly formed Garrick Club, who have been several times thwarted by the unfavorable state of the weather, will make their first appearance this evening at the Odd Fellows' Hall. We are given to understand that it is "the intention of the committee of management, while confining themselves to pieces within the capabilities of the members, to aim at a higher standard of histrionic culture.than has heretofore been adopted In the formation of the new club the intention.of the promoters is to inaugurate a school of instruction and improvement in the dramatic, art, and to ensure the fulfilment of their desires means have been taken in the establishment of the club to ensure its permanence, in the' furtherance of which object the name of a well known amateur

whose abilities are- universally admitted, bill; who has withdrawn from public i appearances for some time back, has been secured amongst the list of members. The services of the ladies of the Sfceelo and Howard troupe will be called into requisition for (his evening's performance, which will comprise ".The Wonder," and "Did you ever send your wife to the Huti." The Steele and Howard troupe have taken the hall, and will appear during (he week. A General Government Gazette, issued on Saturday, proclaims" the opening of the ferry at the Upper Manawatu river, on the eastern part of the Gorge, on the main read from Manawatu to Napier. The Gazette also contains the schedule of tolls to be charged. T. IT. Cook, Esq., of Foxlon, has beep appointed Registrar of Births, Deaths, and Marriages for thai, district, vice B. Smith, Esq., resigned. Tenders for painting the Courthouse at Foxlon are wanted by the Colonial Architect. An extraordinary general meeting of the shareholders of' the Wellington Brewery and .'Distillery Company will be held al Donecker's Hotel on Wednesday to consider a proposal to wind up the company voluntarily and appoint liquidators. Those who desire to pay a last tribute of respect to tbe remains of Mr George Marlin, are reminded that the funeral will leave the Pier Hotel this afternoon at half- past three o'clock. John Augustus Mason is gazetted as Sub-lieutenant in the Hutfc volunteers. The only business transacted at the Resident Magistrate's Court on Saturday was of a civil nature, but without any feature of public interest. The license held by Sidney David Taitviianga. us n surveyor under "The Native Lauds Act, 1865" has been re- " voted, the revocation to date from the 20tb April laat^ Colouel Harrington will commence his inspection of (.lie volunteers in Ike Wellington country districts to-day. The Kaiwarra volunteers will parndovat three o'clock this afternoon, the Porirua volun« leers, al 2 o'clock to-morrow, Ihe Makara volunteers, ai. hnlf-pasfc eleven on Tbursdny, the Ktirori volunteers, ai naif-past two on Thursday, and the IViautanui rifle volunteers, at one o'clock next Saturday. Services in connection with Ihe Primin.'iiive Methodist Colonial and Foreign Missions were preached yesterday in the Sydney street Church to large congregations. The officiating ministers wore Rw W. J. Dean and Bey W. IT. West, B.A. The annual meeting will be helil in the cliurch lliis evening, when it is expected addresses will bo delivered by <R.evs J. Patterson, W. H. West, T. Buddie, J. S. •Smaller, W. J. Dean, and J. Woodward. Esq. The chair will be taken al- seven o'clock, and at the conclusion of the addresses collections will be made in aid of Ihe missions. The Festival of Si John, will be celebraced this ev«ning by tho New Zealand Pacific Lodge and the Waterloo Lodge, English and Scottish Constitutions, at the Masonic Hall, Boulcot street. There will we believe be a large attendance both of visitors and members of the Wellington Lodges. The Lodge will be tyled punctually at eight o'clock. What is announced in the advertisement as an amateur concert will take place this evening at the Presbyterian Sotinol-voom, Willis-street. We have no knowledge of the intentions of its promoters further than lhat the entertainment is ''under distinguished patronage," and ihe price of admission is rated at the extremely modest Budi of a shilling. These ai*e inducements in themselves sufficient to attract a good attendance. A Wanganui " Man on the Beach" thus discourses of a local celebrity and steam company :— Censor or some other great poet lins said, " There is a tide in tho affairs of men, that taken at the flood leads on to fortune." It must have been flood tide when, at the half-yearly meeting of the W.S.N.Co., the big dividend was declared ; but the manager wasn't cute enough to get a vote then, confirming. his increase of 1 per cent commission. He missed his chance, and it seemed it warned like Wolsey, that he must make way for a rival, and bid farewell— a long farewell to his £GGO a year ; for lhat is what they say on the beach his billet is worth, at 4 per cent on gross earnings of both steamers. As times go on that's a. nice little addition to one's income, and people do say, if the company can afford to pay half as much, they ought to have a manager's whole atlention. On the other band, a manager who pays for another steamer, and give 20 per cent dividend out of profits in twelve months is worthy of good pay. Queer directors ! They advance a man's screw one mouth, and sack him for it the next. A raro piece of honesty under the circumstances was exhibited in Auckland a few days ngo. A purse containing £25 was lost, and then advertised for. The person who found it brought the purse and contents to the office of the Evening Star. Tho owner gave the finder a couple of pounds, which were reluctantly accepted, and which the man stated he would not have accepted but thai he was absolutely without a penny. He was also without work. The nest issue of the paper contained a paragraph stating that if the finder of the purao called lie would learn of two situations which he could choose from. Tho Missouri Democrat, a St. Louis paper, was sold ft few months ago for four hundred and fifty-six thousand one hundred dollars. It is slated that of the many applications filed in the American Patent Oflicc, about 14,000 will probably bo granted during the year. Some of tho inventions mentioned in Harper's Wcehlyare curious: —An application of the Lord's Prayer repeated in a loud voice to cure slammering ; a weight to be attached to a cow's tail to prevent her switching it while being milked; a "horse refresher," a bit per. • forated with holes and connected with a reservoir in the vehicle by a flexible tube, so that tho drivor can water tho animal without slopping. A lady has patented a hair crimping pin, which may be also used as a paper-cutter, a skirt supporter, child's pin, bouquet holder, Bhawl fastener, or book-mark. A philanthropist has applied for protection to a "snorer's friend," a luxurious contrivance to be attached to pew backs, so that in certain familiar exigencies one may sleep in peace and comfort. The editor of a New York paper thus discourses to his correspondents :— -Do oblige us by omitting all such flourishes as " your interesting and valuable paper," " your able and patriotic course," &c. Our subscribers know all about that sort of thing, and we have also a tolerable opinion of ourselves. If you think by thia to improve your chunce of insertion you are ruinously mistaken. When you i have written all you havo to say, ruu it over, and see if there are not some sen- >

tences that could be spared without serious injury j if there are, out with theni. We are often compelled to decline good articles because we cannot make room for them. Half a column haa ten chances when two columns hare one, and three columns none. Try to discourage as little as possible, and if you must condemn, let your facts be stronger than your words. When you assail any per--son or cause always give us yourreal name, which shall only bo given to those who have a right to demand it. He is a coward who would ask us to bear the responsibility of others- If you send us word that you "have no time to correct, t and have written in haste," we shall put your manuscript into the fire. Why should you throw upon us the task of I correcting your scrawl when we are obliged to shirk our own work for want ,of time P Give us facts, incidents, and occurrences at the earliest moment, and we shall bo grateful, though you wrote them with a pudding-stick; but if you attempt logic or sentiment do it upright, insiead of leaning on us.