NEW ZEALAND : GENERAL.

New Zealand Tablet, Volume XXVII, Issue 23, 8 June 1899, Page 20

NEW ZEALAND : GENERAL.

Parliament meets on the S.\t\ inst,

Tun Wellington City Council h we adoptel the Mayor's sr-heme involving the expenditure of s,, , ie C '.."id ouo upon t-atnways. electric light, town hall, water supply extension, and minor work.

A CnuisTCiiuia 11 jury found a verdi'-t of • Xot guilty ' in the case of Charles ILenry Carter, charged with man-1 m^ liter m coum ction with the Rakaia railway disaster.

The (!a:<Ui annovne- s th" appointment of Mr. M. Fuley as Clerk of the Warden's Court and Reoeivir of (iold Revenue and Mining Registrar at Gore, from May i>.

We have received parrels of used stamp-, for Father Kreymborg's mission from Mis-, Maggie M l \.fe.>, Otautau, MiVs Maigaret Lee. Woodlands. Mr. P. Fonnessy, (iuumerburn. and Jlu E. Cunneen, Broadficld.

The June number of the Triad, which has just come to hand, is a very creditable production. As usual the illu-.tr itions are very goad, whilst the letterptv-v, maintains the usually excellent standard of the journal.

In the nnninl reports pre^entel to fie Welling ton C ity Council it was stited iha', the draina^ scheme, whish is now complete, had cost -ill 75, 202. the estimate being £17">.oihi. The influence of a proper drainage is shown in the steady decrease of typhoid cases which haye fallen from 101 in IS'.H to 11. '

The Marine department has received a telegram from Captain Bolland, of the Hinemoa, st iting that W. Brown (chief nv-ttei. M Buchanan, C. Osferm in. and O. Sjobolotn (sailors) were drowned by a boat swamping at East Cape. The second mate, Hardy, and. a seaman named Weyinark were saved. Thj bo.it was endeavouring to effect a landing when the. accident happened.

We desire again to remind our readers that parcels of usr>d stamps sent through the post oIIk-c are liable to a registration fee. Unless such parcels are regNterel by the '.»n lors we shall in future decline to accept delivery. Within the pist week we hal to p.y a registration fee. which would pureba-e. ton times the quantity of tamps received. Only largo parcels, cont-iinin^ stamps o Y the value ( J2]d and upwards should be sent and these should be registeied.

Rekeukinc; to the operations at Orepuki of th» company which now owns the Kaitangata coal mine, the correspondent of the Southland limit says : ' Shale obtained from a trial shaft, put down in the drive and tested by Mr. Dunlop in a retort, which has been ereo.ed, return' d, lam informed, the magnificent average of !»0 gallons of oil to the ton of shale, so that th pro-pecta of success of the company are jiood."

A recent visitor to Otago Centr-.I informs the Otaijo Daily Tnnri that tne farmers in that district nave had a good year, anil one Moonlight cottier is a leged to have threshed a crop giving an avt rage of 100 bushels of oats to the acre. He hold the oats at five shillings it bag, Im,'-, txlu, ami cveu at that ft ma.;i price made a good profit. Stock of every kind looks well, and things on the whole are very prosperous.

On the afternoon of May 23, His Excellency the Governor and party paid an official visit to the Panmure district, Auckland, where they were received by Monsignor Walter M-Donald. They paid a visit to the Catholic School, and also inspected the district church and other places of interest. The vice-regal party also visited the Catholic Church, and H.s Excellency expressed himself as being very well pleaded with his visit, and with the cordial welcome extended to him.

Mk. Cooper (president) occupied the chair at the last meeting of the Ashburton Catholic Literary Society. Mr. J. Higgins was elected librarian. The programme for the evening consisted of a mock parliamentary election. There were four candidates— Messrs. McSherry and Duffy (Liberals), Moison and Bowden (Independents). After the candidates had given their views on the subjects of the day and answered a number of questions, a ballot was taken with the result that Mr. Duffy was elected by a majority of four. The usual speech, on the declaration of the poll, was made by the successful candidate, after which the proceedings terminated.

A Sydney message of June 1 states that a tag reported speaking the barque Northern Chief, from Kaipara, off the coast. The aaptaia of the Northern Chief said that he passed the Perthshire last Thursday in Latitude 34deg. south, longtitude 164deg. east, about 400 miles from Cape Maria Van Dieman. The Perthshire reported all well. The Northern Chief met heavy weather after passing the Perthshire. Up to going to press nothing further had been heard of the disabled steamer,

The Dunedin winter show of stock, agricultural machinery, and farm produce, held in the Agricultural Hall, was opened on Wednesday afternoon by the Right Hon. the Premier. There was a very large attendance, visitors being present not alone from all parts of Otago, but al«o from Canterbury and Wellington. The entries in all departments were very good, especially the exhibit of agricultural machinery, which was a very fine display. In consequence of going to press on Wednesday afternoon we are obliged to hold over our notice of the exhibits until our next issue. At St. Patrick's Church on Sunday morning, May 28 (says the Charleston Iff mid), the Yen. Archpriest Walsh was presented with an address and a purse of sovereigns the gift of the Brighton and Charleston congregations, nho recognise with feelings of pride, the hiirh honour which has lately been conferred upon th< ir worthy parish priest. The address was written by Mr. P. J. Fleming, and read by that gentleman, who thanked the congregation for allowing him the privilege to read a congratulatory address to their priest. The purse of sovereigns was presented by Mr. Thomas Shine, who referred in eulogistic term^ to the Venerable Father s long and honourable career in the parish. In the course of the address the parishioners said •— Duriug the last thirty years we have witnessed your many virtues, toils, and labours for the advancement of our holy religion, and how the days of your youth and vigour have been always devottd to the best interests of our holy Church. Through your gentle tenderness and kind forbearance ani sympathy tor others, you have won our confidence, love and admiration, and the golden opinions of the other denominations here. The Yen. Archpnest said he felt very grateful for their sentiments, and accompanying purse of sovereigns. After all it was no more than what he would have expected from the people of Charleston, for he remembered some years ago, when he was on the eve of hit, vi-.it to the Old Country, he found that the people of Charleston were the first to come forward and present him with an addresd and a purse of sovereigns. Regarding the dignity conferred upon him by the Archbishop, he telt how unworthy he was of such a high honour, but nevertheless he would endeavour to prove hiin»eli worthy of it.