LOCAL AND GENERAL

Gisborne Standard and Cook County Gazette, Volume III, Issue 457, 22 May 1890, Page 2

LOCAL AND GENERAL

Mr H. M. Porter has 500 sacks of grass seed and quantities of fescue for sale. Mr Tees dale’s tender of £75 has been accepted for defining the boundaries of the Tauwharepare sections. Union Literary Society, this evening.—O. W. Holmes v, Mark Twain. Leaders : Rev. A. Gardiner and Mr Crawford.—Advt. Mr Wilkinson, Borough Overseer of Works, expects that the damage to the Taruheru footbridge will be repaired by the end of the week. Mr Teesdale expects to enter upon his expedition to the Taiwhareparae block, during next week. Mr Carr, the new Napier Harbor Engineer, continues to throw light upon the shady transactions that have been going on at the works. Out of a total of 664 votes, 342 were recorded at the Harbor Board election on Tuesday. One vote was recorded in an informal manner. At Patutahi on Tuesday morning a stank of oaten straw, the property of McFarlane Bro?., was totally destroyed by fire. It was valued at £6O, and was uninsured.

Owing to the shortness of the days the first race at the Birthday meeting of the Waerenga-ft-hika Jookey Club (on Monday next) will start punctually at 11 a.m. Mr J. Carroll seems to have been “ giving himself away ” to the Liberal paper in Napier. It wont be a bed of roses for him when he again gets into the camp of the all-powerful party representing the landed interest. The newly constituted Native Land Commission, presided over by His Honor Judge Edwards, is gazetted to sit at Whinray's Hall on May 27th. when the application of Mr A. C. Arthur will be considered.

The St. Andrew’s Literary Society has always been singularly unfortunate in regard to its lectures—or to be more correct the lecturers have been unfortunate in regard to the weather. The announcement of a lecture, indeed, appears to be the signal for a downpour of rain on the evening named. Tuesday evening was no exception to the rule, and after consultation the members decided to adjourn until next Tuesday evening the delivery of the lectute, “Amusements: The false and the true,” by the Rev. R. Williams.

We learn that an effort is being made to secure the services of Mr J. H. Stubbs for the oilboring scheme that is to ba conducted in the Taranaki district. Mr Stubbs’ work in this district hue been such as to prove him thoroughly competent to undertake any work 0! the kind, and experienced Americans have pronounced themselves highly pleased with the ability of Mr Stubbs, who has given exceptional proof of skill when tedioil < operations have bad to be conducted—difficult operations that have seldom or never to be contended with in America. Mr J. H. Stubbs was in town on Monday last, and a Standard reporter waited on him to learn if there was anything fresh to chronicle in regard to the South Pacific oil works. Mr Stubbs’ motto has been to work and not talk, but he gave the information that the pipes had now been righted, after a terribly hard job, requiring the utmost patience and good judgment. The depth of the bore is now actually lower than Mr Weaver had got it down, but no earthquakes have been met with. There are fine indications, and at present Mr Stubbs is continuing the drilling, under a temporary arrangement. - Mr Stubbs appears to be still unshaken in his faith in the oil, and he considers that the movement in Taranaki will have a great and good effect upon the work in this district, because it any success is met with it will naturally also divert capital io this district aid enable the ground here io be fairly iestad.

A list of those persons who have taken out licenses to' shoot game in the district is published this morning. Mr Warren has written a letter strongly condemning the prec ico of depositing the street scrapings in the school grounds. The stetqner Waihora does not arrive from Auckland until Saturday, a day late. She is timed to proceed south at 4 p.m. The Town Clerk has sent a claim to the ownersof rhe steamer Fanny, for a refund of the cost incurred by the damage to the bridge. The public hall proposed to be erected at the Waimata is still the subject of discussion in that district. Mr G. Grant advertises for a supply of 500 cubic yards of Patutahi road metal for the Patutahi Road Board. The trouble in connection with the lighterage of vessels has now been settled, Messrs Kennedy and Evans agreeing to the terms stipulated by the Union. , The Hussars’Ball for 1890 is to beheld in the City Bink to-morrow night. It promises to be a great success. Spectators can obtain admission to the gallery, the fee being 2s 6d.

Another Gieborne case is advertised to come before the Native Lands Commission, being the case of Mr Seymour’s title to the Whangara block. The solicitors are Messrs Finn and Chrisp. Judgment in the Poututucase was delivered on Tuesday by the Commissioner His Honor Judge Barton. The judgment was a careful and elaborate one, showing how the Commission had arrived at its decision regarding the various subdivisions. Mr D. McNair, of Benmore, was on Monday evening the victim of an accident which was nearly being a very serious one. The night was dark, and he wan walking from hisfown residence to Mr Partridge's place, to attend a meeting of the Committee in connection with the Waimata Hall. On the way he got off the path and fell over a precipice. Fortunately no bones were broken, but. Mr McNair was severely bruised about the head and body. Messrs J. O. Barnard, G. Grant, and W. O’Ryan have written to the Harbor Board remonstrating against the manner in which the tenders for surveying the Tauwhareparae Block were invited. They found that no specifications existed, the time they con. sidered to be too short for such work, it was impossible to tell what work was actually required, and as ratepayers they protested against the probable waste of money in attempting to have such work done without proper business precautions.

WhileMr Christie Murray was in Gisborne he was presented with a copy of Mr and Mrs Featon’s Art Album of New Zealand Flora. Mr Murray was highly pleased with the gift, and subsequently he wrote a letter stating that a more leisurely examination of the charming work had greatly impressed him with its beauty and value, and concluded his letter in these terms: “ I shall have much pleasure in keeping it as a gratifying sign of the progress both in art and science in the colony.”

The Hon. Mr Randall Johnson, in the course of a conversation with a representative of the Standard, said he feared tho Protection policy of the Atkinson Government will be very injurious to the colony. Even now, he said, it is very difficult to get ships to take away our produce, because it will not pay to send vessels unless they have cargoes each way. He was afraid that the result would be that New Zealand, which has now a vary limited market within itself, will be overburdened with manufactories which will have no markets for their manufactured articles.

The closing of the Public School for a week has naturally not been considered by the children as a jarring note in the harmony of school life. One hopeful, if not sapient, little scholar went so far as to remark that she would be pleased if la grippe were to ba a a permanent feature, so long as it would make school work a thing of the past; and ths same sentiment will probably be echoed in the hearts of hundreds of joyful little sprites of humanity who have yet to learn to appreciate the great blessing which is conferred upon them by the modern system of education. No one could wish to cast aside the veil which encircles the fairyland of childlife, but we may as well advise a sharp lookout next week, when, there is reason to believe, there will be an unprecedented run of malingering.

We have to acknowledge the receipt of the syllabus of St. Andrew’s Literary Society, for the session of 1890, and judging from the subjects set out we should say the Association will make good use of its time and opportunities. The Rev. R. Williams, Ven. Archdeacon Williams, Mr A. C. Hugo, and Mr Hill have consented to deliver lectures, each having chosen an interesting subject. Then besides the evenings with friends, for readings and recitations, for impromptu speaking, and for the M.S. Journal, a number of essays have been promised, the essayists being Mr J. Smaill, Miss Sutherland, MrC. Rosie, Mr J. T. Evans, Miss A. Evans, Mr E. Parnell, Mr Armstrong. Mr Beswick, Miss. E. Black, and Mr Johnston, in the order named. Biographical sketches are also to be given by— Miss G. Adair (Tennyson) Miss Evans (Milton), Miss Black (Byron). The session closes with an address by the President.

Tho election of a candidate to fill the vacancy on the Harbor Board came off very quietly on Tuesday. The weather was far from congenial for the occasion, and those who indulged in cold water—internally of course—preferred to have it mixed with a more icspiriting ingredient—just to keep off la grippe, you know. Really the only indication there was of an election was the buzzing about of the two candidates, but as neither of them was ever known to be apathetic or idle, it might be concluded they were only proceeding on tbe even tenor of their way. But the supporters of either candidate were confident that their selection would also be the selection of the majority of the ratepayers. Captain Chrbp labored under the disadvantage that ths organ of his party tried, as usual, to trim sails—to keep smooth with all parties by sup porting none, and even excluding the fairest criticism. But the game is too thin to be effective in these days. Mr Johnston had recorded in his favor 209 votes, Captain Chrisp totalling 132, thus giving Mr Johnston the large proportionate majority of 77. Mr Johnston would undoubtedly have had a much larger majority were it not for the opinion expressed by him in favor 0! the Harbor Board’s policy of leasing that portion of tho foreshore just above the bridge.