SHIPPING.

PORT OF AUCKLAND.

SUNSET.—This evening, 6.27. 1110-H WATER.— This evening, 8.17.

STEAMERS FOR THE THAMES THIS EVENING.

Lady Bowen, 9 o'clock.

ARRIVALS.

Southern Cross, mission schooner, Jacobs, irom a "Fortune, schooner, Parker, from the Coast.

DEPARTURES.

City of Adelaide, s.s., Walter, for Wellington- Star of the South, s.s., for papier. Gem, schooner, for Richmond Biver, >.b. w.

EXPORTS.

Per 8.8. City of Adelaide, for Sydney via Wellington : « Pg££«^at " SrfloS^^r^ 30 bale;> wool, Brown, Campbell and Co. , 4 boxes gold, Bank New Zealand.-H. M. Jems, agent.

Passengers per City of Adelaide : Capfain fronton, Messers. Neal, Nichol, Keir. Steerage-Mrs. Dobson and Mrs. Edgar. The s.s. Go-Ahead left for Waitara and Southern ports this morning with the follow in- cargo 1-8500 pieces timber 12 cases oranges,l6 packages sundries, 28 sash weights, 4000 feet timber.—A. Barnes, agent. The ss Waneanui left the wharf, One hunga, this morning, for Wellington, in b.s. Keera took her departure, for Buisell, at 10 o'clock last evening. The b.s. Star of the South left fhe wharf, for Napierj at 6 p.m. yesterday. The p.s. Nevada may be expected irom Sydney till to-morrow. She will probably bring tho Suez mail.

COMMERCIAL.

CALLS AND DIYIDIOT£

The following are the current cJ'.s and divi dends payable in tks companies named be °W :^i*s. £•• J- D^ TE- „ Golden Phomix ... 0 0 3 ... Nov. 2 Pacific 0 0 6 ... Nov. 8 Goldfinch 0 0 4 ... Nov. j. Commercial 0 10 ... Nov. 4 GoldeiyHarp ... O 0 3 ... Nov. 6 GoldeSuelt. 0 0 6 ... Nov. 6 Brunswick 0 0 6 ... Nov. 6 Mary Ann 0 0 3 ... Nov. 7 Thistle 0 0 6 ... Nov. 10 Hand-in-Band ... 0 0 6 ... Nov. 3 Flagship 0 0 6 ... Nov.lo Celt 0 0 6 ... Nov. 16 Comstock 0 10 ... Nov. 17 Otago 0 10 ... Nov. 18 Brighton 0 2 0 ... Dec. 1 Thames Gas 00. M , 0 2 6 ... Nov. 2 DITIDBNDS. tit -i Nonpareil o*o - ov- l

POLICE COURT ROTA.

The following ia the Police Court rota for the week ending 4th November:— Wednesday, November I—Messrs. Daidy and

Dar^aville. . Thursday, November 2—Messrs. J. Dilwortn and J. A. Gilfillan. Saturday, November 3-Meß3rs. H. Gmfiilan and G. S. Graham.

AMUSEMENTS, MEETINGS, Ac.

This Evening. Parade of Rifle Brigade, 6. Soiree, Newton Congregational Church, b.dU, Prince of Wales Theatre, 8. Diorama of Ameican War, City Hall S.

BIRTH.

H EM us.-0n October 30, the wife of Mr. George Hemus of a daughter,

DEATH,

Ebay - On October 29, Elizabeth, only daughter of *&fc? wn^'f at Epsom this dayTTulsday), at 4.30 p.m. Friends are respect fully invited to attend; _________———

The Evening Star.

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 31, 1871.

" For the cause that lacks assistance, For the wrong that needs resistance, For the future in the distance) And the good that we can do.

At the recent meeting of the Agricul tural League, we narrowly escaped a Tote of thanks. It was proposed by Mr Crispe, whose kindly feelings we reciprocatej but Mr. Crispe would not have made such a proposal had he not been late in arrival The fact is he travelled outside the programme, to the confusion of the League. Be fore the meeting, as each member ar rived, he was cornered and button holed and by unanimous consent it was agreed that the Evening Stab uhould not be mentioned at the meet ing. This was well; and we commend the action to the favorable consideration of all those who may chance to come in a similar way beneath our lash. We feel kindly towards the League now. We always did feel kindly to wards farmers; but they evidently wanted a little chastisement, for, like the Irishman, they were dragging their coat behind them, to see if any one would trample on it. There is a Bpecies of cant peculiar to Auckland respecting the Press, and it is highly desirable, for the sake both of the Press and the public, that its use should became obsolete. People, no matter how meagre their brains and education, are accustomed to afteot contempt for the Press, as having no opinion and no influence. We have invariably found that those most pro nounced in their indifference to the Btrictures of the Press areI.those wl<y most writhe and wriggle in mental agony beneath its notice. And for those affecting indifference arid con tempt we know of no application so uniformly effective as plain-speaking.! The Agricultural League has been! very gently and considerately treated by the Auckland Press. But its most glaring absurdities have been pointed out in a spirit of forbearance that wae evidently intended to benefit the or ganization. Whereupon some of the hot spirit* gave vent to their indig

nation, and the usual cant about their contempt for newspapers. On Thursday last we accordingly gave them a little fatherly correction, and they have turned and kissed the rod. 8o far now from being displeased with the Press, barring ourselves, it was the unanimous opinion of the meeting on Saturday last", " that thanks were due to the Press for the aid kindly given to the objects of the League." This is as it should be. There is no use in quarrelling with the Press ; that roK is played out. The expression of conj tempt is idle. There are gentlenue| connected with the Press intellectual \f as superior to the farmers as the farm ers are to their own cattle. No society hitherto started in Auckland has been so persistently discourteous in its remarks ou the Press as has this Agricultural League ; and none has so winced beneath its vigorous strictures. There must be a multitude of settlers in our rural districts, if. every farmer within a radius of twenty miles of the city has not gratified his curiosity by procuring a copy of our Thursday's issue; and wilh the multitudes .vbo have called and proeuredcopics,wehave been generally obliged to defend the League from the censures which have been freely showered on its conductors. One only was belligerent. A tall " cornstalk," redolent of fern and flax swamps, called at our office, expressing a desire to " trounce" some person. But apparently he has altered his mind.

And now with the Leaguers we would be friends. We do not believe much in the permanence of the insti-^ tution ; it has in it the elements of •inevitable dissolution. The Leaguers do not really know what they wauL It is a " Chamber of Agriculture" they intend, something after the fashion of the Chamber of Com merce, and the model for which they can find in a neighbouring colony. Let them form this, and drop an offensive antagonism in relation to their feJlow-c. bnists, and they may do good. But let them esshew impertinence to the Press as they would the deadly sins.

We would direct attention to an error that has been committed in our yesterday's issue, in common with our contemporaries, with reference to the hour of starting of the G-olden Crown to-morrow. The advertise ment, as corrected, will be found in another column. It wi.l be seen that tho boat leaves the wharf at 9 o'clock, not noon. We have no doubt that an excursion trip to Coroman del and Tararu, and back the same day, will prove exceedingly attractive.

The following Jia» b**n left at «« office, with a request for its insertion : —" An inter esting evenii in the shape of a foot-race, took place at the back of the Barracks, between Dan Brett and Pat Bartlcy, 6 jO yards, for £1 a-side. The men got to the ecratch, when Brett bounded off with the lead. Bartley then put on steam, and collared his man half way, and kept the lead to the finish, coming in au easy winner. Brett haa placed hid money down to run Bartley again for £5 iv a fortnight, money ready at the Queen's Head, William Adams', Queen-street.— (Signed), John Holt, Stake-holder."

The great Diorama, representing events in the late American war, and the scenery of macy of the localities where these events took place, was again exhibited last evening, after nn absence from Auckland of about two years. The City Hali, where the representation tooK place, was crowded ; and the great battles, the renowned fight between the Alabama and the Kearsage, and the funeral procession of Presi dent Liucoln, with other events, were repre sented in a manner which elicited repeated rounds of applause. The descriptive lecture by Mr. Thompson was excellently well deli vered, and well explained the progress of the war. The entertainment will be repeated this evening. The members of the Wellington-street Catholic Institute gave one of their pleasant periodical entertainments last evening, with their customary success. Madame and Mr. Winter, with Madame Moller, were present, and sang in their usual efficient manner. The band of the Royal Company of Volunteers was also there, and performed with great ability ; and many ladies and gentlemen con tributed largely to the evening's amusement. We would remind our friends in Newton and elsewhere cf the opening soiree to be held in the Newton Sunday-school room to-night. From the balance-sheet in connection with this very creditable effort, we find that the total cost incurred for the now building has been £371: being for land, £36 ; the con tract for the building, £242; and extras, £93. The amount already raised from various sources is £360 Js sd, leaving only a deficit of £10 16s 7d, wliicL it is calculated will be more than met by the proceeds of the soiree to-night. We trust that the commendation of the public will be shown by a bumper benefit to-night. We are glad to see that the Parnelt Board promptly remedied the evils which were brought under notice in our columns a week or tto ago. The dangerous gap at the foot of St. George's Bay Road has been filled in, and the steps leading from St. Barnabas Boad to the beach, have been put into tolerably good condition; bo that people can now descend and enjoy themselves on the sand at low tide. I- "" " ' ■£• '" " t _ " .;. ".,<„ "-'. *■■ i© ;

r ■"'"; •':" . • l'% j.- ■ ■ ■ ■ iietiirn ot sieV treated during tho week | ending Saturday, October 28, 1871, aL the i Pi-oviaoial Hospital:—Remuined lash return, \ 71; admitted since, 9 ; discharged, 7; dwd,l 0; remaining, 73; males, 63 5 females, 10. j Arrangement of cases : —Scrofula, 2 ; cancer, \ 4; syphilis, 1; phthisis, 10; rheumatism, 6; ' paraivvU, 8 ; epilepsy, 3 ; cliorea, 1 ; amau- | rosis.Y; opfchaliniu, 2 ; heart disease, 2 ; aneu- / rism, 1 ; bronchitis, 1 ; pneumonia, 3 ; dys- | pepaia, 1 ; dysentery, 1; hfiU-.titis, 1; albunii nuria, 1; hydrocele, 1 ; colic, 1; fistula, 1; ulcer, 4; necrosis, 3 ; fractures, 4 ; sprain, 1 ; burn, 1; wounds, 2; imbecility, 1 ; debility, 5. No death occurred during the week. Thanks are returned to Mrs. Ashton for a supply of, old linen ; and to the Graft.on Koad Book 1 Club for some numbers of tho Graphic jf The great match against time, in which Mr. g Or wynne, the landlord of the J auction Hotel, g backed himself to walk eighteen miles in § three hours, came off yesteivay afternoon, in g Cunningham's paddock, at Newmarket. Tho | match created considerable interest, as it was known that Mr. G-wynne was a large and heavily built man, and by no meaiiß young, and iv consequence opinions were various as to the possibility of his accomplishing a feat seldom attempted even by the young and agile. Some 200 or 300 people were on tlie ground, and a great number in the road out side. Betting was free during the event, and 1 a considerable amount of money changed | hands. The pedestrian started oif at a tret mendous rate, and accomplished the first mile | in nine minutes, in good style. He kept up J? a fast speed until the thirteenth mile, when g ho began to shew symptoms of fagging, and | his pee gradually slackened until the g fifteenth, when he found ho had taxed his | powers of endurance to too great an extent, U and very wisely yielded up the victory to Old Time. Mr. Ghv^nne's muscles, however, when s rendered ilaccid by over-exertion, must have | extraordinary powers of retraction, for he was g very shortly alter wards seen at his hotel con- s versing with people, and apparently quite % restored, whereas less powerful men would | assuredly have been found in bed. Mr. § Q-wynne, therefore, although he says he is too | old, is evidently juvenile enough to win more | victories of pedestrianism, in spite of the feat | attempted yesterday being a trifle too much £ for him.—Herald. jjj A call of one shilling per share has been i made in the Olago Gold Mining Company. f Wellington-street Catholic Institute. .» —An entertainment was given last evening in | aid of the funds of this institute, and was a | complete success. There was a very good j attendance, and the programme gone through i was a choice and varied one. We have not 3 space to speak of Uiß entertainment at length, i and can only say that where all did so well it a would be invidious to particularise. Madame \ MoUler, Madame WinrWr, o«<.l Air. Winter f sang the songs allotted to them most success- fully, and were loudly applauded, as, indeed, J were many of the other ladies and gentlemen | who had kindly given iheir services. We | ought, not to omit to mention the very | admirable duett by the violin and piano (Mr. « Jones and Madamo Winter), which was!j splendidly executed and loudly applauded, i The Royal Volunteer Band was present, and | played a number of selections with groat a taste. The following is the programme gone S through : — Purt I: " Napoleon's Grand 1 March," Royal Volunteer Band ; song, jfl " Kathleen Mavourneen," Mr. Winter j song, S "Thy Voice is Near," Madame Mohler ; B reading, " The Turee Sons," Mr. T. M. King ; | duett (violin and piano), "II Trovatore," a Madame Winter and Mr. Jones; aoug, if " Death of Stonewell Jackson ;" recitation, 9 "The Spanish Champion," Mr. G. Fraser ; B song (with pianoforo accompaniment), " Erin," H Madame Winter; (<ong, "Kate O'Shane," 1

Miss Suanaghan ; duett, " The Sailor's Sighs," Mr. and Madame Winter. Part II: " The Pvke Guloj," Royal Volunteer Band; song, "The Murmur of the Shell," Madame Winter; duett, " Whut are the Wild Waves Saying?" Misses Shauaghan and Chad wick ; solo (piano), Madame Winter; reading, " Lady Clara Vere de Vere," Mr. T. M. King ; song, "The Village Blacksmith " (by desire), Mr. Winter ; song, " Cdine Back to Erin," Madame Mohler; duett, " Reconciliation," Mr. and Madame Winter} " God Save the Queen I"—Herald.

PRINCE OF WALES THEATRE.

As we predicted, the theatre last night was crowded, to witness the re-appearance of Mr. B. N. Jones' talented company in the (piece de resistance) " School for Scandal." The principal characters were taken by Mr. Hoskina, Mr. B. N. Jones, Mr. Burford, Mr. Hydea, Miss Colville, Mrs. Walter Hill, Mrs. B. N. Jones, and Miss Raymond. The play was naturally a great success, each member of the company receiving a hearty reception on theif appearance. The audience testified their 'appreciation of this sterling performance by demanding the principals at. the termination. The performance concluded with a farce, in which Mr. Hoskins kept his hearers convulsed, and sent the house thoroughly into good humour with " But, However." We perceive the management have announced the sensational play of " The Lancashire Lass" for to-morrow evening. We understand that " a party by the name of Johnson" is to take part in the perform ance, and we have no doubt the gentleman will make a successful debut. The scenery, from the penoil of Mr. Varley, will'be en tirely new, as also some new mechanical1 effects. We auger fi-om report a long run for the "Lass," and considerable remunera tion for the management.

COURT.— Tuesday.

[Before L! is Worship the Mayor.] DftUNKTSNSjssa.—Fivo porsons, Ronvictod of this offence, were puuished in the usual manner. Drunk and Disorderly.—Elizabeth Gar diner, alias Annie Fitzpatrick, was fined 20s and costs for this offence, with the alternative of 48 hours' imprisonment. j Breaches ov Tag-rant Act. — Patrick Lynch, charged with making use of obscene language in Queen street, pleaded guilty. Six previous convictions were recorded against him, and he was was fined 20s and costs or thirty days' imprisonment.—Elizabeth Gardi i ncr, .whose name appears abovo, pleaded guilty of being a prostitute and behaving in a riotous manner in Queen-street, and was ordered to be sent to gaol for thirty days.

RETURN. OF THE SOUTHERN CROSS.

: 3VC TJ 3BL X> 3ES «. ; OF I t BISHOP PATTESON vi ..^ AND THE HEY. ME. ATKINS. I' " — % A profound sensatiou has been produced If in tho city to-day by the melancholy I II intelligence of the murder of Bishop i M Patteson and Boy. Joseph Atkin, as fl brought by the Southern Cross schooner. *f It appears that on the arrival of tho 't schooner at Nukapu, an island of the I Santa Cruz group on last Friday week, jg the 20th instant, the Bishop, accom- I panied by Mr. Atkin and two native I teachers, went ashore. On reaching the 11 reef, the Bishop proceeded in a p native canoe. Immediately after, the | natives commenced firing poisoned arrows I p into the boat, wounding Mr. Atkin and I two native boys who were with him. This boat then pulled off-to tMe vessel, and shortly after Mr. Atkin-returned towards the island, to look after the Bishop. On ! arriving at the beach he found the dead body of the Bishop, the akull having been broken in, and the body stripped of almost all the clothing. Tho body having been P taken on board the vessel set sail im- I mediately for Auckland and ;on the fol- lowing morning the remains of Bishop ?J Patteson were consigned to the deep. | On Friday last the llev. Mr. Atkin also § died, from the wounds inflicted by the § poisoned arrows, and was oa the day I following buried at sea. On the same I day one of the native boys died from the I same cause. i It is only natural that a catastrophe so I sad and so sudden should have pro- Iduced general and profound sorrow. &If ever a man was actuated by | 1 noble self-desying motives, that man yj \ was the Bishop of Melanesia. His de- | ! votion to the cause of missions, his | \ unwearying labours in tho service of his B s Master, and the noble catholic spirit E i which he at all times evinced for all R Ij labouring in tho same cause, by whatever m I name they might be called, have combined g I to make his name a household word in 1 I Auckland, and beloved wherever tho B i'cause of Christian missions is estoemod. g \To such a heroic life a martyr's death « | seems but a fitting close ; but notwith- ■ s standing this, tho sudden and untimely g| i end of this most devoted and learned, arid ■ ? able Missionary will, with tho dark deed ■ I of ftrromanga, be enrolled among saddest I "i events iv the history of Polynesian Mis- P Lsions. ltev. Joseph Atkin was a young | missionary of great promise, and from his r connection with this district his melan choly and painful death will produce a feeling of sincere regret among this com munity. He was the son of Mr. William Atkin, of Tamaki, and after having been with Bishop Patteson for a few years, was about four years ago ordained by Bishop Selwyti as a missionary. Like his vener able coadjutor, he has fallen in his

Master's service, and adds another name to tho long list of those who have died in extending the blessings of religion and civilization among the heathen. There can be little doubt that this sad event has an intimate con nection with the irregularities of the labour traffic among the islands. The incident mentioned by Captain Palmer, of the Kosario, in his report on the traffic, with reference to the personation of the Bishop, will now acquire a sad, significance. It will be remembered that a person engaged in the kidnapping of: islanders having clotked himself in a long : black coat, and having on ; coloured! spectacles, landed on one of the islands, and personating the Bishop, induced the natives to come off to the slave ship, and: probably time will discover' tnat some' similar cruel delusion has preceded the; recent unhappy event at Nukapu. . {] ■

CRICKET.

The first cricket match of the season took pluce to-chy, in the Albert Barracks, when twelve married men were pitted against twelve single men. The ground had been carefully rolled, and was in splendid condition, and a considerable number of spectators were pre sent. The toss was won by the married men, and the following is the result of-their first in nings :— Reos ... ... ... 13 Bueklnnd ... ... 1 Moss ... ... ... 4 Ciiadwick ... ... 0 Bowden ... ... ... 4 Maeefu-ld ... ... 20 i Kichylson ... ••• H Sharpe ... ... •■• 0 Witlieford ( .. ... - Jil'-kson ... ... ... 8 lioran ... ... ... 3 87 Byes ... ... •■• 7 VVides ... ... .- 5 Total ... ... ... 93 The friendly antagonists (hen adjourned for luncheon. ' !

Wo are not aware whether the Inspector of Nuisances is legally authorised to order the removal of such as exist in privato entries which open into public streets. One such hag lately come within our ken and our smell, and ia not a mile from the locality of the Custom House. We hope it may be within the power of the Inspector to remove it.

SPECIAL TELEGRAMS.

THIS DAY.

1 THE CALEDONIAN.—MEN I WOBKING WITHOUT MINERS' I EIGHTS. \ PKIDE OF TOKATEA. i THE MOANATAIRI.— GOOD 3 SPECIMENS. ■j

I Gkahamstown, ij p.m. | Caledonian. —The water was down at 13 a.m., aud the men commenced I clearing away. Sixty of them were 1 found working without miners' rights. I A stampede set in to the office after the visit of the Inspector to the mine. The Californian tribute have crushed 90 tons, and the result is 43 ounces of gold. [-} r_ Three cwt. weight of specimens are being crushed here from the Pride of Tokatea, Coromandel. The Moanatairi have taken out this morning, some good specimens from No. 9 leader. j The Sons of Freedom crushing has I given 3 ounces to the ton. The Dauntless tribute have crushed 13 tons; the return being 7 ounces. Inverness tribute —25 tons gave 73 ounces. Splendid stone being taken out of stopes in Nonpareil.

THE CALEDONIAN.—MINE MANAGER'S REPORT.

The following is a copy of a telegram received from the manager-.-—-: ---" 9.27 a.m. " The water is all out, and men at work iv bottom level all right. Engine working weli, keeping water 7 strokes per minute. No alteration in main stopes. A little gold iv No. 3 winze. 25(Jlbs. of specimens from stopes in JNo. 1 winze, on specimen leader j not very rich."

PONSONBY STEAM ROPE WORKS

A visit to Mr. Neil Lloyd's Steam Rope Manufactory, in the Ponsonby Road, would •well repay anyone for the trouble of walking there, especially if he had the interest of the province at heart, for it is one of the most complete establishments that we have in the neighbourhood of Auckland; in fact, without transgressing the bounds of possibility, we inny state that there is nothing of its kind to equal it in the colony. These remarks are the result of a visit paid to the establishment yesterday, wheii a couple of hours were spent very pleasantly iv watching the various operations incidental to the manufacture of cordage ot every description from tho smallest pack-thread up to the largest-sized cable. And, large as tho establishment is, and numerous as are the productions from it, the entire uumbor of employees is not more than a dozen or fifteen, the greater part of which, are boys, whose principal occupation is that of attending on the machines, which perform their functions with the regularity of clock-work. In the principal building are about a dozen machines, all at. work at once iv the manufac ture of rope in various stages. In the centre is a large hackling machine, which is kept constantly in motion straightening the flax out into long t!ii''k bundles. These bundles are now drawn through a machine called a drawer, consisting of a series of upright combs on an endless band, which draw the flax through au orifice of a size just large enough to supply sufficient flax to make what is technically known as a " thread." On being reduced to this size, the flax is taken to a spinning machine, where it is spun into tlireads and wound on a reel by the oi^e machine. Three of these reels of thread are then hitched on to another machine, which spins them into a strand. Three strands are requisite to make a rope, as probably all our readers are aware. Well, another machine takes three of these strand?, and by a very simple but very ingenious self-acting con trivance, spiiis the strands into rope. At the time of our visit, all these machines were fully employed turning out a two inch rope, at the rate of about a mile of rope in four hours. In another part of the building is to be found the apparatus for the manufacture of cables, and sucn like large work. Everything seems to be of the most complete description, and with all the machinery, when it is seen doing its work, seems to be so very-simple that the wonder is that the old-fashioned method of rope-making remains still in. iise, for it can -never compete, either in price or quality, with the work these machines turn out. We were also shown in process of manufacture a flat rope, made to the order of Messrs. T. and 3. Morrin, for the use of some mino on the Thames goldfield, for deep sinking. The rope is some sixty fathoms long, and is composed of four ropes laid side by aide, flattened, and strongly sewn together. This is also done by machinery—a combina tion of the sewing machine and a tery powerful pi-ess. The ropes arc laid side by aide, each rope having alternately a forward and backward twist, so as to equalise the strain on the four ropes. On being drawn through the machine, the; four rbpea are slightly flattened; and,' by means of an auger on each side, the whole four are pierced through. A needle of an enormous size, with a small rope for the thread, is passed through, and drawn tight by levers on each side ; and so, by a slow but sure process1, the flab rope is niitde. Mr. Lloyd assured us that, now his establishment is complete, containing all the latest American improvements in the way of machinery p ho cau produce anything in his line of business that may be required in New Zealand. This is really and truly a colonial industry, and deserves every encouragement. Speaking of colonial industry reminds us that every requisite for the business that can be produced in the province or colony is used here. The flax, coal, oil, tai1, and othor articles, are all New Zealand productions, so that the establishment is almost ■ entirely colonial, tho only exception being the ma chinery, which is of American des»gn and manufacture. In conclusion, we commend the establishment to the notice of all those who may be in any way interested in the success of colonial manufactures. —Herald. '

EAST COAST.

Eumotths were afloat thitf morning thf|t an engagement had taken place on the] East Coast, and tnat-Te Eooti had killed several of our people. The Fortune arrived from the (Joast this morning, and reports all quiet when she left Te Kaha.

THE FLOWER - GIRL OF FLORENCE.

i ' A.DiEtTv paniers, vendangessontfaites,' is | the pretty mournful refrain of a Provencal I song. It might be sung now in the City [ofFlowers, which has new street* and squares, and public promenades and foun- I tains, and banks and shops, but alas ! there I are no more flower-girls! In the Cnseine | nnd cafes are now rarely seen those dainty j figures so jauntily dressed, all pos j sessed of. the beauty of youth, and some rejoicing m a loveliness of a nobler j and rarer type, carrying basketfuls of the ' choicestrflowers which they used to proffer ! with the artless yet graceful courtesy j of their country to passers-by. ' At the end lof the season, a sum of money was given for these flowers, so that all the ng]j part of the transaction, the buying and selling was hidden from view. The boquets were ! given and received with sraile3 and cordial I words and merry farewells ' until to-mor ' row' were exchanged, and that was all. A bout ten years ago, one of these flower girls was a great favourite and especially , admired by the foreigners,—tinglish, i American, and German who stopped to ! hear the band in the Piazzone of the Cas cine.

• Oh auntie look ! what a pretty girl !" said Maud Halifax, herself a very pretty girl, (o the lady who was with her. They had stopped to hear the music on one warm April afternoon. Maud had been leaning back tired and;exhausted, for .she was in very bad health, when this lovely vision of a girl of her own age stood beside the car riage and roused her. • the is very pretty,'said Miss Halifax, 1 but what is very strange, she is very like you.' 'Oh aunt! how you flatter!' It was the fact, however; the English young lady and the Italian girl were as like as sisters. Both had dark eyes slightly aquiline noses, broad low foreheads and beautiful mouths ; but the Italian was as blooming as. her own flowers. Maud was thin, pale and languid. ' JD6 you not think I am right ?' said Miss Halifax in French to a young Hun garian officer who now came up. He assented hastily, but not before both the faces he had glanced at blushed to the roots of the hair worn by both in the same way, drawn back in simple waves from the forehead.

The flower-girl hastily threw some roses into the carriage and vanished.

'I am tired; l«t me go home,' said Maud. ' Shall we see you this evening?' said Miss Halifax to the officer.

' I do not know. Yes, yes ; I will come.' Tlie Halifax«s went home. The young officer followed the flower girl. She held out her basket to him. * I told you,' said he with an air of au thority, ' that you were never to go near that carriage.' • Why ?' •JS'ever mind; I have my reasons, Drodata.' ' Shall I ever know them ?' ' JNo, perhaps not.' He turned on his heel and was gone. The girl looked after him thoughtfully. ' I wish I knew,' she murmured. ' What do you wish to know ?' said a young Italian artist who came up ' I can tell you a great many things. Count JLin dau for instance, that young man who has just been buying your flowers, is engaged to bo married to the rich Kngiish girl at the Hotel de la Ville who is so ill. If she lives to be married he will be a rich man ; for it is said her father has settled fifty thousand Irancs a year on her husband. What is the matter Drodata P—' I must go home.' The poor girl's very lips where white.

' Come I will take you,' he said ; for he saw she was trembling too much to be able to walk;

They ntepped aside from the busy crowd. The music was pouring for h its peals of gay melody, the sky was bright aad the flowers Drodata carried seamed laughing up in elli-Ii mockery iv her face ; but she thought of ju.t'iiii.v. hoard nothing, but the dreadful words Carlo .-.ialaspani had spoken: 'Count Lindau is. going to be married.'

Why the:i ; . Pi Iheiastsix months told her he lov.-.i . r ai-.d loved her only P Why.lvid h n Sflitl i.'jit lie was glad "that he was a'Geyi!) n, fnr/iuVtris as'she had married him he -\ ouM fak o her from Flo rence ; aud at fragile no one would look down upon her for they would not kcow whether she had been a flower girl or a countess ? Why ? why ? Alas! there was no reply. Carlo was well known to her. He had always been most kind to her mother and to herself. She called it kind ness ; but in truth it was sincere and de voted love which.he felt for her. But there is often this terrible disparity and in equality in love—on one side fire, and on the other frost* The one loves, the other is loved ; and between the active and passive of that verb what a world of dif ference !

Drodata had no father. She had heard he had died when she was an infant at Venice ; and Ida Benelli, her mother, had come to Florence, poor and heart-broken, to learn how to support herself and her child. No one knew more than that fact about the pale beautiful woman. She was alone with her child, and worked hard at her needle- to support both. She wasyhow ever, evidently of gentle birth though she never alluded to the past ; and was as simple and: unpretending as if she had always lived by the labour of her hands. But evidently there had been a great sor row in her life, and it was one she never got over. She was always sad and some what stern. . i -.<. > .. , ;-.

They lived on the ground-floor of a little villa near Florence, and the flowers they cultivated were sold by Drodata. Some times her mother accompanied her; some times one of the older flowers-girls took charge of Drodata. ! Count Lindau had been slaying at a neighbouring villa, and it was during his walfts he bad met Drodata. She used to go sometimes to see the lady at whose villa he was staying,and after a few meetings be told her he loved her. Drodata brought him to her mother, and Ida Benelli gave her consent to their marriage. She told him there was no disparity iv birth be tween them, and that the secret of her life should be made known to him on the day the marriage; till then she wished the engagement to be secret. Not even Carlo Malaspina, though he was so good a friend, knew of it. : Now, as he took poor Drodala home, he first became aware of it. It was fortu nate for Lindau that Carlo could not leave

the poor girl or the Cascine of Florence would have been disturbed by a summary act of vengeance. When they arrived at\ , the villa poor Drodata dragged herself up \ j to her room. 1 ' Tell mamma,' she said, as the terrs I streamed down her face. Ida Beneili listened with set lips and , kindling eyes. ' He shall not roarry this i English girl,' she said ; ' her father shall . know what a traitor he is.' SEe event upstairs, kissed the poor tear ,! stained ciieek of her givl, and went , I down again. ' Come with me, Carlo,' she , said. Mr. Halifax wan at; dinner when he ', ! was told he was wanted. ' Who is it ?' ; ' A lady. . She says she will wait.' "'Who is in the dra',\ ing-room?' 'Maud is thore,' said Miss Halifax. ' She said she would have some tea there instead of dining with us.' When Mr. Halifax had finished he weals to the drawing-room. Th« lights had not been lit. He heard her daughter's voice, con versing with some one; and as his eyes became accustomnd t~ the gloom he saw a tall slight form leaning over the couch where she lay. : : . 11 hear you wanted me,' he said politely. ' How can I serve madame ? At that moment the waiter came in and the light fell on Ida's face. 'Good Heaven!' said Mr, Halifax. ' Ida S Have the waves given up the dead ? ~ 'Is it you—you —you ?' and the poor woman fell at his feet. ' What is the matter, papa P' said Maud, sobbing. There waß n good deal of con fusion at first, but finally Ida was restored to her senses and then Mr. Halifax ex* plained aud Ida explained. He had married Ida Contarina afc Venice twenty years before. A year after their marriage, just before the birth of her child, Ida's conteasor so filled hej with fears for her own soul and that d£tne child about to be born,that the poor woman nearly lost her senses. She determined to fly and leave no trace by which she could be re* called. She threw her veil and mantle out of her gondola, and disguised in an . ecclesiastical costume, left Venice. There was a rumour that she had committed sui cide. This was industriously circulated by the priest; and poor Mr. Halifax elft Venice miserable and convinced that he was a widower. Two years afterwards, to please his sister, he married a young Eng lish girl who died in giving birth to Maud, He thought there was a curse upon him, that all he loved should thus be taken. J3e consigned Maud to his sister and spent years in travelling in Egypt, India, China, Greece, Syria — everywhere but Italy-—un til he had been summoned home on account of Maud's health. On growing up Maud had shown signs of great delicacy. For the last two years—she was now seventeen (Drodata was nineteen but from her health and bloom looked as young, if not younger than her sistes) —she had been in Ic-tly. She had regained a little strength at Flo rence, had gone out a little into society, and had met Count Lindau. It was well known that she was a rich heiress ; he had proposed and been accepted. Mr. Halifax, from the moment he had returned to Italy, had become more melan choly and aloomy than ever ; he seemed hauuted by bitter and undying memories. He felt that his daughter also would be taken from him and shuddered as he looked at her. Ib was a sad home and Maud had been naturally pleased afc the cheerful genial manners of the youug Hun garian, and looked upon her marriage as an escape from the erer-deepening gloom of her home.. But once the marriage was settled, Lindau became cold and somewhat inattentive. The quick instincts of woman hood told Maud that she was notloven; she had heard whispers of Lindau's admiration for some beautiful flower-girl. When she saw Drodata she had an intui tive knowledge that it was she.

She was thinking of these things that night when the waiter ushered in a lady Tda had corns up to her and had also been struck apparently by Maud's likeness to Drodata.

In her beatiful pathetic voice Ida had told Maud the purpose of her visit. ' I have come to you to save you from a mercenary man, as I would wish any one to have come to save my child had she been thus betrayed and deceived. Ho must lose you, as he has lost her. Jt was at this point of the conversation that Mr. Halifax had entered. ";

, JVeed I describe the happiness, tardy as it was, of these two re-united hearts? Need I dwell upon the warmth with which the two sisters accepted their new relation ship ? .Need I say that Lindau was dis missed ?

About a month afterwards a carriage on the Cascine was the centre of attraction to all present. In it was Miss Halifax, and by her side was a lady of faded but exquisite beauty. Opposite were two girls so alike that but for the paler com plexion and slighter form they could scarcely have been known apart. They were Mr. Halifax s two daughters. ' Was not Count Lindau to have married the pale one once P' asked a young Italian of his friend.

1 Yes, and he was in love with both, I believe ; but he has left Florence now. At present I. should say, the only man who has chance with them is - Carlo Malaspina.' r - ' But Malaspina was in love, I thought, with that beautiful Drodata, who was as good as she was as beautiful.'- ' That beautiful Drodata is the eldest Miss Halifax. There was some family quarrel and Mrs. Halifax lived away from herjhusband nineteen years. He-thought she'was dead and married again, tie only knew the truth a month ago.' . .. \ 'What a romance!' \

'Yea; and who could be a^jprdtt # heroine than our pretty flower-girl ?'

THE SHARE MARKET.

Mb. J. M. Lennox's Repobt.—There w» an improvement in the share market to-day. Caledonian shares' sold at advanced ratea. My sales comprise : Caledonian, £115 to £122 10s; 1 names, £23 to £24,; Tokatea, 82s 6d. Closing sellers: Caledonian, £12210s ; Thumea, £24; Tokatea/ 82s 6d; All Nations, 655. Closing buyers: Caledonian, .£l2oj Thames, £23.

EXPORT OF GOLD.

The Bank of New Zealand shipped on board the s.s. City of Adelaide, for Sydney*, Via: Wel lington, 4 boxes gold, containing 5610 ozi -2 dwts. 18 grs., value £22,778.

THE EVENING STAR, AUCKLAND, TUESDAY, OOTOBEB 31, 1871.