SUPREME COURT.

■3 his Day.

In Bankruptcy.

(Before His Honor Mr Justice Ward.) „ -,-rrrTCiF3. -The bankruptcies of the FSTTreons wore declared to be Wfflfewy Edwin Rogers, Samuel Sr and Thomas Cole. VSeks of Discharge: -Orders of dis , Z were granted to William Tole and SnSfc Preston Hollis after the debtors had t°*n examined. A similar motion in n Matthew Henry Roe was deferred till 2

pln' Matthew Hexry Roe (a bankrupt.) \fr CaWi on behalf of the Official As- TfflL moved for directions as to accept -5 1o Vp 'of offers made for the pur f% of the book debts. An affidavit by l a -io-neo set out that the offers received 1 £200 from Mr A. Baddiloyand £300 f el' c' Mr .T. J- Craig, but he considered ■m inadequate. — His Honor did not l^i- the statement of facts-sufficient to 1 nrelnm that the Official Assignee should Treated on the book debts, and therefore Xinedto make an order. In the same . T)r iiishley moved for the reference Tthe.debtor's solicitors' bill of costs to "J ojoigtrar for taxation.—As this was SffirsUppUcation of the kind, His Honor 1 the motion ought to have been pre 'frlrtl by an application for payment. The lter was tlw'i postponed till to-morrow "Jj^oon.in order that this application may SjorESWatiuf.x (a dobfcor). —A motion l.WCotter for the public examination of iL^.Wavren (a bankrupt) was deferred flltlietiret bankruptcy sitting in .May.

THE NEW BEACON.

.. j j_ jjAitsirAT.f*, the contractor for tho new beacon upon the Eangitoto reef, in | crms «3 that his work lias at last been com- I i after various vicissitudes of wind and Kther. and tho ne^- beacon .is vvfait cv !/• Mr Macgregor, the Harbour S,Engineer, will 'take over tho work, 3 whiAe has expressed himself well Sed, about Wednesday next, when £ Paging and wharf erected by L contractor has been removed. Thederien of this new work oftheHar ,„„, Hoard's is taken almost exactly fr Sriieaton's Edclystone Rock light. £ work, which cort *£G2,000, w removed a few years ago in con -s enueDce of tho rock on which it stood ■Jomin" unsafe, a new one being erected So,t°of£7:i,COO. Standing 72 feet in Li* the same as Smeaton h work, with a beautiful curve, the beacon will, when its Wthas been placed upon it, become one ot ii finest lighthouses in the colonies. Unlike the old Eddystorie light, the iirst 20 feet of the tower, which is 27 feet in width j* it's base is of solid masonry. Smeaton s tower had a staircase in it. At 20 feet above the rock the tier has diminished to 20 feet in <rirth. in the next 20 feet to lo ieet, then it becomes slightly concave in line. The solid ba?e of the tower is muoh needed, peat oreeii seas striking the tower as high up as°2o feet- at times, the wash reaching Mother 15 feet. That the sea there, is pretty roudi now and then, may be Lamed when we learn that when the contactors had got up the outside casing to 20 icet one. night, all was washed away meaning a clear loss to Mr J. .1. Marshall of over £150. The total, con tract price for the beacon was, v.-c believe, £\,noo, little enough to pay fora work of the Wnd -we should think ; but we find that instead of fitting up the rooms in the tower over £1.000 is to be spent in nuiking a road to the little island on the Kangifoto fide, on which at present the pilot" reside?. lVhy, when a lighthouse keeperi* required he cannot reside in the room' which are the same size as those oc cupied for '200 years in Smeaton's work, js more than we, or anyone else, in all pro bability, can answer. ' This is more strange v.hen ire consider that the keeper will never be more than a day without being able to reach land, whereas the wo men at the Edystone light used to be weeks and weeks out of sight of land when any storm came on, and were nimble to communicate with t.'ie shore all that time. Tho cost of a house also would have to be added to the cost of the proposed road. Last Friday a party consisting of Capts. Davney and Seymour 'jeonre, find Messrs Ware, .McGregor, and J. Russell visited the embryo lighthouse in '.lie dredger.

BANKRUPTCY.

At a meeting of the creditors of J. Lowe, storekeeper, of Ponsonby Road, Mr R. Sarrett (Mitchelson and Co), proposed, and Mr jl. Eyre seconded, " That Mr Maokay be called on to give a statement of the stock taken away from Lowe Bros.', and that Mr Mackay bo requested to at tend a meeting of creditors to be called at a future date."

James Moir, of Otahuhu, in the course of examination before the: Official Assignee in [ Bankruptcy, said that he sold a house ami i acre of ground to his uncle for £350 in , January last. He sold the property to pay ! his debts but lie had not £'2M) cash in | liana1 a fortnight before ho filed. He had paid away no money within three months jf tiling except for necessaries. The hist trade account he paid was about. £'25 Early in December last. At that time he Hpected to be- able to pay everybody in j full, ,iirl would have done so but for ] pressure on the part of two or three credi tors. He went to Sydney in January j"*, tlie trip costing about £13, his object wing to raise money to pay his debts, but j «c was not successful. ' Except house j »nd allotment belonging to la's wife j '« had no interest in property at j Otahnliu beyond tlie section valued j t £45 referred to in his schedule of j 'fits. When he commenced building on I l"sfather-in-luws section, there was a verbal understanding that if he would build upon it Ills fatlier-iii-W would give the land. This JMeßtnnding was beween his wife and her father. While the house was in courno of traction, a deed was made conveying the property to his wife and it was four months aitcr that before nc became aware of the wture of the gift and its conditions. He J-w under the impression that the ladd W been given without any restrictions, mtllieeot materials for building the house Cn credit, on the strength of that under standing. He had no difficulty in getting c[«lit, and lie made no representations 'tout the gift when getting credit. He pied drawing t-20 from the bank on the Saturday before he filed.

Garlick & Cranwell v. F. Williams.

(To the Editor.) »m,-.T!ie ex parle statement reported in j y°w Saturday's issue is likely to convey a j Wrong and injurious impression of us to the public ; therefore, will you kindly insert the < 'wowing explanation ! F. Williams pur chased goods amounting to £5 Is 7d from «s«v November last for canh on deliver;/. Alter delivery lie refused to pay, and after repeated applications for three or four months we placed it in the hands of the Mutual Creditors' Association for collection, failing to get payment, handed it to War solicitors, Messrs Burton and Kecsing, 10 sue for. Williams confessed judgment ™<J paid the amount into Court minus the wieikms' fees. The solicitors tbon pro r*"e<l to recover their fees, and the 5s 'ntcrest was m i c lmr»cil by us, but was «"iccl to the account by the solicitors W OUt. our knowledge or consent,-

THE SPECIAL SETTLEMENTS AT HOKIANGA.

A gentleman who has watched the forma tion of the special settlements in the Hold nnga district with much interest, and who has had every opportunity of judging of the likelihood of their proving a success, gives us the following information : — All the settlements along the Hokiaiiga harbour will be in the main successful if the Government help the settlers to tide over the first twelve months. The settlers with very few exceptions are ener getic men of the right stamp of character to make hardworking and successful colonists. They arc pleased with their prospects, and, although times are very hard with them at present, do not grumble to any extent. Our informant was at Waimamuku when the lust batch of settlers arrived on Thursday last. There were 17 men,4 women and several children, mostly from the Papakura swamp, wliem Mr Lundon delivered some of his special settlement addresses not long since. The same mistake that we called attention to when the Herekino settlers went on to their land, and which has. chilled the energy of those persons taking up sections in all these settlements, was again apparent ab Waimamuku. The sections were nob marked out, there was no work for the settlers to go to at once, and no one to direct them us to what to get about first. That someone acquainted with the district should be appointed to meet the settlers and aid them with reliable counsel, and with food where necessity arises, will not be disputed, wo believe. As it has tinned out, most of the new settlers have turned to upon n gumfield close at hand to gain a livelihood, hoping for the promised Uovcrnnicnb work by-and by. Mr Howe, this one storekeeper (at the Heads) in the vicinity, was good enough, although he has had no guarantee from the (Jovern ment, to supply goods to these hungry ones. Those who took up land in the first of the settlements are getting on well, and if they can stand the coining winter, a successful ending may be hoped fcr.

Arrival of Government Stores

CONDITION OF THE SETTLERS

Captain Robertson, master of the s.s. Oreti, which returned from Whangape and .Ahipara yesterday, informs us that ho landed Government stores, including Hour, tea and sugar shipped at Onehunga, at these ports. It, was intended that the settlers should be supplied by the Movernment at cost price until such time as the local storekeepers were in a position to meet all demands. Captain Robertson ridicules the idea of tho settlers being c" starving."' He says that some of them, no doubt, had a pretty rough time during the first week at Whangape, but now they appear to be well pleased with their prospects. So far from provisions being dear, a Mr Bowman has been supplying beef killed at the settle ment, for Hd per lb, and besides this there are said to be plenty of wild cattle that can be shot in the bush. Captain Robertson further informs us that there is an abundance of iisli available,and that gum is so easily got out that one man

can make as much i:> a week gnvndigging as he would probably make in .Auckland in a month. As a proof of this, and in order to show what tho settlers can do when put to tho test. he refers to an instance where a number of the settlers wanted to go to horse races at Ahipara. They had no money, and set about digging gum upon which they might realise. The result was that they each did remarkably well, sold their gum to Bowman, and went to the races and had a jolly good time. This certainly does not look like starvation. Captain Robertson believes the settlers were never better oil' in their lives, and they know it. He spoke with several ef them and jokingly asked, '■'Well", do you" want to come back?' and they replied, '.' Do you think we are fools '!" On the whole the settlers appear to be getting on very satis factorily, and when arrangements have been made for a regular supply of stores by local dealers, it is expected that, no further calls will be made upon the < Govern ment in this direction.

AN IMPORTANT JUDGMENT.

At a special sitting-of the R.M. Court to day, Mr H. G. Seth Smith, R.M., gave judgment in the case Brothers v. Tlie Auck-! land and Xorth Sliorc Ferry Company. In j this case, it will be remembered that the i plaintiff (a sea captain) sued the Com- ! pany for the recovery of £100 damages j for alleged breach of agreement to employ j him as captain of the steamer Eagle. The j agreement was as follows : - In considcra- j tion of the plaintiff taking 400 .-hares in the l defendant Company.the plaintiff will be tip- j pointed captain of one of the boats belong- \ ing to the defendant, as soon as they are ready for sea. Mr Cotter had moved for a nonsuit, on the ground that the plaintiff j hud not shown that the two boats were ready for sea and the agreement was there fore not broken until the plaintiff showed that both boats were ready for sea. Mr Cooper, for the plaintiff, had contended that the agreement must be read as if it had been written that the captain was to have command of the first 'boat, then being built by the : Company, as soon as it was ready For sea. , ! and as it was .shown that as the Kigle, though it did not. come up to the Company s expectation, yet was lit for sea, the plaintiff should have been employed on : hbr. He also contended that the com ! pany had shown unreasonable delay m j not completing the boats. His Worship !in giving judgment, said after considering i the point raised by Mr Cotter, he was ot 1 (lie opinion that the plaintiff must. jbe nonsuited. The agreement did ! nob show any patent ambiguity, j nor was there any latent ambiguity Uw ! dosed by the evidence. The agreement ! distinctly said that the plaintiff was to be 1 appointeil captain of one of the boats Iso soon as they were ready for sea. it therefore devolved upon the plaintitl to ! show that both boats were ready for sen. | The use of" the words "ready for sea he took to mean not only the mere capacity of being able to float, but a capacity to i\o ! the work contemplated by the Company. No unreasonable delay coidd be attributed jto the Company according to the evidence in ! the completion of the boats,and the pUun ! tiff would therefore be nonsuited w»tli I costs, £0 14s.

The attendance at the Temperance Hall j on Saturday night was not so large us i«"-'aL j An earnest address on the dangers ot tno '• Prinking Customs" was given by Ml" G. G. Hill. The chair was occupied by Mr ] Joshua Robinson, one of the oldest members . of the Total Abstinence Society, who also spoke on the subject, and expressed his gratitude that hit example had been followed in his family and descendants, (said to number sixty-four persons 1" all. The programme included a react ing, "Father Phil's Subscription List," by Mr Allen ; hymn, piano selection, glee> duet, song (solo), trio, duet, recita tion, song, duet, song. With the ex ception of Mrs Allen, all those who "contributed" were either members of the Chairman's family, or related to him by marriage, and included Misses Hill (2), Plummet (2), and Morgan, and Messrs Plummcr, Hall, and Morgan. It was announced that the Havelock Band ot Hope will contribute the programme of next Saturday's meeting,

ANOTHER FIRE.

Colebrook's Store Destroyed

SUPPOSED INCENDIARISM.

(FROM OCR OWN CORRESPONDENT.)

Coromaxdel, this day. SHORTLY before eight o'clock last evening the firebell was rung, and tho people rushed out of church. It was soon ascertained that the fire was in Messrs J. D. Colebrook and Go's general store in Kapanga Road, and in a very few minutes hundreds of willing hands were ab the scene ready to render assistance, and a considerable quantity of goods were re moved. A report was circulated that a large quantity of dynamite was stored in one of the out-houses, and, for a time, caused a panic. This militated very much against checking the flames, and the fire obtaining a firm hold, tho buildings were soon destroyed.

The fire originated in an open shed at the back of the .store, and must have been the work of an incendiary, as no tire whatever had been on the premises since midday on Saturday except a kerosene lamp in "the evening. The insurance is £'2."0, and the damage about £00(1.

Mr Colebrook and his family did not live on the premises.

NORTHERN MAORI REPRESENTATIVE.

(MY TELF.OKAI'H — OW.V CORRESPONDENT.)

Wixr.iNOTON-, this day Mr Wirrmu Kateni:, an influential Nga puhi chief, is mentioned as the probable candidate to be selected by his tribe for the seat vacated by the death of Hakuene. Kat.'iie, who is one of the most powerful ehieis of Ngnpnhio, was formerly a member of the House, and for some time occupied a seat in the cabinet.

THE LENGTH OF ATLANTIC STEAMERS.

Discirssi.vc the question of the advance in the size of steamers, and as to the proba bility of tho rate of advance being main tained, the " Shipping Gazette " says : —

It is quite true that we have in the City of Rome a vessel 5(50 feet long1 over all, and that we have four other vessels just over 500 feet,but in order to judge as to whether steamers are to continue to grow in length, it is necessary to trace the course of the great lines by which such large vessels are managed and owned, and thus see whether experience, which is the chief guide, has led them on to the adoption of greater and greater lengths, or whether the converse he true. They will not be guided in their policy by any desire either to fulfil or falsify a prediction, but rather, so far as their lights will allow, with a view to the profit of their shareholders. When we turn to such an analysis, it becomes obvious that of all the great lines, the Cunard only appear to continue to have faith even in 500 feet of length, and theyseemto have been shaken intlnyrbelief. That company built the Servia, 51.5 feet long, in 1881, but in the following year a reaction set in, and they fell back to lengths of 47(1 feet in the Aurania, and 430 feet in the Pavonia and Cephalonia. Finally, in KSB4 they advanced again, and built the Umbria and Etruria, both ">Ol feet long. The ininan Line has, on the other hand, gone back. In 1873 they built the City of Chester, 440 feet long, and in the following year the City of Berlin, of 4SS feet, but their last vessel, the City of Chicago, is but 430 feet. The experience of that company over the nine years from 1574 to ISSS served to load them in ordering a new vessel to re duce the length in comparison with their largest by fully 58 feet. It is true that in ISSI they ordered the City of Rome, but they did so under a misapprehension which the builders shared as to the probable performance of that vessel, and they consequently declined to take her over when she was completed. Next, as to the National line. Prior to ordering the America in ISS.S, their longest vessel was the Egypt, of 4-JO feet, built as long ago as 1871; yet, in placing the order for the former vessel, which has'been one of the most successful in the Atlantic trade, their experience led them to decide not to increase her length beyond that of a vessel of the same line built twelve years previous ly. Thu Oceanic has been probably the most successful of the large companies whose vessels sail from Liverpool, and to what conclusion does their experience lead"/ The Oceanic, built in 1870, was 4-20 feet long ; the Adriatic, built in |IS7I, was 4J57 feet; and the Britannic land flermanic, built in 1574, were 4oi> fret. There was thus an increase of 'A~> feet j i:i four years, but- the Company evidently concluded that they had reached about, as I high a limit as profitable working would allow, IV;;- their vessels built in 1881 and I^S."! were 430 feet and 440 feet respectively, while the two latest, the Oaelic and Belgic, built in .ISSS, are but 420 feet. The ex ; perienco of this highly successful Company i during the eleven yean from 1874 has thus | caused them to reduce tho length of I their steamers from 4-)"» feet to 420 I feet, which is precisely the length i with which they started in IS7O. The ves sels of the Anchor Lino have been built almost uniformly 400 feet long from 1873. In ISSU. however, they built the Furnessia, j 455 feet.but their experience of her appears to have been such that in the following year, when ordering the Bclgravia, they | returned to their former practice. These facts (.rove that instead of the lengths of I Atlantic pnssengei1 vessels increasing dur- I ing tho past few years, the tendency^ has j been rather to decrease, except in the case lof one company.

TELEGRAMS.

[press association.]

Weiattwjtoj?', this day. It is understood that one of the firm in tends to claim £94,000 compensation for depriv'atiou of foreshore rights by the reclamation now going on at Tc Aro.

Matltkrtox, this day.

\ Maori named Tuko, aged 18, was killed on' Saturday through the upsetting of a dray load of timber.

Jubilee Celebration.

On Saturday night a public meeting de rlircd in favour of the erection of a drink -,,'rr fountain and ceremony as a memorial o "the Ouecvs Jubilee. The Old People's Homo project was considered too costly.

A Dishonest Barman.

At the X M. Corut to-day, a barman at the Clarendon Hotel .was convicted of Hi-cenv of money from tho till, and was gent to -aol for three ipoirtUu.

LATEST SPORTING.

\ : ' Helensville Races. ;: £

The following acceptances have been re ceived for the Helensville races, which take place next Saturday :—

Cup.—Highland Mary, Britannia, Okato, Victory, Cat, Cannon, Makiri, Friendship, Bangalore, Tamora, Yankee, Ma Petite FiUe.

Hurdles.—Torpedo, Investment, Pipi, Larrikin No. 2, Native, Tawhaio, Fisher man, Fairplay, Rowdy, Auctioneer, Izaak Walton.

Maiden Plate.—Cannon, Coma, Wat Tyler, Britannia, Grandma, Dorenda, Tupaki, Smike, Deceitful, Bangalore, Orangeman, Makiri, Tauraki, Iris. Selling Hurdles.—Evening Star, Whale bone, Surprise, Minuet, Woodpecker, Coma, Iziiak Walton, Native, Tawhaio, St. David. Poxy Novel Race.—Mignonette, Sally, Violet, Sandfly, Makiri.

Novel Rack. - Smike, Mignonette, Sally, Mermaid, Woodpecker, Yankee, Barney, Kate, Native.

A special train will run from Auckland for the convenience of race.goers. _ v .

After the Selling Hurdles race had been run at the North Shore on, Saturday after noon, Mr D. Tonka put tho winner (Fisher man) up to auction, when ho was bought in by his owner (Mr J. Rae) at £50.

THE GOLDFIELDS.

Thames, this day

Svxox.—Cormon's reef has not yet been picked up in the hill ward drive at No. 3 level. The dark seam of sandstone is still being followed.

[BY TELEGIUPir.—PRESS ASSOCIATION.]

DuNEDIN, this day. A cake of 200ozs lias been obtained from the Pluvnix Mine for I' 2 (.lays crushing.

DEATH FROM APOPLEXY.

(BY TKLEGRAPII.—OWN' CORRESPONDENT.)

Hamilton*, this day

As inquest was held here this morning on the body of a man named Lawrence Heyes, who died on Saturday night of apoplexy. Some time ago ho got a sunstroke. Heye's will be remembered as the victim in n rape case. He was sentenced to live years imprisonment but afterwards was par doned.

Gussie Was so Superstitious.

" \"oti kuow," sho said, " that pa couldn't bear Gussic. He said that Gus was really no good whatever ; tliat ho wouldn't work, and didn't know anything beyond cigarettes. la was just awfully down on him, and the last time (!iis> came to see me pa heard him in the parlor and came down with a rush, and before he could get down the front stops pa kicked him real hard with hie left foot. Pu has been lame ever since. And I don't care if ho is. I know Gus felt real hurt about it. He .said no man ever kicked him with his left foot before, and it was real bad luck. I've tried a hundred times to yet him to cotne and see me again, but he won't." -'Why not?' " Oh, ho is so su perstitious !" j-

Wo understand that, the p.p. Hinemoa Mill be at the Maimkuu on Sunday next for the conveyance of 'the Auckland members of the Legislature to Wellington for the opening of ParlSamen on Tuesday nexb. The steamer, winch must, leave on the Sun day, will call at Kew Plymouth on the Mon day to enable members who so desire to break tho journey there by taking the train for the reo lainder of the distance.

A meeting in connection with the Villago Settlement. Scheme is convened for Wed nesday next at tl»e Albert-street Hall. Mr Lundon, the convener, by advertisement in another column, telmllenges all malcontents to meet him there to air their grievances.

An altercation, occurred in the vicinity of the Thames Hotel to-day, between a coloured man and white porter. The coloured individual caused some excitement by brandishing a knife, but he did nob use it on his antagonist.

Only three candidates" presented them selves for the Senior District Scholarship Examination, which commenced to-day. These were A. "Withy, McLaiwin, and Wernham.

James Lowndcs was arrested by Serjeant Clarke to-dayj on the charge of v nlawf ully assaulting Charles Strum by striking him on the jaw with his clenched list and breaking it. The assault is alleged to have been committed at Ellerslio on Mon day and the injured man is now in tl.\e hospital, anil suid to be in a critical con dition.

The exhibition of the Art. Society of Auckland was again opened at twelve o'clock, since then a good number of per sons have visited tflfo exhibition. The clear, sunny weather affords plenty of liglii with which to view the works of art.

Mr P. Doran and the Variety Company/ who have been performing in the City Hall, ' intend shortly giving a fortnight's enter tainments in the Opera House. The past season has bean rather unfortunate i*-. a pecuniary sense., because of the larg<e number of opposition "shows" that weie " run" simultaneously, bub the perfor mances were of a high order of excellence and deserve gofid patronage. It is the im tention of the I,'onipany to offer a benefit to Mr Doran, aifll on that occasion,when fixec'l, there is sure to be a hearty recognition of his services. The half-mile race for trophies presenle rl to the Poosonby F.C. will take place on Hnturday, 30th April. Members are r<s minded of the practice in the Domain ti >- morrow1 evening at half-past 7.

Fate deals unkindly with some bold men, and so ifc has with the captain of Lord Dudley's yacht, who, after navigating the beautiful little vessel three-quartei a of tho way round the world, up little j known rivers and through unfamiliar sea: i, has now been left behind in Melbourne suffering from insomnia, cause:! no doubt by many an anxious nightly vigil when the taut little craft lie commanded has been plunging- o'er the billows. To a. sailor the thought of being left like a. wreck ashore in a strange land', must be in expressibly annoying. Sadder ?till to think that the lively little craft lie has navigated so successfully should have to answer the words of comimand from another's lips. But life is full of the dark; threads of 1 ortune. 1

A MYSTERIOUS DISAPPEAR ANCE.

Lost in the domain. ?j|

The fate of the old man, Donald Grant, who wandered from the Old Men's Refuge last Monday, still remains a mystery. Search parties have been out ever since hunting in all directions, yet nob the slightest trace of the unfortunate man has been dis covered. It is therefore to be feared that some serious mishap has occurred, as the old man was much too feeble to have wandered far. It will be remembered that Grant was last seen in the Domain, and on this account it has been supposed that he has got lost in some of the retired spots, and probably has succumbed to ex haustion or starvation. The Domain has now been twice thoroughly searched, but without any signs of the wanderer being found. . ......

THE BRITISH IN BURMAH.

Despite the trials that Mandalay has gone through since the annexation _of Upper Burninh, a correspondent (writing to the ' Rangoon Times' of a recent date) observes that a walk through the city now affords ample evidence of how it has profited by its change of rulers; The changes which have taken place in Mandalay during the year in which it has been in our possession are very great. When, on the 28th of November, 1885, our troops disembarked and marched in three columns upon the walled city, not altogether sure of the reception which awaited them, they passed along wide streets certainly, but streets full of deep ruts and pitfalls which must have been veritable quagmires but a few weeks before. Hun dreds of pigs and pariah dogs were doing their iilthy oftice of scavengers in the streets and by-ways, for the people then threw out their litter and refuse upon the public thoroughfares. The bazaars and shops were closed, and, although there were crowds here and there along the route, it was clear that the population was not nearly up to its normal strength, lhe main thoroughfares are now clean and well kept —11 miles of metalled road have been made ; they are well lighted, lamps being placed at every 30 or 40 yards ; the streets are thronged with people, and wheeled traffic is astonishingly great; the ravages of the flood have nearly disappeared, and to some extent those of the tiro also, as far as the outer town is concerned ; the people are building new pukka houses in place of the old ones of wood or mat; the value of ground for building purposes has advanced in the most amazing way, more than cent per cent, ; trade is flourish ing, the King's Bazaar being as bu3y a mart as can be seen in any town; the people seem to have nettled down com pletely under their new rulers; police posts have taken tho place of military uicquots (a detachment of Infantry at the shore and another at the Arrakan Pagoda, on the southern road, are alone kept up), and the Civil Administration is firmly es tablished. Tho city is a square of which a each face in about '2,200 yards, and its area is thus 1,000 acres ; the ixdace enclosure is exactly 100 acres. Tho whole of tho north-wesi quarter will be devoted to Civil lines, the new gaol now being built to accommodate 2500 prisoners being in the angle formed by the junction ot the north and west walls. Under the Bur man Kings the people living within the walls wore free from taxation, but had no residential rights : all the land was royal property, and houses were only built by special permission. The Ministers' houses are solid structures, but the mass of the buildings are merely mat huts. 'Thus, out of the ~vJ'J houses which we found existing, only 134 were of brick, and 191 of timber. During the tires 500 or SOO houses were destroyed.

How Peter Popped the Ques tion.

Me and Sal grot along middlin' well for some time, but thing* was jrettin' on no ferrerder, so I made up my mind to fetch 'em to a hed, for I loved ho- harder and harder every day. But how to do the thing ! I gob some lnv books, red how fellers* wot down on their marrowbones, and talked Tike parsons, and how the gals would gently fall into the feller's arms, bub somehow that way didn't suit my notion. I asked maim how dad courted her, but she said it had been so long since that she'd forgot all about it. (Unkle Joe aliens says mann done all the courtin'.) At last I made up my mind to try it any how, for I could nob stand it no longer. So 1 goes over to her daddy's house, and when 1 got there I sob like a fool thinkin how I should begin. , Sal she saw Bomthin' was trubhn me, and sez she, " Ain't you sick, Peter ?"' _ " Yes—well, no," sez 1, " that is, I am b exactly well. I bhoughb I'd come over to night,*' sez I, and there I stuck. " Sal," sez I, startin' at it again. " Yes," sez she. " Sal," sez I, again, and stuck once more, the perspiration comin' out all over me. " Peter," sez she, " there's somethin' a troublin' you, I know, and its mighty wrong for you to keep it from a body, for an innerd grief, Peter, is a consumin' lire." Then I looks at her. "Sal," sez I, getting desperate, "does you luv anybody V " Well," sez she, " I luvs dad and mann, and—let me see," sez she; yes, there's old Phyde" (that was a cow of hern). "I can'b think just right oil'," sez she, "of anybody else just now.'' That was orfnl for a feller dead in luv, so after a while I tries another shute. " Sal," sez I, wipin' my brow with my pocket handkerchief, " I'm powerful lone somo to hum, and I sometimes think if I'd only a pretty wife," sez I, "I'd be a tre inenjus feller." Well, witli that wliab does she do but be gins and names over all the gals within five miles of thar, and never wunst come a-nigh namin' of herself, and said I orb to get ono of them. That sorter got my dander up, and so I hitched my cheer close to hern, and sheb my eyes, and stedies myself, and sez I desperate, " Sal," nays I, " you're bhe very gal I've been hankerin' after for a long time, and, if you say so, we'll bo joined in the happy bonds of matrimony, c pluribus unum, world without end !" sez I. And 1 felt like I'd throw'd up an allygatur, I felt so relieved. Sal, she fetched a sorter scream, and after a while, she sez," says she, " Peter !" " Well, Sal," sez I. " Which is it to be ? " Well, yes," sez she. ' " Glory, glory !" sez I, with a shout; and with that I kissed her—and such a kiss ! O, Jehosifat ! Talk about yer sugarcandy ! talk about yer molasses ! yer blackberry jam ! They couldn't come ben mile nigh to I it.—From " Popping the Question," by the ! Rev. David Macrae.

The local manager of the New York Life Insurance Company (Mr J. Hugo Harrop) has furnished us with a copy of the Com pany's balance-sheet for the year ended 31st December, 1886, and we have extracted the following information therefrom, as it will no doubt interest some of our readers :—- The income for the year exceeded £4,000,000, being a substantial increase over 1885. The cash assets have been largely added to likewise, and nearly approach sixteen millions sterling (£15,712,802)._ The income from investments alone was £7 / 0,t>21, whilst the death claims amounted to £574,382. These figures we leave to 6peak for themselves.

EXTRAVAGANT SALARIES.

A Retrenchisff I<ealslator of the .-,>. Bight Stamp. yVi

THE MAN TO CUT iWWN THE^GO-

VEKNORS SALARY.

Mr Allex, of Mississippi) is the stamp of man we want in New Zealand tv attack tho Governor's salary and G f\">' ex travagances. In a vigorous speech lately against the excessive salaries paid to several officers, he said :—

Gentlemen defending the increase of the salary of the Minister to China from 12,000d015. to 17,000 say that the people of this great, rich Government do not want to starve their Ministers abroad. I have heard a great deal since I have been here about our rich Government and the surplus in the treasury. Whenever a raid on the treasury is contemplated there is a great deal of talk about tho rich Government and the surplus. " I would ask gentlemen who talk about our rich Government where its riches and its surplus come from. It is from the taxation of the people. Then so long as these burdens are borne in a large measure by tho poor, away with tho cry of ' rich Government' as a pretext for extravagant appropriations. If you will change your system of taxation so that the Government will become rich from the abundance of the rich, I will meet you on a broad and liberal system of appropriations. I would ask the^ fgentleman from North Corolina (Mr Cox) to go down among his constituents and ask the man who spends two or three days getting up his pine knots and as many more burning a barrel of tar, then hauls it twenty-five or thirty miles to market and sells it for 4dols. 50 o j (idols in vests this money in the necessaries of life for his family, most of which are heavily taxed, and a part of which taxes helps to pay the salary of the Minister of China-go ask him what he thinks of a man starving to deatli on 12,000d015. a year. Or go to the girls as I saw them in your State last summer, spending an entire day picking huckleberries and chincapins, and on the day following taking them some six or eight miles to town to sell them for 25 or ;">0 cents, as the market might rule-ask them what they think of a man starving to death on 12,000d015. a year. Go down amongst my constituents, where a man works hard thirteen months in the year, and by the aid of his wife and little children makes 2Uodols. worth of cotton, a portion of which goes to pay taxes—ask him what he thinks o? a man starving to death on a salary of 12,000d015. a year.

"Go to the poor sewing women in Washington and New York City, who, as I have read within tho last few days, sew from twelve to fourteen hours a day without rest even on the Sabbath ; who furnish their own needles, thread and wax, and have families to support, andonly get 3.50d015. a week. Go ask them what they think of a man starving to death on 12,000d015. a year. So long as these people have to help bear an appre ciable portion of the burdens of the Govern ment, so long as the Goveroment gets its riches and its surplus in part from this portion of our population, gentlemen must excuse me if I refuse to follow them in their proposition to make extravagant appropria tions. Tliey may call it parsimony or de magogy—they cannot frighten me with such appellations. " I am goin<* to fight it out on this line unless after along stay ill Washington I imbibe the views of those who consider themselves broad-gauge statesmen—those who mistake voting away other people's money for individual liberality. Mr Chair man, I cannot surrender my views or the in terest of the people who sent me here to fol low the recommendations of gentlemen who occupy BpaciouH rooms in buildings that cost millions, walk on deep Brussels carpets, with as many electric bells around them as there are key* to a piano with which to summon attendants or messengers to cany their orders and to supply their wants. "Mr Chairman, if I had my way and could enforce it on the members of this body, I would require each of them to go home after March 4th and plant a crop, and hoe it.and plough it.and I would confine them in their rations and raiment to what they realised from farming. They would come back here next Decem ber with one great truth deeply im pressed on their, minds, and that is how the great majority of the working people of this nation earn the money which the Government takes from them by way of taxation. I think it would make us a little more particular, at least until we had forgotten this experience, as some who are here and who come from similar surroundings seem to have done." The Chairman—The time of the gentle man from Mississippi has expired. Mr Allen, of Mississippi—Mr Chairman, that is a pity, for I had many other things of great interest to say, but as my time has expired, and not wishing to further interrupt the proceedings of the Committee, 1 will retire- to the cloak room to receive congratulations. [Prolonged laughter and applause.]

Tho C!os rernmetifc steamer Hinemoa has left Lyttelton for Auckland in order to take our legislators to Wellington.

Lieut.-Col. Mahon lias been served by Mr F. Brookfield with a notice of the intention of Captrin McDonald to sue for damages for illegal arrest. The amount of the claim has been, reduced to £100. Captain McDonald has not received any reply to the charges against Lieut.-Col. Mahon which he for warded to Wellington, and unless he Jeceives some intimation respecting them to-morrow, he intends to place him self in communication with the Dcefene Minister. It was arranged before the re cent inquiry %vas held, that the evidence then taken should remain here xintil the in quiry into the charges against Lieutenant- Colonel Mahon were completed. The whole matter of the recent Volunteer troubles in Auckland is to be brought before the House of Representatives.-

Our readers will learn with regret that the sheriff, Major Green, utill continues in rather a critical condition. He is suffering from an affection of the throat, laryngitis, which has now developed into consumption of the throat. Several of the sheriffs friends visited him yesterday, and although an impression has got abroad that the case is hopeless they are of opinion that the Major is worth 20 dead men yet. Ho has declined rapidly since his last pulic appear ance, which was on the occasion of the execution of Caffrey and Perm.

Mr George Fisher, M.H.R., leaves Wel lington for Auckland to-morrow, for the benefit of his health.

The annual Easter presentation of prizes to the children of St. Thomas' Sunday School yestei-day afternoon. There was a crowded attendance of parents and children, and a bright and interesting service was held. Rev. Mr Durrieu made the presenta tions, some fifty prizes being given to the fortunate winners.

The well-known electioneering agent, Mr William Hodge, has decided to proceed to Wellington this session in order to watch the acts of our representatives. In view of the coming general election, this news should be gratifying to the Auckland members who, of course, never do any thing which they -would wish to pass un noticed by their constituents.

Mr Thomas Chamberlain Tines, of Clif ford Lodge, Te Puke, has received a beau tifully illuminated diploma, with a com memorative bronze medal, from the Com mibsioners of the- Indo-Colonial Exhibitipn, for an exhibit of mounted ferns.

To the Editor: Sir.—Will you kindly, acknowledge the following subscriptions to-' wards furnishing picture frames for the new hospital : Mrs John Dawson, ss; Mrs Morse, 5s ; Mr Seth Smith, 10s ; Mr Wade, 10s ; collected by Miss Bance, 17s 6d ; by Mrs Elgar, 19s; by Miss Pierce, ss; by Miss Kissling, 10s; by Miss Saul, £1 3s Gd; by Miss Stevenson, 13s Gd ; Mrs Weston, 15s ; Burleighstreeb Sunday-school Ist class, 5s ; total, £7 3a 6d. Pictures received ; — Misses Bad ham, Brown, Blades, Mesdames Duncan, Morse, Pierce, Hose, Miss Steven son, Mr Seth Smith, a friend. Paid Messrs Phillips and Sons for frames and mountings, £7 3s 6d. There are now hanging up in the wards 2(i well framed pictures, which arc highly appreei-, ated by the patients. 1 have still 24 pictures for framing for which additional funds arc necessary. May I ask tho assist ance of some of your readers in helping to collect a few more pounds. With sincere thanks to those who have so kindly helped, lam, etc.,, O. Toussaint Girdlkr, West minster Lodge, Kyber Pass, April 18th, 1887. ■

The annual soiree and social leathering in connection with St. Luke's Presbyterian Church, Remuera, was held on Friday last., The church was prettily decorated with, flowers and evergreens, and the attendance, was exceedingly large. Rev. G. B. Monro. presided, and the gathering was opened j with praise and prayer, after which the, following programme was performed: —i Organ solo, Mr. Trimnell ; address by the Chairman ; solo, " Guardian Angels," Mrs., Cooper; solo from " Nazareth," Mr. J. H. Edmonds" ; address T. W. Dunn ; Jubilee Hymn, " I've Been Redeemed," Theatre choir ; solo, "As Thy Day so, Thy Strength," Mrs. Waters; address,j Rev. James Chew ; ballad, "Land o' the Leal Mrs. Meickelwaite ; This concluded the first part of the pro gramme, and a service of fruit followed. A plentiful supply of fruit in 6eason wa3 handed around and heartily partaken of by all. After this the se.cond portion of the programme was continued : Solo, " The Better Land," Mrs Waters ; organ solo, Mr Trimnell ; solo, " Now Heaven in Fullest Glory," Mr J. H. Edmondea; address,. Hon. G. Waldegrave ; solo, " Two Voio*!,* Mrs Cooper ; jubilee hymn, "He Aroas, Theatre choir ; "The Lord is King," % Luke's choir. Each item was executed % good style, and received well merited ap plause. Before the meeting dispersed, Mi; Munro called for a vote of thanks for thosa; who so generously assisted in making the meeting such a success which was carried unaaimously. The meeting then closed by the Rev. James Chew pronouncing the; benediction.

Lake Rotoiti is swarming with eels. A party of four caught 177 tho other day. Their aggregate weight vraa considerably. QVer a (jua^er q| ftt9W«

COMPENSATION COURT.

CLAIM OF £500 DAMAGES AGAINST THE CITY COUNCIL.

This ©ay

(Before Mr Justice Ward and Messrs R, Cameron (assessor for claimant) and H. G, Wade (assessor for defendants).

Richard Lyxas v. Mayor axd Corpora tion of Auckland.—Claim, £500 for los s and damage alleged to have been caused by tho raising of the street levels, and a consequent diversion of drainage on to claimant's property. Mr Samuel Hcsketh appeared for the claimant,. and Mr Thomas Cotter (City Solicitor) for the defendants. —Mr Hesketh in opening the case, said that the claimant was the owner of three cottages in Norfolk street, Ponsonby, in which thorough fare the City Council had recently carried out works of filling in. The effect of this work had been, by raising the street above its fixed levels, to increase the difficulty of access to claimant's pre- ] mises, and thus to lessen their letting value, while he was further injured; by the drainage of the neighbouring; properties being diverted on to his land I by reason of the alterations. The levels of Norfolk-street were fixed before the erec- i tion of claimant's three cottages, but ho was in a position to show, that these levels were not adhered to. The street was carried to a level one-fifth higher, and in consequence of that increase in level the loss and' damage had accrued. —His Honor: That is so far as the one-fifth of increase ia j concerned ? —Mr Hesketh : Yes. — Mr j Cotter : What does that one-fifth represent ? Mr Hesketh: About 14 inches. The learned gentleman went on to say that there was another question, which would probably be the subject of * common law action hereafter. Norfolk-; street, which ran from Ponsonby Road to-. the westward, had been formed, metalled,! kerbed, and channelled to Lynas'.s eastern,' boundary. From that point the street* was continued, but. not kerbed or chan nelled, an open bank of earth being left sloping down to Lynas's property. From the other boundary of the pro perty, the road had been carried on and the channelling continued. Therefore along the whole frontage of Lynas's property\ the road had been left incomplete.'. As a claim for injury by drainage would probably arise therefrom, he asked His Honor in the award to distinguish for what damage com pensation was granted.—His Honor: It[ is for you to say on what particular ground ■ you claim. Do you claim on that ground 1— 1 Mr Hesketh : Yes. We shall also be able to show that the fixed levels were not ad hered to. *We shall ask your Honor to visit the locality and see for for yourself.—Mr Cotter j We have gone further. We have cal» for the pur pose waiting .at the door.""—His Honor signified that he would be prepared to visit Norfolk-street.—Mr Hesketh then proceeded to adduce evidence. William James Dalton civil engineer and archi tect, was first, called. He produced a: plan which he had made ost Mr Lynas's property in Norfolk street, showing the rilling-in in that thoroughfare. He also said that Mr Lynas had 19U feet of frontage. At his western boundary the road should' have been raised 4 feet 10 inohes, whereas it had been raised 5 feet 10 inches. Con sequently, the road was one foot higher than it ought to be. His calculations had been checked by his son and by Mr Baber. The level of the back of the footway was the same as the level of tho centre of tha roadway at the eastward boundary. The footpath was 3 feet, 3 inches above th» comer peg. Under cross-examination hj Mr Cotter tho witness stated that his sur- ( vey and calculations were made so long ag« ( as July last, and he would not swear i that, they applied to the present; condition of things, as the earth- j work might have subsided since then, j He laid out the levels of all the Ponsonby streets while acting as Engineer to the Pon. sonby Board. He would swear that Mr Beveridge did not call his attention to the fact that one of his bench marks was not) six feet out of the street level at the corner, of Ireland-street. At Kent-street the level was 2ft Gin higher than the fixed level. The witness was cross-examined at some length by Mr Cotter, as to the mode in which he made his calculations. At this, stage the Court adjourned till 2 p.m., His. Honor signifying his intention to visit Nor-i folk-street and claimant's property in the i meantime. He was accompanied by Messrs Lundon and Dalton.

(Continued on Page S.)

THE AUCKLAND ftfoyPl.lV APRIL 18,' 1857. M

5



Storms carry with them asuprly of nature fl , deodorising1 and disiD foctant agerft—ozone, i no essential oils that pervade the vicinity of «ox- ;: dens and forests, and aro distineratobable by tlio organ of 3inoll. aro also health-gi vtig and puri fying, us they indirecUy crento ofceue by chem cal reactions. This is specially tmo o« thoMuo gum and all the eucalyptus lani?Jy. as it haß been proven that tho antiseptic Parties of the eucalyptus oil are much po™ T»^rtul "ma carbolic acid, ono of our safest cbsinfoctants. it s not then surprising that eucalyptus should .ho invaluable in akin complaints, untl: be e^nic a the best of all healers. " AickuS. Eucalypteno Ointment" is specially designed t-jbrmff out tho essential properties of this PJrtWX' effects on chronic cases atopnost convint-iniy Pnco 2b per pet,