The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1856-1888, 1872-04-13
FROM AUSTRALIA & NEW ZEALAND

rycd o. Tuesday at an early hour, Is days from
Auckland. We arc Indebted 10 pnftcr Ihinc for
mcInoranIa, etc.
The Victorian governments Lad signed n en-
tract at MelbuurDc with Mcssrs. webb & Vugel
q join New Zealand in Substituting this lane
OF steamers. This decisive action was considered
Of great Importance by the frioIds vt the subsidy.
WuALEEs' RFFuH1s.- February 2G--AF-
rivals 24th. Crown aud Shield. from the south Seas.
with 100 barrels Il whale and 400 barrels Of sperm
oil. 10Th, Milton, from S1uth Seas. With $40 bar
rcls sperm aud . barrels whale oil; Janet, from SOut0 =
Seas. with 800 barrels sperm OIL
Eleven whalers were lying at Russell when the
Duke OF Edinburgh lea the Bay OF Islands on March
10. Amongst them Was the EUROPA, on board Of
which vessel was the man who recently murdered
one Of her crew whilst ON the high seas. We learn
that il has been decided 90 send the man 20 America
to be tried. As the Europa is al American registered
vessel, and the crime had been committed on the sen,
out Of the reach Of the English law.
wHALFRs' RFPoKn.-Arriyals-March 4 James
Arnold, Briggs, from Southern Seas. with 200 bar
rels sperm oil and 900 barrels whale oil, 1900 lbs.
bone. March 8 Louisa, Slocum, from South Seas.
with 100 barrels sperm oil and Geo barrels whale ola
Europa, Mellen, from South Seas, with 100 barrels
sperm oil and I 900 barrels whale oil. March O
Lydia, Clifford, from South Seas. with 20 barrels
sperm oil, 615 barrels whale OIL, and 900 lbs. bene.
March 7: Adventurer, Pierce, from south Sess. with
100 barrels sperm oil. The ADVENTURE. which ar
rived here on Thursday last, was caught in n heavy
y t. KhAc y lew ~ bhCA ANiA WIN ~ - ~
decks swept, and considerable damage had beeq done
to her hull. The Adventures is owned by Messrs.
K Towns & Co, Sydney. She will proceed TO Aack-
land for repsirs-Daiiy Southern Gross, auckland,
W L., March 20.
MURDER on BOARD AN AMERICAN WHALER.-Tho
steamer Comsrdng. which arrived from the Bay Of.
Islands on Tuesday. Feb. %, was the bearer of sGme
particulars Of = shocking crime that 10 reported TO
have been committed on board the whaling bark
Europa. Intelligence OF the murder was brought
to Russell by the Milton. Captain Wilson states
that he boarded the Europa at sea, aud she was
then bound inWards for Russell with II Portuguese
sailor who had stabbed another, causing his death al
most Immediately. IL was stated that the murderer,
who was quite a youth, had quarrelled with his vic
tim, a steerer on board, some days before the crime
was committed. lie had apparently broOded over
the grievance. and, upon an alteration again aris-
ing, during which the steerer struck the seaman
with a marlnspike, the latter Immediately ran into
the forecastle, emerging with n knife, which he
plunged into the abdomen Of his victim. The knife
passed right through the body Of deceased, who was
taken altogether OF his guard by the suddenness ofthe
attack. Every effort was put forth by those on
board 20 stop the flow Of blood, but without avail,
and the unfortunate man expired within an hour Of
the occurrence. The perpetrator Of the crime was nc
once placed in irons. Both the murderer and his vic
tim were Portuguese. The Europa In an American
vessel. mailing from Massachusetts, aud Is COM
manded by Captain Mellen. The prisoner will be-
sent on to San Francisco 10 be tried for the crime.
Daily Southern Cross, Auckland, W., March 20.
Australia.
A telegram from Melbourne dated March 18th,
says:
The Hon. J.. Vogel and Mr.. Webb have again in
terviewed the Government with reference TO tho
Californian mail service.
Modified proposals were submitted and were
i~avOrably entertained. The details will not be
made public now till submitted To Parliament.
An agreement has been signed between the con-
tracing parties. a.
Messrs. Vogel and Webb were entertained at
dinner. Commercial and shipping interests were
infuentially represented.
Upon which the Sydney lail Of March 10th re-
marks:
1t is reported from Melbourne that Messrs. Webb
and Vogel have been more successful In the second
offer they made TO the Government than they were
with the first. and that they have now made prOpO-
sails which are accepted as satisfactory. But, Tor
reasons, the results Of the negotia-
tons are TO be kept secret until disclosed 10 Par
Lament, and Mr.. Duny's majority IL probably SUI
Gciently large to enable him TO carry through tho
Assembly any scheme he may strongly recon-
mend. Ills political position has been rendered
stronger by the temporary retirement OF Sir James
M'Culloch, who has resigned his seat. and is about
to take a trip to Europe. II Victoria subsidies
Mr.. Webb. that colony and New Zealand together
will. doubtless, be able TO give him enough 10
keep him going, taking into consideration what he
expects to get from Washington and this will be-
a security that this postal and passenger route will
not be even temporarily closed. Whether Sydney
is to be allowed to participate with Melbourne we,
Of course, do not know at present. IL We are left
ont in the cold we must console ourselves as best
we can. t.'.E. ~. . rr .rrr Hr 1. Id
The brig Mdria, with the New Guinea expedI-
ton on board. was totally wrecked on the 10Th
ultimo, on Bramble Reef, about thirty miles from
Cardwell. Twenty-eight Of the passengers arrived
at Cardwell in two boats. Upwards OF forty mon,
who left the wreck on RATS and one boat, are still
missing. Tho captains boats crew reached shore
safely, but they were Immediately attacked by tbs
blacks, aud the captain aud two or three others
were murdered. The rest escaped, but not before
they had been severely wounded. Immediately
upon the receipt Of the Intelligence, the Queens
land Government dispatched a STEAMER IN search
of the missing men, but not one was found. The
steamer Governor BldckdH dent for the purpose
by the Queensland GovernmenD left Port Jackson,
with an armed party on board, In search OF the
missing men, on Saturday last.
The Hon. G.. A. Woods. the Premier OF Fiji. has
arrived in Sydney, with the view OF negotiating q
loan. ..
The ODeo, steamer, with supplies for the over
land telegraph construction party, was taken eighty
miles uD the ROper River. Northern Australia. IL
il described as being one Of the finest, n not the
finest, rivers in Australia, aud that II IL navigable
at all seasons Of the year for vessels drawing ten
Of water for a distance " 100 miles from the
entrance. The telegraph wire has been stretched
from Port Darwin TO The King Ga stream called
after the explorer Of the advance party in charge
Of Mr.. Burton), a distance Of some 200 miles. and
the country is poor in the extreme, the soil being
very sandy. From the head Of navigation on the
Roper to the nearest point Of the wire is about 1870
miles and the country lying between the Roper
the line is well erased aud watered. II & con-
sidered TO be very suitable for cattle, and IL not
likely to be flooded, as no watermnrks have been
seen on the trees. The gap in the line LEFT 10 be
by the contractors was about 400 miles;
out Of this, 100 miles have since been poled at
the northern end by the Government parties, and
about 300 miles Of wire have been left at the var
sectional depots. The " posting f" was being
with very expeditiously even in the wet
season but il was impossible then 20 cart the wire,
owing to the DOGGY natnre Of the country 10 be
The work ~ being proceeded with mt
ends and the distance now about TO be COW
cred by horse express Is estiLneted at not more than
200 miles, and will be daily diminished az tho
stretching Of the wire proceeds.
The lyric stage Is not free from the realities OF life.
a Melbourne weekly journal records that a some
what unexpected Incident occurred In the Princess
Opera House during the performance Of II Trova-
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