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SYDNEY SUMMARY.
MONDAY afternoon.
THE greatest possible interest has been excited by
the charge brought forward by Mr. Arnold against
the minister for works, Mr. Holroyd, of appointing
Dr. Hamilton to the commission of the peace for a
pecuniary considoration. Some time since Dr.
Hamilton was a candidate for the representation of
Kiama, and was supposed to be the ministerial
candidate ; but he was defeated by Mr. Parkes.
When the new commission of the peace was issued
his name was included. It is admitted that he
afforded Mr. Holroyd pecuniary. nccommodation to
tho extent of £200 ; that he was proposed by
Mr. Holroyd to the executive as a fit person for the
commission ; and that he expressed to Mr. Holroyd
a desire to be appointed. The point in dispute is
whether the one flet was the cause which brought
about the other. Mr. Lenohaun was formerly in the
habit of lending money to Holroyd ; and when he
no longer could afford to do so he mentioned the
matter to Hamilton and thus the latter took
Lenehan's place. Hamilton mentioned to Lenehan
his desire to be appointed to the commission ; and
Lenehan has several times said that the appointment
and the money-lending seemed part of the same
transaction ; though he afterwards qualified this by
saying that he meant that was how it would appear
to many, and not that he himself thought so. Mr.
Hanson, of the Empire, appears to have heard the matter
spoken of by Lenehan in a manner much more
unfavourable to Holroyd than as it came out in
Lenehan's examination. At the conclusion of the
evidence Mr. Arnold expressed an opinion that it was
unfortunate that the witnesses had not been heard
the previous night— he feared they had been "got
at."
In the course of Friday's proceedings it was
alleged by Mr. Lenehan that it had come to his
knowledge that some charge had been formerly
brought against Dr. Hamilton, the records of which
wouldl he found in the crown law office, and the na
ture of which led him to go to Mr. IIolroyd and ex
press his regret that he.bhad , rccommended Dr.
IHamilton. TWhen questioned as to whyho ceased to
be postmaster at Wollougong, Dr. Hamilton declined
to answer. The matter stands over till WeVdhesday
next.
T'ho manner in Whlich the ministry defended their
colleague does them anything butcredit; and should'
the Iouso neaquit him, an acquittal, after the display
of ouich tactics, will be regarded by many . s simply
iln escape on technical grounds. Perhaps the un
faiirest thing was AMr. Martin's endoavouring'to got
the charge against his colleague taken down in iis
(Mr. Martin's) words, and not in the words of the
accuser, and his enlldeavouring to make it embraco a
variety of minor matters. Tho'reason obviously
was that if Mr. Arnold failed in any one portion of
the charge to insist on till acquittal on the whole.
This sort of low pottifogging might have 'sncoeded
in a police court, before a magistrate of less than
ordinary intelligence; but it. was tin insult at once
to the common sense of Mr. Arnold and of the
Assembly to suppose that it could succeed thereo;
and it didn't. But all through the two.ovoenings it
was plain that the ministry would thlnkfully accept
an acquittal of their colleague on any grounds, how
ever strained or technical.
"What the decision of parliament may be it is hard
to say. WVhatever the reasonable inference may be,
it scarcely seeoms that corruption has boon logally
proved; and so long aus the lawyers in the Assembly
insist on regarding the matter, not as one of honor,
but of dry law, I suppose nothing can be done; un
less it bh to pass a resolution condemning the prac
tico of appointing to tho' commission of the peace
mlse who roelieve the necessities of impecunious
ministers of the Crown. . Howover tilhe result must
be damnaging to the ministry and to Holroyd in
particular.. 'Whatever the premier iaoy tliink of a
dissolution depond on it the minister for works will
not raisn his voice in favor of such a step.
In the course of thie evening Mr. Parltes said that
ho believed a still more serious chargo would be
brought forward against the ministry. It must be a
bad one indeed at this rate.
The Holroydian matter has altogether swallowed
up the interest which would' otherwise have beoen
felt in the original debate. But in the speech nmdo
by Dr. Wilson, just beforo Mr. Arnold rose,' he
amused hiniself by. once more reiterating, the old
worn-aut charga of cornupting the press by moans of
government advertising, and showed that the Em
pire, with its comparatively small circulation, had
received much more money than the Horald. Ho
asked what use it was to advertise in a paper that
had 'little, or no circulation ?. But he omitted
to state that the real reason why the Empiro got the
most money was that their advortisomonts occupied
more spaceo thli thie florald's. This is the explana
tion of the whole mysotery. Dir. Wilson forgot too
to toll the -Iouse, that so far from tiheo papers boing
corrupted by the small sums recoived from the
government, thie Herald was always, and of late the
Empiro was generally opposed to the Cowper minis
try. While on this subject, I may mention that
the governmont have issued a circular to. the
various country bunches of magistrates warning
them against advertising in the local papers, and
doolaring that if they do so the government will not
pay the accounts.
I don't linor hliotlher your readers have
noticed it; but it is a, remarkable fact that
in the Goverinor's speeth the ministry take no
credit to themselves for the now eommission:of
ltho peiocU. They don't pretend to believo it to be
On improvement on the former commission ; but "it
is hoped that the change will not tend in any way
to impair the administration of.justico'or to diminish
that respect for the magistracy which it is so essen
tial to presorro."' A very modest hopo certainly!
so tmodest that it can hardly fail tobo realised. But
for those who object to the now: commission:ofthe
pdnce it is h ltiio mieans ncecssary .to.provr that it is
likely to impair the. administration of justice or
diulinish' respeot foi' the .magistrayo. sIt is. quite
suflicient to..provo that the -commission is far from
the best that miight. hnvo been preopared--that it is
no improvement on thoe old' conmission--and that
from corrtipt or seiteofl motives names have been
plaecd on or loft oif the now.roll.
Dihring his sleech to the electors of estl. Sydney
,Mr. Dalgloish, n:a.reported by .the, Iierald, made
iobst libellous statements against Mr. Whitton,
.ongincer-iu-dhief,of railways. That gentleman's
solicitors, Messrs. Norton and B]arker, theroupon
.wrote to hMr. D)algloish asking if .he spoke it'.the
terims so replorted, in order that Mr. Whittoon might
irove beforo at jury that Mr. Dalgloish's statements
weore utruo and malicious. Mr. Dalgleiah replies
that the Herald's roeport is in. many. respects in
accurate, and he oncloses the Empiro's report as
conveying pretty nearly what he did say. This
report does not contain the charges mentioned in
the HIorld's report, anld Mcssrs. Norton and fBarker
therofore advise Mr. Whitton to regard Mr. Dal
gleish's letter as an indirect denial that he broughlt
suclh charges forward, and not to commenco legal
proceedings.: The four reporters of the Herald who
reported the mooting are, howevor, prepared to
make affllidavit to the correctness of their report.
The following information, has boon received by
Captain HIixson, from the harbour master, Twofold
Bay :-The Circassian, from Warrnambool, laden
with potatoes from Sydney, has run on' shore at
Rima Head. ' Th master says the weather was thick,
and he thought he was 20 miles offshore. One man
was drowned trying to swim on shore with a. line,
and two wore drowned by being washed off the
wreck. The vessel is a total wreck.
Th'o Iorald says :--The reverend Michael Bren
nan (the Roman Catholic clergyman of Penrith for
the last fourteen years), died at Parramatta, after
eight or toen houra' illness, on Saturday morning at
ten o'clock. The immediate cause of the lamented
gentleman's decease was paralysis. Ho was attacked
on Friday evening on his way to WVollongong to
see the Archbishop, and never rallied after the first
seizure. A solemn dirge will, this day, be sung at
St. Patrick's Church, Parramatta, for the repose of
his soul, after which the funeral procession will
move towards .Ponrith, whero the body is to be in
terred. The reverend gentleman was much respected
by members of all denominations as well as by those
of his own communion. One of his last acts was to
set on foot and bring to a successful issue a move
mont for the relief of the French Marist missionaries
at Clydesdale, who suffered considerably in the
recent calamitous floods.
We are glad to hear (says the Herald) that in the
Camden district, where rust first made its appear
ance this season, there are hopeful signs that its
progress is arrested. Some crops clearly spoiled for
wheat are being cut down and turned into hay. In
other cases, where the disease has shown itself
slightly, there has beon no further progress. This
may hbe duo to the long continuance of dry weather,
for the rust notoriously attacks the stalk more
readily in wet weather, when the pores are open.
This time last year the crops were virtually
destroyed. This year they are intact in the main;
but as we are nearly a month later than usual it is
too early to be confident.
It is stated that Miss Dickson intends to prosecute
John Solomons for perjury alleged to have been
committed during the late proceedings instituted by
him against her for horse-stealing.
By private letter from Glasgow (says the Empire)
we learn that the completo machinery for a paper
mill is being made, and will be forwarded to Mel
bourne, to be erected at Dight's mills, Yarra Falls.
The enterprising importer is Mr. Kennoy, of Mel
bourne.
WVo have much pleasure (says the Empire) in an
nouncing that his toyval Highness the commander-in
chief has been pleased to rescind his decision in the
case of Captain Saunders, published by as some
time back, by which that officer was permitted to
retire from his regiment by the sale of his commis
sion. Captain Saunders has received a notification
from the Horse Guards informing him of such re
secission, and directing him to join the 2nd battalion
of his regiment, at present stationed at Calcutta.
At the police-court on Thursday, (says the same
paper) Enoch Hughes, on remand, was again brought
up for bigamy. About six months ago the defendant
and his brother were employed as partners in making
bricks. A dispute arose between the two brothers
in the presence of Mr. Lattin, with whom they were
living. High words ensued, and one brother said to
the other, " I'll dispose of you on a charge of bigamy.
You had no right to marry the woman with whom
you are now living while your former wife is alive."
The prisoner replied, "I had a right, and was justi-
fied. My first wife committed adultery with young
Darbyshire." Mr: Lattin, present witness, further
deposed that he knew prisoner's reputed wife in
Melbourne, where she had a paralytic stroke, in
1859 ; went to England, and died shortly afterwards.
The real question in dispute, and much previous
evidence had :been taken on it, was, whether the
prisoner had really married the second wife during
the lifetime of his first wife. The case was adjourned
for one week.
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