Ok Saturday evening, the 29bh instant, one of th« most important public meetings took place at Wai uku that have perhaps ever been held here. It will doubtless be within the recollection of many who are interested in the prosperity of the opuntry dis tricts that an attempt has recently been -made to establish, a regular- steam communication between Onehunga and the settlements on the Manukau. The ' Haloyon ' was put on the river by her owner, Captain Wing ; bat for various reasons, chiefly that the trade was nob sufficiently remunerative for a vessel of her class, on account of her draught of water, she has been removed to another station. It was, however, felt by the principal settlers here that by depriving us of steam* transit we should be not only thrown far behind other settlements, but that we should not make that progress which we have every reason to hope for. Accordingly, an attempt has been made to induce Messrs. Gibbons to place the 'Woodpecker' on theia waters, and daring the past week she has made two trips here, and has been found to answer uncom monly well, as she was enabled to come up to th c wharf with the small tide we had on Saturday* thing the 'Halcyon' never did more than tlroa times the whole period she ran here. At the meet ing which was held in Constable's New Hall, and over which Mr. Hedge presided, a letter from Mr. Gibbons was read, in which he stated that he would under take to run a steamer twice a week to Waiuku, for twelve months, if the settlers would make him a subsidy of £360 per annum. This wa3 considered far too much, as, even at the present time, and with two cutters in opposition, a steamer's earnings would not be less than £50 per month from the Waiuku trade alone, which it is believed would pay the working expenses of a vessel like the 'Woodpecker;' and on the off-days she would have many opportuni ties of doing other work. It was generally felt also that, if a steamer should be subsidised' at all, the Provincial Government should assist, as by fully opening up the water communication with theis settlements the public roads do not get the wear and tear they did when all the traffic was over land. Mr. 