Local and General.

Clutha Leader, Volume IV, Issue 199, 3 May 1878, Page 6

Local and General.

«.' i 4969 acres "of 'Have".T>fteii set apart for ..occupation "i^ncterl agricultural lease; and 60,0 acr'js for S.> occupation under the deferred payments " System. \\»- - • .-: ; ■■- -■ ■' '■- ■ ' . " tt) -^,A ;^anga^u telegram says 1 : — Ths resi-T'-denee. of Mv ..j Jam 99 Dann, Ure-str^et, : , , wa?.. destroyed by fire n,fr -2 ''o'clock on, Friday, morning. Mrs Dunn c ; 'and her 'two children had a narrow esoape -HErtmi losing then' liv -a. " : '. : ; -Mr 'Conner's felimonsjerv, at Milton, ■''•was destroyed by fire on Monday night. >.?r r =The loss is esttimated ajb L 250, and the ."premises were insured in f.hs National Inr ;;surance Company for Ll5O. The origin = .rof the fire is unknown. i .&. special meeting of the Balclutha '.\ "Borough Council was held on Tuesday ' ;forenoon, when the Burgess List was "revised .and signed as .-required by law. ""'His Worship the Mayor was present, and '-■ Hogg, Cramond, and Dunne.

Mr Jack's farm at Catlins River has, ""we Understand, been purchased by Mr l '•.Robert Sinclair, who purposes utilising it •almost exclusively for grazing. This will ;doubtless be a boon to the butchers in the district, and should tend, by lowering the . price, to increase the consumption of this .. very necessary esculent; , ,'. St. Mark's Church, Balclutha, narrowly escaped destruction by fire on Sunday evening last. This wa3 occasioned by the ■fall of a chandelier with four rmex■"'tihguished , lamps ; but owing to the ■ ; * speedy assistance of Messrs Barty, Henderson, and others the damage was con- ' fined to the burning of a few yards of mat--1 ting and charring a little of the woodwork of the pews. "It will be observed by an advertisement ;.in another column that Messrs Mackenzie, Thomson, and Go. have established a new branch in connection with their business here. They have now fitted out an extensive show room, which will be under the management of a competent lady, where millinery in all its. branches will be carried on. The only wonder is that a ; millinery business has not been established here long ago, and we are sure the steps now taken by Messrs Mackenzie, Thomson, ■ and Co.. will be hailed with satisfaction by the ladies of the'township and district. We observe tenders are called for con- •' 'turning the sinking for coal npon the Port Molyneux reserve. The shaft is now 65 "feet deep ; nearly 60 feet is through either fire-clay or shale. According to all • geological rules and experience, coal can- " not be far distant, and considering the depth, it is expected to be of a very fine ■quality when found. It is to be hoped no delay will occur in having the pit opened " up, as it would be of very gi*eat advantage to the inhabitants of the district. * The advisability of starting a sweep in 'Balclutha has been suggested more than •'once, but owing to the quarter whence the recommendation emanated we have hitherto laboured under the delusion that a " Calcutta " one was intended ; but since the the chimney of Dr Smith's house was on - fire — which occurred on Tuesday last, and created considerable alarm — we have become aware of the fact that a flesh and blood one was meditated, and we are now free to give* our vote for the utility of the " proposition. We are happy to say the fire : alluded to was extinguished without any damage being done. In last issue we referred to the necessity that exists for a gentleman being placed , upon' the Commission of the Peace in the ' Clinton _ district. We have now to state we have good reason to believe that when " r the next appointments are made the wants of Clinton will be attended to. " We may explain that according to long iisage these " appointments are made periodically, and we believe only in the case of elections of Mayors is this rule departed from. If the good people of Clinton will therefore practice the virtue of patience only for a little longer they will find the representa- " tions made on their behalf have not been " made in vain. ..A meeting, of ratepayers in the Matau Road District was held in the schoolhouse, Inch Clutha, on Saturday afternoon. Mr G. Inglis was called to the chair. The attendance was small. The Chairman explained that the meeting had been called ' to. decide as to closing the old approach, to the Matau bridge. A new road had been ' opened in its stead, and all the formalities ""in connection with the matter had been - attended to. , Mr .Smaill moved that the road be closed. The motion was seconded by Mr Darling, and carried. The Chairman said the resolution would be for- ~ warded to the County Council as required Iby law. There was no other business. , As a specimen of the yield of grain upon 'the ridges in this neighbourhood this season we may mention that Mr Robson, Whitelea, has "just threshed out with Mr 1 Cossen's mill a field of oats which yielded 1 76 bushels to the acre. This was a second crop, the same field having been wheat last year. The oats were Sutherland oats, and the quantity sown was two bushels to the acre. He has also threshed out a field of wheat, the soil being an alluvial flat, and the return was 56 bushels to the acre. "Of this paddock there were seven acres reclaimed swamp, the first crop of which ■yielded 71 bushels to the acre. The wheat was red straw wheat, and the quantity •sown was 1|- bushels to .the acre. The • crop was well eaten down, with sheep in the spring. Perhaps some other settlers may favour us with the returns they have had this year, and any particulars regarding the same. It is notified in the New Zealand Gazette that 'the season for shooting cock pheasants, Oaliforriian quail, and hares in j Otago, shall commence on Ist June and end, on 31st July, and that hares may be hunted or coursed during daylight from Ist May to 31st July in all districts, the "County of Waitaki excepted. Game licenses will be issued by the Secretary of .the Otago Acclimatisation Society, the fee being LI 10s. At. the half-yearly meeting of the shareholders of the National Insurance Company, of New. Zealandj- to be held shortly; the "balance-sheet- to be submitted will ' show a revenue of L 48,000 in round numbers,as against losses, &c, amounting to 1*35,00,0,- leaving^ balance of L 13,000 for re-distrxbutiph-as follows : — A- dividend of 10 jfe'r cent.', amounting to L 2500, and a ?bonus of 6d , per share, amounting to L 2500,: letting a balance; of LBOO td be 'carried, to the, reserve .-fund. Three direcTfcors will retire, but will be eligible for . re- 1 celectionl ... : ; ■ j..; ; .., •.'-'; .:, -.■■,- --i -■,.;.,! .■•■.;

Mr "Lusk's resignation of his seat for Franklin is gazetted.

Instructions have .. besn .sent- to the Agent-General .to " forward ' 5000 immigrants for the ensuing yeai 1 . " • ' ' The Gazette contains a. proclamation extending the boundaries of the borougha of E-.ish InvercargiU and Tapanui. A rich vein' of gold is reported to have boon struck in the Switzer.s Freehold Croldmining: Company's claim, which, is held by Chinamen.

. Henry Fisher a*! d Walter Coker, storekeepers, Palmers 'on North, charged with conspiracy to d"frn,ud their creditors , were tried at the Supreme Court. The case lasted two days. The Jury have returned a verdict of Guilty on all the counts. Sentenced to six months imprisonment. A Scotch Avitness, somewhat given to prevarication, was severely handled by a 'cross-examining counsel. " How far is it between the two farms ?" said the counsel. "By the road its. twa miles." " Yes, but on your oath, how far is it as a crow flies?" — "I dinna ken, I never was a crow." A fearful hurricane has been experienced in the New Hebrides. Houses were demolished, and some sheets of corrugated iron were carried half-a-mile. Trees were uprooted, and crops destroyed. The natives are starving. The Charybdis, an Auckland vessel, is a total wreck/ and the Ebenezer, schooner went ashore. A sad mistake was made by a ' man named Micheal Flanagan the other day. He was removing some rubbish from a house in Market-street, Melbourne, I when he found three bottles, and in one was some liquid wliich Flanagan took for wine. He drank, and died shortly afterwards, the liquid proving to be a carbolic acid. | It is stated that immigration under the auspices of the Government, wliich ceased' some months ago, has besn resumed. It lias been ordered that free passages shall be provided "for immigrants so that they may arrive here in the spring, when there ! will be a large demand for their services. It is intended that passages for 5000 free immigrants shall be granted for the year 1878-79. A meeting of the Otautau, Waiau, and Nightcaps Railway promoters was held on Monday. The landowners in the district were well represented, and Mr P. R. M'Caughin was in the chair. About three-fourths of the entire capital was subscribed or promised in the room, and the survey will be commenced on Tuesday. Mr John Mitchell was confirmed in his appointment as secretary, and Mr B. C. Haggitt was chosen solicitor.