Cromwell Argus. AND NORTHERII GOLD-FIELDS GAZETTE. CROMWELL : TUESDAY, FEB. 27, 1872.

Cromwell Argus, Volume III, Issue 120, 27 February 1872, Page 4

Cromwell Argus. AND NORTHERII GOLD-FIELDS GAZETTE. CROMWELL : TUESDAY, FEB. 27, 1872.

; In Now Zealand, perhaps more so than in any other of England's dependencies, the : working classes have just reason to be i thankful for tho very reasonable hours of I labour which have become recognised as | constituting a fair day's work. Tho eightJ hour system is a boon which should he dearly prized by all who come under its liberal provisions; and we hope the day | is very far distant when success will attend , I an/ effort to alter tho existing stale of I afiairs m this respect. We are not advocates of strikes, but we must say we havo I observed with satisfaction the course adopted by the railway labourers in the. employ of Messrs Buogdkn and. (Son atj tho Waikato railway works. Recently| they were informed by Messrs Biioudes'sl in-.iU.iir-"! th::t t!i"v would t-. work I

nine hours per day instead of eight hours, j. as they had previously done ; and the men very properly declined to accede to the 1 demands of the contractors for an extra i hour’s work, intimating their deterniinu--1 tion not to allow the eight-hour system, < ] acknowledged and established throughput 11 ! the Colony, to be infringed upon. Even |' | in. England, where great numbers of the n ! working classes have been compelled by 11 I exacting employers to toil for ten and |; I eleven weary hours a day, and that often | lat wages barely enabling them to keep j i body and soul together, of late years very I I decided attempts have been made, and in ! general successfully so, to curtail the hours! ; of labour, and bring them within something like a reasonable limit. Measures for the j I advancement and improvement of the! working classes, mentally and physically,' j have during the last fifty years received ; i more attention than at any previous period, Maud the shortening of labour hours has - 1 tended more than any other means to gain j i this desirable end. It stands to reason. I that if a man has to rise at a very early : I hour in the morning, and after a hasty j ; breakfast start olf immediately for work,! y | arid continue at it unremittingly for ten or I I eleven hours, he will have become at the; (conclusion of his day’s work so tired and j enervated us to be unfitted for engaging in | any of those exercises that are essential to : i his mental and physical improvement.; " 1 While some largo employers of labour at( ’ home still refuse to listen to the request 1 , iof their employes for a reduction in the j i hours of labour, it is satisfactory to note ’• j that in the large majority of cases, and in: ; many different trades, concessions have - been made by employers, and the ninc--1 hour system acknowledged. From the | unity and universality of action lately dis--0! played by the working classes of Cl rent !, | Britain on this point, in ail trades and i callings, and the la rue measure of success .. r* 7 C> they have already met with, they have every reason for being sanguine that the nine hour movement so energetically taken (up by them will, before long, be univerJ (sally agreed to and recognised by employ - jers. For ourselves, we should like to see I the homo hours of labour brought down to 5° (the (New Zealand standard, feeling pore-, suruled that if a man works hard for a s. ■ peiiod of eight hours every day he has | done full justice to his employer, and has | devoted as largo a portion of the twentyon - four hours to manual labour as it was ever e j intended by his Divine Maker that he ~ 1 should do. Seeing that a curtailment of v I the working day is becoming almost uni- ] vcrsal at home, we cannot but regret that Ub in this Colony—-where more freedom and ! greater privileges arc looked for— attempts !should bo made to increase the hours of i toil, and upset a system which is both just ! ami equitable. We do not think that this (attempt on the part of Messrs Brogdcu to 'introduce into the Colony a longer working Id.iy than that which has ruled for so many Y | years will, be successful. But, wo regret i to say, the eight-hour system has been eno. n " jcroacued upon by employers of labour in our own district. In connection with the i working of our principal quartz mines, the . [evil is gradually but surely extending and ,’ i increasing. This aspect of the question is 1 one of very great importance, and we shall jin a future issue devote a portion of out ~ (space to its discussion.

Til:s late serious affray at Tinkers between a number of Chinese and European residents, shows very plainly that it requires but the slightest causa to bring forth in all their unehristi;\n nake Iness the bitterh hostile feelings witli-.whieh the Chinese art regarded by those of the mining community who are prejudiced against them. Am. further evidence of this is afforded by the reports recently received of ;i j'mcas whirl took place at No Town, on the West Coast between a party of Chinamen and soim European miners,—the former heiiu !" driven from the township at the poim of the sluice-fork." Very creditable in jd'edto the unmanly perpetrators is this last outrage. The love of fairplay am I tho many good qualities and virtues whicl Britons generally get the credit of possess ing are not exemplified by this brata attack on the persons of poor dcfenceles foreigners, wlio as a ride are a quiet, or jderly, and peace-loving race of people |endeavouring to earn a living by dint o hard work and non-interference with thei more highly-civilised mining ennfrcra ,Ul' course thorn are dishonest Chinamen I as there are dishonest persons of all na tionalities : but we venture to say that a a rule the Chinese will in this respect boa favourable comparison with Europeans We are not particularly fond of thes ■olive-skinned strangers who have arrive | in such numbers on our Gold-fields; bu we do protest, against the principles of fail Ivby \\\\ h-.ra-n ; 'y hang viol-.l ~1 as \\ v *

have been in the various savage attack j which have been made upon the Chi 110.3 Jl from time to time ; and on behalf of thy® miners of this district we hope we ina 1 with truth disclaim having any feelings! a common on this matter with the instigrai tors and perpetrators of these outaagefjl The Chinese on our Gold-fields are entitle' | to the same rights and privileges, at I have a right to demand the same protectio: ? as is accorded to Europeans, so long a | they deport themselves in an orderly niai n a ner. The Provincial Council, by its actio m P last session, declared its desire to Chinese immigrants come to the Province™ and consequently the authorities are bout j to see fair play accord edthem. It is peijecl haps a pity that the efforts made by i\lna I Shepherd and one or two other membento: jof the Provincial Council at‘its last sessiodie | to stop the introduction of Chinese, whilvil there were yet but a comparatively snial I number in the Province, were not mc%J 1 generally supported : but there is 110 iu.j a i crying over spilt milk, and now the mqy, 'take has been committed—-we confess \v in( .do not think it a very serious one—a fu;j 0 : field anil all logitimatecncouragomentshoui,vr : be given to Chinese as well as to other meiwr Any further influx of the heathens hec perhaps undesirable, seeing that they wm looked upon by many with such disfavour j I and, next session of tire Council, anothuh opportunity will be afforded to anti-Clii?h ; nese agitators to press upon the Coven. 111 ! merit the necessity of taking stops t. i check this immigration. Tiie number s. e] present in the Province—-in the Colony, qj, fact, —is but very small, and with nm; K sures taken to check any further irruption al the Chinese dillieulty need not trouble tli.es j heads of our senators any further. \V I have seen various suggestions as to hot,. ■ | the workings of the Chinese should 1/ regulated, — such, for example, as tire cob, 1 . 0 „ . * . ’ . n : '(moment 01 them to a particular pare tw ■ j the Province ; but we cannot see that anj ■ | thing practicable has been advanced. \? w 1! rious objections could be raised to the pro sv ■i posal we have just alluded to ; hut, apar 3( ■ from them all, we cannot see that there q- •. the slightest necessity for the proceediiqi )I being resorted to. With the exception esi -I requuing a little more looking after in the I I matter of miners’ rights, and the providin'! > of an interpreter, whose salary is not V i | very serious item, they occasion no mot 1 -i trouble to the authorities—nor indued G .’I much—than European miners ; and nov J i\ that they are here they have a perfect rigli 1 f j to settle down in whatever portions of tin -j Province they like best, and move about tj as frequently as they please. We trust I that in future our Chinese population wiL s everywhere have accorded to them fan f play, and not be treated in (he unwaiII raiuablv severe and sometimes brutal.style, s which has too often characterised the con- > | duct of Eurone.au miners when the slightest dispute has arisen, and when, frequently H the latter have been altogether in the t, wrong.

i: Air Warden I’yke paid his last official u | visit to Cromwell on Thursday last. It is u:v e 1 derstoo 1 that ho will take his departure fo: I Lawrence this week. The next sittings of tin s i Ci •arts here will be held ou Thursday, .March lj AW; learn from a correspondent at th, l ' l Arrow that Mr ilallensteiu—one of the eandi ! dates for the coining election of M. If. i!. for tli ! Wakatii» district —addressed one of the largos n ! meetings that has ever been held at Arrowtowi ; |on Satur lay evening last. The meeting was ver s | orderly throughont. The miners and others pvt u i sent displayed great enthusiasm in Mr Ilallcn ! stein's candidature, and at the termination of th \ | proceedings a unanimous vote of confidence i r j him as the most suitable candidate to reprcscii ■j 1 the AVakatip district in the House of Ueprescii ! tatives was passed. 0 p The original article published in ou 1 i present issue, on “ Gold and its Precipitation, c ; forms the first of a series of special essays in n , r |latiou to Child Alining which will appear froi T j time to time in these columns. The writcr- , who has chosen the non; <lc phi nr: of “A iator’has been for many months a valued eorrcspondei IS J *■ ( | of the Amirs, and, as “Our Own" at IJcudis? j Ins contributions are distinguished for the trutl ful information and sound philosophy that ii variably characterise them. “ Abator,” mon II over, brings to bear a degree of practical knot ledge of ids subject such as many have had tl l * opportunity of acquiring, but. which few posse; W the ability to convey intelligibly, through tl d medium of the Tress, to others. It therein lr | atlbr ls ns pleasure to recommend to our rcadc ; a careful perusal of “ A iator's” contributions,li, ! feeling assured that his opinions and hypothes u- 1 will furnish subjects for profitable conversatio as i for study, for research, and tor practical test. ll ‘| We are happy to state that that portic x j of the Amended (fold-fields llegnlations provi so ing for the payment of an annual fee of five sli 'd lings on every sluice-head of water taken i | within the gold-fields, has-been rescinded. Il ‘“! proclamation to that ell Vet appear? :u the (laze! ', v "f ITh ;uA.

The Rev. J. Jones will hold Church of a,rlaud service in the Schoolroom on Thursday lYjuiing next. Mr MacKelhu’ opened an evening-class c n the Schoolroom last night. The attendance ( A s not so numerous as might liave been ex- 1 jited, but we hope to hear of an improvement u ihis'rcspect. The class commences at half- j past seven. t lit will be perceived by an advertisement column that the anniversary ball and * supper of the Court Star of Cromwell, A.0.F., . will take place at Marsh’s Bridge Hotel, on i Friday, the 15th March. ; : Ma large number of unsold Government | sections in nearly all the up-country townships, 11 including Cromwell, Bendigo, Pembroke, Glad-;, stone, &c., are to be offered*by auction during |‘ the latter end of the ensuing month. Particulars ! ■ will appear in a future issue. Mr Frank Weston, the “Wizard Oil j * Prince,” gave free entertainments at Kidd’s j Hall on Wednesday and Thursday evenings. Mr -, Weston is a very clever performer on the banjo, j, and as a comic singer he has few equals in the ■ Colonies. The entertainment is interspersed I with anecdotes related in various dialects, and with whimsical absurdities, such as must he seen before they can he appreciated. The whole Wirformancc is merely an auxiliary to the sale I n the “ Wizard Oil,” and if Mr Weston’s method of advertising “takes” as well in other places as it did in Cromwell, the oil business; must bo a very profitable one. |We regret to bear that Mr Robert Pat-1 terson, the well-known storekeeper at Cardrona, • died yesterday, after a painful and lingering illness. His loss will be deeply regretted by a; larre circle of acquaintances. Mr Patterson j leaves a widow to mourn his death. We have received G AlsWoiijlis Monthly ', Circular (a report of the state of the wool, tab | low, and hide market, published by Messrs B. i Gbldsbrongliand Co., Melbourne) for February, j We make the subjoined extracts The auction j Sales of wool held during the past month were j well atten led by buyers, and a large business Was transacted, nearly 1 / ,000 bales having been sold out of 2-1,44-1 bales catalogued. The total quantity oil'.-red since the season commenced is 105.701 bales ; and about 80,000 bales, representing an approximate value of probably fi,(509,003 sterling, have been sold. Thesei figures are not likely to he materially altered, ! as the season is.now virtually over, —the four or five sales which will probably bo held before it i fin illy terminates being likely to be comparatively unimportant, and chiel'y confined to nor ! them dins which have been delayed in transit, j The competition has been very spirited throughout the month, and prices have been firmly maintained. We have not, up to this date, been able to form a close estimate of the deficiency which is likely to he shown in the export of wool from these Colonies this season, but we have no doubt that a large decrease will be manifest when the shipments are completed. The unuaially wet we i.her which lias prevailed for the past two winters has operated unfavourably on the health of the stock in some of the up-country districts, and the mortality amongst the old and weak sheep has been above the avo* rage. The clip of wool has thus been lessened, and many lots which have come under our notice show a decrease from five to ten per cent, on last year’s yield, from this cause alone. It is now ascertained (says the Grey Hirer Argiu of the 12th February) that seventy separate tenements in Greymouth were washed away by the late flood, or so destroyed as to he Cindered uninhabitable. 151 An enterprising party of miners, who have been engaged in sluicing operations for Several years on the Waimea terraces, (Westland.) have scut an order to Melbourne for £B3O worth of iron pipes, to be used in conveying Water across the branch, thus avoiding the old method of limning. Elba Lodge, Clyde, tlio Into residence of Mr \ iuccut Fyke, has been purchased from Mr A. Cluistophers, by the Duustau Church of ! England Committee, as a parsonage. The price is £253, and payment is to extend over a period 0- two years. A private company, (says the J'rncc W7 erahl,) consisting of twenty settlers on the Peninsula, and a few I Hmodiu merchants, lias | been forme 1 to prospect likely quartz reefs j known to exist upon the Peninsula, and already i hver three tons of stone has been raised, of Wuie'a a hundred weight lias been sent to MelJi lurno for crushing, the returns being at tin Mite of eight dwts. to the ton. This yield i. : jyfoiisldercd barely suifieieufc to warrant the erecj||ion of machinery on the ground ; but should future trial-crush lugs he form I to yield ten dwts. 1 to the ton, machinery will ho at once procured. |ud a new industry thus established in the ini j Mediate vicinity of Dunedin. Some stone fount pht the water’s edge lias yielded as much ai twelve and a half dwts, to the ton, and furthe: prospecting may probably dovclopo a payabh B-ef- Dr Hector, it would appear, is of opiuioi .that the Peninsula belongs to the same got do d gpl formation as the Thames, and should a pay E iC gold-lull bo discovered, water supply is no Gv to bo any drawback to its d