The Cromwell Argus. AND NORTHERN GOLD-FIELDS GAZETTE Cromwell : Tuesday, February 11, 1873,

Cromwell Argus, Volume IV, Issue 170, 11 February 1873, Page 4

The Cromwell Argus. AND NORTHERN GOLD-FIELDS GAZETTE Cromwell : Tuesday, February 11, 1873,

Four or five weeks ago, we published 3 letter received by the Secretary of the Cromwell Commonage Association from Mr Donald Reid, written in reply to 3 request for his co operation and assistance in the matter of securing commonage. In one of the sentences of this letter, the foil lowing words occurred :—“ The extended 4i powers granted under the new ‘ Waste Lands Act’ will enable the Government “ to make terms with the nmholder fora “ block of commonage,—failing which it “ can he ■proclaimed under the new Act, “ and compensation determined by arbi- “ tration.” (We draw attention to the words we have italicised.) As regards anything connected with this new Waste Lands Act, it was to be expected that Mr Reid could speak with confidence, and could offer an interpretation of its provisions in which faith might be placed. In a manner of speaking, the measure was \m own: he stood in loco parentis to it: and its successful transit through the House was hailed by many as a grand s J ep nuward towards the eventual goal of Mr Retd’s political running,— Land for the People. Therefore the public of this district were content to accept Mr Reid's dictum on the matter as that of one who ought to know, and did know. But Mr Bastings and his Honor the Superintendent now throw doubt upon Mr Reid's interpretation of his own Act ; and not only this, but have strengthened the likelihood of the correctness of these doubts by telling us that “ two lawyers of Dunedin” share in them. As the matter is one in which the gold-fields residents—and espeeidly the Cromwell people—are greatly interested, we have gone over the Act fo(\ ourselves, and will here lay before our readers a few results of our perusal. In the first place, the Act contains no mention of commonage on or within goldfields, at all. We do not know what section of the Act is held by Mr Reid to afford this power of proclaiming commonage; but the clause which seems most to favour his opinion is clause 70, part of which we reprint:— “ When any gold-mine or gold-field has been or shall be discovered and proclaimed upon any Waste Lands held under license or lease for depasturing purposes, it shall be lawful for the (Governor at his discretion to cancel the license or le.-.se as regards the whole or any part of such lands. ” And clause 73 says : “Lands situated within any gold-fiell over which a pastoral license does not exist, or hie been cancelled or suspended, may be soil or otherwise dealt with in the same manner as lands of the same class not within a gold-fi Id, hut it shall not ha necessary to proclaim such lan Is into hundreds for the pm poses of such sale or odiot disposal.” These two clauses seem to bear out in i> measure tho opinion of Mr Reid; but only in a measure, for it will be noticed that the cancelling of the runhohlor’slicense is not effected to the end that a block of commonage may be proclaimed. Nevertheless, it seems probable that in these two clauses a remedy is afforded for the commonage difficulty,—iu thiswise. Get the Governor, as per clause 7G, to cancel the lease of the ruuholder over a block sufficient for com monage purposes, and to proclaim

a gold field. Then such block, undqr clause 73, will be available for purchase; un 4 until purchased, bheie seems no reason why holders of miners’ rights could not run cattle upon it. Besides, under this same latter clause, the land may be sold or “otherwise dealt with"; and thus the block may eventually be set apart as a commonage. All this appears perfectly open and capable of accomplishment under this said “Waste Lands Act 1872.” But now we come to another difficulty,—probably the difficulty that hindered the two Dunedin lawyers from agreeing with Mr Reid. Clause 4—and its forerunners being clauses of necessity, for interpretation and the like, this may be called the very beginning, provision of the Act—has the following : “Nothing in this Act shall be deemed to affect any licenses or leases for the occupation nf Waste Lands for depasturing or other purposes, granted or issued under any former Acts, .Ordinances, or Regulations, and existing or being in force at the time of the coming into operation of this Act.” Now, as “ this Act” came into operation only on the first day of the present year, and as the runs all around us are held under licenses issued long previously, this clause 4 seems to leave the commonage difficulty just where it was originally,—so far as this district is concerned, at any rate. However, after all it may not be so. Mr Reid, the parent of the Act, is of opinion that it gives power to proclaim a commonage; while the two Dunedin lawyers, who we are told had a hand in its drafting, have only “ grave doubts’’ that it does not. And we have risen from its perusal with a great deal of dubiousness as to what may, and what may not, he lawful to be done under its provisions. The only way to have these doubts set at rest is to apply that the provisions of the Act shall be carried out. It seems somewhat certain that, if the Governor can and do put clause 76 into effect, the miners will have an opportunity of running their cattle without danger of an impounding raid; and this is the great necessity. Therefore, we suggest to the Cromwell Commonage Association, and to the newlyformed Miners’ Association at the Bannockburn also, that they apply to the Governor to cancel the i nnholder’s license over such blocks as may be thought sufficient. Mr Bastings tells us that-' the Executive are in communication with the several squatters from whose runs land is required, with a view to the acquirement of commonage blocks : but there is no [ saving how long this communication may |. be continued, and the attainment of its i object deferred. As regards obtaining com- | monage for Cromwell itself, there evidently j is a desire on the part of the Executive j that we shall be contented with the block ; of 7000 acres already granted to us; but, j as previously shown, this block is wholly \ inadequate. And if our local Association 3 apply for a proclaimed gold-field under | c^ U3e 76, the application will act the part I n test as to the Governor’s powers in | the matter; whilst there seems almost j equal reason to expect success as not. ; List week, by advertisement, the Arrow I Miners’ Association made it a request that j miners should purchase copies of the Act. \ We hope the request will he widely coinI plied with. Value for money may be depended upon. Several subjects of deop interest to the mining class are dealt with; j and there is satiety of reading, of its kind. j We are once more constrained to revert b the subject of the town water-supply. It seems the drought has affected the Westmoreland race (of which ihe Corporation owns a twelfth) to such an extent that there is no water available from that channel ; and the water-right ™ch cost the citizens £l2O has dwindled away to the most infinitesimal and insignificant proportions. The only available remedy under the circumstances has been adopted by the Public ''orks Committee, who have arranged with Messrs Hayes and Company for a temporary supply of water for the use of the townj '• A ecessity has no law, and the price paid for this temporary supply (ten shillings per diem) is perhaPs no more than its actual value. But the experience we have gained this summer affords proof_if any were needed—of the utter futility ™ looking for an effective water-supply from any other source than that we have so oiteu pointed °l| an, l 80 earnestly recommended to the (.'ouno'latul the citizens. We imagine that even the most obstinate opponents of the Firewood Creek joheme are now convinced that it is in reality he only practicable plan for securing a reliable ani l plentiful supply of pure water. The Star of the East Company finished * crashing of 140 tons last Tuesday, and the sJjUot of gold from that quantity was 163 ozs <lwts. The directors have since declared a lv > ( lend of 3s. 6d. per share. A quorum of shareholders not having a 8 ' 1 ? ,?'l a *- fb® Line and place appointed for e half-yearly meeting of the Carrick Range alt 6r Company, those who were present •Burned the proceedings until next Friday. Mr Henry Campbell, of Wanaka Station. colony 60 ? azet bed a Justice of the Peace for jthe

Owing to ill health, Mr B. R. BairdJ Receiver and Clerk to the Bench, has obtained a month’s leave of absence from duty. A uoticd appearing in another part of our present issue states the olliee will in the interim be open only on Monday, Thursday, and Friday of each week. Mr J. P. Armstrong, the well-known dentist, advertises his intention to visit Cromwell professionally about the Ist proximo. As nearly three years have elapsed since his former visit to this district, he will most likely find a large accumulation of business awaiting him. Ex-sergeant Ryan, charged with shooting Detective Farrell, was brought up on Tuesday last at the Mayor’s Court in Dunedin. Farrell and four or five witnesses were examined. During the trial, a letter in the prisoner’s handwriting to the wife of Detective Farrell was put in, and twenty-four letters from Mrs Farrell to the accused. The letters were not read in Court, so that nothing can be said as to their contents. Sub-Inspector Mallard deposed to finding, in the room of the accused in the European Hotel, some ammunition, a locket containing a portrait of Mrs Farrell, and the letters in her handwriting referred to. The prisoner has been committed for trial at the next session of the Supreme Court, without bail. The Wahntip Mail is announced to appear shortly as a bi-weekly. Mr Macassey, the well-known barrister, we are informed, intends shortly to proceed to Rngland, for the purpose of being called to the English bar. —Tuipeka Times. An Auckland telegram says :—A wellknown young man, named Moran, eloped by the Hero with the wife of a carter. The woman took two of her children with her, and left the other two behind for her husband. A contemporary says : —The banks made a considerable amount of money by the reduction in tire gold export duty. From the time the General Assembly resolved upon taking off sixpence par ounce till the reduced duty came into operation they exported as little of the precious metal as they possibly could. By this means they netted 61. per ounce over their usual profit on nearly the whole of the gold produced in the colony during the last four months of 1873.