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Cromwell Argus, Volume IV, Issue 186, 3 June 1873, Page 4

A cake of retorted gold weighing 82 oz 0 ., the product of 170 tons of stone from the Heart] of Oak, was brought into Cromwell on Wednes-j day last. The following are the letters received at the Cromwell post-office during February, and remaining unclaimed at the end of .May John Berny, J. H. Bowman, H. It. T. Burns, Win. J. Cain, Thomas Clyde, A. Cook, William M‘Keckncy, Mrs A. Boss, John Taylor. The tunnel in the Lucknow quart z-clainv | Bendigo, has now been driven to a distance of 249 feet. The rock continues very hard, and although the work is being done by day-labor, the cost is very little if anything under £2 per foot. The estimation in which the Lucknow is hfldj in the sharemarket at present may he judged of from the fact that £4 has been offered for £1 scrip in the company. We direct attention to an advertisement calling a meeting for the purpose of taking steps towards the establishment of a gymnasium w Cromwell. We hope a good attendance will show that interest is taken in the matter. The establishment of so excellent an institution as a gymnasium ought very soon to he an accom-l plished fact. Every paterfamilias in the to" 0 should lend a helping hand. A gymnasium, where no means of evening amusement or recreation exist, other than billiard-rooms and so forth) will help no less in a moral direction than m a physical.

No steps have yet been taken towards the re-institution of the Winter Evening Entertainments, which during past seasons furnished Cromwell residents with so much of pleasure and diversion. We hope that ere long some sign B hall bo made in this direction. The Elizabeth Company completed a crushing at their own battery on Saturday last, with a result of 66 ozs. of gold. The exact quantity of stone crushed we are unable to ascertain, but it was probably about 130 tons. The previous crushing gave 87 ounces from 150 tons. The manager has sunk a shaft to a depth of 55 ft. below the main level, and the quality of the stone has been found to improve in proportion to the depth attained. The quartz found towards the bottom of the shaft is said to possess that peculiar bluish tinge which is considered a sure indication of a rich and permanent reef. Work in the new shaft was temporarily interrupted by an irruption of flood-water frotw the stream in the gully adjacent ; but by means of a small dam which Sias been constructed above the shaft, the flow of water has been arrested, and sinking again resuraed. The battery is being fitted with four new stamps—the old ones being worn out; and it was expected that crushing would be recommenced to-day. It is anticipated that the use of the new stamps will have the effect of considerably augmenting the average yield of the stone. The late heavy fall of rain did a good deal of damage to the road between Qnartzville and Carrickton, —so much so that on Tuesday last, Mr Stephenson, owner of the Caledonian claim, and Mr J. Kane, who has a contract, for carting stone to the Royal Standard battery, found it necessary to set a number of men to work in order to make the road, passable for drays. It seems hard that private individuals should be put to the expense of maintaining a public thoroughfare such as the Carrickton road has been since its ft'onmatioa. •Large quantities of driftwood were | ''brought down the Kawarau by the flood last Tuesday, and many people were on the beach long before daylight, fishing-out (by means of long poles hooked at the end) their winter's stock of firewood. Several parties secured as much as a dozen cartloads apiece. In order to meet the increasing requirements of their business, Messrs D. A. Jolly and < l o., provision merchants, Melmore street, have just completed a large and substantial addition to their premises. The new building, which is of stone, is situate at the rear of the wood and iron structure built by the firm some three years ago. The old building measures 30ft. by 22ft., ■ and the new one 33 by 20, inside measurement, —thus affording a total floor space of 2;548 square feet. The walls of the stone portion are 13ft. h'gh. There is also a commodious stone cellar attached to the premises. The funeral of the late Sarah Jane Fer mm, who died yesterday week from congestion j of the lungs, took place on Thursday afternoon, and was very numerously and respectably atI tended. The funeral service was impressively performed by the Rev. J. Jones, of Clyde. In the Warden's Court on Thursday, I Owen O'Neil summoned G W. Goodger and I others, owners of the Royal Standard quartzclaim, under the following circumstances :—A share in the claim, supposed to belong to Joseph berry, was sold by the Bailiff to satisfv a judgment obtained by O'Neil against Berry, and I O'Neil was declared the purchaser. Defendants refused to acknowledge O'Neil as the holder of j the share, alleging that it was transferred, prior 1 to the sale, to another person. Tn support of this statement evidence was given by C. Kmnig, who produced a transfer of the share from Berry [ to himself, which transfer, it was proved, had I been duly registered some time previous to the I shire being offered by the Bailiff. The decision I of the Warden was therefore given for defenI (hints.—The only case in the R. M.'s Court— I Taggart r. Wallace— was again adjourned. Mr T. L. Shepherd, it will be remembered, at his meeting in Cromwell, claimed the ! chief credit of having secured the formation of the railway to Tuapeka ; but that he was cn- . titled to any credit, it will also be remembered, was shortly afterwards denied by the Tuapeka Times. This denial brought a letter from Mr Shepherd to that piper, in which he quoted " Hansard " with a view of proving that he was | correct. Since the publication of his letter, the I Thim has taken the trouble to look up " HanI ( sard," and thus concludes an article in which it quotes speeches and requests by Mr J. C. Brown, and answers by members of the Government, made some time previous to the date of the first appearance of Mr Shepherd's name in connection with the subject:—" From this it is evident that the Government had fully decided upon placing the Tuapeka line upon the first schedule before ever Mr Shepherd opened his mouth. And even when he did that, his object, from his speech, appeared to be to get what he must have well known was at the time an impossibility, | v 'z-, a line to the Dunstan. So much with regard to Mr Shepherd's services for the benefit of the Tuapeka people. From the light ' Hansard' throws on the subject, it appears Mr Shepherd : came in at the last moment, when his services w ere not needed, and when everything was settled. He now comes forward, and attempts «> take a large share of credit for what is due to the labour of otheis."

We are informed that Mr Thomas Baird, late of Bendigo, haa disposed of his interest (one-seventh) in the Rit-or-Miss Water Race Company, Mount Ida, for the sum of £SOO. ' The successful tenderers for the Tuapeka and Tokomairiro railway are Messrs John and Norman Campbell. The amount has not yet transpired, but it is understood to be about £68,000. The nature of the work may be briefly described as twenty-two miles of formation over a rough tract of country. Two tunnels are also included in the work, viz., one 484 and the other 176 yards in length. The Messrs Campbell are at present engaged upon what is known as the heavy cutting on the line from Invercargill to Mataura. For the Tuapeka line it has been stated that five tenders were received for the entire work, and eleven for sectional parts. The amount of the highest tender was close upon £130,000. Star. English news by cablegram has been received in Dunedin, dated London, May 16. The following are one or two of the principal items :—The Fidelia, steam collier, bound to New Zealand, was totally wrecked at the Cape of Good Hope. The crew were saved.—Khiva has been taken by the Russians.— The squadron in Indian waters has been ordered to the Gold Coast of Africa, to chastise the Ashantees, who, 30,000 strong, threaten to attack the Dutch settlement of Elmina. A force of marines and artillery is to leave Portsmouth for the same des-tination.--The Duke of Edinburgh has been formally engaged to the only daughter of the Czar of Russia.—Mr John Stuart Mill, the celebrated political economist, died on May 9. The Dunstan Times says that "Mr Daniels intends placing a four-horse cnach on the road between Clyde and Queenstown, in opposition to Mr Henry's line. Mr Daniels is well acquainted with the road, having some few years ago run a coach on it; but we doubt, with all his knowledge if he will make the venture a paying one." The following letter appeared in the Dally Times of Wednesday last. We commend it to the consideration of all,—no less to that of candidates than to that, of voters :—" Sir, We are on the eve of elections—from a Superintendent to City Councillors. The objectionable practice of candidates miking personal canvass has already commenced, and notably for that of the M ayoralty. I shall decline to vote for anyone that euueavours to persuade me or try to get me over to his side by abusing his opponent. I have no doubt that the various candidates will profit by the fallowing, which is from Lord Bantam : 'There is probably no occupation, short of crime, more demoralising, and none so disheartening, as the door-to-door mendicancy of a candidate for the honour of representing a borough.'—l am, &c, John." J. Roberts, sen., the ex-billiard champion of the world, has been beaten, in an even game of iOOO up, by L. Kilkenny, the champion of Yorkshire. At the finish the game stood : Kilkenny, 1000; Roberts, 790. During the game, Kilkenny scored breaks of 125 (20 spots), 103 (33 spots), 79, and several others of from 40 to 50. Roberts's highest breaks were 60, 49, 42, and several of about 30. The " Man in the Street" complains that some ill-natured tell-tale has been spreading a report that, when it became known the iJrovincial Council was to be dissolved without payment of the honorarium, certain hotelkeepers claimed to hold the persons of some of the members as security for their accounts for board and lodging. The detained men complain that their grog is stopped, and believe it to be a device to prevent them appealing to their constitueu s.— Star.