Cromwell Argus, AND NORTHERN GOLD-FIELDS GAZETTE. Cromwell: Tuesday, December 22, 1874.

Cromwell Argus, Volume V, Issue 267, 22 December 1874, Page 5

Cromwell Argus, AND NORTHERN GOLD-FIELDS GAZETTE. Cromwell: Tuesday, December 22, 1874.

For the Christmas holiday time, there is no lack of fun provided for fun-loving people. Sports are to held at Quartzville on Boxing-day and Monday. TuesdavfWednesday, and very probably Thursday will be given over to horseracing under the auspices of the Cromwell Jockey Club. And for New Year's day the Good Templars have organised a,grand Picnic, to take place in the gully behind Mr Towan's farm, and they also intend to give a Concert and Dance in the evening. Perriam's sports, too, are now advertised for New Year's day. If during the holiday time,, therefore, there be any deficiencies and shortcomings as regards reading matter in the Aftous, we suppose we need hardly make any apology. Printers are but human, and if they go to the races they must be excused if work does not go on briskly at the same time ; and no doubt for them, kiss-in-the-ring at a picnic on New Year's Day will also have its attractions. So our readers may take notice that we mean to enjoy ourselves,—" we, us, and Co.,"—from the editor to the P.D.; and not being anyway selfish in our enjoyment,-we wish all'our readers may do the same. And therefore, we tender to them the Compliments of the Season,—A Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. We are requested to draw the attention of the members of the Fire Brigade to the fact that practice is to be held this evening,—not to-morrow evening, as previously announcedThe Town Council at its meeting last Tuesday night resolved to strike a rate for the year of Is 3d in the pound. Money is scarce with the Corporation, the cleansing of the town having been a heavy drain on the funds ; and it was argued, in favour of the increased, rate, that money must bo had for the carrying out of necessary public works. Mr TJlrich, .the gentleman from the Victorian School of Mines, whose services have been secured bv the Provincial Government for the purpose of visiting and reporting upon the goldmines of the Province, will likely arrive in this district about the New Year. The managers of mining companies have been given notice to this effect. It is to be regretted that so inconvenient and unsuitable a time as at New Year, when all the mines have stopped work, should have been fixed for the visit; but as Mr Ulrich's stay is to be a short one, perhaps it could not be otherwise, arranged.

' Jne Mount Ida nomination brought out , Cftadlaates—Messrs Ewiag, Leary, Dillon, Y A • { WM *° take P** o6 ; s At the lastis. ftfotordV application Board, Messrs Grant «, ]j; Awa r»tt Bridge was for twenty acres of land a. **«r bt'ing obtained. granted, on consent of runholu - • -•■.••'^j; -.: , , . . M ott)tei and " We have read of a singing iu .» j£ ffl a speaking fish, but who," the Dayktforw .. <kf cury asks, " ever heard of a fowl that could ta«. Yet Mr Dickenson, of the Excelsior Hotel, Vincent street north, informs us that he possesses such a feathered phenomenon. When he re. ' moved to his present house, he brought with other poultry a common barn-door cock, and < about two months ago it began to imitate a mag* pie next door. He says he could hardly believe ' his ears when the bird answered the neighbour- 1 ing chanticleers by screaming out, 4 Pretty cocky,' i instead of the usual sounds. The cock goes i through the preliminary motions of a vigorous crow, and then utters the above words even • more distinctly than its tutor. All who have ' heard the bird, pronounce it to be a great ouri- '. osity." .■--..■ Mr M. Fraer has been elected a Councillor at Lawrence. He was opposed in the election ( by Mr W. Quin. of the Tuapeka Times. The ( polling was : Fraer, 25 ; Quin, 9. The first of the applications for agricultural leases came on at the Warden's Court on Friday last. Mr Johnston appeared on behalf of a number of miners to object, on the ground that the land applied for was auriferous. The applications not having been surveyed, the Warden decided to adjourn the hearing until the Bth January, when the greater part of the balance of them are fixed for hearing. At the same time, he gave the objectors a hint, to tho effect that \ they would require to come prepared with rea- j sonably good evidence of the land being auri- j fergus. Some of the objectors, he feared, were ] possessed of a few cattle, and these, who might 2 look unfavourably on the probability of the com- ) monage area being reduced, would do well to let their interests in this way have no influence as j regarded their objections. He merely gave this hint to let them understand that they must come . well prepared to support their objections with ' reasonble evidence as to the auriferous nature of ' the land applied for. } Mr St. Vincent, assisted by Mrs St. , Vincent (Madame Montebello), advertises per* • formances for the race-nights in Cromwell. Mr - St. Vincent is known here through his connec- " tion with the Airec troupe ; and of his present , entertainment some of the down-country papers ! speak very highly. . , • Father Mackay, who held service in the , Roman Catholic Chapel on Sunday, gave the welcome notice that hereafter service will be < held everv fortnight, either by himself or his co- ( adjutor, Father Moore. Yesterday a sale ot town sections intjhe ! townships of Cromwell, Wakefield, Gladstone, > arid Pembroke was held in th# Cromwell 'Crfiirtbmise,—Mr B. R. Baird being the auctioneer. \ Very few apparently knew anything of the sale, \ judging by the attendance, which amounted to exactly five persons, Several of the most desir-, able sections put up in Cromwell were sold, the , buyers arranging matters amicably, so that none . fetched more than the upset price. Perhaps fifteen were sold altogether, at £3 each. ,< During the race week, a clearing sale is to be held of Mr I. Wright's remaining stock'. The Committee of the Cromwell Jockey ' Club held an adjourned special meeting on Fri- .« day evening, the 18th inst. The business was to.open the tenders for the purchase of the grand stand and horse-paddock at the coming meeting, i Two tenders were received for the stand and booth,—one from Mr R, E. Dagg for £IOO 9s, and j the other from Mr John Pernam for £BO. Mr , Dagg's tender was accepted. Mr John Hurley i was leased the horse-paddock for £l3 7s 6d. This was the whole of the business. i Some appeals against the assessment were handed in at the last meeting of the Town Council, and are to- be heard by the Resident , Magistrate, probably on the Bth January. ; ; { Two accidents have to be chronicled by l us this week. At Bendigo, one of the men (named Eastwood) employed by the Cromwell Company, had his left foot severely crushed l by a quartz-waggon pissing over it. East- £ wood was driving the waggon down the hill at the time, and it was while patting on the brake that the accident occurred. Something like three tons passed over his foot, so that it can easily be believed that the injuries were j severe.—The other accident happened to Mr James M. Brown, of the firm of Messrs Jolly ) and Co., He was riding out in the direction of • the Lower flat, when his horse fell with him, > and he sustained a fracture of the collar-bone. 1 besides other injuries, which will likely confine j him for a month or so. Dr Stirling's residence, where the sufferers were conveyed, and where , they with others are being "treated, is rapidly becoming quite an hospital Some time ago, it will be remembered, application was made by the Town Council to the authorities in Wellington for the payment to the Corporation of the fines levied by the Court for offences arising within the Municipality ; and to this application a favourable reply was received. Since that answer, the Corporation have received from the Clerk of the Court all fines in cases such as mentioned ; but the fines previously were sent to Wellington, and the Council now wish to make an effort to have the amount of them handed over. With this view, the Mayor and Cr Arndt were appointed a deputation to wait upon the Clerk of the Court to ascertain the ' particulars of such fines; and, when these are received, application will be at once made to ' Wellington. ' We extract the following paragraph from the Bendigo Advtrtwr of the 20th ult.:— ' " A very old resident at Bendigo, now a mem- > ber of the House of Representatives for the im- | portant mining centre of the Dunstan—Mr T. < L. Shepherd—is at present on a visit to Sand- i hurst." Mr Shepherd met with a hearty recep- 1 fuon from his in Victoria. 'j

; Last Friday, in Cromwell, Mr George Faohe sold the Aurora battery and water race ) by action. The property was started at the low figure of £SO, but was eventually knocked down at the respectable price of £955, Mr Thomas Logan, of the Cromwell Company, being the purchaser.—The same auctioneer also put up 1 for sale a quantity of horseß, the property of Mr Harrison, of the Nevis. For such as were ■old fair prices were realised, and those not sold by auction were nearly all afterwards disposed of privately. Reefing prospects at the Lyell, on the ' Coast, are Very encouraging at present. Tiff LJ i r * tt * v "™ at the °P* uion tha * »la^e kwf. «f tlw r,'* eim * Would 80M6 d *y *» diebody of ver> JK rf j r i s hman's k hj covered near thb no H , , ~ u r° been advanced over awl * ftM3ffi& were best able to judge, anu TJ*tlK have from time to time been its whereabouts. The last and best diru*'#| <■>* these efforts was one under the auspicea of u. e United Alpine Quartz Mining Company (limited), ; whose enterprise and perseverance have at length ] been crowned with the most complete success. ] Lyell can no longer be taunted with the ephemeral character of its quartz lodes, for in the low level tunnel of that company's claim there is now exposed to view 50ft. of a reef as well de- { fined and infinitely richer than any other yet ( opened in this island.