FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 17, 1869.

Dunstan Times, Issue 387, 17 September 1869, Page 2

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 17, 1869.

The past Session of the General Assembly Las not been productive of many measures conducive to the interests of Otago. The “ Hundreds Act” cannot fail to prove a serious obstruction to the'occupation of the lands, and consequently seriously retard the spread and increase of population. This Act may certainly be divested of some of its worst features by the Government only bringing it into operation so far as the proclamation of the hundreds recommended by the Provincial Council during their last Session is concerned. Bur, when we come to consider the insidious enemies we have to deal with, and of whom this iniquitous measure is born, it will require careful watching on our parts least, at some unexpected mom. Nt, we may find ourselves taken by surprise by the Act being put in force in all its intended integrity. To preserve the country in its primitive simplicity cf a sheep-walk, and place obstruction, as far as it is possible, in the way of the settlement ol the people, appears the chief ambition of she squatters; and, when we come to consider the valuable trade now developing itself in Australia connected with the preservation of meat for the European markets, the low price of wool will sink into insignificance before the enormous profits which this new scheme promises. Who can therefore wonder that the squatters view He man desirous of cultivating the sol! and making the province his homo with other than jealous eyes. Sheepgrazing on the hills, surrounded by wire fences, so that they may not stray—shepherds for the most part having been dispensed with—is fur more profitable to them ! 7 ran the homestead of the hard-working miner or settler, wrestling with rude uatn- e

for the means of support. The battle of the lands will require to be as hotly contested here as in Victoria, and, as wehave before said,we know our enemy and must be prepared to meet him.

The “ Otago Settlement Bill” presents a more pleasing aspect, and promises the development of industries hitherto almost unknown in Australasia. The wild and desolate solitudes of Martin’s Bay and Preservation Inlet, the undisturbed home of the sea-gull, whoso wild sonorous cry only relieves the monotony of sound, except, perhaps, when visited by some enterprising explorer or whaling ship, promises shortly to be teeming with human life ; the savage grandeur of those great fiords or sounds which deeply indent the coast, carrying the waters of the sea to the very base of the great mountains and into the hearts of otherwise impenetrable forests, will be broken in upon and disturbed by the invasion of commerce ; and we fully believe that, when once the settlements are formed, tlit restless enterprise of the goldminer will cause the road from the east coast to the west coast to be as well known and as easily travelled over as any of the settled portions of the province. The presence of gold overcomes almost every obstacle. It is the open sesame to impenetrable regions, and, as the gold discoveries opened to us direct communication between Dunedin and theWakatip,so will further similar discoveries open up a road still further to die westward, until there exists one great highway between the eastern and western shores of Otago. The Bill offers peculiar advantages to settlers possessed of small capital, as three hundred acres of land can be acquired by the mere outlay of 7 01. ; one hundred is obtainable as a free gift by all persons above the ago of fifteen, by complying with the conditions of settlement- a three-years’ residence ; one hundred more acres may be had at the rate of ss. per acre, and another one hundred at 10s. Ample provision is

mii'io for tlie comfort and w&il-beiag of (lie settlors, ns the whole of the proceeds of the sales o' - land are to he applied to the ranking of roads, immigration, schools, and other public institutions. At Martin’s Hay the very finest timber for shin-building purposes is procurable at almost the water’s edge, while abundance of power may be obtained from the numerous mountain torrents for the driving of saw-mills and converting it into planks and other suitable proportions Water-carriage is so practicable everywhere that cargoes may he shipped almost at the mills themselves On the principle adopted in Nova Scotia of building a ship and preparing fur her a cargo of timber at the same time, timber may be resorted to here with advantage. Sail may be made for the rao.-t convenient market, and, after disposing of the whole, separately or in a lump, the speculator can return with the proceeds and renew the experiment. The bays teem alive with fish, and, besides what may be required for local consumption, a large export trade could be done with Australia. The firm flesh of fish caught in cold climates being so immensely superior to that obtained in warm latitudes, would always ensure to our’s a ready sale. There also exists laud suitable for agriculture and pasture, and adventurous prospecting parties have succeeded in finding gold in paying quantities, but were compelled to desist from further operations on account of the difficulties existing in the way of procuring supplies of provision.?. The distance overland from Marlin’s Bay to Queenstrvm does not exceed fifty miles. Dr. Hector made the journey in forty-six hours’ travelling, and stales in his report that a good dray road, avail-, able at all seasons of the year, might he made at a level of not more than four hundred feet above Lake Wakatip. But Martin’s Bay may be reached by a much shorter route than th'c. The distance between the head of the Wakatip, by way of the valleys of the Dart and Jf.aduka livers, to the head of Lake Ixakapo, is only some twonty-eight miles, and from thence ther; is communication with the sea.

At Preservation Inlet extensive seams of coal, said to be equal to Newcastle, have been found, and when all the advantages we have here enumerated are taken into account, the proposed new settlements on the West Coasts cannot but be of considerable advantage in adding to the already numerous natural resources of the province. A s soon as the necessary surveys are made, and we believe they are to be proceeded with immediately, we may fully expect to see the provisions of the “Otago Settlements Bill” very largely availed of by persons desirous of making New Zealand their permanent home.

In the early part of the late Session of the Assembly a discussion as io the veracity of the repots in Hansard took place. It was then fully understood that Hansard’s report s should not be tampered with, and that honorable" members should not have the privilege of re-writing or so extensively correcting thdr speeches. The determination of the House in this matter, has been, in one instance at least, departed from, and that departure from a jud : e : ous principle has involved ns in some unpleasantness. The case only requires to bo explained to show our Cromwell friends that they have erred in supposing we intended to do them any injustice in some remarks we made about the discovery of a new goldfield. On the 27ih of July last Mr C. O’Neill drew the attention of the Assembly to the important interests of Cromwell, and lie was reported in Hansard. It is usual for members to gob “slips” of their speeches, and for those anxious to send rapid intelligence of their actions to forward those slips to the local press of the district they represent or to some influential constituent We received one of those, in which the discovery of a new and valuable goldfield was announced by Mr. O’Neill during the course of his remarks. The gvavemen of the charge against us is that we stated we did not know of any such discovery. Our Cromwell friends say we should have interpreted Mr. O'Neill’s language in a different wmy • in fact, that we should, at Clyde, have written a quite different speech for him. A remarkably cool proposal, certainly, and which might have impaled us on the other horn of the delemnm. Curiously enough, however, the last bound number of Hansard brings us quite a different report of the speech of Mr. O’Neill. In that mention is made, for the first time, of valuable quartz reefs discovered by Gooclger and Co. For the future we shall know the value of these slips, and we may venture to say that we have now ascertained the value of the Hansard reports. Perhaps Mr. O’Neill favored the Cromwell people with early intelligence of what he really did say, thus accounting for their enlightment.

On Saturday afternoon last, between 3 and 4 o’clock, that most ominous of all cries “ Fire!” was raised. Upon rushing out and following the crowd we soon came to the scene of the conflagration, the range of stabling occupied by Messrs. Cobb and Co., at the rear of George’s Dunstan Hotel. There being plenty of willing hands and plenty of water in the town race to work the hand engines and buckets that were brought into requisition, the flames were soon got under, and, we are happy to say, befoie much injury was done The wind, which had been blowing a gale just previously, providentially lulled, or we are of opinion a tenable tale of disaster would have to be told. A horse was gallantly rescued from the midst of the flames by a bystander who, at great personal risk, rushed in and succeeded in getting the poor brute out. Upon an examination of the premises it was proved, beyond a doubt, that the tire had been caused by some children having made a bonfire at the rear of the building.

The Provincial Government Gazette of the Bth inst. notifies that the application for a mining lease, by Bond and others, of fifteen acres of land adjoining Pierce and party’s claim, Cardrona, has been refused by the Government, and that the said land is now open for occupation by holders of miner’s rights.

We are reluctantly compelled to hold over till our next issue a, cone spondcnt’s letter from Black’s; also one from Alexandra, and much other matter of general interest to our readers.

On Friday lust a rather serious accident occurred in one of the sluicing claims close to the township of Cromwell, whereby Michael Connellan, a shareholder, received a fracture of the skull. The ground the party is working is about seventy feet deep, of a loose shingly character. A large mass suddenly became detached, and in its career buried Connellan. Others of party who witnessed the accident, as as soon as possible extricated him. When got out he was insensible and bleeding copiously fi om the wound on his head. Dr. Corse, who attended, informed us that the case is progressing favorably. We notice that Mr. John Booth, an old resident n t Cromwell, but now of Dunedin, has obtained a patent for a machine for the preparation of the phormium tenax (native flax. The Daily Times calls attention to a case of considerable importance to licensed victuallers, and which was recently decided in the Resident Magistrate’s Court, Dunedin. Messrs. Marsha 1 and Copeland sued a Mr. M'Ewen for the value of five casks, which the defendant liad bought from a Mrs. Riordan, of Port Chalmers, to whom the plaintiffs had sold beer contained in the casks in question. The point raised was whether the casks had been sold along with the beer-. The Magistrate decided that they had not, and gave judgment for the plaintiffs. In the Supreme Court, Dunedin, on the Bth inst., in the case “ Harris arrd another v. Shanley and another,” the Court decreed that the administrators be ordered to sell all the real estate vested iu Thomas Shanley at the date of his death, that the sale take place at Cromwell, and that the costs be costs iu the case. Mr. Howarth was council for the defendant and Mr. J. Smith for the plaintiff. On Saturday last one of a number of tents situate on the banks of the Molyucux, opposite the Dunstan District Hospital, was burned to the ground, and everything in it, consisting of bedding, clothing, Arc,, the property of Charles Perkins, was consumed. The loss is estimated at about 20?.

From Mr. T. L. Gillies’s report of his tour tlirough the goldfields of tl.is province, now published, we make the following extract, and hope in our next issue to give the report at fidl length 1 would also direct the attention of the Government to the advisability of giving every possible encouragement to parties will ng to plant ti ees in the various districts of the province. One of the greatest drawbacks to our mining enterprise is the great scarcity of timber. I believe there was a proposal to extend the Gaol accommodation at Clyde, so as to save the expense of forwarding prisoners to Dunedin. Prison labor might be usefully employed in fencing in, preparing, and planting a piece of land in that district. The climatic changes that would be brought about through, the agency of plantations would convert that district into the garden of Otago. We are requested by Mr. Fache to intimate that, as the Court of Petty Sessions will be holden at Black’s on Thursday, the 7th of October, the sale by auction of general stores, horses, cattle, &c., advertised to take place at Eames’s store, Ida Valley, on that day, is postponed till the Bth of October.

We notice that Mr. HenryManders, a gentleman who Las been for some years practising as a legal and mining agent at Queenstown, has opened an office at Cromwell, where we trust he will succeed.