The Dunstan Times FRIDAY, DECEMBER 27, 1872.

Dunstan Times, Issue 558, 27 December 1872, Page 2

The Dunstan Times

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 27, 1872.

♦ iJcneaththeltuleof Men entirely just thfi-PBK is.MIGHTnsR than the swotid.

'The expressions of puolic opinion at thelate meeting held for the purpose of protesting against the sale of auriferous land to Mr. J- D. Feraud, at the Wai Seri. Seri Valley, although strong,; scarcely allows how thoroughly indignant the people of this district are at such perfidious conduct on the part of the Government. We -always concluded that the Provincial Government was a corrupt body and •would sacrifice anything for political purposes or influence, yet we never thought they weuld basely dispose of the peoples’ birthright in the shape of making a sale of auriferous lands, when the voice of public opinion had decided against doing so. This is the third sale of auriferous lauds in oppo si lion to the expressed desire’of the •mining population, and where will the evil stop. Has it been determined upon by the Waste Lands Board, of Otago to dispose of the whole of the Gold-fields to private persons, and drive the miners out of the country, or has wool become so valuable that the presence of sheep over the hills is preferable to the industrious miner or farmer. The land just now sold to Mr. J. D Feraiul is useless for agricultural purposes; it has been cried and found wanting, hut is known to contain gold, the work of extraction being only a question of time, when water will be available to do so.- Before th? opening of the last session of the Provincial Council, the Leaning Bock district was proved to bo highly auriferous, especially Block 2, of which the land sold to Mr. Feraud forms a portion; public meetings were called, and the Provincial Counci' petitioned tiiat no more land in the Wai Keri Keri Valley should be sold) and this desire was acquiesced in by the Government. Upon the faith of this, the miners have bronght in water to work the ground, hundreds of pounds and much labor has been expended in the construction of races and opening up of claims, and now that everything is ready, and a large yield of.gold almost upon the point of realisation, the key of the entire are% that is, the on'y outlet by •which it can be worked, is suddenly find without notice alienated Where the evil will end no one can tell; promises made by the Provincial GoTermaent are shamefully broken, and, Ihercia au end .of ju’dia couileue ]

If this u to last it will be unsafe for a mining party to open a claim, or for any person'to assist them to do so, as after going to'trouMe and expense the mining property created, may at any I mmnent be found to.belong toothers. j The want, of .public confidence will tell seriously «gainst.the gphl mining in erest, its effect will tot be confined to. the Dunstan, even at the present time three of the raining districts have been sacrificed by the the sale of auriferous lands. If it has become iho determination of the Provincial Government to dn've the gold miners nut of the province, let them openly express that determination without resorling to subterfuge, by repeated vales of auriferous blocks, so that in time there -"til remain to them no homes or places for labor. Such conduct will most materially affect the value of mining properties; the tenure of which was never considered as very secure, but with breaches of faith like the present, non» can tell when they ' go to bed at night, who will be the owner of their property in the morning. Faith goes a long way with a gold miner, but once shake his confidence, and the industry that has made the Province \yill quickly reduce it to the level it originally occupied. There can be no doubt but that Mr. Fei-and's purchase has been made for speculative purposes. The land is positively unfitted for any branch of agriculture and even suppose that its sale to Mr. Feraud was promised by a previous Executive in 18G9 when opposed by the unanimous voice of public opinion in 1872, the sale should not have been'made whatever might be Ihe"'c6nscqnen'c3s, the wants or wishes of the many should surely have prefweiree to the desires of one, especially "hen it is so clear that th»y are purely mercenary. There is time yet for the Provincial Government to do an ace of Justico, the Crown giant to Mr. Feraud has not been issued, and its refusal -can, without difficulty or loss of honor, be made. This course the Government can adopt readily, and restore public confidence. They are perfectly justified in refusing to sell auriferous lands, and even after having done so, whether through misrepresentation or no, they are equally justified in reversing their decision pn. grotindei of public policy.

At the meeting of the Waste Lands : Board on Wednesday last, the application of Mr. J. R. Kemp, of Coal Creek, for permission to take up half an acre of limestone ' deposit, discovered by him between Teviot and Alexandra, was referred to the Warden. | On Thursday evening last an accident i occurred near Gibbston, Kawarau, whereby a Mrs: Harvey, -the wife" of a miner, lost her life. The Arrow Advocate says : From what we can glean, it seems deceased and two other women had safely crossed the Kawarau in a chair, and proceeded up the tortuous and precipitous paUi towards Harry Cook's place. On looking round, cneof the deceased's companions missed h>.-r frr.m the track, and saw only a small oioud of dust where the unfortunate woman Jiad toppled over into the river far below. Mrs. Harvey's hat was found on the edge of the river, hut no trace of the tody has yet been" discovered. The saino journal says, on Wednesday evening or Thursday morning, a most serious accident befel a woman named Martha Squires, wife of a miner living up the Arrow River, Mrs. Squires was noticed on Wednesday afternoon on her way homeward and nothing more wa3 seen of her till next morning, when her cries attracted the attention of some miners, who on proceeding to the spot, discovered the unfortunate woman lying on the river beach dreadfully bruised aud with one leg broken. From the place and position in which she was found, it i 3 evident Mrs. Squires had a most miraculous escape from death as she must have dc- • scendsd some hundreds of feet, and that over a rockey, precipitous fact. She was brought dewa the river, and taken to tho Hospital. It is easy to see from Bishop Nevill'a recent utterances that he is an out-and-out supporter of denominational education. Twic: in hi 3 address on opening his Synod, he expressed a de«; e for schools under the direct control of his church, and in earnest language urged their establishment. With the Episcopalians and the Roman Catholics thus pulling in the same boat, the friends of unsectarian education will have to exert themselves to the utmost to prevent the disastrous results which they believe will follow in the train of denominationalisra, from being brought about. They will have to Jay aside all minor differences of opinion, and s-iziiig the one broad principle that State education should be free from any sectarian bias, stick to that and fight for it ] manfully and persistently. The fight will be a hard, and probably a h,ng one, but the object is worth striving for, and in proportion, to the severity of the conflict will be the honor of victory. ." v " • ■ . ■ - The Se-cietary of the:.Alexandra Race C. mmittee reqet us to. announce that the first race -will be started at one o'clock precisely.;- This information reached us too i late for insertion in advertisement. ! We have to acknowledge receipt from the Government printer of a batch of Tarliameatarytfatarns aoJijiapers. ..J

A violent gale of wind swept over this . district on Tuesday last, continuing with more or less violence throughout the day. | Tho succession of hot blasts made sad havoc | among the fruit tree, causing a large per centage of the crop to fall to the ground,: comparatively useless. The quantity, of fruit destroyed in the neighborhood of this town is very great, and the effect on those who have spent both time and. money on cultivation is mist di.-heartu’iig,' '‘However, as the crop this year was of more than usually abundant, we may hope, with favorable weather, t« secure a very fair yield. On Christmos-day some veiy genial aud welcome showers fell, which have had the effect of somewhat reviving vegetation, hut a far larger quantity of rain would be gladly welcomed. Tho usual practice night of the Clyde Brass Band falling on Christmas-day, the members met on the preceeding evening, at the Town Hall It having been suggested that, while practising, they might afford a great treat to both the gentler and nobler sex by admitting them to the Hall, to disport themselves to the lively music. Tho Band having with great courtesy and kindness accepted the suggestion, a pretty numerous company attended, and dancing was kept up with unflagging spirit for some hours, when the National Anthem, finely played, concluded one of the pleasantest evenine’s amusements that it has been our lot to enjoy for some time past. On a former occasion we had reason to speak in high praise of the efficiency of the Clyde Brass Band had attained in so short a time, aud although but a brief period has elapsed the improvement car Tuesday was most marked, and in fact, we do not hesitate to say that more pleasurable dance music is not to bo found in the Province. On Wednesday j evening next (New Year’a Day), the Band will play at the ball to be held at Alexandra in aid of the School Building Ponds. The Pneumatic Dredge Company are rapidly approaching the completion of the first portion of their work, and expect, in the course of two or three weeks to be in a position to test the invention. The energy | of those employed in preparing the machine? svugurs well for the success of the undertaking. As a proof that the inhabitants of Clyde i repose full confidence in the stability and | future prosperity of the township, we may ' draw attention to the improved style of i buildings in course of erection. The already j large premises of Mr. Naylor are in course j of enlargement; Mr Hazlett’s now brickhuiit house is rapidly approaching com- i pletion, and when finished will be an orna- j raent to the town ; while a great improve- j ment is visible in the design and material | of the dwellings recently erected and those in course of construction. Tho Alexandra Annual Races will take place on Wednesday next, the Ist proximo, and the liberal programme (see advertisement) will, wiiiraut doubt, draw a numerous com- ' pang together, not only bipods but quadru- j peds also. Matakaaui Race Meeting has always been popular since its first establishment, now some years ago, This is easily accounted I for by the well-known sporting proclivities ! of one or mure of the leading men in tho neighborhood, while the lesser lights have : followed so closely in the Wake that Dry- ; bread and its surrounding district may he said to teem with true lovers of racing. ■ The annual meeting is fixed for. tho 2nd and 3rd of January next. Tho programme issued by tho Stewards is a very judicious ono, aud the course has been put into good •order, so that there is every pmbability those attending will bo well pleased with tho sport provided for their delectati on The programme, as also the weights for the handicaps, will be found on reference to our advertising columns. Yesterday (Boxing Day) was very gene* rally observed as a holiday, tho business premises remaining closed. . Not a few of our townspeople took advantage of this to attend the Cromwell Races, and in visiting their friends, and. we hope all have enjoyed theiraclvcs. A publican in Cromwell was, on the 19th instant, charged with c mmittmg a breach of the Licenseug Ordinance by permitting a man to remain drunk on his premises for a fortnight and supplying him with liquor. The man was at length reduced to such a stats that medical aid had to be obtained ; but, owing to an informality in the information, the case was dismissed. The Bench remarked that the practice of publicans encouraging drunken men about their premises, and serving them with drink while in that state, was too prevalent. These cases should always be brought under the notice of the Bench, so that any publican’s license may be refused should the trates see fit. The case of Scott v Williams, for charg. ing fa higher rate of poundage fees than allowed by the Ordinance, has been again postponed. Water is getting scarce in both the St. Bathan’s and Drybread districts, and tho miners are necessary idle. This happening at the festive season of the year is hardly so much to be regretted than had it occurred at any other time. We hope, however, that; ere New Year's Day, we shall have such a change cf weather as may enable the sluieers to sluice with a will. We would draw the special attention of residents in Black’s No. 1., to the sale ol the township lands on the 27th of January, 1373, as notified in the Provincial Oovemment Gazelle of the 11th instant. The Clyde Brass Band reftsest to acknowledge a subscription of two pounds two shillings by the Dunstan Masonic Lodge One of the oldest residents of the Cromwell district, on Monday last, in the person of Neil Osterhy, a painter, by trade, de- . parted this life in the Dunstan District Hospital. Deceased had been for a long time past suffering from heart disease, under which hj» succumbed. Osterby was well known and well respected. - •

A telegram published in a contemporary says:—•-* The Nevada does not go South, her machinery being in very bad order, and requiring repairs. She will probably not leave for San Francisco till the-new •year. The Nevada’s passengers all, sigippd a letter strongly condemning the vessel, and stating a day passed w.thout some of the boiler tubes bursting. Accidents to the machinery occurred twice, and once the vessel lay in ,the trough‘ of the sea as helpless as a log. All hands, including passengers maimed the pumps. Several nuggets, varying from ten to seventeen ounces in weight, have recently been found in the Grey Valley and Inaugahua district. Yesterday afternoon the youngsters indulged in a few sports and games. The fact ox most of those being absent, who generally take a leading part in the getting up of these sports may account for the limited programme. However, the different events were well contested, and not only those who took part m the various contests, but those who witnessed them, seemed weli pleased at their afternoon's amusement. Respectin' the large number of lawyers in New Zealand, Perrybingle writes to a. Melbourne contemporary‘‘They must have happy times down in New Zealand. In a town of one street there’s said to he eighty lawyers thriving ; and towards the south, commercial travellers from Victoria are so thick that, as a sarcastic friend of mine says, they outnumber the white population. Wiits and slop toggery ought to be cheap in thoie parts. This is one of the consequence of the decay of cannibalism and the march of intellect. Alas, there was atime when the native New Zealander wasn’t too proud to eat a raw lawyer, or to take a scrap of baked ‘ legal adviser.’ change and change about with wild pig; but civilization has spoilt the savage for those awful delicacies, and so the lawyers multiply. Last evening the Brass Band.ag'in delighted the good peop'e of Clyde with their enUvning music. -They commenced by playing, under the facade of the Town Hall Russell's “ Grand Troop March,” which was most ably rendered ; then followed other music, and the band retired in*o the hall. Shortly afterwards the doors were thrown open to the public, an ;l though the attendance was not so large as on *1 uesday—no doubt owing to a large number of our no - d folk having attended the Cromwell R-ces—those present enjoyed the dance in such manner as showed that they fully appreciated a superior band and the excellent time kept. By our exchanges we lea'njthat Peeress has been disqualified by a majority of one by the Auckland Jockey Club. An action has been instituted in the Supreme Court, Dunedin, by a gentleman, against a lady and her husband for breach of promise of marriage, A Mob’s egg was found by Mr. MiKay, Government' Surveyor, embedded among the sand in O pun well, township. It is to be seen at Dr. Thomson’s, Clyde. In our advertising columns for some few weeks past; has appeared the prospectus of the Fourteen Mile Beach Quartz Mining Company- From several practical miners who have visited’he feef, we understand that it is well refined, and that from the surface appearances of the country, there is every indication of a true reef being in the locality. The reef offered to the public has been tested with fair results, and presents a good opening for investment. A good number of shares have been applied for by the residents. In a letter to the Dnihj Times on the late sale of land by the Waste Lands Board to Mr. Feraud, by Mr. W. W. Wilson, Solicitor; the writer, after dealing with the purchase, concludes by saying From my personal knowledge, of the disti ict, I can state that this sale to Mr. Ferau-t will be fraught- with most disastrous consequences to the miners in that locality. Already are large water races in course of construction to work the very land referred to in the petition, and which this sale will render comparatively valueless There is a large extent of payable auriferous land at the head of the Wai Keri Keri Valley ; but this sale will greatly iuteifcre with the natural outlet for the tailings, and thereby prevent much of the land being profitably worked.