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Dunstan Times, Issue 931, 20 February 1880, Page 2

We do nut know how many requests were made to the Mon. Mr Rolleston, the Minister of Lauds, Justice, Education, &c., 01 bis recent visit to the district, nor have we ihe remotest idea as to how many would have been asked if opportunity for popping the question been given, as the Hon. Gin tleman most cleverly evade! many questions being put to him. We are informed, however, that a distinct promise was given ( vhen, whore, or to whom we cannot say) that the vote of last session, for a Courth mse at Ophir, would not be allowed to lapse. Our friends in that quarter mav accordingly think themselves highly favored, as to unr knowledge that was the only request granted. The funeral of Mrs Keddell, the wife of M ijor Keddell, R. M. and Warden took place yesterday afternoon. The body was first removed to the Church of England, when an impressive service was gone through. Afterwards it was conveyed to the Clyde cemetery, and interred, the Rev. Mr Ash officiating. The attendance at the Church was most numerous, while the cortege to the Cemetery was, considering the limited notice given, much greater than could have been expected, the whole of the residents of Clyde, and representatives of all the surrounding towns and districts attending. We have to acknowledge receipt from the General Government Printer of a batch of Parliamentary Papers, not the least interesting being appropriations chargeable un<tcr the Public Works Fund and the Consolidated Fund for the twelve mouths ending 31st March, 1880 A careful scrutiny of them will show bow the 1.4,117,710 12s M, the Public Works Fund, am l how the L 4,404,484. the Consolidated Fund, is up-.nt.

By a mistake we confounded the names of Mr Blair with that of Mr M’lCerrowin our reference last week to the visit of the Minister of Lands to the District. It was the latter gentleman who accompanied the Honourable gentleman. The Trustees for the Vincent Rabbit District held a meeting at Clyde on the evening of the 17th inst , all the members were present. 11 applications for the office of collector and inspector were received, and Mr E. Bouchier was unanimously elected to fill the office. A resolution was passed to publicly notify the intention of the trustees to make a rate of one twelth of a penny per acre on all properties liable to be rated within the District, said rate to bo payable on the 29th day of April ISSO. An advertisement to that effect appears in this issue. The next meeting was fixed for the 20th March. The trustees then adjourned. The examination of the men Featherstone and Murphy for sticking up, has been further adjourned till Saturday at 11 a.m. We have to acknowledge the receipt of No. 1 of Vol. 11 of an American Monthly, entitled The Voice. It contains many articles on the culture of the voice, and is well worth reading We have placed our copy on the table of the Clyde Public Library. Members of the Committee of the Dunstan District Hospital are reminded that a special meeting is convened for Monday the 23rd instant, at 8 p. m , in the usual place of meeting. On Saturday evening last a Chinaman was lodged in the Clyde gaol, he having been arrested the day before at Nasehy, on suspicion of felling spurious gold at the Nevis. The arrest was made by Mr Wong Lye, the ChineseConstahleand interpreter, who is stationed at Clyde The Cromweli Argus has the following in reference to the same.— “ Some ten days ago the goldbuyers at Nevis for the Colonial Bank—a very respectable Chinese firm, it may he remaiked ■ brought into town a parcel of the precious metal weighing some eighty or ninety ounces. It was dusk when the bearer reached the bank and displayed his treasure before the manager, Mr Gudgeon. Lights were brought in, and the appearance of the gold struck the manager—whose experience in gold-buying is very extensive as peculiar. He requested the agent to call again during the following forenoon. Meanwhile the suspicious-looking metal was submitted to a variety of tests—blowpipe, touchstone. &c.—disclosing the fact that a largo proportion of the parcel was spurious metal. Further experiments demonstrated that a considerable amount of silver clippings coated with gold was present among the pure metal, the counterfeit being estimated at little short of 23 ounces. On the appearance of the agent next morning, enquiries were made as to where he had got the gold. He said it hail been purchase! by his firm from diff -rent. Gbinoco, only one lot being from Europeans. It is said that information has been given which goes to show that the manufacture and sain by Chinese of spurious gold hj is been carried on systcmatially through the Otago Goldfields during the past three years, and that large quantities of the b.se metal have passed through banks. However true this may be cannot at present be guessed, tut the fact that one of [he members of the alleged gang has been arrested at ilogburn. and is now in the Cromwell gaol, warr. Nts the assumption that th« informant—himself a Chinaman—has not acted without some good cause. We have examined some of the spurious metal, which to the unpractised eye looks quite the correct thing, and in licates great patience and skill on the part of the manipulators. The arrested Chinaman will he dealt with here on Friday, when no doubt further developments of this supposed gigantic fraud will be made public." In our last week's issue wo notified the arrest of two men on the charge of .sticking up a man, named John Newton, on Bahl Hill Flat, recording at the same time that the result of the robbery, a purse containing L3O in bank-notes could not bo found. We lean that since the arrest the missing money has been found, most cunningly concealed, stitched up in the prisoner’s clothes. Mr Inspector 0, Donnell, and Constable M’Leod, who made the capture, were also the successful finders of the stolen money. Two L 5 notes and one LlO n ,te were found stitched into the skirt of a coat of one of the prisoners, and the other LlO note in the wrist band of the coat of the other. We learn on very goo I authority tint it is intended to form a special Township settlement on the Pool Burn, for the convenience of the workmen to be employed in the construction of that piortioii of the Strath T.iori line of Railway. But when that part of the line will he under construction no hint is as yet given. According to our Mt. Ida Contemporary, there is considerable opposition to the further construction of the line on the part of the Dunedin Chamber of commerce, it would be well perhaps for the upcountry districts to see if there is any foundation for such an assumption, and if so, to set to work to break down the opposition. We have much pleasure in intimating to our readers that Mr William Eames, lato of Clyde, has again started in business as a Tobacconist, &c., at 99 George-street, Dunciin, where he will be most happy to see all old friends, and the public generally.— (See advertisement.) By the fact of Dr. Young being of six Candidates elected to the Office of Superintendent Surgeon to the Wallace and Fiord Hospital, Riverton, we can but assume that Ur. Foltham has giving up tho position. We (Morning Herald) are credibly informed that the Police have deemed it necessary to make furdu-r inquiries into the circumstances attending the death of Miami Mrs Hayes.

Information reached here on Monday morning last that a man named Robertson, well known in this district, he having been a short time since employed driving the team of Messrs Theyers and Beck, Brewers, Alexandra, had been murdered in a hut at Moa Flat by a man named M‘Lachlan. On making enquiries, we ascertained that the two men quarrelled over a gambling transaction, and that M‘Lachlau deliver'd deceased a fatal blow on the head with a bar of iron. An inquest was held on Monday last, when a verdict of “ manslaughter ” was recorded against M‘Lachlan. Through some bungling on the part of either the Post Office authorities in Dunedin nr the Railway authorities, there was no mail from Dunedin delivered here on Tuesday last. The non delivery of an ordinary mail is a source of great annoyance, hut when the mistake occurs with an English mail it is doubly so ; and we little wondered at the anathemas poured out by the disappointed. We do not expect either branch of the service to he immaculate, but we really think that such a mistake as the one we now refer to was avoidable with the exercise of the most ordinary care and attention, and it is to bo hoped it will not be repeated. The first quarterly meeting of the St. Dunstan Lodge, I. 0.G.T., was held on Saturday evening last, in the Town Hall, Clyde. The reports of the retiring officers were read and adopted. Tiie Secretary’s report showed a large increase in the number of members, there now being 43 good on the hooks. The following office-bearers were duly installed by the D.G.W.O.T. Bro. Ash W.C.T., Bio, L. Davidson ; W.V.T., Sis. E. M’Connochie; W.S, Bro. J. Smart; W. F.S., Bro. D. M'Fcrran; W.S , Bro. T. Crawford ; W.C., Bro. Hall ; W.M., Bro. Hogan ; W.S.G., Bro. Holloway ; W.0.G., Bro. Watson ; W.A.S , Bro. Allen ; W.D.M., Bro. Morris ; W.R.S., Sis. C. llastie ; W.L.S., Sis. Hall. In nearly every stream in the County where trout have bean put their increase has been the source of no little wondermentjwith everybody. But there appeared to be exceptions to the rule, as on making enquiries we find that in the Fraser, the Manorhurn, and the Wai Keri Keri Creek there are but few to he seen. The question arises, are not these streams systematically pillaged. As there is no reason why the fish should not increase in these streams as plentifully as elsewhere, we can bat conclude such to be the case. We would therefore suggest to the authoiities to keep an occasional look out and prosecute to the full the first culprit caught. Our suspicions are on our Mongolian friends, in the neighborhood of some of whose camps our olfactory organs have frequently been exorcised with an aroma muchly partaking of fish cooking. Ten lers will be cilled within a mouth or six weeks for the -construction of the Ken* thnrne section of the Otago Central Railway. This section lies on the farther aide from Dunedin of the Hindou or “ unernp'oyed” section, comprising some five or six miles of rough country between the Deep Greek and the Sutton. Mr Fnebe draws attention to advertisement of Sale by Auction at Spottis Creek, on Tuesdoy next, of Cattle, Spiing-cart horse, &c., in the Estate of John Cochrane. Bankrupt. On Sunday last we were visited by a perfect hurricane of wind, that rendered life for the time being almost unbearable. It was general throughout the district, and from what we can glean it committed great havoc wiih the cereal crops and in the orchards, many of the latter being nearly stripped of every kind of fruit. The standing crops of corn, what with the shaking of the grain and the laying down in many cases, it may fairly bo assumed are deteriorated fully one-half, while as a general thing, at a low computation, it may be put down at one quarter. The Cromwell Presbyterian congregation have decided to give a call to the Rev John Fergu.-son, with a salary of L3OO per annum and a resilience. By the rep irt of the last meeting of the Tuapeka County Council, that body has received a letter from the Government, reminding them that the first instalment of the Flood Loan was due. We suppose Vincent County will receive a similar reminder. The Teleg aph gives the following account of the tidal of the Deenng harvester and string hinder which took p!ao ■- recently at Timaru : —“ There were about 39 or 40 persons present. The trial was not one of speed, hut merely one to demonstrate the way in which the machine is worked. Whiie the machine differs in construction from other machines in some respects, the great feature in it is the apparatus by which string is used for binding instead of wire. The knot is made by the machine itself by a piece of mechanism easily understood when perceived, though it cannot be lucidly described. It is a knot which will not yield, and holds the sheaf together securely. Among the advantages claimed for the machine are the followinglt makes a positive separation cf bundles, whatever the condition of the grain ; it makes eveiy bundle of uniform size ; it saves all the grain absolutely ; its easy adjustment to length of grain ; it is strictly automatic and easily managed ; it costs much less for twine than for wire bands, and is the most economical method yet found. The machine did its work in excellent style, and highly satisfied the critical folks who watched it in operation.” Some idea may be formed of the unexampled quantities of grain which will he available for export from Canterbury, when the following prep irations are being made, according to a leccnt telegram Tbe New Zealand Shipping Company have published their first list of 2) iron clippers, wffh capacity for 33.000 tons-or a million

and a quarter bushels of grain. These are to sail in February, March, and April, and other vessels are to follow.” A Victorian telegram says that Weiberg, the Avooa gold robber, sent the manager of the P. and 0. Company information purporting to reveal where the balance of the o'.)00 soverigns is concealed. The detectives searched without success. On January 12th, at Daintree, Queensland the greatest flood in the locality occurred. The river rose foity feet in one night. A number of camps were swept away, and bullocks, &c., were washed out to sea. At the meeting of the Waste Lands Board held on the 11th instant a letter was received from the Chief Sheep Inspector asking that the follo wing gentlemen he appointed appraisers to value improvements on runs :—Charles Anderson, F. E. Hickson, and Charles K. Rosgruge. —lt was decided to appoint the persons mentioned accordingly. The harvesting in South Canterbury is general all over the district. Up to the present only about one-fourth of the crops have been harvested. The weather has been all that could be desired. In many of the wheat paddocks the crops are heavy and regular, and a yield of 50 to 00 bushels to the acre is confidently anticipated. The oat crop is a most prolific one, hut the current rate of Is 3d to Is 6d per bushel is rather disheartening, and leaves but a small margin after labor and other expenses are deducted.—Times. The Times learns that one effect of the action of Sergeant Anderson in reference to the Wellington barmaids quitting their work at 11 o’clock at night is, that nearly half the barmaids in town have received notice from their employers to leave . The barmaids generally look upon the action of tiie police in this matter as anything but favorable to them, as it will he the means of throwing a large number of them out of employment. A curious incident occurred on January 30tb (says the Ballarat Courier) showing how easily wood will ignite during the present warm weather. While a train was passing near the Queen street bridge a spark from the funnel lodged on a telegraph post, about 4ft. from the top, and in a few minutes the post was in full blaze. Fortunately the flames were put out in a few minutes, the only damage being that the post was much charred. The Great Eastern comes to public notice once more as a transport for cattle, to run directly between London and Texas. It is calculated that the vessel will take at one voyage 5,200 head of cattle, and 36000 sheep. Two sanguine inventors, hailing from Sandhurst, announce that by a discovery, or rather invention, they have just made, in the form of screw propellers, the passage between these Colonies and London can he done in 15 days. Meu of means are invited to assist them. The Bank of England covers five acres of ground, and employs nine hundred clerks. There are no windows on the street. Being lighted through open courts, no mob could attack the bank without cannon to hatter the immense walls. Tiie clock in the centre of the bank has fifty dials attached to it. Large cisterns are sunk in the courts, and engines in perfect order are always ready in case of tire.