MOUNT BENGER.

Evening Star, Volume IX, Issue 2593, 9 June 1871, Page 2

MOUNT BENGER.

(FROM our own cobre-poncent.)

lam going to do a generous action—to explode a secret with a fortune to a hairdresser : my recompense I leave to the generosity of your readers," and 'to that proud ' sense of duty done,. which is the highest reward of the patriot and the hero, JDucadme ! Ducadme! Then all : ye whom age or care have deprived of a luxuriant ehevelure—to the bald and similarly afflicted —the district of Mount Beuger has .been convulsed' recently by the glorious rjews that an infallible. cii.ro for this disfiguring affliction has'been discovered withiii its bounds. The remedy is siuqdy and easilyi-ohtaiued, being nothing -more/or less than Maori..hen oil. The result in two or three cases, wßfcnhavh come under my has been simply marvellous. In all seriousness, I believe. something like a perfect cure has been stumbled upon; ■ r^mrid"iiot,""htTWevsr~alvise liberal application by any of your fair readers. A crop "of feathers might be the result. , Z

■So the eloquent Shepherd', has found half a dozen human beings to join with him in his crusade against poor “John.” .Perhaps in your next issue you will inform your readers whether there is any truth infthe rumor that the Mining .Conference met in she Lunatic.Asylum. ! ' i , . Talking of the Asylum naturally leads one to refer to the Provincial Council. ' So the, .;reat Bastings is to be a Minister. • Faith ! '.here is some .truth in the proverb, “There is nothing like leather. ” Bradshaw also .appears to ho “coming.”. .! admire, his principles. A person dependent on the scanty honorarium is a mighty ass it he do mot look pretty sharply after the loaves and lishes. Of course, we arc all intensely proud of the patriotic course adopted by the golddelds members. The worthy creatures ! What a monstrous pity Dunedin is not Paris !

I am absolutely hard up for local news. The river lias been up, and is going down ; hot as it goes through the performance at least twice a week, it begins to get rather dale. The Presbyterians had a tea meeting, or something equally tiresome, mi Friday evening. There was the usual amount of frothing at the mouth,-eating and drinking. In fact, these reports are so like one another, that one good report stewed should last a journalist tiil the metal gave out. The water-power dredge “Neva ” —or as I observe several correspondents - have erroneously called her, the “Pandora"—will be re-launched next week. After some experience in spoon-dredging, I am thoroughly convinced that the principle on which she is erected is the true one. In all others the expense of manual labor takes the gilt off the gold. Three men are sufficient to keep her going from Monday morning to Saturday night without a stoppage, - - - - VaU ■

Mount Benger still remains where it was. Its people arc, however, slightly raised froa* the liaug-dog • condition the}’ were thrown into by the elections. Their darling Donald is again in power, and their hopes of crushing the bloated sipxattocracy are high. Of course, a land agitation has been .started in honor of the occasion. It is so easy to get up a memorial for land, when nine-tenths of che people are utterly indifferent, and sign more to get rid of an importunate canvasser or to oblige a friend, tjjau from any, interest in the (piestion, The present agitation has

no less ambitious an object than the throwing open of the Mount Bcnger anil Teviot runs, occupied by Messrs Cargill and Anderson. How the memorial is being got up, let one instance coming under my own notice suffice. The canvasser boarded a certain scraping machine on the Molyneux. His first act was to jrrodnee a formidable roll of papers. Natural inquiry—What in the name of all that was sanguinary did he want? ihe paper was unfolded anil read by one of the crew. “ I won’t sign that (sanguinary) thing,” quoth old Tom; “there’s too man) confounded cockatoos in the countiy already. Fellows like you just want imprecationed crawlers from the Taieri to come up here with an old cow with one horn and half a tail, and a half-starved pig or two, to fence in the whole country, so that a digger can’t have a show to sling his shovel without breaking down one of their sod walls. You have got plenty of laud in the district, ano won’t take it up ; and none of the runholders object to a digger miming his cow o>. horse. It’s some of your at ivkeepers arc at the bottom of this. They want pooi wretches to ccme hero and spend all they’ve got in improving property for others. Be off with you ! ” and Thomas puffed a cloud from his dudheen. The canvasser tried hard to convert bis opponent from his anli-libe-ral views, but in vain. Just then feeding time arrived, and all hands went ashore to dinner. The indefatigable tout fol oweu up his quarry. In the hut Bill took a good look at him. “Hillo, mate, wern t yon at the Hogburn ?” Of course he had been there. “ Oh 1 don’t mind signing him off to Queenstown next week ; come on boys, down with your names.” Quoth Alick, “ I'm for Victoria in a fortnight, so it can’t hurt me; com' on, Jack.” "Oan’t write,” growled Jack. “Oh, here’s your name, down you go.” “ Mind. I don’t • put it down there. ” “ Jamie, come on.” “ No,” answers Jamie.” Name went down, Jamie protesting against the proceedings. Four names out ol six was not a bad day’s work. Alb this may appear trifling, but as it will give some idea ot the w'ay names are obtained for land memorials, it may prevent you townpeople attaching undue importance to such documents. Tinonly comment 1 have & make is that Messrs Cargill and Anderson are well repaid for the great leniency they have shown to cattle owners. Had they drawn the rein tighter low creat .res would babe kicked less. A cockatoo, a woman, and a spaniel, arc much a ko. '1 he,more you abuse ’em, the bettei t icy like yod. So much for politics : news I have none. The river is down again, but for how long would puzzle a Philadelphia lawyer to decide. •

The weather has been very foggy-of late. Old, hands call this a sign of hupehdirrg suow ; but the snow has not 'come yet. Tin roads are getting into their usual condition, and, thanks to the sapient majority in the Council, are likely to con'inuc so. When are we likely to have a goaluad Government who will go in-for tnynways ?—the cheapest and most permanent kind of roadway.