Untitled

Grey River Argus, Volume III, Issue 135, 22 November 1866, Page 2

The adjourned inquest on the body of Hugh M'CJellaml, -which found on the beach some days ago, was concluded on Monday before D. Johnson, Esq., J.P. After hearing the medical evidence and other testimony, the jury returned a venlict that the deceased had been drowned by accidentally falling into the Eiver Grey on the 29th ult. Ifc is seldom that the residents on the West Coast have such an opportunity of inspecting so maqnincenj; a collection of jewelry as is now being exhibited by Mi- Salomon, at the Albion Hotel. It would be impossible to exaggerate the beauty, design, or workmanship of the articles, as they combine the highest styles of art with the most costly materials. Tho CQlleption will only remain on view until Saturday. . A meeting of those interested in getting up sports for tho phristmas holidays was held at Kilgour's Hotel, on Tuesday evening — Mr Kilgour in' the chair. The meeting proceeded to the election of a committee, and after some conversation, Messrs Somner, Keenan, Maclean," Hughes, Middleton. Payne, Wright, Blackmore, Captain Macfarlane, D. M'FarLaiid, G. Taylor, Murison, Cohen, Sheedy, Davies, and Slattery were appointed to carry out the proposed object. The Committee will meet at Middlcton's Hotel to-morrow evening at S.p.in. The present long spell of wet weather has in some degree retarded the operations'* of the Greymouth and Saltwater Creek Tramway Company (Limited), but we are happy to see that considerable progress has already been made by the contractor in laying the permanent way. of the' first section of the line. - On one portion of the line the waggons are already running, and we may soon expect to see the first two miles in full working order. We observe that applications are invited for the situation of Manager and Secretary«to the Company. ■ We are requested to state that the services of the Roman Catholic Church will be celebrated on Sunday next by the Rev. Mr Lnhig,' an Irish priest, who is on a short visit to this place. ■ Dr. Haasfc, the Provincial Geologist of Canterbuiy, has written to the Christchurch. . papers repudiating the authorship of an analysis of the Grey coal ascribed to him, and inserted in the prospectus of the kelson Coal Company. * The doctor, not content with disavowing tho analysis, says ifc is very incorrect. • ' ■. We learn from the West Coa.it Time* that the body of the man Sydney Mills, who has been missing for nearly a fortnight, was discovered oh Sunday lying on a little hillock in the centi c of the Arahura Lagoon by a boatman named Locke. He at once gave inforn a'tion to the mate of the deceased, who made known the circumstance to the police ? and a^ergeant was despatched to the spot ; under his directions the remains were removed to the .Bridge Hotel, to await the inquest. In a recent issue we copied from one of the Scotch papers the account of an alleged descent by an armed squadron, supposed to be Fenian, on the Shetland Isles. We now find it asserted in the London Spectator that the whole affair was a hoax played upon the Scotch papers. The 'Scotsman was one of the victimised journals. We learn from the Dunedin j)apers that the Executive resigned on -an amendment to the Reply, p-oposed by Mr Dillon Bell. The Superintendent's speech contained an allusion to the present antagonistic position of the General and Provincial Governments, and spoke of the centralising policy of the General Government as injurious to the Provinces. The reply echoed his Honor's remarks, but Mr Bell moved an amendment expressive of the regret of the Council that the opinion of his Honor's Government was so and so. The amendment was carried, and the Executive resigned. Mr Dillon Bell declined to form a Ministry, and opposed the idea of a Government resigning upon an abstract question. Mr Gargill was "sent for," but he also declined the task ; and at the latest advices Mr Yogel had undertaken to form an Executive. " ; Recent advices from the North Island report that the laud dispute with the natives at Tauranga has been satisfactorily settled. The news from the Waikato is not very assuring for peace, 200 of the rebel Hau Haus from the Upper Wanganui District having arrived, avowedly by the invitation of the Chief, William Thompson Nothing is known definitely of the Governor's doings, except a slight skirmish. A misunderstanding having arisen between the Government and the Defence Force, has resulted in the decision to disband the force. . The following extract from the commercial article in the Westland Obseit'er is too quaint to be lost :— To one of two extremes we must shortly arrive— either we may expect to see about one-half of the business places and stores advertised to let (if the community should then be blessed with an advertising sheet), or the reverse, which we should be sorry to think is yet to be despaired of when jLoOO reward may at anytime be ■transferred at the Bank counter from the names of the trustees to those of the successful applicants and the advertising, columns of. the local

journal teem with >" y?«t i an 4 "® n Sales" to such an exleiSj the busy public would not pereei^^Biut jof the Editor's weekly leadi»U> Qr that functionary miss his nouHavely employed scissors. Unless i§H discovery jnland be made, it is n.QsyjSßarent that we are to have a dull sunu^K^e, as each week gives more distinctlgß; of s ich. A sporting offer was madlHUr day by a twenty pounds snbscril^Rs Reward Fund, who has some faitblflHll reward being applied for' and i^Hvnd little '■;ope or desire to see tlit|m amounts returned to the subscribfiiKreeing to dispose to any specjxlafciyd^Kin of his right, title, and interest injgJßid. for the sum of five pounds ; andf|Bir nobody would object' to discoverimjß|iere have been good grounds for thefi^iat is in A ppoppgjtion jn favor pfwl|? n of the export duty on gold has bearaKd by the Otago Provincial Council, jifflie second occasion of the kind on wlrimHjoiity of the Council has decided agiifflffiiijng the gold fields revenue by redijwffi .export The Canterbury 'and OtajSß-nments have agreed to construct a fflfflver the Waitaki River, the cost ofws to be equitably divided between eaßEMnce. The Waimea paper, of SajjffifflKt, says £bat on Tuesday last a rush SB a large flat near Toker's dam, near tgßiam. up the right liand branch of the w| Creek. About 100 men ajre 011 $]ic'g^Hiul the prospeot was throe gp;iius to taßa to 3ft, pf washdirt. The depth of sißbs from 20 to SO feet. There is a good c^ELntried \ auriferous looking ground in iraLoiity, ftnd no doubt hundreds will yeraßiyable work for many iupuths to eomlms part of the Waiiuea. » Our correspondent at the Ncv» Rush writes to correct an error comuimn his last letter with regard to tlje Mr two shares in Law's claim. He stafcmt the I)rice obtained was LlO5 and LBs respectfully ; these, amounts shoul™ been L 145 and L 147 10s. M The Waxtland Observer says :— Blaast River, as we notice in our mining ißjence is at x>reseut attracting some attentßLong the miners who have lately been Bid at Bruce 13ay, and we understand thai .this cause, and from the absence of anjßi inducements to diggers to remaiußthat locality, Bruce Bay will very soon beWted. Another boat arrived here from Bmßay during the week for a further supplMpro visions, the supplies expected from Kika not having as yet arrived there. TMyho arrived by her confirm the report Bthe population at Bruce Bay was gradua»aving, and we 1-avo private informatioißthe effect that very fair prospects we'rling obtained in the Haast beaches. ; melt Sam's" cutter had called at Bruce 1 on her way from the Haast to Hokitika,' fche is expected to return with some supmjnt to the present supply of stores obtaiiiilon the spot. One account is that LI a dSan easily be made in all weathers, and, a»re is a great extent of beach, it is probabßat with a joutinuance of the same prospel a larger population will be: induced to Jin there during this season thaii there waist year, when the ground was examined Ire hasiiily, though even then with satisfAy results. I We see that a scheme is on foot for sulking Hokitika with gas. A company is le formed, with a capital of L6OOO, for v*i samthe entire plant, &c, has, it is said, li offered. I The official estimate of the populatiolf the Okarita district has, says the. Ml journal, been rather above than bclowlactual numbers. The population of the tl usually calculated «at 400 or 500, doesl even amount to 200 adults, including I whole array of officials, and we have a si picion that on the beaches the number! residents is also below the usual estimal \t the utm >st we do not believe the popul tioiv of tlie whole district amounts to moi than 1000 or 1100, and when the numbers 1 the township and the business people on tld diggings are deducted, the mining population must, indeed, be very small. Yet this popu lation has managed for several months pasl to produce an average of 7000 ounces of gok per month — a larger return, we shouji imagine, than can be quoted by any miu|^ district in the colony. -;}fj On Saturday last a man named Winliilj was brought up before the Resident Map strate at Hokitika, cluirged under tjie Vagrant Act as a rogue and vagabond with " imposing on a private individual by a false representation." It appears that the prisoner and another of his kidney went to the sto ; |e of Messrs Boylan ami Cullen, where an incautious shopman sold to them a glass of spirits each. The prisoner subsequently saw Mr Cullen, to whom he falsely represented himself as a detective constable from Greymouth, instructed to prosecute him for retailing spirits without a license,, but informed him that L2O would make it all right. Th6y; ultimately obtained Ll2 10s, giving Jiifr Cullen a receipt, stating that they would tak^ no further action in the matter, as far as the prosecution was concerned. The Magistrate sentenced him to three months' imprisonment with hard labor. The prisoner gave noticje of appeal, to which he is entitled under se'fff tion 15 of the Act. ' . !i" We notice in the West Coast Times that' a shipment of wool, the produce of one of the stations on the Bealey, has been made by thje Jane Lockhart for Sydney, the owner finding it the most convenient route. if In a paper recently read by Mr Dobsoii, C.E., before the Christchurch Philosophical Society, occurs the following passage :4The explorations of Dr Haast at the hea^r waters of the Molyneux, the Waitaki, tlife Rangitata, and the Rakai,o, and those of tljte Provincial . Engineer in^the upper valley ■% the Wainiakariri, have fully established tlfe, fact that throughout the entire length of t$ Province there are only three real passed viz., dividing till spaces ,.9f- ftfl!ur Hnu i Tererna.^

HaastYPass, at the head ,<■; V 1 V/ s wKiclTlea3s over a very lowM \ I :f\ valley of the Haast River, I ■) I (if the sea near Jackson's BajM \ M '^^^^1 Pass^ which js nothing in<Mjfaj| $'-. hssure, running jti a toleraMM; '\. from the valley of the Wai«j/!j jt ' _^^^| of the Tepemakau. 't^WWVw '^r^^M BakaiaPass has no reaM^^Wrfits eastern face being sim^larWiV Z^^H abruptly from the valley to a l^ght^s^M^}! feet, am], bjeiug quite impracticable for SorajT or cattlg, besides being at so great an elevation as to be buried deep jn sup w during eight months in the year. The Financial Sfetentent made in the Pro.vmcial Cpuncil mftkes mention of a sum pf £4724 expended fop pharitable purposes. The greater portion of this amount $rs§ stated to have been expended in supplying iations and giving other assistance to the wiyes and families pf nion who had gone to, the West Coast, and who had iiot provided for those they had left behind. "Wherever it had been found possible for the Government to make these men refund they had done so, bnt in many cases £he men were beyond their reach, or not worth the post of prosecu T tion. We learn that a serious accident happened to a man; working at Piper 1 :? Hill, Waimea, . on Wednesday last. He was iv a, shaf t,which was (}o.wn a depth of twenty r five feet, when the iqpe on the windlass, being old, broke, and a bucket containing 4irt and. a pick fell down on the unfortunate man'?"* head, making a fearful wpuml, and forcing " : the skju fffliu. the bone. The assistance pf . Dr. Etennpfcfc wqs qallecl |n, and he stitch^eil the fleslj together and. flthprwise attended tq the injury. The man is in a fajr way t.9>yjvrc|3. recover}'. On the 13th insj;. anvimber of the iriembepi: of the Nelson Provincial Council met in the Pro; vincial Hall to confer on the Suporiutendent iuidjtjqnaj powers jij reference jjp tlje negqtia ; tioijs necessary to be entered into with persons likely to construct the proposed line qf . railway from Nelson to Cobden. Tlje Superintendent stated that lie was afraid the- •■ simple grant of the land proposed to be given to "contractors was not a sufficient induce.? ment, and he desired to be placed in a position to go a step further, A resolution was subc mitfced for adoption, empower. ing the Superintendent, in addition to a grant of land, -to lease the line to any person or company, for 21 years, at a nominal rental, Theresolution was carried unanimously. The Superintend dent embraced the opportunity of asking the., sanction of the Council for some unauthorised expenditure, amongst which the sum cf LI 850 haJ been iiicnrred in expenses attending the Maungatapu murder case, in which telegraphic charges alone amounted to L2OO. His Honor made the iinportaut statement that he proposed to take LSOOO out of the sum voted for roads on the West Coast ti » wards the completion of the roads between the ports of Grey and Buller. A resolution was carried approving of his Honor's conduct in relation to the unauthorised expenditure. The West Const Times of^Saturday contains the report' of a very melancholy accident that occurred on the previous day, on the North Spit, by which a little, boyi named. John Day, aged seven years, lost hiS'llife*j[ It appears that he, with two companions " about his own age, was playing on the Spit, close to that gap through which the 1 sea at high water oft time rushes with great force. They selected a most dangerous locality to gambol in, and were engaged in the dangerous amusement of advancing to meet the surf, which, as it approached, they avoided by leaping on a piece of dvift timber that was lying on one side of the channel. Frightened! however, by a larger one than usual^ which washed round them and moved the^iimbtr, the little fellows jlost presence of mind, and made a rush for the highpripartof thef beach, which two of them succeeded in reaching, but the deceased happened to fall at fullvlength, and before he oould regain his footing was washed through the channel into thWive'-. His hands quivering above the whitjei foam were once seen, and then he sunk tojiise no more in life, and as tlie freshet was running at a furious rate he must have .been swept; out to sea immediately. Several -persons i witnessed the occurrence, but were powerless, [to aid, asths boy sank like a stone, and was [doubtless swept down by the undertiw and leddies, which during floods are strong enough ftp overpower a good swimmer. >: .