DUNEDIN.

Grey River Argus, Issue 251, 22 August 1867, Page 2

DUNEDIN.

(FROM OU£ OWN COKRESPOHDENT.) August 10, 1867, "Q, Sirs, it J a winter fairly." Theheafy south-easter of Jast week subsided quitery on Saturday : but since the beginning of ' this week we have experienced a gale from the south-east, accompanied by a very low temperature, torrents of rain., and pn Thursday afternoon, after a slight lull, by several heavy snow showery. After nightr fall, for the first time this winter,, the streets of Dunedin lay thickly covered with a fine white sheet, affording plenty of amusement to swell mobs of juveniles in snowballing each other. From the in* terior,- in all directions, north, south, and west, intelligence . of the same sort of weather has been received ; the roads, are^" blocked up, and traffic entirely suspended on all the higher lying tracks. Wort on the diggings is all "but suspended, the snow lying on most of them to the averagedepth of four feet. On the east coast thq ■ snow is observed to be lower down, the hills than for several years back. When the late gale began to blowj there were a number of vessels lying at anchor xa Oamaru roads. As the sea rose, Bignak were made from the shore for the fleet ta put to sea. These were obeyed by all \y\\% tliree, which, for vinous reasons, held on to the ground fox a time ; but one after another they drifted ashore., two o| th,eni uninjured, but the third' received a good deal of damage. Of those which put to, sea nothing was known for some days but news arrived early this weekingin-. forming us of the total loss of three— the' Edward and Christopher, near Akaroa ; the Mary Ann Christina, on the Nine,tymile Beach; and the Vixen, near "the. same place, but with the.additionalsad item, that her master Capt. Moody, and, Benjamin Brisfon, who owned the craft between them, were both drowned. Both have left wives and families in town. Some of the other vessels are still amissing, but it is hoped that another day or two will bring intelligence of their arrival in port. . ; .. K The telegraph to the north is still down, and it will be some days ere the repairs; can be effected. The sea has raised the bars at the mouth of some of the eastern rivers, and backed up the water so that it covers a large extent of country, and renders travelling both difficult and dangerous.- * The comparative safety so long enjoyed by the travelling public in Otago sujl, tamed a rude shock on -Thursday morning. Messrs Hoyt and Co.'s morning coach for Tokomairiro started at the usual hour with a full list of passengers, and had proceeded all right for the first eight miles of the way, when in running down the hill towards the Saddlehill Junction on.§ of the horses became restive, and by it plunging broke some part of the harness which frightened the others, causing them to bolt. The driver (Macintosh) with great presence of mind, managed to guide them into a sort of siding, but in dbing eg the coach upset, throwing off the passen* gers, and partly falling on. one of them, Mr Hislop, Inspector of Schools; wha%aa proceeding to Milton tpdeliver a iecture. Mr Hislop had a leg broken, and sundry other serious usuries, but is now doing well. Several other passengers received injuriesjnore or less severe, but all are in a fair wty of recovery. Had the coach gone the other side of. the road and overthe hill, the consequences might have teen dreadful, as there is no fence. At the meeting of the City Council on. Wednesday a long letter was read from Mr T. Hutchison, gas manager, about the M Bill now being applied for* from the Assembly. The letter opens the way to a discussion of the merits and demerits of the Company, and I should not at all wonder if it led to the starting oka: new company, as feelers have been thrown out in that direction. • ? The Water Company, having got a supply of the sinews of war, have taken the field and now advertise for tenders for laying the service pipes town The works are

require very little to finish them. However, there is yet a long stretch of the main pipe to lay, all the way from the edge of the Belt to the Reservoir, more than a mile of very difficult work, up the rocky bed of the stream. A patent in favor of one of the parties engaged in utilising the Phormiwn tenax has been applied for. It is to cover the use of a liquor given off in the manufacture of gas, viz., the ammoniacal liquor. It seeni3 the strong alkali dissolves the gum from the leaf, and leaves the fibre clean and ready for use, either for making into cordage or yarn. Artificial ■e.-.1'.-i^a-tion of the plant has also been recommended by some writers, something in the manner of rhubarb. A new and original burlesque, entitled " Guy Fawkes," by 13. L. Farjeon, was brought out in the Princess Theatre tliis week. On account of the inclemency of the weather, it met with rather poor success, as, except the first night, the houses have been very thin. The Supreme Court sat both in Banco And in Bajjjj|ruptcy this week ; but there were no rjses calling for particular notice in either branch. The Judge's opinion on the great case of privilege has not been yet given. A new industry, the making of hats, has been added to our local resources. Messrs Hanslow and Sampson, clothiers, have started the work, and have turned out some excellent samples. Business has been rather dull all week, consequent on the weather preventing transit. A sale of Mauritius sugar, ex Jessie Kelly, took place yesterday, when very good prices were realised. Finest white brought L4l to L 42 s* ; best yellow A'ld Gre^ L 36 to L 37 ) fine counters, L3210s 'Jfc