Untitled

Grey River Argus, Volume VI, Issue 412, 3 September 1868, Page 2

The Returning-Officer for the Grey Road Districts, W. H. Revell, Esq., has given the official notice that the nomination of two members for the Road Board, in room of Messrs Whall and Wickes, resigned, will take place at the Warden's Court, Greymouth, on Friday the 1 lth inst. The poll, if necessary, will take place on Tuesday, the 15th inst., a.nd. the appointed polling-places are the Wardens' Courts, Greymouth ; Maori Gully, Rutherglen, aud Card's Store, Eightmile Terrace, New River. The Charleston Herald informs us that the banquet to Mr Lightbaml, late Warden, prior to his leaving JCharleston, held at the European Hotel, was attended by some thirty-five or forty gentlemen. Mr Thomas Dwan occupied the chair, and Mr Philip Allen the vice. The toasts were : — "The Queen," "Mr Lightband," "Mr Broad," "The Press," "The Provincial Council, coupled with the name of Mr Home," "The Banking Interest, coupled with the name ;# Mr Jones," "aud the "Mining Interest,"' all of which were drunk with musical honors. Several good songs were given during the evening, Mr P. Bear accompanying on the piano. The supper was without doubt the best we have seen put on a table on the Coast, and reflected great credit on Messrs Weitzel and Co., the caterers. We notice that our contemporary the Westland Observer has ceased to exist, having been incorporated with the West Coast Times, the latter journal having been bought-out by Messrs Brown and Klein, the proprietors of the Observer and Evening Star. Involved in the same purchase are the journals Leader and Desjiatch, the publication of the latter being discontinued, as well as the Weekly Observer, which is now incorporated with the Leader. The postponed sale of the cottage, poultry, plants, &c, belonging to Mr J. Bull, on the Preston-road, will take place this day at two o'clock. It is stated that Sergeant Franklyp, who will be renaembered as being in charge of the Twelve Mile Landing in the early days of the Grey rush, is about to be promoted to Commissioner of Police for the Nelson Southwest Gold Fields. A Westport correspon* dent of the Charleston Herald says: — In connection vith officialdom, ib is said that Inspector Franklyn is to be converted into a Commissioner of Police, and everyone heartily wishes that this may piove correct. The Inspector has literally risen from the ranks in the service of the Nelson Government, and during his whole term of police experience, has been stationed on the coast. He is, therefore, not only at home in his own department, but he knows the wants and peculiarities of a digging population, and therefoie is in every respect better fitted to have full and complete charge than a Nelson man who never was on a gold field in hi life. George William Harvey, Esq., has been Gazetted as Crown Solicitor for the Dislrict of Westland vice J. H. O'Loughlin, Esq., resigned. On Wednesday, at the Hau Hau, says the West Coast Times, the children of the "brother of the moon," and the barbarian. Caucasian, came in contact. About 12 o'clock two Chinaman who had gone up to the Hau Hau with the wiew of purchasing Messrs Robertson and Co.'s tunnel, situated on the Omeo Lead,, while washing a prospect were suddenly assailed by a band of about 30 infuriated diggers. Robertson and party chivalrously defended their victims, and taking them into their tent defied the mob to touch them. Twice was the tent attacked, and twice was the visit repulsed. At last, seeing the case becoming desperate, one of the party — Mr Cameron— having had hid arm painfully lacerated, Mr Robertson came to the tent door and threatened that if the crowd did not disperse that he would use his fire-arms to make them do so. This courageous conduct had its effect, and the men letired, still, however, watching the tent which Robertson's party had so gallantly defended. As soon a» the coast was clear,

the Chinamen were taken to town, and we understand an information was laid against the aggrossors. Too much praise cannot be awarded to Mr Robertson and his mates, for defending tbo two helpless Mongolians against those who attacked them, and we are certain that the act of these cowards was not endorsed by the men of the Hau Hau. We are requested to call the attention of all lovers of mus-ic to an ail vertisement which appears in another column, convening a meeting to take into consideration the formation of a Choral Society. A few gentlemen met together on Wednesday evening, I and while lamenting the. non-existence of such a society in Greymouth, decided to make another effort to attain this desirable object, and it is to be hoped the effort will not prove futile. Ladies are particularly requested to attend, and those parties possessing choral music will please bring a list of w]|,it they have with them. We take the following latest mining news from the Charleston Herald of Satnrday last : — At the. Argyle Terrace, Thompson and party have amalgamated with M 'Bride and party, and have completed the erection of a very fine iron battery, with ten head o^ stampers of about SQQIb each, driven by a twelve horse-power engine. Since completing the works they have had a dividend shewing a result of seventy ounces for a fortnight's work. On this terraoe the once famed Amateur claim whose former proprietors have recently sold out and gone to Auckland, is now being reworked by a new party, and paying handsome dividends. I Sardine Terrace is now becoming noted ; for some excellent returns. Among the best | claims in this locality may be mentioned Ryan and party and Burke and party, in each case a dividend of Lls per man weekly has been paid for some time past. M'Kay and party, on this terrace, have now com" pleted the erection of their machinery, consisting of a powerful steam engine, driving two batteries of stampers. No returns have yet been made, but the shareholders anticipate a handsome return for their trouble and outlay. A second share in the Dublin City, Back I>ad, has been purchased during the week by P. Comiskey, Esq., the price being Ll9O, a figure muoh below its value. At Brown's Terrace matters are assuming a much more promising aspect. Ky'e and party during the past week brought in a parcel of amalgam, and have realised a dividend of nearly LlO per week per man. Murray and party and Matheson and party have now completed their machinery, which reflects much credit upon all engaged, the workmanship being first class. The number of patients in the Grey "River Hospital at the present time is very large. On Saturday last a miner named James Cooper was brought down from the Blackwater with both legs fractured, caused by the falling in of the side of his claim. Another miner named Frank Nappey was yesterday brought down in a boat from the Ahaura, and carried to the Hospital, suffering from a broken leg. It appears that while working in a claim in Noble's Gully, he was engaged in breaking up the bottom when a huge piece of surface ground fell in on him and broke his leg near the thigh. He was bought to the Ahaura by miners, and as there were no cargo boat then ready to start for town, Mr M'Kenna lent his whaleboat, and ■ Messr3 W. Lonargan, J. Devery, and D. Carroll, storekeepers at the Ahaura Towuship, volunteered to pull the boat to town. Through the generous exertious of these gentlemen the sufferer was safely landed ami carried to the Hospital The West Coast Times of yesterday states that a determined case of suicide occurred on Tuesday night. About eleven o'clock a young man, named Jonathan Smith vVade, in the employment of Mr Dixon, bell-hanger, Tancred-street, was found in his sleepingroom, hanging by a strap round his neck, and which was attached to the upper end of two bunks in the room. When discovered his body was in a bent position, as if he had determinedly knelt to accomplish the object of strangulation. Dr Beswick was iv attendance within a very few minutes after the discovery of the body, but life was then quite extinct. The deceased had been drinking rather heavily lately, but otherwise no cause is known for the commission of the crime. The body was removed to the Tancred-street Hotel, where an inquest will be held at noon to-morrow, before the District Coroner, Dr Beswick. At the Resi'lent Magistrate's Court, on Tuesday, there was no business— neither criminal nor civil. Yesterday, Joseph Moore was charged with having committed a serious assault upon Mary Ann M'Caiti-ey. It was stated that the complainant could not appear, as she was seriously injured by the assaults of the prisoner. Another charge was proceeded with against the same prisoner, for having assaulted Constable Flanagan in the discharge of his duty. The constable stated that when he attempted to arrest the prisoner on the above charge, he resisted and kicked and bit him all over the body and on the face. The constable's face was much injured. There was {mother charge against the prisoner of having wilfully destroyed part of the constable's uniform, of the value of £2 10s. In all three cases the prisoner was remanded until Monday, iv order that the result of the assault upon the woman might be known. . During the debate on Mr. Russell's moiioi in the House of Representatives, to the effect that the Maori race should be allowed to chose white men as their representatives in the Assembly, he read the following extract from the report of Mr Edward Williams, Resident Magistrate at Waimate, Bay of Islands, in practical evidence of what he had just brought forward :— " During a conversation I had with Abraham Taonui on the subject of Maori representation, the following remarks were made : — He first wished to know the motive for introducing members into the House. When told it was that the Maoris mil ht have a voice in the Legislature, he replied, 'Very good; you say there are to be four, Maori members and about twenty

Pakehas ; what are these four to da among so many Pakehas ; where will their voices be as compared with the Pakeha voices? How are they to understand Anything the Pakehas say, or the Pakshas anything the Maori say? Is each man to have his in. teryreter by his side ; if not, are they to listen to the Pakeha talk without understanding a word that is spoken ? Speak without being understood ? Give the Aye when asked to do so without knowing what they Aye to ; and, by-and-bye, when some new Act bearing upon the Maoris is brought into operation, be told, ob, yon assisted in passing it ! It will not do. Now, if we had been allowed to return some Pakeha in whom we could place confidence, it would have been a better arrangement, but the present cne will not answer. ' •By the. way, ' he said, after conversing for some time, ' What about the pay for all this fine work ?' On my replying that an allowance of so much a day would be made, 'Very good,' he saitl, ' Let one of the younger ones go first, and if on his return he report the pipi-bed is yielding plentifully, then I may think about the matter.' The reference to the yield of the pipi-bed will at once be understood to mean good pay." Foley's Menagerie was opened to the public on Tuesday evening, in a large marquee behind Johnston's Melbourne Hotel. Fine weather having continued yesterday, the afternoon performance was liberally patronised, while the entertainment in the evening was still more numeroiisly attended. This, the first collection of wild animals which has .ever visited Greymrtuth, embraces splendid specimens of the lion.and lioness, while, the leopards, bears, monkeys, &c, are all lively interesting specimens of their kind. Not the least attractive are the two cubs which were given birth to by the lioness at Westport, and which look just like the little puppies. On the occasion of both exhibitions Senior Fernandez enters the dens of the animals and goes through a most daring performance with the lion and leopard, com* pelling them to leap or crouch at his bidding, illustrating the inherent power which man is capable of exercising over the beasts of the field. menagerie is well worthy cf a visit, and will no doubt be liberally patronised during its stay on the Grey. " Where do the rebel Natives get Government arms and ammunition.," "asks the Wanganui Times; The question is answered as follows :—• It is clearly a mistake to leave | Government arms and ammunition in the hands of so called friendly natives after the i occasion for using them has passed away. With the exception of the Wanganui natives on this coast and the Arawas on the East I Coast, there are no real friendlies in the j colony. A tribe holds a "korero," makes loud expressions of loyalty, and then every able-bodied man goes off to fight against us ; whilst an old chief or two with the old men, women, and children, keep possessicn of ; their property and remain loyal. From i their loyal settlements the fighting men are \ supplied with food, munitions of war* and I such information as they can loyally pick up. ; Tiien, when their fighting men are thoroughly i beaten, they return to their loyal homes where they find a considerable want of the comforts, if not the necessaries, of life. During their absence the cultivation of the land was necessarily neglected, the live stock eaten up, and so there must be an appeal to the Civil Commissioner of the District for relief. Of course this loyal tribe would be represented as having suffered from the effects of ths rebellion, and forthwith supplies of blankets, sugar, flour, and tobacco ■would be forthcoming. With these and what '< our loyal friends could plunder from the stock of the nearest European settlers the tribe manage to live in pretty comfortable and unprofitable idleness, until their ablebodied men are again called upon to drive the Pakeha into the sea. The Wakatip MxtU is informed that "the number of landslips and earth-falls in the Shotover district has been very remarkable during the past few months." This may possibly be partly accounted for by another more remarkable phenomenon — the frequency of earthquakes during that period. "For our own part," says the Mail, "we have repeatedly felt these earth-tremulations, and about two months ago observed them nightly for a week together, the time being between 12 and two at night. We 'should have set our impressions down as something fanciful were they not supported by the testimony of a, gentleman in the district. Our Switzer's correspondent, in his last letter, also speaks of a succession of quakes in that district. The sluicers have been qnite puzzled to account for the number of landslips, and have suffered considerable .loss thereby — in some instances no ground has been worked for months, the races continually requiring fresh repairs." ■• -:■ The Daily Times, of the 2lst ult., says :— "Intelligence was received in town yesterday, by telegraph, that a serious accident had occurred on Saturday last to Mr John Cameron, the surveyor lately, despatched' by; the Provincial Government to lay off the coal sections at Preservation Inlet. Mr Cameron's right arm was shattered by a gunshot wound. The charge of shot had divided int<» two unequal portions before entering the fore-arm -the smaller portion entering on the inner side jiisfc above the wrist, and escaping on the outer side near but below the elbow. Both bones are much shattered, and one of the main arteries is injured. Mr Cameron was brought from the Inlet to Riverton in an open boat, and thence to Invercargill by road, where he arrived yesterday, and is under the care of Dr Dock. Ifc i3mucb feared that he will nave to lose his arm. The mode ia -which the accident occurred is not stated."