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Grey River Argus, Volume VII, Issue 477, 4 February 1869, Page 2

A meeting of the Greymouth Board of Health was held at the Custom House the other day. There were present — Mr Revell (in the chair), Messrs Andrews, Wilmot, Lapham, and Dr Morice. The Chairm?# stated that the meeting had been called for the purpose of deciding upon the best position for a quarantine station. The following resolutions were arrived at : — That all infected vessels bxought inside be anchored at the entrance to the south lagoon, as marked on a plan prepared by Mr Cooper ; that vessels of large tonnage stand off a mile Snd a-half to the N.W. of Point Elizabeth ; and that the site of the lazarette be fixed at the old police camp, Blaketown. An itinerant vendor of jewelry, named George Knopp, was brought before the Resident Magistrate on Tuesday, on a charge of having smuggled a quantity of jewelry at Hokitika, and was remanded to that town. The circumstances under which the arrest was made are these : — As Knopp was leaving Hokitika in the Murray for Greymouth, he was stopped by the Custom House authorities, but denied having any jewelry with him. It afterwards transpired that the goods were brought on by another passenger named Rothschild, as a favor for Knopp, who wenb ashore, and travelled overland. Both the men were taken at their hotel here on Sunday night by Mr Andrews the Collector of Customs, and Sergeant O'Donnell, and brought before Mr Andrews next morr - ing. As there was no evidence against Rothschild, he was discharged, but the other man was detained. We learn that a rumor was current at the Ahaura Township on Tuesday morning, that good gold had been struck at Duffer's Gully yn the previous day, where the men had been tunnelling and sinking, from 80 to 110 feet. A slight rush had set in, and the lead was supposed to be a continuation of the deep one now being so profitably worked at Noble's. We expect full particulars soon. - The Hokitika Daily News hears on good authority that Mr "Walter Montgomery will, with Mr George Coppin and a small dramatic company, commence his New Zealand tour early next month. Hokitika will be his first port of call, and there is little doubt that arrangements will be made to enable our citizens to judge for themselves as to the merits or demerits of the much praised and much abused actor. A meeting of subscribers to the Greymouth Annual Race Meeting was held in Gilmer's Hotel last evening — Mr Strike in the chair. Mr F. Guinness, who had been acting as hon. sec, was appointed secretary for the forthcoming race meeting. A statement of the race fund account of last year was handed in, showing that the sum of LI 15s 5d remained to the credit of the fund. I. was resolved that this sum stand to th c credit of the present meeting. Mr J. Middletan was appointed treasurer. The Committee who had, .canvassed the town for subscriptions reported that they had every cause to be satisfied with the promises of support which had been given. They produced list showing subscriptions amounting to L36s 7s ; besides. this there was to be handed over to them a balance from the Sports Committee of L 26 2s 6d. Altogether they expected to have on hand for the forthcoming race meeting a sum of L7OO, which was considered veiy handsome. The meeting then proceeded to the election of stewards, and it was resolved that only twelve be elected, exclusive of the judge, secretary, and treasurer. The names of sixteen geutlevnen were proposed, and a vote was taken, when the following were elected : — Messrs D. Maclean, J. Kilgour, M. Kennedy, A. R. Guinness, Strike, M'Crae, Maxwell, G. Taylor, Paul, Thompson, Lahman, and Purcell. The usual vote of thanks terminated the proceedings. >( , ■ ........ .. . The following insight into the present state of Hokitika is given by the Evening Star:— "The week now passing away has been an uneventful one. Everywhere everyone is exclaiming at the utter stagnation in trade, and have to live for the time being upon unrealised expectations. As was generally foretold what would come to pass after Christmas has been fulfilled. A number of small business houses are being closed one after another, the stocks they contain going to the hammer and realising minimum prices — considerably less indeed, in most cases, than they can be laid down for. When things come to the worst, says an old adage, they will mend. Let us hope the worst has come, and that we are approaching better days. Accounts from the Greenstone are still favorable, although the rush in that direction has subsided, and credit having been stopped among retailers and the wholesale houses, business it is hoped will be confined to strictly legitimate transactions. From Waimea and, Ross we hear that the miners are very discontent, and that while the old claims are being worked out very little new ground is being opened up. Roads and new tracks is the cry from all classes, and we trust the County Council will not forget general requirements in disputing as to unimportant details. Whether roads be made along a red line or a yellow may be of some importance^ but not so much as that no road may bo made at all. While the grass is growing the horse is starving— Hnd pan

passu, whilst the roads are delayed in being formed the diggers are being beggared, and commerce languishes. Will Councillors take this into consideration? Besides a very large number of men — with much bone and sinew, and with wives and many little ■ mouths to fill — are anxiously looking for emj ployment on the public works of the County. As an instance of the number of unemployed, we may mention that our overseer advertised * early iv the week for a laborer to turn a wheel, at 45s per week wages. There were fully forty applications. A miner named William Houiigan was killed on Saturday last at Ross by the falling of a derrick. He was working at the top of the derrick when one of the ropes which had been knotted broke or slipped, and the derrick falling with Hourigan undermost injured him so that he died within a few minutes. At the inquest a verdict of "accidental death" was given by the jury. The Coroner took occasion to say he regretted that there was no Inspector, of Mines, to see that mining operations were carried on with--out risk to life and limb* In the present instance death had been solely caused by the use of imperfect gear, and a great many accidents on the gold fields appeared to arise from the want of such an officer. The Greenstone Escort has proved a failure so far. It arrived in Fokitika on Monday last without any gold. In our last we recorded the suicide of Mr Porthouse, of Nelson. ' The local papers, state that connected with this event are certain circumstances of,a curious and somewhat sensational character. It appears that a telegram was scut to Mr Ewart, an hotelkeeper at Blenheim, informing him of the melancholy death of the late Mr Porthouse, and requesting him to attend the funeral. On his arrival in Nelson, Mr Ewart found a telegram awaiting him containing the news that James Reid, one of his lodgers, had committed suicide in a similar manner to that by which Mr Porthouse had closed his existence, and, what is stranger still, Mr Ewart has recognised the razor with which Porthouse committed the rash act as one which had been given him by the deceased James Reid. After such an extraordinary combination of circumstances, who shall not say that truth is not stranger than fiction. George Winter, Esq., County Tieasurer, has been gazetted to be Auditor of Accounts of Road Districts for Westland. A correspondent of the Westport Times, writing from Wellington, says :— There is a rumor afloat that the 18th regiment is about to be re-called from the Australasian colonies, and that the 72nd Highlanders are to be sent out, many of them to New Zealand. I give it you for what it is worth j for my part I can scarcely believe it. The 18th have been out here but a short time, and have not nearly completed the usual term of colonial service. They came here, 1 believe, direct from Ireland. That more troops are to be left in New Zealand in future I can readily believe. In the first place, Sir George Bowen likes all the pomp and state he can invest himself with ; then he has a lively fear of the Maoris ; and lastly an order has been received from the Home Government to put the barracks in this Island in a state of repair, which order ia now being executed. Mr Andrew Mowat, of the firm of Anderson and Mowat, has resigned"his appointment as a member of the Board of Education, and Mr John Crerar, bookseller, of Hokitika, has been gazetted to fill the vacancy. The consequences of the sudden -withdrawal of the whole of the troops from Poverty Bay a,re thus commented on by the Hawkes Bay Herald : — " While admitting that the Hauhaus have been severely punished, we may be permitted to doubt whether the blow iuflicted has been of that crushing charactpr which would warrant the steps since taken by the Government, such as the total withdrawal of the forces from Poverty Bay, and the sudden abolition of the well-trained intelligent corps of Captain Weber. Te Kooti is yet in the field ; and although minus his old men and women, together with a good many braves, we have no doubt he has yet a tolerable following of fighting men, all the more dangerous perhaps from being divested of encumbrance. This supposition is strengthened by the fact that, amongst the slain at Ngatapa, very few indeed were recognised as escaped prisoners. Then there is 6he danger to be apprehended from the Uriweras under Pairau, who, if the Taupo chiefs are to bo relied upon, are fully bent on joining Te Kooti for the purpose of seeking a bloody retribution for the death of Rangiwha, and the annihilation of his party. The natives here have received a like intimation, and fully believe it. It may be, nevertheless, that the rebellion on the East Coast is stamped out ; we hope it may prove so. We trust the Government will not, until at least some time shall have elapsed, permit itself to be deluded into a security which may prove to be false, and which may result in the re-enactment, nearer home, of similar scenes to those exhibited in Poverty Bay. There is nothing new from the Wairoa district ; but a native letter had been received from Poverty Bay, dated Murewai, 18th ult., containing expressions that would lead .to the assumption that Ngatapa had been re-occupied by the enemy; or by an enemy of some kind, large fires having been seen on its summit. Though there is nothing improbable in the Hauhaus again entering the district — seeing that it has been so suddenly evacuated by the Colonial forces — yet it is hardly probable that Te Kooti woxild again enter the place where so many of his people lie dead. The Uriwera, certainly, may have done it ; but the story wants confidence."