THE T5 & (SO ** SATURDAY, JUNE 5, 1860.

Grey River Argus, Volume VIII, Issue 528, 5 June 1869, Page 2

THE Grey River Argus. SATURDAY, JUNE 5, 1860.

At the usual weekly meeting of the Borough Council, on Thursday evening, the resolution to borrow the sum of £5000, on the security of a special rate, was finally adopted. The regulations for levying tonnage dues on all vessels arriving at this port have received the sanction of the County Chairman, an<l been gazetted. The Maori prisoners at Napier will be tried in September, under the Treason SVlony Act. Another claim on the Stoncy Lead was bottomed on Thursday. The prospects are between half and three-quarters of an ounce to the load. The men were driven out by water, and they intend taking in a tunnel from the beach, nearly opposite the Nelson Hotel, to drain the ground. C. Hoos, Esq., County Chairman, accompanied by Mr Rochfort, County Engineer, has, during the past two clays, been on a visit to the Grey district. Yesterday moming they rode up and inspected the proposed route for the Arnold road. In the evening Mr Hoos met the Borough Council and a number of other gentlemen in Kilgour's i Hotel, when a friendly conversation took > place as to a number of matters connected with the district which were brought under his notice. The meeting was of a semi-private character, but wo may briefly state the results :— The road to the Eight-mile, via the Omotumotu Creek, is now in the hands of the surveyors, and dining the present financial half-year is to be completed to the Eight-mile, and to the Greenstone and Hokitika, if possible, during the next half-year. He thought it desirable that the Cliristchurch Coal Co. i

should bo terminated, and a. local company formed for working the mine. The claims of j Williams and party against the Borough Council were stated, and, on Mr Hoos' recommendation, £25 was offerod to them as compensation, which was accepted. With regard to the protection for the tramway applied for by Kilgour and Perotti, Mr Hoos expressed himself ready to hear any suggestion? from the Borough Council, but he thought that no restrictions should lie placed upon them from the spirited manner in which they were carrying on their line. He stated that the gaol here would be declared a common gaol, and that the labor of the prisoners would be available for works within the Borough ; and he showed every desire to further the wishes of the Local School Com-, mittee, and regretted his inability to meet them from want of time, but he suggested as a proper- site for the National School a portion of the Camp Reserve. There were a number of other matters treated of, and Mr Hoos appeared to be very anxious to do everything in his power to further the interests of the district. He leaves this morning early in order to inspect Hamilton .and Co.'s Ruthergleu and New River Tramway. The news from Napoleon Terrace continues very good. We have been privately informed that there are now fully 400 men on gold on the lead, which is said by the. miners to be the bpst defined lead they have yet seen on the West Coast. It is liker one of the Victorian leads than those yet struck here. The majority of the claims are expected to pay from £5 to £15 per week a man. On Thursday last, Jones and party's shaft on the terrace was bottomed at 160 feet. From the surface down the water was very heavy, and required timbering the whole way. They have between live ami six feet of washdirt, which will average over 12dwts. to the load. The width of the rnn is unknown ; but this will soon be ascertained, as they have started driving across their claim. A petition has been prepared in Otago, and is in course of being signed on the gold fields, requesting Mr Vog«l to resign his seat for that district in the General Assembly. We believe that a reply has been received by the chairman of the meeting lately held at Orwell Creek, with re^ar.l to the wants of the district, from Mr Vv arden Lowe, in which he states that he will have much pleasure in forwarding the resolutions then passed to the Superintendent of Nelson. Dr. Hector reports that no gold exists in the specimens of Wellington quartz he had tested. The W. 0. Times is informed, on good authority, that negotiations are being made to induce the denominational schools of Hokitika to come under the national system, and that there is every probability of the negotiations being successful. A meeting of the Presbyteiian Church Committee was held on Thursday evening. A letter was read from the Rev. Mr Fraser, Christchurch, stating that he had authorised the Colonial Committee of the Church of Scotland to draw upon him to the amount collected by him in Greymouth, for the purpose of sending out a minister. A fresh Committee was appointed to again canvass the lower portion of the town for subscriptions. At the Resident Magistrate's Court, on Thursday, before W. H. Revell, Esq., R.M., Thomas Grath was charged, on the information of Elizabeth Revell, with refusing to maintain his illegitimate child. Mr Newton appeared for the complainant, and Messrs Perkins and Guinness for the defendant. After a long inquiry the case was dismissed. —The following civil cases were heard: — i Judgments by consent — O'Connor and Co. v. James Cortigan, L 35 125.; G. P. Fellows v. Stewart M'Donnald, L 4 95.; W. H. Hargreavesv. D. Girdwood and Co. , L2O. Judgments by default —W. Sampson v. M. Dempsey, L 7 10s.; P. Smith v. John Johnston, L 5 ss. Neal and Co. v. Castle. — Claim of LlO, for damage done to a tail-race by cattle ; judgment for LI and costs. W. J. Coates v. W. H. Phillips.- Claim of L 5 9.*. Sd., for goods supplied; judgment for plaintiff, with costs. — Yesterday, there was only one case of drunkenness before the Court. From the Westport Times of the Ist inst., we learn that information of the death of a man named Matthew Hall, from the effects of a gunshot wound, was brought to town last evening by the Lyell boatmen. It appears that, on Fa'mrday, Hall, who resided near the Lyell township, went out prospecting, taking a gun with him for the purpose of pigeon shouting. Failing to return in the evening, his wife became alarmed, and her alarm was increased by the dog by which he was accompanied returning alone at two o'clock on Sunday morning. After daylight on Sunday, a party of men started out in search of the missing man, and two miles up the Buller he was found in the bush lying dead. The gun lay beside him, one barrel being loaded, and the other discharged. He had apparently been killed by the shot of the discharged barrel entering his throat or chin, and coming out through his skull. There is no reason at present to suppose that the unfortunate occurrence was other than purely accidental. The cicumstances, however, will J be investiaated to-morrow, when an inquest i will be held here, as the body is to be brought down b} r the Maori boatmen. The deceased was well known in Westport, and on other parts of the gold fields. — At the inquest, a verdict of "Accidental Death" was returned. A meeting of the Greymouth Rifle Volunteers was held last night, after drill, in the drill-shed, for the election of officers — Captain Hamilton in the chair, and Sergeant Kirton acting-secretary. A letter was read from the Defence Minister, Wellington, to Captain Stack, to the effect that as the names of the gentlemen elected as officers for the Greymouth and other corpß had not been returned within the six months allowed by the sixteenth clause of the regulations, tin se elections were void, and it was necrssary that they should be again elected before their commissions could be issued. Volunteer Earling proposed, and Color-Sergeant Paul seconded the re-election of Captain Hamilton;

Sergeant Lyell proposed, and Honorary Assistant-Surgeon Morice seconded, the reelection of Lieutenant Maclean; and Sergeant Thomas proposed, and Volunteer Mos a seconded, the re-election of Ensign Hall. These motions were separately carried with three cheers, and the officers respectively returned thanks, for the. honor done them. There was a conversation as to other matters, when it was stated that a new rifle range, running parallel with the tramway, had been provided, up to 1000 yards, which would cost the Company L4O to clear j that a supply of the xhedium Enfield rifle was about to be forwarded for the use of the Company ; and that there was an abundant supply «f ammunition oil hand. A vote of thanks to Captain Hamilton brought the proceedings to a close. The difficulty between the, County Chairman and the Provisional Committee of Management of the Hokitika Hospital has come to an end, and the Daily News congratulates the Provisional Committee on the success that has attended their last effort to come to an amicable arrangement with the County Chairman w ith regard to the management of the Hospital. Mr Hoos has yielded the point in dispute, and the sole and undivided control of the institution is now vested in the subscribers. The Committee have lost no time in initiating the measures necessary to the final taking of the Hospital from the Government, and in the course of a fortnight , the old reyime ■will give place to popular management. The gentlemen who originally canvassed to town for subscriptions will, during the next fortnight, re-tiv.verse their districts, for the double purpose of collecting moneys that have been promised, and procuring new contributors. The election of a Permanent Committee of Management will take place on the 15th inst., subscribers of £1 and upwards being the eleotoi-s. The following are the latest particulars with regard to the rush to Mokihiuui, which have been furnished to the Westport Times by Mr Inspector Franklin: — "I have the honor to report, in accordance with your instructions, that I proceeded to the rush situated about two miles inland from the seabeach, at the back of Watson's store. The place where the gold has been struck is the other side of the Saddle, at the head of Dufty's Creek, and it has b" en taken out of a tunnel which is driven about 90ft. into the terrace. The lead appears, according to the lay of the tunnel, to run north and south, the bottom being sandstone. The terrace extends south about three-quarters of a mile from where the gold was struck. Then a break occurs, similar to those on the Caledonian terraces, and opens again into other terraces, which, as yet, have not been prospected. I enclose prospects obtained from dishes of dirt taken promiscuously out of the claim by strangers. There appears to be about 150 pec pie on the ground ; but as no other claim has been bottomed, I can form no opinion as yet, but all the miners I have spoken to express themselves perfectly satistiedwith their prospects. P.S. — Sincewriting the above, prospects have been obtained by strangers in other parts of the tunnel. One of them I enclose — weight, ldwt. lOgrs." We notice that the s.s. Wallabi, which was laid on here for Mokihuni, did not call there, a? the majority of the men she took up preferred going overland from Westport.