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Grey River Argus, Volume VIII, Issue 538, 29 June 1869, Page 2

An accident, the result of drunkenness, took place on the Greyiuouth and Saltwater Tramway-line on Sunday afternoon. The last carriage from the Saltwater to the halfway house was on its way up, and when just passing the milkman's house, which stands close to the line, the driver observed something lying across the off-rail, but too late to enable him to pull up before the wheels had passed over it. It was first tn ought to be a log, but as the carriage passed the drivtr saw it was a man's leg. He made every effort to pull up, but could not in time, as he was

within four yards when, it was first observed. It was still light, but a heavy shower was falling at the time, and the driver was naturally keepiug his eye on the front of the house he was approaching, as there are cqn? stantly a number of women and children calling there for milk. When the carriage was stopped the passengers got out and lifted up a man, who had been lying in a drunken state with one leg over the raiL The wheels had passed over the left leg at the a^kle, smashing the hone np to. the knee. He was put into the carriage and brought to the Grey River Hospital with all speed, • where he was attended, to by Dr Morice. From enquiries we have made we learn that the unfortunate man apd his mate were at the Saltwater very drunk, and on their way up the line they called in at the milkman's. One of them staggered out, and fell across the line. The milkman knew it, but could not get him dragged off, because he ha.d enough to (}o to look after \,he other man, and meantime the carriage came up, with the result we have stated. No blame whatever is attachable to the driver, who is stated to be a steady, sober, attentive man, or to th. 5 proprietors, who have piovided everything they could, and given t Qe strictest injunctions for prevention of accidents. We are glad to see that active measures are being taken to interest the public in the scheme for opening up the Grey coal-mine, and constructing a railway to the Arnold district by means of a company with & local directory. A public meeting, called by the Mayor, is to be held to-night in Gilmer's Hall, at 8 p.m., to discuss the desirability of forming such a, company. It will be seen from a report in another column, that the two mtn who were arrested for the recent robbery of gold and money from a miner on the track near the coal-pits* have been committed for trial to the District Court at Westport. The man who was robbed was so ill from the injuries he received | that he had to be accommodated with a seat while giving his evidence. A summons meeting of the Lodge of Ancient Order of Foresters is called for this evening at Hunt's Club Hotel, at 8 o'clock. There was a very fair muster of the members of the Fire Brigade last evuning for dry practice— coupling and uncoupling and running out the hose. The next drill takes place on Friday night, when it is hoped that all the members who were not present last night will attend. Mr N. P. Dawbin reports to the Otago Provincial Government that all the ova Oi last shipment are dead. No hopes of the experiment being successful are entertained. An accident has befallen Mr H. Whitier, of the Teremakau ferry. While engaged on Friday evening in tightening the wire rope, the strop broke, and striking the cap of Mr Whitten's knee, fractured it. He was conveyed to Hokitika. From Stewart's Island, the Southland Times learns that Buckley's party are still working at Ruggedy Beach and Smoky Cove, and are making wages. Another party of diggers, from Orepuki, are a^so on the island, on a prospectiug expedition. They are now on the southern coast, but whether successful in discovering gold or not is yet unknown. A Wanganui paper states that the Ngatiporou who are still in the service of the Government in the Patea district are anxious that the men, women, and children recently captured by Major Noake should be handed over to them as slaves. Thus, say the Ngatiporou, wi)l Hau-hauism be brought into contempt among the Maoris generally. The W. 0. Times is informed that a large party have set in to a very promising terrace just at the entrance of the Stafford Town road from the beach, close to the Waimea Creek, and on the land that is believed to be offered for sale. Another party, close to the Arahura Tramway Statiou, near to the beach, have struck a layer of black sand, of a payable character, and which is believed to extend some distauce. A fire broke out at Napier, at 3 o'clock a. in., on June 16, in the oil and color shop of Mr Williams, Hastings street. The store and goods were destroyed, besides a stable belonging to the Bank of New Zealand. Mr Williams was insured for £300, which was about one-third of his loss. The Banks and principil shops had a wonderfully narrow escape. To show the difference between the rate of njining fees in Scotland and New Zealand, we clip the following paragraph from the Arhroath Guide: — A nugget weighing between two and three ounces has been found at the Sutherlandshire gold diggings. Licenses, to which detailed conditions are attached, are now issued to the miners by tbe Duke of Sutherland. The license is granted for a month, and the miner pays £1 to the duke, besides a royalty to the Crown of 10 per cent, on the value of the gold. A velocipede of the new description has been introduced in the streets of Wellington. The stable of Mr Henry Redwood, at Waimea West, with a quantity of hay and fifty bags of barley, has been destroyed by tire. The valuable horse Manuka was in the adjoining stable. We notice in a Wellington contemporary that the hon. member for the Westlaud Boroughs has given notice of his intention to ask the Hon. the Colonial Secretary if the Government have received any information, direct or indirect, from any agent of the Government of the United States of America, regarding the probability of an offer being made on behalf of that Government for the acquisition of the Islands of New Zealand under certain conditions, one of which is the subjugation of the Maoris by an American army. The following history of "the way the money goes" is from an Auckland paper : — " The Government need not make any mistake in supposing that Tawhiao and his chiefs are any more desirous of making peace than ever they were, unless upon their own conditions. I do not think the friendly natives will object to attending one or two more such meetings under similar circumstances ; tipwards of five hundred nf them have been living here for the last fortnight at the exper.se of the Government, the chiefs, to the

number of about thirty, being boarded at the hotels, and living in first-class style. These natives have generally conducted themselves very well considering the facilities they have had for obtaining liquor, and the amount of money they ha^e apparently spent in this way ; the hotels have generally been crowded from morning till night, yet there has been no crime., although a deal of riot and drunken' no§s. I understand that a large quantity of dried shark, brqught up from the Waikato Heads fnr the benefit of the expected visitors, is now to be sent on to Tokangamutu as a present to his Maqri majesty," A party of gentlemen in Nelson., says the Examiner, are interesting themselves to raise the small sum of £30 to send out a body of four men to explore the country at tjie head waters of the Pelorus and Wairoa, and back towards the mountain known as the. Devil's ArmrChair, which overlooks the Wairau, Several of the streams which flow from these ranges are known to be auriferous, The Southern Gross of the 11th June says : — The p.s. Coomerang, which ai rived in harbor yesteulay from the Bay of Islands, brings intelligence of a fatal boat accident which occurred in the bay on Monday last, On Sunday and Monday last a severe N.N.W. gale was felt at Russell, and on Monday morning, when there was a very heavy sea running, a boat attempted to sail across from Waimate to Russell. When about half-way across, a sudden squall struck the boat, immediately capsizing her, and throwing her contents into the water. The boat was loaded with kauri gum, and was manned by Maoris. When the boat turned over, the whole of its occupants endeavored to save themselves by clinging to the bottom, but the very heavy seas washed three of them off, and being unable to reach the boat again, they were drowned. One of the three drowned is a son of Tamati Waka, The. two men who were saved were very much cut and bruised. The whole of the gum and other articles in the boat were lost, The earthquake shock referred to in our last, and which some nf the residents here have since stated that they felt, was experienced iv Dunedin at twenty minutes past eleven on the 24th. It was felt all over th.c Province and at the Bluff, but was moat severe at Queenstown. The waters of the Lake and the Shotover river were much agitated. The channel has fallen. Some buildings have been damaged. A woman namud Ellen M'Namara was found dead in Hokitika on Saturday under the following circumstances : — At noon on Saturday she was seen to go into her house intoxicated. At half-past nine o'clock at night, a neighbor finding the door was ajar, and seeing no light, thought something was the matter, and looked in. At first he noticed nothing, and was about to turn away when something attracted his attention. He went to the bed and found the poor woman was dead. She was lying partly between the wall and the bottom of the bed, her head and shoulders being on the floor. The police were sent for, but life had been extinct for some time, the body being quite cold. The belief is that the deceased in attempting to lie on the bed overbalanced herself, and being drunk was unable to extricate herself. She had evidently been suffocated, the face and neck being quite black when the body was found. With regard to the reported discovery of payable gold near Christchurch, which we aunounced by telegram last week, we find the following additional details in a contemporary : — "After long prospecting, it is thought that a payable gold field has been discovered in this province, and the greatest excitement has been occasioned by the probability. De Bourbel has come in, and claimed the reward of £200, offered some time since, by the Canterbury Government, for the discovery of a payable gold field in the province. The field is stated to be situated in the Rakaia and Malvem district but the exact locality has not been specified as yet. As may be supposed, many and anxious enquiries are made respecting it, and full particulars are promised at an early date. It is said that forty ounces of gold have been obtained by three men, in eight weeks, from quartz roughly crushed with sledge-hammers and washed. The real value of the discovery remains to be tested, but there is no doubt of the reward having been claimed." During the sittings in bankruptcy of the Supreme Court, Auckland, on the 10th insfc., his Honor the Chief Justice addressed the bar as follows : — I may take this opportunity of stating that there is now some prospect that courts of justice ar.d public officers wiU no longer be employed in winding up bankrupt estates. There is, I observe, a Bill before the House of Commons, introduced by the Attorney-General, wherein it is laid down as a principle that there shall in future be no such thing as a voluntary bankruptcy, but that any creditor who has sufficient interest in the matter, and thinks it worth his while to do so, may proceed to act. It will no longer be in the power of a person to say, "I will throw myself through the Court," and by merely petitioning get discharged from his debts. Looking at the statistics of bankruptcy, out of 8000 cases that were heard, fully 6000 of them were cases of persons who came before the Court to make themselves bankrupts without having one farthing of assets. There was some reason, therefore, to believe that would be put a stop to, and the whole question at issue would be between the bankrupt and his creditors.