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Grey River Argus, Volume IX, Issue 677, 21 May 1870, Page 2

Tuesday next, the 24th instant, being the anniversary of the Queen's Birthday, will be observed as a general holiday. All the Government offices and banks will, as usual, be closed. A change has lately been made in the appoiutments of the non-commissioned officers of the Greymouth Volunteer Corps. Mr G. S. Smith was promoted to be a sergeant, and Volunteers W. S. Smith, Moss, Butt, and Hardy to be corporals. We understand that the funds raised atthe fete held on Easter Monday have been vested in trustees— three chosen from each of the Friendly Societies in town— with full power to apply the funds in any cases they may think deserving. T. Gallagher, Esq., having resigned his seat in the Assembly for Westland North, Messrs O'Conor, of Westport ; Donne, of Charleston ; and Franklyn, of the Grej r , are spoken of as likely candidates. Mr ICynuersley's name is also mentioned, but it is very doubtful if he possesses tbe necessaxy qualification. The election will shortly take place. If a good able man were put forward, sti ongly supported in tbe Grey District, we feel confident . tbat he would be warmly received at Westport, where none of the present candidates meet with much favor. The Rev. Father Bins field, of this town, is at present on a visit up-country. Tbe reverend gentleman arrived at the Abaura on Monday afternoon, and on Tuesday morning celebrated Mass in the large room attacl ed to M'Kenna's Royal Mail Hotel ; but owing to insufficient publicity, many were debarred from attending. On Wednesday, he proceeded to Napoleon's, where he will celebrate Mass to-morrow, and, after which, visit tbe surrounding districts in the interests of bis flock. On the 26th ult. the erection of a Weslcyan Chapel was completed at Waugawa, on the site of the mission station from which the Revs. Messrs Hobbs and Turner were driven away about 40 years ago. Last night, about half-pasfc nine o'clock, another narrow escape from fire took place at the shop of Mr Hunter, tobacconist, upper end of Mawhera Quay. Some one carrying a parcel of goods through the shop knocked over a kerosene lamp, which burst ; the flames spread over tbe shop, and were just catching the wall, when Assistant-Branch-man King, of the Fire Brigade, who happened to pass, rushed in, took off his coat, and with it smothered the flames. Every praise is due to him for his promptitude and exertions, as he was the means of stopping what might have been a serious conflagration. Only the other day, a man named Herbert Grooby, who was one of a party engaged in digging on Salisbury Plain, on the other side of the Mount Arthur range, started to return to Motueka, one of his mates accompanying him, as be thought, through all tbat part of his road which was under snow. He was, however, met shortly afterwards by a party of Maoris travelling through snow almost up to his middle, and since then has never been heard of. A party has been out to look for him, but without success; and the search has now been given up as fruitless. The unfortunate .man was subject to fits, and some time since fell, in one of them, with his feet in the fire, and sustained such injury as to prevent his getting about at all until lately. We learn from Nelson, privately, that the West Coast members in the Council were about to prepare an address to their constituents, regretting the conduct of Mr Franklyn, but the time at their disposal was too short before the Kennedy left. They would also add that they have agreed to work hand-in-hand for the general interests of the Gold Fields, but they will not recognise Mr Franklyn, even if re-elected. Between the others and Mr Mackley there is a perfect understanding, because he has Bhown himself a man not to be hoodwinked or slow to assert tbe interests of the Grey District. For the sake of the district, it is to be hoped that some straight-forward, upright man will be returned to the Council in room of Mr Franklyn. An arrangement has been come to between Mr Busby and the Auckland Provincial Government, by which the former relinquishes all right to any land under his award except in so far as the Bay of Island* land' is concerned, and consents to accept in lieu of his scrip, a sum of L 23,000. The effect of the arrangement will be. that the waste lands of Auckland will be thrown open for settlement. So long as Mr Busby's award remained unsatisfied, the Provincial Government could not promote settlement. Now, however, the way is cleared, and we shall be disappointed if a liberal land policy be not adopted by the present Executive. A writer in the Grey Valley Times of yesterday thug expresses himself with regard to Mr Franklyn's recent conduct in the Nelson Provincial Council : — Mr Franklyn obtained his seat in an y thing but an orthodox manner; and, after having secured it, the nature of the man showed itself. To curry favor with Mr Kynnersley, he resigned, to make room for that gentleman ; but finding that that little game did not work, he withdrew ' his resignation ; but this being illegal, he loses his seat— and serve him right— having sat for about a week, and in that time managed matters so, that his brother councillors would not recognise him either iv or out of the House, and, in fact, sent him to Coventry, and the Speaker was forced on one occasion to inform him that his conduct was disgraceful. Now tbe question comes, what will those electors do, who in good faith sent this turncoat to the Council as their chosen representative, when he returns to the Coast to solicit theh % suffrages ? Will they again

return him at the head of the poll ? Will they again suffer themselves to be blarneyed over by speeches, half contemptible adulation of tbe Curiis Government, the other half sickening personal inflativeness and vanity, and the whole a senseless stringing together of unmeauing vei'biage? T hope not. I trust t!ie electors of the Grey Valley have by this time had their eyes opened to the true colors carried by this Government trimmer, and when he again comes canvassing amongso them, demand of him an account of his stewardship since he was elected, and his constituents may then have an opportunity of judging for themselves whether he is •Worthy to be trussed with the membership of ;he most important district in the Prqvit cc of Nelson, and I may add, the one that has i been the most misgoverned, the most neglected, and the worst represented. Mr Charles Knigbt, of Appleby, Nelson, has lately sent home to his friends in Sussex, a c heese weighing 2251 b. It is the produce of bhe milk from thirty-seven cows, each of wlicu was milked four times to produce the qu mtity required. It is a handsome, wellfoimed cheese, a ciedit to any dairy, and ou jht to be exhibited at some agricultural sh)W in England, where most probably ib we uld secure the first prize. A company has been started under the style of the Auckland Agency, Discount, and Loan Company (incorporated), under thfe Joint Stock Company Limited Liability Ait, with a capital of LIO,OOO, in L2O shares, whose object is to make advances of from L 5 to'Lsoo to respectable householders. On Monday night last, or rather Tuesday morning, the Napoleon township had a very narrow escape from fire. Indeed had it not been for Mr Kennedy, the butcher, there is no doubt that a considerable amount of damage would have been done. It appears that he was making an early start on a journey, and, when passing Miss Coffee's house, he perceived the shingle roof of the lean-to on fare. He at once gave the alarm, and by his promptness prevented any great damage being done. The natives of tbe Wanganui district have become dissatisfied with their present representative Mete Kingi, M.H.R., and a request haa been made to Topia to represent the West Coast in the Assembly, if Mete can be prevailed upon to resign. The Herald states that Topia has given his consent, and it is probable will be returned. At the Kesident Magistrate's Court, on Thursday, before W. H. Revell, Esq., R.M., the following civil cases were heard : — Orr and Co. v. Ann Hogan — judgment for plaintiff for L 3 13s 2d and costs; Mrs Ogcen v. P. Crawford— judgment by default for L 3 2s 6d and costs ; H. Williams v. C. Patterson — wrong service of summons. —Yesterday His Worship gave judgment in the civil case Jakob Lichtscheindl v. P. M'Carthy, reported in our last. This was a claim for L2O 10s for the non-Bupply o. beer under a written agreement. Mr Guinness appeared for the plaintiff, and Mr Perkins for the defence. The Magistrate said the defendant had pleaded protection under the Bankruptcy Act. This was a claim prior to the date of his bankruptcy, and one provable on the estate, the same as the other. The protection under the Act was a sufficient answer. Case dismissed with costs. Last week as many as 270 cases of pre- = served meat weighing in the aggregate something more than 27 tons, arrived in Lyttelton from the Meat Preserving Company's Factory, for shipment, and we are informed that others will shortly follow. The Otago Daily Times understands that the Esther Ann, a craft well known on the coast, is about to proceed to the new settlement of Martin's Bay with passengers and cargo. A number of immigrants from Nova Scotia, by the Emulous, have taken berths in her, and that she is being fitted up for their convenience. A butcher's man, named Langley, took a horse and cart down to the Kaiwarawara stream, Wellington, on the 19th insfc., for the purpose of washing the cart. The horse barked into a hole, and Langley and the horse were drowned. It is somewhat amusing to a disinterested spectator, says the Timaru Herald, to see "see-saw" arrangemeut between the Premier and ex-Premier of New Zealand at the present moment — not that we think Mr Stafford can help the position in which he is placed, but it seems to us extremely ludicrous. A few weeks Bince we saw Mr Stafford's name as a passenger to Auckland. Mr Fox was there the next week ! Then Mr Stafford takes a trip to the South Island, and has just been visiting his constituents. Mr Fox is on his track immediately, dogging his footsteps, and although he has no constituents in this Island to hear him, Mr Fox is in Dunedin, waiting to reply to anything Mr Stafford may say. It must be a source of great unhappiness aad anxiety to Mr Fox to see the ex-Premier going about the colony at his own free will, and we are not prepared to say that some restraint should not be placed upon Mr Stafford's movements, as they seem to cause nervous irritation, and to disturb the peace of mind of an eminent colonist — the Hon. Mr William Fox, to wit. The New Zealand Herald is responsible for the following paragraph : — " When Mr Bennett, chief engineer of the s.s. Hero, and a shareholder in the Papakuro claim, Punga Flat, left last trip for Sydney, he took with him a sample of quartz taken at random from the stone to grass at the above claim, and in which gold was not visible to the sight. This stone he handed over to the assayer at the Sydney Mint for assay, and recriyed in return a letter, of which the following is the copy. It is also interesting to know that the gold obtained from this claim was twentytwo carat quality : — 'Royal Mint, Sydney, March 1, 1870. — Sir, — The sample of quartz submitted with your letter dated the Ist instant has been duly assayed as requested, and contains gold 2900z to the ton. — I am, &c, C. Eloms.' " A daring burglary appears to have been effected on Mr Warmoll's premises. Grahamstown, Auckland. The Thames paper says: — "It is supposed that entry was effected by a window in Davy street, which was only fastened by a catch. At all events the upper sash was found open by Mr Warmoll's assistant when he came in the morning. The robber or robbers had evidently proceeded in a leisurely manner, for goods were taken to the extent of L3OO. It is supposed that tbe goods must have been ren^ ed to some place not far from Mr Warmoll's shop, as their balk would prevent their carriage to any great distance in the time the robbers had. " At the Bankruptcy Court, Auckland, the other day, Patrick Sweeney, the original owner of Sweeney's Hotel, Greymouth, came J up, unrepresented by any solicitor ; and he ' was examined by the Chief Justice as to notices given as affecting creditors on tbe West Coast of the Middle Island, at Wellington, and elsewhere — The Chief Justice : The liabilities are stated at LI, 228., As to asssts, debts due to you are stated at L9lO ; personal property, Ll4j and real estate, mainly mining scrip and shares, is put down at an amount which., taken with the other assets, makes a total of L 1,763. It is a pity that, with such an estate, you were not represented by a solicitor.— The Bankrupt : I had no means, your Honor. — Mr Mowbray stated that his report was dated May 2. Up to that date, only one creditor, a resident at bhe Thames, had proved. He sent notice to that creditor that the bankrupt would on this day ipply to be discharged. He (Mr

Mowbray) had not sent notice to Cassius and Comisky, of Hokitika, because he understood the bankrupt had forwarded a notice to be advertised. He (Mr Mowbary) had not given notice to sny creditor in Wellington. — A witness was called by the bankrupt, but he could only state that he had bitten a letter to Hokitika — to Cassius and Comisky, lie thought, but he couli not recollect the contents of the letter.— The Chief Justice said that the firm mentioned were creditors for LI 10, and it was impossible for the Court to declare the last examination passed without some proof that notice bad been given to that firm. — Mr Wynn believed that bis clerk could prove that notice was sent to every creditor.— The Chief Justice said that the case would stand over for a week. A telegram was received, a few days since by the Inspector of Police, in Nelson, stating that an ex-member of the Marlborough Police Force had started for Nelson, taking with him the wife of his superior officer, but as there is no law in existence which renders such a proceeding a punishable offence, an accusation was laid r gainst the man for stealing a revolver, and against the woman for carrying off some of her husband's money. The police were therefore on ths look-out for the amorous constable ontheMaungatapu, but withont success, and it was soon discovered that he and his inamorata had chosen the Top House route, and had gone over the hills to Motueka. Constable Levy was despatched in search of them, and soon succeeded in arresting and bringing them to Nelson, whence they were immediately despatched to Blenheim, the woman, who is. the mother of six children, declaring that she would not return to her lawful protector, as she was far better satisfied with her second choice. A fierce war was waged between two rival bellman at the Thames the other night. One of those noisy individuals had a number of paintings fixed on a cart showing a number of Maori figures, one of which the "small boys" dubbed Te Kooti. He had the hardihood to come directly on the beat of tbe bellman who was proclaiming the attractions of the Academy of Music, and the consequence was a fierce fight ensued, in which Te Kooti was placed hors de combat, and finally burnt. A light was put to the canvas, which soon blazed. Efforts were made to save the rebel chief by demolishing part of the structure, but the whole structure was overturned and completely demolished. We (Nelson Mail) regret to learn that Mr Fowler, Quail Valley, who was burnt out of his house on Friday week, has again been a sufferer from the same cause, on this occasion his barn, containing a quantity of corn, harness, and. agricultural implements, having been totally destroyed on Thursday night. Since his house was burnt, Mr Fowler has been living about two miles from his farm, and it was only on going to his work yesterday morning that he became aware of the second misfortune that had befallen him. There is no accounting for the fire, as the building was some distance off the road, and not within two miles of any dwelling-house. The house which was burned last week was partly insured, but the barn and its contents are a dead loss. The West Coast Times of Thuaday says :— A considerable rush set in to the Threemile Creek yesterday, caused by a rumour that payable gold had been struck on the terrace abutting on the new line of Christchurch road. From what we can learn, a payable prospect was obtained by a party of men who had. set in to work, and in consequence of that the ground was pegged out for a considerable distance. The County Chairman and Mr Fraser, Chief Commissioner of Waste Lands, visited the ground, which is purchased land, and arranged the terms on which miners could commence operations. As the terms are considered satisfactory by the miners, it is expected that a good, number of the claimholders will set in to work to-day. We understand thirty feet per man was granted, subject to a deposit for any injury which might be done to the road. The Lyttelton Times says : — "About five o'clock on Saturday afternoon, information was given to the police depot, which caused Sergt. M 'Knight to proceed to a two roomed building on the South Town belt. On entering the house the constable found the floor and walls covered with blood. In the bedroom he saw Mrs Bennett lying with hei head frightfully mutilated in a large pool of blood, and her apparel completely saturated. He caused her to be conveyed to the Hospital, where several members of the medical profession were quickly in attendance, but up to last night no opinion could be offered as to whether the unfortunate woman would recover or not. Returning from the hospital to the house, Sergeant M 'Knight found the husband, Edwin Bennett, formerly a butcher in Lyttelton, Heathcof-e Valley and Christchurch, but now a stock-driver, and arrested him. From what little could be gleaned from the woman, and the information of tbe neighbors, it would appear that Bennett returned on Saturday, after a three days' absence upcountry, and that a quarrel ensued between him and his wife. It is not certainly known what weapons were used, but Sergeant M 'Knight found an American broom handle, in three pieces (recently broken), and two hammers in the room covered with blood. The Otago Daily Times of the 9fcb says :— "Another addition has been made to the number of those who have met their deaths by drowning, in the Shotover. Mr Bell, of Tucker Beach, when crossing that river last Wednesday morning, saw the dead body of a man lying near the south-western bank, and in about seven inches of water. As the body, appeared to be quite dead, he did not move it, but at once gave information to the police. It had on a large pattern Bedford cord tronsers, woollen socks, a blucher boot, and a muffler loosely fastened round the neck. It was free from any marks of violence, and appeared as if it had not been many hours in the water. The deceased was not known, and the only .clue to, identification found upon the body was an envelope addressed Mrs Thorne, Bt., Pt. St. Barnstaple, Devon, England. The body appears to have been that of a laborer, about 35 to 40 years old ; sft Tin in height ; medium build ; fresh complexion ; brown or hazel eyes ; hair brown, and slightly tinged with grey ; dark red whiskers, of medium length ; beard and moustache long and straight, and of the same color ; small, round features ; nose short, large and. prominent, and small chin. The body has been identified as that of a man named William Thompson. It appeared that he> accompanied by another man, named James Austin, left Queenstown for Sutherland Beach, Upper Shotover, on the 3rd instant. They reached Arthur's Point, and drank at a public house, at which the deceased fell asleep by the fire whilst Austin crossed over the bridge to a shanty. The deceased, who was considerably the worse of liquor, woke up at half-past 9 p.m., and was asked to go to bed, .but would not, saying that he would • ' go over tbe way to his mate Austin." He left the hotel and was never afterwards seen alive. The night was dark, and the approach to the bridge dangerous, so that it is believed that tbe deceased fell into the river in his endeavor to find the bridge. The body was found about a mile below the bridge. From a coat of a peculiar description, which was found in his swag, it is conjectured that he had served in the Colonial Forces in the North Island. .