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Grey River Argus, Volume IX, Issue 712, 11 August 1870, Page 2

There has been considerable excitement in town during the present week over the proposed leasing of a portion of the Grey Coal and Railway Reserve to Kilgour and Co., not because the people did not want the lease taken up, the railway laid down and the mine worked, but simply because to do so at the present time would be a breach of faith with the Nelson members of the General Assembly, because, in the memorandum accompanying thepetitiou for* the extensiou of the boundary -line it was alleged "that the placing of the two mines under one Government was a sufficient cause for Aunexation," and, therefore, for the County Council to part with the lease of the miue on this side of the river for a number of years while the Annexation movement was hanging in the scales, would seriously jeopardise all that had already been done in the cause of Annexation. There was good cause for this feeling and the consequent excitement, with those who did not accept the assurance published in our last, that, rather thau throw any obstacle in the way of Annexation, Mr Kilgour had withdrawn the application, and abandoned all interest that he might have in it. This was not acceptable to the^- members of the Borough Council, because a direct answer was- not given tv them, and consequently four meetings have been held within the last two days, for the reports of which we refer our readers to other columns. The result is, as we stated in our last— Mr Kilgour withdrew his application rather than injure the Annexation cause, and not from any outside pressure which was brought to bear upon Jiini, because he had given his word to withdraw, it before the Conncil first met. Looking at the question calmly and dispassionately, after it is all over, we believe the verdict of .the public will be, that every one connected with it has acted honestly aud in good faith towards the public. The application for the lease was made with the full intention of laying down an iron lino, and working the mine by means of steam, and without the slightest idea- on the part of the promoters of injuring the Annexation movement The members of the Borough Council haveacteJ in good faith in defending the interests of their constituents when they considered them in danger ; and the Committee of the Annexation League have taken the most energetic steps they could conceive fairly to meet anything that was likely to obstruct or defeat the movement they have, as yet, so successfully promoted. The contretemps id much to be regretted ; but we sincerely hope that, now it is ended, it will have no injurious effect- upon the cause of Aunexation, and that, when that movement is accomplished, and we are under the rule of Nelson, we may . yet see Kilgour and Co.'s locomotive running between Greymouth and the Arnold, and assisting in the development of the vast resources of the Grey district.

■ Messrs Bonar and Hoos intend to proceed to Wellington by the s.s. Tararua to-day, to endeavor to frustrate the Aunexntion Movement. We believe it is the intention of his Honor Judge Ward shortly to hold monthly sittings of the District Court in Greymouth for the trial of both criminal and civil cases. At the Resident Magistrate's Court oa Tuesday, before W. H. lievell, Esq., R.M., Michael Ryan was brought up having been arrested on a warrant at the Eight-mile chargingbini with having committed a rape on Winifred Honau. Sergeant Boyle, stationed at Clifton, said : The prisoner is. a miner residing near Clifton. I know Mr Ilonau, a miner, working in the samo claim as the prisoner. Yesterday Honau's wife complained to me that on the sth July last a man ha.l committed a rape on her. She described the man, and from that I went to the prisoner's hut and arrested him. I informed him of the charge, but he made no remark. SubInspector Hickson applied for a remand until Friday, as the witnesses had not arrived" ■from Clifton. The remand was granted, but bail accepted, himself in LIOO, and two sureties of LSO each. —On the civil side of the Court, the following cases were heard : — Thomas and M'Beath v. M'Cune : A fraud summons for L 9 ; defendant was ordered to pay L 2 a month, or four, months' imprisonment. — Prosser v. Lee : Summonß returned ; not seived. Adjourned,

until Tuesday.- O'Brien V. Cornish: Adjourned until Tuesday. — Auseline v. Scanlan : Judgment for L 3 l()s Gd and costs, for liquor supplied.— Orogan v. Miss Barnes : Judgment for L 4 and costs, for horse hire. — Ogdeu v. Ormond : Judgment for Llf>, on an1.0.U., for board arid lodging. —Sheedy v. Aiden Doyle : Judgment for L 2 and costs, for cash lent.— Flaunagan v. Baldry : Claim for five days' wages; case dismissed, with costs. — At the same 'court, yesterday, before J. Greenwood, Esq., J.P., James Gill was charged with the malicious destruction of" property, of the value of Lo, belonging to Mr James Johnston, of the Melbourne Hotel. It appeared from the evidence that the prisoner, while under the influence of drink, walked down the side of the Melbourne Hotel, wibh his hands full of stones, and threw one throxigh each window as he passed, until he was seized by Mr Hamilton and given into ; custody . Mr James Jones proved that the prisoner had threatened, one hour previously, to go and smash Johnston's widows. Mr James Johnston proved the amount of the damage done to be between L 4 and L 5. The prisoner was fiued L 3, and ordered to pay ;L4 compensation for the damage done, or, in default, one month's, imprisonment, with : hard labor. i Another meeting •of the South Beach miners was held on Tuesday evening to ! consider the question of the extension of Kilgour and Perotti's tramway. Mr Kilgour was present, and addressed the meeting at length, explaining all the circumstances of the case, and giving satisfactory replies to all questions asked. We believe every cause of dispute was satisfactorily arranged, and all opposition withdrawn. Last night we received a letter from one of the Committee appointed, stating that a report of the proceedings could not be forwarded in time for this publication, as it had to be submitted to the Committee, but would be for our next. However, we believe everything has been amicably settled.

It was intended yesterday to formally | open the new portion of the Christohurch road from Hokitika to the Arahura, but owing to the very severe weather, it was decided to postpone the ceremony. The road was, however, traversed for the first time, by the persons whom, business caused to visit the cattle-sale yards at the Avahura. A special meeting of the Grey River Hospital Committee was held last evening, at Gilmer's Hotel, for the purpose of receiving tenders for the supply of the Hospital during the ensuing .six months. Present— Messrs Kilgour (in the chair), Greenwood, Whitefoord, Gilmerj Macleiu, Winter, Arnott, Masters, Moss, Revell, King, and Kenrick. A very large number of tenders were sent in, and the following were accepted :-— Wood, 22s per cord, S. Rolfe ; washing, L 7 per month, Mrs Rolfe; burials, L 2 17s 6d, Quinn; meat, 5d per lb, Hildebrand aud Weber ; mattrasses, 12s each, Eli Hellier ; milk, 6d per quart, Bradley ; bread, 8d per 41b loaf, Baldry ; groceries, A . Cleve ; wines and spirits, Hamilton and Nichol. The Sydney correspondent of the Argus concludes his remarks on rhe late conference thus :— We all know now what we want, and we have found out that we nearly all want separate things. Victoria wants supremacy, New South Wales wants free trade. South Australia and Tasmania want a free Victorian market for their produce, and New Zealand ■wants freedom to increase its customs' revenue as the exigencies of its «rar taxes may demand. How is it possible to reconcile all these differenoes ?

We are glad to announce that there is every probability of pheasants beiug introduced into the Grey district. During the late visit of Mr Greenwood, Provincial Secretary of Nelson, he expressed an opinion that the site of the racecourse above the Ahaura township was as favorable a 3pot as he had seen for the acclimatisation of pheasants, and said that he would eudeavor to soijd'dowji a few. Ihe othir day Mr Warden Whitefoord received a letter from Mr Greenwood, to the effect that he had obtained four hen and two cock pheasants, which would be sent down upon receipt of the cost, L 6. Last evening a few gentlemen in town guarantee;! payment of this amount, aud Messrs D. Gird wood and Co. offered to have them conveyed from Nelson without cost. We hope now soon to be able to announce the safe arrival and acclimatisation of those pheasants at the Ahaura, and we trust the community generally will assist in preventing their destruction. In a few years they will be in abundance, when they will be a very valuable acquisition to many a mining party in the bush, but meantime we hope that when they are -placed at the Ahaura they, will ba properly protected. Yesterday's West Coast Times says that "the distribution of forms for taking the census of Westland and plebiscitum, in reference to the capitation law, commenced on Tuesday, and enumerators have been appointed in the various districts. Mr Zohrab ha 9 Hokitika, and Mr Manks the Kanieri ; but we do not know who have been appointed for other places. The form issued is not, we fear, as perfect as might be, aud through this cause considerable difficulty might arise. They are to be returned between the 15th and 20th of this mouth, when the result will be transmitted to Wellington. We hope that everyone will, to as great a degree as possible, facilitate the labors of the enumerators ; forthe object in view is of paramount importance to Westland.. When the civil case, Prosser v. Lee, was called on in the Resident Magistrate's Court on Tuesday, and the reply was that the summons was returned not served, Mr Newton complained to the Bench of the frequent acts of carelessness which took place in the service of summonses at the Ahaura. In this case the summons was held back until the defendant came to town, when it was returned "not served," as the defendant was not to be found. The defendant had been seen in town, and he asked that he should be served and a short hearing granted. The Magistrate said he had no power over the affairs of the Court at the Ahaura, but if a proper representation of the facts were made to him, he would bring it under the notice of the authorities. Meantime the case must take the ordinary course and stand adjourned until Tuesday. Frequent complaints of a similar nature with respect to the Ahaura Court have reached us of late We believe that they have only to be mentioned to Mr Whitefoord, R.M., to be corrected.