Untitled

Grey River Argus, Volume X, Issue 817, 10 March 1871, Page 2

A special meeting of the Borough Council was held last night for the purpose of considering the reply to the correspondence from the General Government with reference to the Grey Coal Reserve. All the members were present except Mr Coates. The report of the Committee appointed to draw up the answer was, after a conversation, adopted, and the Town Clerk was instructed to for. ward a copy of the same to the General Government.

A special meeting of the members of the Greymouth Cricket Club is convened for this evening at the Union Hotel for the purpose of taking steps for the reception of the Hokitika cricketers. \ full attendance is requested.

An adjourned meeting of the Licensing Bench of Magistrates was held yesterday, to decide upon the. deferrpd applications of Patrick Crawford. Samuel Rich, and E. Stratford. With reference to the first case, the Bench, after some deliberation, allowed the substitution of D. Alabaster as the licensee of the Alliance Hotel. Samuel Rich was granted a license for his new house, the Argus Hotel ; but he was cautioned to prevent a recurrence of the causes of complaint which the police had made with respect to his former house, the Alliance Hotel. It was urged by Mr Perkins, who appeared for the applicant, that the grounds of complaint regarding the house formerly occupied by Mr Rich, arose chiefly from the fact that the Alliance had received a legacy of bad management from its previous occupants, and that Mr Rich had endeavored to keep the house free from the improper characters who had been in the habit of frequenting it. The certificate of householders recommending MiRich as a proper person to receive a license was most numerously signed by respectable householders, and, under the circumstances, the Bench granted the license applied for. The application of Edward Stratford occupied the attention of the Bench for a considerable time, and evidence was taken both on the part of the police and the applicant with regard to ceitain allegations made as to the improper conduct of his hotel. It transpired that although the applicant had been cautioned at the last sitting of the Licensing Bench aa to the employment of abandoned women on his premises, he had not done more than substitute one prostitute for another as barmaid, and had closed a certain means of communication between his hotel and neighboring houses of ill fame. The Bench decided not to renew the license in Stratford's name, and gave him the opportunity of obtaining another person to apply for the license, at an adjourned licensing meeting, on the 23rd inst. The Licensing Court was then adjourned until that day.

Some time ago we mentioned that it had been decided to re-form the Greymouth LiteraryjfSqciety on a public basis, and that a Committee had been appointed to draw up the rules of the proposed new Society. We notice that a meeting of those of the public who are interested in the subject will be held on Saturday evening at the Union Hotel, for the purpose of adopting final steps with regard to the formation of a public library. We trust there will be a good attendance, as it is very desirable that the proposed public library should be established on a satisfactory basis. Greymouth, if ahead of its neighbors in many things, is undoubtedly far behind in the matter of a public library. Hnkitika and Charleston can boast of greater provision for public recreation and instruction than this town, and it is time this reproach was removed.

At the Resident Magistrate's Court, yesterday, before J. Greenwood, Esq., E. Wickes, Esq., and W. H. Harrison, Esq., J.P., Ellen Bolfcon was charged wiuh a breach of the provisions of the Municipal Cojporations Act in having lighted a fire in the yard of her residence without proper notice of her intention to do so having been given. The accused admitted the charge, but pleaded ignorance that she had committed any violation of the law. The Bench, after commenting on the necessity of restraining persons from endangering the safety of the town by lighting fires near their premises, gave the defendant a caution and fined her ss. It may be as well to state, for public information, that a penalty of L 5 is incurred by offences of this character. That portion of the Act which relates to offences of this kind reads as follows : — " Every person who wilfully sets fire to any inflamable matter whatever in the open air without having given notice in writing to the occupiers of the land adjoining to the land upon which such matter shall be, and, also, to the Town Clerk, of his intention so to do, or within 24 hours after giving the last given of such notices, or between the hours of four in the afternoon of any day and eight in the morning of the following day, shall forfeit a sum not exceeding five pounds." specimens of what the soil in the neighborhood of Greymouth is capable of producing were exhibited yesterday by Mr Cooper, Boundary street, in the shape of cucumbers grown in Mr Kilgour's garden. They were a splendid sample, some of them measuring 22 inches in length.

In our telegraphic summary of the Hon. Mr Stafford's speech at Timaru, a week ago, it was shoitly mentioned that Mr Stafford was in favor of compulsorily taking land from the large monopolists for the purpose report of his speech, and that portion of it of settlingimmigrants. We have received a full relating to this subject reads as follows : — '* I think a most pernicious set of land laws have largely encouraged prevention of settlement. I have no hesitation in saying that if the State is justified in taking land for railways and other public works, it is also perfectly justified in taking absolutely from some of those larger estates land for special settlement. (Cheers. ) Ido not wish to lay myself open to misconceptions, or to the accusation that I would take his whole estate from any person to give to any one else. I am talking of the large estates held in fee simple, not of lands held under the Crown, because the latter are open to be dealt with under existing laws without exceptional action. , I am talking of lands which have already been sold, and which it is desirable to occupy in a different way. I should take from those large estates a certain per-centage. I would not take small properties without the consent of the owner, because my object is to get village communities— not to put A out to put B in his place ; but with respect to estates of from eight and ten to ninety thousand acres, I should have no scrurle at

all. (Cheers.) I would say to the owners of these large estates, ' You shall give me two or three thousand acres of that property, on which 1 intend to plant some hundred married couples ; you shall sell that block to me for the money originally given for it and 10 per cent, per annum added.' I do not think any of them could complain of that. I would not take the land where improvements were made. A great many of them would, 1 believe, be veiy willing to sell their whole property on these terms."

A soiree was held at the Wesleyan Church last evening, intended, in the first instance, to help towards wiping off a small debt on the church, and for affording an opportunity for agreeable intercourse amongst the congregation and their friends. E. Masters, Esq., took the chair, and interesting addresses were delivered by the Revs. W. Cannell and M'lntosh. Messrs Newton, Perkins, and Masters added to the pleasure of the visitors by readings of an amusing and instructive character. Melpomene was also present, most sweet music being discoursad by the Church choir and other volunteers. There was ample provision for the more substantial wants of the company, contributed by the lady members of the Church, and the whole proceedings were of a most genial and happy character. A surprise was made by the presentation without previous notice of a most handsome illuminated address to the Rev Mr Cannell, accompanied by a purse of sovereigns, as a token of the high estimation in which the rev. gentleman is he'd by the congregation and his fellow citizens. The address was an illuminated one, the work of the skillful and artistic hands of W. Hindmarsh, Esq., a prominent feature of which was a representation of the Wesleyau Church building, of which Mr Gaul had specially taken a photograph for the purpose. The substantial portion of the testimonial was enclosed in a purse, knitted by the willing hands of Mrs .lames Johnston, of the Melbourne Hotel. Me Cannell was completely overcome by the unexpected and highly gratifying proof of the regard in which he was held, and could only express his deep sense of the kindness of those who had chosen to adopt this mode of conveying their appreciation of him. The whole proceedings were a complete success, and everyone spent a happy evening. About thirty pounds was the proceeds of the soiree.

The rainfall of the last three days, although most beneficial, has been too partial to be of any value. The ground has been dry for so long that the rain has heen a good deal absorbed by the parched soil, or has, under other circumstances, ran away rapidly into the rivers. At the Greenstone and Wairaea diggings there is now a fair supply of water, and large stacks of warhdirt will be enabled to be washed out, but at other places the fall of rain has only caused a very temporary supply of water. It is to be hoped that the broken weather that has now set in will result in a continuous downpour for some time to com* 1 . However personally inconvenient it may be to the residents, a return of the traditional weather of Westland is fervently to be desired.

The Bon. Mr Stafford is one of those men who profess that they "never read newspapers," although, at the same time, they religiously study them, and are very sensitive under their comments. At his meeting, at Timaru, the other day, Mr Stafford belied his oft-vaunted indifference towards newspapers, and paid the press of New Zealand somewhat of a compliment He said : — " There are many erroneous statements at times made by newspapers. 1 will say this of the New Zealand press, however, that although at one time it did not put itself about to get at facts, this is now changed. The Government at that time did all it could to give it information, by sending to it gratuitously public documents of all kinds, yet, notwithstanding, it was very lazy — that is the proper word. [Laughter.] An editor once said to me — the editor of the paper too which aspired to be the leading paper of the Colony at the time — [A voice : " Name."] I will name. 1 went to Dunedin. [Laughter.] I went into the Daily Times office. [Renewed laughter.] The editor of the Daily Times said to me — it was the first time I had seen him. I was just fresh from office— He said, "I wish you would just give me some information with respect to the question between the Imperial and Colonial Governments, and the native question, or anything of importance" — questions requiring much patient study. After a time my eye happened to catch sight of whole bundles of journals which contained all the information he wanted, in his own editorial room. I said, " You have got the whole of that information, you have got it in the most copious detail." " Oo," he said, "it would take too much trouble to look it over." ] Laughter] That editor was Mr Yogel. [Renewed laughter.] I hope he won't find it too much trouble in connection with the large duties of the high position that he now hoLls to look through and into every question, which will involve the Colony in its liabilities; [Cheers and laughter.] I have noticed a most marked improvement in the press. As a rule, they are now for the most part reliable as to facts,"

The sittings of the Westland Waste Lands Board have hitherto been veiled in obscurity as to the discussions that have occurred, and we congratulate our contemporary the West Coast Times in having let a little daylight on the proceedings of that body by reporting them. On Tuesday a sitting of the Board was held, the question of Reserves occupying considerable attention. Our old friend Mr Hoos still retains his seat at the Board, and was rather " pronounced" in his remarks on the Reserve question. He wished the Board to annul all reserves and make new oues, and especial mention was made of the Grey Coal Reserve. It transpired that the letter sent by Mr Hoos to the Colonial Secretary on this subject had — like many others — not been recorded in the County Chairman's office, and Mr Lahnian drew attention to the fact that the views of the Colonial Secretary and those of Mr Hoos did not agree on the subject of the disposal of the Coal Reserve. Mr Lahman pointed out to the Board that if they too greedy in the matter of Reserves they might ' ' easily overshoot the mark, as in the case of the Grey Coal Reserve, and lose everything. " The consideration of the subject was deferred until to-day.

At a recent sitting of a Resident Magistrate's Court in a Native district, a very interesting case turned up at Ranana. The parties in the case had a quarrel over a wheat stack, and plaintiff challenged defendant to fight it out ; defendant then rushed to his whare, and arming himself with his rifle and cartouche box, loaded his piece, and proceeded towards the complainant, apparently with the intent of having a shot at him. Constable Cornelius, a Moutoa veteran, seized hold of the gun, and other native chiefs coming to the rescue, defendant was overpowered. The Court, of course, gave a severe reprimand to the defendant, and compelled him to find two sureties for his good behaviour for the next six months. The hot-blooded defendant was apparently not without friends in his tribe, for two of the principal chiefs immediately offered themselves as sureties ; and, as usual, of course the costs were promptly paid, money, apparently, heing "no object." To a casual observer the above may contain nothing of interest beyond the comic element ; but a more serious reader will see iv it one of the most hopeful signs of future peace and. settlement.

Professor Parker, the champion swordsman, has been killed by an accident in Gippa

Land. The Oipps Land Times says :— " From what we can learn the unfortunate man appears to have been riding one horse, and leading another, the rein from the latter, it is supposed by the mailman, having been made fast to the pommel of the other animal's saddle. The further conjecture is that this rein must have got underneath poor Parker's leg, and that one or other of the horses starting forward, the rein must have thrown him off. Mrs Parker herself cannot account for the accident. Fracture of the skull was the immediate cause of death. A coroner's inquest was held, and the jury returned a verdict of 'accidental death.' It is said the widow is nearly out of her mind."

The Wellington Independent has a paragraph relating to the County Chairmanship of Westland, in which it puts down the emoluments of the office at L6OO a year salary and L3OO per annnm for travelling expenses Our contemporary is misinformed ; there is no fixed allowance for travelling expenses, and they have never approached the sura mentioned. It is satisfactory, however, to learn that the Government organ considers that the chair is now in the possession " of one of the most useful members of the Council."