THE Grey River Argus. PUBLISHED DAILY. MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 4, IS7I.

Grey River Argus, Volume XI, Issue 969, 4 September 1871, Page 2

THE Grey River Argus. PUBLISHED DAILY. MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 4, IS7I.

One of the results relative to the management of the Nelson South- West Gold Fields by the Provincial Council is already made manifest. On the 31st ult, the effect of the meeting at the Ahaura was telegraphed to Wellington, aud early on the following day the telegraphic message must have become known to Mr Curtis, the Superintendent for the Province of Nelson. That gentleman evidently became alarmed, for after weighing the probable effect of the petition, combined with f^.vx- wnno Hiv — nouses an ueanng more or less upon the same subject — viz., the misman^gament of Gold Fields by Provincial Governments, so it is reported, stopped all expenditure on the Nelson South- West Gold Fields — whatever this may mean. la it possible that Mr Curtis has carried out an expression that he let fall during the course of his canvass for the Superintendoncy, to the effect that he did not consider himself bound by the acts of the Provincial Council, a statement which he afterwards "modified" and explained. Will Mr Curtis take upon himself to stop all >vorks in progression on the South- West Gold Fields, even to discharging the solitary linesman who is supposed to keep all the soads in the Grey Valley District in repair. However the Superintendent may run with the hare and jump with the hounds, we do not think that for the sake of courting popularity with the inhabitants of Nelson city, and for the sake of showing his wellknown antipathy to miners and the mining community, that he would do this. If such is the case, it is the duty of the members of the Provincial Council for the Nelson South- West Gold Fields to ascertain : the fact, and take some steps to prevent Nelson receiving the revenue from the Gold Fields iv the meanwhile. The inhabitant's of the Grey District need scarcely be informed of the antecedents of Mr Curtis to know how far he, can be trusted in all matters, relating to the Gold Fields.. A better Superintendent for Nelson city it would be hardly possible to obtain- every other portion of the Province must be sacrificed for its welfare, and on the very first movement in opposition to his rule he shows the spirit by which he is guided in stopping the supplies — not that it will do much harm, for save administrative departments, over which he has only partial control, the amount expended, leaving out what is voted, is in reality harmless. Roads are being destroyed for the want of a few barrow loads of earth, bridges are allowed to go to ruin for the value of a plank, tracks are choked-up for the want of a drain, and whole districts are ruined in. consquence of the wilful, nay criminal, neglect of a Government, and yet the districts are not allowed to complain under penalty of supplies being stopped. We were well aware that Mr Curtis had extrenjgly autocratic views, but we did not expect, despite what he had. already done in Westport and Charleston, that he would have pushed those ideas to the extent that he has.