THE Grey River Argus. PUBLISHED DAILY. THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 7, 1871.

Grey River Argus, Volume XI, Issue 972, 7 September 1871, Page 2

THE Grey River Argus. PUBLISHED DAILY. THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 7, 1871.

Thb unanimous support which the residents in the Grey Valley are;giving to the resolutions; which the merrber for the district intends to move in the House to-day, mnst'be convincing evidence how (Jeep-seated .a hatred fpr the Nelson provincial Government has been implanted in the minds of the miners. They have obtained a legitimate opportunity for showing how deeply they resent the treatment they have of late received,^ and they are embracing it in a fair and constitutional manner. For years the thousands of miners, agriculturalists, , and storekeepers in the Grey Valley District have literally been trampled upon by Mr Curtis and his Executive. The district has been systematically neglected, and the enormous revenue drawn from it spent in Nelson City, and the other "settled districts." Session after session of > the Provincial Council votes have been passed for public woiks in the Grey Valley ; but only a fraction of them have been expended, and what was spent was wasted on official departments, or frittered awaj f in cutting bite of bush tracks along the banks of rivera which were sure to be washed away the very next flood. And what is the result now of this policy? For many years the richest district' in the South Island of New Zealand has been under the control of the Nelson Government, and to this day there is not a single mile of passable made road in it ; indeed, the most of it is in a worse condition than before the Nelson officials began to potter- with the natural tracks of the district ;• there is not a river bridged, and every man who moves from one part, to another, carries his life ill his hand. More men have been drowned in the rivers and creeks in the Grey District than in any other in the Colony, and yet nothing is ever attempted be done to stop this waste of valuable human lives. The only wonder is that the residents in the district have passively endured this state of things so long.; but the result shows that it has only been endured until a rush broke out in some other' psirt of the. Colpny^or until sufficient money -was' Bayed to leave the country. The fact is that men are being driven out of the Colony week after week by the systematic mismanagement of the Nelson Government — driven out of one of the richest tracts of country that ever tempted a mining community ; and those who have lived through the past six years in the district know well that it was only the fair promises of the Nelson Government, that roads, would be made to open ,up country known to be rich, that they have remained so long in the Colony. Now, however, events have reached a crisis, an opportunity in the political lifsr tory of the Colouy presents itself, and it has been embraced by the residents with an enthusiasm we did not give them credit for. Already public meetings, crowded aud unanimous, have been held at the Ahaura, Half-Ounce, and Granville, and Napoleon Townships, at which resolutions were passed strongly condemnatory of the past and present mismanagement of the South-west Gold Fields by, the Nelson Government, and praying the General Government to assume the control of the expenditure, so that it may be applied to the legitimate purposes for which it is raised, and that a fair share of the revenue so raised inthe district may be expended upon public works in it, so as to open up means of communication, '.arid cn-tota the nurier3 to 1 develop the known rich resources of the coimtrj\ At these meetings a memorial has been adopted for transmission to. the General Assembly, to which* over one thousand signatures have already been ; appended, and which will be sent to Mr Harrison at Wellington by the first steamer, so as to strengthen him in the position he has taken up, and enable him to carry through the series of resolutions of which lie ha? given notice, and which ho intends to move in the House to-day. It is much to be regretted that it was not in Wellington ere now, but the difficulties nf traviOliii" through this roadless country in 'the v intVr season, and organising large public meetings among digging communities, have :; been very great, and the manner in which the Committee who undertook the duty have performed it, is deserving of all praise. When the petition does arrive it will have a

marked effect, and will op^en ,the eyes of 4 >the .?; House ;to the disgraceful manner in which Mr Curtis! ;and his satellites have misgoverned -the Gold Fields unde^jtheir charge. The petition sets out thitt those Wh6%ave signed it have been residents in the district for some years ; that many of them had become permanent settlers on freehold land, and that, there were over 2000 miners 'working tho auriferous lands. It then proceeds to say :> — " That the consfruction of water-races and reservoir?, and the making of main and branch roads, has not received that practical consideration from the Provincial Government which works of such greatpublic importance and necessity require.— That there is every probability of a large influx of population to Reefton, in the said Province, in the ensuing spring, extensive quartz reefs having beeri discovered there, which are now by trial crnshings proved to be payable, and heavy and expensive machinery is now on the way to Reefton from.Melbnurne and. other places." The petition then states that although large quantities of land have been sold in the district, no public works of an importance have been entered upon by the Provincial Government of Nelson. It then points out the incalculable benefits which would result to the district wore a main road made from Cobderi to Reefton, and states that while the Provincial Government of Nelson has recognised the necessity of this wotk being proceeded with, and monies have been voted in the-^Pro-vincial Council session after session for this : and other important works, jet scarcely any appreciable outlay; has been made in this district during the past two years. The petitioners then plainly charge the Nelson Government with having mismanaged arid neglected 1 these Gold Fields, aud pray that enquiry should, be made, and the expenditure of the revenue raised in the district taken charge of by the General Government. Now, while all this political activity is being displayed on the Nelson side of the river, no part has yet been taken in it by the residents in Gveymouth. The cause of this was simply that up to a certain point it would savor of impertinence for the residents in Westland to interfere in the squabbles between the Nelson Government and its Geld Fields ; but the introduction of Mr Harrison's resolutions has completely set this feeling aside, because it is a comprehensive scheme for the better government of the whole of the "West Coast Gold Fields, Westland as well as Nelson, 1 and the second of his series of resolutions asks for the abolition of ; the County Coihicil of Westland. That entirely changes the aspect of affairs, and renders an immediate expression of public opinion absolutely necessary. We are therefore glad to find that a number of the principal residents yesterday sent a requisition to hja Worship the Mayor, asking him to call :> public meeting to consider the resolutions introduced into the Hou^e by Mr Harrison, and that he has done so. The meeting is to be held at the Town Hall this evening, at 8 o'clock, when it is to be hoped that the importance of the subject under consideration will attract a large and influential attendance.