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Grey River Argus, Volume XII, Issue 1051, 8 December 1871, Page 2

The concert given by the Star Minstrels and Polygraphic Company in aid of the funds of the Grey River Hospital takes place this evening at the Tolimteer Hall. The programme provided for the occasion is a highly attractive onej and the Company have proved themselves thorough artistes in their several roles ; but even without this we are certain that the object for which the entertainment is given is quite sufficient to secure an overflowing house. The annual cricket match between Hokitika and Greymouth comes off on Saturday on the Hokitika Cricket Ground. The Greymouth team will leave town by special coach this afternoon. The following are the names of the Greymouth team, so far as can be ascertained :— Messrs Guinness, Dunn, Woods, Bromley, D. Twohill, j. Heaphy, EMiofct, Strike, Staite, Buckingham, Cresswell, Dalton (twelfth man). The County Chairman informed us yesterday afternoon by telegram that he has requested Mr Harrison to publish the correspondence referred to by him in his letter entitled " An Explanation," published yesterday. The same newspaper in which Mr Lahtnan read the " Explanation" must also hare informed him that Mr Harrison had left for Wellington, and how he could "request him" when he was on the high seas, and beyond the reach of telegraphs, we are at a loss to understand. Even supposing Mr Lahman's request is now awaiting Mr Harrison at Wellington, he must have known that it would take at least a fortnight before the correspondence could be published here, and ere that time the whole affair would probably have blown over. However, better late than never, and, we hope Mr Harrison will, with the least possible delay, accept M; Lahman's challenge. , We received about a quarter of a yard of red-tape from the Post Office last evening, in the shape of a printed circular informing us that there is now lying at the office in Dunedin a letter addressed to this office which cannot be forwarded until the sum of 2d is paid. We are therefore requested to employ an agent in Dunediu to call at the office and pay the amount, or forward the same in "New Zealand postage stamps," when the letter will be allowed to proceed on its journey. If this is in accordance with "the rules of the Department," it is time they were altered so as to allow of the amount of deficient postage and a fine being charged on delivery, because it is one of the simplest things in the world for a postage stamp to be put on carelessly and slip, thereby causing great inconvenience. The following is the list of civil cases for hearing before Judge Ward at the next sitting of the District Court, on Tuesday next, the 12th inst :— Daniel O'Driscoll Egan, con-">-vf»', Aiunuuiaa--iuwiiageßsiistainea tiirougli the wrongful conversion of plaintiff's property. Harry Kenrick, trustee of the estate of Stephen Omaleto, v. John. Hamilton, storekeeper, Ahaura— -damages sustained through the wrongful entry of defendant on the estate of Stephen Camaleto, a bankrupt, and through the conversion of the same to his own use. At the Resident Magistrate's Court, yesterday, James Lennox was fined 10s, or, in default, 24 hours' imprisonment, for being drunk and disorderly. Hamilton and Co. v. Paul Robinson: Claim for LI O 18s Bd, for goods j judgment by default for the amount claimed.— Same v. M'Carthy and Mahon; claim for LJ7 14s 2d, for gqodtj supplied j judgment by default.— M. Gowyan v. Ros/s Beck} a fraud summons. Mr Perkins appeared for defendant, and urged that it was not a case in which his Worship should make an order. As the judgment made was not before his Worship, the case was dismissed — Montgomery v.? Curtis t A claim for LIOO, for breach of agreement relative to the use of a bridle track. Mr Guinness for plaintiff, and Messrs Newton and Perkins for defendant. This was a case arising out of the arbitrator's* (Mr FitzGerald) award in the matter of the Giey ferries. This case was withdrawn, it being agreed to refer the matter to arbitration. — Rayner Harrison v. Harrison : An action to recover LI 10s, being a disputed i settlement. : It appeared that the plaintiff was in difficulties some time since, and defendant proffered his assistance iv paying out a bailiff, providing plaintiff agreed to give him possession of his stock-in-trade, &c, and when the property was sold, should there be any surplus over Mr Da vis's claim, it was to be divided equally between them. The defendant contended that the sale between him and plaintiff was a bona fide one, and that no agreement was entered into between them as to a division of the surplus. Michael O'Brien was called by plaintiff, and deposed that he was present when the agreement between the plaintiff and defendant was made relative to the sale of the goods, and he distinctly understood that the surplus was to be divided between them. The defendapt not Wang able to controvert the above evidence, judgment was given for the; amount claimed.' ' ' ' At the Resident Magistrate's Court at Ahaura, on Wednesday, November' 20th, before. C. Whitefoord, Esq., R.M., Mary Regan was fined LlO, with 30s .costs, or one month s imprisonment, for selling spirits without a Ucensje, at Half-onnce, on 13th November. The fine was' not paid. The adjourned ease pf Wm. Pothan y. G.eo. Cunningham, for Lls, the value of a miJch cow, the property of the plaintiff, wob concluded. t> CO j V was seen at defendant's cattle-yards ab Red Jack's Creek, and was not seen by ie plaintiff since. A verdict was given for the plaintiff for L 5, with costs and professional costs. In Lochhead v. Danzi, for L 22, i the value of a, horse killed by the defendant while riding it from the Ahaura to Napoleon, a verdict was given for the plaintiff, with costs. The Court was adjourned to 14th December. ; Mr Edwards has been elected dispenser, and Mis Dick, f nurse, for the Hokitika Hospital, • [ In connection 1 with Mr Reeves' acceptance of a seat in the Cabinet as Resident Minister of Public Works for, the Middle Island, the Wellington Post says :— " In the first place, those who have watched ' which way the oat jumps' at Christchurch, cannot have failed to observe an extraordinary amount of obsequiousness jm the part of the Lyltelton Times towards ! two great interests, which are very muoh woven together. One is the ; branch of the Bank of New Zealand in that city. The other is the great Melbourne firm who constructed the Moorhouse tunnel, and T who did it in such a manner that the most (important parts of the work were found to jbe defective, on j subsequent examination by engineers not wedded to the contractors :

so that questions involving considerable amounts have been in .abeyance between the contractors aiul the Provincial Government, as well as between the Litter and the said Bank; and the Executive, backed by the majority of the Provincial Council of Canterbury, is at daggers drawn with Superintendent Rolleston—they favoring a settlement of difference by arbitration, but his Honor firmly holding out for the less perilous ordeal (to a Government) of a judge and jury, not bo likely to be influenced by the power of wealth as any two arbitrators and an ur- . pire that could be chosen in Canterbury or elsewhere within the reach of .'the Bank of New Zealand's frowns. A telegram from Dunedin the other day reported the finding of the body of Miss Currie. The following additional particulars appear in the Otago Daily Times :— The body of Miss Currie, late schoolmistress at West Taieri, whose mysterious disappearance two months ago, while on a visit at the house of Mr Snow, at Outram, will be fresh in the recollection of our readers, was discovered at Scrogg's Creek, East Taieri, about four miles from where her footsteps were traced to the bank of the Taieri River. As the adjacent settlers were frequently in the neighborhood of the spot where the body was found, it is supposed that it could not have been there for any considerable length of time. A Dunedin contemporary contains the following telegram of the St Balhans shooting case :-On Sunday, the 26th November, at three o'clock in the morning, on Surface Hill at St Bathans, a Chinaman was seen by one Leonard, Ewing's watchman, stealing the contents of a tub containing auriferous earth: Leonard pursued and came up to hsra, when he showed fight, but was overcome by Leonard, who tied his legs with his tail and went for assistance. Leonard called out that there were Chinamen robbing the till, when Ewing came up with a gun in his hand, and finding the Chinaman, who had freed himself, scuffling with Leonard, he fired, and hit him in the right arm-pit, arm, and breast. The Chinaman is in a dangerous state, and he was unable to give evidence at the Court. The Waikato Rifle Volunteers have had their arms taken froaa them, preparatory to being furnished with new ones. In the meantime, however, to quote the words of a local correspondent of the Southern Cross, ••they are defenceless —rather a queer predicament were Te Kooti auddenly to appear in our midst." A considerable amount . of revenue must have been raised during the last few weeks, in Otago, by the raid made on those Chinese who are without miners' rights. . A Waipori correspondent mentions that some L6O has been obtained in that district in this manner, and from the Arrovo Observer we learn that L2OO has been raised in the Arrow district, and Ll2O at Cardrona, from the same source. As the Chinese located in the Mount Ida, Tuapeka, Duustan and Switzers districts have also been roused up, the total amount disgorged by the heathens cannot be less than LSOO or L6OO. The Chinese are beginning to see that it is better to pay the small amount required for a miner's right of their own accord, rather than be compelled in a Court of Justice to pay not only that, but a line also. We are not surprised to learn therefore from the paper from which we have already quoted, that the "bosses" are -warning their men to take out rights without delay. Mr Tribe, M.H.R. for the Totara district, addressed a meeting of his constituents on Tuesday, when he made use of the following remarks iivpraise ~o£ Jbhe-jnfimifir^ojLjhe a favorite with the Hokitjka pres.s, but I must concede that be has. been the most useful of Westland's members in the past session. % I have been in accord witi* him in all he did, except the proposal for dismem* berment. His first resolutions had my approval, except in the matter of Wardens presiding over Road Boards. He obtained a promise that next year the overland postal service should be made a Colonial charge, which would effect a large saving to the County, and he applied to have the arbitration on the Canterbury debt reopened, on the ground that the basis on which the conclusion of the umpire had been arrived at was completely altered. In this he was unsuccessful, and it may not be a matter of great importance, as in a few years all the debts wity be Colonially chaigedj but it showed a desire to he}p Wetland, and I like to give credit where it is due. As, to the water-supply, Westland members were all in apcord, and succeeded in preventing ;any portion of the vote being diverted to other purposes. Mr Harrison drafted thei-esoh*. tions as to terms on which the money should be used, and, having the approval of the Gold Fields Committee, they were adopted. 1 approve of them, and think they will work well. You know, probably, that they propose to lend one-third of the cost of the works at eight per cent, iaterest, and a proportion of profits to be paid as sinkingfund." We commend the following paragraph, taken from the Dally Neios, to the notice of the gentleman who may act as starter for the athletic sports :— " The starter who officiated at the Knutsford athletic sports has been summoned for using a gun without a license. The offence consisted in the defendant firing a pistol in the discharge of his duties as starter. He failed to appear to the summons, and the Magistrate fined him L 2 10s." The Gulgong Advertiser says that :— " On Sunday, 30th ult., a child (aged twelve months) of Mr j and's, blacksmith, at Happy Vallpy, while playing near an old log, phked up a scor^on pi abqut an inch and a half long, and put it in its mouth. The scorpion stung the child in the jnojith, and pn the parents picking it up tfcey perceived its mouth and face swelling ; the father saw the jscorpipn and kjlled it at once. The child was attended at once by Dr Zimmler, and when he saw it the whole inside of the mouth was swollen, extending to the throat. He at once scarified it, and put leeches inside the child's mouth, besides administering proper remedies, and through his unremitting attention we hear the child was out of danger on Monday afternoon."