INTERCOLONIAL NEWS,

Grey River Argus, Volume XII, Issue 1169, 27 April 1872, Page 2

INTERCOLONIAL NEWS,

Captain Barkly, whose connection with the unfortunate Japan will be remembered, still persists, in the face of all reverses', that Melbourne ought to be a whaling port. He has just purchased another vessel in Sydney, and in about three months expects to have her ready to start on a whaling cruise, which it is to be hoped will be more successful than that of the Japan. / The railway goods traffic at Kyneton and Malmsbury has completely outgrown the station accommodation. Tradesmen and officials find themselves very much cramped for want of more room and proper accommodation.

A fatal accident occurred to a man named Robert Whittaker, engaged on the Chines waler supply storage works at Bullarook. He was employed with others in the bottom of the cutting for the outlet works, when a fall of earth and stoaes took place, injuring him so severely that he died in about twenty minutes.

The other day an old. resident of Marong, named Jonathan Peacock, was employed with his son in grubbing a tree a short distance from his residence, when the . tree suddenly fell and killed him on the spot.

The Geelong Advertiser says that "some excellent ironstone has been found by Mr Irwin, the contractor, on Mr Walter's farm at the Barrabool Hills. 'It is. to be picked up in lumps as big as a good-sized cocoanut, and Mr Irwin has expressed an opinion that he believes it would pay exceedingly well to work the mine, of the existence of which he is confident."

Another instance of good fortune is related by the Wagga Advertiser. A man named Dalton, who for some years past had been employed as a driver of horse teams and generally useful man in the neighborhood, received tRe gratifying news the other day that, by the death of his father, he had come into the possession of L7OOO hard cash. .

A most unfortunate accident occurred at Mr Miller's pastrycook shop in Bourke street. One of the waitresses, named Rosetta Tollit, was opening a bottle of soda water, without a guard, when the bottle burst, and one of the pieces struck her in the eye. As the wound appeared dangerous she was taken to the Melbourne Hospital, when it was found that the sight of the eye was destroyed.

An inhuman case of child desertion is reported' by the Geelong Evening News:— " About 10 o'clock on Friday night the officer on beat in Fitzroy street, near the Botanical Gardens, picked up a male infant, only about a week old, which was laid on the ground and exposed to the night. He immediately reported the matter at head-quarters, and the little infant was placed under the care of a nurse. Efforts are being made to discover the mother." . :

A singular feature in connection with the burning of quartz, the Pleasant Greek News says, is observable in the enginehouse of the North Cross Reef Company, where the machinery ha 3 been lately erected. All the bright steel parts have changed in colour to a beautiful brouze, caused by the fumes of the sulphur carried' from the kilns. The bronze appearance looks as though it had been effected by the' hands of a skilful workman.before the machinery left the manufactory.

A serious accident, the Ballarat Courier , states, happened oil Thursday, to Captain! Pascoe, R.N., P.M., as he was driving a lady in his buggy down Flagstaff-hill, on ; his way to Chep3towe. From some cause . the horse bolted, upsetting and smashing' the buggy, and causing severe injury to the occupants. The captain was* con-i veyed in a state of unconsciousness to his residence at Symthesdale, with his head badly cut' and body bruised. No bones, appear to be broken, so far as can be learned at present. The lady is under medical treatment at Linton. Mrs Mary King, the widow of the late John King, the explorer, and Thomas Bunting, his brother-in-law, were lately sued in the County Court for L4O damages for two assaults alleged tojjhave been committed oh Mrs Drummorid, of Carlton, at ' whose house Mr King stayed shortly before his death. His Honor Judge Pohlman, after hearing the evidence, did not consider that the plaintiffs case was 1 sustained, and returned a verdict for both defendants, with costs. The following daring theft is recorded in the Alexandra Times: — "The copper plates of Mr Lewis's crushing; machine; Durham Gully, were stolen on Sunday night last. Two fierce dogs were chained at each plate. One was found drowned in an adjoining hole, and the other had been drugged, and was removed and fastened to a tree a short distance from the machine. The robbers were evidently no novices at the business. The plates had fortunately been pretty well cleaned on the previous day, so the thieves did not get such a good haul as they might otherwise have done ; still the gold on them was worth from L3O to L 40."

Two charges of using the knife were tried at the Criminal Court, Melbourne, on the 17th inst. One was that of Job Johnson, who, about six weeks ago, meeting hia wife at Sandridge, and angry at her deserting him to live with another man, tried to cut her throat, and did actually cut her chin and stab her several timeo in the breast. The jury found him guilty of maliciously wounding, and he was sentenced to three years' hard labor — the maximum penalty allowed by law. The other case was that, of William . John Walker, a resident of Bray brook, who used a knife upon Ah Teck, who asked him for payment of a debt. The i defence was that the Chinese first commenced the attack. The jury, however, convicted the prisoner of maliciously wounding, and he was sentenced to two years' hard labor. , The Sydney Empire publishes some correspondence between the Admiralty and the Colonial Ofh'cp, relative to the retractation by Captain Palmer of the changes against the New South Wale 3 Govern- , ment contained in his book, "Kidnapping in the South Seas." The Earl ofKimberley, in a despatch to the Earl of Belmore, says : — " I have read with satisfaction the statement made by Mr Robertson on behalf of himself and the other gentlemen who were members of the Government of New South Wales in 1869, and I, request that your lordship will inform Mr Robertson that in n>y opinion his statement completely exonerates the Government of the Colony from the charges brought against them by Captain Palmer in the work in question." . The Colonial Secretary encloses in his despatch a communication from the Lords of the Admiralty to the Colonial Office, in which, "while they much regret that Captain Palmer should have published strictures on the .conduct of the officers of the New South Wales Government which were altogether unfounded, they are satisfied that in all his proceedings in that Colony when he was in command of H.M.S. Rosario, and in his subsequent publication of his account of what had taken place, Captain Palmer was actuated with an honorable zeal for the public service."

Wagga Wagga must be destined to supply heirs to fdrtune and claimants to be such. The following is from the Advertiser of the 13th of April :— The case of the man Dalton who, as stated in our last, represents himself as the son and heir of Mr Dalton, recently deceased, of Sydney, seems likely to turn out a second Tichborne case on a small scale. Several persons in town, well acquainted with the Dalton family, declare that this Dalton is not one of the family, nor in the least like the man he assumes to be. ' One lady, said to be a sister of the present Mrs Dalton, the deceased's second wife, and his eldest son's stepmother, says that the real son had "such a red head that she used to be afraid of his setting fire to her," whereas this man's hair was nearly black. On the other hand, several persons who claim to have equal knowledge of the family, declare that he is the real Simon Pure, that they know him well, and are as certain of his identity as of their own. la the meantime the family in Sydney have been communicated with, and the question will no doubt soon be settled to the satisfaction of the ' claimant, who at present must be in rather a disagreeable position, or otherwise. I