Untitled

Grey River Argus, Volume XII, Issue 1172, 1 May 1872, Page 2

The pedestrian match between P. Twohill, of . Greymouth, and Drake, of Sydney, has been finally arranged, and will come off on the Ist of June next. The first deposit of L2O has, we are informed, been paid into the hands of the stakeholder, and there are two other' instalments of L4O each to be handed in on stated days. "The distances to be run under the present articles are 150 yards, 200 yards, and 300 yards, two events out of the three to decide the wager. When on the ground the competitors are to www bj,, —.a S-- : : »._; B *« have the option of choosing the order in which the various distances are to be run.. There really seems to be a prospect of some fair and square ■ racing coming off. and when the public are thoroughly assured of that fact, its iuterest in sporting matters will be soon revived. , ■ . . ■• ,

A bye law, imposing a license fee of LI per annum on all passenger vehicles plying for hire, has been gazetted and approved of.

The Hon. J. A:. Bonar has been appointed Manager of the Hokitika Savings Bank, in the room- of bis late lather, A. Bonar, Esq.' Other changes have been made in the Hokika Savings Tank arrangements. Messrs Boyle and Reid's resignations have been accepted, and Messrs G. Bennirig, W. M. F-rsyth, G. W. Harvey, F. C tabart, and W. Todd appointed as additional Trustees '

There was another good house at the Volunteer Hall last' evening, when the dramatic company now, paying us & visit produced "The Daughter of the Regiment," with the assistance of a mimbcr of. \ocA amateurs. The character of Josephine w>:s played by Miss Stephenson with much spirit ; indeed, she is one of the ablest representatives of the character we" 1 have seen for along time, the only drawback being that her vocal powers are not equal to j>he songs incidental to the part. Mr Burford made an excellent old sergeant, and a few of the members of the town band represented "the galknt fighting 21st." The amateurs engaged in the piece pl&yed very fairly throughout, especially Mr Seyjriour. The afterpiece, "Christine's Wedding," was" well played. To-night, the sensational drama of "The Octoroon " is to be produced, and we believe that great efforts are "being made to place it on the stage in a proper manner.

By a County of Westland Gazette of Monday, we find that the County Chairman- has granted a lease at Donnelly's Creek of an area of 340 by 140 yards, for a period of 15 years, to the Westland Quartz Mining Company, and a claim of 10 acres for a similar teem to the Haphazard Gold Mining Company..

The Cassius claim at Ross is to be worked on the ten-hour system at seventy shillings wages. The proprietor intends forming a company in order to relieve him of his responsibilities, ,as he intends . visiting-his native land. .

-'- A Northern paper states that there are now twelve Tents of Rechabites in New Zealand, with 400 members. ; Another very successful blasting operation was performed at Point Britomart, Auckland, a few. days ago. The quantify of powder exploded was 8001 b, and over 3000 cubic yards . of cliff were moved by the blast. '■'-"■

All the missing bodies of the poor fellows lost iv the Maria have been found except those of two killed by Ihe blacks : About thirty persons have lost their lives in this ill-fated adventure.

At the ■ Resident Magistrate's Cou rt yesterday, Margaret Cain was charged with being drunk and disorderly. There were no less than four previous convictions against. her. She was fined L 2, or four days' imprisonment. There were a number of civil cases set down for hearing, but seven of them were called without cither plaintiffs or defendants putting in an appearance. A casej Dobson v Stone, for L 3 8s 3d overtime, was dismissed A rather amusing case, Bowie v Carr, a. claim.; for v 14s board was .beard. . The defendant, a colored man, was duly sworn on tbe Court Bible, when the magistrate (W. H. Rcvell, Esq.,) asked him what J;o was,, to which ho replied that he ra a Mahotnmcdan and spoke

English. On this the magistrate asked defendant if he thought that oath binding on his conscience, to which he replied in the most cheerful manner to the effect that he was quite prepared to swear on that Bible or v hj3 own; Bible at the Court's convenience, birt he volunteered no information as;; to the possible bond on his conscience, \ apparently not understanding what that consisted of, Mr Newton suggested that a copy of the Koran /should bo, procured. Defendant rey peated that it was' "all a .same" to him on what he was sworn, but 'the- magistrate v would not accept this free aud> easy acceptation, of the obligation, and put the"x;ase back in order to get a copy of the Koran, if possible. A messenger was despatched accordingly, but returned with a few loaves, only of that, sacred volume, and subsequently tlie case wis disposed of and a verdict given for the amount claimed. . It is rumored that the Hon. Colonel Whit, more will take proceedings for false imprisonment against the Justices of Peace at Wanganui, who issued the. warrant for his arrest. We have received a number of the new 1 Wellington evening paper, . entitled The , rivening Telegraph, which is givsn away, and .~dms a kind of gratuitous vinegar bottle. It is demy folio in size, and its chief vocation appears to be injury to the Evening Pott. Amongst other, announcements it states that printing will be done 25 per cent lower than the .rates ruling at the Post. The paper is well printed; and seems to be tolerably sup- j ported .by advertisements. ■ It is printed ! with the old Advertiser plant, but as a typo- t graphical production is far superior to its predecessor. A notification of: the application for a lease 9 acres and 3 roods, situated' at the North" ,- Beach, being granted to John Cooper is gazetted. In the.^ same publication it is stated that gold-mining leases will be granted in two months at Caledonian Terrace to M'Leodand Bbssard ; at Waite's Pakihis to Robertson and others ; at Addison's Flat, . < to O'Sulli van and party, and to two .parties, i Jamieson and others and Braithwaite and i others, at the Caledonian Terrace. .

In ; Monday's . Wasttaml Gazette, Mr J. M'Beth, junr, is notified as having been appointed Receiver of Land. Revenue for the district of Westlatid. A block of land in; the Grey district between Lake Bruriner and the -Teremakau river is declared open for sale, as also a block, commencing at the north-east corner of Native Reserve No. 31 and extending to Native .Reserve No. 33, to a point one mile north-east of the southwest corner of the Coal Reserve. - :

It has been at least suspected, if not known that' officers in the' Nelson civil service engaged on the South-West Gold Fields | have been, in- various instances, materially interested in mining speculations, and though no proof to the effect Has ever been given there were some who; freely alleged that wrong had on someoccasiona been permitted or committed. Whether there has been any ground ,for these allegations or not we have no.opportuhity of .'judging, but we. find in a Nelson Provincial Gazette, of the 25th ulfc, a notification stating that ".officers in the service of the. Nelson Provincial Government on the Nelson Gold Fields are hereby informed that speculating in claims; business sites, leases, or other gold-mining interests, within the boundaries, of these gold fields, is strictly prohibited; and any officer infringing this rule after this date (April 24) will riot be retained in the service." During the recent stormy wetither the Manawatu district was visited by some very severe hailstorms, A correspondent whose curiosity was excited by the size of the hailstones, measured a number of them which fell on the railway line, at : Rangitikei, at. Oaroa, and at Stoney Creek. The smallest measured two inches And the largest four and a half inched in circumference. . . One shilling per quarter is the subscription -fee tp_the_Taranaln Inntifcuto- ro«wling-raQni_ yet there are tnoso aieau enWgk toovndo the payment of: any thing while they persist in using the room. The other day a uonsubscriber was asked by the librarian to withdraw. He refused, and- had to be kicked out. " A small specimen," about half an ounce in weight, mostly gold, but containing waterworn quartz, has been found near Ross. It is more value as evidence of reefs in the locality where found— Jones's Creek- than for sale. v — 1 A Wanganui telegram dafcd Monday, April 22, states :—" The discovery of a goldbearing reef in the Waitotara Block is reported. \ piece of quartz, .in which gold is visible, has been brought in, and the finder intends to bring in a" quantity, in order to have it tested." * Mr. Michael Hattori, a nephew of Archdeacon Williams, has bsen killed at the Bay of Islands, Auckland, by 1 the accidental discharge of his gun, whilst duck shooting. Large numbers of new''im i uhg ; ' com panies are being formed at .Coromandel. The Auckland Gazette of April -22, contains the applications of ten new companies. A new lunatic asylum is to be erected on the Adelaide-rbad, Wellington, at a cost of L 4916. • . Trooper Smith, of the Canterbury Police, did a plucky thing a few daya ago. . A., farmer was attacked by a mad cow, which had already knocked him down several times, when the trooper coming up tempted- the beast to attack himself, and called oiit to the farmer to .Escape, which he did.. After some display of horsemanship and a hard gallop over tjie, plains, Smith got out of the : way of the infuriated heast..

As may be naturally supposed, the Mikonui Water Race, or. rather, the revival of the scheme for its construction, has been warmly debated in Ross. A meeting was held. on Friday last in that town in refer ence to it. The following resolutions in connection with • Messrs Brogden's offer were carried— " That, a high-level water-supply is the great • >vant of tnis district, and that every encouragement should be given to proposals to supply that waut.": "That this meeting is of that the terms offered by Messrs Brogden and Spas tojconstruct the Mikonui race should be accepted." If we may judge .from the report in the Boss News the Rossites are determined to fling themselves into the Brogden arms at^ny price. At.the same time we nmy remark that the proprietor of tho JVeios is. Brogden's agent. •

The quarantine station at Somes's Island) Wellington, has been cleared out, all the pas-, seugers by the England having been discharged. There is how only one solitary sergeant of the Armed Constabulary in charge.

Beche le mer, found among the islands of the South Seas, is. likely to supersede the use of cod-liver oil ill the treatment of chest diseases. An analysis recently made by an eminent chemist, proves beche le mer to contain a greater proportion of iodine than-, any of the medicine hitherto looked' upon as being beneficial in the treatment of ..consumption. . :

The "Moss Neios, speaking of the proposed large water-race to be brought in by. Mr Brogden, says :— We hope no difficulty will arise in hastening forward theconstruction of the proposed race, and that the enterprising firm who have entered upon it may be so successful as to induce them, or others, to undertake similar ,race<i alont.th'e c^nb ; for no class of works' arfe so. much heeded— not' only for goid-miningi' ! but :.Isj for iu^id^ing machine-power to a variety of purposes. For such the race now, we bopo, about to bo

constructed would: give more than 2000; horsepower, .at almost a nominal cost. .This can, be applied in the readiest, way possible to.^all ■ the purposes of gold -mining, whether qu^tzcrushing, pumping, sluicing, or.-hydraulicing —or, if needed, to a'thousand 'other pureposes—from working a Nasroyth hammer or sawmill to driving a sewing-machine. It will be found to be the most manageable of powers, and constant in" Its Supply*; for"* .Nature continually replenishes it ; and in this temperate clime where no frosts interfere it is strange that so little use has been mado of it. -We look-forward "MiO the > completion. of,.Messrs Brogden and Sons' project, believing it will be the commencement of a. new period of prosperity— not only to this district, but to" all WestlandLj A solemn requiem mass was celebrated at Auckland lately in St. Patrick's Cathedral for the soul of the late Eight Rev. Dr Pom pallierj ex Bishop of Auckland. In the absence of his Lordship the Right Rev. Dr Croke, Father. Walter M 'Donald was cdebrant; Father Francis, deacon; and Father Norris, sub-deacon. There was also present in the sanctuary Fathers ..Fynes and Mahouey. .Bishop Poinpallier was consecrate-.l at Rome on tho 30uh June, 1836, and shortly afterwards left for New Zealand, where for many years he presided over the French Oatholic Mission in this Colony. -. On Friday, the 19th ultimo, about midnight, ,an accident happened to William Bowen, a Port Chalmers waterman, which, but for the alacrity of Constable ; Sullivan, would in all probability have-resulted fatally. Bowen had just returned with some passengers from a ship in the harbor, and moore I his boat, when, on stepping from her into another to get ashore, the painter: by some means' fouled his -leg 3, precipitating him overboard. He touched bottom; and the rope being round his legs he had great difficulty in regaining the surface, when he caught hold of the boat and called out for help, as he was too much exhausted to scramble into .the. boat. Sullivan, hearing 'the cries, at once pushed off in a dingy and picked him up. Bowen says -he. could only nave held on a few seconds longer. ,

Several cases of fish poisoning: (says the Independent) have been reported during the last day or two In one cas,e where fish had been eaten by a female, residing in Brook street the symptoms were so serious that the services of two medical men were deemed requisite to counteract the effects created by eating fish. The head of the patient was much swollen, and the face was very red, but at this point the danger seems to have culminated. We are not aware whether the. fish eaten were affected by any particular condition j)f the atmosphere, or whether they had been kept too. long to be fit for human food. The occurrence shows the necessity for extreme caution in the employment of fish as diet. A hint as to providing a precaution against vexations actions for libel against . newspapers comes from California. On the 9th February a Bill was introduced< into the State Assembly which, says the Sacramento Union, " Contains provisions that have long been needed to protect the independence of the Press. . The; main ieature of the Bill is the compulsion of the complainant in action to give bonds, with sureties to the amount .of; 1000 dollars, to pay the costs in. case .of failure, and 100 dollars for lawyers' faes to the defendant. A like provision is contained ..in the Bill thatthe .defendant shall pay. the plaintiff 100 dollars., for lawyers' fees if the former'is found guilty." An inquest was held the other day at Shortland, on the body of a miner, named; James Feeney, who met with sudden death whilst working in his claim, the old Onehunga, Karaka Creek. The evidence of his mate showed that the two men were employed in an opan cutting, about 10ft high and 3ft wide, when suddenly the side gave way, and buried Feeney, who was workiug in the face. His mate procured assistance,,: t.ua •"J*~«~aA.him^:andr.carrie(? Jhinx to tha hospital, • when it was ascertained~fillat tne. poor fellow was quite dead. He was much crushed about the lower part of his body and legs. A verdict of "accidental death" was returned. The deceased leaves a wife and three children unprovided for. He was about 50 years of age, and was one of the many immigrants who came to this' Colony from the Cape of Good Hope about nine years ago. . The following will be read with interest. ' .It ijL.takettlroni.tlie Piiitprt.paperjof the 3rd ulb. : — "Some of our fishermen had a good haul on Thursday -night, when they, went on their usual excursion. The fish they caught turned out to : be veritable mackerel— not the fish, known as horse or New Zealand mackerel, but the genuine mackerel such as can be seen in Billingsgate any time during the season. The fish were very large, weighing as much as seven or eight pounds each,and the quantity w.is large also. Whether the fish is rare in New Zealand or not, sucha haul of large and heavy mackerel lias never before "been made in Picton,- and it .adds another argument to those who contend "that fishing as a trade, to be followed as it should be,. would pay well in New Zealand. Even if there weie no; immediate market, dried or salted fish .would.' be deposed of without trouble beyond the Colony!?' I South America must be a pleasant place to live in.- -By a. late paper we hear-fchafc a violent earthquake has .utterly 'destroyed the town of Orah, in the province of San Juan, . South America. The earthquake iCQjnmehced at 11 p.m., and in 'the space of^nino hours, no fewer than forty shocks were 'counted;^ but the first was sufficiently strong to effect tlie rui«i . itself, the whole' town coming to the ground in a: few.; seconds like a house.of cards. Fortunately the, loss of life, for so serious a calamity, has been remarkably trifling, two pewons only .being known to have . died from the-effects of their injuries. The town of Humahuacaj an- , the province of Jujuy, also experienced the same earthquake,: and a vohano has broken out in the district.

v The departure of the ZavistOwski Sisfceis (the burlesque actresses) for California, "has enabled 'the; Auckland papers, to. give usa" little enlightenment as to the .manner in which they were regarded by the young swells of Auckland. ' ? It appears that they, have been the rage- there— hayerbeen "" boquetted," " champaghed," and picnicked «rf libitum. The number- of presents- (says one writer) these girls have received. from said fast young fellows must be very great, lam told that a subscription list was opened for the; purpose of purchasing them a piano to.-wile-away the time across the Pacific ;..but although . the; iyoung fellows were willing enough to pay for the pleasure of the girls' actual society, they were not willing to pay very dearly for anything that would enhance the pleasure of their departure, consequently the gallants who had put their names down for L 5 and LlO "called off" at the last minute, and the young girls went without their' piano. It was perfectly sickening to see the crowd of young bloods that went : to see them off, and who kept kissing their' hands to them till the vessel Was nearly out of sight.

Not all the little waifs of humanity left alone in the world join the larrikin order. Ou Friday afternoon, says the Age, a horsey looking elf, hardly more than three feet high, and nine ' years of age, called upon Mr Oleland, at the Albion, and marched up to him in the midst of a party of gentlemen, with the remark— "Please sir, could you give me a job?" Mr Cleland looked down with a smile, which reassured the lad, who- glance .l; upsidoways, .and turning his hat round and round in his hands, audsaid, "Please, sir/

I was told to go^to you sir.'' f'-llhe littl4 man had lost hisffatHeV andjnother long ago, but was staying for*the time with; his aunt in Collingwood. ,^FTe had fie'en ify 'India, assist- , ing to take charge of White in ludia, he rode the great race of ttte year, the prize, according to his own description, being " a big gold cup, full of sovereigns." He came in second^ andwas. the "only lad there who could be got to ride at five stone, > Assuredly he must be one of the veriest mites that rode in the race. Coming back from India with his master for. the time he' was Wrje'cked^ik" the" k KahJbMfana*niSn'^ overlooked=in the scramble. Mr Clelaricl kindly took an interest in the lad and proraised to try andi find ait dpening for him at Waldock's, Dan Robinson's, or some other training stable. Tbe little fellow may yet turn out a rival to the Masters! Wilson and Day. ; . . , ■ , . . i

A Wagga journal states that a few. .days ago the family of a selector on the Wallacetowa Road was astonished to observe a single horse, evidently in a state^ of the [wildest 'terror, galloping furiously tTTrough tbje bush with some broWn object attached to its back. After describing a sucoes3ion of circles at the top of its speed, the poor animal, foamina panting, and thoroughly blowii, at jasbgalloped up in the midst of the group in mute appeal for human, protection. 1 . .-A large eagle-, hawk, with a greyish head, was th<fn found to be firmly clinging by. the taldn.s ;to ,a, ; learful sore which the chafing of the saddle had produced upon its back. The bird with some difficulty , was. driven from its hold, but no gun being at hand, it could not -be shot. The raw and bleeding wound: upon the. horse's ; back, presented an ,„ appearance perfectly sickening, and must/ have given to the poor creature the keenest 'torture; The sight of the raw wound had no doubt . induced the hawk to swoop;- down, upon it for a meal, but the rapid movements of the horse in its flight- saved its living flesh from being torn from it. Eaglehawks are proverbially, bold and daring, and, when opportunity offeres,' will readily carry off young lambs, but larger animals they seldom venture to assail, and we never heard before of a horse having been- attacked by them, f