THE Grey River Argus. PUBLISHED DAILY. THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 12, 1872.

Grey River Argus, Volume XII, Issue 1286, 12 September 1872, Page 2

THE Grey River Argus. PUBLISHED DAILY. THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 12, 1872.

Inspector William Henry James has been appointed Commissioner, and Sub-Inspector James Hick son has been appointed Inspector of the Westland Constabulary Force. Commissioner of Police in Westland ! Inspector of Police in Greymoutb ! What a farce ! If this is simply the act of the County Chairman, let the County Chairman be accredited with a pure piece of snobbism. If it is according to the resolution' of the. County Council, ditto as regards the Council. An attempt was recently made in Nelson Province to elevate the chiefs of the police force into Commissioners and Inspectors, but it ended in them continuing merely as "sergeants," and "senior-constables." If the Nelson Government erred in this on the side of modesty, the Westland Government has certainly gone greatly iii the opposite direction. An increase of pay would be infinitely more satisfactory to the persons concerned, and the public would have reason to be more satisfied if there were, on the part of their peace-preserving staff, more work and less title. With the staff of police which- Westland possesses, people are beginning to ask what adequate return is given for the money expended, and this elevation of officers into altogether ridiculous positions is certain to bring the question home to the public and to the police much more closely than the latter may have expected. The staff in Greymouth is already considered to be altogether in excess of the necessities of the place, yet there is sometimes wanted a police-constable when he is most "wanted "—an ancient feature of the force locally repeated. Mr James and Mr Hickson would be quite as useful to the country "as they were." The conversion of them into Commissioners and Inspectors can contribute to nothing but their conceit, if theyhaveany. It adds nothing to their pay or then: efficiency. It only odds another bit of braid, at which the vulgar, very properly, turns up ics sentient, vulgar nose. To-day, at 4 p.m., and at the Town Hall, it will be " declared" that Messrs Masters, Glenn, and Moore have been duly elected members of the Greymouth Municipal Council. Robs is not in such a reduced state as common report represents. The Netes of Tuesday, referring to Haselmayer's performance, says :— " A perfect Pactolian shower, not of gold, but of silver, descends, rises up, come 3 from all quarters ; out of the candles, from the birds, from ladies' head-dresses—every-where. The Professor gleans the money as he receives.it from the invisible genii who attend him, deposits it in a hat, and when tired of the realisation of the dream, empties it all upon a tray, and exhibits it to the spectators." If the Professor would only improve his performance by giving away the money, as well as "exhibiting" he would probably draw even greater houses than he does. The Maraden and Ncmono, and Marsd«n and Cockabulla roads have been declared to be main roads under the 110 th section of " The County of Westland Act, 1868." The main road to Ross, from where it starts on the south bank of the Hokitika river, is i fourteen miles fifty-five chains in length. The average distance from the sea of the line chosen is about two miles, and it crosses a succession of ridges, some of which are 300 ft high. At the Hokitika end, for seven miles and seventy-one chains, the metalling is at present only eight feet wide. The remaining distance towards Ross is metalled twelve feet wide. The cost of the road will be as rearly as possible LB4O a mile. The County Chairman has granted pro tection for a track to David Faulkner until 31st December, 1872, about 50 chains long, ' commencing in the Eight-mile Creek at a point about fifteen chains below Faulkner ' and Simmon's branch* store, Maori Creek township. He has also granted to Michael Phillips protection until 31st December, j 1872, for a track from Maori Gully to German Gully. Sergeant James M'Ennis has been gazetted as keeper of the Powder Magazine at Greymouth, and a ranger under "The Protection to Animals Act, 1867." A somewhat singular accident happened lately to Archibald Baxter, of Scroggs's Creek, Ocago. As he was going to his work in the morning, with his axe under his arm, he stumbled and fell, and the edge of the axe seyeiely cut his right arm, at th* elbow joint. Dr Inglis was speedily in attendance, and he did all that could bo done for Baxter, but it is said the arm is injured for life. The Ahaura Musical and Literary Society gave an entertainment at the Court House, Abaura, on the 6th September. The performance opened with an overture on the organ by M r Po wnall. Mr Whitefoord read from Ingoldsby, and Mr Greenwood sang the CruUkeen Lawn. Mr Frank Guinness

gave a reading, describing Mickey Free's adventures with the spirits, and Mr Greenwood described how Mr Caudle was made a Freemason. The first part concluded with selections from II Trovatore. In the second part Mr Whitefoord read one of the Bentley ballads, giving a description of the sore temptations of St. Anthony. Miss Lizzy Sutcliffe sang the sweet Scottish ballad Bonnie Jean, and was rapturously applauded. The event of the evening was Mr Guinness's rendering of the passage at arms or tongue, between Biddy Moriarty and Dan O'Connell. The description of the anger of the hucksterwoman at being called an " hypothenuso" by the "Liberator" was excellent, and many present heard for the first time a humorous Irish composition properly rendered. Selections from Lombardi and the National Anthem by the company closed the performance. This is the last of the winter season's entertainments, but it is not the intention of the Society to discontinue giving their en joyable re-unions. At intervals of every three or four w^eks an entertainment will be given fora »yeo\a\ object to be stated on the occasion of the announcement of the performance. • * Mr M'Leod, who has obtained a lease from the Waste Lands Office of ten acres of land at Inangahua, containing valuable coal deposits, will very shortly be in a position to supply the Reef ton township with excellent fuel at a very moderate rate. The bed, when first entered, did not show, coal of superior quality, but sinco then a tunnel of 200 ft has been put in, and the mineral now being obtained leaves little room for complaint. The mine is only fifty chain, distant from Reef ton in a northerly direction, and Mr M'Leod intends to proceed at once with the constiuction of a tramway. The "Rough Diamond," in which Miss Stephenson appeared as Margery, was the comedy which preceded the burlesque of «• Lalla Rookh" at the Theatre last evening. There was a fair house, and hearty; approval of the performance. This evening the comedy to be played is " The Dead Shot ;" the burlesque to follexr. The Inglewood Company at Reef ton have concluded arrangements with Mr Hislop for the packing of fifty tons of -quartz from the claim to the Westland Company's battery. The ground from which the stone is taken is situate between theJNorth Star and Phoenix companies, and promises to give an excellent return. The coal tramway for the conveyance of fuel from the Ajax Company's mine at Reefton to the battery is completed, and ia work-, ing admirably. A large saying and greatly increased crushing power will be gained by the substitution of first-class coal for the inferior firewood the company have been hitherto compelled to use. Mr Warden Whitefoord has received a communication from Mr Garven stating that • the bridge over the Arnold River will be ' completed and fit for traffic not later than 15th October. The work of opening a horse track along the telegraph line from the : Arnold bridge to the junction of the No Town and main trunk road to Ahaura will be proceeded with at once. In the report of the case of the Collector of Customs v Captain Palmer, heard at the Resident Magistrate's Conrt on Tuesday, and printed yesterday, it was said that the Cus--1 toms revenue for the three cases of geneva 1 was tendered and accepted after thegoodp ' were seized. In reference to this we are in--1 formed that the duty was tendered at the 1 Customs and accepted by the clerk on behalf 1 of the Collector, the clerk not being aware • that the goods were seized. The Collector^ ' handed back the duty, as the goods being seized were the property of the Crown until 1 properly dealt with, therefore the importer could not pay duty until properly authorised by the Crown, 1 Mr Frank Guinness, of Ataura, one of the members of the Provincial Council of Nelson for the Grey Valley, has been gazetted a Justice of the Peace for the Colony. The appointment is dated August 30, 1872. , Good news was received by telegraph from ■ the Energetic Company, yesterday, to the effect that the leader which the manager . was following up had joined the main reef, and the stone showed good gold all through. The stone averages 3ft Gin thick, but tho , main reef is not yet properly tested, so that its thickness cannot be stated. A letter . subsequently received states that there had : been taken out, since Saturday, seventeen trucks of stone which should, judging from • appearances,. prove highly payable, and that . the reef is firm and solid, showing better ; than it ever did before. Speaking of the elements of which the new Ministry is composed, the West Coast Times of yesterday says : — We cannot say that we at all regret that a coalition has not been effected, feeling sure that unless Mr Stafford [ can contrive to cut the session short, he will be compelled to resign or to appeal to the constituencies. Evenly divided as the House now is, it will be impracticable to carry on the business of the country satisfactorily, . and it is not likely that the Governoi would refuse to grant a dissolution under such tircumstances. We believe that we but express the opinion of a preponderating majority on %he West Coast when we say that & dissolution of the House would be infinitely preferred to a coalition Ministry which would ' include Mr Curtis as a member, notwithstanding the hindrance to the progress of , business which a general election would , entaiL This alone would be reason enough for rejoicing that no coalition has been effected. * Rumors are abroad (the Law Turns says) that the Government intend to curtail the 1 expenses of the Tichborne prosecution by. ; confining the evidence to that which is obtainable in this country. We may state that two gentlemen are under orders to go to Chili and Australia, but they do hot sail for a fortnight, and in the meantime there is to be a consultation of all the! counsel engaged. Therefore it cannot at present be stated positively that the advice of the AttorneyGeneral will not be followed by the Government, but there appears to be some conflict of opinion between persons in authority, which it it quite poiaible may materially affect the conduct of the prosecution. At the Resident Magistrate's Court, at No Town, on the 11th inst., before C. Whitefoord, Esq., it.M., Franics Beynon was charged with stealing money from the person of James Quiuli van, Mr Staite appeared for the prosecution, and Mr Newton defended the accused. Mr Staite was not prepared to offer any evidence, but he applied for a remand. Mr Newton strongly objected, and characterised the charge as a - conspiracy on the part of Quinlivan to in jure the defendant, against whom, it was alleged, he had a grudge in consequence of a partnership ■ dispute. The Magistrate refused the remand,, and after commenting on the absence of any proof of the accusation dismissed the case. A miner, from Rough and Tumble Creek, was fined L 2 for being drunk and disorderly. In this case tho police put in several previous convictions for the same offence. The defendant was severely cautioned, and strongly, recommended not to come again before the Court on a similar charge. A miner, from Paddy's Gully, was charged with drunkenness and indecent exposure in the public streets at No Town. The defendant, was warned by the police at the time the offence was committed, but he persisted in his disorderly conduct. Tho defendant admitted the facts, but denied the offence.- He said it was hard if a man, after being out in the ranges for a length of time, couldn't do as ke liked Tfhen he visited the township. He

couldn't see why publicans and others, who were becoming rich by the exertions of him and the like of him, should be so fastidious as to object to a little rollicking fun occasionally. He had no sympathy with such squeamish men. His Worship failed to view ftie matter in this light, and fined the defendant L 2, with costs.— Among the civil cases, John Molloy v. James Green, a claim for the amount of goods supplied in 1868, a ithe Waimea, was disposed of. This caser cause previously before the Resident Magis '. trate's Court, at Ahaura, when the defendant positively swore that he was never at the place-where it was alleged the goods were supplied. The plaintiff swore as positively that tbe goods were supplied to the defendant at the time and place mentioned, and further, that the defendant subsequently admitted a portion of the debt. Tbe case was adjourned to this Court to enable the plaintiff to produce the storeman who sold the goods and made the entries. This witness did not appear. The defendant called several witnesses, and among them persons who supplied him with provisions, &c, in an entirely different pavt of the coimtry at the time it was alleged he was trading with the plaintiff. His Worship said it was evidently a case of mistaken identity on the part of the plaiutiff, and dismissed, the case with costs and expenses.— Inthe Warden's Court a number of important applications were disposed of, and the Courts were adjourned to the 13th September. An amateur entertainment took place at the upper township, Half-Ounce, last Friday evening, for tbe purpose of raising funds for completing the foot track between that place and Granville. The attondanco was vory numerous, filling the large room of Mr Anderson's Sacdinavian Hotel. A correspondent sends us a detailed report of the entertainment, in which he gives great praise to every gentleman who contributed to its success, particularly to Mr Atkin, who was conspicuous as an actor and reader. The entertainment, says our correspondent, was preceded by a prologue, written for the occasion by a miner from Duffer's Gully, and spoken by Mr Atkin. It was well received by the audience, both on account of its merit as a poem, and the well-deserved allusions to tbe treatment received by the miners from the hands of the Government. ' During the interval between the second and third parts, Mr James Cunningham came forward, and, on behalf of the committee, thanked the audience for their attendance and the amateurs for their services. The proceeds realised by admissions was Ll4. He stated that it was the intention of the amateurs at some earlyiperiod to give another entertainment for the benefit of the Grey month Hospital, ' the announcement of which was received with great applause. At the Resident Magistrate's Court, Ahaura, on Friday, 6th September, before C. Whitefoord, Esq., R.M., Jas. M'Laughlin sued John Berens on a fraud summons for L 6 11s 9d, for goods supplied at Napoleon. The defendant was ordered to pay LI per week, with costs, or in default, 14 days' imprisonment. Anderson v Watkins— Was a claim of L 8 9s for work done by the plaintiff at {the house of the defendant, as a painter. The defendant paid L 5 into Court as satisfaction in full of the claim. The plaintiff withdrew the case, but failed to give proper notice to the defendant. Judgment was given for the plaintiff for L 5, but on the application of Mr Staite, the defendant was allowed L 2 2s costs, in consequence of the neglect of the plaintiff to file the required notice. Mullins v White and Garth— A disputed claim of L 4 4s for wages as a farm laborer. Adjourned on application of the defendants for further evidence, on payment of costs. Applications for publicans' licenses under the new- Licensing Act were granted to John Kennedy, Hokitika Hotel, Ahaura ; Jane Watkins, Imperial Hotel, Ahaura ; E. Fraser, Fraser's Hotel, Ahaura ; Fanny Berry, Post Office Hotel, Ahaura ; John Hamilton (Greek), Hamilton Hotel, Ahaura. In the Warden's Court, registrations for head water races were granted to Francis Hanlon and party, at the Teviot Ranges ; James M'Connell and' William Noonan, at Duffer's Creek ; Henry Cass and party, at Half Ounce ; John Dougherty and party, two rtiiles above the junction of the Little Grey. Certificates for tail races were granted to Cass and party, Half-Ounce; John Gillespie, Moonlight. Extended areas of auriferous ground were granted to Cbarles Ohristensen and party, two acres, Half-Ounce ; Alfred JBorjerson and party, 2£ acres, HalfOunce. Double area claims were granted to John M'Liece and party, at Half-Ounce ; Thomas Bradford and party, Brandy Jack's ; Richard Holdsworth and party, Half-Ounce. A number of frontage tunnelling claims and sites for various purposes were granted, and the Courts were adjourned to the 13fch of September.