DUNEDIN.

Grey River Argus, Volume XII, Issue 1302, 1 October 1872, Page 2

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[fkomour own correspondent.] September^!. Local matters are still very dull, but at not so much so as last week. There have a been a good many meetings of various 7e sorts, some concerts, &c, all tending to Ir keep us a little more lively. a- An ordinary meeting of the Otago Institute was held in one of the classrooms in the University Building, on Tuesday evening, the Rev. Dr Stuart in 16 the chair. A short paper was read by a Mr A. C. Purdie on " Hybrids," the parjy ticular subject being a cat which was said to be a cross between the domestic puss and an Australian opossum. The color or of the animal was certainly very peculiar, of but it had none of the characters of the to mavsupials, to which belongs the opossum, to and was altogether a cat. Mr Purdie pointed out the various differences, and or completely proved his point. He also st read a series of remarks on various additions lately made to the zoological depart- - y _ ment of the Museum. Mr j. S. Webb then read a long arid interesting jjaper on ." The Work of the past year in Astronomy and Celestial Physics," confining his reby marks principally to what has been dis-. ,j_ covered in relation to the sun. His paper was illustrated by a large number of finely executed diagrams of those curious roser~s colored clouds, flames, or protuberances, which are almost constantly seen in -the c . chromosphere of the sun, and which are supposed to consist of burning hydrogen. er Mr Villains- and his agent, MrNuttall, were then introduced to the meeting. it- The former gentleman is the inventor of ye a submarine boat, which he proposes to ; use for gold-getting purposes, *on the bottom of the big and rapid-running °" river Clutha, in this Province. A good le many inventions have been applied to this particular purpose, with more or less ( j_ success, being generally a rude application of mechanical power, in the shape of a spoon dredge or the like. But Mr of Villaine's boat iBof a much more elabom rate nature, -having appliances to meet every possible contingency. It consists of an, iron brat with two air-tight ends and a large open chamber in the centre *g having a trap door in the bottom through : which access to the auriferous drift is got. There is room inside for three men, a . sluicing arrangement, a crab-winch, and other apparatus. The air-tight chambers are to contain condensed air sufficient for or three men for at least six hours, and to prevent vitiation there is an arrangement for the supply of oxygen. The boat is adapted to work, at any depth, and the ld pressure of air inside can be so regulated as to be exactly the same as the pressure of the water, so that, though doors will j r be opened to get at the bottom and to .work the sluice, there will be no rush of ie water. After MrNuttall had explained 3d the various provision and machinery for >n working the boat, a most animated disa , cussion ensued, in ■ which most of the members present took part. A good many objections were started, which the inventor and his agent did their best to sd meet, and sometimes successfully ; but it >n seemed generally to be thought that the v whole concern was too complicated, and to depend on too mauy conjunctures to e > be easily or rapidly worked on such a river iC as the Clutha. A company is being formed to give the boat, a fair trial. Another scheme for a similar purpose is also before the public— a Mr M'Tennan the projector. His idea is to employ the cylinder system, similar to that used so successfully in sinking the piers for the Rangitata bridge, g to be worked from a punt or boat specially it built. He has secured the , machinery i- used in the erection of the said bridge, is and now invites the assistance of a. coins- pany in. order to put the scheme into c execution. Whether either or both of these schemes succeed, there, is no doubt n that there is plenty of gold in the bottom >f of the. Clutha to reward them richly for ;. their 'enterprise; - ■",.', c Professor Black delivered a very intt teresting lecture, on Tv esday evening . in - the lower Athenseum Hall, to the meme bers of the Mutual Improvement Society, y There was a large attendance. The suba ject chosen by the Professor was " Oxygen t in its relation to the three Kingdoms of n Nature," 'and the lecture was copiously y illustrated by experiments. He showed c how oxygen entered into the constitution c of almost everything, organic and maa organic ; how neeessaryitAvas to the supply r of life, and of fire ; how. it was consumed 1 by animals, and given off by vegetables ; a how the atmosphere was largely composed t of it, as well as forming a large proportion 3 of water. The lecture was well received I by the . audience, and the experiments r were very clever and successful. The Spiritualists held a meeting in the '. 1 same room on another evening for the i" purpose of detailing their : various experi? 1 ences, and showing how they came to be '. t Spiritualists. Some statements of a most • extraordinary character were made, which ] I it is hard to believe can be true. ; > -i , The rails are now laid on the Port Rail-: < i way for about five miles, and the first ' • freight was carried on Wednesday, viz., a ? , few hogsheads of beer from Burkes i Brewery to Dodson, hbtelkeeper, Port t l Chalmers. The station buildings at the v i town end are making rapid progress, On A • the Clutha line all is activity. A large c i number of men are at work on both sec- t tions, and as far out.aa beyond Waihola t i culverts and other, works are in progress, i : The tunnel at Caversham is nearly com- I pleted, and the workmen are expected to s meet in the middle in nine or ten days, s The other tunnel at the Chain Hills has G been begun from this end ; the rock is; f schist, and the cutting will be a stiff job. n Large quantities ■■'■ of material, rails, tl sleepers, &c, are stacked, on the re- H claimed ground, ready for use whenever o the formations. are.far enough advanced. G The bazaar for the Blueskin ■ Episcopal g: Church was brought to a pretty successful tl conclusion on Wednesday. The wind-up ir was a sale by auction of the remnants of vi the stock on the stalls, at which Mr J. :tl Milner officiated, and the outre nature of fo the various lots as well as the funny q' remarks of the auctioneer, vas productive tli of great amusement. I have not-heard tli what is, the suuv produced for the building sii fund, but there is no doubt it is some- se thing good. ; , n< By the ship Hydaspes, which; arrived sii yesterday from London, we received a pc large addition to our population, there loi being about 200 passengers on board, all wi of whom arrived in good health. She mi also -brings a large general cargo, perhaps ac the largest that ever arrived in one bottom j dii f roni the old country direct. She is iron- 'Pi built, and 2023, tons register, commanded hp by Captain Bubot, who commanded one jni<

of the vessels lost at , Oamaru in the; great storm' of four or five yearis ago. : ; i The weather has been very fine all week, warm, genial "and sunny. The gardens are looking well, and "making a fair promise, the trees mostly just bursting into bloom. The farmers in the country districts north and south are very busy with their spring crops, and everywhere ploughing, sowing and. harrowingare general. r