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Grey River Argus, Volume XII, Issue 1456, 3 April 1873, Page 2

The monthly meeting of the Grey Rivor Hospital Committee, called for last night, lapsed for want of a quorum. A meeting of the Grey District Auxiliary Bible Society takes place to-day at Mr Sommer's shop, at 4.30 p.m. The annual inspection of the Greymouth Rifle Volunteers takes place to-morrow night, at 8 o'clock. All absentees are liable to a penalty of L 5. During portions of the last two days several gentlemen have canvassed the town in order to ascertain how many shares would be taken up in the <j}rey Coal Company. They have met with encouragement on all hands, nearly 3000 shares having already been taken up. A large portion of the town yet remains to_be visited, and it is confidently expected that a large addition will yet be made to the share-list. It is certainly the duty of all who are interested ia the future prosperity ot the pore to take up as many shares as they possibly can, in this company, in order to ensure its success. The Melbourne Argus gives a hint worthy of the notice of judges and magistrates when it says : —Every judge in an English community must expect to live in a "light" as "fierce" as that "which beats upon a throne and blackens every blot," and brings into exaggerated relief every error in taste or judgment. At a meeting of the Westland Waste Lands Board, held at Hokitika on Tuesday, ■ the following business connected with this district was transacted : — Mr P. Dungan presented a petition from miners on the South Beach' against the holding of a.n agricultural lease in that district by Messrs Kilgour and Perotti— received. Mr W. Harris applied for the renewal of a pasturage license on the north bank of the Teremakau, between Taipo and Waihinini. Adjourned till next Borad day. The following applications were granted :— James Hamilton, a license to occupy 260 acres rural land gazetted and reserved from sale in payment of public works in January last, and 250 acres of land on the old Clifton road, and 50 acres in Greymouth district, adjoining Mr Masters's land, to be reserved j in payment of public works to Messrs Hamilton, Carter, and Russell ; E. Dixon, by his agent, Mr F. A. Learmonth, to put up to auction four sections town of Greymouth, Nos 446, 447, 258, and 449, Ll6 paid ; Geo. Humphrey Flower and George Flower, by their ageut, Mr F. A. Learmonth, purchase of sections 345 and 347, Greymouth, Ll2 each paid. The Irish University Bill, as far as can be made out from telegrams, was intended to deprive Trinity College, Dublin, of its university powers, and to bestow its funds, together with some property lately belonging to the Irish Church, upon a new University, having a number of colleges affiliated to it, and ruled by a governing body of twentymembers, chosenirrespective of their religious belief. This little joke, told by a writer in a Melbourne paper is not bad :— The effort of our parvenus to obtain a footing inEnglish society remind me of the digger who told his mate that he was sick;of the goldfields, and should go to Melbourne and resume his proper position in society. "Your proper position in society, Jack," was the reply. " You know what that is ! Why it's selling trotters in Bourke street." : . . One of the results of the late Kutt races has been that one good mare, at least, remains in the Province of Wellington. Mr Redwood's Simplicity, the winner of three races, has been purchased by Mr James Stent, and is at present at the Aramoho stables, Wanganui. It is hard work (observes an English paper) to keep track of the progressive acquisitions of awakened Japan. The latest novelty is a National Anthem which has been composed for the empire by a Scotchman, Mr Fenton, formerly bandmaster of the 10th Regiment of Foot. A tale is told of a Nelson official whose name is not yet included in the Commission of the Peace having, in the early days of the diggings, and in the township of Brighton, assumed magisterial functions, and disposed of charges of drunkenness as satisfactorily as if he had possessed the power to commit or acquit, his excuse being that, in the absence of a duly-qualified magistrate, he was discharging a work of necessity and of mercy towards the delinquent. A somewhat similar

case seems to have arisen in Otago. The Tuapeka Times says—"There ia a township iv one of the agricultural districts of Otago. in or near to which no Justice of Peace re- / sides. It is, however, so far advanced in* civilisation as to possess a gaol and a resident policeman. The latter'is & vigilant guardian lof the jieace who takes a'professional pride in having* nig gaol occasionally occupied. In the ordinary course of things it would be useless for him to ' sun in ' perpetrators of small delinquencies, for it would be impossible to' have the cases tried within a reasonable time. But .the policeman is a man who will l not. allow trifles"to interfere with the discharge of what he considers his duty ; so to^the^kitiea be is paid*~for discharging he . adds those of the 'great.unpaid.' Whenever a man in this district #ets drunk, or otherwise'misbehaves himself, he is incarcerated fotta time the policeman considers sufficient to atone for his offence. Such primitive simplicity in the administration of justice is worthy of aU praise and imitation. During one' b^the s'npep-stealihg cases recently tried at Wellington, Mr Gordon Allan argued that the nrisonef Death must be innocent, because he appeared to be a fool, and sheep'-stealefs were generally very clever. Judge Johnston took exception to the argument, which he said meant that rogues were clever and honest men fools. In spite of the supposed division of the race into knaves and fools, his experience led- him to believe that the greatest knaves were the biggest fools. There is nothing particularly new in this sentiment, but it is refreshing to learn that Judge Johnston has said something epigrammatic. ■ ■ ■ " At a recent meeting of the Wellington Coal Company, says the Post, Mr Stevenson was appointed secretary pro tern. The revised prospectus and forms of application for shares will be circulated immediately, and on 1500 shares being applied for, the directors will register the company and proceed to business. " Anglo- Australian," in iheEuropean Mail, pays : —My friends in New Zealand will be glad to hear that a large quantity of salmon ova goes out by the Oberori, now ready for sea. Owing to the late storms, there was great difficulty in catching the fish. However, Mr Youl has succeeded ia obtaining 129,000, and these are packed in 217 boxes. Every precaution has been taken in the packing and stowing of the ova in the ice-house, and the rest must be left to the weather and the speed of the ship. If the Oberon should make the run out in ninety days —and this i 3 a decent marein —Mr Youl has no doubt that the ova will arrive in first-rate trim for its new element. ; A point of some interest in connection with friendly societies was raised lately in the Criminal Court, Melbourne. John Patrick Hand, lately secretary to the Mona I Lodge, No. 20, of. the Ancient Order of 1 Druids, was charged with embezzling funds belonging to that society., The embezzlement was committed in October and November last, but at that time the lodge had not been properly registered under the Friendly Societies Act. Mr Justice Fellows expressed. . an opinion that until a society was registered its members only constituted a partnership, and a criminal proceeding would not lie against any of the members for larceny of the funds. Under, this ruling the prisoner was acquitted. A libel case, Rees v. Ward, proprietor of the Kapunda Guardian, was heard lately at the police court, Adelaide. The article charged Mr Rees, who was a candidate for the Burra, with being a hypocrite, gambler, drunkard, and blasphemer, while pretending to temperance and piety. The case broke down because counsel did not <mll informant or witnesses to prove malice. ; Murray's Great World Circus troupe performed to a crowded aiidience at Ahaura on Tuesday evening. The company left for Totara Flat on Wednesday, where they purpose performing two nights. They, intend to play at Reef ton on Saturday, returning and performing at Totara and Ahaura next week en route to Greymouth and Hokitika. A serious accident occurred on the section of the Arnold and Ahaura road, at the. Nelson Creek Crossing, on Wednesday morning. Two men named Jackson and O'Brien were clearing timber in connection with the road worksf and in felling a tree the top branches fouled another tree, and rebounding fell upon the men. Jackson is severely injured in his right shoulder blade, and some of his ribs are fractured. He was forwarded to Greymouth by direction of Dr Phillips. O'Brien is badly bruised, but not very seriously injured. ; The Napier Telegraph holds some eccentric opinions on the subject of nationality. Describing the non-observance of St. Patrick's, ;Day in Napier, the Telegraph says :—" Our exchanges mention that sports and amusaments were to be held last Monday in honor .of St. Patrick, in several towns throughout the colony, but in Napier, the day passed over without, any iadio^tion that it was an Irishman's holiday. The i>anks of course took a holiday, not for the purpose of allowing the clerks to sport shamrock, but more perhaps to clear up work undisturbed by customers. We looked into every shop in town owned by an Erin Islander; there was no sign of festivity in one of them. To what is this forgetfulness of the patron saint to he attributed ? We think, to the fact that the Irishmen in Hawke's Bay are too sensible to indulge in a holiday on an occasion that has so often been disgraced by excesses, and to a feeling that it is foolish and absurd to recreate in this colony national sentiments that have a tendency to separate rather than cement the inhabitants of a new country in the bonds of one common nationality.