THE Grey River Argus PUBLISHED DAILY. MONDAY. FEBRUARY 23, 1874.

Grey River Argus, Volume XIV, Issue 1733, 23 February 1874, Page 2

THE Grey River Argus PUBLISHED DAILY. MONDAY. FEBRUARY 23, 1874.

This morning Mr Moriarty, C.E., in com: pany with members of the Borough Council ' and other gentlemen, will visit the Brunner Coal-mine by invitation of the lessees.

The particular attention of those whom it may concern, resident in the Grey Valley, is directed to a special official notice in another column, signed by C. Whitefoord, Esq., R.M., with respect to applications for publicans' new licenses and renewals of those now in force. Under the new, or Fox's Act, application for retail spirit licenses must be made on or before 3rd March in each year, and not later. The licensing Court, or Board, as it ib now constituted under the new law, sits in April to dispose of the applications, and any license the Board may grant comes into operation in July following. New licenses are charged for only from the expiration of the date of those now in force, although, as before stated, every application muse be made on 3rd March, or previously. Persons omitting, or neglecting to apply as directed, will not be able to obtain licenses till July, -1875. The licensing Board must be composed of persons who have not any interest of any nature whatever, direct, or indirect, in public houses, or in public house property ; in fact, a strict interpretation of

the law would render the milkmcin who supplies an hotel with milk, liable to a penalty of LSO if he sat and voted on a licensing bench. Every application must be signed by ten householders living in tie neighborhood of the house proposed to be licensed, each of whom have to certify that tne applicant is a person of " good fame [and reputation.," It must be distinctly understood that these alterations in the law apply to every holder of a retail spirit license, and it behoves all publicans in the district to make themselves acquainted with the provisions of the new Act.

The right to occupy the grand stand, &c, at the Ahaura races, with the authority to collect tolls at the gntes, will be sold to-day (Monday) at 2 o'clock in the afternoon, at Ahaura. Heavy bush fires are raging in seveial places throughout the upper Grey Valley. It iB expected the cattle track from Ahaura to Amuri, now in course of construction, will be completed and opened right through by the second week in March. " Bave you any witnesses ? " enquired the presiding Magistrate of the informant in a case of assault at Callaghan Creek, which was tried at A haura on the 20th inst. ".No your Worship," replied the witness, " I considered my case was good on the face of it," pointing all over his countenance, which was deeply and extensively "echymosed," and "I didn't think.it necessary to bring witnesses when the proofs of the defendant's handywork were visible so plainly, for J thought my black eye was the best or the worst evidence I could offer." The only nomination regularly made on Friday, the 20th met, for the Grey Valley handicap race, at the forthcoming races at Ahaura, was that of Mr W. Cochrane's Sandy. Telegrams were received by the stewards from the owners of Septimus, Nero, and other horses, that their nominations with entrance and qualification fees, were posted. The mail arrives at Ahaura on Tuesday, on which evening the stewards will meet to close the entries for the handicap. Letters containing nominations, and bearing the postmark of not later than Friday, 20th February, will be good for the Grey Valley Handicap, if they come to hand before Saturday, the 28th, the night of general entry. A new industry, aud one which is likely to be prosecuted quite extensively in its way, has sprung up ac Ahaura. Men are now regularly engaged netting the shoals of h'sh which, at irregular intervals, come up the river, and which up to quite recently were permitted to go as they came unmolested, except now and then by amateur disciple of "gentle Isaac." It would seem that the habits of the fish— nominally the graylingare not yet fully understood, for it is quite uncertain when they may put in an appearance at any particular time, watching ani waiting for them, thus reduces the profit when a good take is made. On Friday, a paTty netted between forty and fifty dozen at one haul, not far from the town'hip; but these men did not catch a dozen altogether in as many days previously. After the town of Ahaura is supplied, the fist are carefully packed to Half-Ounce, and the other mining townships where there is a good demand at from 2s to 3 per dozen.

A meeting of the residents of the Ahaura and the district was held at Pinkerton's Hotel on Friday evening, to take steps to induce the Government to set apart an acre of waste land in some suitable situation for a common, and also to have a pound proclaimed in some convenient locality. Mr F. Guinness, M.P.C., was present, and explained that at the request of some of the residents of Totara Flat, he brought the subject of establishing a pound for the district under the notice of the Provincial Council during the late session. A conversational discussion took place, during which it was suggested that the Road Board was the proper body to make a move in the matter. It was at length agreed that if any member of the Road Board should turn up (of which there is at least a remote probability) before the members of the Nelson Executive, who are now stumpng the gold-fields to reach Ahaura, he should be caught and detained, vi et arviis, if necessary, and forced to head a deputation to the Provincial Ministers on the pound and commonage question.

At the Resident Magistrate's Court, Ahaura, on Friday, the complainant, in an assault case, was asked by the defendant if he (the witness) was not an " unbeliever," whereupon he replied that he did not believe in a good many things, and especially he did not believe in being "leathered," as he had been by the defendant. On the question then pressed, the witness explained that once during the hearing of a case, in which he was concerned at the Court at Greymouth, tbe same question was put to him by Mr A. R. Guinness, when he denied the imputation of infidelty, but continued the witness, " that was only one of Mr Guinness's dodges, to get me into a scott, and shake my evidence."

We remind our Cobden readers that Mr Boase, M.P. C, will address his constituents at the School House, at eight o'clock this evening.

The Herald, of Saturday, states that Mr Greenfield and Mr Albert Pitt, members of the Nelson Executive, have forwarded a telegram to Mr Brennan, accepting the invitation of the Inan'gahua District Board and public to a banquet to be held on the 26th inst.

We learn from the Inanguhua Herald that a very serious accident arising out of one of the bush fires which have been lately raging throughout the district, occurred to Mr Jones while proceeding from Reeef ton to Capleston, on Wednesday last. When about a mile and a half from the latter township, Mr Jones found it necessary to turn off the track, which, for some distance, was enveloped in flames, and in order to reach Capleston, he followed the spur for some distance, hoping thereby to outflank the fire. While making his way over some fallen timber, he stepped into a deep bed of live ashes and charred embers, and falling, received pome severe burns about the face and hands. Recovering himself, ho managed to reach Capleston, where his injuries were carefully tended by Mrs Danks, who, in that remote region, for some time past, has enjoyed a very favorable reputation for the excellence of her medicaments in the matter of simple hurts.

By it private telegram from Reefton we learn that the proceeds of the week's crushing at the Wealth of Nations claim was 2370z of amalgam.

In a spirit of laudable emulation the lessees of tha Brunner Coal Mine have deposited at Messrs Moss and Company's Coal Exchange two magnificent blocks of coal from the Brunner Mine, showing that with proper appliances and good management the coal from this mine can be obtained in compact blocks, and that there is no real foundation for the alleged friability of the Brunner coal Messrs Moss and Co.'s Coal Exchange is now one of the sighte of the town, and no visitor to Greymouth should omit to visit the highly teresting exhibits of the coal found in the Grey district which are there on view, Mr Simpson, the mining manager of the Greymouth Coal Company has kindly deposited a number of samples illustrative of the principal coal measures of England and New South Wales, which for purposes of comparison with our own coal are very instructive.

Mr J. W. Jones, of Callaghan's Creek, has forwarded us the following letter upon an important question regarding the eWora. registration :--" since the 31st Mavoh, 1873

a great number of electors now on the rol have ceased to occupy the teneir.ents then registered for, and removed to different ter races, yet in the same creek. Will you l>e pleased to inform me whether it is necessary to put in a fresh claim, or wait and have the matter put right at the Court of Revision, or how to act." Our opinion is, that although the removal of residence from one part of a particular creek to another will not make it absolutely necessary that a fresh claim should be sent in, provided that the description in the original registration will, so far, apply to the new residence as to fix its identity, the safest plan would be for each person who has shifted his residence since the last registration to make a fresh claim. The trouble is trilling, and this step would prevent anything like vexatious objections.

The Westland Register announces the discovery of a new quartz reef at the Taipo. Our contemporary says that this reef is considered by the discoverers to be possibly a continuation of, or a parallel line to, the lnangahua reefs, and the stone is of good quality. The prospectors have brought down lewt for the purpose of getting a trial crushing performed at the Bank of New Zealand, which will, we hear, be commenced this day. The reef, from which the stone is taken is already pierced to the depth of Sft, without being completely traversed. "We are informed upon authority that the post of Resident Magistrate and Warden at Collingwood, rendered vacant by the [accidental death of the gentlerran recently holding the appointment, has been offered to F. Guinness, Esq , one of the members for the Grey Vallejr District in the Provincial Council of Nelson. We understand that Mr Guinness has accepted the offer, and will proceed to the scene of his new duties as soon as the appointment has been authoritatively made by the General Government upon the recommendation of the Superintendent. We congratulate Mr Guinness upon his appointment, and we may add that it is one which is not only a graceful recognition of tbe claims of an old colonist, but is one for which Mr Guinness, by his previous experience, is well fitted to fill with credit and efficiency. Of course this will create a vacancy in the Provincial Council, aud already Mr J. D. Pinkerton and Mr D. M'Kenna are mentioned as probable candidates. Another Victorian mining manager is believed to have absconded. "The absence from Sandhurst of a well-known legal manager, whose name has been pretty freely mentioned in mining circles during the past few days," states the Bendigo Advertiser of the 7th inst., " has given rise to some very ugly rumors. It is stated that the cause of his sudden disappearance is owing to deficiencies in the funds of several of the companies, of which he has the management, to the extent of LISOO. There was a general impression prevalent on Saturday that he had left the colony in the Great BritaiD, and that a warrant had been issued for his apprhension ; but we have reason to believe that he is still in the colony, although his precise where- { abouts is not at present known to the police." The mining correspondent of the Inangahu Herald says that great dissarisfaction is being expressed by a portion of the inhabitants of Black's Point, in respect to the proposed line of the Murray Creek road as at present laid out by the Local Board. It appears that according to the line now being formed the road is to be taken round the sideling at the foot of the hill, and thus cut off the geaeral traffic from the surveyed township.