THE The Grey River Argus. PUBLISHED DAILY MONDAY, APRIL 20, 1874.

Grey River Argus, Volume XIV, Issue 1780, 20 April 1874, Page 2

THE The Grey River Argus. PUBLISHED DAILY MONDAY, APRIL 20, 1874.

Yesterday telegrams were received by the Town Clerk and the representatives of the Grey district in the General Assembly, in reply to a message sent a few days ago representing to the Government the critical state of the river at the lower end of the town, and urging that protective works should be proceeded with. The Minister of Public Works states that the District Engineer had received instructions, before the receipt of the telegram from the Borough Council, to proceed with a detailed survey of the river, and that should it seem to be necessary the Engineerrin-Chief would himself come down tor the purpose of making an examination with the view of future harbor works. No reply has as yet been received to the application of the Borough Council for the temporary use of some of the rails which it is understood to be awai'cing shipment to this port at Wellington. We cannot doubt, however, that the Government will grant the request under the circumstances.

Mr. Peter Dctngait, the member for the Paroa district in the Provincial Council, is most strenuous in his endeavors to further the interests of his constituents. It will be remembered that he drew the attention of the Council last session to the desirability of forming reservoirs in the Paroa district, so that during wet weather water could be stowed in various places, so as to afford the/miners a supply during dry seasons. The Council consented to order the necessary surveys to be made, for the purpose of ascertaining to what extent Mr Dungan'a proposal could be profitably adopted. We now learn that Mr Murray, surveyor, has arrived in the district, and that Mr Dungan has, for the last day, or two, been engaged in giving the Surveyor information regarding the district, and. finding him a suitable assistant in exploring for reservoir sites. The prospect ef the construction of reservoirs has caused great satisfaction to the inhabitants of the Paroa district, and will doubtless operate as a deterrent against the Palmer fever — which, by the way, appears to be abating already. Of course these and other necessary works will depend entirely upon the obtaining of a loan for Westland, but as there is every probability of the Province receiving the consent of the Assembly to a considerable loan, there is a fair prospect that the reservoirs in the Paroa district will be made at no very distant date.

A meeting of persons interested in football was held on Saturday evening at Gilmer's Hotel. It wa3 resolved that a club be founded, and that the subscription be 5s a year. Mr Edward Masters was elected president, iix Heber Newton captain, and Mr Joha Claud Aheara secretary and treasurer A committee was appointed to draw up rules, to be presented to a general meeting, to be held at the same place on Wednesday next. A very narrow escape from fire, attended, unfortunately, with serious results to the owner of the house, took place in Tainuistreet on Saturday evening, between 6 and 7 o'clock, at the residence of Mr Minnogue. It appears that Mrs Minnogue went into the bedroom with a lighted candle to look at a child which was asleep in a cradle there, and being alarmed at seeing a moose in the cradle, she hastily put the lighted candle on the dressing table, and ran for Mr Minnogue. On that gentleman's arrival, be found the curtains and the ceiling in a blaze, and at once proceeded to attempt to subdue the flames by tearing down the ceiling. In this he was ultimately successful, but at the expense of his hands and arms, which were most frightfully burned, not a single part'ele of skin being left on the hands. He at once ran to Dr Morice, who, assisted by Dr Smith, dressed the wounds, but we are afraid it will be some considerable time before he will be able to have the use of his hands again. A deputation, consisting of Messrs P. M. Griffen, J T. Fitzgerald, and Daniel hiedy proceeded to Hokitika the other day for the purpose of ascertaining if the Superintendent would give a site for a Catholic School upon the Camp Heserre, for the reason that the present site has already been considerably curtailed by recent floods, and that the safety of the school building is considered to be endangered. The deputation returned-yester-day by the Kennedy, and we understand that his Honor gave them a promise that, , should the ground applied for not be required for public purposes a sufficient area for a school. would be granted. The death of Mr David Drake, of Hokitika, is announced in the Melbourne papers. His decease took place on the 17th ultimo, at Power street, Hawthorne, near Melbourne. Mr Drake was in his 52nd year. I In the course of some observations on a bye-law case in Resident Magistrate's Court, Dunedin, Mr Bathgate stated that if any case, brought before him he found the person guilty of incivility, or obstruction to any officers of the law, a heavy fine would be imposed, as he was determined to uphold the latter when they performed their duties properly. If, on the other hand, a constable exceeded his duty, or acted in a tyrannical, arbitrary, or improper manner he would be severely punished, and in a much greater degree than a citizen.. He hoped the police would be better supported than they had hitherto been. We learn from the West Coast Times that a deputation waited, upon his Honor the Superintendent, on Friday, to consult him respecting, the prospects of the General Government undertaking the construction of thg 'Mikonui Water-race. His Honor, in response to a request made by Mr Cuming, stated what had transpired between himself and the General Government on the subject. He had forwarded to the Government the Ross petition, the Warden's report ; also a copy of the resolution passed by the Provincial Council, expressing the willingness of Provincial Government to guarantee the in- < Veriest' on half the cost of the race. He had ■received a reply on the 13th inst., from the Colonial Secretary, to the effect that the Government regretted that there were not sufficient funds at their disposal to enable them to undertake the construction of the work*

— ■ r , ■ i i— In reply, his Honor promptly* forwarded a telegram, of whidEthefdllbwin'gjia.iAi.copy^r " Be Mikonui Raife— Much regret ydiir reply of Bth inst, as all miners who can get enough money together will leave Ross District for Palmer river. Many have already gone. Could I hold out any prospect of its construction after sitting of Assembly! Pardon my urgency, but at present matters are critical " His Honor informed the deputation that he had not yet received a reply to that telegram. A long discussion ensued as to the steps that it would be advisable to take under the circumstance. Among other propositions entertained, was that of despatching a deputation to Wellington to interview Ministers. It was, however, ultimately decided to await the Government's reply before taking further action ; and it was further arranged that his Honor should, immediately after the close of the proceedings, inform the Government by telegram of his interview with the deputation, and the deep anxiety felt as to the tenor of the expected reply. The deputation theh thanked his Honor fur his courtesy, and withdrew. Immediately afterwards his Honor despatched the following telegram to the Colonial Secretary :--" Just received influential deputation from Hokitika and Ross Mikonui Race Committees. They advance many cogent reasons for Government undertaking construction of race, specially urging the threatened exodus to the Palmer River, which would be materially checked if prospect held out of Government constructing race. Informed deputation of your reply that funds not at present available. Also read copy of my telegram to you of 13th instant. Much anxiety felt as to tenor of your reply to same." -. ■ The other day, at Christckurch, a man in a drunken spree dashed his head through a plate-glass window, and in extracting it cut his throat so. severely that his life was in danger. A middle-aged man named George Fortescue Lock, residing at Saltwater Creek, near Christchurch, was found shot through the head. He had got a gun at a store which the storeman thought he intended to use for duck-shooting. After the man had gone some distance from the store, the storeman, heard the report of a gun, and went to see if any game had been shot, when to his horror he found the deceased nearly dead, the contents of the gun having passed through his head. He was speedily removed to Cameron's where he shortly afterwards ex-, pired. He had recently been fined at Rangiora for drunkenness, and the general belief is that this preyed upon his mind and caused him to commit the rash act. The result of the last week's crushing from the Wealth of Nations claim was 318oz amalgam. This was scraped from the tables only. We take the following items of Reefton news from the Herald of Saturday :— A miner named Hunter, who was hurt by the fall of a tree some weeks ago, had his arm amputated above the elbow on Friday, and is progressing favorably. The track between Reefton aud Capleston is becoming unfit for traffic, but steps are to be taken to corduroy some of the worst portions. — The brewery premises and good will of business, lately the property of Mr Murdoch M'Phee, have been purchased by Mr Pizzey, of Hokitika. who is now conducting the busiucss — The miner Brown, hurt the other day ai the the Wealth of Nations mine; and Silcox, who had his arm badly cut by an axe, are both progressing favorably. One shilling has been fixed by the Dunedin City Council as the rate for the ensuing year. The gross valuation of property is set down at L 152.208 10s, as against L 136.144 for 1873. The rate this year will produce a revenue of L 9528. The Tablet advocates that all Catholics should vote in a block at elections. It says : — "The recent change of the Ministry at home cannot fail to be ultimately for the benefit of the Catholic party, not that Mr Di-raeli, however, is any greater friend of Catholics than Mr Gladstone. Both these men, like other Protestant statesmen in England, are mere men of expedients. They have no prominent principles. They are like a cork on the water, and float away as the wind and tide drive them— very much in this respect like the Protestant If Catholics be necessary to sustain them in power, they will, favor the Catholics, not otherwise. Mr Disraeli may feel the want of Catholic support in the hour of his extremity, and he will secure it if he prudently can by conceding something to the Catholics, if not all they want It will be the same thing in New Zealand, so Catholics here had better look after tbernselve3, and manage ' the Catholic vote ' well. On certain occasions, and these the most critioal, our v<te tells when given in a block, however few we be compared with Protestants. Divide the Catholic vote and we become the victims of our enemies at all times." The reign of political peace and defeat of faction appears to have arrived in Victoria, for the lion and lamb, it' not lying down togethtr, are marching on in loving bands to the sweet strains of music. Imagine Orangemen, and St. Patrick's processionists joining together in loving unity. This is what a Melbourne paper records as having taken place in Ballarat on St. Patrick's Day: — "The lrish Protestants in orange and blue, and the Catholics in green, taar hed togethsr behind the same band, and away to the same sports to enjoy themselves in the same national festival. The idea of Irish Catholics and Protestams combining together for anything else but a mutual breaking of beads seems almost impossible to those who know what they are at Home ; but now that we have shown that the thing can be done without fatal consequences, I hope our friends in the old country will follow our example. Home rule would not appear quite so absurd if all Irishmen were like those of Ballarat." We commend this important historical fact to the Orangemen . A Bill has been introduced into the Sydney Legislature for the abolishment of all pensions and annuities to any person in consideration of services rendered by him as a member of the Executive Council, or as a member of the General Assembly, or Legislative Council, or in consideration of services voluntarily rendered by any person in the promotion of any measure political and social, having professedly for its object the public good. Ln other words, pensions are to be abolished for political offices ; and Ministers who have heretofore looked forward to a comfortable retiring annuity for life, after a few brief years of executive duties, during which they have been in receipt of good salaries, will, so far as New South Wales is concered, have to depend npon some other source than the cousolidated revenue to Support them. This is what a lot of wiseacres, otherwise called the Provincial Council of Taranaki, say about raffles and lotteries j — " Mr Syme, objected to the Bill as it stood. He thought they might be a little lenient in special cases ; for instance, at bazaars it was carried on to a very great extent ; but then they always had a desirable object in view, and it was the raffling wdich tended to make them a success. Mr Whitcombe said if it was an evil, they must not encourage it in any shape or form, tie learnt that L2OOO had been taken out of the Province during the last year by this means alone. They had no idea, in fact, of the extent to which that species of gambling was carried. It was shameful. Mr Standish agreed with the last speaker in saying that if they wanted reckless gambling suppressed, no loop-hole must be allowed. Major Atkinson thought some of the mem-

bers were pressing the matter too hard in trying to sj:op little raffles He thought the matter should be left more in the hands of the Superintendent; and that the police alone should, lay-^in information, when his Honor could make what he liked illegal. Mr Elliott said it was a great evil among young people. Mr Upjohn said it was a growing evil, and shduld be put down with a strong hand. Mr Standish said it was a universal evil, and it was therefore the duty of everyone - to try and atop it, and not leave it all to the police, who were sometimes very careless. Mr Syme quite agreed with the lasc speakers in saying that it was a vice which out to be suppressed, but as he had already said, raffling at bazaars most certainly ought to be an exception." The joke is that those wise men of Taranaki looked upon bazaars as an exception, when, as everyone knows, there is more gambling carried on at bazaars than at any other public place. A remarkable addition has just been made to the collection in the Government Museum at Brisbane, in the shape of a genuine Queensland mummy, which was obtained in the neighborhood of Johnston River by the exploring expedition, under the command of Mr Dalrymple. The mummy, says the Courier, which presents a most hideous appearance, is that of an old black gin. The knees and arms have been beat up to the chin, the lower part of the legs being bent, and the whole has been tightly bound with cord, and then smoke-dried — a means of preserving the human body supposed to be employed by the poorer [kind of Egyptians. This mummy, which was found in a hollow tree, is supposed to be employed to have been deposited there by one of the tribes of the north whose habit it is to carry the bodies of their dead about with them — other tribes carrying the a hes only.