THE Grey River Argus PUBLISHED DAILY MONDAY, JUNE 30, 1874.

Grey River Argus, Volume XV, Issue 1841, 30 June 1874, Page 2

THE Grey River Argus PUBLISHED DAILY MONDAY, JUNE 30, 1874.

" For ways that are dark and deeds that are vain;" there are other people than the " Heathen Chinee " that are "peculiar." In this instance we must refer to recent proceedings in the Provincial Council — proceedings which we venture to say show that incompetence in the Executive is thoroughly shared by the Council itself. After many weeks in the contemplation, and afterwards in the consideration of the proposal of the Superintendent regarding the works to be constructed out : of , the loan which is expected to be obtained, a schedule was agreed to, but in the innocence of their innocent . souls, the members of the Gouhciragreed to a resolution authorising the Executive to make, such alterations in the schedule as would meet the views of the General Government — supposing that the General Government would commuinicate its views at all upon the subject. It does not seem to have occurred to the minds of the sapient gentlemen who now control the administration of the public affairs of Westland^ that the reso lution in question absolutely . destroyed the integrity of the schedule of works agreed to, and apparently leaves the absolute fixing of the works to the discretion of the Executive. A more absurd position f or a body such as the Provincial Council could not be .conceived, but fortunately the indop — <;i ent power sought to be obtained, by luJ i'roviucial authorities is nullified by tV fact that neither the Provincial Government nor the Provincial Council can-do anything more than make a recommendation f<>r the consideration of the Assembly. We have no desire to throw 'any Cold water; upon' the loan proposal, hut ye are 'justified in saying that the '-.-Provincial Government has not a iopted steps likely to insure the assistance in Parliament which ie will certainly require.

We do not like to be hard upon the Provincial Council, but we must say that already signs are evident that the truth of the old proverb "Qiiem Deus vult perdere "is beginning to show itself. With a treasury more than exhausted, and no credit worth the name, the new-fledged Provincial Secretary had the courage to ask -the Council the other day to vote the sum of £1000 to be expended as occasion might serve in assisting the Road Boards. A more untenable and absurd proposition was never brought forward in the Council, and it was evidently one of those claptrap ,ihing3 introduced merely for effect. No Road Boards bad asked for assistance in forma pauperis, although most of the Boards are in debt, and some of them without any near probability of getting out of that uucomfortable position ; and it was almost an. insult to the intelligence of the Council to ask its concurrence in voting a sum of money which made something,like £800 above the possible revenue for the year. The proposal was negatived, but the fact that it was made at all shows how little the Executive comprehend the position of affairs. To read Mr Woolcock's remarks, as reported in the Hokitika papers, one would think that he was in the position of a pater familiar to every Road Board in the Province j^ that he had only to pull out frrm capacious, pockets a shower. of gold to be lavished upon those upohwhbin he looked with favor. But is it not absurd that anyone pretending to the management of public affairs should come down and absolutely ask for authority to spend one thousand pounds which he has not got, and which he is not likely to obtain. A more stupid and ignorant proposal could not have been made. We would advise Mr Woolcock and his colleague to take advantage of the recess, and make themselves acquainted with art of governing — an accomplishment which they do not as yet possess.

We have received a most impertinent letter from, a Mr Robb, of No Town, threatening us in mysterious terms with all the penalties of the law of libel, with respect to a paragraph which appeared in our columns a few days ago. We recommend the writer to commence his action: without any delay. An official inquiry was held yesterday, by J.. Greenwood, Esq., J.P., at the Duke of Edinburgh, ttdtel, into .the circumstances connected with the death of Mrs M'Lean, in her house in Hospital street, as stated in our last issue.' The evidence went to show that the: deceased had been missing for some days, and inquiries having, been made about her, the police were communicated with. Sergeant M oiler stated:- -From information t received on Saturday night last, I caused inquiries to foe made concerning Mrs M'Lean, auil being unable to obtain s tisfaocory information >of her iwhereabouis. {. went to her cottage in

Hospital street yesterday .afternoon, and afl;e r knocking at the door and receiving no reply, I f ff-cted an orihr.incc through the bed-room \vind<nv. T found the deceased in a half- > sitting, half-leaning position on a box beside the bed. Her head was in a corner against the wall. I sunt'fpr D.'-'Morioe, and when he arrived we placed the deceased on the bed Shi lvi'l evilinr.lv been dead some days Charles l.loyl U«>rico sworn, said :I am a medical practitioner residing in Greymouth. I knew tbe decease.!. (This witness then corroborated Sergeant Moller's evidence as to the finding of the body.) I have made a jjost mortem examination of the remains. They present no external marks of violence. My opinion is that death was caused by a weak heart, and deceased, aorta, accelerated by the position in which deceased was found lying. My impression is that the deceased, from great exhaustion, which was occasioned possibly by want of rest, . fainted, and fell into a peculiar position that called for great exertion of the heart to keep up the necessary circulation of the blood, and this exertion the heart of the deceased was unable to make. If the deceased had been warm in bed I do not think that the aortic disease in itself would have been sufficient to cause death, but accelerated by exposure to cold and position of body, 1 think it sufficient to have caused death. The jury, after a brief consultation, returned a verdict in accordance with the medical evidence. A grand district ball and supper, for which ■reat preperations are being made, is to 'ake •lace within the next fortnight at Halter's errace, : Nelson Creek, for the benefit ,of the funds of the Grey River Hospital. A meeting of the Grey Valley Road Board ia to be held to-day, at Ahaura, the principal j business being to. examine the tenders for maintaining the portion of the main Grey Valley road within the jurisdiction of the Board, and to consider communications from the Government with respect to the future revenue of the Board. The time for sending in tenders for the I maintenance of the portion of the Grey Valley road from the Arnold Bridge to the Liltle Grey Junction expired yesterday. There was, it is said, about 50 tenders given in, and it was rumored some of them were at lan absurdly low figure. The tenders will be opened at the meeting of the Road Board, which is to be held to-day (Tuesday). The Board wisely insisted upon a deposit from each intending contractor of 5 per cent, on the "amount of the tender as a guarantee that I the successful tenderer wil l take up the contract, thus avoiding delay in commencing the work and preventing public disappointment and inconvenience by having the road promptly put into repair. The date within which all fees for licenses under the new Act muse be paid expires today. It is feared that the operation of the new law will have the effect of seriously diminishing the already decreasing revenue of the Nelson South- Wesc Gold-fielrts. The revenue from publicans' licenses for the last financial year collected in the Grey Valley amounted to some L 250 ', but it is not likely to reach anything like that sum this year, if the expressed intention to close the houses of a numbei of persons who held licenses last; year be carried into effect. The striking of coal in the main shaft of the Greymouth C»al Company's workings is thus referred to by the New ZealandTtines : — " It is. in fact, a very cheering item of news for many speculative shareholders, and for the (Jolony generally. It is that, in the main shaft which his been sunk by the Greymouth Coal Company, a seam of coal of excellent quality: and fourteen f*et thick has hem struck. The complete confidence which the promoters of the company had in its success is thus fullj sustained, and the practical working of rhe new mine will now, no doubt, be pushed on with all energy, and with the result of placing in tho Colonial market a supply of coal more commensurate with the demand than any supply could possibly be from the one mine which was lately leased by the Nelson -overnment." A destructive gale is reported by the Herald to have occurred at Waiuku. It commenced to blow strong about 8 o'clock p.m. and by dusk rose to a perfect hurricane A good deal of damages to houses, hay-stacks, drays, and trees has been the lesult, but nothing of a very serious nature. At Port Waikato, the Government building was completely blown off the blocks and carried some distance ; it contained a machine and a quantity of flax. The building was carried away at high-water and drifted some chains, and finally lodged on the side of the river amongst a quantity of toi-toi. At Pnrapura (the old landing-place at the head of the A'waro creek), a house, formerly used as a store, was completely blown over and considerably smashed. \t Waiuku east several I hay and straw-stacks were blown down, and a great number of gum and other trees were completely rooted up. Several fences also suffered from the effects of the gale. Messrs Carroll and Cairns, of the Little Wonder claim, have received a certificate from the Christchu r ch Exhibition Committee. The following is the inscription: — "The judges appointed to decide on the murita of articles exhibited, have awarded to Carroll and Cairns this certificate of high commendation for successful mining enterprise." The appointment of Mr "William Gray as Secretary to the General Post Office of the Colony, is gazetted, the appointment dating from May 1 of this year. Tbe Otago Times understands that Mr John Muir has sold his property at Green Island, 9L acres, for the sum of L3OOO sterling. Mrs Shand, on whose property there are large coal deposits, was offered L 42 per acre, and refused. Such is the rise in property in that locality. Mr W. Pearson, Commissioner of Crown Lands,- Southland, in his report states that the total revenue collected at Invercargill Land Office was LJ 13,998 10s Gd. The total •cost of collecting which, irrespective of the •rdinary work in the office entailed by past transactions, amounted to L 985, or lid in the£. The eighth half-yearly genoral meeting of the Red Jack's Benefit Society was held at Frankpitt's store on the 20th June. The Chairman (Mr fiudkin), in opening tbe I meeting, said that the business before them that evening was to receive and adept the half yearly account, and to elect officers an<? committee for the ensuing six months. Tbe balance-sheet, which he should have the pleasure to lay before them, having been carefully audited showed a handsome balance to the credit of the Society, while the exppnses for the las: six mouths had been unusually light, and he congratulated the Society on their increased prosperity. The balance-sheet was then read and unanimously adopted, being as follows : — Cash in hand, L74 12s Gd ; subscriptions for the six months, L 44 15s 6d ; total, Lll9 Bs. Expenses. LIQ 19s ; balance in hand to the credit of the Society, I 102 93. The Secretary (Mr Flynn) having to be absent from the district for some time during the ensuing six months, requested that he might not be nominated for re-election, and said " I am sure it must 1 be to you a source of gratification to learn from the Treasurer's balance-sheet just read that tne Society is in a prosperous condition. Eighteen months ago our balance in hand was only L4O, and now we have the respectable sum of LI 02. This increase, in my opinion, may be accounted for in this way— Ist, the raising of the subscription from 6d to Is weekly ; 2nd, the decrease of sickness and accidents among the members ; and 3rd, the punctual manner ia which the members

have ■ paid up their subscriptions." The I Society's contract connection with the Grey Uivnr flospitnl continues ro give general satisfaction. A list of the names of the members, and the sum 3s 3d for each, which is equivalent to 13s a year, is forwarded every three months in advance to the hospital. Although a member's name is on the hospital I list he is supposed to have an order from the Secretary of the S' ciety before he be attended to at that institution, nor will he he entitled to such order until after the expiration of one month from the date of his election-.as member of the Sjcietv. The names of the committee for the ensuing half-year are as follows :— John Flynn (Chairman), Samuel Frankpitt, John M'Cormick, Thomas Suzton, Frank Sponheimer, J. H. Williams (Hon. Treasurer), George Rudkin (Hon. Sec). At the conclusion of the meeting the following vote was unanimously passed : — "That the tbanks of the Society be tendered to the officers of the Grey River Hospital, who have on all occasions received and treated pur p itients with civility and attention. " We learn that the Rev. Father Ecuyer, of Christchurch, is shortly to take' charge of tbe Greymouth parish. Regarding this the Lyttelton Times says :—" The members of the Catholic Church residing in this city and the surrounding neighborhood, will regret to learn that the Rev. Father Ecuyer takes his departure for Greymouth in the course of a few days. The rev. gentleman has been in Christchurch for a number of years, and his self-denial and kindliness of heart have endeared him not only to those of whom he had spiritual cturge, but to many belonging to other religious denominations. He has been most untiring in his zeal for the advancement of the interests of his congregation, and his transfer from Christchurch to the West Coast will be deeply regretted by all who have been witnesses of his devoted exertions for the spiritual and material welfaro of his flock, It is mainly owing to the labors of the Rev. Father Ecuyer that the Catholics of this city are in possession of such an excellent s hoolroom as that known by the name of St. Patrick's Hall, and for some time past he had been most indefatigable in his endeavors to effect such an enlargement of the church to meet the demands of a rapidly increasing congregation. It is understood that the Rev. Father Ecuyer will be succeeded by the Rev. Father Chataignier, who was transferred to Timaru at the time Father Ecuyer assumed the charge of the Christchurch district. Referring to the action lately brought by our Borough Council against the late lessees of the Brunner Coal-mine, the Aleio Zealand Times says : — "A nonsuit in such an action was not an unlikely result, and it may serve as a lesson to Municipal Councils to adhere more closely to their specific duties, and to attend rather to the collection of borough rates and their fair expenditure than to meddle with matters which are outside of the scope of their proper functions. It is a frequent fault with Borough Councils — probably with the best intentions— that they venture to deal with matters with which they cannot legitimately interfere, and, not for the first time, the Council in question have found this to their cost, or to the cost of those whom they represent. [We le^rn that the action above referred to has been settled by Messrs Hughes and M 'Car thy paying the Borough Council LSO, and the legul expenses.] A monthly French journal, the Revue Aus~ tralienne, is now published in Sydney. It has been projected to support French interests in Australia, New Caledonia, New Zealand, Fiji, Tahiti, and the Polynesian Islands generally. It reproduces articles from tde Colonial press having interest to the French population of the Colonies and settlements already alluded to, with mercantile intelligence, political news, correspondence, short tales, &c, ana will be interesting to the particular people to whom it is addressed. As tbe Rangatira was making her way down the East Coast the other day, and when just off Portland Island, those on board saw some strange objects about two miles away. The steamer was headed for the place, and the objects turned out. to be a crew of Maoris in a whaleboat, who were towing behind them a large whale, which they stated had been dead some days. Those on board having already guessed it must have been about that period, the steamer retreated precipitately, the Maoris being left to the enjoyment of the pure atmosphere surrounding them. The following is published as the list of successful and unsuccessful tenders for the construction of four steam launches for the Government, to be delivered at Auckland, Wellington, Lyttelton, and Dunedin ;— Accepted— Fraser and Tinne, Auckland, L 2400. Declined— A. and E. Price, Thames, each, L 58 5; Masefield and "Co., Auckland, L 2500 ; E. W/Mills, Wellington (informal), each, L 54 5; John Anderson, Christchurch —each delivered in Lyttelton, L 665, elsewhere L7J 5; Sparrow and Co., Dunedin— each delivered in Dunedin L 645, Lyttelton L 665. Wellington L 670, Auckland L 67 5; Kincaid, M /Queen, and Co., Dunedin (with Field boilers), L 2316 ; Hambleton and Co., Dunedin, each, L 906; C. M. Bridge, Akaroa—offer of one steam launch, two years old, for the sum of L4OO. The Lyell Argus is threatened with an action fwr libel at the instance of Mr George Donne. The following telegram has been received by our co temporary from Mr Donne's solicitors :— "To k r James Graham Niven, Lyell Argus, Lyell. Mr Donne instructs us to demand an apology for your ' leader ' of the 30th May, and taree guineas costs, or in default, to take proceedings. If you will apologise, wo will forward a form, otherwise, we must immediately proceed. " To this Mr Niven forwarded the following reply :— " To Messrs Adams and Kingdon, solicitors, Nelson: — "A reference to the ' leader ' of May shows me that the person who is there alluded to, is described as ' a notoriously honest and worthy man.' It is to be regretted that Mr Donne should consider such epithets libellous, but aa he appears to do so, and to think that they apply to him, I shall have no possible objection to apologise for having in that manner accidentally offended hie 1 ." The Molyneux River, Otago, continues at a very low level this season, giving the bank sluicers plenty, of fall to run away their stuff. The palmy days of beach workings (remarks the Tuapeka paper) appear to have departed. Four or five years ago, when the river was about its present level, the sound of cradles could be heard along the beaches from the Kawarau to the Beamont. An interesting incident of recent occurrence is the launching of a steamer into tbe famous Lake Taupo. Tbe experiment of placing steam vessels on the magnificent lakes of the South Island was first made subsequent to the great Dunstan rush, when one of the small iron steamers plying in Port Ota^o was ponyeyed by dray to the shores of the lake where she continued to trade for several years, conveying n-iners and their stores to the remote localities where gol 1 was sought for and obtained. Since then several other steamers have been built on the shores of tha same lake, and steam communication on that magnificent sheet of water has done much to promote the settlement of the dist trict, and to contribute to the convenience and pleasure of hundreds attracted thither by its picturesque surroundings. The placing of a steamer on Lake Taupo is necessarily more of an experira j nt than was the introduction of steamers on Lake Wakatip, the prospect of the traffic proving profitable being as yet but slight ; but the fact is a gratifying

illusbration of the peaceful state of that part of tbe country, and the presence of such a vessel on the waters of tho Lake will doubt'ess in a very short time develope a local trade, and prove especially convenient to the increasing number of visitors who are now being attracted to the interior in search of health and the picturesque. The building of tho steamer, christened the Victoria, has occupied some six months, and appears to have been a faithful piece of work, the material used in her construction bein^ some of the best timber available in the YVaikato district. Her launch was the occasion of some demonstration, and worthily so, for the enterprise is one which is creditable to her owners, and is an incident in the progress of civilisation in the North Island which deserves t ) be prominently recorded. In all the Provinces of the Colony but two the number of inhabited houses has increased considerably in the interval between the census of 1871 and 1874. The two exceptions are Nelson and Westland, the falling-off in the number of domiciles in. these Provinces being no doubt due to the departure of the mining population to other fields within and beyond the Colony. In Nelson there were 5819 houses inhabited in 1871 ; now there are 5703. In Westland there were 5457 in 1871, whereas there are now only 4645. The numerical increase in the other Provinces have been as follows : —From 13,667 to 14,104 in Auckland, from 987 to 1158 inTaranaki, from 4779 to 5328 in Wellington, from 1215 to 1617 in Hawke's Bay, from 1012 to 1225 in Marlborough, from 8747 to i 10.518 in Canterbury, and from 15,463 to 1 16,975 ia Ofcago. The total increase was from 57,146 to 61,270.