Untitled

Grey River Argus, Volume XV, Issue 1890, 27 August 1874, Page 2

The conjoint deputation appointed by tbe Borough Council and the two Coal Companies to proceed to Wellington to endeavor to induce the General Government to carry out Mr Moriarty's plans for the improvement of the port of Greymoutb, las been delayed owing to the bad weather prevailing on the Coast. The Charles Edward is expected to leave port this (Wednesday) morning, and the members of the deputation will proceed by her, if at all practicable, but we must say that the prospects last night were anything but promising. It is now almost certain that the session of the .assembly will be over before the deputation can arrive, but that may prove a benefit to their cause, as the question they have to lay before the Premier may then be more carefully considered. Tlie usual meeting of the TJospital Committee was held on Wednesday evening. Present— Messrs Masters (in the chair) King, Greenwood, Kennedy, Maclean, Gilmer, W. S. Smith, Revell, F. Hamilton, and Newton. It was reported that an order had been sent to Dunedin for a supply of drugs. A letter was read from the Provincial Secretary, returning the monthly account for amendment, as the items for payment of scrutineers at the annual election could not be allowed. It was resolved that the secretary return the accounts, and state that the expense was usual and necessary, no paid secretary being retained. A letter was read from Mr P. Purcell, enclosing L 8 as a balance of contributions from Maori Gully, which was received. The hon. treasurer reported that Ec had received explanations from the secretary of the Maori Creok, Marsden, and Maori Gully districts, but no reply from the secretary for No Town district. ' A fatal mining accident occurred at Callaghau Creek, near Ahaura, on Wednesday morning, about nine o'clock. A man named Phinlan..T ; luu>nir(vn IIMO _all]ir>_iriff in +Tt/»_o™~i» claim, and not far from the spot where tbe unfortunate man Francis Hawke was killed some months ago, when a body of earth unexpectedly came from the face and buried him: The body was shortly afterwards extricated, but life was extinct. The remains were brought to Ahaura about three o'clock in the afternoon, and an inquest was to be held in the evening. The deceased was an old resident of the Grey Valley ; he sometimes worked at his trade as carpenter and boat-builder, but was principally engaged at mining in the Napoleon and Half-Ounce districts. He was a native of Denmark, and about forty years of age. A meeting was held at Gilmer's Hotel on Wednesday night of those interested in the formation of an Early C'csing Association. There was a large attendance, and it was resolved by those present to become members of such an institution. A Provisional Committee was appointed, consisting of Messrs Higgings, Tomlinson, Forsyth, M'Clure, Crocker, and HolUday, to carry out. the objects ef the meeting, which stands adjourned till Thursday evening. On Saturday, Mr R. "Reeves will sell by auction at Granville, Half-Ounce, Gillman'a Hotel, with its billiard tables, furniture, &c. The weather on the Coast during the last two days has been very boisterous, as it has thundered, rained, hailed, and snowed, almost without intermission, except an occasional gleam of sunshine, on Wednesday afternoon. The fresh in the Grey River waa nob so high aa was expected from the heavy downfall of rain. The same kind of weather appears to have prevailed elsewhere. The /'West Coast Times" says -.—"The almost incessant downpour of rain yesterday caused, • as was expected, a considerable freshet in the river, and. judging from the color of the water the ranges muafc have been denued of a considerable quantity of snow. There was not much timber floating down stream during the day, but towards evening light scrub made its appearance, and no doubt during the night a considerable quantity of heavy timber would be floated down and strewed on the beach. It is to be hoped that the freshes will have proved useful in clearing out the river between the Bpits, and by that means improving the bar ; tne navigation of which has for some dajs back been almost impracticable." A telegram fiom Lyttelton yesterday also says : — "It is still blowing furiously, with heavy sea running in the harbor. Every ship has driven. All work is suspended. Serious damage done to harbor works ; entire portion of the contractor's work on eastern mole has disappeared." Regarding the Buddenly announced resig nation of the Governor, the "Register" remarks:—"The abrupt resignation of the present Governor of New Zealand will no doubt occasion some little surprise throughout the Colony, although we are unable to see that he was under any obligation to apprize his Ministry of bis intentions, Our last two Governors have formed a remarkable contrast to one another, the one hunting for popularity with might and main, and dearly loving the adulation of Colonial flunkeys, tbe other repelling brusquely the reasonable exhibitions of loyalty mado to her Majesty through himself by the colonists. The former of these is still pursuing his career of cajolery in Victoria, the latter goes home, and will probably retire into private life. Let us hope that the coming man will manage to hit the happy mean between the two." Among the unemployed who still remain in the Immigrants' Barracks at Dunedin, it appears, there are a number of Germans and Italian?. They are reputed to be good workmen, but unfortunately they are unacSuainted with the English language, and, lerefore, have more than usual difficulty in finding employers. It is suggested that some of their countrymen in business in

other parts of the Colony, might interest themselves in them so far as to give them or find them employment. The work of extending the storm channel at Ross is being gone on with rapidly. It commences a little below the jUnion Hotel, and is constructed in a most substantial manner. Hunter and Petersen have bottomed their shaft on Jones's Flat, at a depth of 53tt. The prospects are very good, and they intend opening out. They expect to get at the third bottom by driving, as the reef dips. India and Burma support 478 newspapers ; 156 are written in English, 255 in the vernacular, and 67 in both. It is reported in well-informed circles that in future nine out of the seventeen Engineer Batallions in the British Military Service will be employed in India. During the ten years, from 1864 to 1874, there were 93,370 children of European j parents born in the colony of New Zealand. During the same period there were 28,489 deaths recorded, leaving 64,881 as the expess of births over deaths, Of the above number of excess of births over deaths 13,150 are credited to the Auckland Province. The " Otago Daily Times " says : - " Some queer importations are being made into the Colony by Dr Peatherston and his numerous, if not efficient, staff of assistants, under the free and noiniuated system, but the queerest is a lawyer. As if we had not enough and to spare of them already. The gentleman of the long robe brings out a family at the same rate as his own passage cost him, and will no doubt grumble if he does not fall into an extensive practice as soon as he has resided in the Colony for the probationary term required by the Supreme Court. Ttie gentleman alluded to comes from Oxford, but whether from the University we know not." Wild youths who come to New Zealand will learn from the following paragraph in the "Bruce Herald" that they are not altogether forgotten at Home : — "An Otago resident at present on a visit to the Home country, happened to be present in the late General Assembly of the Free Church of Scotland, held in Edinburgh, when the prayers of the Church, were requested by a widow for a careless and only son resident in New Zealand ; also, by another family for two careless sons who had that day sailed for New Zealand." On August 11, a boab containing two men named John Walker and Charles O'Brien, was capsized afa| Anderson's Bay, Otago, and the former (wlffi was a married man with no family) was drowned. They took a small dingy, and pulled over towards the bay for the purpose of fishiDg ; but (says the "Otago Daily Times") from the statement made by O'Brien — the man who was rescued — one is inclined to believe that the ulterior object they had in view was to obtain possession of some boxes, the property of a man named Samuel Woods, who resided near Vauxhall. On arrival at Danedin, Woods gave O'Brien in charge for stealing his property. During the recent debate in the Legislative Council upon the Volunteer question, the following occurred:— The Hon. Mr Fraser said he had heard it stated that volunteers served their country without fee or reward. He thought the half hour's admiration expressed by the sweethearts and wives, of. their military bearing when flaunting their accoutrements before them was a sufficient reward for half an hour's drill on a moonlight night. He considered the Volunteers of Wellington, and of the Province, a contemptible sham— a sham far greater than the volunteers of a toy box. He quite agreed with the advice that had been given that Xn!iintjv>rß Hhoul^ '■■>>« . c>«V»o.Tuied. The Hon. Colonel Brett in the course of Jttis~reuia,nw> i^ veighed strongly against the unmilitary practice of having a junior officer to command a senior, or of inspecting a senior officers company. The Hon. Mr Bonar thought the aspersions he had just heard on the Volunteers came with exceedingly bad grace from officers of the line ! and of all places in the Colony the North Island was the last where a bo ly of men who gave up their time voluntarily for the service of their country should be so disparaged. He thought that they should be blended with the regular army, and encouraged to perfect themselves in military knowledge, rather than discouraged in the manner they had been. The Hon. Mr Praser exempted the Volunteers sit the Pront from his remarks, which only applied to "holiday soldiers." • In the Melbourne '• Argus," of 15th inst, we find an old resident of Hokitika, and a frequent visitor to Greymouth, figuring in the Supreme Court. The circumstances out of which the action arose will be reraenibered by most of our commercial men as the goods for sale which the plaintiff claimed commission, were landed here : — ' • This w^s an action by James Russell Anderson, commission agent and commercial traveller, to recover L 244 2s from William Coulter, of Melbourne, merchant, for commission on the sale of tea, sugar, and wines in New Zealand, and for travelling expenses. Mx Box appeared for the plaintiff, and Mr G. P. Smith, for the defendant. The plaintiff was engaged by the defendant some time ago to ; go to New Zealand and take ordeis for goods. ! He did so, and the goods were sent to New ' Zealand by the defendant, but some of the parties who had ordered goods declined to take them, as they stated that they had not ordered the amount of goods which plaintiff had directed defendant to send them. The plaintiff claimed commission on all goods which, he! said, had been ordered, and he also claimed about Ll3O for travelling expenses. The defence was that the plaintiff had already been paid his commission on the goods actually sold, and that he was not entitled to charge anything for travelling expenses, as they were included in the amount of' the commission allowed tc him. The jury returned a verdict for the defendant.