Interprovincial Items.

Hawke's Bay Times, Volume 15, Issue 763, 21 February 1870, Page 2

Interprovincial Items.

We regret to observe that many children have been dying of diarrhoea in Ohristehurch. Anderson's saw-mills, with five houses and a bridge, were destroyed by a bush fire at Wairarapa on the night of the 14th inst, None of the property was insured. The Morning Advertiser's correspondent says that the attack made on a party of our forces between Tanranga and Ohinemutu, on the 3rd inst, was very rapid, and nothing was seen of the enemy exeept the gleaming of their rifle barrels. After one volley two or three natives forming the ambuscade were seen retiring into the bush. Sergeant Whittey, who was killed, was much respected. The following telegram appears in the Evening Post:—" Dunedin, Feb. 11. At the crushing of the Aurora Company, Cromwell, last eight, three pounds of stone yielded one |jound of gold. It is reported that a ledge of gold like a jeweller's shop has been struck. The excitement is immense." The Evening Post refers to the above in the following terms:—"The glories of the Thames gold-fields promise to be utterly eclipsed by those of Otago—quartz yielding one-third of gold, and a ledge, "glittering like a jeweller's shop," have been discovered. This beats the Long Drive hollow. If discoveries like these become numerous we shall have the title of "Empire" setting not northwards but southwards, notwithstanding the Californian steam service. The Otago people have always been persistent believers in the richness of their gold-fields, and someof their journals have asserted all through thai those fields would ultimately prove of more importance than even those of Auckland, and it would seem as if the correctness of their opinions were about to be vindicated. Perhaps our turn for a slice of good fortune is coming also. The Terawiti companies are firm in their belief that the reefs they have discovered are highly auriferous, and hopes and shares have risen in consequence. It is sincerely to be hoped that there will be no disappointment this time,' —By late papers we learn that a new vein had been struck on the morning of the loth inst. of extraordinary riehness. The stone is being raised in backets. The full lead is reported as two feet thick. The stone is a complete ma?B of g->ld. One piece has been exhibited . in Cromwell, takon out by Mr Ferand, the ex-Mayor of Clyde, and is vouched for,

A skylark is reported to have been heard several times lately in the neighborhood of Oamaru (Otago.) Thirty armed natives wore seen passing through Waitara a few days ago on their way to New Plymouth, for the purpose, they stated, of holding a meeting there. An agreement between Mr Proudfoot and the Government, for the construction of the Port Chalmers and Dunedin Bail* way, has been signed—the works to commence in six weeks. Lovers of music will be glad to learn that Madame Carandini, her two gifted daughters, and Mr Sherwin, are again on a visit to New Zealand, having arrived at Dunedin by the Omeo on her last trip from Melbourne. One hundred and fifteen immigrants, who lately arrived in Lyttelton by the Celoeno, were all engaged in a very short dine, and the Immigration ofifoer says three times the number would have mot with engagements. At a recent public meeting in Nelson, with reference to the Wangapeka sales, Mr Liickio said :-—" All here will admit that trade is paralysed ; and from certain enquiry which a friend of mine has made, I am informed that there are now in Nelson from 220 to 240 houses and shops at present unoccupied." Wo learn from the Auckland papers that the anniversary of the patron saint of Ireland is to be celebrated on a scale of unusual magnificence at the Thames, The idea of a dinner in Wellington on thesamo day has been broached, but we learn from the Evening Post that there seem to be no efi'or's making to push it forward. A very destructive fire took place at (Auckland) on the 6th instant, by which the stables of Mr Parnell, on the beach, and Mr Mitchara, the sailmaker's premises, were totally destroyed. The fire is supposed to have been the work of an incendiary, an inquest was to be held with regard to it. By our files from Nelson we observe that the Provincial Government ot that Province are advertising for proposals for the erection of a slip, dry dock, or floating dock in Nelson harbor, the same to be kept in working order for a term of years. The terms as authorised by the Patent Slip or Dry Dock Act of 1867, as amended by the Floating Act of L 869, are returns guaranteed to 10 per cent, per annum for 10 years, on amount of capital expended on such work not exceeding £25,000. We learn from a late Now Zealand Herald that mining matters are in a state of depression at the Thames. This is partly owing to the transition state of things, and will continue until one-half the cumpanies on the .field are broken up. This process is, however, rapidly going on. A largo number of applications for leases have been withdrawn, and lately a number of claims, [judgments of debt having been brought to the hammer and sold, many of them for a few shillings. The panic in Long Drive shares seems to have abated, and well it may, for there was no ground whatever at any time for the senseless hurry to sell this valuable scrip. The determination of the Superintendent to enforce the leasing regulations to the letter of the law, is having the beneficial effect of causing worthless unproved ground taken up for purposes ot scrip selling to be abandoned, while gradually the better claims are being brought into work. As tins sort of thing proceeds, the condition of the field must necessarily improve. The Collingwood correspondent of the Nelson Examiner gives the following account of an audacious case of household robbery which occurred on the 22nd ult. • within two miles of Collingwood j—" The house of Mir H. Alport, situated on the open flat, was entered while the family were engaged burning some bush not half-a-mile away. The door being locked, the robber entered by the window, and, after turning out the contents of nearly every box in the house, discovered thecasb-box, which was concealed in a flour-case, and abstracted the whole of what it contained, amounting to £55 in notes and gold. The thief, or thieves, appear to have done the work in a very leisurely manner, for not only was the whole house ransacked, but abundant marks of their depredations were discovered in the garden. Apple-trees and raspberry borders were nearly stripped of their fruit, and even the dray was shifted from its place. Footsteps (two sizes) have been seen under the trees, and carefully mea-ured ; but as yet no satisfactory clue has been found which may connect any ono with this cruel outrage on a struggling settler, who is ill able to bear the loss. We take the following paragraph from the Evening Post, 12th February ;—ln reference to the specimens of quartz; from the Never Despair Gruld-mining Company, submitted to Dr Hector for the purpose of testing, we have been furnished with the following report;—A button of metal which had been extracted by Mr tiimth contained 1* grains of gold, together with two small scales of platinum and iridium, the latter a rave metal sometimes found with the gold at Collingwood. I understand that this button was obtained from one pound weight of stone, which is, therefore, at the rate of 7 ounces to the ton. The fragment of rock from the casing of the reefis altered sandstone, composed of subangular grains of clear quartz, cemenced together so as to appear like grange under the microscope. The rock is traversed by thin, irregular veins of fibrous and granular quartz, in some of Which gold is visible. 1,500 grains of the sample of rock, on being crushed and amalgamated, yielded 75 lOJths of a grain of gold, ' which is at the rate of loz 12|dwta pes ton—J. llecxos,

The Lancashire Bell-ringers are performing in Nelson with great sucooss. Mr Barlow has arrived in Ohristchureb with his troop of performing dogs and monkeys. Thatcher, the "inimitable," is giving a series of his popular performances in Dunedin, in which city the Carandini family are also perfoimingto crowded houses. An accident which resulted in the death of a boatman named Henry Thompson, a man of about 50 years of age, took place on Lake Hawea (Otago) on the Ist inst. The Cromwell Guardian gives the following particulars regarding the fatal occurrence: —ln company with a mate named Palmer, deceased was employed manning a boat named the Water lily, and having occasion to land a pnssengor, Thompson fell overboard from the dinpy. On the acci dent being observed, the foresail of the Water Lily, which would seem to have been under weigh at the time, was pulled down, and the vessel put to the wind Thompson could swim a little, but before his mate succeeded in reaching him he had disappeared. Information of the accident was given to Mr Shrimpton, runholder, who immediately took steps to search for the body, but down to the timo our despatch left it had not been recovered. We take the following from the Evening Post, 15th February:—"Yesterday morning, a seaman belonging to the Lord Ashley, named John Connolly, had one of his totM cut off by a case falling on it out of a dray. In the afternoon a more serious accident occurred to another man belonging to the same vessel, named John Handley. He was down in the fore hold, when some cases were being hoisted in, and through striking the hatch one lot of these came out of the slings, two striking Handley, one on the front and the other on the back of his head, and tearing away skin and fi sh from the scalp. At first, it was thought that he was killed, but after a little time he revival, and I)r Grace, who was very quickly on the spot, had him removed to the hospital." The Daily Advertiser, 16th February, contains the following paragraph ;—" Rumors were circulated in town yesterday of the death of the man, J. Handley, who was so seriously injured on board "the Lord Ashley on Monday, but we are happy to be able to state that both he and the one who his toes (Connolly), are in a fair way of recovery." The Canterbury Art Exhibition at Christchurch was opened on Tuesday, 9fch February by Mr Kolleston, the Superintendent of the province. There was a largo number of persons present on the occasion, and the proceedings passed off very successfully. Mr Bowen, K.M., who addressed his Honor on behalf of the promoters (<f the Exhibition, apologised for the incompleteness of some of the arrangements, such as the delay in the issue of catalogues, but added that, notwithstanding: this, the Exhibition was fairly entitled to be considered a success. He also ackuowJedged the obligations the committee were under to gentlemen in other provinces, especially in Otago, Wellington, and Nel ton, for the trouble they had taken to promote the success of the undertaking. The Superintendent in his reply dwelt at considerable length on the beneficial influence, exerted by exhibitions of this kind, and congratulated the committee upon the success which had attended their efforts He then formally declared the Exhibition open, and the visitors proceeded to examine the exhibits. These we learn from the local papers are about 3,000 in number, the oil paintings and water color drawings being the strong points of the Exhibition. Among other exhibits also are the Monrad collection, and a number of photographs, prints, and engravings, in addion to jewellery, medals, statuettes, fossils, and Indian shawls, carvings, and weapons. A number of selections of vocal and instrumental music were rendered at intervals during the afternoon. The number of visitors present on the occasion was between 300 aud 400. A correspondent of the Nelson Colonist calls attention to the injurious effect that using as food sheep that have been recently dipped for *cab is likely to have on the public health. The Nelson Government cause all sheep arriving from the Wairau to be dipped in a poisonous composition, strong enough to cause the finger nails of the men who dip the sheep to turn black. The sheep themselves who are bathed and soaked in it, and carry a large quantity away with them, to be si ill further absorbed into the skin and circulation, must be still more affected by the poison, and must be utterly unfit for food for months afterwards. The Colonist's correspondent says:—"l may mention that I have cut a piece out of a skin of a sheep dipped in Hood's composition a fortnight before being killed, and wrapped a shilling in it against the fleshy side, and an hour or two afterwards the shilling was black. And yet flock after flock is consumed in Nelson immediately after being saturated in this highly poisonous composition, which may be all very well for use on the runs where the theep are turned loose again, and no doubt in time to get the poison out of their systems, but which to me seems monstrous to use on sheep travelling to market for immediate use. Although the glariug effects of the poisoned sugar may not be exhibited, still it is hard to°say how many headaches, and attacks of indigestion and ill-health of various degrees, may be attributable to the joint of mutton on the dinner-table; and I think it behoves the public to see into the matter, and abstain from Wairau mutton altogether, until it is dipped in something less poisonous than corrosive sublimate, arsenic, and the Hke,"

Mr Webley, the cloth manufacturer of Nelson, has received an order from the General Government for 2000 yards of grey tweed, to be supplied in quantities of not less than 500 yards a month. Confidence in flax as a safe cargo seems being restored. By an advertisement in the Evening Post we observe that the Melita will ship it at a considerably lower rate of freight than has been hitherto charged—£s per ton. The Hamilton correspondent of one of the Auckland papers says : —"There is no probability about the intentions of the Kingites. They are against us, but do not show it. They only wait a chance to attack the settlements. That chance may come at any time." The Wairarapa Mercury is informed that only 83 sheep have been imported into the Province of Hawke's Bay during the year, and about, 15,000 have be< j n ex ported to Auckland, against 30,000 last year; the falling off being attributable to competition from Wanganui, and 23.267 sheep have been slaughtered at the Boil-itig-down Establishment since the commencement. The Waikouaiti Herald, speaking of the state of the crops in that district, says : " Contrary to the expectations of many, the crops in this district are turning out remarkably well, and promiso a very satisfactory yield. It is true that the recent high' gales, where the crops were nearly ripe, have had an injurious effect upon them, and considerably lessened the yield per aero; but where crops have not been so injured, we believe they will fully average those of last year. The past week has in every sense been harvest weather, and hud almost brought on the crops too quick for the supply of labor that is available to gather thorn. Hands are scarce, and as a natural sequence, wages rule high, and farmers are in a great measure placed at the mercy of the men. In some instances we know that serious inconvenience, if not loss, has arisen from the difficulty experienced in obtaining men who will work, even when remuneration almost at their own price has been offered them. This is to be regretted, and cannot but recoil on the heads of those who are silly enough to take advantage of their temporary position. At the present rate, however at which harvesting operations are being prosecuted, a very few weeks will suffice to gather in the crops in the district, and we can hope that the weather will hold out, and enable the settlers to secure their grain in good condition. With respect to the growth of New Zealand Flax, Mr W. A. Mosley, M.P.C., writes to the Bruce Standard as follows : " In the latter end of November and be ginning of December, some flax was cut in a paddock of mine upon Inch Clutha, for Mr Mansford's flax mill. The flax was in its wild state. The other day, I measured the growth of those plants which were cut and, to my surprise, I found the fresh growth to "be on an average four feet, m length. They had been cut close, 1 measured a number of plants to be sure of the fact. Now, sir, four feet growth of fibre, in about nine we ks, in its wild state, is a fact many persons may not be aware of. You well observe that the land on the banks of the Clutha River may be made valuable by the growth of flax ; but sir, the land will have to be drained first. The proper way to do this is to cut broad drains with culverts with self-ad ing valves to stop the back water. The flats may be drained by these means, and any overflow from floods may be quickly carried off. I may remark that, upon the island where drains are cut on my land, flax springs up, and grows witli much rapidity. Now, for the second part. New Zealand flax, if properly dressed, ought to render England independent of Russian hemp. Ihe New Zealand flax is so plentiful in both the large islands, and the climate is so favorable to its growth, that we may compete with the serf labor of Russia in the markets of Europe ; but, those who engage in the dressing of flax should be careful to make a good article, and the people of New Zealand may reap great benefit from its culti vation ; for, by proper management, it may yet become the great staple of the country." The Lyttelton Times, 12th February, speaks in the following terms of the agricultural prospects of Canterbury this sea80n . —« From first to last, from seed time to harvest, with scarcely a single clay's exception, the weather could not have been more favorable, if the farmers had had the making of it themselves. The year, whose fruits are now being gathered, has indeed been one of exceptional abundance. So bountiful has nature been, that it is a 1 most impossible to find a lean beast in the country. Indeed fat cattle are described in the cant phrasology of the market as "quite a drug." And the same rule. holds good with regard to other farm' products. There has never been sueh a season for dairy produce, and every one allows that the grain crops are universally abundant. A good deal of grain has been carted without being stooked, and the thrashing machines have in many cases been set to work as soon as reaping has been completed. With the exception of a passing but severe storm, which visited a very limited area, there has been no rain since the comencement of the harvest. This has been especially fortunate, as the crops have been exceptionally heavy and labor unusually scarce. The warm dry weather has helped to check the spread of rust, and : enabled the grain to be gathered iu a con- . dition fit for immediate use. Aa nearly all the crops have now been cut, and the '. greater part safely carried, is is not prema- , ture on our part to record the pleasurable i tact, and express the gratitude which will : be universally felt for so great a pubiie : benefit,

Wo (Wanganui Chronicle, Feb. 15) deeply regret to say that an accident of a very serious nature happened to Mr Dawson, of the Matarawa Valley, on the fore noon of Sunday last. Mr Dawson some time ago imported an Alderney bull, which was a favorite with its owner, who was in the habit of going ud to stroke the animal. He was doing so when the accident happened. The bull in a sudden fit of caprice, all at once turned upon Mr Dawson, goring him dreadfully and, becoming furious as it did so, tossed him in the air and butted him after fal'ing to the ground. This was in a field at a considerable distance from the house, and some time elapsed before the real state of the case was understood. As soon as Mr Dawson's critical 'position became known, Mrs Wilson, who, with her husband, lives in the house, ran to the spot and, with great presence of mind and at much personal risk, heriocallj beat off the infuriated brute. Mr Dawson was able to walk home, and a messenger rode for Dr Earle, who lost no time in getting to the place. On examinkg his patient it was found that he had sustained a severe wound immediately below the right shoulder, the bull's horn having punctured the apex of the right lung; besides he was much bruised over Irs whole body. His nervous system, as may be supposed, was also terribly shaken, but he .bore up bravely, and yesterday, we were glad to learn, he was going on favorably. Mr Dawson is a general favorite iu the Yalley, and much sympathy is expressed for him in his sufferings.—By a singular coincidence a man in the employment of Mr L. Daniel, was also gored by a bull on Sunday. He had his arm severely lacerated. Dr Mussen saw the wound properly attended to. *.