Untitled

Inangahua Times, Volume III, Issue 86, 7 March 1877, Page 2

The Distriot Court sits to-morrow at 10 a.m. Mr C. E, Button, of Hokitika, arrived per coach last night, and we understand Messrs Newton and Perkins will arrive this evening. It will be seen by announcement that Mr and Mrs Cotterell will re-appear in Dawson's Hall on Thursday evening next, TheSev. Father Carew will visit the lyell and Matakitika districts during the present week. Tenders are elsewhete invited for supplies to the Local Hospital for the year ending 3 1st March, 1878. A general meeting of the Hospital subscribers will be held on Monday, the 2nd April. There has been considerable business doing inlnkeraan iharea luring the past few days, at steadily advanoing rates, The orushing is proceeding with the utmost satisfaction, and the result so far would appear to indicate a great revival of confidence in the future of the Bainy Creei district. Yesterday a large party of Greymouth and Eeefton residents rode out to Kainy Creek to inspect the mine and crushing, and their report is favorable. The tramway woAb in connection with the Macedonia Company will be completed by the end of the current month, when the company's battery will be at once set in motion. The news from Boatman's continues of the most satisfactory iiature, The reef in the Welcome has made considerably since it was first struck, and now presents a most promising body of stone. There has been great activity in transactions in these shares of late, and the utmost confidence is felt in the future of the mine. Hopeful shares have also made a great jump within the last week or so, having risen during that time from about £2 15s to about £5. We believe that all the latter shares have been withdrawn from the market.

We undrrstand that Mr J. C. Crofts, for* merly master of the Beefton Catholic School, has received the offer of appointment to the Catholic School at Kamara. Mr Crofts long experience in tuition, added to his high scholastic attainments, well fit him for the office, and the School Board there will be fortunate in securing the services of such an efficient master. Recent explorations carried on in Mr M'lnerney's coal lease on the southern side of the Q-rey road have brought to light a most extraordinary development of coal. The seam in some places reaches to a thickness of twelve feet, with the ascertained length already of about one hundred and fifty feet. The coal is excellent in quality, and the great quantify now available for the market cannot fail to make it one of the most valuable properties in the district. An immense quantity of coal has already been taken out and is now on sale at the pit mouth ; but in the course of a week or ten days the mine will be connected with the Grey road by means of a tramway. The Golden Fl«eoe Extended Company had a cleaning up on Saturday last after crushing for six weeks. The yield was 1490 ozs of smelted gold. We have not been able to ascertain the quantity of stone put through, but believe the average yield per ton is quite up to the reputation of the mine. The directors will be in a position to strike a very satisfactory dividend. It appears from the Criminal and Judicia Statistics of Ireland for 1875 that of the ordinary criminals committed to Irish gaols in that year a large proportion were wholly uneducated. Of the men and boys, 39.7 per cent could neither read nor write, the proportion in England of this class in 1873-74 being considerably lower, namely 32. The difference in the numbers of those who could read and write well in the two countries is striking ; in Ireland the proportion of this class to the total number of men committed being 42-4 per cent., while in England and Wales it was only 3.7. There is also a marked difference of an opposite kind in the number 9 of those who received an imperfect education' In England and Wales 63.8 per cent of the men and boys could read and write imper* feotly ; in Ireland only 17.9 per cent were of this class. In the case of women and girls, it appears that in Ireland the largest proportion —more than a half (54.2 per cent)— were wholly uneducated ; while in England and ' Wales only 38.9 per cent were so. There is a similar striking contrast between the two countries in the case of women and girls who could read and write well as appears in the corresponding class of men and boys. In Ireland 22.6 per cent of the women and girls were of this class, while in England and Wales only 1.7 of the women and girls could read and write well. It thus appears that in both countries a very large proportion of the criminals committed to gaols are wholly ignorant. This is especially true of the women and girls committed to Irish gaols. Th e French statistics of education of oriini* nals are given for the total of the two sexes without distinction, and the totally ignorant only amount to 36 per cent, as oompared with 44 per cetit in Ireland ; on the other hand, those who could read and write well in France amount only to 19 per oeJt, as compared with 35 per cent in Ireland. The Irish national school system seems, as pointed out in the report accompanying the statistics, to be successful for the class that falls within its reach ; but the want of compulsory ednoation leaves a considerable residuum not reached by the Irish national system, allowing a wholly ignorant class to grow up, who form such a large proportion of those committed to prison. The Cromwell people are taking steps to separate from Vincent County, and have a separate county. The following resolution was passed at a crowded meeting s — " That seeing the member for the Duns tan has been making promises, as member of the City Council, that he has not fulfilled, he no longer retains our confidence as our representative in the Assembly, and that he be called on to resign his seat therein."