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Kumara Times, Issue 1633, 21 December 1881, Page 2

By announcement of the Warden of this district, (H. A. Stratford, Esq.) all mining privileges will be protected from the 22nd inst. to sth January, 1882, inclusive, which are thus proclaimed public holidays. The mail coach has not yet left the Bealeyj the inland rivers being in high flood. The usual mails cannot, therefore, be expected to-day. The San Francisco mail arrived in town yesterday at noort; and was promptly sorted and delivered. The Union (jdnlpany's s.s< Alhambra leaves Wellington td-day for West Coast ports. She will be d.ite' to-morrow, and be despatched immediately for Sydney, Newcastle, and Melbourne: Mr Hugo, the physiognomist; delivered his second lecture at the Adelphi Theatre last evening to an audience a trifle larger than on the previous night. Some five or six gentlemen in turn paraded the floor in front of the stage, of whose gen-, eral outline of character a short verbal explanation was immediately given by the professor, and afterwards Mr Hugo gave" a much more extended delineation of the characters or supposed characters of four gentlemen who presented themselves on the stage. Whether correct; or otherwise we are not in a position to judge, but they were more amusing to the- audience than flattering to the persons who, in the interests of the science had so kindly stepped forward to test the professor's skill. The subject of this evening's lecture will be on " The Physiognomy of the Mouth and Lips." We are pleased to find that the Warden of the district, whilst prepared to encourage settlement in every possible way, is also determined that all holders of agricultural leases shall only hold the same subject to the right of resumpton by the Crown, if required for mining purposed, without payment of compensation ; and, further} that any damage arising from the discharge of tailings, &c, shall be barred. The Commissioner of Crown Lands agrees with the view taken by Warden. With these safeguards the public interest will be secure, and there can be now no objection to the granting of agricultural leases. Our attention has been drawn to an extract from section 172 of "The Mines Act, 1877," and which,- we observe, has been printed in Chinese characters, specifying the penalties which may be inflicted for occupying Crown lands for any purpose without a miner's right, lease or license. The section reads':—"Any person not being the holder of a miner's right, license, or lease, dtdy empowering him in that behalf, who shall mine for gold, or occupy or carry on any business upon any Crown lands, shall be liable to the penalties following—that is to say: For the first offence, a sum not exceeding £5 ; for the second or any subsequent offence, a sum not exceeding £lO nor less than £5, with imprisonment in some gaol, there to remain for any time not exceeding one calendar month for every £5 or fractional part of £5 so to be paid." Bent and Bachelder's Christy Minstrels will re-open at the Theatre Royal tomorrow evening, when will be afforded the opportunity of hearing the best minstrel company that has ever visited Kumara.

Tenders for the privileges to erect booths and stalls on the Recreation Ground during the Christmas holidays were opened last evening :—No 1 booth, J. S. Pearn, £35, accepted. No; .2 booth, Jas. Rugg, £3O, accepted ; J. Mulvihill, £6, declined. No. 1 fruit stall, A. Singer, £4 Is, .accepted; C. Walker, £4, declined. No. 2 fruit stall, 0. Walker, £3, accepted* A. .Singer, £2 15s, declined. American field pool, Thos. Hamlet, 10s per day, accepted. No tenders having been sent in for No. 3 booth or for the. luncheon booth, private offers may be made" to ,the Treasurer (Mr .T. S. Pearn) on or before Friday next.

In spite of unremitteiit search by the police and others, the Times reports N , no trace of Mr Bain, the Hokitika Corporalion messenger, has been discovered. Letters delivered in Dunedin on Monday evening the 12th inst., were dated London, November 4th, which gives the short period of 38 days for their transit t They cattle to Melbourne by the 1 Orient steamer, and were brought on by the" Union Company's steamer, the RotomaIjanai The regular Suez mail, the la£e.st dates by which ate <also November 4th} was brought by the P. and 0. Company's Carthage, which arrived at Albany, on the 5 sth inst; We notice by the Melbourne papers that the Orient and Carthage had an exciting race down the Red Sea % , steaming side by side for about two hours; but.the Orient got the best of it, and gradually left her competitor in the rear.