The Kumara Times. Published Every Evening. MONDAY, JANUARY 9, 1882.

Kumara Times, Issue 1647, 9 January 1882, Page 2

The Kumara Times. Published Every Evening. MONDAY, JANUARY 9, 1882.

It will be observed in our telegrams that the Hon. Mr Rolleston, Minister of Mines, arrived at Reefton on Saturday last, overland from Nelson. There is no time to be lost if the requirements of this district are to be systematically and forcibly laid before that gentleman in his official capacity, and in which capacity unquestionably he comes to inquire into the public works and wants of this district. Two public meetings are called with the object of deciding upon the means to be employed—the one at Dillmans Town at 7 o'clock, and the other at the Town Hall, Kumara, at half-past 8 o'clock this evening. We hope to see a large attendance at both meetings. We are pleased to announce that an inconvenience which has long been felt is to be at once remedied. Naturally enough many persons have been under the impression that as we had two mails each way per day between Kumara and Hokitika, we had necessarily two between the intermediate townships of Goldsborough and Stafford Town. This, however, has not been the case, mails for these townships up to the present arriving and closing only once a day. By a telegram which appears in another column it will be seen that Mr Jago, the Chief Postmaster at Hokitika, has readily acceded to the representations made by our worthy member for the district, and two mails each way per day are henceforth to be made up between Kumara, Goldsborough and Stafford, as well as between Kumara, Hokitika and Greymonth. For a child there was a very large procession followed the remains of Master William Alexander M 'lntosh to the grave yesterday afternoon ; but this was no doubt owing to the esteem for and respect with which the disconsolate widow and mother is held. The tiny corpse was conveyed all the way to the cemetery by relays of his schoolfellows, four adults relieving them up Sandy's Hill. About 130 boys and girls (nearly the same number of each) marched in procession, and they again were followed by over 200 men of all creeds. It was- a matter of gveat surprise to many, on arrival at the cemetery, to find that neither minister nor priest, deacon nor layman, was in attendance to perform the last sad act of burial, and the Christian boy was interred as many a favoi-ite steed or faithful dog has been, with no one to say a word to his memory or ''improve the occasion." But, as if to relieve the humiliating as-

pect of affairs caused by this omission, a gentleman who seemed to have some control over the children gave dut a verse—- " There is a happy land Far, far away ; "Where saints in glory stand Bright, bright as day " which, being sung, a few wreaths of flowers Were thrown in upon the coffin by some of the chief mourners, earth was ! flung to earth, and so ended the burial of this unfortunate Christian boy. Mr G. R. Rudkin has been duly elected a member of the Central Board of Education in place of E. J. Lord* This is officially notified elsewhere. A case of attempted suicide, near Arahura, is reported by the West Coast Times :—"A young man named Thomas Kearns, in the employ of his uncle, John Dowling, at the Arahara fellmongery, cut his throat at an early hour on Saturday morning. Anderson, another workman in the tannery, occupied the same hut as Kearns. The latter rose in the middle of the night, entered a neighboring hut, committed the act, staggered back to his own hut and fell on his bunk. Anderson at once ran for assistance, and had Kearns removed to the hospital. The police found in tha hut where the deed was committed a looking-glass on the bed, the floor and blankets saturated with blood, and two knives on the floor, the sharpest having evidently been used by Kearns. The looking-glass had been taken from the wall of the hut, otherwise nothing was disturbed in the hut. Kearns has only been in the colony about six months. Lately he has been very despondent. Dr. James considers the wound fatal, though Kearns is still alive." The Greymouth cricketers passed through Kiunara yesterday in one of Cameron's four-horse coaches, driven by the celebrated whip Tom Power, en route homewards, having played a cricket match with Hokitika on Saturday last, in which they defeated their opponents in one innings and 46 runs, a report of which will be found elsewhere. It is reported that the Commissioner of Crown Lands at Nelson han approved the laying off by the Government of a township near the hot springs at Hammer Plains. The intended site, which is on a terrace thirty feet high, with all facilities for drainage and water supply, is an admirable one in every way. An iron girder bridge, estimated to cost about £3OOO, would be wanted at Arthur's ferry. The champion steeplechase, 100 yards (including two water-jumps), at the Caledonian Society's sports at Dunediu on the 2nd inst. is described by the Morning Herald as the most amusing event of the day, as there was not a single clean jump of the water, each runner getting half a dozen sousings. There were fourteen entries, but only ten ran. One man was stopped for missing a water jump. The winners were—W. J. Burk, £10; W. Drummond, £5 ; J. White, £3; D. Keys, £2. Burk had an extremely easy victory and several practically gave up at early stage though they continued to act as animated watering pots till the finish. The spectacle of a lot of men scattering water like a garden rose as they ran caused much laughter. The local paper states that a strong shock of earthquake, remarkable for its length of duration, was experienced in Queenstown and neighborhood on the 24th ult., at a few minutes before G o'clock, the apparent direction being east and west.