The Kumara Times. Published Every Evening. THURSDAY, JANUARY 11, 1883.

Kumara Times, Issue 1987, 11 January 1883, Page 2

The Kumara Times. Published Every Evening. THURSDAY, JANUARY 11, 1883.

It will be seen by our cablegrams this afternoon that a terrible lire has occurred by the burning of an hotel at Milwaukee. 70 persons lost their lives.

The funeral of Mrs Hanrahan, which took place to-day, was largely attended, and cu route to Hokitika many other mourners joined in the procession at Waimea.

The ordinary fortnightly meeting of the Borough Council will be held this evening. Mr G. G. Fitz Gerald, M.H.R. for Hokitika, is expected to arrive at that town in a day or two, to give an account of his doings during the session. The following weather warning was received from Captain Edwin yesterday afternoon :—Watch barometer ; between east and north, and north-west ; glass further fall, and after 12 hours sea heavy, and indications of very high tides. At the meeting of the Westland County Council yesterday, two motions by Mr Dnngan, viz. next meeting on the cost of widening the main road at the Crown of the hill opposite Yortt’s residence, near Dillman’s Town and “That Mr Kerr be instructed to put in box drain on part of main road, between Dillman’s Town and Blake’s upper sawmill, cost not to exceed £5,” were carried. Reports were adopted recommending the grant to the Canterbury Railway League of £lO 10s ; to the Hokitika Literary Institute, £2O ; Kumara Literary Institute, £lO ; Ross Institute, £lO ; and £7 10s each to Stafford, Golds-

borough, Callaghan’s and Big Dam Institutes.

At the meeting of the Grey Council yesterday, the Chairman’s salary was fixed at £225. The. Chairman (A. R. Guinness, Esq.) was also appointed solicitor to the county in conjunction with the duties of Chairman, no salary attachuM^^^^ig. The Reefton correspondent of the Otago Daily Times supplies an interesting summary of the results of mining on that field for the past year, with a prognostication of what may be expected during the coming twelve months. The dividends for the past year have totalled £45,200, only three companies (the Welcome, Keep-it-Dark, and Golden Treasure) having contributed ; whilst the sum of £50,424 has been paid by shareholders in calls. The total yield of gold has been 21,7960z5., giving an average of from 26dwt. to 27dwt. for each ton of stone crushed.

A gooseberry contest for an engraved pewter has just taken place in Ashburton, and the result has been the exhibition of some remarkably fine berries. There were four competitors, each showing twenty berries, with the following result : —G. T. Smith, 11b. loz. 12gr.; C. Smith, 15|oz. Igr.; G. H. St. Hill, 13|oz. 40gr.; W. Smith, 12oz. 30gr. Mr Smith’s twenty berries being the heaviest, the prize has been awarded to that gentlemen. In addition to the gooseberries shown being of unusual size, the flavour was also very good.

A mason’s laborer named Aitken, employed at the new High School buildings, Dunedin, fell to-day from a stone wall only 18in high, along which he was walking, and broke his neck. The deceased leaves a wife and eight children.

Mr R. J. DeLias, a well-known theatrical speculator, is dead.

The unfortunate disaster the Orient Company recently sustained by the sinking of their finest steamer, the s.s. Austral in Sydney harbour, and the subsequent mishap on board the s.s. .Cotopaxi at London, are still fresh in the public mind ; but (the Press reports) the Company have promptly coped with the difficulties these disasters caused by acquiring the splendid new steamship Cephalonia, of 5500 tons gross register, and 5000 effective horse-power, which will leave Plymouth for the Australian Colonies on the 13th January, 1883, to be followed by the Iberia, a steamer in all respects similar to the Liguria, so well and favourably known to the travelling public. The Company will therefore be able to maintain their regular fortnightly running without causing any inconvenience to passengers.

Mr Christopher Newton, the well-known dry goods merchant of Sydney, who failed through an unfavourable season over ten years ago, has been enabled by a turn of luck to recover himself, and has honourably paid up to the last penny. Seeing that the sum he owed amounted to no less than forty thousand pounds, this was really an act of restitution which rises to the level of heroism. Mr Newton was entertained by a number of merchants and manufacturers in London recently in honour of his visit to England. In recognition of his commercial honesty his creditors have presented him with a testimonial in the shape of a steam launch for fishing purposes, and they have also given his wife a gold ring set with diamonds, and a gold bracelet set with rows of diamonds.

Father Haycinthe has written a letter to the Vice-President of the French Chamber of Deputies favoring the separation of the Church from the State, but at the same time earnestly protesting against making such action a mere adjunct of the present anti-Christian war, which, he predicts, if carried much further will end in the shame and ruin of the French nation.

The English Government have resolved I to co-operate with other nations in establishing a chain of circumpolar magnetical and meteorological observatories. The locality for the British station is Fort Rae in the north of Canada, and the general superintendence of the work will be entrusted to a committee of the Royal Society. The Geographical Society have ,asked to co-operate as far as regards the promotion of their special studies. Twenty-five thousand portraits is a large order. It represents, however, it is said, the number of photographs ordered by the American dealers in view of Mrs Langtry’s visit to the United States.