Lyell Times. SATURDAY, MARCH 27, 1886.

Lyell Times and Central Buller Gazette, Volume VI, Issue 266, 27 March 1886, Page 2

Lyell Times. SATURDAY, MARCH 27, 1886.

The returns of amalgam from the United Alpine for the past week, from plates, ripples and berdans, was 4530z5. from 19G tons of stone put through. This return is an improvement of 13ozs. on last week from four tons less stone treated, and the battery during the week was delayed seven hours making alterations to the cams. The tributors in the United Italy are making good headway in Potter's level south. The company have all the necessary timber on the ground for winze in their portion of the mine, and are now making the ground already sunk on secure, prepatory to going down on the reef. The next sittings of the Resident Magistrate's and Warden's Courts, will be held at Lyell, on Wednesday 31st March. The operations in the Alpine are being carried on about the same as usual. All the stopes are looking well, with very little variation, and a good supply of stone is coming to hand. No 6 level is now going, through harder country, and the small leaders have gone out of the face. The present formation is similar to that met with in the lower crosscut just before the reef was struck.

One of the claims now coming into prominence on the West Coast is the Nile Quartz Mining Company, situated at Hough and Tumble, Mokihinui. Some of the directors visited the ground lately, and their report is very favourable. Four men are engaged sinking, and at the present time are going through a belt ot slate and mullock within which runs some twenty leaders, all more or less gold bearing, some of which are exceedingly rich. The leaders vary from one inch to one foot in thickness. The directors a,re convinced that by taking out and cruslrng the entire belt, irrespective of mullock or slate, thnt a magnificent result would be obtained. The only uncertainty, to be yet solved, is the "ermanencv of the find or extent in length or depth. In the former direction, or length, the gold has been traced tor a considerable distance, and in order to test the latter, the directors have agreed with their manager to at once start sinking. Some specimens of the stone have lately been exhibited at Lyell, and for richness far surpasses anything we have yet seen on the Coast. The stone is fairly studded with coarse gold, and runs plainly into the slate, and have been Inken from one of the twelve-inch leaders. This cl'iim is situated in a north-westerly direction from Lyell about twenty miles, iind the Eight-mile road, which is intended to tap that country, is now competed about seven miles of that dist mce.

The quinquennial census of New Zealand will be taken to-morrow ni< r ht (S'tnday) 28th instant, by which date a paper wil be left at every inhabited house m the colony. Each of these papers is to be filled in with the names of all people sleeping in the house on that night. The paper should be filled in not later than Monday morning, as the sub-enumerator, Mounted-Constable Bowdeu will begin to collect shein immediately. A robbery of a tail-race occurred last Sunday night at Mutakitaki, in Thompson hiul Hewitt's cUim. The race contained

the result of three month's Washing, and is estimated at ib«mt 25 ounces of «*ol<l. The matter was reported at the Lye 11 Police Station by telegraph on Monday, and Mounted-Constable Bowden left on Tuesday to make enquiries, which, we believe, from a police point of view, are satisfactory. When a crime o tins character is committed, it is highly necessary, in order to strengthen the hauls o' the police, that the information should not be sent broadcast throughout the country as has been the case in the present iustaiiCe.

There was a meeting of the Westport District Hospital Board last Monday, at which it was decided not to entertain the request of the Lye 11 Committee for the establishment of an IIosp : tal. This conclusion is only characteristic of Westport, and the report of the meeting does no* disclose that a full attendance of the Board arrived at that conclusion, seeing that Mr John Fennell, one of the members, received no intimation of the meeting. and we also miss the names of Messrs O'Conor and Munro, who had promise !, when in Lyell, every as istance in the matter. The Board have not acted wisely or even fairly in arriving at so arbitrary a conclusion, as thej' will find that the subscribers here are fully determined to use other powers given them under the Act for the furtherance of their object. The time has now arrived when the Lye'l people will not be dictated to by a packed meeting in Westport. We will refer to this matter more fully in a future issue.

By letter dated 18th instant, received from the Rev. T. B. Maclean, the Churchwardens, of St Matthew's Clmreh Lyell are informed that two services will be held at Lyell every first Sunday in the month, commencing 4th April (Sunday week) the beginning of a new quarter. The Rev. T. B. Maclean deserves the thanks ot the members of the church for the interest he lias taken in this matter.

The Lyell District Hospital Committee met on Monday last to consider a letter received from E. J. O'Conor, Esq., in reply to a request that he would interest himself in the matter while in Wellington recently. The following is a copy of the communication in question " Westport, March 18th, 1886. " James Peck, Esq., " Secretary Lyell Hospital " Committee.

" Dear Sir,—-I have to apologise for not answering yours of last month sooner, but, as you suggested, I have done what I could in Wellington, and found that, consequent on the passing of the Act of last session, a great number of applications have been made for separate hospitals, and that the Government have viewed this with some alarm, and' determined in no ease to grant any subsidies, or sanction the establishment of new hospitals unless the District Board concurs, and unless a sufficient population can be shown to require and support the Hospital. The Lyell people have shown a very commendable spirit in subscribing so handsomly for a local Hospital, but there is little hope of getting one under the Act, unless the District Board agrees to it. The town of Westport now contributes a principal part of the revenue, and I fear the members will not agree to take any part of that away from the Hospital now here. If you do not succeed in having an Hospital at Lyell, could you not have a branch place for urgent cases in connection with either Westport or Reefton Hospital. It might be worth your while to consider this. " Yours truly,

"Eugene O'Coxor." The Committee replied to the above, and urged strongly for au Hospital, but failing the concurrence of the Board, were willing to accept the proposition of a Branch Hospital, and again placed before their notice the absolute necessity for the permanent residence of a medical gentleman in Lyell. At the ordinary meeting of the Wiamea County Council, held on the 17th instant, the following business of local interest was transacted : —Correspondence was read between the Resident Engineer and the Chairman, respecting the appropriation of a sum of money at the disposal of the Council for making a deviation of a road over the Hope Saddle.—Mr Dencker considered that this was a very serious matter, and that they should pause before granting the money for that purpose as in his opinion the main road to the West Coast would ere long be through the Tadmor Valley; Mr Griffiths thought that they should not agree to this in a hurry. The money at the disposal of the Council was for maintaining the road and not making deviations.—Mr Harkuess proposed that the Council retain the money lor the upkeep of the road unless the Government will agree to relieve the Council of alljthe obligations in connection with the road up to the 30th September next. —This was seconded by Mr Dencker and carried ; Mr Griffiths moved, that, as it is almost useless to expend money in repairing roads in the wet seasons, the Hon. Colonial Secretary be requested to allow this Council to expend at once one half the amount voted to 30th September for repairing and maintaining the N lson-Westport and Greymouth road. He said that his suggestion was that as there were much needed repairs required in the ('lark Valley it, would be better to spend half the amount granted before the bad weather set in, and then the remaining half would be available for contingencies; Mr Phillips seconded the motion ; The Chairman said that as the expenditure of the grant could be proceeded with on the Ist April, he did not think it necessary to pjiss this resolution ; the matter then dropped.

The Nelson Evening Mail o f the 20th instant, say-;:—01' the " hope (1 ferred " which " maketh the heart sick" the people of Nelson ure just now getting their full share in connection with the railway. All that is known is tint the negotiations have been carrie I to such a point by the delegates in London that the Committee here are in dailv expectation of hearing tint the contract has been signed. The desire for t'»e railway being taken in hand by a Company will be all the keener now th.it another opponent to the Nelson extension has definitely declared himself in the person of Sir George Grey, as w 11 be seL'n from o ir D merlin telegrams, not that this is likely to affect the League, banded together so closely ait is by a community o!' interests, but even one more declared enemy among the mouthers of the House somewhat reduces the chance of sue ess. People are naturally anxious to hear what the new.from Loudon really is, but there i. c nothing more to be said than what is stated above. We may add that the Government and the Agent-General are in communication with reference to the matter, and that all that is received from London is wired to the Committee here and in Christchurch. The only further information that is to be looked for, and this may be expected, we are told, within the course of a day or two, is that the contract had actually been signed, or on the other hand that the >ns have been, or are likely to be, broken off. That the former may be the case and not the latter is the earnest desire of residents in this part of the colony who know how much the prosperity of Nelson depends upon being connected with the other parts of the island by a line running through country which teems in mineral wealth. A meeting of the shareholders in the combined Uno and Wakatu Gold Mining Companies was held last night, when it was decided to register the joint Company as the Wakatu United Gold Mining Company, with a capital of ±'24,000 in 48,000 shaies of 10s each. Mr S. J. Beeves was appointed Legal Manager, and Messrs C. Saxton, M. Byrne, W. Phillips, J. C. Moutray, and J. M'Gaffin were elected directors, and Messrs Healy and Glenn auditors. It is intended to go to work in earnest, and we hope that ere a year has elapsed the battery will be in full swing and turning out a plentiful supply of the precious metal. We are glad to know that from the prospects already obtained there is good reason for believiug that such will be the case.—Mail, 20th inst.