THE Mount Ida Chronicle. FRIDAY, OCTOBER 14, 1870.

Mount Ida Chronicle, Volume II, Issue 87, 14 October 1870, Page 2

THE Mount Ida Chronicle. FRIDAY, OCTOBER 14, 1870.

}iA 'ft hX3- 31v i i i.i!iiuut v.< v. sj'—r-" Spring has once raorejrurst upon us in^n : i^;f?ep.lj^j^ #xr adad?iQ;. all its bloom. Already are the beneficial effects< of »thia change irl the weather' :inadfv-manifest ia the improved state of the roads, and regularity iji the arrival and departure of the mails. one who has been unfortunate enough- to hj& cooped .up in an up-country district can have r fei]ed tfiilia^e-suffered/ in a greatfer 'or lesser degree,, from the irregularity \yith which, diiring-the mail contract has been performed. .Though; fault may, possibly, in some 'degfee lieat thg |dQpr 1? of the contractor, in n6t ; in'a good and sufficient 1

supply of feed for the horses, there can be no doubt that the principal cause of the numerous and vexatious der .whichc occurred*, -has, r\been( the disgraceful state! ©£.thfe :Toaids, owing to neglect at the hands of the Provincial Government./ If we be wise, the past should teach us a lesson for the future, and every upcountry Press should take the matter in hand, and bring public opinion to bear upon the subject ere another win-jtpr.-ploses. .upon us.,. Now., is., .the,, time when efforts "should be made. If delay be allowed to creep in, the summer will. pass without any effort being made to improve the roads 6r 'redress our- grievance. |n all matters connected with the 1 (Government" a certain amount' bf red-tapeism has to be encountered and overcome—always indicative of delay. Groldfields be called upon by their constituencies- to> push the/Go ver nment iin this matter, and.compel' them to- spend a _fair and equitable portion of the Provincial Revenue upon the improvement of the inland communication of the JProvince. ; Everyone but a veritable dolt mus.t-.be aware of the. fact that bad roacl.s : and irregular. _ communication mean nothing more-nor- less than dear and'- 4 'ofcen - famine price" provisions. What advantage is it to. the miner if I he succeed in . obtpauing a fair wage and. something irtorej : if' the; whole- of his returns are to be swallowed up in the. •p lirdhase of -provisions -at unreasonable and fabulous'-prices 2 —prices which have their'origiii in inattention on the part thei G-overnment to- those- districts from, which:' theyderiyie the, principal revenue, lit is deplorable to think that we have hitherto stood listlessly by looking, as. it were, unconcemedly on while the revenues of the Go^dfields! districts have been either frittered away upon making, the j ■ good roads in 'and about still j better, or .recklessly, in j n'ea.utifyittg-the-metrop / oii : s with build--j j ings which have, we have no hesitation in saying, all - proved, .utterly ! unfitted for the purposes for which ."feh e v were designed. f ,„ Fpr., jristance,; the ! Exhibition Building,' built at a cost of many thousands, .of the public money .has,, a,t a .very heavyi additional outlay,.j been converted into a very unsatisfac- i tory .and inconvenienthospital■' for the" sick; the Provincial Buiidiugs, being constructed" of''diirieiisiohs totally unnecessary for the' 'requireinefnts, of the Province, a part has. .been, turned into /a meagre apology; while a portion o; the"Post-C)ffic 4 e—or whited sepulchre;, as -U^is 1 fahntorly called —having been devoted to~ ''the 'Museum,- the-pi^in^ipal ? . pbftion !i ig stil-P • apparency; un- ' suited! for .anv.'purpose whate-yer—this' building,; be-:i^remembered, was built at an expense iof some £40,000. We might cite the- High School'ias another- 1 instance of lavish and 'fetish I '.'6x|j§ndr-'' to the sum of hundreds tof; thousands, but we have said sufficient the greater part, if not the whole of the public buildingsin been' costly and useless worlds, 'most of them commenced after;' and built at the ex- ; pense with revenue derived from the r .SurelyflXiMiediti sh ould r •' n<)w be ; satisfied: :for'-% gqfUmot |_complain if the- Goldfields - send—in 1 a small list]of-usefulforks',.suchvMlrbads" 0 —which they absolutely -which 4hey h^ J 'an-.absQ'lute l right todemand. A, few thousand pounds exupended at a.pi'o-jj^r^seasoivand : uride'r ; the a competent road ofßeer, wo i i;ld do - much to effect the necessary road "in a "passable state of for r the ensuing winter. We trust that the .question will not be lost sight of,, but:; •be taken I 'up person Hyh'o is interested in question .of regular - communicatioiv and • provisiops. We do not,ask for beautiful -buildings^,railways/ >or any such ' luxuries, but ; w£ f : do r look t for, that 'api'Oufit" of jjhe^O .from their ;wealth-, and;their contri-v butions to the revenue, have a right to demand..' Eurther than'this we do not desire to go, no r with 1 any tiling else , should we or will w.e be satisfied.

Thk-departure of the resident minister from this place leaves us 'wholly v without spiritual" supervision. The Church here is not denominational, and'there should be little difficulty :in obtaining the, services of a liberal minded min- ; 1 Some action/jhould; be ; taken dnlthe to see- spiritual ' >: Harder, storekeeper>•,of . this, town, has, we undsrstan,d,. hie.store

and business to oiie Louis-GayTTarn r Cliinese storekeeper. Mr-. Harper, who is one of the oldest and most respected storekeepers oil the intends visiting the Old Country, V proceeding Fiji". A coitEBSPOivDENi! from Dry bread reminds ua that a sum of £SO was voted to-improve the road-from the; main road at the Rocks to- Drybread, to promote a cheaper- supply of coal. Our correspondent and his-district arc not singular in the want of regard which lias been P a id by the-Government both to promises-and vote's.j 'Other are able, to olfer noue T but as tlie Council -will sliort.ly_be in session,, the member for- the district should look the matter up, and. ask for explanation*. Sijj-.ce the races) and the exeitement consequent thereon, the- town lias again subsided intoit g . ? snal quiet and routine state. The weather-*' with" of a slight falf of snow at night; has been; deliglitf-ul,. and the appearance o£ "manifest not only the advent, but the actual presence of Spring. .The snow on "the. high ranges still' promise, a supply of water for some time to- corner &> that VFith improved weather- and improved roads, we have reason- to 'liope- that Naseby will enter upon a summer- as if not rnoae so than any wiiich has-preceded-it.. We have upon- what we consider- reliab)e alithority, that in-reply to a cominunicatibn from some person or persons in Cromwell, to the Postmaster-General, relative"to making tliat place the second d:iy's stage from Dunedin., a- telegram has been received stating thaj., On January Ist,. Naseby will be made the first night's stage from town. Sould such an arrangement be- carried out, there would; be actual necessity for the avoidance l of the | Houndburn Sill,, which we. have so frequently advocated, and the improvement of the road generally. Th.e Council will be again*,shortly in session, and it behoves all" the up-country Press to see that their Goldfields representatives do their- duty in the mattec. It would not be too much to make the question an elec-. tion cry, and compel any aspirant for future election to*pledge liim'sel'f to>support improved internal communication>by every means iE> his power. We consider-the- matter a vital->ne to the advancement or- .otherwise- of this place. The Rev. Mir. Burchett was a passenger by coach on- .Monday, route for Victoria. . The ,rev. . gentleman 'delivered an affecting farewell address to the children of the Simday.,{School op,the .previous afternoon, j in the Union- Cliurpli, and subsequently, in. the t'evferiiilg t'o-Irfß : congrßgatioh.' ! ' i- Has the l Moiiift -Ida Cricket Club collap'?e r l ? jis a'question- %vhicli is frequently;as&exl tis.' ! %e l" can-only say , hcai , d'nothTng ; of any; such collapse; but-'mt staie : of : the field;-. might 'fairly justify such- an.-assumption. JP-ei-hn.ps-souje. j members of tlie club would furnish us with a ; reply tp the enquiry. An. advertisement in anotlier column furnishes a"reply. . ; A vert important, decision-:was given-in.- the I Warden's Court on- Sat urday last, in the case • «T'ohnstone v. foj" encroachment, wherein r Wardetii ruled tluife. claitn.s-. not -pro'•■pefljr marked as prescribed by tlie Rules and Regulations, with, a-peg or cairn at least two high, and with a treucli at;. each corner, five feet long by six inches Seep, indicating the direction, were in- effijct not marked at all. The complaint was therefore.-dismissed. --'This should be a caution- to the miners, as there are, we believe, very many claims, in this district which, in"the eye of'the and in terms of : the Regulations, are not properly marked, and tlierefore-not marked .at all; and ille«-allv occupied. ■- - ; _ • ° J " Owing. - tli©.- absence,. of. Mr:- "Wsrdfen Robilisdn *at ' the" Maerewhenua, there have been no cases'either in the- Resident Magistrafe's or' Warden's Cbiwfc fcliis week. '.. A.short time since a notice appearsdin the, ' columns of : this paper .to tiie, gentrepieii had iiiade up tlieic mmds-to.attempt the formation of a 'Yblunt'eer Rifle Ctfmpany.' We are rather surprised that the matter should tP W l kA9^ei?ge : ,, ! .hav l e,assumed a ( morie 'tangibleHferm. 'nior'e '"particularly as the : I; stirring { newsj from, i Home . mtisfc-,2iave evoked the latent feelings of martial ardor innate in every human-breast. We trust to i hgar'that; the.formatibii 6£ tliis corpk Haijbeen v delayed—not abandoned'! Jf_ r ii lT^is ( r;umoi-ed that Mr.- %odie; will:be 'drilate for the" Supernitendency at the ensuing election.

. A contemporary states that. M'Leurian, of Robbery iiofonety* plojinent by thelxmuolders- in the..^neighborThe celebrated Barlow lias returned to his old so'irie 'years 4 "spent''in su^ar p]anfcing-in Queensland- u He purposesniakuiff . a tour through-- Victoria and K&r-'ZsaMilL Letters and newspapers by the English mailVuzo Suez f may* -be-expecte'd fop&f mail to-morrow.

A TELEGffliir-, from. tlie-JLonilon correspondent of the 'JSr.ew Yoi'k Tribune' states that ; Great Britain has now.at Home depots 95,000 troops, and can muster, about ?00,000. British is deBC-ribed as- "iiitense" against 'France. * v ' '

As an instance of ho-w newspapers miscarry, a Colonist sends the a .contemporary'' 'for' publication " Sir ; — Having just landed from a return voyage to> Melbourne, I hare,'-during the Voyage, madfe^he"discovery why so very few papers and; froolrs : sent toAustralia arid other Colonics ajg recieived bV ; tlioise|f6r aVe'infrehtfed. : It. is because the mail bags are made a !kind of" circu-lating-library to the passengers'; and although some papers, pamphlets, or magazines are after [being read, returned' to the bags,- ni; verylarge number are otherwise disposed of'. Hence our friends complain they are forgotten, and say .we never send. ,them newspapers, ''from Home.'" * " The following are the nominations for the 'Canterbury-Race meeting, toftake place on the 7th and Bth November:—The ' Cup V Malice, 2 years ; Knottingly, aged j Malabar, 4 years; Backbiter,-aged f Atalante, -a|edt Christcliurch Jockey Club Handicap: Knottingly, aged; r Wideawake; , 5 ±yeax.s; Thomie, .4 yea*s; Southern Chief, 6 years; Atlas, 6 years; Miss King

6 years ; Wild Boy, 6 years: Waterwitch, 4 years \ Malabar; 4 years ; Backbiter, aged; Blink Bonny, 6 years-; Catapult, 5 years.. There may be other nominations bearing post date 20th ult. A meetixg of the- members of the Mount Idas Jockey jDlubi for jtlie- transaction- of- important business in connection with the annual meec, will be held' in; the- Vi'ctoria Hall on Thursday evening next, 20 th iust. A contemporary^states-'thafca Scotchman has recently purchased 1-6,000 acres-in- Fiji for the * sum of 6a. per acre:. . The San FraiiciscQ-raail was due at Anck? land on the 4th inst. The news will be fire days laterthanby the Suez route. ; Lepiiostt has made-its appearance among the-Chinamen-located atiEajvxance. An libspital for patients is now. in.course of construction. The lodge of Oddfellows liifceiy ..formed at Palmerstqn hare resolved on* erecting a ha 1 at a cost of £250. * A flagstaff to mart the spot where the Scottish standard' was planted : on the field- ef Bannockburn has been inaugurated. There * was a.great' gathermg of Oddfellows and others, and; some-very odd'* speeches- were, deliveredthe keynote of "them being" that "Bannookbnrn-, was t!ie greatest battle ever fought,. and that the-Scotchmen, of are the "worthy sons of the warriors who fought and conquered be- j neath the standard of the Bruce. The English mail (A : ia Suez) will , close at fie jSaseby Post Office to-day (Friday) at p.m.. 1 Makshaxßazaine, the French Commander-in-Chief, is-evi lently a man fond of display, for-we-learn that-lia had no less than 52 horses belonging to himself at Metz forming- a portion cf his baggage train. - t The usual monthly meeting of the Mount Ida District School Committee was held.in the schoolhouse* on Monday evening 3rd h&t. Present—- Messrs. Xnder.(chair), .Dickson and Ross. The-minutes of previous meeting wereread and" confirmedH A letter from: Mr." Hislop I .was .read . stating that the- request formoney,.&c., by the ,Committee-was. under the consid erdtion -of ill e Government". The schoolmaster's- month ty T and'quarterly.; reports were read and adopted. 2s umber of scholars in at- ' 65;-= Ai : do'aationt off- £1 Is. from Messrs. W. and J: Sanders was ordered to be acknowledged: with, thanks.- , The : secretary was instructed to take- steps with .regard :to having, the scho.olnjastejvs residence, area *de«- --i clafed an edhckiional reserve. The secretary's quarterly salary, .was passed for -payment, which concludedthe "business.:" ' .THE.Dijnedin. '.Evening Star ' says it has 'ati&hbnty'for stating that .Mr. Bradshaw has; '* no intention-of offering himself as "a coiididatefor the;Sup¥finifendtericy.; 1' _: ;,.LTi j'.C -The ' Timaru-Herald has authority for-stat-ing that the General Governlrient have fully deckled to establish a Court at ; and the appointment of a Judge is likely to be-de--termiitetl in-the course of a week or two. It believes the Judge will reside at Timaru, and wilhalse-hokha C6urt periodically. at Oamaru. He will be-entrusted- with full criminal and', bankruptcy jurisdiction j . . . 1 It will be observed by the escort returns from-tlie; various Goldfields in the Province,. ' that again. Mount Ida heads tlie list with 20250z5. The well-known- surgeon. and' mechanical '* dentist?,. Sir. Ji P. Armstrong,- notified t lat he will visit this town. We understand that on Wednesday evening last, at the monthly meeting of the Mount Ida Lodge (E C.),. a handsome.'P.'M. jewel, also a beautifully engi'ossed address (executed in Mr.. T. G-eorge's best style), was to have been pre--sented to P.M. Win Grumitt by the brethren of the Lodge. The jewel, which is-a very elegant one, was supplied by Mr. K. Strang*. :watchmaker audgeweller of this town.. . 4