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Mount Ida Chronicle, Volume IV, Issue 255, 23 January 1874, Page 2

' Arrowtown has been gazetted a Municipality, i

The English mail is expected to arrive in Naseby on Tuesday next. ;'.', Me. Barron, Government Surveyor, has this week been engaged ,in the survey -of Hamilton township. > .

-Messrs: Sanders Bros., of the -Kyeburn, offer their station for sale by public auction, in Dunedin, on.the 3rd of March. Mr. H. A. Stratford, Warden at Arrowtown, is expected early in February at Naseby, to take temporary charge of the Mount Ida district during the absence of Mr.- H. W. Robinson.

We observe, in the ' General Government Gazette,' that a site in the 'township of St. Bathans—being section No. 11, block I.—has been proclaimed as reserved for a telegraph .and post office. The Rev. Dr. Cameron, at a late meeting in Dunedin, said:—" One thing was a fact? that the three foremost nations of the world —Great Britain, ■ Germany, and America—were the nations where "the Bible had the greatest, hold. These' States moulded the destinies of the world. It wag said that ssience and progress would destroy the Bible. Where were science, progress! and liberty if not in these three countries ?"

We hear that a share in the Cornishmeu's claim, and another in the Perseverance Company's, at Hamilton, have changed hands at high figures. James Highleyis the purchaser in the Cornishmeu's, the share being a oneseyenth, and the seller John Allen. The price mentioned is £340. Harry Horn is the purchaser in the Perseverance of a. one-eighth share, from Thoma3 Stephens, at .£270. The purchasers being old residents, these sales speak well for the continued prodnc.'ivcnoss of what is known as the Shepherd's lint Plat.

Last Sunday evening a stiff gale set in— usual, clouds of dust, and shaking.- till about Uu p m. In some parts o.f the district the wind took

more the form of a,_hurrieane,-,at~the Rough Ridge.- reefs almost entirely demolishing""the Energetic Company's'engine shed.and chimney stack, • snapping, easily, half-inch iron stays. At Eden Creek there was only-a slight breeze, while the roar of the wind was quite audible. We have not, however, heard of any further damage to property. We are sorry we'cannot report any more satisfactorily,' than last week as' to the present state of- Mr. John .Sanders. H.avino- resisted, the, ■ of his severe wounds so long gives hope of a permanent restoration, t * -

Ouii latest accounts from Oamaru are to the effect that"a meeting,- which-passed "off quietly, of those who could not get employment, was held last week. , Our. correspbn- - dent counted 100 laboring. men present, besides those attracted out of curiosity. There are also two or three score .Chinamen seeking harvesting. It is probable'that, as the harvest ripens, they will all get employment. A notice was posted, stating that fifty .pick and shovel men were wanted for"the railway works, at Hampden—we "do not know .with, what result. - - ' u - ' ~

Messrs. Inker and .George, on Monday last, sold by public auction, at their salerooms, town sections in, Naseby to the value of £42. There was a good attendance. No bids were got for the advertised sections'in either Macraes or Strafthtaieri. At Hill's Creek, on Tuesday, town sections were sold which realised the sum of, £B3. , On the same day,' at St. Bathans,- valuable mining property, consisting of extended claim, tail race, tools, &c, &c, .belonging to-Messrs. Hanrahan, Quinlan, and Barclay, was put-up. to public competition, by Mr. John Ewing for the handsome-sum-,of £670." __ The harvest has drawn away'the population from Naseby—a good' many having left for the Waitaki and Oimaru rlistricts. Prom what we hear, it appears that instead' of their be.ng a scarcity of hands in that district, there is a great over supply at present-. The principal employers were at once supplied at' pretty, low rates, and have to. turn away a great many. The conduct of some of' these employers in exaggerating their requirements appears to us quite inexcusable.'; Even as late as January 7fch we hear of one writing to the G-overnment to arrange with , the "Messrs. Brogden to suspend their railway contracts temporarily, and yet at the 5 very "rime,- or at the utmost three-or four. days';after,- he-was full handed himself The Whole" agitation, from the first commencement-, < when ,th'e Oamaru deputation waited '-'upon ;the'Superintendent in Dunedin, looks very much-:like,a premeditated attempt to obtain We have not much sympathy with our own men, who ran away, looking, after women's work, while refusing the .better remunerated, though posbibly tougher labor." on ,'the yhead race contracts, offered to tliem at 'their"'.own doors._ Nevertheless, if there, has been a sys-' tematic agitation'at Oamaru" to obtain-cheap labor, workingmen will do well toremmberitin future years, fimployers may then find the 1 wolf really at .their door, and 1 all their cries, for labor in vain. " - >.-

The Otago 'Guardian'-informs us thatthe annual meeting Quartz i Mining, Company .(limited) - was held at Messrs. Burton Brothers' on .Monday night; 'Mr. Burt in the"chair. ' The Secretary read the report,. from which it appeared that the prospects of the Company were anything butof a hopeful land.-. Two of the Directors also had visited the claim, and reported that-all the best stone had been extracted previous to the. claim being -purchased by the- present Company. During the past year three crushings had taken place, "the first consisting of 79 tons of stone, which yielded ! 69pz.'of'g6id; the second, -75 tons, yielded 34bz.'; and the third, 22 tons,'yielding 7oz. In consequence of this fulling off in the "returns, they had asked 'the mining manager if he could make any suggestions that would likely .lead to a better state of things, but he was unable to doso. They therefore recommended' to'the shareholders one.of the three courses—either to sell the plant and. property and wind up the comp-my, to sink a shaft for the, better testing of the .value of the claim, or to,, work it on tribute., The capital account; read during the evening, showed the'assets of the company 1p be £1,145 ,16s.- 3d.-, and its -liabilities £561,105..3d.- ,~A long discussion en- . sued, and it was eventually agreed that, seeing there was no. probability of the company being able to work the claim with profit; the whole ,of the company's plant should.- be offered for sale by tender," the final day for reeeiving such tenders to be February 20. A vote of thanks was recorded to the Chairman, and the meeting dispersed. With regard to the case likely' to become famous in the .history "of' gold mining, in which Messrs. Borton and M'Master have taken actlm against the owners of one claim at Maerewhenua, as a test case in which to prove the illegality of sluicing for «old,. it is right to say a word as to the'expenses 'for the defence. A contemporary has urged - litigation in defonco, even to the Appeal. Court, and that the Miners' Associations should unite to find ways and means. We have always held that the Goldtields would have, to fight their own battles, but we hardly expected to be told so in such plain terms. .- In justice, we do not see why the goldminers atMaerewhenua or elsewhere should be put "to any expense at all, to defend' what they, are licensed by their miners' rights to do. We are not sure whether a bolder course of action than defending the case'might not have been' wisely adopted—the whole onus of what transpired being thrown upon the Government . Far less important questions have before now justified the special calling together of Parliament. If a legal contest is to be entered upon, we protest against the expenses being put upon Maerewhenua, or upon the Mining Associations only. The whole Province—all who live by the industries of the Goldfields, by supplying them with provisions and material—are equally entitled to put their hands in their pockets in this cause. . We altogether demur to work of all kinds—prospecting, reporting on claims, and now, it appears, defence of cases arising out of defective Colonial legislation—being In all cases thrust upon the Miners' Associations.