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Mount Ida Chronicle, Volume V, Issue 257, 6 February 1874, Page 2

Whooping cough is very prevalent at St. Bathans, attacking young and old alike. f- A visit from the Presbytery is expected on ixe 11th prox. at Naseby. A day's racing is to be held at Wsukouaiti on April 1. It ia proposed to establish a farmers' club in the Wakatipu, District. A wckio and ball ia arranged in commemoration of St. David's Day, at Welshman's Gully, St. Bathans. Mb. Warden Stratford arrived in Naseby last night, to relieve Mr. Robinson during his leave of absence. • Tenders are called in our advertising columns, for a school building at Blackstone ill]], Wb are in receipt of the < Evangelist,' which maintains its former creditable ap. pearance. Tendebs for the erection of the Waitak" bridge are now called for, and are to be sent in before the 18th February. Tbndbbs are to be lodged to-morrow on or before 2 p..n., at the Enterprise Company's company's water race. • ■■ Dm. Cbokb, Roman Catholic Bishop, left Auckland in the Ph«be, en route to England, to endeavor to collect funds, for building ca'hedral in that town. - The report of the Chief Inspector, Mr. Logie, shows that the disease of scab amongst sheep in the Oamaru District, has been completely eradicated. The Superintendent has received intima- •

t ion that the ship Scimitar left London in December for Port Chalmers, with 430 immigrants.

A committer (Messrs. Dowse, Dodson, and Q-ourlay) has been appointed to report upon the best course for the steeplechase to take place in Dunedin in March next. Thb next Court day at St. Bathans will be on the 24th inst. The Courts for February at the'other townships in the district are not yet fixed'.-"- :\-\- •

. Since our last issue the vessels Warwick and ( utterwortb have arrived at Port Chalmers •from„;Lpndon, and;the:Margaret.. Galr braith from the Clyde. The judgment of the Resident Magistrate's Court, given by Mr. Maitland, R.M., in the charge against Captain Johnson, of the Surat, will be found on our fourth 'page. Mr. Bastings, in answer to the Secretary of the St. Bathans Progress Committee, has promised to visit the township this month. I; is to he hoped the promised visit will not b i much longer deferred.

Mb. Vogbi has appointed a Commission 'to inquire into the late : fatal boiler accident at the Thames, and generally into the state of machinery on the goldfields. OOLD has been struck in the Caledonian claim, Auckland. It is supposed to be the old lead. 1501b. of specimens are out, and 4001b. of picked stuff. The lode is dipping into Tookey's. Thb ' Wakatip Mail' says ,:—" The .number of tourists visiting the tiake scenery this year has been greater than any preceding one. The ensuing two months are generally the most enjoyable part of the year in this district, and favorable therefore to tourists." Thb attempt to collect a sum of money ip Victoria, in aid of the fund now being rawed in England for the purpose of setting up some memorial in honor of the late J. S. Mill, has not met with a large measure of success, between £l6 and £l7 only having been ■ubsribcd. "; Thb St. Bathans Miners' Association have received a letter from the Maerewhenua Association, thanking: them for their offer of financial aid" towards the expenses of the defence in the action against Howe and others, by Messrs. Borton and M'Master—as being the first offer of practical assistance they had up to then received.

The sea is reported to be tolerably smooth at Catlin's River, and cargo is being discharged from the wreck of the Surat. The ship's bottom ha* received some damage, bat the hull present* no appearance of being strained: She has settled more on an : even keel. The weather has been exceedingly unfavorable for some time past. The Dunedin ' Star' understands, that, in compliance with a requisition from a number of members of the Athenanm, a meeting of subscribers will be held on Wednesday week to consider the advisability of rescinding the decision arrived at on Friday, re opening the reading-room on Sundays. .The meeting will : probably be held in the Masonic Hall. The Dunedin 'Star* says:—That Mr. Clapcott, travelling Sub-Commissioner for the Government Insurance and Annuities, had received an appointment in the North Island. It now states that Mr.'Clapcott's success on the goldfields of this Province has been "so marked that the head of his department has determined to give, him a larger' sphere of operations, which will comprise the Provinces of Wellington, Hawke's Bay, Taranaki, Marlborough, and Nelson. He starts for this new field early in March. On Monday evening last a public meeting was. held at the schoolhouse, St. Bathans. The meeting was called by Mr. de Lautour, to ascertain, previous to the next session of the Council, the requirements of the district. A number of questions were mooted and discussed: the reduction in the price of gold; the state of - the roads in -spite of the expenditure agreed to by the Government, but not carried out; the necessity for the establishment of a post between Welshman's and the Creek; the opening up of Muddy Creek—all which matters were ventilated to the satisfaction of the meeting/' Mr. S. Turner was in the chair. Mr. G. Purton proposed a vote ofthanks to and confidence in Mr. de Lautour, which was carried.

The ' Wakatip Mail' of the 30th ult. reports that the last few days of fine weather has brought on the harvest rapidly. Every one speaks veil of the crops, so that whajb every one says must be true. Yields of 50 bushels per acre, both of wheat and oats, are mentioned, and as high as 60 bushels of the former in some instances. Mr. Hallenstein expects 50 bushels of bats per acre from a hundred acre paddock. We have made enquiries about the labor difficulty and find hands are pretty numerous. One farmer informed us that he had not for some years seen so many men knocking about. This is no doubt owing to many miners desiring to replenish funds. The rate of wages rule at 50s. per week and found.

Qua Kelson telegrams to-day notify the death, from consumption, of Mr. T. A. 8. Kynnersley, who, in the early days of the West Coast goldfields, was Warden of the Nelson south-west goldfield, and represented the district in the Assembly in the session of 1869. In early life the deceased gentleman was in the royal navy, held a lieutenant's commission, and had seen some service. ' He was a member of the Provincial Government for a short time in ; 1870 or'7l but illness forced him to resign both his seat in the Executive and the Provincial Councils. He paid a visit to Australia shortly afterwards, in the hope that change of air might arrest the progress of his disorder, but the hope soon proved a fallacious one. He gradually wasted away for some months past, and on Sunday evening death put an end to his sufferines.— ' Star.' •?

On Saturday afternoon last, the inhabitants of Naseby were startled by the ringing out of the fireball. It was at once discovered Jihat the fire was in the stables of Mr. B. Horswell, at the foot of Earn-street. It appears that Bome children had been lighting fires at the back of the stable, which had spread inwards, catching hold of the horses' bedding. The members of the Fire Brigade were on the ground with great expedition, and, with the assistance of others, soon succeeded in extinguishing the fire .Some difficulty was experienced in getting out the horses, but, thanks to the efforts made, they received no injuries The damage done to stable-fittings, &c, Mr. Horswell estimates at about £20..