The Nelson Evening Mail. SATURDAY, MARCH 30, 1867.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume II, Issue 75, 30 March 1867, Page 2

The Nelson Evening Mail. SATURDAY, MARCH 30, 1867.

In the Resident Magistrate's Court, today, Thomas Tate was complaiued against for selling less than two gallons of spirituous liquor, on the race course, on the 19th inst., contrary to the provisions of the Licensing Ordinance. Sergeant-Major Edwards and Sergeant Nash, proved that they purchased wine from the defendaut. and that they saw him sell wine to others, in thejbioptb," on, Jthe_d?y- . jri/\ question. Defendant admitted having sfrld ; J^he wine, but stated that he» did" so- in consequence of Mr. Richardson ~of7 the Golden <fsieece Hotel, having ' allowed . him to - $£§ k\his license/. He had not the.liceiiiai-^||t-'Blxe ground, and had no iicense of his owfi> Mr. Richardson stated that he gave the! defendant verbal permission to sell in his] name, and considered it allowable to do 1 so, from his experience in (his ard other colonies. He thought also the magistrate would make no objection under the circumstances. His Worship replied that no permission of the kind was obtained or asked from him by any. one. Defendant had not proved he had been hired by Mr. Richardson. He hired the booth himself, it was his own act and deed, and he was responsible for it. The Bench had no alternative but to convict the defendant in the penalty of £50. He could, however, petition the General Government at Wellington, for a remission of the penalty. Frances Patterson was charged with a similar offence, which was proved by the same witnesses and admitted by herself. She pleaded that she was employed as barmaid by Mr. James Sturt, who was selling under the license of Mr. Jervis. Mr. Sturt admitted this to be the case. The Magistrate dismissed the case, and ordered an information to be laid against James Sturt. Margaret Cundy pleaded guilty to a similar offence. She had bought the ground, and was to have Mr. Gentry's license, but there was not time to get it. The police officers having proved the case the Magistrate said a deputation of publicans came down to his house at 12 o'clock at night. He could but deal with the Act as he found it, and enforce the penalty. It had recently been decided by authority in England, that persons selling spirits on a race course, without a license, were liable to a penalty, and here the Act required the same thing. At the same time persons having a license were allowed to sell. This defendant had no license, and he must inflict the penalty of £50.

A Motueka correspondent states that last evening about half-past six o'clock, a man named JohD Frederick Homan, committed suicide by haDging himself in an out-house there. The deceased was a German, who has lived in Motueka 18 or 19 years. He Las left a widow and four children, and. the sad event has caused great excitement in the village. When the fact was discovered the family called in the assistance of a neighbor, Mr. W. W. Coppin, who immediately proceeded to the spot where the unfortunate man was hanging by a piece of Manilla rope. He was quite dead when cut down. It is supposed the deceased committed the rash act whilst laboring under an attack of delirium tremens. We are informed that the greatest sympathy is expressed for Mrs. Homan, "who ia much respected in the district, and has long struggled to counteract the ill effects of her husband's dissipated course of life.

An amusing scene was enacted in the Motueka Valley, on the night of the 28lh or early in the morning of the 29th instant. It appears that some inmates of Mr. Greenwood's household were trying to please a little child in the usual way. A man was. •« cooeying " to the infant, who reciprocated the compliment, and the female Who looked after it was slightly excited with laughter.. These domestic noises were magnified, by the terrified imagination of two men who slept in an adjoiuirjg woolshed, into the cries of a person being murdered ; and the worthies, instead of repairing insfanter to the spot where the foul deed was supposed to be committed, bolted off in a different direction, to obtain assistance from the surrounding settlers. After being absent four or five hours, during which time they had traversed some two miles of difficult road and crossed and recrossed a river, they returned to the homestead, accompanied by eight other men armed with bludgeons and muskets, with Constable Flowers at their head, and with terror depicted on their countenances, roused up the people at the homestead in question, and inquired, in the most serious manner, of the fate of the woman and her infant, . who, they feared, had been barbarously It is needless to say that these awful questions were met with a hearty laugh, in which all parties were compelled to join — without preventing, however, a few subsequent growls on the part of the men who had been dragged from their domestic joys, on a wild goose chase, which originated in an attack of nightmare, „, brought on by an overloaded

v st6mach. The Wellington Evening Post complains : — The ever-recurring announcement — " Communication with the South interrupted" — stares you in the face, when, nineteen times out of twenty, you take part in the burlesque of " Sending a Message," and persistently, but foolishly, enter the door of that office over whose portals some arch wag has painted the words " Electric Telegraph Office." There is, however, no fault to be found with the departmental offices here ; the evil has its root in a mistaken sense of economy, which has studded the other island with rotten poles, causing everyday interruption to the transmission of messages, and consequent annoyance to the public generally. It is much to be regretted that the Postmaster-General, or his equally intelligent substitute, should have the control of one of the most important institutions ever introduced into this colony. We (Wakatip Mail) are sorry to learn that one of the stockowners in the Moke Creek portion of the district named Mr. J. Kirkpatrick has met with a serious misfortune in the loss of about 70 sheep. It appears that the animals, on being driven ran along one of the high terraces near the junction of the creek and Shotover, and on arriving at an overhanging point, about 200 feet above the river, those in the rear pressed two or three over the precipice, when, with the instinct of their kind, all the others followed to certain destruction. We understand about 15 only were saved from a sudden death, but they were so seriously bruised and maimed that it was necessary to kill them.

The Brighton Times says that so many discoveries are being made of coal in close proximity to Brighton, that it will shortly become a question not where coal is, but where it is not to be found. On Sunday afternoon, in company with Mr. Dfonovan, the discoverer, we visited a terrace about three or four hundred yards beyond Messrs. Parker and Company's Brewery. The coal crops out upon the face of the terrace, and the quality of the portion we brought away, proved excellent. Soon after being placed on the fire it burst into flames and emitted numerous jets of

brilliant gas. Further in the terrace, the coal may even prove of superior quality, Mr. Donovan has proved satisfactorily that the seam is fifteen feet thick. "We have been informed by Mr. Broad, our Warden and Resident Magistrate, that a very rich seam of the valuable mineral has been discovered at St Kilda. A company is about to be organised for the working of Mr. Donovan's coal seam, and we trust that no time will be lost in raisiug the necessary capital to commence immediate operations.

The Bruce Herald says: — We have been informed, on good authority, that very recently in Milton there occurred an action, which, for barbarity and cruelty, we think could scarcely be equalled ia Russia, where it is not uncommon for the lords of the soil to use a whip in punishing their servants ; but such conduct is never permitted in Her Majesty's dominions. It appears that 3 certain poor man, sprung from a noble family in Russia, and exiled from thence for holding too liberal opinions, was lately employed by a firm at Tokomairiro (Otago province), and recently delivered a lecture on "Freedom of Opinion" here. This man had sprained his wrist, was unable to work, and consequently was discharged from his work. He was indebted to a tradesman in the large sum of ss. 3d., and was 'unable to pay it ; but this tradesman, instead of taking the usual way of recovering his money, follows the man to the premiaea where he was employed, and rode the poor fellow down, and flogged him with his stockwhip like a bullock ! Our knowledge of the English language cannot supply us with terms sufficiently strong to stigmatise such brutal conduct.

The Bruce Herald says : — We had lately the pleasure of inspecting two splendid fat wedder sheep, of the Leicester breed, at Mr. M'Laren's, of this township. They were bred and fattened on the station of Messrs. Douglas, Alderson, and Co., Pomahaka. Their extreme fatness evidences the feeding qualities of the grasses in the Pomahaka districts, and although very remarkable (their respective weights being 170 and 200 lbs.), yet their handsome and symmetrical shape was still more worthy of admiration ; and with such specimens of careful breeding in this class of stock, under the management of Mr. Watson, there appears little necessity for importing Leicester rams. We have rarely seen such fine sheep in the old country, and when we have done so, their extra weight was due to artificial feeding on oilcake or bruised oats.

Mr. Julius Vogel, leader of the Otago Executive and Provincial Treasurer, in addressing a public meeting in. Dunedin. on March 8, is reported to have said : — That morning there was more than £50,000 in the bank to the credit of the treasurer. He did not take credit to himself for this ; he had only walked in the footsteps of his predecessor, Mr. Moss, who recognised it as a most advisable policy, that, in the face of the heavy engagements the Government necessarily had, a large balance should be kept. That policy enabled Mr. Moss to leave to credit a sum of £30,000 j and now the amount was increased to £50,000. All the votes of the Provincial Couucil had been put in progress towards having effect given to them. It must not be supposed that the £50,000 balance was a sum free for disposal, nor did he think it advisable that so large a sum should be so kept ; what he meant was, that the Government having large liabilities for works in progress or under contract, had the comfort also of knowing that it had funds to meet them — instead of, as was the case not long ago, having liabilities, and not knowing how they were to be • met.

The Sydney Mail say_s her Catholic Majesty, Isabella- Secunda, the Qoeen of

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Spain, has been pleased to present, through the Spanish Consul resident at Sydney, a magnificent altar service of solid gold, enriched with jewels, for the use of the new Roman Catholic cathedral of this city, the erection of which has been necessitated by the calamitous destruction of the old edifice on the 29th of June 1865. The munificent present is an altar service of solid gold, embellished with exquisitely enamelled medallions, and lavishly enriched with jewels — the workmanship being actually far more costly than the valuable materials of which the service is composed. Not less thaa fortythree gems, eight large, aud thirty-five email, (consisting of rubies, emeralds, amethysts, sapphires, and other precious stones) have been used in the adornment of these Eucharistic vessels, which, as works of art, are not to be surpassed. They were given by the august personage, in whose name they come to us, quite privately, at the express instance of Monsieur San Just ; not even the artists who made the chalice and the other vessels were acquainted with the immediate object for which the "service" was designed. At Madrid'it was not known that her Majesty intended to make such a noble present to her co-religionists in the Antipodes. The quiet and unostentatious mode in which the offering has been made has, in the eyes of many, given an additional importance to thiß truly royal gift. An extraordinary instance of presentiment of death is furnished by the case of August Kohfahl, who was killed at the Hoffnung claim, Mount Greenock on Monday, March 4. The Talbot Leader, Victoria paper, states : — The deceased had for some little time boarded and lodged with Mr. Okleman, whose cottage stands in Ballarat-street. On Monday morning, when he got up, he told Mrs. Okleman that he was unable to sleep through the night from an intense nervous feeling of coming danger keeping him awake. He followed this remark up' by stating that he had a very great mind not to go to work at all that day. Mrs. Okleman urged him to adhere to this determination, but he immediately replied that he must go to work, as every effort was needed to bottom the Bhaft. The conversation then ended for a few moments ; but the deceased shortly afterwards came into the house and handed Mrs. Okleman the key of a house he owns in Blacksmith's Gully, Amherst, using the following words — If anything should happeu to me, Mrs. Okelman, here's the key of my house, and you can do what you like with it. The deceased then left for the mount and before night was a corpse. Many of the inhabitants of Yarram, Gipps Land, more especially the children, have been suffering severely from the effect of impure water, since the recent Btormf.' In one instance, the water of a well, which had hitherto been remarkable for its purity, tasted as if a dead body was putrefying in it. It was determined to examine the well, in order to ascertain the cause, when it was found to contain about a wheelbarrow load of caterpillars, which are supposed to have been washed there by the recent heavy rains which have fallen there. The Castlemaine Daily News states that Mr.' David Murray, of the firm of Murray and Christie, has just returned from the Flinders River. Mr. Murray arrived on Saturday evening, 2nd instant, in Gastlemaine. He left his party in good health, with stock, at Mount Walker, which is within 400 miles of the Gulf of Carpentaria. The journey through may be made, we understand, in the short space of eleven days. It may truly be said the wealth of the great Australian interior has been finally unfolded. About a twelvemonth ago, Mr. Edward M'Glashan forwarded a quantity" of New

Zealand flax to England, with a view of its capabilities for conversion into paper being thoroughly tested. . We (Daily Evening Star) have been favored by that gentleman with a sheet of the paper manufactured from it, together with specimens of the material in its various stages in the " breaker, boiling vat," and bleaching operations. The paper is thin, but exceedingly strong, and in both respects greatly resembles the paper used for scrip, bankers drafts, &c. The color, owing to the presence of the resinous gum in the leaves is of a yellowish color, but doubtless this defect will easily be got rid of if it can be proved, as we have no doubt it will be that it will pay to manufacture the flax here lip to its middle stage, and ship it in that condition to the home manufacturer. But such an opening for the institution of a local industry should receive at once the attention of the Government, and the paper should be manufactured here. We intend Bhortly to return to this important subject. The Deniliquin Chronicle says : — News has come, from the Outalpa and Barrier Ranges' mailman, that Mr. R. B. Gow's station has been stuck-up by the Cooper's Creek blackfellows — killing 250 sheep. There were only Messrs. Gow and Dunbar, with four shepherds, to fight the lot. The blacks had all disappeared. A telegram received in Sydney says that the excitement which appears to be growing up under the influence of country correspondents, in reference to some terrible disease said to exist among sheep in the Albury district, is all delusion — the district being healthy to a degree. Mr. Hart, the Australian patentee of the crushing machine known by that name, has filed his schedule. The cause of his insolvency is the seizure of the plant by mortgagees. Mr. Hart's liabilities are estimated at £4000.