AMURI AND REEFTON ROAD.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume VIII, Issue 86, 9 April 1873, Page 2

AMURI AND REEFTON ROAD.

The following correspondence between the Superintendent of Canterbury and Mr Fox is published in the Press : — Superintendent's office, , Christchurcb v February 25, "1873. Sir, — The advantages that would accrue to the province, and especially to its northern district, and the Amuri district in the province of Nelson, from opening up the present trade from the Amuri by. way of the Hanmer Plains to Eeefton and the gold-bearing districts north of the north of the Grey river, was prominently brought under the attention of the Colonial Assembly during its last session, and the late Minister for Public Works, Mr Eeid, made a proposal to the House of Representatives .that . a sum of £3000 should be expended in forming a bridle track from Aha'ura to the Amuri.. , ; ,' *' At a subsequent date . it would appear that this proposal was set aside,and Ihe proposal embodied in the provisions of the Immigration and Public Works, Act, section -43, v :by<which a sum. of ■£50 i OQO. was appropriated to the Nelson south-west ; goldfielde, was, as I. understood, substituted for it. .;:■ .'■ .*!.■' :■■• :■•■'■.'■ ■■' "'." ■" ; - r "f The importance. of the . undertaking to this province will, I trust, be a sufficient excuse for my troubling you by- asking for information as to the steps which have been taken to give* effect' to What was' understood would, form part of thescheme for the expenditure: ;o.f Jthe sum voted, viz., the construction of this road. I may be permitted to state my opinion that if alair, -road were paad.e at. a moderate f cost, connecting the fertile districts of J-his side of the ranges with the digging population of the West Coast; the interests of both would be largely prbmbte'd^nd'KaViDg in view tbe facilities for; settlement -which exists, and which will t be ( further extended. , as the Nelson . railway- progresses; I„k_pV .of no work, the execution of which would, more tend to effect 'the; object -which 1 ' they Legislature and.th&,Government-Jiave con» templated tinder; the /^iiblic^Wbn:iß/- : -Lof;.* '. y\- ■ . -Ibaye;the^ ■ /Your'ilops^ , . ■-..' ir ;. \y (Signed) :; y^Q^ix^^q^y^. y iK . :' . ':■'• ■■■', y. tyyy. 4l4: .V.ifrtf.^^ ; :ThG:H^ ;

sailors, the Board do petition the Parliament of New Zealand to make it compulsory on the owner of every vessel of 50 tons to carry one apprentice, and every vessel of 100 tons to carry two apprentices, and one apprentice for every 100 tons up tos,optpns." On the last trip of the Dakota to Wel- * lington visitors may have observed a poor dejected looking creature who was sitting on the deck gazing vacantly around upon the throngs who passed him, and who wonderingly gazed upon him as they did so. : Questions were asked as to his nationality. Was he a Chinaman, was he an American Indian, an Aztec, a Papuan, or what was he ? Now and then a group would stay to look at him more minutely, when he would piteously look into their faces and then burst into tears. On the arrival, of the vessel at Auckladd, the Herald learnt the following particulars regarding the man from one of the officers of the ship: — That he was a Samoan. That on the Dakota's last visit to the Navigator Islands when coming through from Honolulu, the native came off in a small boat to trade, bringing with him a basket of fruit, &c. But he stayed too long below bargaining about the price of his wares. On ascending to the deck he found that the vessel was steaming ahead at the rate of ten knots, that the blue hills of the Islands were far away in the distance, and that worse than all, his small canoe had got adrift. Loud and long were his lamentations. All attempts to console him were unavailing, and throughout the entire passage he had refused to be comforted , sitting dejectedly upon the deck from daylight till dark, in hopes of again seeing the Navigator Islands, and his wife and children. Poor fellow ! torn away from tne bosom of his family at a moment's notice, all his thoughts are of those - who doubtless think him gone for ever. On arrival at Auckland, the captain of the steamer offered to let him remain here until the vessel returned from the South, and then tp convey him to his native shore. But the Samoan refused to leave the ship for an instant, fearful lest it should not call here again, and so leave him to mourn in a strange land, and among strange ipeo-ple.—lnderpendent. About a year ago rumors reached us that a snug little 40-tonner, called the Kingfisher, owned and sailed by Mr F. R. Lee, a distinguished Royal Academician and a veteran yachtsman, had left England for Australia. We subsequently heard of her arrival at the Cape and of her return to England, where Mr Lee immediately sought out a larger and more comfortable craft to bear him through " the roaring forties eastward of the Cape." His selection was the schooner Linda, of 126 tons, built in 1869 by Camper and Nicholson, of Gosport, for Mr Clifford Smith. In his new craft Mr Lee left Plymouth on July 22, calling en route at Madeira on August 4, at Cape de Verdes August 12, Cape Town September 27, remaining there for three weeks. She then left for the Island of St. Paul's, and then to Amsterdam Island, where a landing could not be effected owing to heavy weather. She arrived at Melbourne on December 14, remaining about a week, and proceeded to Tasmania, visiting Hobart Town, Port Arthur, and Fortescue Bay, from whence she made a fine run of five days to Sydney, and arriving early on the morning of the 28th, gave Mr Lee an opportunity of seeing some of our fastest yachts either rasing or cruising at the Anniversary regatta. We believe that this is the first time that the St. George's ensign of the Royal Yacht Club has been seen in these waters, and they are flown by as pretty a craft as could well be designed for cruising. She has every indication of speed as well as power, but comfort rather than great speed seems to have been the great . design of her builders. Her model is admirable — a nicely-rounded side, plenty of free board, and just enough sheer to give her plenty of lifting power forward without being unsightly. A fine entrance, and prettily-carved stem, terminating in a half-Bust figurehead, give her a smart appearance at the fore end. . Her stern is marked by a long overhang, which tbe present system of yacht measurement has helped to perpetuate. A good-sized gig davits amidships, and a yacht punt of ->|||ie;' usual description, form her comple'.•^|fi|nt of boats. That she can go is testified ■% log, showing 1551 miles for six days, and 1100 for five days, on the out- I I( ward passage." Qn stepping below, we find a large and splendidly-finished saloon, upholstered with crimson, and ornamented with mirrors and mahogany panels. Abaft of this are the .ladies'; cabins, also elegantly fitted, but converted for the nonce into a repository df'cario^.^y'cqUte^ditr/rjMr Lee during bis' present cruise. Seyeral spacious staterooms complete that portion oftbe ves^^ sailing master and crew- are berthed forward, and* bbtft.in;-; their : portions of the Vyjftpht and in ; the y steward's '4 eyer^thingis;fitte(d-upj wit&^ mce-fe^rd ; j^/fctoinfaffjf ; cp^ibn wD^-aiid Jspace ;, The j

date of the Linda's departure from Sydney is not yet fixed, but it is probable that she' •will leave for New Zealand shortly, and return to England via Torres Straits. — Sydney Mail. A Romantic Family reunion on last Christmas Eve is recorded by the San Francisco Bulletin. About ten years ago two brothers left their, home in Illinois and came to California. The elder was a man of the most steady habits, and had received a- good business education, but the younger was inclined to be dissipated, and indeed had figured in so many scrapes at home that his departure was not regretted in his native village. The two brothers lived together a short time in San Francisco while they looked for situations; the younger brother, however, fell into bad company, and they soon separated by mutual consent. The elder brother obtained a situation in a wholesale store as porter, and by his diligence and steadiness so worked himself into the confidence of his employers that he gradually rose from the position of porter to that of partner in the firm. He lately purchased a house in Bush-street, married a lady with a considerable fortune of her own, and on last Christmas Eve he saw " three beautiful children around him enjoying the wonders of the Christmas tree." The family retired to rest at midnight, but the gentleman had hardly closed his eyes when he was awakened by a noise downstairs, and moving stealthily to the parlor with a revolver in hiß hand, he saw a man endeavoring to open the buffet where he kept his silver. Levelling the revolver at the thief's head, he shouted, " Stop, or you are a dead man/ The "jemmy" dropped from the hands of the burglar, who, falling on his knees, cried out, " As God. is my judge, Robert, I did not know that you lived here." t The gentleman then discovered to his horror that the burglar whom he was about. to shoot was his younger brother, whom he had not met for nearly ten years. That night the burglar slept peacefully under the roof of his forgiving brother, who assured the reporter of the Bulletin, with tears io his eyes that he was going, to give him employment in his own store, and that owing to the prospect thus opened of saving his erring relative, he had never spent a happier Christmas. It is not stated what kind of reception was accorded to the younger brother the next morning at breakfast by the wife of his host, but let us hope she participated in the joy of her husband. An Interesting Account is given by the New York Herald of a little unpleasantness which occured on January 11 in a court of justice at Pittsburg, Pennsylvania, during the'course of certain proceedings insituted by Mr M'Clurg, owner of the Academy of music, against some of the late Mr Greeley's supporters in that district to recover his charge for the use of tbe hall, in which an address in favour of Mr Greeley was delivered during the late Presidential campaign. Mr Marquiss, one of the witnesses on behalf of the plantiff, while under crossexamination by Mr Marshall, the defendant's counsel, unfortunately became rather excited, and the scene which ensued is thus described by the Herald reporter : — " The witness, rushing up to Mr Marshall, doubled up his fiat, and, | shaking it under the attorney's nose, remarked, ' I want you to understand that lam not paid for swearing.' This remark did not ease bis wrath to any appreciable extent, and befere he had scarcely ceased speaking he let drive at the lawyer, taking him fairly in the eye and staggeridg him against the wall. The latter was encumbered with a heavy overcoat, but he seized his assailant by the throat, and while backing him to the wall got him into chancery, doubled him up like a jackkoife, and draped both his eyes in the highest style of art. The episode created the wildest excitement. The distinguished audience looked on aghast; for a moment j then numbers of them sloped towards the door. Alderman M'Masters (the presiding magistrate), with surprising agility, jumped from his seat and -seized the belligerent witness, and, with some assistance, ejected him from the office, the exit being, accompanied by sundry kicks administered by the enraged magistrate." The alderman then resumed his seat, and nothing could exceed the decorum of the subsequent . proceedings bat for another unhappy little difference which arose, owing to Mr M'Clurg calling the defendant's attorney •' a liar." Of course the attorney felt boun^d to- take notice of this observation, and accordingly, continues the report, "reached for his, man ;V an|l M'Clurg;, though a little man, was so s wedged in among the crowd that he^cOulde not budge ; ; escape, from .the. : terrible visitations of Mr Marshall's boot .was • out df the question; so heigrihned with pain until he succeeded ■• in' crp-wding tnrpugh the tbron^ V and i-reacfe /Then -he; w^'t -do wn ; Fif tli ;_kyenue^aib fa 4 ;;. -high, rate of speed, and disappearedVTronti■ymr"yy\- 4k4yy-4yyyy4y 4:4 4$