IMPORTANT DISCOVERY.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XV, Issue 220, 16 September 1880, Page 4

IMPORTANT DISCOVERY.

(Marlborough Press), ; What may prove a; matter of great importance to the Havelock district is thus mentioned in a Wellington contemporary of a recent date:-— Mr Moore, the well-known, gold prospector, who, after prospecting the Wainui-o-mata Valley, and being disappointed in receiving certain support promised him, left Wellington for other parts, has returned after an absence of six months. He [first commenced hiei explorations in the Nelson district, ond apparently guided by the auriferous strata, or other prospecting " sign " known perhaps only to himself, Mr Moore worked his way into iho adjoining district of MarlborougK Thcsa who are acquainted with the impnsßable nature of a country mountainous to an extent almost greater than any oiher part in tbe colony, and thickly timbered, can form some idea of the privations and hardships Mr Moore must have gone through in tbe course of his explorations, especially as he worked single-handpd. For tbe tbe last four or fi^e months, he has been in the ranges propecting for gold, only coming in to the nearest station or settlement, when his scanty supply of food ran short. In that portion of the district in which he alleges he has made important auriferous discoveries, he was obliged to cut his way through a dense and tangled foreßt. Mr Moore has several very nice samples of gold, probably ten or , twelve ounces altogether. The gold is in three or four eamplep. The finest lot in respect to quality consists of five or Bix ounces of very rough water-worn gold in pieces of from two or three penny-weights up to an ounce, and ■which etroDgly resembles rough gold often found high up in creeks. Another lot of several ounces seem to have been extracted from cement ; while a third lot appears to have been obtained from ' quartz. Mr Moore has, in addition, a lot of quartz specimens. Mr Moore claims that lie baa discovered a field which will probably employ thousands for yearß ; and looking at it in that light, he has come over to endeavor to get some substantial recognition for bis services before he consents to make the exact locality known. In any case it is probably (hat Mr Moore will apply for a lease of a portion of the ground supposed to contain aurifertous wealth. It is understood that he is perfectly willing to make tbe locality known upon the assurance that a reward will be paid if the results eventually obtained show that the claims now put forward are justified. It may be mentioned here that Mr Moore has been prospecting in New Zealand for the last twenty years, and not .without cooaiderobJe success, as he claims to have been tbe discoverer of the Mace Town and Carriek ranges diggings besides various leads of gold from the, bills to the Moiyneux. It is also said that inducements have been held out: to Mr Moore to proceed to South Africa in order to report upon tbe prospects of gold mines in that part of the world ; but be has now prospected so locg in New Zealand, end his anxious to continue the work here — which has become a profession to him — thai be is naturally averse to leave; and will nzt do so unless he fails to make some satisfactory arrangements with the Government in regard to his latest discovery. Contempt op Court. — The " Pacific! Weekly " (Sydney), in a sketch of the

career of Sir Alfred Stephen. e,xChief Justice of New South Walies, tells the story of the first contempt case before the Colonial Courts s— "Thirty years ago, in a highly iitigated cause tried before Sir Alfred two eminent Counsel, both intimate friends of the Judge, were retained on opposite sides. One of them, in the course of his address to the jury made frequent rfflectioDS and comments on the other, culminating at length in a direot charge charge of falsehood. On the instant, the gentleman so aspersed struck the other once or twice in the face rapidly with a brief held in his hand, and he who received the blow immediately sprang towards hie assailant in a sparring attitude. Sir Alfred called to the byestandera to prevent further outrage, and, with extrordinary self-com-mand, paused for a minute or two in dead silence. He then aßked if counsel wished to say anything more to the jury, end, receiving an answer in the negative, he ordered the two gentlemen to remain in Court. The jary returned with their verdict, and as soon as it was recorded Sir Alfred committed both the counsel to gaol, one for four weeks and the other for six weeks, the heavier punishment being awarded to the counsel whose intemperate expressions had. caused tbe fracas. The episode, as may be imagined, created a great sensation. The offending gentlemen were token to Darlingburst, and when tbe Court rose Sir Alfred followed and called upon them both, remonstrating with them upon the painful nature of the position in which he had been placed. In a few days, with his consent, both gontlerxei were released." This is how they act at meetings of creditors in Wellington :— "While the voting was going on, Mr Huxley (a creditor and tailor) happened to advance towards Summerficld (the debtor, also a tailor) for some reason or other. The act produced an effect on Mr Summer : field similiar to that which is supposed to follow the holding up of a red rag in the face of a wild bull. Mr Summer^ field pleasantly addressed Mr Huxley as ( a grey-headed old sinner/ who wanted nobody to get a living but himself Mr Huzley admitted he was grey-headed grey hairs were a sign of venerablenesb and honour. Mr Snmmerfield he conp tinued, wus bald j that was a sign of dissipation. Mr Summerfield retorted by remarking that Mr Huxley was no tailor to begin with, and was advise^ by the latter not to talk folly. This rrovoked Mr Summerfield to add/ Go to your moleskin patterns, you unprincipled old wretch/ Mr Huxley— ' Don't make a fool of yourself; you're bad enough already/ Mr Summerfield —'I have served you for two years; what did you keep me for ?' Mr Hux--ley — « To keep you from starving/ At this stage two or three other creditors interferred. and the ' slanging diaettf ceased. Subsequently the judge sus-j---pended Mr Summerfielda certificate till November. The Selleb Sold. — The Northern Argus, a paper published at Rock> hampton in Queensland, tells an amusing incident of a "Bruce Auction" held in aid of the building fund of Stl Paul's Church. Our contemporary says : — *' A. funny episode occurred that is worth mentioning. The rootn was tolerably well filled, and the collec--tion of articles of all kinds grouped together gave it very much the appearance of a fancy shop. Mr G. S. Curtis acted as auctioneer, and managed to get very good prices for mesb of the

lots. Considerable amusement was .caused when he announced that 3\£r "William Pattison, who had just en* tered the room, offered, 'by way of putting a little more life into the thing,' to sell the top-coat he was then wearing. Amid much laughter Mr JPattison started the bidding himself at half-a-sovereign, and very quickly the . bids reached a guinea, when there was a pause. 'Go ahead, gentlemen/ shouted the auctioneer, • he's not likely to part with his coat such a night as this under a fiver.' 'Mind, it's cash on the nail/ said the wearer of the coat, and again the bids were made by sixpences till 25s waß reached, at which price the ' upper Benjamin ' was knocked down, amid considerable cheera to Mr Pattison. 'Oh, don't thank me/ cried the latter ; * don't thank me, it's Curfcis's coat you have been buying ! * and so it turned out. Mr Pattison had found the auctioneer's flowing mantle lying about, put it on, and started the owner on a trip to sell his own clothes. When the ' sell ' was disclosed, the laughter was loud and prolonged, and it took Mr Curtis a little time to realise the situation." " Our Australian youth," says the Parlies Gazette, "ore justly famous for their equestrianism, and the annals of the past contain many records of great feats being performed in the shape of long rides ; but we question if any, not even excepting Mr Archibald Forbos's celebrated rida in Zululnnd, will surpass the feat performed by Mr Thomas Strickland on .Friday, the Bth instant. He was at Carcoar, where he had been delivering some cattle, end received a telegram in the morning informing him of an accident to his brother, and implying that he was in a dangerous condition. . He could not start until about twenty minutes past twelve p.m., when he commenced his journey to Forbes, riding hie own horse as far as Canowindra, thirty-five miles. Here he procured a fre&h horae, which took him to Eugowra, twentythree miles, and at the last named place be got a fresh steed, which took him into Forbes, which place, he reached at six o'clock, thus having accomplished a journey of eighty-three miles, with three hors:s in the" won< c - ful time of five hours and forty minutes, or including stoppages, at the rate of fourteen and a half miles an hour. Truly it was an extraordinary performance. Considering be had to wait at each place some time while he changed horses, he must have travelled fully sixteen miles an hour all through." The Chinese Camp at Maryborough was the scene of some excitement last Sunday night. The Chinamen, who have been suffering from a continued depression in business, determined to propitiate the devil in the hope of reviving trade. "On Sunday evening," we quote the Maryborough Advertiser, " preparations. were made for the ceremony, and a priest was procured from Ballarat to perform the ceremony, at the price of £3 10s. The ugliest devil that can possibly be conceived had been specially stuffed for the occasion. A sumptuous repast had been prepared, including every Celestial delicacy, and all went merry as a marriage bell. The ceremony, which is not a musical one, commenced about eleven o'clock. There were about 250 Europeans on the ground, who, taking advantage of their superior numbers, surrounded the Chinamen, hustled them, and ran away with the devil and burned him . Stones were thrown about indiscriminately, burning embers were hurled at the Chinamen, and one unoffending Celestial sustained a severe wound in the temple by a piece of metal which struck him with great force. At the end of the ceremony the Chinamen were assulted on their way home, their provisions forcibly taken from them and thrown away, while the tables and other furniture were destroyed." A Cruel Mistake-.— -An • amusing story comes from Sydney. v A gentleman holding a good official position north-west of Sydney, a distinguished member of the Good Templars, delights to display his hospitality to visitors to his township. Accordingly a gentleman, accompanied by his wife, arriving one afternoon,' were asked round to spend a quiet evening' with this widower. They consented, and after a while were informed by their host that lie was a strict teetotaller, and, as such could not ailmit strong liquors into his house and trusted his visitors would allow him to. decoct a nice refreshing beverage from powders he kept. The lad^ smiled • approval . and ' th ; e gentleman good humoredly acquiesced, and the mixture was duly made. The liquor fizzed and foamed, and resembled thuswise, " Horation champagne." It was consumed. They laid down their tumblers with a patient saddened look. Their faces were glum. Their approving smiles were grins. Soon the lady fi.dge.tted. /By-and-bye the gentleman declared he could- not stay. Both seemecl suddenly to get impatient: to get off, and no persuasions of their prodigal host could detain them. The entertainment vied with the famous play scene "Hamlet" "in the' disorder with which it was broken up. pur host was amazed and filled with wondei\ He then tried to find a clue to unravel the mystery. Oh, Shades of Horace ! Oh, nights at the " Mermaid J" He had got hold of the wrong box, and regaled his guests with Seidlitz powders mixed with ginger. The* review held by the German Emperor at Berlin in May last (says a London paper) has attracted considerable attention from the increased number of troops in the field, and the continued exertions of the- military officers for their improvement. The German army has now a war strength of 2,000,000 men ; and if the troops recently reviewed may, be taken as specimens of the entire army, '.it may fairly be said that it lacks none of the qualities thought most indispensible in soldiers. Foreign military authorities who witnessed their evolutions and examined their accoutrements are quite ready to admit that the German armyhas reached the highest point of effectiveness ; and what is especially noteworthy, is the evident determination of the authorities to keep the machine from rusting. The officers are,, indeed, losing " blood ;" that is to say, the great dej mand for their services has neces-

sitated the employment of men of inferior birth. Jews are now to be seen, as lieutenants ; and the older form of the Prussian officer, who could be picked out from a thousand of the rank and file by 'his breed and bearing, is gradually disappearing. The New York Independent says : — "The 'Business Man's Moderation Society' of this city, if not the best thing, seems to be a good thing, as far as it goes, and is certainly better than nothing. It has three forms of pledges in respect to the me of alqholic beverages. In one of these pledges the signer commits himself to the principle of total abstinence j and according to the last annualreport of the Society, some 5000 business men had during the year taken the pledge. Another pledge requires the signer to abstain from the use of liquors during business hours; and this has been signed by more than 4000 persons. The signers of the third pledge solemnly declare that they will neither treat nor be treated j and more than 12,000 business men had taken this pledge. The radical cure for intemperance is total abstinence. We advice all men to take this ground as the only ground of real safety It is better, however, to impose on oneself a partial restraint rather than to have no restraint; and this is the theory upon which two of the pledges of the 'Moderation Society' proceed. The liquor; drinker who will not drink during business hours, or who will neither treat nor be treated, is doing better for himself and others than the liquor-drinker who ignores both of these rules, and is less likely to become a hopeless drun-' kard." The Earl and the Ghost. — An exchange says : — The Granville ghost, has puzzled Professor Tyndall. During the last session, that terminated so abruptly, Lord Granville was often ob« ; served to be gazing in an abstracted man-! nerat the Wall opposite his seat in the House of Lords ; and on more than one occasion while he was speaking he camej to a dead stop for a moment or two,) and looked earnestly at the point in question before resuming. It has gradually leaked out that the cause of this was the apparition of a casement in the Wall with a shadowy form as of a lady, sitting at the window with her elbow on the sill, and her head resting on her hand. The arm and face were always very distinct the former being adorned by a bracelet, in which a mag-} nificent diamond star flashed brightly, j and the latter, a singularly beautiful! cotinfehahce, being characterised by an | expression, of unutterable sadness.' Ailhypotheses of , disordered vision orj " unconscious celebration " have failed \ to explain the phenomenon ; for, as j Lord Granville is perfectly free from! apparitions outside the House of Lords> j it is evident that the " ghost '* has to „ do with the locality rather than with ; the person. Professor Tyndall has , been applied to, and has avowed his determination to clear up. the mystery, but hitherto all his investigations have proved unavailing. TTT.rkWTT.TTcrra ?— - TTai* Mia TflftfJi nnfl "RrPttth —