Untitled

Southland Times, Volume I, Issue 33, 16 August 1864, Page 2

In our issue of Saturday, an inadvertent mistake occurred in the Custom House Statistics we published. We refer to the Table of Imports, which should properly have ...been designated . Customs' Revenue, being the returns of, duties derived from dutiable articles "of import. For greater clearness we re-publish, the returns aud supplement a table of imports, showing the value thereof as passed through the Custom House. . The spectral illusion of the Ghost has been Produced at the Theatre Royal for the past two n ights, but. we regret to say, to very indifferent audiences. This evening the tent scene, of "Richard III" will be produced, and the Ghost is announced to appear four times in it. The other performances will comprise the drama of " Viotorine, or the Orphan of Paris." In this piece Miss Eloise Jnno will personate the heroine. Miss Ada Hart will appear as Julian, and Miss Cassy Matthews as Therese. Messrs. R. B. Dale, J. Streeton, and E. D. Haygarth will sustain the other principal characters. A farce will terminate the entertainments as usual. To-morrow evening the Ghost of Lady Nancy is announced to appear. The Otago Mail, of 10th inst., has the following on the future prospects of the townsliip of Waikava : — " At Waikava the survey of a block of sixty acres agricultural land has been, or is nearly completed, and a new survey for a townsliip is about to be commenced. The laud is described as exceedingly good for agricultural purposes, and at present it is densely timbered. Two saw : miUs are iv full work in the neighborhood, with profit to the owners, and in addition to this a seam of coal, or h'gnite of a very superior character, has been opened, and operations for its active working will soon commence. The approach to the future township is somewhat difficult, and only easterly or westerly winds permit ingress and egress to vessels without the aid of kedging. No doubt, as population comes, present difficulties will be overcome, and from the capabilities of the district, there can be little question as to its early settlement." No additional information has transpired since Saturday to throw further Hght on the new gold discovery. Campbell still maintains the greatest reserve, and all the reports as to the correct locality of the rich finds must only be regarded with extreme caution. Time only will reveal it. The statement, we may observe, which obtains most credence is that Campbell and his mates (who accompanied, for some tune, Barrington in his explorations) after separating from them, came upon the gold about the head of Lake Wakatip, or in the district lying between it and the Te Anau Lake. Tliis would increase the distance from Invercargill to something like one hundred miles, in place of sixty, as Campbell himself states. As before hinted, however, nothing definite is yet known of the precise locality, but the nature of the gold procured almost conclusively points to the fact that a new goldfield of a rich and extensive character is on the eve of being opened up. During the last sittings of the Provincial Council of Otago, an interesting report was submitted from the Harbor Master's office, on the state and capabilities of the harbors and rivers of the Province. The following figures are given in that report on the volumne^of water carried to the sea by the river Molyneux, or Clutha. The waters had been carefully measured when at their lowest, and the following comparative statement of the body of water emptied into the ocean by rivers in various parts of the world will be perused with interest : — Cubic feet per minute. Molyneux river 1,690,401 Tay, Scotland 274,000 Bovne, Ireland 180,000 Thames, England 102,000 Clyde, Scotland 48,000 Forth „ 28,335 Rhine 3,960,000 Rhone 649,000 Tiber 618,234 Soane 400,000 Arno 266,800 Nile 1,386,000 Irrawaddy 4,500,000 Thus the Molyneux, when at its lowest, is larger than the Nile, six times the size of the Tay, nine that of tho Boyne, and sixteen times that of the Thames. The sittings of the Resident Magistrate's Court yesterday were protracted to a lato hour, the greater portion of the day being occupied in the hearing of cases in the extended jurisdiction. The cases in which the greatest interest attaches were those of Murdoch v. Roebuck, and Brown v. Deegan. The former of these cases was adjourned till to-morrow, in order that the legal points involved might be more fully argued. The question at issue is " Can a tenant of an hotel at the end of his lease remove a bowling alley which he had erected for the purposes of his trade ? " Mr. Button, the counsel for the defence, argues that it is a trade fixture, and liable to be removed by the tenant. Mr. Harvey, on the other side, maintains that a bowling alley is not a compulsory or absolutely necessary trade fixture, in connection with a hotel, and could not be removed, and also that it partook more of the natura of a freehold property than a fixture. Mr. Button quoted parallel cases from Smith, viz. : — Penton v. Robart, and Buckland v. Butterfield. Mr. Harvey cited examples from Woodfall in support of his case. The case of Brown v. Deegan was one in which several sheep belonging to plaintiff had been worried by a dog alleged to belong to the defendant. In tliis action, Mr. Harvey attacked the Provincial Ordinance, which, he said, overruled the common law of the land, and submitted that it was necessary that a scienta should c proven. The Court ruled that it wa3 not, and bhere being sufficient proof brought to bear on tha tease, a verdict was given for the plaintiff in mitigated damages. The other actions before th© Court were not of much public interest. The Otago Witness, of 6th inst., contains an interesting a»d well executed woodcut of Mount Egmont, in the province of Taranaki, and accompanies it with tite following explanatory description : — " The principal natural feature of tho neighborhood of ISTew Plymouth (Taranaki) is the lofty and magnificent mountain, which we have chosen as the subject of our illustration. Ifc is one of the few mountains which rise, aa it were, abruptly from its base, standing almost isolated from the surrounding ranges. In shape, Mount Egmont is a perfect cone, and its summit rises precipitously to a height of 8,840 feet above the sea level. On a line clear day this mountain with, its white crests, and its gullies, and chasms filled with glistening snow, forms a scene of surpassing beauty. The summit, wliich is but rarely if ever denuded of its mantle of snow, has, when viewed irom a distance, the appearance of some ancient fortification, presenting as it were four walls with bastions at each corner. There is. a basin or crater in the summit, and from midway downwards the sides of the mountain ara clothed with dense forest. Few persons have reached the summit, and one or two lives have been lost in the attempt." We observe that Mi-. Murdoch, one ofthe "old idenlity" of Southland, has entered upon the possession of the TTn:"on Hotel, Tay-street, lately occupied byfM>. William Roebuck. AMr. 'Murdoch has been making considerable alterations and improvements in this well-known hotel. The bar has been changed, and the dining room, a large apa .■iment", is being fitted up with paintings of quite a unique aud tasteful description*. The billiard room has also been much improved, and w- 1 be found one of the best in Invercargill. It contains two first-class tables, with everyappHance aud comfort at hand. We understand Mr. Murdoch intends, shortly after his improvements are finished, which will be in the course of tho present week, to have a grand house-warming on his opening the hotel.

We regret to intimate the death of Mr. H. Gk Woodhouse, of the /Bank of New South Wales, wliich took place at the bank, on the evening of Sabbath ta*»t. The funeral will take place at two o'clock to-'ln*. and, out of respect to the memory of the •! veased, we observe that the various* banks will bo closed at one o'clock. The IVaZ-afi/> M«i?. of the 10th inst., contains the prospering of "Tlie Avoca Quartz Mining and Crushing Company." From the columns of our contemporary, and also from private sources, we learn that the undertaking .bids fair to prove a nucce.es. Ths capital of the company is £500,000 in 1.000 shares of five pounds each. Deposit — 10s. on appli'iti-'on, and 10s. upon allocation ond issue of scrip. The remaining £4 in chM* .". rot exceeding £1, at periods to be fixed by ! lie permanent committee. The list of pvonmi,-v:5 contains the names of gentlemen well kn»wn both for prudence and onergv. Tlie reef which it is proposed to work is on" the south side of the Arrow River, and the trial of the quartz ny Mr. Wright, the Mining Snrvevnr. yielded at tlie rate of nine ounces to the ton; the prr.cpcciors also obtained, with very primitive mtvehinerr. a return of from five to six ounces to the ton. " Tt is impossible at present to form an accurate judgment of the size of the reef, but the crown has already been laid bare to a width of moro t"<: .-** four feet, and a quantity of good stone vais.-i ready for crushing. The close proximity of a- running stream will enable the company to dispense with steam machinery, the enormous expense of producing which, and its subsequent cost of working, devours such a large share ofthe returns. As soon as a sufficient sum is subscribed a first-c'ass- battery of stamps, to te worked by a water- wheel, will be erected. It is to be hoped that thi* company will meet with good fortune.- A «reaf impetus -would be given to this class of mining, which has hitherto not attracted as much attention as its importance unquestionably deserve?. There are, without doubt, many other reef? in ihe Lake district which would amply repay the wo"king ; and the permanence of quartz, ns opposed to alluvial mining, should vendor their discovery an object well worthy of fitiflniment. We will allude to this subject again in ft future issue. There is & rumor ofa rush to the Mataura Bend. Our ii'forr.innt had visited the ground, but does not report favorably. The Wakatip Mail alludes to lhe same rush, but contains no definite information. The gold is said to be fine and sealer, prospects of half a pennyweigh to the pan has been obtained. The WaJcatip Mail also speaks in very favorable terms of the Moke Creek. Tlie report is as follows : — The. latest accounts from Moke Creek are, we are happy to say, most satisfactory. Tlie whole body of miners are'doing well ; and. notwithstanding the severity of the weather, aro in good spirits. Lang and party have taken up a large extended claim for sluicing, and will soon be carrying on operations on alarge scale. A vast area of available ground for sluicing exists at the junction of Moke and Moonlight; and there is 'little doubt that the enterprise of any parties taking up claims would be well rewarded" as water may be brought to the spot without any great difficulty. The locomotive engine, No. 2, Davies' patent, -was, by dint of yr---.. exertion and no little trouble, removed yesterday fr.->»n the end of the jetty up to the road which leads h tho jetty shed. To-day, it wilibe dragged to the ".--liK ?-?-& run along to the station The 3 smooth, bro* A. wheels of the engine will not suit the ordinary irjn rails of course, but by piachi"**" a waggon hefore and another behind it, it is believed that the "-ork of removing it in this manner will be the best that could he adopted. In the operaiions yesterday, one of the men employed had the niisf. n-tune'to get one of his arms rather severely bruised. The Inveror.rgiil Srhool Committee met yesterday, at the oiiices of Messrs. Mueller and Geisow, Tay-sti-eet, .for the purpose of hearing the appeals which had been made against the educational assessment. Mr. Butts pointed out to the meeting that piiificient notice h:>,d not been given, and tha^ therefore any proceedings now would be illegal. According to the Ordinance, clause 24, it is provided that afc least ten days' previous notice of a meeting for hearing appeals against the assessment should be given. Tliis had not been complied -with, and the meeting being unanimous in opinion on this point, the day for hearing appeals was adjourned till Eriday, the 26th instant. In reference to the letters of " Anti-Humbug " and " Settler," which appear elsewhere, it is to be regretted that a meeting, convened by a committee entrusted with the carrying out ofthe provisions of an Ordinance, should be 30 strangely at variance with the requirements of that Ordinance. The amount of trouble and annoyance caused to men leaving their places of business yesterday, to sustain their appeals, was loudly complained against ; and it does seem strange that such a blunder could possibly have occurred. We have received a very flattering account of the extensive agricultural operations which are at present being carried on in the Oteramika district. On the estate belonging to the Glasgow Company, and which is under the management of Mr. Hamilton, 1000 acres have been turned over with the plough this season. Upwards of 600 acres of this ground have been tilled by the steam plough, and 300 by horses. Two hundred acres will be sown in oats, wheat, and barley, for the use of the station, and the remainder will be laid down in rape grass and clover seeds for feed for sheep. A better idea of the extent, of the operations which are bemg carried on, will be conveyed by the fact that there are one hundred hands employed on this estate alone, The system adopted, and tha general management of the operations are, we are informed, all that could be desired. Mr. Mitchell, the &rm manager, is a man of great experience in agricultural matters, and, under his own and tha able direction of Mr. Hamilton, Southland will soon be able to show an estate second to none in New Zealand. Not only, however, on this estate are agricultural matters receiving such a large chare of attention. On the next station, Mr. Robert Hunter's, the steam plough is likewise m operation, and also on the extensive station o j Messrs. Holmes and Co., Seaward Downs, in the same district, is the same improved system of tillage resorted to, and great areas of land are being converted from their natural state into most valuable agricultural soil. A handsome communion service has just been presented to the Church of England congregation in Invercargill by Robert Stewart, Esq., Pomahaka, Mataura. ' " The fourth of the series of evening lectures will be delivered in the Scotch Church, Tay-street, this evening, by Mr. A. Bonar, senior. Subject— " Savings'. Banks." We hope to see a large attendance ol all classes at this lecture. The subject i* one of the most vital importance to the working man, and the benefits which will be demonstrated as resulting from the establishment of savings' banks will, it is to be hoped, have a good effect on the audience, and be of considerable service in bringing the Southend Savings' Bank, which is just about to start into existence, before the eyes of the general public. It is an institution destined to effect great things for all who patronise it, and it is ex'tremelv desirable that the advantages ifc offers should obtain all possible publicity. An informant relates a story of how some people in Invercargill attempt to evade their debts. A carpenter, the other day, ran up an account for repairs in his line on a store ra one of our principal streets. .His account for these repairs amounted to £l*odds, but the storekeeper (whose name ifc is not ne cessary to divulge) demurred to paying it, as it was, according to his opinion, too highly charged. A dispute arose between the parties, but the carpenter, being anxious to proceed to Auckland without delay, proposed a settlement of the account by arbitration. To tliis the storekeeper assented, and each accordingly named a person to decide the matter. The arbiters met, and were unanimously of opioibn that the work done was charged for at a very moderate rate ; but when the storekeeper heard of this decision, he foamed with rage, and exclaimed that he would nofc pay the bdl. It is difficult to conceive of such a want of probity in any person, and we hope few parallel cases are to beheardof in InvercargilL It is well, however, that tradespeople should be on their guard with thos* troublesome customers.