PORT OF BLUFF HARBOR.

Southland Times, Volume I, Issue 57, 11 October 1864, Page 2

PORT OF BLUFF HARBOR.

AEKIVED. Oct. B— Nil. Oct. 9. — Albion, s.s., passed through from Punedin. Oct. 9. — Hero passed from Melbourne. SAILED. Oct. B.— Nil. O c t. 10. — Phoebe, s.s., from Dunedin. T. G. Tanton, agent. PASSENGEE LIST. Oct. 10. — Per Phrebe — His Honor Justice Chapman ; Messrs. Miller and Sloan. IMPORTS. Oct. 10.— Per Phoebe— 3 parcels, 1 case, T. G. Tanton. YESSEIS I>~ POET. Arima, ship ; Grananoque, ship ; Sevilla, ship ; Why 2fot, schooner. EXPECTED AREITAT.S. From Melboiirne, City of Hobart, s.s., daily. „ Aldinga, ISth inst, " t „ Alhambra, 17th inst. From Dunedin — Titania, s.s., early. Gothenburg, early. „ Leith— Escape, (now at Dunedin) eavly. From London — Donna Anita.

The s.s. Hero passed yesterday on her vray from Melbourne without calling at the Bluff. The s.s. Albion passed the harbor yesterday ; no doubt owing to the strong E. gale blowing at the time. Captain M'Lachlan, however, thought it not prudent to take his passengers and mails on to Melbourne, but put out his boat and landed them on the ocean beach, perhaps thinking that a walk of a couple of miles would do them good after a night's rolling about in the steamer. It is not the difficulty of coming up the harbor, nor the time which is loßt, which prevents captains of steamers from coming up in bad weather, but the stringent pilotage laws in force. If the captains who are acquainted with the port could be gazetted as being exempt from pilotage, they -would no doubt come up the harbor, but as it is, they can come without a pilot, and the owner 3 take the risk of the insurance company. The captain of a schooner named the Eclipse appeared before the Resident Magistrate yesterday to answer a charge preferred against him by Captain S. J. Williams, the Government agent, for an infringement of the "Passenger Act." The vessel left Invercargill on the 16th August, ■with eighteen or nineteen passengers. Nine days after they had been out the only meat on board served out was in so disgusting a state that during the cooking it was impossible to stay below, and as for eating it, that seems to have been out of the question. The owner of the vessel stated that he had eaten some of it — but he did not specify the quantity he stowed away. For several days, "the passengers were put upon the vegetarian diet of potatoes and turnips. On one occasion, in the absence of sugar, for the coffee, a sugar ba<* was boiled down, but this, it was thought, did not improve the flavor or quality of the beverage. The Magistrate, after disposing of the technicalities which had been raised, deemed, it right, for the protection of passengers, to inflict the full penalty of £50. — New Zealander, 27th Sept. Feom the Otago Government Gazette we learn that the following signals are now in use at the flagstaff, Otago Heads : — Blue Peter. — Keep to sea, the bar is not fit to take. Red Flag. — Take the bar, there is no danger. Blue, with Wldte St. Andrew's Cross. — Ebb tide. White Flag, Half-mast high. — First quarter flood. IFhite Flag, at the mast head. — Second quarter flood. Red Flag, half-mast high. — Third quarter flood. Red Flag, at the mast head. — Last quarter flood. Tha folio-wing signals are in use at the port : — Pilot. — The Union Jack at the fore. Customs Boat.— The Union Jack at the peak. Gunpowder on board. — The Union Jack at tha main. Medical Assistance. — The Union Jack over the ensign at the peak. Government Immigrants on board. — Ensign at the rnizen mast-head. Hails on Board. — White Flag at the fore. Boarding Officer. — Blue Flag at the main. Clearing officer, — White Flag at the main. Police. — The ensign at the main. Ditto at night, — Two lights vertical at the peak, having five feet between the two. Marryaf s Numerals -will be hoisted on the east yard-arm at the flagstaff, Port Chalmers, to denote the height of the tide during the flood in the cross-channeL A TESBEI; called the Three Brothers is reported "by the Auckland papers to have struck on the bar it Watlgawai, and Captain Seymour -with two passengers named Hill and Proctor, were washed overboard. The Captain was saved, but the fate of the two others had not been ascertained. We extract the following from Mr. S. De Beer's (Melbourne) Monthly Shipping and Trade Rejjori of 24th September : — "Scarcely any change has occurred or new feature appeared in our freight market during the past month, and consequently there is but little to report on the present occasion. The aggregate of tonnage advertised and on the berth for London, for the Conveyance of the first of this season's clip of wool, is about equal to that attbe same period last year, and comprißSfl iha following first-class clippers, via. :— the Essex,

■Monarch/ lancolnshire,; Royal* pane, Lightning, Omar Pasha, Star of Peace,' andr.Giant's Causeway. The Lightning and' Star of ;> Peace proceed to G-celong"to load, and sail directfrrom thence. The only 'departures for England during the -month;have been .; the steamer ; Ghreat Britain, for .Liverpool, and the Siisseixjor London. The wool season has thuVe'ariy, to a certain extent already commenced, owing chiefly to the facilities for quick transport afforded _by the branch line, of ' railway'to "the* banks" of the '"Murray, at ' Echuca, being now available, and > which must, during .the present and future seasons, bring to our port a very large quantity, of the produce of Riverina, hitherto shipped, . from Sydney and Adelaide, besides giving earlier despatch than heretofore to the first fleet of- wool ships. There is no alteration to quote in rates of freight,large engagements having been entered into at those quoted in my last report, viz.,. |d. for greasy and jtl. per lb. for scoured, at which they are firm, with an upward tendency, which, however, would be checked were any outside ship laid on the berth. Dead weight is in demand, and being scarce, hides can be engaged at from 255. to 305., and ores at 10s. per ton. For England, passengers are not offering freely, the recent departure of the Great Britain with, aa usual, a large number, having rendered this branch of business quiet in the meantime. The Omar Pacha, of the Aberdeen line, is reported as having the greater number of her cabins engaged. The reputation of these ships for tho comfortable conveyance of cabin passengers being now fairly established. Our coasting trade in all its branches eontin vies dopressed. The steamers for the New Zealand ports have left this during the month almost without passengers, while the .number returning have also very seriously diminished. Cargo has become scarce, and consequently is taken at low rates. The paddle steamer diaries Edward, biiilt at G-ksgow, for the Otago Steamship Company (limited), put in here recently while on her way to New Zealand, and was shortly thereafter sold to the G-ipps Land Lakes Company, and is now successfully engaged in that traffic. The Auxiliary screw steamer Salamander, of a capacity of about 300 head, has been taken up for tho transport of cattle from Newcastle, New South Wales, to Auckland, for three trips, at £100, each voyage. The New Zealand Government advertise for tenders for the conveyance of about 150 imperial troops (invalids) from Auckland to Spithead ; to leave in October. The captain and mate of the Bessie, William and Thomas Gay, were tried at Auckland on the 27th ult, for brutally assaulting and wounding a seaman on board, during the passage from the South Sea islands to New Zealand. They were found guilty, but sentence was deferred. The Nelson Government invite tenders for a regular steam service between Nelson, Piction, Blenheim and Havelock. Tenders are to be for one year's service. The Auckland papers report three arrivals last week with flour and wheat, viz : — The G-uadalette, from Adelaide ; the Statesman, from Chili ; and the Anna Catharina, from Valparaiso. The other arrivals comprise the Albert, from Newcastle, with coal ; the Bengal and Lindsays, from Newcastle, with cattle ; and the Bella Vista, from Melbourne, with a general cargo. The whaling barque Bonnie Doon, belonging to Messrs. Towns and Co. Sydney, has been totally wrecked among the New Hebrides. Crew saved. The s.s. Phoebe left Manakau on the 28th September, at 4 p.m. arriving at Taranaki at 8 am., the following morning, where she waited 6 hours for a boat to land the mail and passengers, the weather being very boisterous, and the surf runing zery high. Left 3 p.m., on the same day, arriving in Nelson at 8 a.m. on the 30th, having experienced very heavy weather from the S. W. She staid in Nelson two days, and left on October 2nd, at 8.45 a.m., arriving at Picton same evening at 7 o'clock. Left Picton on the following morning at 8 a.m., arriving at Wellington at 2 p.m. same day. Left Wellington on 4th at 2 p.m. arrived at Lyttelton on sth, at 8 15 a.m. Left Lyttelton on 6th, at 1.30 p.m., arrived at Otagoat II a.m. — Otago Daily Times ßth October.