The Southland Times. WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 12, 1868.

Southland Times, Issue 1002, 12 August 1868, Page 2

The Southland Times. WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 12, 1868.

The days of the roomy but rough ' Ballarat,' as a rehicle for passenger traffic on our streets, seem to be drawing near a close. Carriages of a more elegant make, and affording more comfortable accommodation, threaten soon to deprive ' it of the monopoly it has bo long enjoyed. Some- I time since we noticed the advent of a very handsome Albert car, as a great improvement in our street conveyances, and now we have to note that it in its turn is put in the shade by the introduction of an elegant and luxuriously cushioned ' Brougham,' which haa been procured by Mr M'lntyre. of the Albion Stables, for the purpose of letting out on hire. The carriage is of first-class construction, beautifully mounted, as is also the harness of the pair of mettlesome little greys, which Mr Mintyre has matched to run in it, so that the whole affair forms what may be called quite a stylish turn out. It will, no doubt, be a great comfort and convenience to parties requiring the occasional use of a carriage. The same gentleman has also, we understand, several other carriages, of superior build, now on their way from Melbourne. We have to acknowledge the receipt of the first annnal report of the Southland Agricultural and Pastoral Association. It will be seen from our advertising columns that s general meeting of the subscribars ia announced .to take place on the 30th September nert. By the courtesy of J. Dalgliesh, Esq., we have been placed in possession of a letter from J. K. Cameron, Esq., Five Rivers Bun, in which an account is given of the long suffering of a young man, from an accident, whilst engaged in •plittinß timber in that district for the . contractors, Zilkelly and Co., for fencing on the property of John Elles, Esq. It says : « A ' remarkable escape from death by exposure and ' hunger, occurred the other day. A young man ' named John Nolan, has, for some few weeks, been 3 Bplitting timber in the West Dome Bush. Not l having co/ac in to the Station for provisions at ' the time he intended, suspicions as to his fate were raised. A party went in search on Saturday. His tent had the appearance of being unoccupied ' for some time. In the bush, about a mile distant, irere found his hat, boot, and leggings. On Sun- '? day morning, a c cooey' wa3 hoard' in the) direction c of a hill behind- the homestead. - On- reaching J the spot, a' sad spectacle was presented) : the poor li fellow was moving- akrag-.by.' the aid of crutches, b His story Js. f tha,t a tree had fallen upon him, ,a breaking his thigh bone. "'He : has'been for five [o days i ravelling,- or •rather'mo'vingjvyong a distance c. of aeven miles, and during that time was without n ?fQOd,'and.«Epoj96d'ona.high-.^aoge and-nigeed h hills to cold .and; 'snow. .Dr »M'Grystalj iof tl Switzer's, has been sent for. h

The following, lrora one of the latest dates of tlie Melbourne ' Argtis,' may interest our readers : — 'The trial of I'ex6lncfeur took place in a paddock at the Royal Park Farm. The attendance was very numerous, and not only was the Board of Agriculture, but the insurance companies, the mercantile community, and others interested in buildings, well represented. This patented self-acting miniature fire-engine is not a new inrention, although it has only just been introduced to the colony. The first trial was made upon a shallow tank, eight feet by six feet of tar and naptha. This was fired, and in one minute exactly from the time when the whole surface was in flames, two of the small engines, each on a man's baok, entirely quenched the flames. A temporary shed, 9x9xß, had been prepared, and was the subject of the second experiment. This building was made of deal boards, and open at one side (the windward one.) Che bottom and shelves were covered with shavings and pieces of wood, all saturated with naptha, %nd covered with tar. After being fired it was one mass of flame in a minute. When two of the extincteurs, at a given signal, began to play upon it, the fire was subdued aud under perfect control in two minutes, but three and a hall minntes had elapsed before all signs of flame had disappeared, and only then a few small flames occasionally made their appearance where the boarding was double. The tank of tar, &c, was fired a second time, to satisfy a few late visitors, and was extinguished in half the time of the first trial. The experiment proved a complete aucoess. This little engine is more for the prevention of the spread of large fires at their first breaking out than when they have obtained complete mastery of the building. The small engines are portable, and those under inspection, when full, weighed between 601 b and 701 b, holding between six and seven gallons each. The propelling power was something surprising, even when more than half empty. When full a jet was thrown easily twelve yards. This force is simply from^ the pressure of the water, without any internal machinery to assist it. The principal extinguishing power does not so much lie in the quantity of water as in the fact that the water in its passage adjacent to and through the elastic tube, generates carbonic acid gas, and this gas act 3in combination with the water, which so quickly tells upon the flames.' The 'Hobart Town Mercury ' relates the following extraordinary anecdote : — The hunt of Monday with the garrison harriers was unexpectedly terminated by the following circumstance : — 'The kangaroo, after twenty minutes' run ; crossed the road at O'Brien's bridge and made for the Derwent. As he leaped away through Mr Wilkinson's bush paddock his sudden appearance considerably astonished an old creamcolered Timor pony, and still more so her yearling filly, which stood by her side with tail out, nostrils distended, ears pricked, and eyes flashing very lightning, as the long-tailed stranger hammered his way towards the pair. The dame, finding that her foal paid no heed to her snort of caution, and impelled, no doubt, by the first law of nature common to all animals, savagely lashed the air with her tail, and with ears close and silvery mane afloat, down she trotted across the la wn. and breaking into. _a_canter, struck the kangaroo so violent and unerring a blow in the head with her fore foot that the game struggled only a few paces further, and dropped dead on the spot. At a performance at the Duke of Edinburgh Theatre at Hokitika, on the evening of the 17th ultimo, about 9 o'clock, the house became suddenly dark, and an intimation was given to the audience that they had better leave the theatre. The circumstance that caused this we copy from tjie ' Observer ' : — ' The man employed to manufacture the gas made some demand for payment, which was not acceded to by the management, and immediately, in fulfilment of the threat he had made when urging the demand, not only did he turn off the gas from the theatre, but contrived to remove certain stop-cocks, and otherwise divert the current of the gas so as to cause it to waste in a contrary direction. The consequence was, that when attempts were made to restore the current to the theatre, those who made the attempt having a light with them, the streams of gas rushing from the gasometer were ignited, and the flames rose to a very considerable height. Providentially, the bystanders were successful in their efforts to quench the flames, using th<-ir coats and other articles of clothing for the purpose. There can be no doubt that the town of Hokitika has escaped, this time, the greatest danger of utter destruction it has ever incurred. One of the New York correspondents of the 'Argus' writes on the 9th of May as follows : ' Let me devote one sheet to a curious invention. A native in this State is exhibiting in a room in Broadway a machine made in the image of man, and capable, like him, of locomotion and traction. I have seen the cast-iron fellow do all but actually draw the carriage to which he is attached ; and as he has done this on the public street, I do not call his ability in question. When dressed, which he is not when the machinery is to be examined, he is said to have a very respectable appearance, and to emit little smoke from his stove-p<'pe, The inventor claims fdr him the more than usually definite ' one-horse ' power for pulling, to which must be added his superior speed and endless bottom. It costs from 40c. to 60c. a day to run him, and he needs attention not more than once an hour. The water is supplied to the vertical boiler (the ' steamman's ' body) by the action of the engine which he carries on his back. A couple of breaks serve to guide and to stop the movements. What gradients it is capable of overcoming has not boon satisfactorily tested. At its best however, and though it costs no more than a good horse, it can never be generally adopted. It is, in spite of its ingenuity a very clumsy and superflous contrivance beside the carriage which propels itself by steam, and which has not seldom been seen in the streets of our chief cities.' The Wellington 'Independent,' under the iiead'of" ' ministerial levitjr,' says :— r rt 'Ori Thursday svening. Mr ■ Thomas Macffarlane accused the Eon. .the Native Minister (Mr Richmond) _of laang.last^s^ion, caljed, the,TweJve Apostles a iefc of sneaks,' The Honi Mr Richmdnd in reply idmisted r that he-had, said. somet,^ug,pf-t;hfi, .kind ►f , the, "Seven. Wise Virgin*." tVnen this interhangftdf courtesies war explained to one of the Host intelligent of the Native Representatives, ie BhoOk'"hM^he'ad."gra r vely, and asked whether here waa-dnyieason to wonder that Hauhauism! nd taken such firm root in the native districts.''

QLe "Wellington Independent," 4th August says : — ' The hon. members hare found some relaxation in 'taking off' the notabilities on paper. A capital sketch of Mr Carleton has been taken, giving a faithful representation of the hon. member for the Bay leading in a ' Swan ' with a piece of rei tape. The • other side ' answered this squib by giving currency to a good likeness of ' fhe Fox ' running away with the geese. As. Hon. member being asked — the hon. member for the Weatland Borough, we believe — what policy Mr Swan would go in for, answered- — c a neck or nothing Policy of course.' The following letter to the " Argus" is worthy of the serious attention of all miners who may think of migrating to the Queensland diggings :— l 'SlB,— I have just returned from a trip to Queensland, and as I find that the news of the rioh gold discoveries in that colony is unsettling the Viotoian diggers and attracting them in hundreds to Gympie and Cape River, I feel prompi ted to address a few lines in the way of caution to I those who may be thinking of trying their j fortunes in those loca^ties. Ido so on the ground that, although there is probably plenty of gold there, it can, for the most part, only benefit the poor man by affording him work as a laborer at reefing or deep sinking ; for it ought to be well known here long before this, that all the shallow alluvial ground in the neighbourhood of Gympie (to which place I find that most of the men leaving this are going), ia considered by the diggers there to be worked out ; and, owing to the comparatively small amount of capital at present employed in developing the reefs, there is only a very limited demand for laborers on them. At the same time there is every prospect of extensive work commencing soon. — As for the Cape River diggings, I can state from , personal knowledge that the diggers are leaving the place in scores, sick with fever and ague. I happened to be at Port Denison about three weeks ago, waiting the return of the Eagle steamer, from Cleveland Bay, intending to take passage by her for Sydney ; but when she arrived every berth in the steerage, saloon, and ladies' cabin was occupied by diggers returning from Cape River, most of them showing evident Bigns of having undergone great hardship and suffering. Many of these men had brought away a large quantity of gold with them, but all to whom I spoke said they would not go back there for all the gold in Australia. — Queensland will doubtless be a great gold producing country, and if a man has temperate habits, robust health, and a fair supply of money to carry him through the adverse contingencies incident in a digger'a life, he may chance to do well; but for those who go there without means, and expecting, as many of them do, to find a field for their operations like our Bendigo and Ballarat of 1852, nothing but miserable dissapointment awaits them, at least so far as present discoveries are concerned."