LATEST AUSTRALIAN NEWS.

Thames Guardian and Mining Record, Volume I, Issue 276, 27 August 1872, Page 3

LATEST AUSTRALIAN NEWS.

Per the s.s. Wonga Wonga. +. .. Melbourne, August 12. —M. Lagra, from Batavia states that the submarine cable is broken near Sandal Wood Island, and that the Investigator is picking up the ends.— A man was drowned in the Yarra yesterday. His name is Charles [Jacobs, lately from Sydney, where he has a wife and six children. —At yi meeting just held it was resolved to form a School of Music. The excess of calls over dividends during the past week at Sandhurst was £4OOO. — A portrait, in oils, of the late Bishop Patteson has been presented to Bishop Perry. —Joshua Brothers have commenced the erection of sugar-refining premises at Footscray. August 15 : The convict Weeclmrch has been committed for trial on the charge of attempting to murder Mr Duncan at Pentridge.—Several proprietors of singing saloons in the city have been fined at the Police Court for having no licence.—The Scotch Church, Collins-street, is in course of demolition, to make way for the erection of a larger and more handsome building.

Adelaide, August 14.—The Government have adopted Mr Elder’s suggestion of zig-zag explorations east and west of the overland telegraph line.—August 15 : A message was yesterday evening received from Mr Todd, stating that he entertained hopes of through communication between Adelaide and Port Darwin being established by the end of next week, or earlier. He considers the construction of 2,000 miles of telegraph through the centre of Australia in 2 years not bad work, taking into account the vexatious delays, and that the materials had to be brought from England. The estafetto arrived from Lawson on Wednesday night, with a message stating that communication by means of the cable was still interrupted. The gap on the land line can now be traversed in two days. Grafton, August 13 : Mr Norman Cowan, storekeeper, South Grafton, when riding in from the Urara this evening was thrown from his horse, and picked up on the spot lifeless. Brisbane, August 13 : Carver, teller of the Union Bank, who was committed last Friday on two charges of obtaining money under false pretences, was brought up at the Police Court to-day, cha ged with embezzling £9OO, monies of the Union Bans. After hearing the evidence the charge was amended, and the prisoner was committed for trial for larceny ; hail allowed. The evidence in the first two charges is to the effect that he obtained £SOO from the Bank of Australasia, representing that the Union Bank notes were out of issue ; he also obtained L4OO from the Commercial Bank on similar representations.—The lost child has been found in the bush. There has been a magisterial inquiry, and the verdict recorded is, Died of starvation.—The crushings at the Etheridge continue good. Five crushing machines are on the way. Goulburn, August 14 : Michael Leonard, one of the two brothers stabbed on Saturday by Hines, a madman, died last night. Tasmania, August 13 : Burglaries and robberies have been unusually frequent during the month, attributed by the police to new arrivals.—Sir Valentine Fleming, the venerable Judge, has just led to the hymeneal altar Miss Seccoinbe, daughter of • the late Dr Seccombe, of Hobart Town. The event appears to have created quite a sensation.—A daring an'd sacrilegious robbery was recently perpetrated at St Mary’s Cathedral, Hobart Town. The robber or robbers carried away the “ poor’s box,” with a heavy post to which it was securely nailed, and which weighed nearly a hundredweight. The box, it is believed, contained a considerable sum of money. —A shocking murder was committed at Table Cape recently, the victim being a man named Ford, lately in the employment of Mr Moore, M.H.A., at the Table Cape saw-mills. It appears that Ford resided with the family of a fellow-workman named Armstrong. Some dispute seems to have arisen between the two men with regard to a girl, of Armstrong’s, and in the course of the struggle Armstrong took up a mallet and struck Ford on the head with it. After lingering for about 24 hours, Ford died. A verdict ef manslaughter was returned against Armstrong and his wife, and they stand committed to take their trial at the next sitting of the Supreme Court at Launceston. FRIGHTFUL BOILER EXPLOSION AT MARYBOROUGH. Just as the hands at the Union Saw Mills At Maryborough were about to commence work after breakfast, the boiler of the engine which drives the machinery exploded. Mr James Deacon, the manager of the mills, and a carpenter named John Rankin were killed on the spot. Ten other men were severely injured by the mass of material that was hurled in all directions by the force of the explosion,or scalded by the boiling water and steam. Johnson, the engine-driver died in consequence of the injuries he received, and others of the sufferers by the explosion are lying in a critical Btate. In all, seven sufferers by the late boiler explosion, Maryborough, have died, and three more are not expected to recover. The cause of the explosion is declared to be that the water in the boiler was allowed to get too low, and the boiler-plates became red-hot, thus occasioning a sudden creation of gas and rush of steam when more water was let in. HORRIBLE SACRIFICE OF FOUR LIVES. Everyone in Goulburn (says the Southern Argus ) who heard the news brought in from Crockwell on Thursday night was startled and astounded at the intelligence. It was stated that Mr John Warn, aged 29 ; his wife, Marcella, aged 21 (eldest daughter of Mrs Flora McDsnnell, of the Argyle Inn, Goulburn) ; and their two children, Mary, aged three years, and John Ernest, aged 18 months, had been murdered in their bedroom during the night of Wednesday last. The particulars of the melancholy case are as follow :—Mr John Warn, his wife and family, resided about two miles from the township of CrookwelJ. Mr Henry Warn and his wife lived in the same house, occupying the back, the deceased family residing in the front part'of the promises. A man, who lived not far away, was employed digging potatoes for Mr John Warn. The man proceeded to work on Thursday morning, and, there being no sign of his being called to dinner when noon arrived, ho went to his own house, had his dinner, and informed his wife of the circumstance of no one being seen about Mr Warn’s place. His wife then went to the house and knocked, but, receiving no answer, she opened the door, and in the bedroom the dreadful death scene met her gaze. Mr John Warn was on the floor dead, his

arms drawn up, hands firmly closed, and one of his legs partly drawn up under the •ther. H* had only his trousers and shirt on, his shirt collar opened at-the throat;. On the bed Mrs Warn lay dead in her night clothes, one of her arms stretched out over the bed. Beside her were the two children, both also dead. No signs of violeuco were visible on any of the bodies . The remains or dead embers of a charcoal fire in an open dish were in the room. A coroner’s inquest was subsequently held on the bodies of the late John Warn, his wife, and two children, and the verdict of the jury was that death resulted from suffocation by fumes of charcoal.