TE AROHA.

Thames Star, Volume XI, Issue 3708, 12 November 1880, Page 2

TE AROHA.

The Day of Opening.

" It is probable that the day of opening will be the 23rd inst., and within a day or so a notification to that effect will appear in our columns. The Warden; desirous of giving all possible facilities for men to procure miners' rights, will probably issue them on the Thames, and for some days before the date of opening at Te Aroha. The Fakefca Maories at work. It appears that some of the natives who have not yet affixed their signatures to the deed agreeing to open the Te Aroha are now demanding a bonus in the shape of £1000 from the Government. This the authorities at once refused to recommend, and the threat of the modest gentlemen demanding the bonus, that they would not allow the field to be opened was treated as it deserved. The field will be opened upoq the day to be named, for Morgan and others, upon whose land the gold has been found, have already signed the deed. This latest move of the natives is said, and with good reason, to be the work of a pakeha-Maori well-known upon the Thames. His "happy thought," how* ever, arrived too late, for, although influence is being brought to bear upon Morgan to repudiate his previous action, yet the other parties to the agreement, the Government, are not inclined to allow any such childishness to interfere with what is beisg done for fcfe© welfare of the 'whole dlafcdot asc? fchis ®(mmnmte in {

■ Wrasc to-morrow's iasae of the S2&&' wa will give an extra sheet. The reading matter will be of a rarwd and an infcwwting character tho tale being entitled Saint Fccus. Mr Cloonan will monopolise a large portion, and will fill it with the good news he has for his customers about cheap lines of drapery, The supply of cattle at the Parawai yards yesterday was more limited than usual, but all offered were of good quality, and realised about 25s per lOOlbs. Sheep were plentiful, and brought from 12s to 13s 9d for wethers, j ewes 12a, lambs, good and numerous, sold at from 9s 3d to 13s 9d each. The N.Z. Clothing Factory are showing a new stock of summer clothing. Their advertisement appears ia another column, end ! readers will do well to inspect the new goods. AITHOtJGH the Civil Servants who are fortunate enough to retain their positions in spite of the tidal wave of retrenchment, are doubtless very thankful, there are not a few who have reasons to regret tho " dear ; departed." We heard that a £300 Civil Servant said the other day he didn't know on whom the duty of attending to certain acts required by the Inspector of Nuisances would devolve—the B.M. or himself. This was a grim, though somewhat inodourous joke on the p«rfc of our friend. Mb W. Debsell is gazetted postmaster at Te Eawana, Te Aroba. | Btjtteb is 4d per pound in Greytown, Wairarapa. A SHAiXi party of miners passed through Hamilton on Saturday, en route to the Aroha. The following were electors officers of tbe Lodge of Light at the meeting on Wednesday evening:-»W.M., Bro. Wm. Finlay (reelected; ; S.W., Bro. W. W. Comer*; J. W. Bro. T.Gentlea j Treasurer, O. Garrett (reelected) ; Secretary, Bro. James Patterson j (re-elected; Chaplain, Bro. the Rev. Y. Lush (re-elected): S.D., Bro. John Grant; J.D., Bro. Thomas Hoskins; 1.G., Bro. George Meachem; Stewards, Bros. J. Mollhaney and J. McNiece j Organist, Bro. W. H. Hassett; Auditors, Bros. Bawden, P.M., and O. S. Mears. These are larrikins on the west Bide of the river at Hamilton as well as on the east. A few nights ago some of the tribe Bet up a . ghost on the Ohaupo road, constructed out of

a oh air, an old coat and a hideous looking mask, and this uncanny thing frightened several little children almost out of the wit*. Under certain conditions jokes like this are admissable, but when " ghosts " are stuck on a main road to the danger of anyone who may may be driving or riding past they ought to be discouraged, imd parents would do well to keep an eye on those of their childrea who have a genius for pranks of this nature.— Waikato Times. These was a large attendanoe at the meet ing of the Jockey Club last night. Arrangements wore made with Mr Spencer for the Purawni course, and a committee appointed to draft a programme for the races to be held on the 27th and 28th of December. Abbangements will be made to-night for a cricket match to-morrow at Parawai. The good people of Tauranga are consider* ably excited about the goldfield at Te Aroha, and the local newspaper is piling on the agony with a vengeance. We make the following clippings from * leader in the Times of November 6fch :•—M Our repdrter informs us that while there is nothing at preient to warrant a rush, any of the prospectors can show sufficiently rich specimens that the goldfield must turn out one of the richest ever proclaimed. The prospectors are extremely reticent about the find, and will say nothing until the field is proclaimed." „...." From.the specimens picked up in the ranges, several experienced miners say that the lode if found, will be the richest, with the exception of the Caledonian, in that district."

"The specimens picked up on the ranges are really, it is stated the richest ever found in New Zealand, and our, reporter, who returned last night from Te Aroha, informs us that he saw £5 offered for a smal) piece of Btone and refused, the Btone measuring 9 inches by 5 inches, and containing it was supposed more than 3ozs of gold." " One prospector who has examined the ranges is confident that the reef will be struck first on the Katikati side of Te Aroha. By the way, the County Council should not make any great difficulty about the new boundary line between the Tauranga and Thames Counties, as it is probable that the decision of the surveyors will te that the Te Aroba goldfield is in the Tauranga County, and it is the general impression of those working there that the find is in the County of Tauranga." All through the article runs the strongest seam of unutterable bunkum we have heard for some time. Some iunny fellow has surely been housing out contemporary.

If we are to believe all we hear, the Naval? had a " high old time " of it in Auckland - One of our sturdy boys in blue threw a 12 stone Aucklander clean on his head, for

expressing as his opinion that the T.N.B. was no——good, while another got "plunked" between the eyes for impugning the veracity of the Thames Navals* Captain. These little pleasantries created not the slightest bad feeling.

Reubbn Paes is now the happy " par " of a pair of twin girls. As both the little creatures bave started life at "par," their chances of getting on are about equal. This may he looked on as another call on the Reuben Parr's, though we don't think it will depreciate the price of the stock. Anotheb new building is to be erected in lower Pollen street for Mr Twentyman, who purchased a part of Mr Wade's premises. He intends pulling the present buildings down and erecting in their stead a large two story dwelling house and shop. A. coEiiEBPOHDENT sends us a packet of a material which much to his surprise he found had choked up his chimney. The material burns very freely, and is no doubt the soot accumulated from years of wood burning. Our friend remarks that no wonder chimneys easily take fire when such large lumps of soot are allowed to collect. In the Bay of Plenty Times of Tuesday's date the following letter from Mr A. Warbrick appears :—" I would beg to observe that the discovery of gold afc T® Aroha h of ho recent date. Before She time of the Ohicsi»ari (Upper Thames) being proclaimed c, goldfield, I received a letter from the then Commissioner Mr Jumes Mackay, accompanied by several letters to the rhiefs of Tauranga and other settlements on tbe othor side of the Mountain, acquainting me of the existence of gold in the Te Aroha district, indicating that gold-bearing re;<fs had been found on this side of the boundary range lying betwixt the Thames and Tauranga. Mr Mackay expressed an anxious desire that the whole*district should be thoroughly prospected, and for that purpose addressed j letters to the chiefs to render every assistance in their power to remove native obstacles— which were at that time very formidable. ' The gorge to the rear of Te Bereatukahia (Katikati) leading over to Te Aroha, the prospecting of which was commencod by a " professional" Thames prospector, and the specimen stones he came across were said to be impregnated with gold. This, I believe, was in the Waitikohc river. lam convinced that had a well organised party of prospectors, fußoiaiaea. witfe liberal means, been sent out- in iirmvA) si* &c locality indicated by Mr jj Mgvkotfs -a c&i«issM on this side the divisional r»og« «walff ifjv%'.»go have been discovered." 1&B M.mkm Highway Board will shortly consider the question of the expenditure of t've Government vote of upwards of £2,000 on the TanriMig* and Thameß road. We understand that Mr W. J. Hurst has taken legal advice as to the propriety of initiating proceedings against the Auokland Agricultural and Pastoral Association, for not sustaining the award of the judges in reference to Bertie Saverna. His contention is, that the committee or stewards bad no legal power to overrule the award of the judges.—Herald. Wb are requested to state that Mr Plant, druggist, of Mary street, is now selling Homcepathio Medicinces at Is 3d per bottle. —(See advertisement). A teiegb&m in to-day's Herald from its Hamilton correspondent says .—The principal talk of the place is Te Aroha goldfield, and in twos and threes our population is drifting thitherwards. There are now about ICO people on the field. Those who hate returned speak hopefully of its prospects but deprecate a rush. Still several well-defined reefs have been struck, the stone of which, though showing no gold, is of a moat likely and promising description. *