INTEE-PEOVINCIAL.

Tuapeka Times, Volume III, Issue 108, 5 March 1870, Page 5

INTEE-PEOVINCIAL.

A correspondent from the Grey ] River up-country districts writes to the " West Coast Times" as follows :— "The : storekeepers complain greatly about the ; system of giving too much credit and running up long accounts ; in fact the .credit system appears to be the predominating one, not only in this place, but on all the diggings, on the "West Coast, and instead of diminishing, seems to be gradually extending. It is not at all to be wondered at that so many of the up-country stoi-ekeepers and others in business go insolvent from time to time, when taldng into consideration the large amount of credit they are obliged to give, and out of that the long list of bad debts which is shown in their books. This, however, is a circumstance to which nothing much can be done, as matters stand at the present time, and anybody who intends doing a permanent trade on the goldfields must give credit to the miners until such time as they can get on to the gold iv payable quantities, and when it so happens that they don't get any gold, which, unfortunately, it does too often, then it is evident that they cannot pay." These remarks have proved very applicable to the Tuapeka goldfields lately. The "West Coast Times" of the 16th February reports: — "A fatal accident took place on Saturday night, at Antonio's Flat. As far as we are informed, a miner, whose name we have not learned, while under the influence of drink, fell into a race and was droAvned. The cause of his death being apparent, and no signs of violence being on his person, the police did not think it necessary to hold an inquest." What business have the police to have any mind in a matter of this description 1 We imagine that in any other part of New Zealand an inquest would be held although a dozen members of the force were to witness a drunken man drowned before their eyes. The precedent is a bad one. According to the 'Herald,' mining matters at Charleston are in a bad state, caused by a severe drought. "The dams and creeks are dry, and the miners with few exceptions, are idle. The daily loss to the community is estimated at least at £500. During the past fewdays we have had indications of rain, but now it appeal's to be as far away as ever, and the diggers are becoming despondent." A correspondent of the " New Zealand Herald " writes as follows, with a great amount of truth :—": — " It is a great pity that Kooti and his gang cannot be put down, as all the while such panics as we are continually having, the Waikato cannot go ahead } but the root of all evil is the king party. While that is in existence there will be no peace in New Zealand." At Coromandel, the other day, a case of lynching occurred at the beach. A man was caught with a number of stolen articles upon him, and an impromptu court sentenced him to be beaten and ducked. A heavy stick was obtajmed, and the culprit well and then thrown, like the witches of old, into the river, to sink or swim. Luckily, the tide was out, " and he waded through the river amid the derision and hooting of the crowd, and disappeared in the scrub behind the Pacific Hotel. A number of Maoris wished to inflict a further chastisement, but were prevented by the pakehas. A recent " Taranaki Herald " says : — " As Dr. St. George was passing the Hua pah, he was requested by the natives to go and see Sam Peke's wife, a native woman about 40 years of age, who was lying in great agony Inside the pah. He accordingly went, and found her lying on her face, whilst her husband was throwing cold water over her. She was in a stupor, her stomach was distended, and her teeth firmly fixed ; indeed, the involuntary muscular contraction was so great, that Dr. St. George could neither get her hands nor her mouth open. She was evidently suffering from some sedative, which was at first thought to have been strychnine; but it was stated that «he had threatened to poison herself, and it was supposed that she had .swallowed the tutu-berry seed, which, doubtless, is a very powerful narcotic. She had been lying in this state for about an hour before Dr. St. George saw her, and died about fifteen or twenty minutes after he entered the pah." We are informed that Mr. Howard of Auckland, was taken aside the other day by a native named Tv Hanga, better known as "Atu," who, after talking in a rambling manner, took from his breast something tied up in a dirty rag, which he put into Mr. Howard's hands. On opening it, it was found to contain a large sum of money in gold and silver. Mr. Howard tried to ascertain what "Atu" wished him to do with the money, but, failing to understand him, took it to the Native Office, where, on examining the contents of the bag, it was found to contain over £60. Mr. Parris has since sent for "Atu," and tried to gather from him what he wishes to have done with the money, but his talk was so vague he could make nothing out of him. The money has been placed to " Atu's " credit in the Bank of New Zealand.— " Taranaki Herald." A correspondent of the "Thames -Advertiser " writes :—": — " There are over

a thousand mon ready to proceed to the Upper Thames. . . . Should these diggers rush the district, many lives will be lost, and the disaffected natives rise on all sides. But the diggers have the power in their own hands. The Government is powerless to prevent such a body of men from taking possession of Ohinemuri. Let the Government come forward and jroclaim its determination to put itself at the head of the movement, and instead of a thousand men, the whole district will go hand-in-hand with it. Let it send an ultimatum to the socalled Maori King, representing the state of things at the Thames, and its inability to restrain thousands of starving men ; offering one month for the opening of Ohinemuri on the same terms as Shortland, or, as an alternative, the arming of these men ; and in the event of conquest, confiscation. The boldness of the movement alone would intimidate. The "Southern Cross" of the 2nd instant says :—": — " Petty robberies, and attempts at robberies, are becoming rife at the Thames. Only the other night (says the ' Shortland Times ') a gentleman of our acquaintence was thrice aroused by some persons attempting to open his bedroom win do w. Twice the thief decamped upon hearing some one stirring inside. The third time he was almost caught — the gentleman having armed himself with a heavy whip, and stood with his hand on the door-latch, waiting for the would-be thief's third approach. The latter came, and again essayed to open the window, but quickly turned tail and ran, pursued in hot haste by the owner of the house, who had quietly opened the door and rushed forth. The thief, however, managed to escape. The resident of a house in the same locality, near the Church of England, being awakened in the night by the movement of some person in his bedroom, he sprang out of bed, and was met by a man with a loaded revolver in his hand, who coolly levelled the weapon, and then 'backed astern' out of the window, carrying with him a valuable watch and chain. Another party — one of the Shortland milkmen — was disturbed the other night by some person attempting to break into his house. He seized a tomahawk and ran out, and chased the man some distance, when suddenly he was faced by three men, who dared him to come on." The native Maritana, who was a short time ago, sentenced to a term of imprisonment by the magistrates of Wangamri for destroying some of the surveyors' work at the trigonometrical station at Rangitikei, or Manawatu, has been ordered by his excellency the Governor to be discharged from gaol and set at liberty. A tailor, named Payne, residing on the Te Aro Flat, Wellington, tried to commit suicide by cutting his throat, but having become alarmed after his first attempt, probably from the loss of blood or the pain, he showed himself to a neighbour, who at once summoned assistance, and he was afterwards conveyed to the Hospital. A discovery, possessing' great interest for scientific men, has been recently made at Takaka, where, in a large cave, the existence of which has only lately become known, a large number of moa bones have been found. The Auckland correspondent of the "Lyttelton Times," referring to the departure of- tho troops, says — Sir George Bowen feels keenly on the point, and thinks that an Imperial Governor, without Imperial military attendance is like a judge without policemer. The Auckland people take the departure of the troops with unconcern. The loss of the regimental band — a very good one bye-the-bye — 13 held generally a "bore," but no further regrets are expressed on the question. Fort Britomart has already been formally handed to the colonialauthorities, and will be used as a depot and barracks for the Armed Constabulary. The " Morning Advertiser," the daily paper lately started in Auckland, gives expression to what we are informed is a very general feeling in Auckland, that the war policy of the Government is an utter failure. After referring to the great things the Government promised when they took oflice, the " Advertiser " observes :—": — " So much for demilitarization and a new native policy. So much for that treatment yhich consists mainly in saying to the natives, ' Here are flour and sugar. I knew your grandfather.' We have got nothing more from it than we did from the political dishonesty of the Staffordites. We are no enemies to the present Ministry. On the contrary, we have been and still are inclined to give them every legitimate support, but we cannot avoid seeing that, as the Yankees say, 'their talk don't hang together.' We cannot see that we have benefited much by their accession. Our position with regard to the hostile Maoris has certainly not improved — many assert that it has very much deteriorated; and we therefore warn the Ministry that they will Have much to account for when they next meet the Assembly, and that they may then have considerable difficulty in maintaining their position." The "Wellington Advertiser" says that one of the blue jackets of H.M.S. Challenger was taken up to gaol to undergo a sentence of three months' imprisonment which, had been passed upon him for desertion. It appears that the man deserted upwards of 12

months' ago, and that he had lately been acting as wardsinan at the hospital in "Wellington, where he had conducted himself in a manner that gave every satisfaction, and ho was a general favourite with all connected with tho establishment. Some one, however, discovered his whereabouts, and, having disclosed it, he was apprehended. The Wellington "Post" remarks: — " It seems that we have been wrong in imagining that the whole of the Imperial forces are to be removed from New Zealand. Fifty men of the 18th are to remain behind in Auckland, and why such is to be the case is causing some conjecture. Half a company is too small a body to be used either for fighting or for garrison purposes, and the only reasonable solution of the difficulty appears to be that suggested by a correspondent, that the men have been left at the urgent solicitation of the Governor, as a body-guard for himself. The spread of the idea that he cai\ be very easily dispensed with, no doubt, suggested to His Excellency the possibility of his being treated in the same ! manner as- Governor Bligh was by the colonists of New South Wales ; and this small force of troops, while adding to his dignity by mounting guard, &c, will suffice to protect him from being shipped off like a bale of goods for England. On Friday, the 4th ult., a man named Charles Eichards, whilst suffering under delirium tremens, left the Kowai Pass Hotel on horseback, and rode into the bush. He was followed, and the horse was found tied to a stockyard, but the man could not be found. Search was made, but up to noon on Saturday no traces of the missing man had been discovered. It is not generally known that, according to the Act there anent, weights and measures of every description — down to the pannikin that milkmen sometimes use to portion off thier customer's daily allowance — require to bear an official stamp. Infringement of the law renders the owner liable to a fine or penalty, and the weights or measures to confiscation. A trade with the Chatham Islands and Auckland appears to be springing up. For the last five years (says the '' Advertiser ") but little trade has been carried on ; bnt of late, since the escape of the Hau Hau prisoners, attention has been drawn there, no doubt from the known luxuriance of the pastures grown, and the excellent breeds of horses, cattle, and sheep, which have been exemplified by late shipments. There is also a fine lot of fiax country on the island, which the natives describe as having been, in former years, vast fields of great luxuriance. There is a small European township at Waitangi, the piincipal port, which boasts of a roomy and comfortable hotel. We (" Wellington Independent ") understand that Dr. Pollen has resigned the appointment of Government Agent at Auckland. It seems that on receiving notice from Mr. Firth that he had made an appointment to meet Te Kooti at Thompson's monument, Dr. Pollen prevented the movement of a contingent from Cambridge to assist M'Donnell until the result of the meeting should be made known. It is rumoured that the Premier, on being informed of this proceeding, very properly animadverted very strongly upon the folly of holding parley with such a scoundrel through such a medium of communication. It is said that on receipt of the memorandum Dr. Pollen forthwith sent in his resignation. A lai'ge and influential meeting was held at Turanganui lately for the purpose of considering the subject of the annexation of the Poverty Bay district to the province of Hawke's Bay. The speeches were all in favour of the proposed annexation, and a committee was appointed to draw up a petition to be presented at the next session of the General Assembly.