LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Tuapeka Times, Volume III, Issue 142, 27 October 1870, Page 5

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

The English mail via Suez, will close at the Post office, Lawrence, to-morrow, and that via San Francisco at 5 p. m. on Sunday. Mb. Hay informs us that in consequence of the horses advertised for sale on SSatuiday next not having yet arrived from the north, his b.ile will be postponed till Saturday the oth pros, On Satuiday first, however, Mr. Hay will submit for public competition any local horses that may be entered after the show. The LlOO race between Optain Scott and Colleen JJawn at Oamaru was won easily by the former, hard held, by six lengths. The mare made the pace hot at first, the horse making it a waiting race. He dime away at the 2 miles, and was never caught afterwards. Time, over 7 minutes. enterprising resident Mr. Richard Lancaster, who has always shown a desire to improve the breed of all kinds of stock, has imported from Melbourne two line specimens of the genus donkej'. On their arrival in Lawrence yesterday great cuiiosity was created amongst the juvenile portion of the inhabitants who evidently had never seen quadrupeds of the kind before. As will be seen from advertisement, Mr. M. Hay will hold his first annual show of entire horses that are to travel the district this season. This being merely a preliminary show, there will not be any prizes awarded, but upon its success will depend arrangements for future shows and prizes. The show will take plane at the Commercial Sale Yards on Saturday, commencing at 12 o'clock. On Thursday evening last Mr. Sykes, assisted by several of our.local amateuis, gave an entertainment in the Athenaeum. There was a pretty fair hous>e. The amateurs were, Mr. F. Bastings, Mr. Downes, and Air. Grant, who acquitted themselves well, Mr. Bastings especially in his negto eccentricities brought down the applause of the audience. Mr. Sykes gave one-third of the proceeds as a gift to the Hospital. It wus on that account local talent was forthcoming on the occasion. ON Thursday last a meeting of the Tuapeka Athenaeum Committee was held in the library. It was intimated that the special grant of £100 had beeu placed by the Government to the credit of the Athenaeum account in the Bank of New Zealand, Lawrence. On the motion of Mr. Stenhouse. the secretary's salary was raised from £75 to £100. The commission hitheito allowed the secretary to be discontinued. Mr. Downes was elected treasurei for the current year. Several accounts were passed for payment. No other business of any importance was transacted. A meeting of the French residents of Dunedin was held in the Otago Hotel on Saturday last, for the purpose of raising subscriptions tor the widows and orphans of the slain in the present war. The meeting was well attended, not only by Frenchmen, but by Irishmen, who evinced a li/ely interest in the proceedings. A letter of apology, enclosing a subsciiption of £10 10s.. was rend from the Rev. D. Moreau. A committee was appointed. M. Augan was elected secretary, and the Rev. D. Moreau treasurer. In Lawrence groat complaints are made from j time to time against stray horses and cattle distuibing the even tenor of our ways, but the Town Council have not yet adopted suoh stringent measures as will be observed from the following notice given to an Alexandra resident by the Nuisance luspector of that Municipality : - " Sir,— l am instructed by the Town Clerk to j destroy all goats found wandering within the Municipality after giving their owners one week's notice to make provision to either keep them on their own premises, or else securely tethered on the flat. I have named Tuesday the 2oth iust., on and after which day I will destroy all goats at large within the Municipality. " We are glad to hear that the Church of England committee has been so far successful in raising funds towards the erection of a church as to warrant the calling for tenders. The advertisement which appears in another column will doubtless be responded to by every member of the building trade here. As regards the site the Rev. G. P. Beaumont announced last Sunday evening that a congregational meeting will be held in the schoolroom at 8 p.m. on Tuesday next the Ist November in order to consider the matter. There should be a good attendance, as the subject is an important one, and in order to save complaints afterwards, it is the duty of every churchman to be present. Mr. Beaumont also announced that morning service will be held at 11 a.m. on Sunday the fith prox. in the schoolhouse, ami we undeistand that it is the intention of the rev. gent! eman to oontinuc the morning service fortnightly. Mr. Beaumont went to Dunedin this week to j see Mr. Lawson the architect. „ I

VS^e are pleased to learn that there is every probability of a volunteer corps being formed in Tuapeka. Somewhere abont sixty gentlemen have given their names as prepared to join this movement, and, as a meeting is to be held in the Athentuum to-morrow evening, we anticipate that btrps will be at once taken to form a large company. On the 15th inst., George Gray M'Ewen was sentenced to six weeks' hard labour for stealing a saddle and bridle. He was also committed to take his trial at the next Criminal Sessions of the Supreme Court on a charge of having feloniously stolen a horse, the property of one Donald Cameron, at Switzers. \The accounts that have reached us from the new rush at the foot of the Lainmerlaw ranges are very conflicting. A Lawrence resident, who visited the scene of the so-called rush last Thursday, informs us that he saw a party of two diggers wash up two days ■workings, which yielded about an ounce of gold. From other sources we learn that the ground is very patchy and uncertain. Mr. and Mrs. Collins, assisted by two gentlemen musicians, gave their variety entertaiument in the Tuapeka Athenaeum on Tuesday evening. There was a considerable change in the programme from that presented at their previous entertainments in this district. The reception given to Mr. and Mrs. Collins by the audience was quite an enthusiastic one. Mrs. Collins's character songs were especially appreciated, and the chivalrous songs of Mr. Eeeves, with guitar accompaniments, vteie much applauded. From advertisement our up-country readers will observe that an opportunity will be afforded them this week of listening to this talented company. Mb. D. H. Mekvyn, M.H.8., according to advertisement, met his constitutents at the schoolhouse, Roxburgh, on Saturday evening last. About sixty persons were present. Considerable difficulty was experienced in obtaining a chiiirinan, and after some delay Mr. Robert Wilson, of Dunedin, proposed Mr. Robert A. Low, of Dunedin, as chairman (these two gentlemen happening to be present), which was seconded and carried. The hon. gentleman, in an exhaustive speech of two hours, reviewed the business of last session, and was listened to veiy attentively. A motion of confidence was proposed and seconded, but was not put to the meeting, A vote of thanks was then moved and accorded by acclamation to the chairman, whose impartial manner of conducting the meeting was much admiied. On Tuesday afternoon a miner named Thos. Keulay was brought to the Tuapeka hospital suffering from a fall of eaith which had come upon him while at work in German Gully, Waitahuna road. On being examined by Dr. Stewart the poor man's leg was found to be frightfully shattered below the knee. The fracture was a compound comminuted one of the worst description, and the Linb bleed profusely, so that after a consultation with Dr. Halley it was at once decided that the only course open for them to adopt was to amputate the limb, which was immediately done. We learn that the sufferer, who is sixty years of age is,progressing favourably. \WiS regret to learn that another of our Tuapeka residents is about to leave the district and the colony. Mr. John Cormack, who has been in the colony nearly ten years, anl has been very successful in several mining enterprises, leaves Lawrence to-morrow for the Fiji's, taxing with him his family and his capital and thus assisting to impoverish what might be one of the mobtprosperouscountrics under the sun were it not under the ciuse of bad government. We have good reason for knowing that Mr. Cormack would not have thought of making this change if he could have seen any scope for his rising family Mr. Cormack has always taken a lively interest in local matters and general politics, and his loss to the community will be much felt, The case of Burrows v. Brough, which came before Vincent Pyke. Esq., R. M., and Messis. Fraser and Feraud, J.IVs at the R. M.'s Court, Clyde, on the 11th inst., was adjourned till the 18th, when it was heard. A correspondent furnishes us with the following account of the hearing:- Plaintiff charged defendant with making use of threatening, abusive, and insnltiuc; language on the pievious Sunday in the main st-eet, Clyde, calculated to provoke a breach of the pence. On the first occasion, objection was raided to the K.M. sitting on the bench, as he was requited as a witness. Mr. Pyke refused to leave the bench, as he would not be able to give any evidence connected with the alleged offence. The Mayor of Clyde was also summoned as a witness, but he was absent in Dunedin. At the adjourned hearing, the same justices being on the bench, defendant again protested against the R.M. sitting on the bench. The R.M. replied that he knew nothing between God and good conscience to prevent him sitting theie, and that he intended to do his duty as the R..M. of the district. After a long hearing, during which excessive latitude was afforded to the defendant, the Magistrates retired to consider their decision. On their return, the R.M., after some pertinent remarks as to the mischief wrought by tale bearers, especially in a small community, announced the decision to be- defendant fined £5. Mr. Brough enquired what was tho alternative, and the R.fll. completed the sentence, two days imprisonment in H.M. gaol at Clyde. Defendant said he should appeal. The bench reminded him he had no power to appeal, except on some point of lav/. The defendant subsequently intimated his intention of appealing under part 1 of the Appeals Act, 1867.