LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Tuapeka Times, Volume III, Issue 215, 14 March 1872, Page 5

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

THE inhabitants of Levuka are agitating for -the abolition of rifle shooting in the streets of their city, on the ground that it is dangerous.'

A PANORAMA of the Franco-Prussian War is being exhibited at Auckland.

Visito.rs to the Caledonian Claim, Thames, are searched before leaving.

We learn that some parties are doing well on the Waikaia — one especially, known as Boyle and party, are said to be averaging from £30 to £40 a week. Before they started their present claim they had been bringing up a tail race in the Waikaia, but have since found better gold on the banks of the river than they expected.

The Government have undertaken to form a road from Roxburgh to Campbells, a distance of fifteen miles, by cutting two ditches across the Old Man, to drain the swamps which in the winter make the track almost impassable. Seven men are at present working upon it, and when finished it will be a great benefit to the mining population at Campbells, all of whom get their supplies from the Teviot.

OoR Roman Catholic friends seem determined that the opening of their new school in Colon say-street shall be an event worthy to be re_ membered. The programme they have issued for making public amusement contribute to thespread of education comprises such variety that all tastes must be gratified. On Monday* next there will be a grand fancy fair held .on the Lawreuce Race Course, The various stalls are to be filled with a profusion of articles both useful and ornamental, and presided over by ladies whose charms will doubtless materially aid the disposal of their wares. On the Race Course there will also be horse races and athletic sports of various kinds. The prizes offered for competition in the races and sports are of considerable value, and ought to attract a large number of entries. St. Patrick's Band have expressed their intention to come from Punedin to play on the occasion. On Tuesday ' .evening there will be a grand banquet in the jSriuolhouse, at which St. Patrick's Band will .be present. To prevent inconvenience, the banquet committee invite early application for tickets, which can be procured at the principal jplacea of business throughout the district. j The reduction of the subsidy voted by the Provincial Council to country municipalities lias had the effect of crippling the efforts of* jfche Oainaru municipality. That body now asks the Government to relieve its necessities .(I) by assuming its d e bt, paying the interest on debentures, and the annual sinking fund .amount, .(2) by enabling it, under the usua^ .enactments, to collect all licenses and impose a tax of 3d per bale on wool and Jd on grain, altogether yielding an annual revenue of £1035 ; or (3) to continue for five years' more the usual subsidy.

Mr. John Graham published his last " Review" in Invercargill, to which place he retired in order to recover from Sigqot Cagli's performance of the " English " opera in Prin-ces-street, Dunedin, some time ago.

The Provincial Council will meet in the end .of April. -What they will find to do when jbhey* meet is difljcult to conjecture. The ostensible business they are called to transact will be to pass the estimates ; but as there is no cash in the treasury, the utility of going through the form of voting money is open to question. ' The e:optiness of the Provincial Treasury, however, will not prove an unmixed $vil. As there is no money to pay the honorariums, the session of the Provincial Council will be exceedingly short.

The harvest home at the Halfway House was held on Friday last. As usual, a large number pi Mr. Chalmers' friends met together and spent a' jovial evening.

Mr. Hislop," the Inspector of Schools, is at j»esent engaged jn drawing up the papers for the examination of the teachers of the provinpial schools, which is to take place in May.

The Chinese who were recently attracted to Shag Valley by the reports of the discovery of payable gold there, have returned in disgust to Dunedin, not having found sufficient to find them in rice. A number, of them intend to proceed tojTuapeka,.

From advertisement, it will be observed that Mr. Lumsden, Watchmaker, has removed to more commodious premises in Ross Place, opposite the Gabriel's Road.

An inquest- was held before the District Coroner, Vincent Pyke, Esq., on Monday afternoon in the Royal George Hotel, Ross Place, on the body of a Chinaman, who was found dead in his bed the same morning. From the evidence adduced, 'it>ppears the deceased was in good health about 11 o'clock on the night previous, f when he^was^talking with his mates in their hut behind JRoss fPlace. The evidence of Dr. Halley, who mad© a post mortem examination of the body, went to show that deceased had^died from " fatty.",degeuera. tion of the heart," or what was commonly called heart disease. The anterior portion o the heart he said, was covered with a fatty substance, and little or no muscular^tissues could be seen. The Coroner in addressing the jury said, he thought they would have very little difficulty in arriving at a verdict in accordance with the medical testimony. After a few minute s conversation, the juiyjreturned the following ver" diet. — "Died from heart disease."

A correspondent from Skippers Point, Upper Shotover, informs us that a party of two men in Finney's old claim, took out 91b weight of gold for one week's work. The same correspondent states, that there are some really good claims on the Shotover river.

Our Blue Spur|Miuing L Correspondeut writes as follows .• — Mining matters at the Blue Spur are progressing favourably, there being plenty of water and all the claims are at work. Another serious accident happened last week to Mr. John Cousins, while at work in the Otago Company's Claim ; a piece of cement fell from the face of the claim and broke his shoulder bone. This makes the third accident that has occurred within three weeks. The Great Amalgamated Co. are busy washing up, and expect from appearances to make up for some of their lost time. On the Reef a good deal of prospecting is being carried on, but with very little success as yet. On the north side of the prospectors claim, Messrs. Clayton and Co. are still driving, but have met some very hard ground. Messrs. Kitto and Co. are also driving through the Spur on the supposed line of reef. On the south side of the prospectors, the Amalgamated Co. have met with no success and have suspended operations for a time. The prospectors have had fine driving ground, and are within 50 or 60 feet'of the reef.

WoNDERa will never cease. From various parts of the, world at various periods, comes the intelligence of interesting monsters, animal and vegetable, in the .shape of many-legged cows, two-headed babies, bloated gooseberries, &c. , ad libitum ; but it has remained for Otago to produce the gi eatest natural curiosity the world ever gave forth, news of which, we make no doubt, will speedily be wafted to the four corners of the eaith. It appears that Mr. J. F: Kitching, of Moa Flat, has bred 250 eight-foot merino rams, which gigantic animals he now offers for sale. One thing that surprises us is that this unparalleled freak of nature should have hitherto been known to so few. It will be seen from the following advertisement, clipped from the "Dunstan Times," that in calling this the greatest of the world's wonders we have not overshot the mark :— " For Sale, 250 Pure Merino Rains, eight-foot and aged, well-bred, sound, and in good condition. Apply to J. F Kitching, Moa Flat." Our only regret is, that owing to the vn'gue manner in which the above advertisement is worded, a doubt should arise as to whether the rams are eight feet in length or in height. Possibly, however, after all, the advertiser's meaning is that the animals are blessed — or cursed, as the case may be— each with eight feel;.

Mount Ida.* stalwart M.P.C.. after skilfully extorting a sum of money fiom the General Government for the purpose of constructing a sludge channel, has tried his persuasive powers on the members of the Executive, to induce them to establish a tri-weekly mail service from Dunedin to the metropolis of his constituency. The M.P.'C. alluded to— Mr. J. P. Armstronghas a high opiuion of the importance of the Mount Ida district, and tries hard to inoculate everybody else with the same opinion. He says that Tuapeka has a daily mail service to and from Dunedin, and that therefore it would only be common justice to his constituents to allow them the luxury of communicating with the capital of the province three times a week Seeing the impoverished state of the treasury" and the state of the roads and bridges in the country, there is every probability that Mr. Armstrong's " proper representations " will-meet the same fate as the proposal to hold a. session of the General Assembly in Dunedin.

From the Oainaru districts we learn that al^ the crops have been stacked. The crops were rather light, but what there was of them was of excellent quality and colour. O*ts are bringing Is. 101, and wheat from 3s. 9d. to 4s. Some of the farms yielded from 47^ to 49 bushels to the acre.

We are informed that the General Govern" ment intend to grant a portion of the money voted for the extension of the water supply on the" Gold fields for the purpose of constructing a sludge channel at Mount Ida. This work is greatly needed, and the benefits it will confer on the district are incalculable.

The Provincial Council have leased Fernhill, and purchased furniture, in order that the Governor may. reside in Dunedin a portion of the year. Another block of land will have to be sacrificed shortly.

The world and Tuapeka-renowned Wizard Oil Prince is honouring Dunedin with his illustrious presence. He is pursuing with unflagging' zeal his glorious missioD, the relief of suffering humanity. Wizard oil is still 2s. 6d" per bottle, and the supply is unlimited,

The owners of the Horseshoe Race are ac tively repairing the flume acioss the Waitahuna road, which wos blown down during the late gale.

According to a correspondent to the " Dunstan times," dredging on the -Kawarau has not proved a paying speculation, the dredge built above the natural Bridge not having struck upon any gold. On the banks of the Kawarau, between its junction with the Arrow and the Nevis Ferry, the same correspondent writes, some good gold is being obtained. A five-ounce nugget, in company with a good few ounces of smaller size, were lately got by a party whose luck had been adverse for a long time.

The Manuka Creek School was opened for educational purposes on Monday, the 4th instr About thirty children attended. The teacher, Mr. Ferguson, of the High School, has undertaken the charge of the school for three months.

The late rains have not benefited the Manuka Creek district, and the miners there spend their enforced leisure growling at the unhandsome treatment they receive from the Clerk of the Weather.

A large number of the Chinamen who arrived by the Whirlwind have found their way to Tuapeka. They are physically much inferior to those of their countrymen already settled in the province, and many of them are of .exceedingly diminutive proportions. As they trudged wearily along, they presented a very woe-begone appearance^ Some of them were barefooted, and others wove the pedal appendages invented probably about the time Noah was navigating about Mount Ararat. The sight of one nest of them lying down fairly "baked," near Manuka Creek, with home-sickness acutely depicted on their unprepossessing features, would have made Mr. Shepherd's heart leap for joy, and the Secretary of the Arrow Miners' Association do a double somersault without charge.

The repairs to the Tokomairiro bridge are being actively proceeded with by the energetic contractor, Mr. Watson.

The Town Council of Milton resolved recently to have the main street of that town kerbed and channelled, and the work is now being done.

Mr. S. Searle, livery stable keeper, requests us to state that he was not mixed up in any way with the disgraceful affray which took place between two livery stable keepers in Peelstreet last week. He has too much respect for himself to descend to such practices.

Shares in the Devils Creek Quartz Mining Co. are being speedily taken up. The 9th proximo has been fixed for closing the list. As we mentioned in our last issue, this is, without exception, the best reef, according to prospect crushings, which has been discovered in Otago. The quartz lode varies from nine inches to two f> et in width, and is found on both sides of the creek. The projectors of this company are convinced that a call of less than 3s. 6d. a share will be ample to thoroughly prospect the lode. An approximate estimate of the cost of machinery has been obtained from Kincaid and M'Queen, who give it as their opinion that a water wheel and ten head of stampers could be erected on the ground for the sum of £1500. The company is in 6000 shares of £1 each ; and as soon as 3000 shares are sold operations will be commenced. 1000 paid-up shares are allowed to the prospectors, and the holders of the 4000 shares will have the preference in the disposal of the remaining 2000 shares.

The amount realized from the benefit for the Tuapeka flospital, lately given by the Waitahuna Dramatic Club was £14 Is.

The contract for sinking forty feet on the. line of their reef, has been let by the Gabriels Rock Quartz Mining Company.

A meeting of the Band Hope was held in the Athenseum Hall, on Tuesday evening. There was a most encouraging attendance — 60 or 70 children and a number ef parents and friends. Mr. Stenhouse occupied the chair, and in the course of his remarks, recemm ended the formation of s'railar societies at Wetherstones and the Blue Spur, and a grand pic-nic of the United Societies next summer. Several recitations were given by the children and others, and a number of temperance songs were eung. Instructive addresses were delivered by the Revs. Me. Arnott, Mr. Monzie3, anl Mr. Bull The following officebearers were elected for the ensuing 12 months . Mr. Bloxhara, President, Mr.. Coolen, Secretary, and Messrs. Coverlid, Crow, Syret, Tonks, Menzies, junr.,Thompson, Stenhouse, Eobertson. M'Nicoll, Niddric. M'Lelland, Johnson, and Carey. After spending a very pleasant evening, the Hopeful Band retired to their i-espective places of übode. ■.

The Beaumont Races will take place on Tuesday next.

From advertisement and placards, it will be observed that the Most Rev. .Bishop Moran, D.D., will deliver a lecture on "South Africa and its Goldfields," in the Athenaeum, Lawrence, to-morrow evening. We have heard a very flattering account of this lecture, which his Lordship delivered at. the Teviot a few days agoj and we have on doubt from the excitement: which has been created regarding the diamond mines in South Africa, as well as the known ability of the Lecturer, that there will be a crowded hall. The proceeds of the lecture will go towards the funds of the Tuapeka Hospital, the only truly philanthropic institution in the - district. His Lordship, we understand had intended preparing a lecture specially, to redeem the promise he •ometime since made to the Hospital Committee, but during his visit, he, at the solicitation of the Committee, at once consen'ed to deliver the lecture above mentioned.

The following is the result of the poll at Queenstown for fhe seat in the Assembly vacated by Mr. Haughton :— Hallensten, 113 ; Macassey, 32 ; Miller, 4. The Arrow returns were not received when we went to press,