BLACKS.

Tuapeka Times, Volume V, Issue 246, 17 October 1872, Page 8

BLACKS.

(From our own Correspondent.)

October sth.

The sale of the township of Ophir is j once more being agitated. Another memorial has been forwarded to the Waste Lands Board, asking that body to order the sale as soon as possible, and hiis been referred to the Government. As the Government are most likely to refer the matter to the Warden for his report, the course adopted by Board should give general satisfaction but, like some other up-country places, w.e have one or two would-be rulers amongst us, who are determined not to be contented with any arrangement that will.not work the ruin of ail the business people, and that is the removal, of the township to, the other side,of the river. The most prominent among those wouldbe rulers and petty kiiigs are Messrs. S. C. Worth, B. t Fraser, and Co.; but as those discontented parties are largely in the minority, and Mr. Worth resides some 3 „or 4, miles from Blacks,,: the public have wisely determined to ignore them in the matter. The consequence is those gentlemen are very considerably riled, and some of them did not forget to show it by a few very forcible and riot (Very chpice expressions on Thursday "last. , The schemes and, different killds pf maphineiy they tried to set in motion .to thwart the bonafide residents of Blacks would, if I was to attempt to enumeiate a tenth of them, occupy too much of your space. One of their plans, however, is too good to pass over. Mr., W. proposes to call a public meeting — a sort of indignation meeting from what I can. make out; and this is somethinglike the supposed programme: Mr. W. in the chair ; proposed by Mr. T., and seconded by Dr. CX," That the the inhabitants of Blapks desire to expresa their. / deep sorrow, ,and are thoroughly -indigjaant, with-, themselves* for having- presumed to memoralise the Government with reference to the township of ' Ophir; and they hereby publicly apologise to Messrs. W., F and Dr. G. for presuming to take any stepainthe mat.ter without their a; probation and cdnseut. Tn proposinuLthe a%Qve res.olution^Mr, F. iif supposed. to I

•fay'that-he' 5 tfad- to^'worfcifig l lilte^aj nigger in various J)arts of the <ib f w^ißhip, only have succeed^Pfef persutfdingoany* £on&'of c 'the'matea{thes'has!."had!'dttringj that time to stick. ltaithe ground, .lie > believed- •he-.r.wduldjhtive . done better . ih&TOi, jwhatr. he had o up to . the present #me, ljs had had 3 different mates; and they had all left > him, the con-i sequence was he has been working at gr^ajlj t disa,d vantage. He would beg to read a statement of his receipts. He ' found that, by allowing for lost time and deducting theexpenses of the claim, which averaged about 6d. per week for pick pointing, &c.-, he had made on an average '9s.'' 43d'.' per "week. This he considered to proof positive that the township is auriferous. — (Loud applause from W., F., and Dr. D.) Dr. Gh, in seconding the resolution, will say that he was very sorry that he, as secretary to the Tidelie Winking Co., had hot prepared a complete statement of their returns to lay before the meeting. The fact of the matter was they had not washed-up ; but he believed they would be able to show very near, if not quite, as good a weekly average, as Mr. F. A few other resolutions and speeches are in course of preparation. I have merely given you these to show the nature of the opposition that is at work to try to prevent the business people from purchasing their allotments, but I think they will'not succeed: The public are pretty well alive now to the underhand modes that have ' been in motion for some considerable time, and have put a stop to their little game. The noble triumbirrate will find themselves checkmated upon every tnove they make for the future. ' A serious fire occurred here on the 18th September, by which, , the large building formerly the Criterion Hotel was totally destroyed. The buildings were the property of ' Mr. Gilbert Sinclair, and occupied by Mr. Peter Nicholson. The loss is estimated at £200— viz, building £100,, furniture, &c, £200, the property of Mr. Nicholson, £100. Neither parties were insured. The fire is supposed to have been originated by a spark from the stove catching the paper- In less than 20 minutes from the out-break of the fire the whole place was level with the ground.

In mining matters is nothing fresh to report. As I have run my letter too long already, I will refrain from dealing more fully wilh mining and iaraing matters until next week.