THE COCKATOO ABROAD.

Tuapeka Times, Volume VII, Issue 396, 3 October 1874, Page 3

THE COCKATOO ABROAD.

Under the above heading a writer in the " Wakatip Mail " writes as follows on the Teviot district : — The Teviot comes next on my list, and completed my daya journey from i Clyde, I had heard on the road that Roxburgh, as the town is called, was together with Cromwell, the only two really flourishing places on the goldfields; but I was most agreeably surprised to find it such a flourishing place. My ideas of a happy combination of agriculture and mining were here realised. There appeared no large holdings, but the whole line of roadway along the flat of the Molyneux, where it strikes the foot of Mount Benger to Roxburgh, a distance of say three miles, is one continuous chain of gardens and small cultivation paddocks, just a few acres each in exteut. livery allotment contains, within itself, a cottage residence — not a hut, and many of them pretend to considerable^ architectural pretensions, while their owners in and near the town indulge in the refined luxury of a greenhouse at the front entrance. It quite opened my eyes when it was pointed out to me that some of these beautiful residences were owned by miners working in the sluicing claims, which line both banks of the Molyneux hard by. For fruit growing, the Teviot appears unequalled ; the soil is eminently well adapted for horticultural purposes, while their is just sufficient shelter and >noistusft f 'to promote a vigorous growth, and the^frosts are a deal less severe than with vs — even in arboriculture the Teviot is a long way ahead of the Wakatip, The keeping of cattle appears to have been of considerable assistance to the people in this locality ; many a miner, farmer, and gardener has by this means been enabled to tide over hard times, for, with all the present prosperity of the Teviot, it has experienced adversities. The practice is to pay to the squatters ten shillings per head for great cattle ; but, practically, thr charge is only five shillings, as stockowners count iuvariably double as to numbers. This arrangement, to my idea, is preferable to public commonage, as the runs are not overstocked, and cattle fatten, while the number depastured does not by some unaccountable means continue to grow beautifully less and less, and what increase there is the owner gets. As a Cockatoo, I felt that to live on such good terms with accommodatingsquatters, waa preferable to the Wakatip commonages. A commonage is to be laid off fo? the Teviot ; but it is not very conveniently situated, while the same applies to an agriculueal block on the opposite side of the river. Messrs Cargills and Anderson, the owners of the country on both sides of the river just here, are fencing in everything, and perhaps when they have the diggers ancl Cockatoos fairly jammed out, some difficulty about depasturing may possiblo arise. The business of a sheep station must be of considerable importance in this neighbourhood, Messr. Cargill and Anderson having a private telegraph line from their station at I'oxburgh to their homestead on Miller's Flat, across the Molyneux, six miles distant. Lignito equal to Doolcy's, Deep Creek, is very cheap. At the pit, Coal Creek, it is sold at 10s per load, and £1 delivered in Roxburgh — not a lot of small stuff .in bags, but great blocks, loaded loose into a dray. At a little township called Ettrick there is a flour mill, owned by Mr M'Gill, of' Tokomairiro ; but it ia closed for the present, being "chock-a-block" full of flour. From a sample that I saw, I should judge the article to be much inferior to that of the Wakaiip — the wheat appeared to have been damp, or badly saved. There is evidently more moisture both in the soil and atmosphere, down here than with us, and 1 should imagine the district will never come up to the Wakatip for wheat growing. Still a great deal will be grown here, and we shall find a keen competitor in the Dunstan and Manuherikia markets — the only outlet I can see for the produce of the Teviot. Wheat is at 4s 6d ; oats, 3s 6d. As this chapter is lather long, I must leave the famous "Island Block" until my next.

Robert Wilson, the historian of Hawick, records the following conciliatory speech of Bailie Hardie, the father and founder of Hawick hosiery: — " The best o' fouk will hae bits o' differences at times, sirs, we 're sac easily led aglee whan self's concerned ; and d' ye ken we 're a' alike in thae things, and what's curious, we never think we're wrang till some real friend lets us see our error. But I've seldom seen twae decent fouk differ far, an' my advice t' ye is, take a bottle o* yill an* gree ; an' as a bailie o' this quid town and burgh, ye 'so hae my countenance and my help ; naebody wad think o f ganging to law but the riff raff o' the town, or fouk beside theirsel' ; for our Town-Clerk tells me that where ac decent or sensible man crosses the threshold o' his office tae gang to law there 's fifty knaves and nine-and-forty fools -and wha wad like to bide sic a slur as that ?" Four Chinaman were recently summoned to the City Court Melbourne for assisting at a Chinese lottery and there being no denial of the fact they were fined £20 each. Two others charged with selling the tickets and paying the money were fined £5 each, Mr Sturt stating that the Chinese knew that the game was not only illegal here, but also in their own 'Country. Notice of appeal was given in each case. The lottery shops in Little Bourke street alone net £300 nightly, and it has become such a serious matter to the butcher, baker and grocer of the neighborhood to find their customors venturing all their means on these lotteries, that they have determined to use their utmost efforts to suppress them. A case of burglary at the Pentridge Stockade is thus reported in the " Telegraph " : — The officials at this establishment were not a little astonished yesterday morning to find that some time during Saturday night they had received a visit from some burglars. The warder who was told off to take up duty on No 2 tower in the morning found, to his surprise, the lock of the tower, and the bolt bearing marks of a chisel having been used on it. Shortly after this one of the officials, who had left the establishment to go home, returned with a bundle which bis daughter had picked up in Thorp's paddock close to the stockade containing documents and other things. A search was made, when it was found that the superintendent's office had been entered and an iron safe broken into which contained documents and prisoners' private property. The men, after gaining access to the tower, must have lowered themselves down into the yard, when they could with impunity go to the back-door of the office, the building having been formerly occupied as officers' quarters. When it is considered that had the men been seen descending the wall they would undoubtedly have been shot their daring isastonishing.