CORRESPONDENCE.

West Coast Times, Issue 101, 13 January 1866, Page 3

CORRESPONDENCE.

HOKITIKA GAOL. TO THU KDITOII Ol'^llK WRSX COAST TIMKS.

Sib, — Knowing- your readiness to insert grievances in your vnlunblo journal, I beg spaco for n few lines, to bring boforo the. public of Ilokitika tho treatment of prisoners in tho gaol. You will bo rather surprised when you hear that twolvo men are and have been confined in tho two log huts men.suring ten by twelve foot, and eight men in eaoh of tho cells, sine eight by ten foot, ittiul almost without ventilation. Many of these men have been in this state' for four and five months, and the only exorcise allowed is one-half hour in the- ■ twenty-four, and that only on dry days. We have not been visited by a 'magistrate, or any other in authority, during 1 tho above period, until yeslevdny, when his Honor the Judge' pajd us a visit;' and, no doubt, if the true circumstances weYo stated, some one in authority would be to blame. I am of opinion that tho treatment is the worst ever known or tolerated in a IJritish country; and also add, if tho inhabitants of Ilokilika wore only aware sixty^men are confined in this manner, they might feel inclined to take some steps to improve their condition, as such crowding may result in .some deadly sickness breaking out, or] even death from suffocation-— not even v book being allowed that, might occupy the mind. Surely if this does not lend to produce insanity, it is very .strange. 1 have noticed a peculiar Hlrangencss in several. Senso of duty makes mo write this to my fellow-men, and I hope his Honor the Judge will consider the tii.no and -suffering they have undergone whilst awaiting their trial. Believe mo true, Sir, ono who is not awaiting Hil.but

A Pitisoxi-ui.

Anothiih Vosdii.-MAH Sronv. — Since the didcoveiy of Iho famous jiw-bono at Quimper, fossil wonders are of everyday occurrence in France, but it is nbt often that wo fall upon anything so startling as the discovery of a " fossil man four melies high," as announced in tho (1 Abcillo do Bugoy," found "with his head downwards and his foot in the nir," in an ulluvial deposit between Vcyziftt and Oyonnax, inl'io Department of tho Am. Tho discovery is mid to havo been made by a man who was digging sand, and. to havo been veiifiod by the cures of the two nbovo-inentioned places ; moreover, Dr r.uiiwet is said to have pronounced tho bones to hoihorcofn human bei(i», but modestly having ])iln<outologists to .lecido on their fossilisalion. The l.isiiop of IJeilcy and Jl do la Sauwtie. reolcu 1 of the academy of Lyon?, and a distinguislicd geologist, aro said to havo taken up the mailer with gtc.vt interest, and it is expected that a report will shortly be made lo tVe Paris Academy on the subject. Should the fossil m\n turn ou to bo a mere vulgar giant, still the regains of a skeleton more than thirteen feet high aro worth having. "-Athtnecum.

A BATTiiK with Snakin.— Tho Uim'rhie Herald, without. <loul>t, has tins summer distanced all competition in tho way of womloiful uunko stories. We rcvomuiciic], s i.vs an Australian payer, Iho following to tho nttonlion of its editor as a vnl.iublo contribution to his collection and can assure our readers thut it is vouched for j as true by t* reliablo coriesponclent. We must ho excused resolving our own opinion, and by relating tho advonturo in tho correspondent's own wonts, allow our readers to judgo for themselves:—"l havo just witnessed one of tho drollest scenes that I havo ever scon in all my travels. A few days, ngo, in tho extreme end of the Boisdnlo Plums, I came across a squad of carpet Biuvkvs, five in munbor, marching two (loop, one of thoin nppa- 1 rontly commanding tho others, as ho look liis position on tho right. I lot them pass tinmolostv,d, and followod in tho rear for about 200 yards. They were whistling a march, and it was romarkablo to seohow they kept thoir intervals, I of course keeping my interval also. My horso at length became rcstivo, and must havo drawn tho attention of thoso reptiles, for thoy suddenly camo to a (loud halt, ond I followed suit ; hung up »».v horso, and procured somo ' watldics,' ono of which 1 pitched in amongst thorn with a viow of breaking llioir ranks, which had tho dosirod effect, as they all broko ou" in diiForont directions. After a lmivl bnttlo, I succoodod in killing four of them, and I must havo slightly, if nol sovoroly, wouudod tho olhor ; however, ho brought his tail to tjic rocovor, doubled into tho scrub, and got clear away. Two of thoso killed wcro in heavy inarching order, oilo having nine young # ones and the other ojght, all of which camo 'to grief, making a totnl of twonty-ono killed and ono wounded." Nkgko Auvanckmknt. — Tho fitot, uegio student was recently admitted into. Uio. Froblunau class of Howaid College, at Newlmvcn. Ho comes from Host on. On the 18th of Scptcmbor the first black juryman ever admitted into a jury-box in America was ci'led and qualified, in a court of Brooklyn, New York, and he sat all day in tho trial of a causo without any objection bjjing raado. The days of negro equality aro cortaiuly approaching. Tub Pjikttikst Maid in Hoimvouthy. — Tho llov O. L. Meyiiok's legacy of L 2 10a lo the prettiest maid in Ho'.dswoithy wasin tho past week awarded lo Mi>B Jano Tt elite, dauglite" 9!' Mr W. Treble, of that town/ Notice had boon potted against the (lurch door irqucsling l'io.->e who eon>.Mi'iyd Heiu ek<M oWn'Ma lo glva in

from the loegth of time tl c churehwanleiiH were 000' pied in ntak.'ng thoir award, it would appear W> they had a dilKe'ilt task. It is stipulated that tho pretty maid must bo of good character, a«'l noted for her regular attendanco at church. There is a further legacy of L 2 10s to be paid by the churchwardens for tho limo being, to the old maid over thirty yeaiyof ago possessed of the like viifcucp, nn.l this was awaulod to Mary Colos.— Western DaVy Mercury . ItKMAIUCAHI.'V ESOAI'HS OR EMINKKT MXX.— • Pome years ago' a young tu.vn holding a subor(limit 0 position in tho East India Company's f>orvicc, twice in the course of one <lay nttempU'd to deprive himself of his life, by snapping a loaded pistol, which missed lire. A. f rlond critei ing 1 Ih'h room shortly afterwards, ho requested him lo fire it out of tho window ; it then went M without difficulty. Satisfied thus _ Unit tho weapon had been duly.loaded and pi lined, this young man sprang up exclaiming, •• I mint bo reserved for something great ;" and from that niomont gavo up tho idea of suicido, which for some time previous had been uppormrst In his thoughts, ' That young man afterwards booamo Lord Clivo, and thus was p'ovmllted to see tho fulfilment of his own prophecy.— Quiver. Puiiß Ant.— Tho best tomperafo agont that can be got is a cloan and well- vonlilatod homo. No training, howovor skilfully conducted, 110 dieting or tcototalism, howovor rigid or proI loimucl, can bring a man iuto good condition, oithor of body or mind, so long as ho is condemned to broaUio an hnpuro ntmosphoro. Sanitary Associations do woll in toaohing that tho Hfo i 9 tho blood, and that without pure air 1 healthy blood is but a ntuno.— lAfe ; Us Nature, Varieties, und Phenomena. Tho Wiltshire Independent states that a rovivalist, munod liaily, undertook, tho other day to raise to life again a person who had recently died at Bishop Canning l^ "We cannot per{•otinlly vouch for tho fact," says our contemporary, " but learn' on orcdihlo authority that, by hia deairo tho turf was removed from tho gravo of a porsou recently interred, and that ho prayed for eonio tiino over tho grave, in tho expectation that the dead man would be restored to life. But this is uot all. It is actually staled that tho friends of the deceased wero porsuaded by Baily to bring out sheets to tho churchyard, in which to wrap tho body, whon it should bo restored. However, we boliovo the churchwardens, learning what was going on, at last put a stop to the folly, and desired tho policeman to interfore to prevent any renewal of such an absurdity " Tho North Sri Hah Daily Mail says that a gtmokeopar on a moor nt Lochgoilh pad trapped a largo fox a fow dnya ago, and finding ii to all appearance dead, ho removed it from the I run, and threw it asMo whilo ho rebalted the trap, whon, to his astonishment, tho fox scampered off up the hill, and esoipod. M. Place, formerly French consul at Mogsoul, who dovolnd flvo yoara to excavations aud othov ro«oim i lioa on tlw aito 'oi ancient Ninovah, is printing, at thu Imprimorc Imporialo, a mugnilicont work, oxtoimvolv illua« tnlted with engravings, embodying tbo result of thoso labors.

A volume will shortly appear in Paris ou Ducontnili/iiliou in Ifrance. It will contain tho opinions in favor of decentralization of MM. Odillon JBiutol;, Montalcmbm-t, lh-oglie, Oavnot, and Ooohin. In tho villago of Springfield, near Qrolna. Green, tliovo resides n rospoctablo old woman, named Janot Oolthart, or Johnston, who has lived to sco hoi- ofliipring in thoir fourth generation. Sho ib luothor to ton, grandmother to foi'ty-nino, groat -grandinolhoi* to forty, and grcat-groat-grandmothor lo one; making in all tho very roßpoctablo number of 100.

Al. Iho old 13011 Inn, London, now in process of domolition, a largo number 6f " loft pnvools" havo boon discovered — parcels for which no ownora could bo found, many ofthorn having boon there, it is atated, for half a century, isoyio of the uvlioloa of clothing, &0,, look peculiarly quaint when viewed in tho light or tho present day, Tho jcwcllsry id Raid to bo worth £700 or .CBOQ.

Work is vrry much di-luyud in tlio Baltimore shipyard by tho refiiwd of tho white caulkers lo do any work until' tho negro caulkers, who have lieen employed many years nio^iselmrgcd. A largo number of riiip carpenters, painters, and joiners stopped work for tho fca'me reason.

Tho officers of tho steamship Albion have prcsonlud Capliiii\ John M'Luohltm with a filvei* inkftnud, w v testimonial' of their respect mid esteem, on his permanent retirement from t!io command of tlmt reesc], to tako clmr/jo of Iho jigoney of Iho Otnyo Steum Shipping Conmniiy. The inkstand is a beautiful piece of wurkmiinsliip", vopi.osonting an old batllementod cusllo, with a Hug flying from tho keep— in fact, an exnet representation of tho nriiioWal boiiriugn of tho old Highland family from which Captain H'Laohlan cltu'mß to bo descended. Tbo good tnslo mid good feeling dinplnycd in tho present wo worthy of record. Messrs Kilpalrick wero tho manufactures of tho inkstand. — Jvgut.