West Coast Times. THURSDAY. SEPT. 27, 1866.

West Coast Times, Issue 316, 27 September 1866, Page 2

West Coast Times. THURSDAY. SEPT. 27, 1866.

Op the twenty candidates for municipal honors, now "before the electors, nine have to be chosen , and eleven rejected. It is to be regretted that so large a number of citizens both competent and willing to devote their services to the public interests of the town, must necessarily b» refused the opportunity. The display of. public spirit on this occasion is an unusual feature of our political life ; and the necessary disappointment in sc many instances of £ just and honorable ambition, is too likely to check a disposition, the, absence of which has hitherto been a circumstance s) much regretted. Upon whatever nine the choice of the electors falls, we shall have the opportunUj^of congratulating thetowiuipon its interests being entrusted to the .guardianship of men of business eTsperienpe, and pf

proved business .capacity — and of whom no apprehension can be entertained tlmt they will bring any but tho purest 'motives to the discharge of their new duties. iSuloction is however imperative, and as public journalists we can scarcely avoid adverting to tho considerations by which that » selection should be guided. * - What has already been done for the" town by the several candidates, in the ■ introduction into it of capital, the employment of labor, and the promotion of public improvements, is in our opinion, one oi' the first tests that should be applied. The mere fact of n man having been a successful tradesman ought not to have too much weight attached to it. A large number of business men have come to the West Coast, animated simply by the same desire that has actuated so many thousands of our floating raining population — that of making, money as rapidly as they and clearing out as soon as possible after they have made it. The presence of this class of temporary residents, is. essentially a feature of all goldfield communities. To this incontrovertible fact, we are very largely indebted for the reluctance displayed by the Colonial Parliament to concede to We.stlb.nd an increase in its repre^ sentation. The argument they use is more than plausible, ' It is based to a certain extent upon fact"; ' and on this account no man, however much he might see reason to protest against the absurdity of allotting one member only to population' of thirty or forty thousand , persons, would venture to demand for the . district a representation arithmetically proportionate to its population. Tbo majority in the General Assembly say, " Whatever numbers you may show your people to consist of at any given date, you can give us no guarantee that they consist of persons who possess a permanent ; interest in the district." The miner who makes the most money most rapidly, is the man who is Ihost likely to take away his profits with him. After a fashion, '-the same principle applies to the man •of busiuess. How many instances can we hot call to mind, of once prominent townsmen in Jlokitika, who are known amongst us no more, and who have sold out their business, premises and all, " on account of the proprietor leaving the district." Without making an invidious personal comparisiori between, the several gentlemen now rieekiug the suffrages of the electors, we are bound to Say ( that regard ought to be had in making the selection, to the nature and the extent of the guarantee given by the candidates of their permanent identification with the interests of the/i town and of the district of which it is the • capital. Laying aside personal considerations, and admitting the whole, of the nine candidates to be men equal in all points, of respectability .pf character, and of aptitude and effipiency, the preference ought to be given to , those who have most largely invested capital here, and have invested it in business enterprises that are necessarily from- the very nature of them of a ■ permanent character. Men .who have to look to a sustained prosecution of their business, audits constant expansion Avith the steady growth of the commercial interests of Westland, as their only adequate reward for,the employment of considerable capital iv maturing expensive • establishments, we think the public will generally' admit to be the most (eligible of all candidates for an office to which it pertains to promote the advancement of the town, and so to guard and dispense its revenues as shall most economically and most effective^ serve its interests Nor is • the fact vm worthy of remembrance, that those embarKed in large business undertakings will be the heaviest contributors to the Municipal funds which the members of the new Council will ' have to administer. This is a consideration fully ' recognised b^- the Municipal law of England. T,here, men who, have the most rateable property are held to have the largest interest in the Municipal government, ''and the ratepayers have a pluralitj- of votes ac-~ corded them iv proportion to the amount of their assessments. As it is no part of v the national policy to interfere with the most absolute freedom of .election^ the candidate rated most largely is granted no legal advantage over his rival — the electors being left, at their own discretion, to apply in a-prac-tical shape thf principle that the largest amount of rated property necessarily creates the largest interest in the ministration of local taxation. Iv connection with this view of the question, we will add one more suggestion only ; and" that is, that preference should' be given to men who are large employers of labor, and are thus most instrumental in circulating money amongst the tradesmen in the town. The success of every business establishment bas.ed on a wid^ • foundation^ and requiring absolutely tlic serviepe of a large number of employes to whom considerable wages are dis-' pensed, is of advantage to the t®wn N generally. There may be men who possess special claims that- deserve recognition, apart altogether from the, class of considerations we have been adverting 1 to — men whose claims are founded on past services rendered to the district Mr livau Prosser has; for one, given every guarantee of tlie permanence of his business connection with Westland. He ifc one of our oldest and of our most established citizens. 'But he possesses special claims, resting on * distinct grounds. As the Chairman of the Improvement Committee of which th^j new Municipal "Council is the legal successor, as a most useful and able member^ for the district in the Provincial CoXmcil, and as a promoter generally of all good works, Mr Prosser -has a claim of his own; and the public have a duty'to discharge, if rom which no consideration -can absolve.sth.em. It belongs to the natural fitness of things that Mr Prosser should be, either with or without his consent, elected a member of the first Municipal Council of Holdtika,

." INDEPENDENT" JOURNALISM.

Wo understand that a' meeting' wus held last evening' for the purpose of starting a second morning paper in Hokitika, convened by a circular issued by aMr Craig. We are not informed, of the nature of the resolutions adopted, but wisii tho new "independent" enterprise all tho success it deserves. Tho following is a copy' of the circular :—: —

Ilokitika, Sept. 2Gth, 1866. Sir, — At tho repeatedly expressed desiro of tho commercial community and of a large portion oHhc p'ublio of Ilokitika that a second daily morning paper should be published in this town, I take the liberty of requesting your kind attendance at a meeting for tho promotion of this object to ho held at eight o'clock this evening, at tho Commercial Hotel, Revoll street. » The proprietors of the 5' "Westland Observer" are willing to dispose of their plant at a very reasonable figure, or to retain it in their possession, provided that tho auctioneers and shipping agents will guarantee them their advertisements at tho current rates for a period of six months.

It would also be necessary to niuko some trilling additions to tho plant, and for this purpose, and' for the preliminary expenses of tho undertaking, a sum of L 250 would be required. Requesting your punctual attendance, I beg to remain, sirs, Yours obediently, Wat. Craig.

/The development of tho Arahura rush is not proceeding very rapidly, which in a great measure may ..be attributed to tho difficulty experienced in sinking, the ground being very wet and troublesome to keep up. The upper drift, ho'wcver, alone contains water, and tho falso bottom which is composed of loose sand and shingle, being quite dry carries it off freely, still the shafts must be Blabbed, and tlifc drives closely timbered, which entails an extra amount of labor upon the miners ; who would, had tho ground been dry, have tested the value of the lead long ore,tkis. But 'the well-known fact that the' prospectors dbtained three ounces five dwts. of, fine gold out of the washdirt, taken from tlio bottom of a four by throe ' feet shaft, incites them to persevere, aud we have reason to believe tiiat, even should tho lead prove- patnhy rather than continuous, many of the claim 3 will prove exceedingly rich. We are quite convinced that the gold is ' merejy 'a • -continuation of that patoh which wps struck on the first terrace at the back of tho Auckland' lead, as the prospectors' claim is situated on the same line of I terrace nearer to tho Arahura. Tho pateli Iwe allude to was exceedingly rich, and mutiny of oar readers wil: doubtless remombor that our " Special," r in a report upon this locality stated that out of tho prospectors claim aloue 1200 ounces wore obtained. We Understand ' that , besides the prospectors,' anot&e'r shaft on the new rush has, on the south sido of tho Waimea track struck gold, tho prospects being very satisfactory. Sanguino anticipations are entertained that the swamp will be yet proved auriferous. / Sergeant Clements, officer in charge of the Five Mile beach, Okarita, states, in his fortnightly report, that the population there may •be estimated at 1-100, no visible -increase or decreasei in the number having taken place during tHe abo^e period. Tho miners generally are doing well, and some make very high wages ; but great difficulty -ir overcoming the wator •is experienced on several parts of the beach. The report goes on further to state that the beach is considered capable of supporting a moderate population for many months. The place is very orderly, no crime having b,pen reported during the fortnight /For some hours lus,t evening there Avas a lurid appearance in the sky to the north-east, which to old Australian colonists, gave every indication of being the reflection of an extensive bush fire. Subsequently 'it became obscured by a heavy mass of dense clouds, but although it was afterwards visiblo from various points of observation, it completely disappeared shortly before eleven o'clock. "What the cause of the unusual phenomenon "was, remains to bo explained. Wo may add that on the report being circulated through town that there was a bush fire, it was met by many by the assertibn that such an occurrence in Westland was, an impossibility, the timber being too " green " to feed a fir,;, or 1 even to break out into one. This hypothesis will scarcely bo endorsed by those of our residents who hail from Southland, and who re- ! member the great bush fire which took place j on tho town belt of Invercargill some two years back, * which raged with fierce, and destructive violenco foi\a whole day, and 1 the embers of which survived for many days sub- . sequent. By this conflagration scores of tents and cottages located on the town belt -were destroyed; the cleared part of the bush within the town boundary was filled with furniture hastily removed ; aud the gravest apprehensions wejre entertained that the flames might seize upon, the town itself. Thore is no appreciable difference between tho climatp of Southland and that of V^estlaiid. In both thore ia the same average of rainfall, and^ | iv both the > bush timber is equally green. We say this merely to^liscountenanco the prevail- I iug idea that Hokitika is safe from all danger of being surrounded by a bush fire, with tho exception of the seaward sides of it. As wo have a district engineer, who Used to furnish meteorological Tcports to the' Hokitika press, but has latterly ceased to do so — and may be presumed, thorefore, to have leisure time on his hands— he may possibly offer some solutjon of the' singular phenomenon which excited public speculation as to its causes during a considerable portion of the oveniug. 7 Cobb's Christchurch coach arrived iv town last night, at lmlf-past five— half-au-hour in advance of its time. To the excellent condition of the road.auJ tho skilful " tooling" of Mr Kuox, tho drivor, may be attributed this punctuality. Tho team, was landed 'in first-rate order, with anything but the appearance of horses which had just completed a six-mile drag through heavy beach sand, rather looking ,as if the " cloths " were just " drawn," as they rattled down' Gibson's Quay to the, Post Office. The coach br&urjht in but a light freight, as Miss Clarke aud Mr R. Reeves were the only passengers.

The report of Sergeant M'Myn, acting gaoler at tho Police Camp, Eevell' street, shews that during the w.eek ending Saturday 1 Sept. 22, 7 prisoners were . admitted/ 5 ' of whom wore under ■ sentenco of hard labor ; 1 simple imprisonment, and 1 for safe keeping as a lunatic. Against this number, 8 hard labor men having completed their sentences were diaciwrged, and, there remained in v\w

tody at tho above date, 13 males and 2 females, on tho hard labor gang ; 3 males undergoing simple imprisonment, 5 males on remand, and 1 lunatic, making a total of 22 male's and 2 females ; which, added to tho number of confiuces in the district gaol amounts to 61. The list of cases disposed of by the Resident Magistrate last ,weok was rather heavier than usual, as' out of the number, two resulted in committals for trial at the, Supreme Court, fire in hard labor sentences, and one in simple imprisonment. An unfortunate man charged with lunacy was, after examination, also placed in safe keeping. This return shews whit an'immunity from crime is enjoyed by this .community, as seven offences during the wook amongst' a population of nearly ,20,000 is surely a very small proportion. We exclude tho Grey district, which, with a population say of 10,000, possesses a separate jurisdiction, and arrive at the above conclusion from the fact that the rep6rts forwarded to . head quarters by tho officers in charge of the different up country districts hare*, during tke last month, contained no record of crime.

We havo to acknowledge files of Melbourne papers to tho 15th instant, to the courtesy of Messrs Spence Brothers. Thoy were brought by tho brigantino Sarah and Mary, Captain Duncan having considerately secured papers of the latesi date prior to his departure from Melbourne.

The Melbourne "Argus,"- of the 15th, says :—": — " Hot winds and dust storms are coming upon us early this season. During the wholo of .yesterday a strong northerly wind prevailed, and, between heat a,ad dust, the weather was anything but comfortable. At three o'clock this morning the wind waß still strong from the northward, and there wai no appearance of approaching change."

We take the following from the Melbourne " Argus " of the 15th :— " An accident occurred in Collins Btreet yesterday, which resulted in the death of a- valuable horse. Mr Carson/ the bootmaker, accompanied by two friends, was driving in a buggy from the eastern end of Collins street, when the reins accidentally caught under tho horse's tail. This mishap occurred eloop byvthe Burke and Will* monument/ whence the horse, setting off at full gallop, rushed down the hill, and, catching his foot against one of the foot-bridges, fell to tho ground near the entrance to this office. The leg of the horse was broken, and the buggy smashed, but the occupants fortunately escapod with alight injuries. The horso was of course utterly ruined, aud his throat was" cut on the spot prior td the carcaso being convoyed away."

As a test of tlio value of the scientific theory that gold is not plentiful below a certain depth, tha " Mount Alexander Mail " mentions that the Mariners' Reef Confpany, the deepest mine in the colony, some 800 ft, and which lately fell into Mr Richard Schlesinger's hands for » more song, has, from sixty-five loads of stone, yielded SoOozs of retorted gold. John King, the steersman of the bopt which leff the ill-fated London, and to whose skill the safety of the few who escaped death was mainly due, liag arrived in Melbourne by t the 1 ship Star of Peace.

The "Lyttelton Times", of the 21st reports that a man naiuod Thomas (Mberfc, was drowned on Wednesday whilst attempting to cross the Waimakariri near Bealey, but jio details of tho occurrence hare yet been forwarded. His, body yrm found yesterday morning.

By telegraph from Wellington, -we learn that the New Zealand Government hare'eonsented to make Sydney the terminus of the Panama line.

A Sydney telegram appoars in the Melbourne " Argus," dated the 12th instant, to the following effect :— " C. L. Throckmorton, late" of Melbourne, has been arrested here for debt. He has filed liis schedule. Debts, £5392 ; assets, £20."

Mr Born, the' mayor of. Fitzroy (a Melbourne suburban borough), has been fined 20s. with 21s. costs, by tho local' Bench of Magisratcs, for using abusive language towards a Mr Dobson. The disagreement which led to use of the language complained of arose out of v claim made by Dobson on the > defendant, for obtaining signatures to a memorial praying that the latter might be m*de a territorial magistrate. , In tho Equity Court, Melbourne, on tho 13th inst., Mr Justice Molesworth delivered a very important adverse^ judgment on a motion made for a compulsory sequestration on the petition of a banking corporation incorporated in the colony of Victoria. The question raised was the difficulty arising from sections 14, 15, and 16, requiring an affidavit of a petitioning creditor of tKe truth of his debt, with which an incorporated company cannot literally comply. It if understood that the bank authorities will appeal against this decision, which marks an essential difference between foreign banking corporations aud those incorporated in the colonies.

Wo are informed that a requisition to Mr Geovgo Coppin 13 being prepared, requesting him to allow himself to be nominated as a candidato for the seat vacated by Mr.A. B. Wardrop, tho late member for Richmond. Mr Ooppin's friends are very sauguine of success.