NEW SOUTH WALES.

West Coast Times, Issue 355, 12 November 1866, Page 1 (Supplement)

NEW SOUTH WALES.

The s'eamer Tinonee, from Sydney, has brought papers to Che 261h i>lt. They contain nolhing of importance beyond what bns already reached us by telegraph, via Melbourne. la .he Assembly the allabsorbing topic is f u "nibbed by the Public Schools ft'". The inbleof the Legislai ive Assembly has been loaded \v\ h peti ions day aler d?y, and public meetings have Ueen held Uiroughout iiie colony by- the friends and opponents of non-sectai'an edoeation. For many yeais the necessity i'ov legislation upon this subject has been acknowledged, and various attempts have been made to deal with the question, but so m:-nv inteiests have grown up around the p esent systems, that any course likely to diminish Ine iufloence of cerlaiu denominations is at onoe met with the most determined opposition. Until the passing of the Aci (o abolish future grants in aid of public wo ; ship, the S^ate-paid denominations we.-c able, not only to use the money of 'he State to educate children in their schools, but they were able afterwards to point to the census, and include many of those whom they had instructed with State funds in the number which delerminedlueir proportion of aid from (he State for the suppoit of their {particular denomiua ion. The mai-i object of the present bill is to extend to every child in »he colooy tlie means of a good faecular education in schools where the religion taught would be amply the cardinal doctiines of the Christian fai'h, without any denomion.iooal bias. It is proposed, nevertheless, to set apa-t an hour each day, when deiiomia.vion.il leachiog may be impacted by ministers or oilier persons. We have exti acted the following item*), chiefly from the colunris of the "Morning Herald" :— Mcssi-s Garoett and Walker, on the way f.-oni the Li. tie River with a quautity of gold, on (he 24th October, accompanied by sergeants /Thompson and Gilder, discovcivd two men who bad hidden themselves behind a log. One of the men presented his cai-bine at MrGarnelt. Thompson drew his carbine and fired. The bushrangers then moulded tlieif horses, and sho s were exchanged beiweeu the police and the robbers ; one shot struck the peak oi Thompson's cap. The gold being brought safe'y into Braidwood, the po'ice again made for the place where the escort was attacked, and went across the couutry, sometimes gelling tacks to cut the bubhvangers off. They were sighted once close to I hick scrubby ranges, into which they galloped, and could not be seen again. The bushrangers were beaten off by Tiiompson alone, and he found Gilder in pu suit of them. The 23rd, ult. was a public holiday at Brisbane, to celebrale the opening of telegraphic communication. News from Burktown says there is a fresh fever. At West Maitland, on the 25th ultimo, Patrick John Kelly was convicted for the Meniwa mail robbery and robbery under arms. He also pleaded guilty to two other charges of highway robbery. For the first, he was sentenced lo ten years ou the roads, the second seven years, and for the ihird, fourth, and filth, two years' imprisonment wiih hard labor in Darlinohurst gaol. The first iwo bcntenoes .o follow each otner, the last three concurrent. Edward Itusden,' charged with wounding Patrick Ryan, with intent to murder, was found guilty. The Wagja Wa^ga Criminal Sessions concluded on the 25th October. The following cases have been tiied and sentences awarded : — James Charlion was found gu-lty on two charges of Jarceny, and sentenced to five yea.s* hard labor for each offence. James M'Gowan, for cattlestealing, five years' hard labor. Thomas Boyd, for cattle stealing, five years' hard labor. Pat ick , for two cases of robbe<y under amu, was found guilty, and seutenccd to fiftxe.i years' hard labor for each offence. The same prisoner for t-hooting with intent to mjrdei', sentenced to fif een years' hard labor. Patrick Ga.eiy, found guilty on two charges of robbery under arms, ibr each offence .sentenced to seven years' hard labor. Eliza Guilber, on a charge of murdering two children, was acquitted and discharged. Thomas Saunders, accused of the nmixler of his wife, found not gu'lty. Thomas Marcus, for larceuy, not guilty." It is not often that much cleverness is displayed in talking against time, aod those who have recently undertaken the tusk i<i the LegMa ive Assembly are certainly not a-'coaiolisbad masters of the a.t. The intolerable monotony lias, however", been sometime « relieved. Utterances which sounded J'ke the perpetual beating of a tin pot have been followed by styles of oratory remarkable for thai .-fresh ness and vigo ■. Here is a sp^cimca of many columns of unrecorded eloquence: — If some iv those honbl'tel'gent members wi'l only 'lurainate my darkened hv'llect I will only be 100 'appy to bow to then- information. But then the great question is, are we going to educate the lisin population without foes ? * * * Tf I am iv error I will be only too 'appy to bow

to the ob&kooi-j'ty ia my iotiilek on the various causes iv this b'"'l. (Ilav'ng been cfW <o order fo- depart '.ll3; f om the que& ion liecoiu'tuied.) I will not attemoc for o'ie moment ;o t,ay tt>at the hon. member is not gilded in h ; s remarks by the t vest principles in jus.ice in connection wji-'i his own inlil'ectooal i-ifor .nation, but I would only ask ihe hon. iiie cheerman before he decides on these very great »)v»nc;p!es, and to ihe extent i.i connection with an eloosidashu iv those principles ihat a'i hon. member is in itleu to 30 to before he wi'l a;i«':>pt for one moment to cur.eel tlie principles of. deba'e in connection wiih the question at issue. V the lion, the checman of comit-tees — shews me— for one momeui —can produce to me any record in couuect'on wifh <he 'ojse of Commons, ihat I uofor nully m ; ght deviate from at the moment of debate — at the spur of the moment (to use plain language)— l would be only too 'appy lo bow to the ruling iv on" re:>pected cbeermun. [Hnvi-jg been a^ain c.iMeii to oru'e I',1 ', aod told that the qu^s ion xvrs the omission of the \vo-:d "not"]— Well 'eie's the question; only look a.c tie natural resod>. ces that will emanate from the question, and the natural compound of information which will go to eloosidtte the ques ion ! Mr Chee-.-man, what does the amendment " not" mean ? P'raps some of ;he s'porters of the bill would have the kindness to 'Joosidale and eoligliten my obskoo'ity what the word "no" means? Sir, if the hon. Colonial Secreary will have the kindness uo do it — the word " not," , what docs it mane ? Not to do something that has been pie vionsly been proposed in this section or chuse of the b'D. That ia how I take it, and that is the proper eloocidation of it — the proper loosidation of this word noi. Well, I submit, the obscoority of ihe intillect of honorable members —I cammot account for it in supporting this bill. I will not for one moment say that this word "not" is not traceable to their dogged want of principle — want of iii/brmaliou. They i-ay, we will not give you any intbffoi mation in reference to the bill ? — we will have the bill ; we will take it with all its defects and using the word — Well, raly it is a matter of very little c nisequence relative to this word " not' until we get a step J'uvther. " Therefore not until we go a step further. Till then the Cheerman, I presume, will have the power iv confining any honorable member within the narrow compass of this word " not." There/we I am not inclined to oppose the word, because it is a matter of no consequence, this word "not." The reader may, at his leisure, perform the duty of the icporter by ascertaining the meaning of *he speaker aud putting it into respectable English." - Au inqirry was held on the 23rd ult., before the City Coroner, at the Rochester Arms, Camperdown, respacing tho death of a man named George Frederick Rossiter, forty-six years of age, who commuted suicide by po'soning himself with strychnine, at his residence, Unive'si.y street, Camperdown. George Joseph Ilossiter, draper, son of deceased, s : .a<ed that his father had left no widow, but had left five children; when he went home on Monday evening ho heard that his father was very ill and wished to see him ; he went to his residence, and found him lying on the bed; his-father told him he was very ill, and that he had taken some poison which he had got for a Germau at Cook's River ; his sister, aged seventeen, and bis brother, ngi d nine years, lived with his father ; his father had not sustained any losses, nor was he in difficulties as far as he (witness) could tell ; deceased was iv easy circumstances, but solitary in his habits generally ; he asked him what had induced him to take poison, when he said, "I lay down about a quarter to three; I got up iv about half-an-hour cfterwards raving mad ! I did not know what I was doing unMl I had taken the poison, when I had my senses ; If I could havo got my razors at the time, I would have cut my throat ; I went to the cashbox and took out the poison , the poison was labelled ' poison ; ' I took the poison in a Üblespoon ; " he (witness) sent his sister for Dr Sedgwick, who returned with her immediately ; he remained with his father up to the time of his death, with the exception of two or three minutes ; occasionally his father was subject to fits of depression, but had been very steady in his hab'ts lately; on the previous evening he did not observe anything strange in his manner ; but he appeared to be as cheerful as usual; his>father died about twelve o'clock the same night ; he looked for the paper labelled " poison," but could not find it ; he also examined the tablespoon, which was the only one in the house, but could find no trace of poison in it. The abovo evidence was corrobora' ed by another son of deceased, Walter James Rossiter, twelve years of age. James Dole, chemist, Glebe Road, stated thaj; he had known tne deceased for a number of years ; on the 11th inst. deceased called at his shop and purchased four grains of strychnine, saying that he wanted it for a German at Cook's River, to poison rats or cats ; the poison was placed in two papers, each labelled " strychnine — poison ;" he cautioned deceased as to the dangerous nature of the poison ; deceased appeared to be in a cheerful state of mind at the time. Dr Sedgwiclc stated that he saw deceased about twenty minutes .to 8 on Monday evening; deceased told him he had taken poison about 3 o'clock the same afternoon ; he mixed an emetic for him, but the exertion of altering his position to take it produced a most violent spasm ; when deceased had sufficiently recovered he administered chloroform ; he left abaut 9 o'clock, and returned again obout 11, when he found deceased suffering from hiccough, with au intermitting pulse ; he then ordered beef tea and brandy ; deceased told him he had taken the poison by mistake. Verdict — Died from having taken a certain poison called strychnine, whilst laboriog under a fit; of temporary insanity. —Oct. 24. The other morning, a ve-y curious bvd was bhot uear Maiden IIUI. The body is somewhat larger than a duck, with long legs rice a snipe ; the bill about sW i icues in length, and much curved ; the head and part of tl'e neck entirely destitute of feathers ; and the plumage of the body black and white, but bronzed wings ) ; ke a d^ke; the feet are not webbed, but raiher adapted for wading. — "ULwarra Express," Oct. 22. Mr Rush, the contractor for the construe! ion of the line of telegraph from

Ya^s ;o Tsur o\ya, is pnsh'ng on satis>clo'ily. The via ance of the line ''a csulpited at Wply-s'x miles, ood theco.t' per m ; leis LCS. Orders have been give a to have the second l'oe of pobts >nke ) vo. a"d we are assured .hat now all d'< Ticr I .;'j 5 in toe way o" tho jvogifcLa o" ';e works ire BGitled. Mr Rush expcc.'s that 'he line will be completed in tiiree w«eksfrom the present time.—" Yass Courier." At the Armidale Quarter Scions, held on Monday last, before Judge Mcymo.l an nssault case was tried, which revea'ed a sticking feature of the easy manner ia which a free selector secured a house, gar. den, and cultivation ready to his hand. The case will be better explained by a summary of the evidence produced at the trial. A man, named Timothy Mulreay, waited on the land agent, in January last, and selected a portion of the Eu-opambi-la Rui, known as Butler's Station, near Walcha; and, on offering the usual deposit and describing the ground he desired, he was told^ by the land a^ent that he believed the ground could not be selected, and referred him in the meantime to the district surveyor for definite information. Mulreay waited on the surveyor, from whom he learned not only that it was not open for selection, but ihat the lessee had applied for it in consequence of the valuable improvements on it, that the law did not allow it to be free selected, artd if Mulreay did so the ground would be me.iiured off, and any additional improvements he might make would go to the lessee. Mulreay said he would take it on chance, and take he did. In July the surveyor had instructions from the Government to survey the land, as applied for by the lessee, and proceeded to the place for that purpose, when Mulreay prevented him by assaulting him several times, and finally cutting his chain into five or six pieces. The survey was relinquished, Mulreiy was prosecuted, and at the sessions was convicted and sentenced for the assault; but I believs his family still retain possession of the land, house, garden, cultivation, and all. Now, if this is not taking possession of another man's property by force and under color of law, it would be difficult to say what forcible possession is. We are constantly witnessing the mischievous effects of sonic parts of the Land Act of 1861, but th's appears to be one of the most d iring violations of right that has conid under my notice. Whether the Government will allow Mulreay or his family to retain possession of this land remains to be seen, for if the Government make no efFort to distuib them it will be difficult to say if the squatter's principal residence will not be the next point of attack by some equally as danng free selector in sea v ch of a h.mio made ready to his hand. Sdpp'ies of water have been obtaintd from some curiously formed cones of clay and pebbles on the Darling Plains. These v water cones '' as they a;e called, are formed of a crust or deposit from three or four to iwenty feet high. This crust is composed of an admixture of hardened clay with smill quartz pebbles, much worn by the action of water. When the crust is broken water spirts out in a small and continuous stream. The water is very clear, cool, and fresh. At one of these natural reservoirs about IG,OOO sheep are watered daily, and yet the supply of the clement from the cone docs not seem to be at all affocled. These strange aqueducts may turn out "to be as valuable to the grazier, as they are interesting to tlie geologist. The pastoral occupants of Crown lands in the Lachl.in district are taking steps towards securing for themselves permanent water supplies. A meeting of squatters was held at Booligal lately, in order to take into consideration the advisability of erecting- dams on the Lachlan River, in such a way as to make its water available for the supply of other runs than those on the frontage. There is no reason why the vast quantify of water which now flows to the sea, and is wasted, should not be utilised in this way ; but, in the absence of legislation on the subject, it will be difficult to carry out the desired object. Information reached Mudgee on Monday, that Mr W. Protheroe, of Green Swamp lun, had been accidentally killed while riding home from Guntawang. Next day Dr. King, coroner for the district, held an inquest upon the body, when the following evidence was taken : — Charles Smith said he was returning from Guntawangon the previous afternoon, about two o'clock, with deceased. When about a mile from home, heard either the deceased or his horse strike against a tree. Witness was tiding about Jen yards in front, and went hack aud saw deceased on the ground, with slight signs of life. Witness went to the river for water, and threw some in deceased's face. Mr At-kin-on then came up and lemained with deceased till he died, which was only a few minue'es afier the accident occurred. Deceased was sober, and had complained of his chest for some lime. Witness had been living with deceased for two months. James Atkinson said about three o'clock yesterday afternoon Smith came down to a washpen where witness was engaged washing sheep, in a siate of gidt agitation, and asked for a pot to get some water, as he thought Sir Protheroe was killed by a fall from his horse. On running to the spot, about a hundred yards distant, witness saw deceased lying on the ground, evidently in a dying state. Deceased gave three or four ga^ps for .breath, which were all ihe signs of life he showed, and he was quite dead in a T fewminutes. Smith then went fo r a conveyance. Witness saw Mr Protheroe about 10 o'clock the previous morning, when he appeared in good health. Witness noticed the track of Mr Profcheroe's horse between two trc^s, a few yards off the road, and saw marks a> if Mr Prolheroe or his horse had struck the tree, the surface of the bark having been knocked off. Dr Ramsay made a^jtwf mortem examination of the body, and gave it as his opinion that deceased died f'om the effects of a rupluicd blood vessel, which had discharged iiself into the pericuniium or membrane which sunounds the heart. He bel'eved that uode'r any circumstances, deceased would have died from disease of the heart. The jury, consisting of seven persons residing in the neighborhood, gave a verdict in accordance with the evidence. — '' Mud^ee Liberal." ° The "Rockhamplon Bulletin" of the 1 6th instant, mentions that a man named John Feeney, in the employment of Messrs M'Kenzie and Muldoon, of Glen-

oy s alon, was \ avel'ing in company wuh 'wo d ays to Roe! 1. :i i»p im^ anc j on F idsy Lst camned about ibe boundary of tiie Gle>)-oy vu\ some tbir.y-five miles from town. While tl'e party were at dinnev, Feeney, .saw some pigeons close by, and followed them to 'have a shot. He went some distance from, the camp, and in a low scrubby place near the Deep Creek above Yaamba. he ca*ne upon a human skeleton. All the bones were bleached with the exception of the, feet and one hand, upon which remained portions of shrivelled skin. lie also saw that the skull had been severely fractured on the left side. Feeney picked up the skull and brought it to his mates, who then went to the spot and looked at the skeleton. Feeney replaced the skull, and on arriving in 'own yes'erday, made the police acquainted with his discovery. An old grey or blue Crimean shirt lay near the body, and so.ne short distance away a boot was found hanging upon a tree. It is supposed that the remains were those of a while man, who has met his death by foul means. The finding of the portion of clothing and and tlie injury to the skull would support such an impression. The spot is infested with native dogs, and they had probably eaten the flesh off the bones. Last Thursday a gentleman called at our office and left a specimen of what he thinks is copper ore^ We have shoivn it to one or two persons versed in that sort of thing, who pronounce it to be so. The specimen has been forwarded to Sydney for inspection ; and, should it turn oat to be a mineral that can be turned to profit, thousands of tons of it can he removed at little expense. The ridge in which it is contained is not many miles from Young. '' Burraugong Argus." The "Northern Aigus" says; — We have been shown a very pure nugger, weighing 2ozs Hdwls., found last we*ek at the Crocodile. There is only one speck of quartz visible. The owner of the nugget, who sold it on S ilurday last lo one of the gold buyers, refused "to tell where he found it. One agent bought Ll2O worth of gold on Saturday, without SLopping the scale, and he informs us he could have purchused 250 ounces more if he had had notes lo pay for it. Saturday's " Wagga Wagga Express" mentions t hat Mr John Mitchell,- of Dunmore, whilst on the road to New England recently, between Mu^urundi and- Tarnworth, obse vod what appeared to be an animal's tusk, projecting from a bank, and dismouming, picked away at the rock until he haj released a tusk, a jaw, and some teeth. Tnese reliques of a bygone period have been sent to Mr Gerard K<efit, of the Australian Museum. Rescue fhom Dbown'NG. — Mr John M'Neil, of Liverpool -street, informs us that previous to the time of the landing of the Roman Catholic Bishops at the Circular Quay, on Monday last, his son was accidentally pushed from the whaif into the water. A gentleman, whose name we are informed is Mr M'Hale, of Bathursr, immediately plunged in and saved the boy from drowning. Mr M'Hjle was cheered by the crowd who witnessed the rescue, and Mr M'JSTeil has expressed his gratitude to the deliverer of his sou from a watery grave. Tho new tariff recently enacted in Queensland, though only a short time in force, has already had a most detrimental effect on the export trade from Sydney to the ports of that colony, and both of the steam companies engaged in that trade, finding it difficult to obtain freight, have withdrawn some of their vessels, and will endeavor to find them some more remunerative employment. A very rich quartz reef has been discovered by a party of prospectors iv the YVeddin Mountains. This reef is situated about thirty-five miles from the township {of Young, between Broindah and Bogobogolong stations. A regular rush to this newly discovered reef set in at once, and it is stated that most of the persons who have ventured there are doing very well. Gold is distinguishable by the naked eye wherever the reef appeal's. Forty claims have been marked out, and seven parties are already hard at work. The intelligence from the Lachlan is, on the whole, favorable, although the diggers there are not all as successful as could be wished. The discovery of an apparently rich field at "Thompson's lead" attracted a very large number of miners there, and the results of the workings by no means justified their expectations. ISome 'large nuggets have been found, and altogether the yield of gold is considerable, although a great many diggers have become disheartened from their want of success. The rush to the field has almost trebled the population, and a township, almost as large as Forbes, has sprung" up on Thompson's lend. The news from Lucknow is veiy yooJ, one par'y there getting forty ounces of gold lo ihe ton ofwasiulirt. No intelligence yf any importance lias CJine 10 hand lespecting the Northern goldtields, but the yield of gold from thence appears to be undiminished. At the village of Stow, in tbe south of Scotland, there used to be, at the cud of the last century, a famous camp of tinkers, or gypsies — a uamt\ vre dare say, more familiar to most readers. It Imppened one Sabbath, about tho time spoken of, that an elderly female belonging to the camp, strayed into the parish clmi'ch — a rather unusual occurrence. During the sermon the monster observed Janet to be very much atfectcci, and shedding tears b'ttevly. The worthy man sought her out on the Monday, when tho following co^oquy took place: — "I observed you in church yesterday," said Mx\ , "and I Ihoughf some of my disco L-v.ie had wounded you; so leaded to see if I cou'd provide an antidote" — (here followed an appropriate quotation f-oin senpfcuro). "O! 'ded, sir," said Janefc, the tears flowing fust ng:u'a, " it was na yer discoorse ; but 1 had a puir cuddy (donkey) deed last week, o')d every roar ye geid brought itayo io my recollection." It is hardly necessary to add that the minister had totally mistaken tho cause.or Janet's g iof. SVjsbionab'e young lady, detaching her hair before retiring : — " What dreams may come when wo have shiUJled oif th's mortal coil !" A literary man, on retiring to private life, said tliiit h ; 3 connection with the press had thawed, and resolved itself into adieu I He has "Honest man" A\.-it,ten ;n; n Irs face, said a friend of the )ato Doi'gias Jeij'old, speaking of a person hi whom Jerrold's faith was not great. " Humph," replied Jerrold, " then tho pen must have be.'ti ft vcy bad one."