The West Coast Times FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 16, ]866. MONTHLY SUMMARY.

West Coast Times, Issue 359, 16 November 1866, Page 5

The West Coast Times FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 16, ]866. MONTHLY SUMMARY.

West Coast Times Office, Thursday, November 1.5. We are again compelled .to despatch our usual monthly summary by way of Suez, as in consequence of an exceptional stress of weather, no communication could be had with the branch steamer conveyingthe mails to Wellington for transhipment to the Panama steamer Mataura. The homeward mail by that route closed here on the 3rd instant, and on the 4th the Tararua arrived in the roadstead from Melbourne ; but as there was no probability of the weather changing, and there was a danger of missing the ocean-going vessel, she proceeded .on her course to Wellington, and the homeward mails were, therefore, delayed till the present time. The Albion, with the New Zealand portion of the English mail, via Suez, arrived at the Bluff on the 17th ultimo, but in consequence of the breaking of the telegraph line it was not until some days after that the news of her arrival reached Hokitika. The N. Z. Steam Navigation Company's steamer Taranaki had, however, arrived at this port on the 16th ultimo (a day before the Albion reached the Bluff), after an unprece-

dentedly rapid passage from Melbourne of four days and a half, and placed us in possession of our English files of the 27th August, which were supplemented by telegrams to the 1 lth September. Hokitika thus enjoys the distinction of being the first port to receive the important mail news brought by the Bornbaj' to Melbourne ; but the above-mentioned unfortunate suspension of telegraphic communication with the rest of the colony, confined the benefit to Hokitika exclusively. Prior to the arrival of the mails, via Suez, at Melbourne, however, intelligence had been received there from England to the 2nd September, brought to Bowen, in Queensland, by the Hero from Batavia. We have now three routes open between Europe and Australia, viz. — the Suez, the Panama, and the Torres Straits, with ' almost a certainty of their continuance.