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Westport Times, Volume II, Issue 174, 20 February 1868, Page 2

Gold Export.—The Bruce took away about 1100 ozs of gold for Hokitika. Nearly 11,000 ozs are ready for shipment by the Nelson, and the escort from Charleston brought about 3000 ozs yesterday. What has Become of Him?— Rumors are ripe on the Buller of a man possessed of a considereable amount of money being missing, and whose disappearance is causing great anxiety. When last seen he was bound for the Caledonian Terrace, and to which he has never come. We do not wish to write a sensational paragraph, "but we will merely state that great anxiety is felt for his safety.

Tback Cutting.—The" next best thing te doing any business ourselves, is to see that others do it equally well and with the same result. This proposition, so true in private life, i 8 equally trite in case in which Government are the employers, and it therefore becomes a serious question whether the making of roads would not be far batter, if made under direct

coutract with the officials of Government. We are led to these remarks by followiugthe caseofa right tocharge toll made by the gazetted owners of tracks to the Caledonian Terrace, and' which tracks are proved to be mavery bad state of repair. The amount, charged for each horse, and allowed by the Government to be collected by the makers of these tracks, would be surely suffi i)ht to briug in a good dividend to Government if a good track were made by them in the first instance. It appears that three tracks have been cut to the Caledonian, and each track is the property of some private individual, and on each endless disputes are arising with regard to the money question of toll, and the state of repair in which they are kept/ We do not wish to discourage private enterprise, but in the matter of roal making a greater probability exists of a track being likely to be serviceable if made by Government, and the disputed payments of toll obviated ; no doubt it takes a great load off Government officials when these duties are discharged by outsiders, but still as a speculation only such tracks as the one in question show a likelihood of a good return on the original outlay, and would help to increase the revenue of the province, besides rendering the cost of transit less to the public than a purely private enterprise makes it. Were a track once properly made and paid for by it would cost but a trifle to keep it in efficient repair and only a nominal charge would have to be made to defray working expences, thus rendering the cost of transit less to the packer, and so enable him to pack goods cheaper and better than is done at present, thereby enabling goods to be sold at a cheaper rate ; which no one can deny in a mining country is both of benefit to the general public, and likely to increase the revenue of the province by the increased area of its fields, induced by cheapness of living.

Resident Magistrate's Court.— There was no business transacted at the Court yesterday morning, and today the Resident Magistrate will sit at Addison's Flat.

Waimangohoa Quartz Reef.—We would remind our readers of the meeting of shareholders to take place at the Wellington Hotel to-night, and at which very important business has to be decided.

Schooner Escort. —The clipper schooner Escort is rapidly going on with her discharges, and should the

flue weather last, she will soon be tit for sea. Her general cargo is very acceptable, and will sort up our stocks of general merchandise.

The Nat h ax Tjboupe. This talented troupe gave their first performance last evening at Stephenson's new assembly rooms. There was a numerous attendance, who appeared to relish the performances, as they were unanimous in their applause. Bushuanging.—The Australasian of the 25 th ult has the following pertinent observations on bushranging:— " Two bushrangers, convicted of shooting with intent to kill, have been left for execution at Deniliquin. It is our painful duty—none the less incumbent because painful—to express a conviction that the New South Wales Q-overnment should have the courage to allow the law to take its course. We are fully alive to the expediency of drawing a distinction between robbery and murder. In the interest of society, and with a view to the preservation of life, we would not inflict the the extreme penalty of the law upon the maurauder, hewever mischievous his offence, who refrains from the employment of deadly weapons. But when life is deliberately attacked, and the intended victim is preserved solely by the interposition of Providence, we can see no ground for mitigation of punishment. The reluctance to have recourse to capital punishment arises from two causes a short-sighted humanity, and an over-strained refinement. The humanity in question is the result of an imperfect imagination ; the persons who yield to it can only realise the sufferings of the criminal who is before their eyes; the misery occasioned by crime, the anxiety and terror that it everywhere diffuses, all this is lost upon them. With a small number of people the objection to capital punishment arises from overrefinement. They eannot bear the disgusting details which the infliction of the punishment necessitates; it is horror to them to see the preparations in progress, and they feel a sense of disgrace in inhabiting a town in which a gallows is erected. But this is a very childish feeling; it is necessary to grapple with the facts of life, whether we jlike them or no, and one of the most undeniable of these facts is the presence amongst us of brutal natures which can only be controlled

by the fear of the one penalty that puts an end to all that they have concerned themselves with. And that we may not bo misunderstood, we should add that we consider that these natures are to be found in all classes of society, and are compatible with every degree of education. Eor the preservation of society from' their aggrossion, in the interests of humanity and civisisatiou, we maintain that the man who takes, or tries to take life, must continue to be liable to the risk of having his own life taken by society."