The Westport Times. AND CHARLESTON ARGUS. In the cause of Truth and Justice we Strive. TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 1872

Westport Times, Volume VI, Issue 929, 20 February 1872, Page 2

The Westport Times. AND CHARLESTON ARGUS. In the cause of Truth and Justice we Strive. TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 1872

Anothek of those atrocious acts to which British naval commanders have fop the. lat-t thirty years been so given has beeu committed at Santa Cruz, one of the South Spa Islands'. It is thus briefly reported i:i the " Fiji Times " :—" H.M.S. Bosario has paid; Santa Cruz a visit, and killed about seventy people in retaliation of Bishop Paitesun's death." Such is t'ie pithy account of this bloody and bh o Ithirsty act, and this is assumed to have been done in the " interests of civilisation " —an unmeaning and senseless term, and which has been invented to cover the most dastardly, the most eowardlv, and the mo««t atrocious acts of men trained to nothing else but to shed blood and spread devastation all around. Even the " Southern Cross," in an otherwise excellent article, is led into the common use of familiar words; it says— •*' Possibly it is so that the laws of civilisation demands this penalty at the hands of savages." In the name of common sense, what are the " laws of civilisation?" To kill, burn, and destroy men, women, and children ; to confound the innocent with the guilty; and to slaughter indiscriminately friend and foe. So much for " civilisation," under which term every imagin«ble enormity can be committed with impunity, amidst the plaudits of " pubiic as a sigu of a" progressive age.".

Let uh hope that there.is no truth in the report; or, at all events, that the act was not committed iu M retaliation" of the death of Bishop Pattespn, whose last humane and noble words are still frssb iu the minds of many of our readers—deprecating in the most solemn manner any retaliatory measure?. Such transactions as these cause a hatred to the British name and race all over the world—in China, in Japan, in Africa, and a'most every undefended place where a British nian-of-war can throw her shells and shot, supposing her victim to be weak. Auother instance «as that costly pantomime called the war of Abyssinia, where one of the truest'friends of Britain was cruelly crushed, and the country reduced to anarchv, »t a price of £12,000,000, wrung from the hardhanded earnings of the British workmen ; and the Maria Theresa dollar hero of Magdala was created a peer.- - It,may be.especially noted here that during the so-called war with Rueßirt in the Crimea our two navies never took a ship nor bombardeda'town—with one exception, a fishing village. But we suppose Russia came undor the category of civilisation. The " Thames Advertiser" has nobly taken up the subject, and truly says that there.could be nothing on the score- of retaliation to justify tho slaughter of these wretched savages. "It teaches, the survivors no sa'utary lesson; it impresses them with no ideas of our inflexible jus'tice; it imbues them with no respect for the religion of him wnose blood ihey ignorantly shed ; but it does confirm their hatred for the accursed white men who landed unr>n their island home and carried them into slavery. Murder was begotten of the foul act. It was an'-act stimulated by treachery—to the savage mind an act of reprisal, and nothing more." Well does tho writer from whom the above is taken conclude:—"Santa Cruz in future will be the grave for all who seek its shores—whether cast upon its coast by the remorse less ocean, or seeking to land for pleasure or profit, their fate will yet be the 8E.m0." The article in the "" Southern Gross," in many respects excellent, is still defaced with ills, and buts, and civilisation, and barbr.rism, and all the sf.ibboleth of the day, but amid all this speaks out truly un I humanely ; for example:—" It would certainly bare been more becoming if the!war vessel had been employed in running down the slavers, and bringing to jus" tice the original and real authors of the crime, than in exhibiting a vindictive display of power over misguided and ignorant savages, who believe that they were perfectly justified bv their own rud« principles of equity In perpetrating this cruel deed. .... So longns civilised nations will allow outrage to be habitually perpetrated by members of their race under sanction of law,, and so long as men are carried away from the islands into unwilling servitude, so long will the natural affection of their friends and relations blaze forth in wild revenge on those who cpuie within their power:". It is quite refreshing to find so healthy a tone in the New Zealand press Ir.tnid the faction.fights in.'whic.h/.it hasjbeeu lately engaged; and to find such ieati- < utWred on this melancholy! subject 1a proof that we-" are 'not entirely, absit.bfdin the" wretched scrambjo fop, tho last English' !oa*a. ' ©nee* more let ua sincerely hope that there is. no truth, iu the "report, or if so- that some oi,her cause can be assigned for such.an ack

• 0» Smvfay the flteahier Murray arrived fioadreynsonta; '" Waaee that H!s Honor M* Js»t*or Hai-r«y arrived. Ln he* She Bailed for Nelson on Sunday afternoon.

. The. second of the floe, boats belonging -tojthe Company was launched at three o'clock on Saturday af torupon, into the sea at the end of Freeman's street, in which she was built. Nearly all the male Westport wWe" present, many of thorn assisting in the pleasant and exciting process. Just before she was launched into'her future elemental home, the. old cuafcpin of naming har was performed in the uaual manner by breaking a bottle of champagne on her stern. This part of the ceremony' was performed by Miss Eteveneaux, daughter of the builder of the boat. Whether from the strength of the bottle, or the trepidation of the fair manipulator, the first blow, though appaaontly not a weak one, was ineffectual, but the second, applied with a more vigorous effort, effectually accomplished its object—the boat alone not receiving the whole of its contents, a small quantity being scat.,tercd on those around, who seemed to enjoy the honor. The " Rose of the Buller " was then urged into the briny deep with about thirty occupants, and after rowing in a vast semicircle was brought into the river by the new channel and safely moored at the wharf. Several speeches- and songs were made and sung on -board during her initiatory trip, and all the. town seemed to enjoy the scene—looking upon this as another means of prosperity to the district. This fine boat was built by Air Eteveneaux. Her dimensions are:—Length, over all, 56 feet; beam, 8 feet; depth, 2 feet, and is capable of taking 8 tons. A meeting of the Westport Amateurs took place on Saturday evening, at the Empire Hotel, to decide in getting up an entertainment for the benefit of George Lowe. This entertainment will be given on Tuesday next, when a grand bill of fare will bo presented to the public We hear that several ladies and gentlomen have volunteered their services on the occasion.

The steamer Charles Edward will leave thia port for Nelson to-night, at ten o'clock ; and the Kennedy will leave for the Grey and Hokitika on Thursday evening. The " Eo3e of,the Buller " male her first start this morning laden with goods for Reefton; the other boat belonging'to the same company also made for the same des. tination. Two of Pell's boats likewise went about the same time, all well filled with goods of the most miscellaneous kind. In consequence of the damage done to Softon Bridge by the late flood, the coach has ceased running between Hokitika and Greymouth. The mail in the meantime will.be conveyed on horseback. On Monday, January- 12, in the District Court of Greymouth, eighteen cases of bankruptcy in various stages came befbre his Honor Judge Harvey. To one of the bankrupt's, who was unopposed, the Judge spoke as follows:—Thia is not the first nor the second time you have gone through this court. Bankrupt: This is the third time.. Judge: How long is it since you got your last discharge f About 18 months :or two years. Judge: And now you come here to get .rid of a fresii batch, of debts. Bankrupt: It wa3 no fault ofmine. I was out of employment for. a long time and was also arrested for debt. Judge: You said it was no fault of yours. I cannot say whether it wan or not. The creditors do not appear to oppose. But I am not willing to pass over a caso of this sort. Tou no sooner get discharged from one lot of debt than you begin to contract others, and then come here to get them wiped off. Your certificate will be suspended for six months, and protection withdrawn.

A'correnpondent of the "Grey River Argus" jtsberta that in the Courts on the Coast there is a amount of false swearing, riot to "say deliberate perjury, continually being committed."

The first batch of Chinamen who went up the Grey River returned to town yesterday, after having been hunted from No Town, and being nearly drowned in the recent flood. From the quantity of swag underneath which they staggered, suspended from the ends of their long-handled shovels, they could not have lost much. They were slowly wending their way to the beach, where they will perhaps be allowed to fossick in peace. Mr William Smith, of Ahaura, had a very narrow escape from drowning in the Ahaura River, on Feb. 13. The "Argus" 6ays: —He attempted to ford the river on horseback below M'Kenna's brewery, and was carried away by the current which was rising rapidly. The horse was landed, first on an island near the junction of the two branches, and on the rider making a second attempt to reach the mainland, the horse and himself were carried into the main fiver, and swept down near the junction of the Grey. The horse eventually struggled ashore, and it is to the good qualities of the horse that this venturesome traveller owes his life. The recklessness is highly censurable, because, in this instance, the rider, from a long residence on the river, should know perfectly well it was dangerous to attempt crossing it.

The following telegram (dated Feb. 15) from the Hon. Mr Fox, was received by the Mayor, in reply to his message inquiring when the Premier would visit Hokitika.— "I cannot say to a day as I .am going to Inanyab.ua and other places, but do not think it will be losa than a fortnight.'* . )*,

,Tha Hob MnFox left • Qreymod]Lh, on l&tymprnjng of, his w&y 'to the Inaugahua, AtjPaijoa ha wasi waylaid by tho" members of tbo Road .Jfcqard of that idistrlct, arid hod a most voluminous address Jreadtp him. :• W<i % Hokitika B|ar "Jf Kea* that tha flocuinint contained abase of persona and things generally altogether unparalleled even in thohistory of the board iteelfj but as a'sei off against the vituperation referred to, it wa3 insinuated that the members of the l'aroa lioad Board might each and all Be looked upon a3 angels of light but fo* the mero tfutt of their remain-

lag up to date without wings. The Premier is said to havebeen to impressed with_ the specimen of eloquence so inflicted upon him, that he was for some time under the impression that the gentlemen addressing him formed part of a deputation from a building site on a certain high terrace near Hokitika, known as Sea View. Wo understand that Mr Fox, after visiting Reef ton, will proceed from thence to Westport, from which port he will take the steamer to Hokitika. The " Koss Guardian " says:—Clearwater Creek is at prr sent attracting a great deal of attractioL, and is the scene of a rush, consequent upon Tom Long and pa -ty, who, are next to the Natives claim, having struck gold. The depth of washia fourteen feet,' and the prospect is said to bo ten ounces to the feeder. A good many new claims have been marked out. The Natives' claim' gave another splendid yield last week.. The produce was JO7 ounces, and. paid a dividend of .£6B to each of the.shareholders. Parnell's claim is expected to turn out quite as rich. : The "Nelson Mail" says:—Wo have heen informed on what wo believe to beperfectly reliable authority that another nugget, weighing 21 ozs., has been .taken out of the same claim, at Salisbury's Open which yielded the parcel of gold brought to Nelson about a fortnight ago from this locality. ;