GENERAL NEWS.

Westport Times, Volume VI, Issue 932, 27 February 1872, Page 2

GENERAL NEWS.

The Canterbury Provincial Council voted an endowment of 100,000 acres of land for the school of technial. science and other educational purposes, contemplated by the Canterbury Museum Ordinance. The Grahamstown correspondent of the "Cross" says:—A crushing 48 tons of stone for the Sons of Freeman Goldmining Company yielded 69J-oz. of gold. The Yankee Doodle lode is improving. Several specimens were taken out of it.

ana, .being obtained from 'Ws. AU, Nati|hß mine during eve?s)s||mit't. general crushing will be-'a splendid, one. At a meeting of the directors of the City of Dundee Goldmining Com. pauy, a tender for breaking 500 tons of quartz was accepted. During last year the Bank of New Zealand at Auckland, refined 300,000 ounces of gold, from which they obtained 100,000 ounces of silver, thereby saving the duty of 2s 6d per ounce on the latter amount.

The quartz from the Northern Wairoa was tested at the New Zealand Bank, Thames, and yielded Boz. to the ton. The exact locality from which the stone was taken has not been dig. closed. On Wednesday last it blew more heavily at Port Chalmers than it had done for years, and inflicted damage among the shipping as well as on shore. -.

Mr Webb, it is said, is losing £50,000 to £60,000 a year by his bargain, and by the last arrangement, in spite of his protestations against it, he was still held bound to take hii large steamers down the eoast from Auckland to Otago, a most expensive detour, precluding his direct connec, tion with Australia. Wise in hi generation, Mr Vogel, doubtless, sai clearly enough that by thus bindir Mr Webb to these terms he wa placed in a far better pasition to nego tiate for our Government with th Governments of Australia ; and, mon over, that failing such negotiation bf ing effective, Mr Webb would b liable in the penalty for any breach i contract, such as the refusal longer t perform the coasting service froi Auckland to Otago. As a specimen of an active Governs we copy the following communicatk from a West Australian corresponds of the Melbourne " Argus," of De 6 :—Governor Weld arrived at tl Vasse on the sth instant, after a Ira trip through the southern districts I the sea coast. His Excellency m only accompanied during a part of! journey by an orderly and a natit and he would appeal to have " rough it" in thorough bushman style • i ploring large tracts of uninhabii and almost unknown country, pushi his way across rivers, over bogs, a through dense scrub, and living up bush fare for many days. As a sample of the curiosities popular favor it may be mention that the settlers of a district, not! from Wanganui, were all but una mous in their desire to have a cert gentleman elected to one of the high positions in the province. The curii fact now transpires that these 83 settlers are about equally unanimi in publicly dissenting from the pointmentrof that gentleman to at ordinate office conferred upon hint the Provincial Government. Suet popular favor. The charges against Haley for ta ing the kerosene store, are proceedi The principal evidence—the lette the editor of the " Cross," Aucih —has been identified as bis hand-i ing; it details the way the crime to be accomplished. The Basilisk, on her way to C York, boarded a schooner waterlog and gutted. On board were 14 So Sea Islanders, in various stages oiM vation, and three dead bodies. I water or provisions, or clue toB name of the vessel or owners ■ found. The white portion of thecfl Mere either murdered or had « doned the ship. She is a New Zetfl bnilt craft, and her sails Aucfl made. She is supposed to befi Amelia, which was engaged in k ? { Mr E. J. Wakefield has been M ing to "Lloyd's Weekly," a lot newspaper, circulating among English working classes, dis9UJ emigration, on account of an unni sarily dear loaf. Well, the loaf ii enough, but not so dear as in Eng! and any sober industrious man can earn twice as much wherewi purchase even a dear loaf. Inp of fact, there is no comparison beti the position of a labouring oai New Zealand and in England—all advantages are on the side of tbj mer. We are quite at one witl Wakefield, the " Wellington Inde dent" says, " that the cereal di were unwise, but they hare not or are they likely to have any inflo upon the conditions of life in colony. But we protest in interests of New- Zealand against wilful and gratuitous libels upooH colony which obtain currency thrtHj the agency of detractors of whonfl Wakefield has eminently shown H self to be one." ra| It is stated that the blacbffiH shop at Maryland N. S. W. is »M| as the " unlucky corner" — smiths having died unnatural defl there. One is said to have fallen ~A his back, whilst in a state of intoiH tion, and died from the received; the second was stabbed ■ mortally wounded ; the third ■ wounded by being sruck on the 9 with a pair of hamea; and tbe fofl a few days ago, drowned himself™ suffering'from delirium tremens. 9 is a remarkable history of the land blacksmiths, and suggests tfl quiry, " What will become of^H A new definition of the word'Bß isation" reaches us from Jfl Lately, a Japanese visitor to the ■ lish club was induced to take B champagne, and on puttingnw«M third tumbler, exclaimed fervor, " I like civilisation! civilisation!"