GENERAL NEWS.

Westport Times, Volume VI, Issue 939, 8 March 1872, Page 2

GENERAL NEWS.

The hon. the Premier left Hokitika on the morniug of March 4 for the South, intending to proceed as far as Okarito. He will stop at Eoss on his return, and then come on to Hokitika about Wednesday week. It is Irs intention, afterwards, to visit all the principal centres of mining industry, in the vicinity of Hokitika—including Kanieri, Waimea, Stafford Town, Greenstone, &c.—in order that he may have the advantage of conferring with the mining population in person, and not alone through the medium of deputations, or their representatives. As soon as Mr Fox has completed the above programme he will cross over to Christchurch by the overland road. Under the heading " Sand-drift" the " New Zealand Herald " writes: The sand-drift along parts of the New Zealand coast, and especially in the province of Auckland, has become a positive bar to settlement. Fine

tracts of agricultural laud have beoh destroyed by the drift-sahd; and, unless its progress can be arrested m some places, as for instance at Wai. katb Heads, a very fertile tract of country may be hopelessly ruined. The \Vhalingvcssel, Milton, reports at Auckland, boarding the barque Europa at sea. She "found that | Portuguese lad, aged sixteen, had been murdered by a boat-steerer. John Hartley, accused of stealing a racehorse at Otago, lias been arrested in Melbourne, and remanded to New Zealand. He denies being the man. Bishop Shiel, of Adelaide, is re. ported to be in a dangerous condition. He has removed the sentence of excommunication from the mother superioress of Joseph's Convent. More recent intelligence says that the Bishop is recovering. A movement is on foot amongst the drapers in Dunediu to close on Saturdays at 1 p.m. At the Resident Magistrate's Court at Ahaura, Mathew Kirwin, a miner from Half Ounce, was committed for contempt of of court. The contempt consisted of laughing, and makin» audible remarks on a judgment of the Court in a case in which Kinvih was defendant. On being brought up previous to tbe rising of th Court, the defendant was asked what he had to say for himself? He denied treating the Court in a " contemptible manner," and "he did'not intend to laugh at the judgment, for it was hot a laugh, ing matter;" on the contrary, he was " breathing a heavy sigh at the result of his case, and if he did not do it gently, or in a manner not to onend the dignity of the Court, he humbly apologised." The defendant was lei tui-ed on his irreverent conduct and discharged..

At the Thames Resident Magis. trate's Court, a woman charged her husband with assaulting her with a bottle, and stated that if it had not been for a a small pad which she wore in her hair, her skull would have been broken ! This, says the "Herald," is the first occasion on which we have heard of hair-pads being of any practical use. Moral: Ladies whose husbands resort to bottles as a medium of correction, should patrouise large hair-pads. The manufacture of sulphuric, muri. atic and other acids, is about to be commenced in Auckland. The DuDediu Jockey Club is beginning to bestir itself for the forth, coming races, to be held at tH Forbury Park on the 22nd aud 23ru : next month. The nominations *or the various Handicaps were made on Friday, the Ist March, and we understand that the largest field of horses that has ever competed in New Zealand will be present at the meeting There will be a goodly number ol Provincinl-bred youngsters competing for the Maiden Plate and the varioui Handicaps, ia which great interest ii felt, A party of men have commenced Blacksanding about 800 or 400 yards from M'G-owan's Coach and Horses Hotel, at the foot of the New Road, Ross. Tbey have gone to some considerable expense and trouble in cutting a tail-race. The notorious Redpath, who was connected with tile extensive railway frauds in England in ISSG, arrived in Adelaide from Freemantle the other week, having received a conditional pardon. At Freemantle Red path wai quite a distinguished character, always holding himself aloof from the ordinary "ticketers." The other bondsmen used to touch their hats to their diS tinguished brother, who wrote clever letters to the local press under an assumed name, was the founder an honorary secretary to the "Working Men's Association, was especially shunned by the free classes, who professed to regard him as a social agitator The police would not permit him to land at Adelaide, so he went on to Sydney. _ Redpath has always hadi great desire to exchange the Swan for the eastern colonies, and applied to I local Minister of the Crown on one occasion to get him transferred to Victoria. His pardon does not alio* him to go to England.