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Westport Times, Volume VI, Issue 978, 11 June 1872, Page 2

A public meeting was hold at tho Court " House on Saturday last, at noonr to elect ' members to fill vacancies in the Westport f School Board. Mr Robert Whyto in the 1 chair. In pursuance of statutory require- ■, mants the accounts of tho previous five ' months were submitted to tho meeting. Messrs Whyte, Fleming, and Shehan, re- * tired from office, and Messrs Falla, Powell, , and iJocho, were elected in their stead. A j voto of thanks to the chairman closed the j proceedings. j Great and increasing inconvenience is ex- , perienced from the deficient arrangements for the mail service between Westport and Reefton. On Saturday last tho mail arrived ' too late for delivery at Westport until ) Monday morning, and this will very often t be the case during the continuance of wintry , weather. Then again the beggarly service of one mail per week is miserably insufficient for the requirements of the . two ! places. It is positively distressing to see i the unwieldy load under which the mail horse at times staggers along the track, at . tho " express" rate of two and a half knots per hour ; while tho mailman plods wearily behind with an extra swag of letters and papor3 on his own shoulders. Every wayfarer on the road, either coining from or going to Reefton, is made the bearer of a > host of missives from anxious correspondents ; and thus the postal revenue is lessened, and private individuals are forced to beeome transgressors of the strict letter of tho law, simply on account of the nig- ' gardly cheeseparingjeconomics of the Post Office Department. It would be well if the mercantile firms of Westport and Reefton wore to send a petition direct to the Post-master-General, setting forth in plain unmistakeable terms the necessity for increased postal service. It is a well known fact that the majority of the correspondence for Reefton, passes through the Westport office -, oxceeding to a great extent tho circulation via Greymouth, and that moreover, all the franked parcels of stationery stores, and free letters on Government service, are despatched from this office, adding in no slight degree to the bulkiness of the mails, and affording another cogent reason for an additional weekly service. Information was received by Sergeant Kioly on Friday evoning last, that a man whoso name was at that time unknown, had been drowned while crossing the Inangalma at the Landing. It appears a horse which the missing man was riding ha 3 been caught and is now in tho charge of Mr O 'Regan. On the saddle was strapped a blue blanket swag, and with the horse are two dogs, a retriever and a cattle dog. Various reports are in circulation but the ideutity of the man had not been ascertained. Mr N. Feuillade who came down from Reefton on Friday reports that he with other passengers in George White's boat, saw the body of a man lying on a shingle bank close to the river, high and dry out of the water. They coald just discern that a portion of the clothing consisted of a knitted woollen jacket, but as the boat was passing down a rapid at the moment; the body escaped notice until they had nearly passed the spot, and it was impossible to pull back against stream. They landed however some 100 yards lower down, and attempted to reach the body by land but could not get near it. Word was left with the people at tho Ferry who have promised 1 o make another attempt. The body of th< drjwnedman has since been conveyed"to O'Regan's store, and there awaitsan inquest. Thename of deceased was Briss, and he is supposed to have come direct from Blenheim, on his way to Reefton, to join a brother who is working on the Reefs. On his body was found 17s 9d in money,, and two receipts for forage. We understand that the superintendent and teachers of St. John's Sunday School, are about to take steps to form a library in connection with the School. We are requested to state that all contributions, in or books, will be thankfully received by Mr Day, the superintendent of fhi school, Mr Sontar, or any of the teachers. Captain Leech has visited the Ngakawhao pursuant to instructions from Nelson, and . beaconed tho channel up to the coal wharf. The least water found in the channel, at high water, spring tides, was eight feot. Some half-dozen snags, all in one place, ' require removing. When this is done tho ' '

channol will bo clear up to the loading place. The bar is straight, with 10ft at. high water, springs. The tunnel in the coal mine is now iu some 35ft, and the coal 13 getting much harder. The p.s. Result has gono up for another cargo, and will discharge this day. The ooal brought down on the last trip was of an indifferent quality, having been taken indiscriminately from the mouth of the shaft. The proprietors of the coal claim are now utilising all the wa3te and dobris to form a roadway to the pit, and intend to send nothing down to VVestporfc that will not prove readily saleable. Wo hear that threi one-quarter shares in Larry's Prospecting claim, now named the Caledonian Quartz Mining Company Registered, were sold at a very good figure, during the last week. The specimens lately taken from the claim, and crushed, realised at the rate of SGozs to the ton, and it is stated that largo blocks of stone may bo taken almost indiscriminately from the claim, which will realise nearly equally satisfactory results. A jolly inebriate narrowly escaped a hasty exit by water from this sublunary world, a few evenings since, on the ocea-uon of the ('harlos Edward leaving the Cobden street wharf. Nothing would content him but to show his agility iu prancing around on the wharf, and from thence to the piddleboxes of the boat, despite tho warnings of bystanders that he would tumble iuto the

river. This he eventually did, sousing head over heels into tho water between tho wharf and the boat. He quickly, rose to the surface, blowing like a porpoise, and more by luck than skill, contrived to cling to one of the wharf piles, from whence he was dragged by a rope to terra firma. Ha was thoroughly sobered by the combined effects of fright and cold water. The police have been making tho periodical raid among the vagrant dog tribe of Westport, and tho usual rush to the Camp for " dog tickets" has set in. At the rear of the barracks a heterogeueous collection of canine waifs and strays are kept iu durance vile.awaiting the moment of happy despatch by the legal executioner. Meanwhile arousing the echoes of the neighborhood by their midnight howls and melancholy waitings. During the past week communication between Rcefton and the Inangahua Landing has been resumed, the fine weather and low state of tho river rendering traffic easy. Four waggon loads of goods arrived there on Monday, replenishing the scanty stocks of provisions and other necessaries. The river has since again risen, and anxious house wives aud'providores at Reef ton search in vain for a regulir supply of ordinary viands. Tho only thing plentiful at Eeefton is said to be green whiskey; which comes from whence no one knoweth. The number of telegrams issued by the Now Zealand Telegraph Department, for tho year ending 31st March last, is officially stated as 104,020; showing an increase of 19,742 as compared with tho corresponding quarter in 1871. The amount received for telegrams during tho quarter in present year was £0753 4s 6d; being an increase of revenue, against corresponding quarter in previous year, of .£872 6s Gil. The value of government telegrams, up to 31st March 1872, is stated at £3,325 6d. In IS7I for a similar period they represented a value of £3,048 13s.

The 'Evening Post' says .—Soldiers no longer turn their swords into ploughshares —they have discovered that the pen is mightier than the sword or the ploughshare either. The roll of the civil service here abounds with the names of those who, having once wielded a sword, now nourish one of Gillot's magnum bonums in the Government offices. As we, on a former occasion pointed out, military training is generally supposed to bo indispensable in the case of extra clerks during the Parliamentary session, and the success which has attended the Government experiment of turning an ex-captain into a life insurance lecture has, we believe, induced a certain well-known Life Assurance Association to follow the example. The Government, however, only got a captain, while their rivals have been fortunate enough to secure a real live major, one well known in this city, and highly esteemed by all who know him. Never having had the pleasure of hearing Captain Baldwin exert his eloquence on behalf of tho Government scheme, we cannot say what his persuasive capabilities may be, and we do not attach muck importauce to the constantly repeated telegrams assuring us that his lecture in every little village wa3 received with enthusiasm. Whatever his qualifications may be, hov/over, wo fancy ho will find a formidable rival in Major, M'Barnet, who, we learn, will probably soon commence his duties as lecturer and peripatetic representative of the Australian Mutual Provident Society.

Boatmen on the Buller River may find something to interest them in the following circular, which explains itself.—Sir,—lt is proposed to hold an intercolonial and interprovincial regatta in the Harbor of Port Nicholson, on or about the month of February next. There will be races of various kinds, but the chief event of the meeting will bo a contest between four-oared gigs', of any description, with or without coxswain, for which it is intendod to offer a prize of £l5O. in money, or in such other form a3 the winners may prefer. The course will be straight, or nearly so, and will extend over three and a-half to four miles of water. A race, for for four-oared inrigged gigs is also contemplated, for which a liberal prize will be given. It is also intended by the committee that a race for whaleboats, fitted with all necessary gear and appliances for whale fishing, shail be inoluded in the programme, for which a prize of at least £ will be offered. All the races will ba open to all-comers, professional or otherwise, provided that they are accredited representatives of the colony or province from which they come. I am directed by the general committee to ask you to give their intentions as much publicity as possible among the boating community of your colony (or province), and to enquire whether there is any prospect of your colony (oe province) being represented at our proposed regatta, and, if so, whether by one or more boats. Your ea"ly attontioa to this matter will be regarded by the committee as a great favor.—l am, sir, yours obediently, R. Kent, Secretary. An industrial exhibition will be held in the Thames Mechanics' Institute in August next. The exhibition will comprise all kinds of articles of manufacture, but preference will be shown to (hose which most nearly affect the progress of the goldfield- Model's of quartx crushing, amalgamating, boring, ar d gold-mining apparatus are particularly desired, and with this view communications have been sjnt to San Francisco, Victoria, New South Wales, Queensland, and the Southern Provinces, inviting the sonding of models of this kind. Under the "Forest Trees Planting Encouragement Act, 1871," free grants of land may be given by the Governor, upon the fulfilment by applicants of certain stipulated conditions. Amended regulations as undernoted appear in the General Government Gazette of the 29th ult.:—l. The planting in respect of which a grant of '

"land under tho Act is claimed need not be in one block, but may be in several blocks on the same property. 2. Tho land planted must b* securely fenced. 3. It must have been devoted to planting only for at least two years. 4. The trees must be in a vigorous and healthy state when the grant of land is applied for. 5. The number of trees planted must be at the rate of not less than five hundred per acre. 6. The trees must bo of an averago height of not less than three feet whon the grant is applied for. 7. The trees may be of any description. 8. The fulfilment of the conditions above prescribed shall be ascertained and shall be certified in the form annexed by an officer appointed by the Superintendent. Upon the receipt of such certificate the Superintendent may either issue his own certificate to the Waste Lands Board, or he may, if he thinks fit, cause further inquiry to be made into tho facts of the case. Any expense attending the inspection or obtaining the certificate must be borne by the applicant for tho samo. A wrestling match is on the tapis at Greymouth. Walter Irving challenges H. D. Manning or any other man on the West Coast, to a wrestling match for £IOO a-sido ; Cumberland and Westmoreland style; time and place as may be agreed. Money ready. The * Argus' says it is pretty certain that Mr Manning, now at Auckland, who recently defeated Curley Bray in Christchurch, will take it up. The match will, in such a ease, prove a most interesting: one, for both men have won lots of laurels in the wrestling arena, and there can be no doubt whatever that both will do their best to achieve a victory