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Westport Times, Volume VII, Issue 1133, 16 December 1873, Page 2

As an instance of the increased aotivity in mining shares transactions during past week, we may notice that, among other sales, a half share in the Break o-Day has been placed at £4OO, and a quarter share in the Lyell Creek at £3O. We shall be enabled from time to time to make reliable quotations of the local share market. The p'unt now building for use at the Bentham street ferry is nearly completed, and will be afloat during the present week. The woman named Walsh, who was punished last .Friday for drunkenness, is asrain in the lockup on a similar charge. She is evidently demented, and when at liberty conducts herself in a manner not at all conducive to public peace or personal safety. The sale of the right tothe grand stand and booths on the Jtace Course realised good prices yesterday when submitted to auction by Mr John Munro. The Grand Stand and refreshment booths was knocked down to Gilmer Brothers at £32; No. 1 booth to J. A. Maguire for £l6 ; and No. 2 booth to P. J M'Renna for £l2 Thefru't stall fetched 50s, and the right to sell cards of the races, 10s. The statement that Mr Eochforfchas been deputed to survey tho Foxhill and Brunnor-

ton line of railway is premature. We hear on good authority that Mr Rochfort will first make a working survey of the Westport and Ngakawhau line. The Summer meeting of the Auckland turf club will be held on the 26th and 27th instant, and race prizes will ho then contested for to the amount of £7BO. A day's events are now being arranged for at Nelson to catch the Southern horses on their return from Auckland-

A correspondent, with whom evidently the " wish is father to the thought," writes:—As it is the fashion now for Mayors to give balls, and Mayor Humphrey will no doubt follow the good example thus set, the following bit of information will interest him :—A former Mayor of Sandhurst once proposed to celebrate his mayoralty by a ball, but, being in very large way of business, he was told by one of the more cautious of his friends, " You are certain, to do yourself a lot of harm. You cannot invite every one, and those you leave out will become your enemies for life." ". Indeed !" replied his worship, whom I shall call Mr H—" then if I am to make enemies I'll take precious good care to make them of people who were never friends of mine before." He accordingly said to his accountant, who waß selecting the names for the pasteboards, " Fling that directory aside, John, and just pick my customers from the list of good debts in the ledger, after which we can slip in a few swells to amuse them during the night." The order was carried out, and his Worship never had any great cause to be dissatisfied with his ball, however it might have displeased those who frequented the shop over the way. I think that Mayor's head was screwed on pretty right. The annual distribution of prizes at the Nelson College took place on Saturday last. A miner at the Thames has been fined £IOO for a breach of the Quartz Crushing l Machines Inspection and Regulation Act. A .telegram from Dunedin says :—The lessee of the Princess' Theatre have sued Tilly Andrews, the burlesque actress, and Simmons, the comedian, for a breach of agreement. Damages are laid at £IOO. Professional talent must be exceedingly scarce when theatrical lessees so trouble themselves. A medical man is wanted for the Amuri district, where £250 a year is guaranteed for two years, and the practice is estimated to be worth at least £l5O a year in addition.

The Examiner, of the 10th instant, says that Mr Coe, C.E., and a gentleman from Melbourne interested in the lease lately granted by the Provincial Government of the Brnnner Coal-mine, have proceeded to Grey mouth to take possession of the mine on behalf the company. The Examiner, of the 12th gives the following item of interest:—An interesting experiment has been made' with coal brought from the Karamea coal-mine by Mr Walker. It was used for an hour in the furnaces of the steamer Lady Barkley, on one of her trips this week, and with the greatest success. Usualey the Barkley steams with 15 lbs. or 16 lbs. of pressure of steam, and with the Karamea coal a pressure of 17 lbs. was easily maintained. The coal burns very freely. leaves but little ash, and appears to be a good house coal as well as a steam coal. The land on which the mine is situated has been secured, we believe, and we learn that the vein is in close proximity to a port at which the water is sixteen feet deep at spring-tides, and with plenty of accommodation for shippiing. As a foil to the Nelson * blight eradieator' cartoon a fancy sketch was exhibited in a shop window in Trafalgar street during the election. The Examiner says : —The first represented, in most happy repose, a well-known citizen, who is said to have a penchant for electioneering. His. aspect was so well caught, and the air of somnolency was so well repi-esented, and so applicable to the author of the legend of "the spinning top," that the humour of the thing was at once taken up by the public. But the joke was greatly improved by the second fancy sketch, which was really admirable. It represented an aged elderly, white-haired gentlemen, accustomed to smoke, and to cock-crow not a little, coming along, pipe ia mouth, with an enormous game-cock under his arm. This specimen of the barnyard fowl wore the features of one of the candidates for the Superintendency, and the surprise, of his bearer seemed to be not a little as his pet bird was brought into the close neighbourhood of a courageous little bantam, -which wore the features of another candidate for the Superintendency. The complacent astonishment of the smoker, who bore a wonderful likeness to the chairman of " the broken Bing," was very cleverly rendered—to use a phrase supposed to be appropriate in art criticism. The third cartoon was suggestive, and cleverly drawn. It was the fight, towards its close, in which the loudcrowing rooster was beginning to bite the dust, having found the bantam too much for him.

Dr Hector arrived in Westport yesterday evening, coming down river by canoe from Christies, having previously travelled overland from Greyinouth to Eeefton, and thence to the Landing. He will remain in this district for some few days, visiting the Waimangaroa, Ngakawhau, and other coal bearing localities. A change has been made in the local agentship of the Bank of New Zealand. Mr Andrews succeeds Mr Bayfeild, who has joined the staff of the National Bank of New Zealand, and will be for the present stationed at Eeefton as manager, Mr Kirton has also left the Bank of New South Wales and joined the new company, and will be located at Greymouth. • The following curious cricketing item is from the New Zealand Herald:—" Mr W. L. Eees, of cricketing as well as legal fame, played a novel game with the ' willow' upon Saturday last, at the North Shore (Auckland). He matched himself against eleven other players, at single wicket, he being allowed men to field for him, and the result, as reported to us, was that he beat the eleven in "one innings, and had seventeen runs to spare. The eleven in their two innings made only twelve runs, whilst Mr Eees in his first innings scored twenty-nine. A large concourse witnessed the match, which caused much amusement and not a little excitement. Mr Rees'a slows it was that did the mischief." Mr George Glenn, as Mayor of Greymouth, has been gazetted a Justice of the Peace, under the Municipal Corporations Act. A strong party of visitors to the Ngakawhau coal-mines, left Westport at 11 o'clock this morning, including Sir David Monro, Dr Hector, Captain Leech, and Messrs Hodder, A. Munro, Cooper, Falla, and Field. The object of Sir David Monro and Mr Hodder being, as directors of the Albion Company, to inspect the river and mine specially on behalf of the company. The result of the poll at the Lyell was O'Conor.37; Curtis 8. The Grey Argus, of the 12th says:—Mr Spiers, who for many years past has filled the office of Postmaster at Boss, was

arrested on Tuesday, and in the absence of the Resident Magistrate, was brought before a Justice of the Peace, charged with embezzlement. Evidence was taken, and tho accused was bound over to appear on Monday next, two sureties of .£250 being given, in addition to his own recognisance of an equal amount. Cheap travelling is the order of the day now between Hokitikia and Greymouth. The faros by local steamers now being two and sixpence'only, or return ticket for a shilling extra.