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Westport Times, Volume VII, Issue 1137, 30 December 1873, Page 2

The Christmas week has sped merrily in Wesfcport. Visitors have received the usual hospitable welcome and the amusements offered and shared in by their town cousins, though yielding not the charm of infinite variety, have still proved attractive. The Bazaar was of course the great show and tho great success. Next in order the customary additional attractions at the " Theatre Royal" drew a crowd of visitors The dance hall and its terpsichorean divinities in sparkling fancy costumes, its music, and concomitant surroundings were irresistible to those on pleasure bent. At the " All Nations" the light fantastic business has been in full swing, and at othtr hostelries high jinks and lively jigs have attracted custom. The well spread board, laden with Christmas faro, has been the feature of the establishments wkcro visitors are wont to make their homes. At the new " Empire," the " Post Office Hotel," " Oddfellows," " Imperial," and " Harp of Erin," the spreads were sumptuous, and each worthy host gave welcome alike to friend and stranger. The sudden downpour of rain on Saturday marred the success of the racing, but yesterday the sun shone out gloriously and, although many visitors had hied away homeward, yet those who remained had little cause of complaint. Tho athletic sports to-day, a final jollification on Newyear's Eve, and possibly some extra

fun on New-year's Day will appropriately wind-up the festive fun of the season. Mr E. Suisted may boast of having yesterday driven to the races the first buggy introduced here. It is a recent importation made by Mr John Seaton, and the forerunner we may hope of many similar aids to pleasant locomotion.

There will be no It.M. Court held today, but on Wednesday the Court and offices will be opened at the usual hours.

Unless unavoidable circumstances arise to cause postponement, the first sitting of the new Provincial Council will, according to G izettc notice, commjnce on the 27th p oxinio.

An official enquiry was made at the Police Oiiice yesterday in the subject of a statement, made by an anonymous writer in the Westport Times, that a person recently arrested had received maltreatment at the hands of the arresting constable. The result of the enquiry will no doubt bo made public. The new steamer built by Messrs Grey and Boas, at the South Spit, Hokitika, and intended for the Buller and Ngakawh.au coal trade, was launched last week. She will commence her charter by bringing down coal from the Albion mine until the North Ngakawhau Company have coal ready.

Mr Albert Beetham has tendered his resignation of office as manager of the Albion Company, and it has been accepted. . The Wallace with English Mail on board arrived off the bar at 1.30 yesterday. A very narrow escape from drowning occurred on Saturday evening last. A well known South Spit resident, Daddy M'Hugh, had been in the township on Christmas Eve, fiddling at one of the public house hops, and had got in the happy state proverbial to fiddlers. On Saturday evening about dusk he took boat by himself and paddled away down stream, bound for the spit, but the current took him out towards the breakers. A boat manned by P. Butler, J. Simpson, and G. Bavan, started in instant pursuit, but could only get near enough to M'Hugh to signal him, and that only by dint of hard struggle. For thanks they got in response a recommendation to betake themselves to a very warm locality. Meanwhile the fiddler and his boat drifted right amid the breakers, and soon a roller came and knocked him off his legs in the sheets of the bout, and another followed and washed him overboard. He clung to the painter, and by some lucky chance both man and boat were washed ashore on the island, where, after a lapse of three hours or so, a boat reached, and he was rescued, not much the worse for his ducking. An accident occurred at Larry creeks on Thursday last resulting in the drowning of a lad aged six years, the son of James M'Kenzie. He was playing with another lad on a log bridge, and fell off and was swept away by the current before help could be rendered, and the body was not recovered for half an hour afterwards, when life was extinct.

The last escort from Tioefton to Greymouth took down 2000 ozs. exclusive of Lyell gold. The yield from the Fiery Cross was 791 ozs. retorted gold from 440 tons of stone. A dividend of £oo per share has been declared.

The Ajax got 2330z5. retorted gold from 200 tons of stone, the result of ten days crushing. The Inangahua Herald of tho 21st instant contains a notice of the death of Mr John Bail lie ; it says :—A private letter convoys tho sad intelligence of tho decease of Mr John Baillie, at Eaglehawk, Victoria, on

the Ist instant. The remains were interred the following day at the Whitchill cemuteiy. Mrs Baillie and family are expected to return to Fteefton at an early date. A rowing-match for x 5 between D. Carroll and \V. Woolfe was pulled off at Groymouth on Friday last. Mr Carroll won easily. Considerable interest was taken in the event. The course was from the upper end of the wharf round a boat anchored in mid-stream opposite the mouth of the lagoon, back to the starting point. Carroll received a hundred yards start, and won by several boat lengths. A splendid block of quartz weighing about seven pounds, as taken from the iTust-m-Time claim will be forwarded to the Holritika exhibition. It is said to be, for richness, the finest specimen of its size seen upon the Coast.

The Grey Argus says:—The late marked improvement in the prospects of the Inangahua district is beginning to produce some little effect in other parts of the Colony. We were shown, a few days since, a private letter from a gentleman who is well known upon the Auckland Goldfields, and is suppossed to have made a eon siderable sum in quartz-mining there. The letter states the writer's intention of shortly visiting the Inangahua for the purpose of trying his luck in the reefs.