THE Grey River Argus PUBLISHED DAILY. SATURDAY, DECEMBER 20, 1873.

Grey River Argus, Volume XIV, Issue 1679, 20 December 1873, Page 2

THE Grey River Argus PUBLISHED DAILY. SATURDAY, DECEMBER 20, 1873.

The announcement, which was made yesterday in these columns, to the effect that a quartz crashing company, of sufficient strength to carry on operations upon a tolerably large scale, had been successfully floated at Reefton, is of considerable importance, as an evidence oi the very great improvement which must have taken place in the prospects of the field within the last two months. Only a short time ago the proposer of such a scheme would have been regarded as a fit subject for the lunatic asylum, and yet it is now entered upon with an eagerness which indicates pretty plainly that, although this is the first enterprise of the kind, it will not long remain the last. In addition to the mines which this machine will command, there are many which are upon good goldbearing quartz, but in which the shareholders have long had to suspend operations, in consequence of the impossibility of getting the stone crushed. This difficulty, it may be anticipated, will now be very shortly removed, and then, but not till then, will the cloud which has so long invested mining operations at Reefton be successfully dispelled, and the real. value of the West Coast quartzmining field be properly appreciated. There is one feature in particular with regard to the high figure commanded of late by the shares in several of the mines, which those interested in th'a progress of the field cannot fail to note with satisfaction, namely, that the advance is not attributable in any degree to mere speculative excitement, but has been brought ibout by the indisputable evidence of so much quartz crushed with a yield of so .many ounces. In other mining: districts which we could name, within this Colony, the. mere mention of returns similar to some of those lately obtained" at the Inangahua, would have been sufficient to bring on the people a severe attack

of scrip-mania, wherein some would no doubt harvest heavy profits, but most would, as usual, suffer, numbers of bogus companies would be started, the belief of men in their warmest friends be shaken, and the further development of the field retarded perhaps by years., O£ this specie^, o£ insanity there is at present not' l symptom, although those who have been accustomed to quartz-mining eccentricities naturally dread lest a return of prosperity to the district should bring also a return of the malady which exhibited itself in a mild form at the commencement of the year 1872. It may, however, be safely inferred that the long period of repmt- i ance , through which many, : who then plunged into wild speculations, in mines of which they knew absolutely nothing, have since had to pass, will render tfiem chary of repeating the experiment, however great may be the temptation to make their fortunes in the twinkling of an [eye, which the wily seller may hold out. If this good alone, jesults from : the :long depression through which Reefton ha 3 passed, that in all mining transactions the canons of ordinary morality are adhsred to, and those questionable shifts, wjhich belong to the border land between swindling and honesty, but seem to approach a good deal nearer to the former, are discountenanced by the community in all their barter ings of sharfes, a lesson will have beWjearued from adversity which will ultimately prove of more value in promoting the prosperity, ofj the district than the congregation -theije of every speculator in Australasia. j :

Now that there seems to be a chance, although a still distant one, of obtaining a permanent water supply for a portion of the Grey Valley, the alarmists' are beginning to make a noise about the occupation of ground, more or less auriferous, which has been lying idle and unproductive for years. It is proposed tb get up an opposition to the granting of (anything in the shape of an extended claim, beexuse such a claim will come under the denomination " leasehold,'? and therfe are people still left on the diggings whp are obstructive enough to suggest thatj the ground should be parcelled out in six by eight claims "to prevent monopoly." This means that ground: which cannot be wrought to advantage except by .the cooperation of labor and capital must remain as it is, that capital must be barred if it seeks an opportunity to assist in developing our now wa9ted resources, and that everything like energy or enterprise must be put aside to conserve the interests .of a few individuals who; are, if they only had the perception to make themselves aware of the fact, of the worst class of monopolists, that kind allegorically illustrated in the fable of the dog in the manger. Because Mr Old Identity has his little bit of ground, and his little drop of water all to- himself for so many years, it is argued that he has a prospective: right to all the ground an>l all the water within cooey of him. _ Mr New Chum, who happens to have a little money and is willing'to spend it in introducing a better, system of working than that followed by Old Identity, who has starved for years, besides getting hopelessly indebted while fossicking ground which he knows he can never make pay, is ,to be kept away, he must not interfere with the " old hands," not he, he must take his valuable labor and hia money elsewhere to seek an investment, and the ground must remain idle until Mr Identity works out the patch he is on at present, and is ready to take up a new claim. The fact is plain to anyone that the auriferous ground now remaining on the older diggings cannot be any longer worked profitably, unless on a much more extensive scale than the plan now followed. Before enterprising men will invest money some inducement must be offered and some, guarantee given that there is a reasonable probability that the investment will be remunerative. The only inducement that can be given is a sufficient quantity of ground, with a good title — a quantity large enough to be a guarantee that when the preliminary outlay is repaid, there is still something left to work at for dividends. If the gold mining leases are granted only on such conditions with respect to occupancy and beneficial use as are not prohibitive, and at the same time not too easy of compliance, and if . these conditions are strictly enforced, there is nothing to fear from monopoly, aud the areas can scarcely be too large, provided fair and reasonable penalties are enforced for non-fulfilment of the conditions under which the grant was obtained.

The Hon. Mr Bonar, as a candidate f«-r the Supprintendency <>f Westland, addressed the electors of Hokitika at the Town Hall, on Thursday evening. He appears to have spoken at considerable length on. the most important subjects connected with the wel» fare of the Province of Westland, but we refrain from making extracts from his speech, as published, as he has announced his intention of addressing the electors of Greymoutn on Monday evening, in Gilmer's Hall, where the residents can hear and judge for themselves. At the conclusion of the meeting jeferred to, Mr Bonar received a vote of confidence as being a fit and proper person to be Superintendent of Westland. The election of officers for the Court Concord Ancient Order of Foresters took place at Gilmer's Hall last night. Those elected were— F. W. Paul, <!.R.; Cameron, S.C.; Jones, S.W.; Tonkins, J.W ; Hooker, 5.8.; M'Gregor, J B ; P.O. Ft. Jones. .Elective Secretary ; P.C 11. Hogs;, Treasurer;; Hall, Permanent Secretary ; Simiil, Surgeon^ The installation will take place on the evening of Friday week, A rowing mafcfh for L 5, in which Messrs W. Woolfe and D. Carroll were the competitors, was pulled upon the river yesterday evening. Judging by the number of spectators who wore upon the wharf, considerable interest was taken in the event. The course was from the upper earl of the wharf round a boat anchored in mid-stream, opposite the mouth of the lagoon, backto the starting point. Carroll received a hundred yards start, and won by several boat lengths. Woolfe lost a considerable time in goings round the boat, and although in the return he rapidly [ overhauled Carroll, he was unable to come 1 up to him. before the winning . point was reached. 7 , ' ';'' ; ' '* x ,';[ !i . Another criminal information" has been laid against James tfayes, lately a draper at Ahaura and Reef ton. The charge is for complicity with John Hayes to; defraud the creditors of the said James Hayes. The defendant, who is at present residing., at Half-Ounce, was served with a notice to appear to answer the charge at the Court House, Cobden, on Monday, 21sb December. The election of Mayor of Hokitika, took , place on Thursday. Ihe gentlemen noini- j nated were thft late vlavor, Mr Todd, anri. i Councillor Hawkins, when the vote results A > in the re-election of the late Mayor, '

The funeral of Frank 3awk, who was accidentally killed at Callaghan's Creek on Wedneday, took place at Ahaura on Thursday morning. The remains were followed to the cemetery by almost every resident of Callaghan and Sullivan Creeks, and by a number of the inhabitants of Ahaura and the vicinity. Mr Warden Whitefeord read the burial service at the grave.

At the Resident Magistrate's Court, ' Ahaura, amongst other business, the case Smith v. Orchard, a dispute about the balance of the purchase money for two sections, with an unfinished tenement, inthe town of Ahaura, was disposed of. The plaintiff sued to recover L 6, the original price of the land, which sum the defendant deducted from the purchase money when he agreed to pay LSO for the property to the plaintiff. The case turned upon the terms of the sale, and as to whether the plaintiff sold the land as freehold or not. The evidence on either side was directly contradictory, and the Magistrate, after saying that he did not wish to brand either of the parties as wilful and corrupt perjurers, by giving a direct verdict, nonsuited the plaintiff without costs.

At the Magistrate's Court, yesterday, before M. Price, Esq., R.M, judgment was given in the case of A. Hunter, heard on Wednesday. The Magistrate was of opinion that the Canterbury Police Ordinance was still in force with respect to furious riding through the street, and the fine of 40s was therefore confirmed. Wallace Woolfe and James Brimble (two cases) were fined 103 in each case, for allowing horses to wander at large. James Simpson was charged by Martin Kennedy with having assaulted him ! on the 18th by . knocking him > down and kicking him. The parties are both carriers, and the dispute arose concerning the placing of their carts at the wharf. Mr Guinness for plaintiff, -M r Perkins .for the defence. The evidence of several witnesses wastaken, and ultimately the case' was dismissed. On a~ second information by the same plaintiff, defendant was charged with using threaten- ; in i language, and was bound over to keep the peace in his own recognizances for LlO. The civil cases heard yesterday were uriim- rl portent. ■ " . •'.:'.■ ■'.;'.. :;:... At the conclusion of the inquest on the remains of the late Frank Hawk, at Ahaura, on Tuesday, the police drew the Coroner's attention to th j fact that'one of . the town residents had been summoned to appear as a juror, and did not attend. Sub-Inspector Goodall proved that he gave the absentee verbal notice to be present to act as a juror should he be required, • and that when his name was called he did not answer. The delinquent was fined 403. The horse-track from Hatter's Terrace, Nelson Creek, to the source of the Lake Kochstelter water-race, was completed oa Weduesd'V. It is about twelve miles in length, and taken principally through the bed of Nelson Creek and its tributaries^ Instructions reached Ahaura on Tuesday evening from the Provincial Engineer of Nelson, that the work of prospecting for a solid bottom for the main embankment of the Hochstetter Raoe should be commenced forthwith. This important work will bo carried out under the direction of the officer who has charge of the track from Hatter's to the Lake, The embaukment will be built about one and a half miles from Hochstetter. Fresh tenders are called for making the Saddle section of the cattle track from Ahaura to the Amuri. The period in which tenders will be received is extended to 31st December. It is high time some alteration was made in the mode of dealing; with those . who refuse to take up contracts after they have been declared the successful tenderers. The forfeiture of the paltry sum deposited with the tender as a guarantee is not an adequate penalty for the great loss, inconvenience, and delay the public suffer in consequence of the trifling of amateur roadmakers. The amount of the deposit should be largely increased, and the oontraotora who fail to carry out their engagements should be debarred from again t entering for the same work, or for any other public work. The price to be charged for gas in Hokitika is to be the same as charged in Greymouth. It is stated by the West Coast Times: that, according to a private letter, it is the inten-. t>-ntion of Mr Yogel to visit Westland about January 6. The length of his stay is not mentioned. It seems ratherunfortunate that

It is stated by the West Coast Times: that, according to a private letter, it is the inten-t>-ntion of Mr Yogel to visit Westland about January 6. The length of his stay is not mentioned. It seems rather unfortunate that the Premier's visit should occur so close upon the election of the Superintendent, and while the Council elections are skill pending. It would have been better, if his engagements admitted of ih, *hat the people's brains should have got free from the hubble-bubble pi Provincial politips before tljey were called upon to welcome properly the statestnan whq i 3 admitted by friends and opponents to have rescued this p-irt of the Colony from: ruin, or, its equivalent, abandonment by all who could manage to get away. ;

A new, weekly paper, entitled The Southern Mercury, and edited by Mr Vincent Pyke, author of " Wild Will Enderby," is pdver* tis§i to appear in Otago on January 3.!

One of the girders of the Waitaki bridge, weighing two tons, fell upon a man named James Martin, on the sth inst., whilo he was cleaning it, and broke the bone of ; one of his thighs, besides inflicting other iaj aries.

Some excitement was caused in Reefton on Saturday evening on news being brought in that excellent stone had been struck in the Golden Ledge Company's claim. The reef has opened out to a width of 6ft, and shows spleniljd gold. Shares, which a few hours before the arrival p. f the news were sold at 2s, were eagerly bought at 5,5. With the present prospect of the erection of machinery in the immediate vicinity of this company's claim by tho Inangahua Quartz" Company, shares in this company are certain to double themselves in pace in a verj short time. _-..

A 8 an instance of the increased activity in miniug share transactions during the past week, we ( Weqtpp.rp Times) may notice that, among other sales, a hal£-§hare in the Break-o'-Day has been laced at L4GO, and a, quarter-share in the Lyell Creek at L3O. A miner at the Thames has b^en fined LIOO for a breach of the Quartz Crushing Machines Inspection and Regulation Act. The Summer Meeting of the Auckland Turf Club will be held on the 26th and 27th inst., and race prizes will be then contested for to the amount of L7BO. A day's events are now being arranged for at Nelson to catch the Southern horses on their return from Auckland. ..,-..

Not only is Barnym's cannibal on strike, but his new gorilla is giving considerable trouble, because the great showr man insists that the animal must not swear when flies trouble him, especially if ministers or their families arestauding in front of the cage.