THE Grey River Argus. PUBLISHED DAILY. FRIDAY, MARCH 27, 1874.

Grey River Argus, Volume XIV, Issue 1761, 27 March 1874, Page 2

THE Grey River Argus. PUBLISHED DAILY. FRI DA Y, MARCH 27, 1874.

Yesterday another half hundred of the bone and sinew of the Grey district took their departure en route to the Palmer diggings, and no doubt they would be joined at Hokitika by as many others. And if any reliance is *o be placed upon the rumors we hear, and the general tone of the miners in their conversations, it is highly probablo that the hundred or so who have already left this place are only the avant garde of many hundred others. The reports from the new El Dorado are very conflicting — the little good news being counterbalanced by much that is bad. still there is no concealing the fact that the miners here pay little regard to the latter, being quite content to run the risks that undoubtedly exist, on the strength of the chance that the good news is likely to prove very much better than stated. The difficulties and privations described as having befallen the pioneer parties at the Palmer have no terrors to miners when they fancy that a large and rich new gold-field has been disco vered. Distance but lends enchantment to the view, and there is always a strong temptation to be first on a new rush. We may accept it as certain that some of the best of our population would try their luck on the new gold field no matter what inducements were held out to them to remain ; but it is to be feared that many more will do the same who would gladly remain in the district did they see any evidences of greater attention to their wants by the ruling powers. It was not pleasant yesterday to witness the departure of fifty eight stalwart men, the best of their class, for another Colony, from which very few are ever likely to return, and to hear the remarks that some of them made upon the probability of others following them. If it were possible one would have wished that the Premier and the Superintendent of Nelson could have been present in order that the question might have been put to them — "Doe 3 this look like evidence of successful administration, and will special settlements of raw immigrants recoup the Colony for the loss it is sustaining by the emigration of those who have founded this part of New Zealand, and contributed so largely to the Colonial revenues ?" We think that if Mr Yogel could have asked himself this question in the presence of the departing diggers, he would consider that he might with better effect direct his able mind and great sagacity to the practical work of encouraging and fostering mining industry on the West Coast than to experiments with forest settlements and small agricultural communities, that will certainly starve if the miners leave the country. Those who have gone are gone to all intents and purposes, but something can be done to help to keep those that remain, and unless very prompt steps are taken the old proverb of shutting the door after the steed is stolen will be realised in this as in many other things. The Govern^ ment have not the excuse that the miners themselves are apathetic about their affairs, or that they have failed to point out the direction in which their condition can bft ameliorated. The Otago Mining Conference has done much in the way of suggestions to the Government, but unfortunately they have hardly ever received proper attention. Roads to and through gold-bearing country, and extensive water supply will do much to make mining industry more profitable and permanent, but much also requires to be done in the work of administration. We notice that at a recent meeting of the Otago Mining Conference the following resolutions were amongst others. carried : — Miners' Rights. — Ie was resolved that the Conference recommend miners' rights to be 10s. Endorsement of Privileges, &c\— That all certificates for any privileges, not including water-races, be presented for endorsement by the Warden some time within every twelve months, or sixty days therefrom, as a guarantee of non-abandonment, and all certificates not so endorsed to be held cancelled. Leases, &c. — That the maximum areas to be held under mining leases be considerably enlarged, especially in quartz reefs areas. The motion was carried, after some discustion. It was agreed to- recommend that survey fees be borne by the Government, or considerably reduced, especially in the reatter of travelling expenses ; in regard to which it was recommended that if more than one survey be made on the same journey, only the sum which would be charged for travelling expenses for one survey be allowed. That objections should be allowed to the issue of mining leases without the necessity of depositing money therewith. A motion was also carried to the effect that special claims should be cancelled on application. That all agricultural lease applications be settled by a board of inquiry, sitting as near the land applied for as possible; that no hearing take place till after purvey ; and that where the land is likely to be payably auriferous, the right which now exists to purchase at the end of three years be changed to a simple right of renewal. — That residence areas be increased from one to two agres. — That rights to water should be granted for the purposes of irrigation, and for driving all kinds of machinery. —That certificate of licenses given for authority to construct and use water-race * be conclusive evidence of the title thereto, unless obtained by- fraud.— That a roll of assessors, from which only assessors be chosen, be kept at the Courts, to be composed of practical miner* only; and that each assessor should be allowed reasonable expenses. Minister of Mines.— A motion to the effect that the appointment of a Minister of Mines is desirable was carried. Government Water-races.— That a legal manager should be appointed for Government water-races and sludge channels, who could sue and be sued. So&ool of Minbs.— That a School of Mines

is a necessity in this Province, to be instituted and supported by Government. Miners' Rights, kh —That the necessity for holding a miner's right for each cldim be abolished, and that it be sufficient for a claim to be represented by holders of a miner's ri^ht. — That business licet-ses be reduced to £1 per annum.— That the right to occupy land hy virtue of a business license shall have no effect as against an owner of buildings thereon, and abal! not prevent a landlord from taking possession of premises and held. und»r a tenant's business license. Anl thjfl all strictly handicraft business should Cm exempt from the neccessitv of holding bmi^ ness licenses. Tbat fireproof safes should be provided in all Court Houses for the custody of mining transfers and documents. Inspecting Mines —That upon the request of any four persons in writing the Warden shall have authority to order a survey or inspection of any mine for the purpose of insuring the safety of the workmen ; the expense to be borne by the holders of the mine or the applicant, as the Warden may see fit ; and further, that the Warden shall have power to enforce under penalty the recommendations of said surveyor or inspector. Purchase op Gold.— That the purchase of gold on the Otago Gold-fields can be conducted in a much less expensive Avay than at present, and that a very profitable field of operations is open for the establishment of a bank to buy gold and lend money to a certain extent on security of mining property, — That the Conference invites the attention of capitalists to the establishment of such a bank, and pledges itself to use its influence to induce every miner who can afford' it to take shares in and sell his gold to it alone — Carried. : Assay Office. — That this Conference re^ commends to the attention of its Central Executive the establishment of a Miners' "Joint Stock Assay and Gold Buying Office, having central and branch, offices, to be instituted by associated capital raised, if possible, from those wlio?e interests are identical with the prosperity of the gold-fields. Co-operation. — It was resolved to request the co-operation of gold-fields members in ehdeavoring to have the recommendation of the Conference attended to.

A short time ago we drew attention to the extraordinary principle by which the Nelson Government had decided to regulate its advertisements by giving them to the lowest tenderers, irrespective of the question of publicity. In Nelson city and district the Government gave all the advertisements to the Evening Mail, a penny evening paper, circulating only in the town, because its price was lower than that asked by the Colonist, a paper which circulates largely in the. country districts as well as in the town. A striking instance of the folly of this system has already been afforded in the Hope district. The circumstances is thus reported : — A meeting was held in the Ranzau schoolroom on Wednesdaj, March 19, for the purpose of electing three members of the Hope Local Committee of Education, to supply the vacancies occasioned by the non-attendance of three of the late members. In addition to the teacher there were five gentlemen present. Mr Jessop, who was voted to the chair, called for the proposition of candidates. Mr F. Kelling, M.P.C., spoke as follows : I deeply regret to see so few per? sobs present on this occasion. A stranger would infer that the smallness of attendance arose from a lack of interest in educational matters in this district, which [ am sure is far from being the case. The fact is tbat the advertisement having appeared only in the Evening Mail, numbers of persons in this district have not seen, or even heard of the advertisement ; and lam further convinced of this fact from the circumstances that, out of tJae six gentlemen here present, only one saw the advertisement, the other five gentlemen knowing of the meeting only by pure accident. Hence ia this case, the money paid for the advertisement ib almost entirely thrown away, and what is true of a trifling case of this kind is true of the whole of the Government advertisements ; and, therefore, I cannot help coming to the conclusion that, laboring under the notion of strict economy, our Government is recklessly wasting a large amount of money and greatly inconveniencing the public weal. We expect that the next thing will be that some important minins; interest has been sacrificed through the absence of publicity to official notices.

It will be seen by our Hokitika telegram that the trial of the brothers Hajes has terminated in their being found guilty of conspiracy to defraud, James Hayes being sentenced, to two years' imprisoninont with hard labor, and his brother John to six months, similar punishment. The Bank, it appears, abandoned the prosecution for larceny. We think that no one who has read the evidence in the case of conspiracy can form any other opinion, but that the prisoners were guilty ; and the punishment they have received cannot be said to be out of proportion to the offence. The example just afforded ought to act as a deterrent to the commission of a like offence by traders in difficulties. The hon. treasurer of the Grey Riv r Hospital begs to acknowledge receipt of the sum of 1.76 10a 6d, being the proceeds of a ball given at No Town, The list of contributions and balance-sheet will be found in our advertising columns. The Register of yesterday states that on the previous day his Honor Judge Richmond addressed the members of the bar, stating a complaint had been made to him by a person interested in a civil suit to be heard in that Court, that he could not obtain legal assistance in his case. The reason assigned by certain members of the bar to whom he had applied were that they were averse to opposing a brother member engaged in the case. Later on, Mr Pitt told his Honor that, at the request of the bar and the members concerned, he would proffer his services to the person who had made the complaint. His Honor said he would inform the person of Mr Pitt's offer. The names of the parties concerned did not transpire. A rumor comes from Nelson that the Provincial revenues have lately been in extremis, there hardly being money enough to the I Treasurer's credit to pay current expenditure. Assistance from the General Government has tided over the difficulty, and the sudden visit of his Honor the Superintendent to Wellington was not unconnected with the necessary negotiations. We remind our readers tha* Bachelder's great pantascope of a tour through America will be exhibited for the first time this evening, at the Volunteer Hall. The entertainment will conclude with the exhir bition of a most remarkable automaton slack rope vaulter. To-morrow afternoon there will be a performance for schools and families, to commence at three o'clock. Further particulars can be seen by reference to an advertisement in another column. The Rev. B, Backhouse, the representative of the parent British and Foreign Bible Society in Australasia, and who visited this and the other New Zealand Pro. vinces two years ago, will give this evening at the Wesleyan Church, a free pictori a 'i

lecture on the Bible iv China and Burmah. Th'j lecture will he accompanied with numerous colored illustrations of heathen gods, tcmp'es, modes, of worship, and interesting events connected with Christian missions. As Mr Backhouse's object is to communicate information relating to the translation and circulation of the Holy Scriptures throughout the world, we trust that an audience will welcome him to-night as numerous as any which he has hitherto commanded in Dunedin, Christchurch, Wellington, and their suburbs. The reverend gentleman will preach in the Wes'eyan Church next Suuday morniug and in the Presbyterian Church in the evening, as well as address a united juvenile gathering of Sunday scholars and others in the afternoon. A singular advertisement appears in another column, signed by "Sophia Horsington," by which this lady notifies to her husband that if he does not com inur.icate with her within three months, it is her intention "to get married !" Should this monitor ever reach the absent husband within the time specified, and be finds it impossible to comply with its conditions, he will be somewhat in a fix, as perhaps his ideas of the law regulating marriages may be as obscure as that of his spouse evidently is. The fair Sophia had better think twice before she starts the initial chapter of another version of Enoch Arden. Our Paroa correspondent writes •. — The principal workings on the South Beach, are now almost exclusively confined to Watson's Lead and a few on Stoney Lead, the most important of which is the North Star, which is now in fall working order, though the engine is dispensed with, They have yet a great depth of wash, in fact it is adjoining their old ground, which it will he remembered formed a huge basin some 12ft or 14ft 'deeper than the general run of the lead. 'Though their claim has proved the most valuable of any that has been wirkeel, yet the adjoining one north was worthless. The history of this claim (John Smith and Co.'s< aud the ten-acre block are too well known to refer to ; but not satisfied with the capital and labor that had been expended, a company was afterwards formed, called, the Long Drive, and though tbey bestowed several months' labor in taking in a tunnel from the beach opposite the Nelson Hotel, and thoroughly prospected Smith's, claim, this company had to succumb. Some parties had still hopes that the gold was there, only on a different level, till it was decided by the North Star Company, when they found the reef to i i3e abruptly from their ground. The various sluicing claims on Watson's Lead are all fully occupied, and as yet have plenty of ground to work for the present, though even that is getting into a smaller compass, and the day is looming in tb.e distance when little of this old famous lead will be left. Running paralM with it is the line that has been surveyed for a railway that is to connect Greymouth and Hokitika, so that at some distant time, which it is to be hoped is not .too remote, parties will be able to live over again the palmy days of Watson's Lead, as they discnurse in the train about the thousands of ounces of gold that has been taken from the lead, and likewise point out the spot where Watson and . his mate washed out their hundredweight of gold, and first caused the rush. Of course, the future railway is looked forward to with much interest, for it 19 that which is to revive the fast waning prosperity of the district Evpn the township of Paroa will be resuscitated, aud many an errant spirit will wish himself back again in eighteen months from the Palmer, and bitterly ruo the day that he left because there was a little dulness, bufc to some it may yet be time to pause ere too great a distance intervenes, for there is no d-iubb when the railway is made that Paroa will become a township of some importance, anil not a mushroom as it was one termed, for here must be the outlet for the whole of the Saltwater aud New River districts, consequently Paroa will become a place of note as soon as the railway is completed with its station, with bathing-houses, and numerous rural villas dotted here and there along the road leading to Marsdeu. The West Coast Times informs U3 that Mr O. S. Allen, who has for many year 3 acted in the capacity of accountant at the Hokitika branch of the Bank of New Zealand, is about to leave his present position on promotion to that of the Oamaru branch in the same service. During Mr Allen's lengthened residence on the Coast, from the earliest days of . Greymouth and Okarito, where he acted as agent for the Bank, he has retained the confidence and esteem of the public, and the regard of a large number of private friends, who 1 will be gratified at his promotion, although they may regret his" departure from amongst them. The B-uller JSfeiys of Friday last says :— Mr Tribe, M.H.R, together with several other getlemen, have obtained a large prospecting areaunder license at Little Wanganui He has just returned from an exploration of the locality, but wo understand that he has not found the object of his visit— a seam of good coal. At the Olago Mining Conference, the other day, it was suggested, that all gold sold to the one bank agreed upon should be assayed, the bank giving at first an advance, as for retorted gold, and after assay, paying balance according to standard value, and. sending assay report to depositor. The Mount Ida Chronicle states that the Bauk of New South Wales agrees to this parcels to be not less than ten ounces each. There was another enormous sale of waste land the other day at the ordinary bi-weekly sitting of the Canterbury Waste Lands Board, amounting fco 10,831 acres, realising L 24.762. " ' The first consignment of Jarrah sleepers for the General Government, arrived at Lyt? telton on the 16th, in the Fleur de Maurice, from. Basse, which also brings 18,000 ft of timber. The City of ChristQhurob. has just been assessed for the year, and shows a total of L 112.950, being an increase of LIO.OOO over that of last year. How it came there, whether it drifted from Catlin's River, or was brought up this way by a vessel, we cannot say, but it is noted as a fact by the Tiniaru Herald that two or three days ago a life-buoy, with Surat painted on it, was picked up on the beach about two miles north of Tiniaru, The contract of Messrs Bray Brothers, for the Nelson and Stoke section of the Nelson and Foxhill railway, haa been accepted by the Government. The sum is L 11.125 19a Bd. A fish pronounced to be a true salmon trout has been captured on Deborah Bay bank, Port Chalmers ; and another, pronounced a genuine grilse, has been netted in the Molyneux. It was thirteen inches long, and weighed ten ounces. It is stated in Auckland that the authorities there contemplate shipping Sullivan, the informer, to England. If so, they had better keep their intentions secret, for no nhipuiaster would care to carry such a passenger, aud no crew would care to have him among them or on board. It is stated that his behaviour in Mounc Eden gaol has already occasioned his beiug placed jn solitary confinement and on low diet for breaches of the discipline of the prison. At the, late races in the district of Poverty Bay, the Maoris were succe sful in winning several of the prizes with horses owned by them. This success seems to haye increased their liking for the sport, and one of their chiefs— Kareua, of the Ruatauiwha— has purchased the racer Marquis from Major Pitt

for a hundred guineas. The Major, it may added, is retiring from the turf, to devote himself to pastoral pursuits. We find the following in the Melbourne Argus:—" The. Californian Mail Company have arranged with the French Government to run steamears from Fiji to Tahiti and Noumea, and propose making Brisbane the terminus of the branch Jine. Legislation appears to be running a little wild in New Zealand just at present. The latest effort of the reformers of I araaaki has heen directed against raffles, whether private o n public, which are to be suppressed by Provincial Ordinance. There were forty applicants, says the Otago Daily Times, for the office of Town Clerk's assistant, at the meeting of tke City Council. One of those who applied for the post sent a short letter and what he termed his "0.D.V." The enclosure showed that tbe "C.D.V." meant carte-de-visite, and the applicant will, no doubt, feel disappointed when he hears that his personal attractions displayed in the enclosed triumph of photographic skill did not secure for him the coveted office. The Auckland correspondent of the Otago Daily Times furnishes the following items of newn : — " There are no American papers by the mail, owing to a confusion in transhipping them from the Macgregor. The following unpuplished is reliable :— There was great excitement at San Francisco the day the steamer left. The evening newspapers are in demand at one dollar and upwards, owing to a personal difficulty between two editors and their friends. It ended in a general shooting match all round. The Macgregor is jammed into a coral reef, and it is very doubtful if she can be got off, after the failure of the powerful attempts made. There was great excitement in Honolulu, ending in an attack of the natives on the Legislative Chamber, smashing everything, even cutting and destroying the records. Many members were wounded, several supposed mortally, and the remainder obliged to take refuge above the ceiling till finally relieved by the marines and sailors from one of the British and two American men-of-war in harbor. The relief catre just in time to save the building from being fired, and members being burned with it. The scene is described as savage and wild in the extreme. Crowds of mad natives dragging out members and others who had supported the election of a King, the natives wanting Queen Emma instead. The riot began at two o'clock and lasted till six, when the Macgi egor left. There are no published accounts, tut the intelligence is perfectly reliable.