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Grey River Argus, Volume XV, Issue 1816, 1 June 1874, Page 2

We call the attention of contractors to tl c fact that tenders for the following publ o works close at noon to-day : — The construe* tiori of sections 1 and 2 of the road from Okarito to Lake Mapourika • felling timber and clearing a track for the telegra h line on the Chriatchurch road ; the constiuction of the Grey Gorge Bridge in connection with the Brunner Railway ; aud the construction of section No. 7 of the Waitnea Water-race. On Wednesday, the 10th inst.,' the tenders close for the construction of a bridge over the Wanganui Uiver in connection with the Wanganui and Mabuwatu Railway ; on -Monday, the Bth inst., for repairs, maintenance, and widening of various Provincial roads Vand on Wednesday, the 24th mat.,

for the construction of the formation of 27 miles of the Winton and Kingston Railway. On Saturday last tenders were received for the maintenance for one year of the Grey-, mouth and Marsden road, but we are not yet aware of the result. Mr Higginson, the General Government Inspecting Engineer, was a passenger by the - Otago, but proceeded to Hokitika,' where he « will be joined by the Engineer : in-Chief, Mr Carruthers, during the week."- BotH^hese gentlemen may be expected in Greymouth in a' few' days. The Wealth of Nations Quartz-mining Company, Inangahua, scraped from the tables on Saturday 32202 ISdwb of amalgam for the week. It being the ending of. 1 the month, the boxes were also cleaned out, resulting in 160oz lldwt amalgam, making a total for the week's clearing up of 4830z Bd wt which is, without the yield from the boxes, above the usual average. The total amount of amalgam for the month is 1650PZ 19dwts It will be retorted, and a meeting of directors will be held to-day, when the usual month's expenses and progress payments on contracts will be paid, and a dividend for the month will be declared. A meeting would haye been held' on Saturday last, but for the absence of two of the .directors from Reef ton: The following amusing Pickwickian story is related in the West Coast Timqs, of Saturday :— " A rich story is told' of one of bur members, who is likewise a member of higher Assembly. It appears, that one night this week, after being engaged in .earnest debate , until eleven o'clock, he retired to his hotel, where he lit a candle and sauntered quietly to his usual place of repose. Meditating it might have been on the component parts of an Executive, or ou the past history of the County, the first subject being one he will most probably be called on to consider at no. distant date, and the other, a matter with which, he is thoroughly conversant; he placed his lighted taper on his dressing-table, extinguished his cigar, removed his white beaver covering, withdrew his gold pin from his checked scarf,, and hung up his overcoat by the tape fastening which hangs from the velvet collar. He was about to divest himself of further wearing apparel, when behold! a head popped up from the couch he had occupied ior the past fortnight. * Halloa ! What brought you here, old fellow ?' inquired our described occupant of the apartment, to the stranger ; 'You have no right here, and I have to request that you find a room elsewhere, as this is mine and has been for some time.' 'You wiU pardon me,' replied the stranger, 'but this is the number we were told to take.' 'We 1' ejaculated the member, ' who are we .?' Just then a few curl papers were observed in hiding behind the head of the stranger ; and the member remained nob; even co apologise, a duty he did not neglect, however, on the following morning, when the married gentleman expressed his astonishment that he had omitted to lock the door before retiring." We learn from the Inangahiia Herald that the dead body of a person, apparently drowned, had been found on the bank of the Buller River, near to Flax Bush Fall, and not far distant from Juucke's Accommodation House. The District Coroner at once forwarded instructions, as the body was conSid -rably .decomposed, to have it placed on ashell and conveyed to the nearest public house, where an inquest would be held on the remains on Saturday last, at 3p m. The body is supposed to be that of Patrick Ferry, whose melancholy end by drowning occurred in the Buller River, off the Lyell township, a few weeks ago. The Dunedin Star states that Allen's Knglish Opera Company took in five weeks in that city the handsome sum of L 2700 sterling. It is stated that Sir William Thompson's paper on cremation has been translated twice into German, and the Communal Council of Vienna. has adopted by a large majority a proposal to establish in the cemetery the necessary apparatus for burning the dead. The Nelson Provincial Gazette of the 18th instant contains a proclamation that the lock- up at the Lyell has been declared a public gaol of the Colony. The edifice in question is about ten feet square and con* tains no window. The Inangahua Herald of Saturday says : — In addition to the subscription list, in aid of the family of the late Charles Anderson already advertised, amounting to L 247 2s 3d, we publish a further. list in our present issue, amounting to L 4 4' 13s, showing a total collected up to the present, of L 291 15s Bd. In connection with the Hokitika subscriptions of L 32 35,, the Beef ton Committee desire to acknowledge their grateful thanks to those who have at a such a distance from the scene of the # accident responded to their appeal for assistance, and more especially to Mrs W. Or Roberts, for the very warm and cordial manner in which she furthered the object of the committee in Hokitika and vicinity. We are informed that the whole of the donations from that locality were personally obtained by the abovementioned lady. We learn from the Wellington Post that Don Fernandez, at one time a celebrated lion tamer, has died in the Wellington Hospital. In that capacity he has yisted nearly every part of the world, and achieved a reputation second only. to that of the Lion King, Yon Amburgh, for his mastery over lions and other wild animals. A life of adventure and hardship sowed the seeds of consumption, and after his last lions were placed intbe Royal Park at Melbourne, Don Fernandez abandoned that line of business. Last year when the Theatre Royal, . Wellington, was opened he accepted .the position of property man, and held it throughout the season. Since that he has been in very bad health, and some time ago he was obliged to seek refuge, in the hospital, where he sank rapidly and expired this mornirg. The Hawked Bay Times says that "the Maori electors in the East Coast districts are now so numerous as to be able te completely , swamp the European vote. In the district of Tauranga this year there are 850 new claims to vote, of which 736 are natives, who now form a two-thirds majority of the whole, i And, in addition^ they, with the rest of the natives of this Colony, have the special privilege of another vote, which no European colonist possesses." The Begister of Saturday says :— " We learn that, in consequence of the refusal by the Commissioners of Audit to sanction the payment of the balance of Westland's claim, to the amount of about L 6600, on account! of "Th« Westland 1 oan cfc. 1873," the Colonial Government have determined to bring in an Act next session, authorising the appropriation of the available balance of the loan of the payment of some further liabilities of the Province." The 'Riverton district of Southland seems now to be extensively cultivated, and highly productive. The New Zealand La_d Company's land near the Otautau has yielded an averge of over 50 bushels to the acre, and in some parts of the estate as high as GO bushels. The company is now husy ploughing 1000 acres, to be (aid down in grass. We may judge of the quality of land under cultivation in that part of the district, by the fact that Mr Mackintosh alone has over 400 tons of grain coming down from his farm, at the Otautau. That gentleman has, according to a local correspondent, sold some 9000 or 10,000 bushels of barley to' the Distillery Company, Dunedin, part of which has been already delivered. In fact the land is all tinder cultivation now from Riverton to Richard James', a distance of 25 miles.