The Nelson Evening Mail. FRIDAY, MAY 31, 1867.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume II, Issue 125, 31 May 1867, Page 2

The Nelson Evening Mail. FRIDAY, MAY 31, 1867.

After a long dearth "of -such entertainments, we seem to be threatened with something approaching to a plethora of amusements during the coming week. Not only we to be favored with- a- visit from the "Great World Circus;" but the Nathan family, with!our -old friend Mr. J. Small, will also be here, as we have already announced, and will make their first "ap- ' pearance on Thursday next, at the OddFellow's Hall. A large variety of placards and photographic illustrations of the different impersonations in which these talented ' young people have appeared, are exhibited in every quarter of the city and its suburbs, and almost render our premonitory notice a work of supererogation. The party, consisting of Dr. Irvine, Messrs. Younger, Drew,- Miles, : Symrns, and Carter, with a party of quarrymen, who left Nelson in the Woodpecker on Wednesday evening, for Adele Island, in Astrolabe Roads, for the purpose of ascertaining whether the granite on that island is applicable to the construction of public works, returned this afternoon, well satisfiedwith-the result of their, expedition. The granite is pronounced to be equal t to the famous Aberdeen granite ; the dis-/ covery may therefore be considered most; inrrof Unt to the community at" large. Wel purpose givi-.ig a fall report of tbe pro-; ceedings of the p.irry in -to-morrow's issue. - ; * '-•»*'■ ■* „ _. " We have heard, on good authority, thai a letter, coacr-ed in, tbe autocratic terms which now characterise '- all documents emanating from the Colonial Secretary's Office, ha-s been 4id dressed by Mr. Staffort| to the three Motueka Magistrates who made representations to the Government, with reference, to. tbe conduct of Mr. C,\ Parker,' J.P. ■and:"M.H:_fcy at the - late \ celebration of the Anniversary of the Province at that place. We understand" that . the- letter ,inu ..question states that Mr. Parker-denies in tolo. ■: the: charge of drunkenness -alleged,, .against him, and : that.with regard jto.- the; assaults .said- to , haye . been., .committed* by, ~ iim on the ':'•'■ occasion, he- .pleads great .provocation. • It also reflects most severely" on -the' cbnL '••.' duct, of "certain persons" in that district; insinuates that the administration of ; Justice is perverted by political partiality j - " aiiuiesyt-p the fact /that two; of Mo.-..

tueka Magistrates have already ceased to be on the Corn mission of the Peace ; and threatens, 1 in case of a continuance' bf such conduct, an entire suspension of the 'local' administration of justice. 1 . '•' ' " A meieting, Mr. Jas. Pearse in the chair, - ;was held in-the Upper Wakefield School Room, on Monday last, in reference to the new Reading Room. It was considered that the" Building Committee had done enough, having obtained a -site aud sufficient subscriptions to make'a'commeiice- - merit with; and the following -'resolution ' ■was passed * unanimously ; " "That the Building Committee do now cease and that their affairs be handed overdo the Library Committee: Ji At the -Resident Magistrate's Court yesterday, Samuel" Fro vv' was charged with stealing ii tent and " blankets, of the : value of £2 7s. 6d. the property of Robert Walsh. It appeared that the complainant was a digger, stopping in his tent on the . Haven-road ;: he had purchased a new tent from My. Frauzeni' and oh missing this : on Saturday night from "his tent, he ' msdeiuquiries' about' it, and heard that the prisoner had taken a new tent into Cottier's public house. He went there, and saw the prisoner with the' tent in bis possession. The prisoner accounted for his possession of it by saying that lie had bought it from' a man on the Wairaea-road, and' volunteered to take him to the man. Oh doing'so, after travelling some distance, thinking he was leading him astray, he called upon the prisoner to give him up his tent, refusing to go further. Upon this the prisoner draw a knife, and said he would run it intb him. The complainant -jumped oh one side to pick up astone, and the prisoner then ran away up the hill, aod was eventually captured at Fox-hill, by Constable Murphy, having the tent aud blankets iv his possession. - The prisoner, who had only been released oh ' the 15th iustaht, from Nelson gaol, where he had undergone a 1 sentence of three months' imprisonment as a stowaway from Sydney, ou board the Egmont. was remanded until this after- ; noon, when he was again brought up and < sentenced to six months' imprisonment with hard labor. Richard Sims, charged i with drunkenness, was fined. lOs. aud costs. We have to acknowledge the receipt of " Journals of the" Legislative Council of New Zealand for 1866,". kindly forwarded from the Colonial Secretary's department. We regret to learn that it has beeu deemed necessary 1 to dismiss a member of the ArtilleryCadet'Corps, for firing off blank cartridge in the streets, after the Review on her Majesty's Birthday. This may, at first sight, appear a very venial offence to be visited with such severe puuishment, but it does not require afnorhent's thought 'to see that' the practice of firing off blank cartridge and snapping caps in the public thoroughfare is fraught with imminent danger to equestrians. In thepreseut instance, the culprit, we understand; had more than once been warned,previo.usly to his dismissal from .the Corps, of the consequences of persevering in this practice. There can be no question that not only for the public safety, but also for the maintenance of proper discipline in the Volunteer - Corps, the enforcement of such measures, however painful, is nevertheless imperatively demanded. /We learn from a person named Mavis who has just returned from a prospecting /trip to the Moutere, that about 50 individuals have beeu located for the last month on the creek which divides Mr. Knight's property from the Government laud, at a distance of about four miles from Mr. Beusemann's. He reports that all are in good spirits, aud that, although their operations have, as yet, only been confined to the merest surface diggings, nevermore than a foot deep, in the bed of the creek, the average" are making from 10s. to 12s. a day. One party of three are instanced as having made nine ounces' in a week. The men seem datermiued to persevere, ! believing that still more profitable' results are obtainable, especially on deeper sihkt ing in the terraces above. Our informant, , v who is an Australian digger of some ex-' Xperience, states that samples of the gold may be expected to arrive in town' tomorrow evening. The following items of mining intelligence, which we take from the West Coast Times of the ""27.th"*'inst;;~ wilfbe interesting to our readers :— The accounts ■'• * brought up" by the Bruce' concerning the hew' rushes in the Buller district ; are of 'a • most conflicting nature^ and to a certain degree- confirm the unfavorable estimate -*: we-%ad already formed- 'of ; th<_ -place.^ "It '

has been stated that new and /■payable" ground was .discovered, in three different localities/ .Qf'these one has np,fc been described, an id may, t.herefore. .he regarded ' as mythical, whilst another, situated, some,, distance north of the Buller River, and knownas "Duffy's Rush," has turned 1 out ' a complete duffer. The workings are in a small' "creek bed, that rests upon the maiu r slate reef," .which is .reached at adepth of from" four to five feet. A .little "gold '"is" scattered f through jhe, gravel, but not' in sufficient, quantity, to pay. , The third rush at "Waiters Pakihi" promises better results, although a prospecting claim: has not yet .been" granted to the dis- ! cbverers, .so _ doubtful was Mr..Kynnef-; sley of the worth of the place. On Tuesday last he — on the application of the s prospectors— visited the. place,' accompanied by V gentleman on wh.bse .advice we are now writing. ... Unfortunately the sides of the shaft had caved in so much that Mr. Kynnersley was unable to test the truth of the men's assertion, that the washdirt (black sand) was seven feet thick. A heap of it, however, was piled on the surface, ancfa great many dishes of • it Were tried ia the! Warden's presence, but ' not one yielded a fair prospect, and out of the majority the" color only was ..obtained. Mr. Kynnersley granted the men pro- ' tection until the following (last) Saturday, when he promised' to, again ."visit the ground; and, providing they could by that time prove the claim payable, the .usual exteusiou would be accorded them. Before - our informant left Westport, rumors that other four shafts hud- ; reached payable washdirt were iv circulation, but their truth is not confirmed. ..Pakihi and Westport were nearly, deserted for the new diggings, where it is estimated that betweeu 5000 and 6000 men have already assembled^ We shall receive more reliable information when the steamer Southland returns this afternoon. It was stated, with reference to the destruction of Messrs. Kennard's store at : Evans' Bay, Wellington, that incendiarism was suspected. There seems to be good ! grounds for believing that this surmise, is likely to prove correct. The Inspector of Police has. caused, the arrest of two. .men, named respectively Henry Foul ton and Henry Hepworth, until recently in the employ of Messrs. Keunard, who h were ' brought 'up "at this' Resident Magistrate's Court charged with having set fire to the building. A remaud was grantediu order that the police might be enabled to bring forward evidence to substantiate the charge. We learn from the. Melbourne Argus of the 9th, that some time ago a friendly rifle match was fired between the Victorian Naval Brigade aud the New Zealand Naval Brigade at Otago. Owing to n discrepancy in the, size of the targets, the match was considered unequal, and it. was therefore agreed that it. should be fired : over again. The match was fired, again, and : the scores were as follow : — New Zealand Brigade, 443 points ; Victorian Brigade, 378 points. The New Zea : landers, consequently, are the victors by 65'poihts. '•■''"•'■■ *