INTERCOLONIAL NEWS.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXIX, Issue 4233, 14 October 1874, Page 3

INTERCOLONIAL NEWS.

Our files by the Gothenburg, from Victoria, are to the 30th ultimo. AVe make the following extracts VICTORIA.

The miners of Sandhurst are getting up a monster meeting of the trade to protest against assisted immigration. A shocking 'occurrence has taken place at Sandhurst. In a house in Golden Square a widow and her three children were found dead. The woman had been drinking heavily for throe days. The neighbors forcibly entered, and found a barrel of beer half empty. The house was in a frightful state of filth. There was abundance of food in the house, but it had not been used.

On the 20th ult. a man named Abley ran from Stawell to Ararat and back, a distance of thirty-six miles, for a wager, in five hours. He won by half a minute. Considerable excitement prevailed, and a large crowd of persons waited in the street for Abley’s arrival. He was loudly cheered at the finish of the race.

The Pastoral Tines explains one circumstance which is supposed to have unhinged George Butchart’s mind. Some years ago, as a member of the firm of Kayo and Butchart, ho was compelled to sell olf a station in Riverina, Two sisters were connected with the proprietary of this station, and one was nicknamed the Iron Duke, on account of a facial resemblance she bore to the late Duke of Wellington. The reverse of fortune which befel this lady always weighed severely on Bntchart’s mind, Butchart blaming himself for her misfortune, because to him, as one of the agents for the mortgagees, was entrusted the task of realising the estate. The Melbourne Hunt Club Spring Steeplechases took place on Saturday, the 26th September. The weather was unfavorable, and the number of people on the course did not exceed five thousand. The Hurdle Race was won by Gameboy, the Hunt Club Cup by Moro, the Handicap Steeplechase by Sheet Anchor, and the Selling Hurdle Race by Spitfire. FIRE IN FLINDERS STREET. Shortly before four o’clock on Saturday afternoon, while crossing Prince’s bridge, Police Inspector Montfort noticed what at the time he imagined to be the gleam of the sun on one of the upper windows of the workshops at the Ca-rron timber yards.- On looking again, however, he the place was on fire, and immediately sent a constable to the Metropolitan Brigade office to give the alarm. Shortly after the alarm boll was rung, jets of flame and dense volumes of smoke issued from the burning premises, which, owing to the nature of their construction and contents, were soon in a blaze. The .wind at the time being from the'southward, the flames spread rapidly along the building, and it was evident that unless prompt measures were at once taken, they would communicate with the adjoining premises, and endanger a large block of buildings. It being reported that a quantity of gunpowder was stored somewhere on the premises, considerable anxiety was felt in case it should become ignited. Owing to the admirable direction of Superintendent Hoad, who was assisted by almost all the surburban brigades, besides his own, the fire was surrounded, and a large body of water brought to play upon the burning piles of timber. The ground surrounding the premises was kept clear by a strong body of the local artillery, who arrived on the spot shortly after the fire broke out, under the command of Captain Stubbs, and also a number of -the police under Inspector Montfort. The premises where the flames originated consisted of a two storeyed wooden building, the upper portion of which was used as a turner and joiner’s workshop, and the lower as saw and moulding mills. Between these and the back premises abutting on Eiinders-lane the roofing consisted of corrugated iron, and it is chiefly owing fo this circumstance that the flames were cut off from the main stores. At one time some dwellinghouses adjoining the yards were in imminent danger of destruction owing to a large stack of timber which was piled against them catching fire. This was, however, quickly subdued, and all chance stayed of the flames spreading in that direction. As it was, however, the front and side premises of the yards, together with a large amount of machinery and timber, were totally destroyed, and it was only owing to the strenuous exertions of the brigades that the adjoining stores belonging to Messrs. Blyth, Roberts, and Drysclale were saved. At the outbreak of the fire affairs assumed an alarming appearance, and owing to the nature of the burning matter, fears were entertained for the safety of all the houses in the vicinity. The CaiTon yards are occupied by Messrs. Wright and Co., and owned by Mr. Allison, who is at present in England. The estimated damage to stock and machinery, amounts to between £ISOO and-£2OOO, that to the premises being about £SOO. These sums are covered by insurance for £SOO in the Standard office, £SOO in the Norwich Union office, £3OO in the Victoria, and £SOO in the Transatlantic. The fire, the origin of which has not yet been discovered, will be the means of throwing a large number of men out of employment. Mr. Wright states that bad it occurred a little later, his losses would have been comparatively small, as most of the timber in the yards was already sold, and wduld have been shortly removed from the place. A STRANGE SUICIDE. An inquest was held at the Eexton Hotel, Lexton, on the body of a man found in the bush, about four miles from Woodstock Home Station, and about half a mile from the Ballarat and Avoca main road. From the evidence of William Lennox, a splitter, Constable Greene, and others, it. appeared that the deceased was found under a bent limb of a tree with a piece of scarf round his neck, and attached to the tree a.t a height of eight feet was another .piece of, the scarf joined to a saddle-strap. From the evidence of Dr. McMahon, of Avoca, the deceased met his death by his own hand by hanging himself. There were no marks of violence of any kind, and the body must have been exposed to the weather for some weeks. The deceased was v/ell dressed, had a good swag, and Constable Greene found in the pockets £3 in Bank of Victoria notes, and 18s. 9d. in silver and copper ; two photographs, one of a young lady taken in Dunedin, New Zealand, and the other of a young man, apparently about twenty-two years of age. As the face of the deceased man had been eaten away by native cats or other vermin, whether the photograph of the male was of the deceased could not be ascertained. A memorandum book, containing a discharge of a man named George Atkinson, Englishman, from the Now Zealand Armed Constabulary, in 1872, and giving the age as twenty-six, was found-in the pockets. At the end of the book the name “ G. Atkinson” was written. The jury returned a verdict that death bad been caused by the deceased hanging himself. NEW SOUTH WALES. The question of the acting governorship is attracting attention. The Umpire says : “ The whole affair to us seems quite inexplicable. The annexation of Fiji may be a very good thing, and Sir Hercules may bo a firstrate negotiator to manage such a business ; but it was by no means necessary that the functions of the Governor should for two months remain in abeyance to enable these negotiations to be carried out. Sir James Martin, being the duly appointed administrator, ought, it appears to us, to assume the Government; but lie seems to ns to have determined to leave the Ministers to act without taking any such decisive course. Hereafter, Sir Hercules and Mr. Parkos will have to give such oxpanations of their remarkable conduct in this business as they may be able.” The schooner Mary Campbell, sugar-laden, went ashore at Fort Mackay. A portion of the cargo is destroyed, and the vessel is hogged. THE GOVERNOR IMBROGLIO. The Sydney Hominy Herald reports that on the 25th iust., upon the rising of the ViceAdmiralty Court, in “which His Honor Sir James Martin had been presiding, a deputation, consisting of Mr. David Buchanan, M.L.A., and Mr. W. Greer, waited upon the Chief Justice in his chambers, with a view of presenting to him, as de facto Administrator of the Government, a petition for the release of a person incarcerated in gaol. Mr. Buchanan

presented the petition, and stated that it was a matter of great consequence, for if His Honor could not deal with it, it must remain in abeyance until the Governor returned from Fiji. The Chief Justice : I think I cannot interfere with it. There is a commission which gives the Chief Justice power to act as Administrator of the Government during the absence of the Governor from the colony; but until I am sworn in I cannot act, Mr. Buchanan; That is the only obstacle? The Chief Justice; lam not aware of any other. Mr. Buchanan : Your Honor sees that a tremendous wrong is here involved. Supposing the Governor could go into the matter of the petition, and granted the prayer of it, the prisoner would be liberated ; the wrong is perceptible. I can hardly conceive it possible that the Governor could go away from the colony with such important matters likely to arise without providing for the appointment of an Administrator of the Government. The Chief Justice : All I can say is that there is a commission to the Chief Justice to act as Administrator of the Government during His Excellency’s absence. The appointment exists, but the power does not vest in me until I am sworn in. Mr. Buchanan ; Then I cannot deal with this petition until some action has been taken. The Chief Justice : I would suggest that yon present yourselves to the Executive. Mr. Buchanan ; That may show them the necessity of taking action at once. The Chief Justice : It is not a matter of the appointment of an Administrator ; the Administrator has already been appointed, but ho is not sworn in. Hr. Buchanan : Well, I trust this will lead the Government to see the necessity of taking immediate action. There arc two other petitions besides this. The Chief Justice ; I cannot interfere at present. Mr. Buchanan : I would prefer to leave the petition in your hands rather than take it to the Government. The Chief Justice : I cannot receive "it. The deputation then withdrew. QUEENSLAND. SPEARED BY THE BLACKS. It will be remembered that some time ago we (Bathurst Times) published a few particulars in reference to the Palmer River, from a letter written by Mr. C. Hurford (brother to the builder of that name residing in Bathurst.) It seems now that the unfortunate man has become a victim to the blacks. His death is thus mentioned by a mate who was working with him up to the time of the murder, and who writes to Mr. G. Hurford of the sad event: —“ I am sorry to inform you that your brother Cornelius is no more. Six of us were out prospecting, and, having heard of a rush, we were making for it, when we were attacked by the blacks, and your brother was speared through the heart. He fell dead without a struggle, and we had to fight three hours afterwards with onr assailants. We will entieavor to secure his bodv and give it a decent burial.” The deceased had a few ounces of gold in bis possession, and this, with bis other property, will be banded over to the police for transmission to his relatives. SOUTH AUSTRALIA. Mr. Lewis, who is proceeding to explore the country around Lake Eyre, is accompanied by a surveyor, draftsman, collector, busbman, and cook. At Beltana lie will be joined by two Affglians and eighteen camels. His instructions are to survey and explore the country adjoining, and within 100 miles of that portion of Lake Eyre lying north of the 29th parallel south latitude, and to the east of longitude 137 east. Mr. Bundey, Minister of Justice, has been subpoenaed to the Northern Territory, as a witness in a perjury case of Jones v. Reynolds. He will probably leave per new steamer Governor Musgrave. At the'Northern Territory a public meeting was held for the purpose of sending out an expedition in search of Permain and Borrodaile, who went exploring with only a small stock of provisions four months ago. The Yorke’s Peninsula Miners’ Union are advertising for a ship to convey 100 miners to Western Australia. The Moonta Mine shows a net profit of £85,000 for the last half-year. The overland line north of Charlotte Waters is interrupted.