Untitled

Otago Daily Times, Issue 178, 11 June 1862, Page 4

A letter concerning the case of Isaac Coleiuan, signed " &c, &c," cannot be inserted unless the writer will attach his name to it, or will forward to us corroborative testimony of the truth of his statement.

V. re frequently come across instances, mentioned in the Australian papers, of the industry and enterprise of the much despised Chinese race. Here is a fresh one, taken from a lute number of the Mount Alexander Mail (Castlemnine) :— About two years ago, a number of Chinamen purchased the privilege of mining on eight or ten acres of Taylor's paddock, Guiliiford, for £1,100. W&jhavo uo,w to record another instance of similar enterprise .ou their part. Taylor's homestead having rec'Cn-ly changed hand*, the Cliinsse have offered the new proprietors £3Jd to dig up the garden, two acres in extent, and £103 more to •woiiU the f.ice of the hill in rear of the house. We believe the Chinese have traced a run of gold in all directions roun 1 the garden. Their propos.il, however, has.been declined, the owners of the property demanding £409 for the right to turn up the soil. The Lite owner, F. Taylor, Eiq., is said to have spent £1,000 in cultivating it.

In a parliamentary report published in the Timpi of March 11th, we find Mr. ILilibKi'Lon, in the course of v spaech on the subject of the allied expedition to Mexico, putting the very pertinent question, 'fare we.at jicawi or at war?" It' at war, how was it that there had been no proclumam.Uioii to that effect ? and if at peace, what business had we in taking possession of Vera Cruz, .one of the largest fortresses in America? EvL dently the Sn.miaids thought it war, for although no one was killed or wouuded, the place having been simply vacated by the Mexicans, yet the S;unUh General, Prim, had felicit'itedliis troops in the most magnificent style upon the great victory they lia.il gained. Mr. Ililiburlon then, having alluded to the fact that the Mexicans were not • parties to the Convention of Paris, inquired whether Her Majesty'& Government had any information respecting the i&sue of letters of marque by the Mexican Government, and "the sending of agents to the United. States with' power to commission American privateers to prey upon English commerce. " There was no security, unless a strong effort was made by the English Government that the Americans would regard the law of nations, and anybody, who knew anything of the n.?o;>li; of the States, would know what pleasure would be felt at the fact of a privateer, nominally commanded by a Mexican, catching English merchantmen on the coast of Mexico. He had see:: the statement which he had mentioned in American papers—they were not a very good authority, but, if they knew anything at all, they must know what was going on in New York, and what made, him more anxious wa.», that .our colonists were afraid.of it, and they knew what was taking place at the other side of" the water much better than we did." Mr. Lnyard, who rose to reply, ran over the history of the events that had ■led to the intervention in Mexico, and concluded as follows :—" His hon. frieud asked whether this country was at peace or at war. He thought it was not at war. So fur from that being the case ? j the last advices stated that the Government of which Juarez was the chief had shown a disposition'to treat with t!:c iillicp, and to concede their just demands. He trusted that such concession would be made, and that the necessity for violent measures might be avoided. His hon. friend had also asked whether letters ol marque lin.l been issued. The Government had not positive information on the point, but reports had reached them to the effect that agents of the Mexican" Government had been sent to New York, and to

other ports in the Northern States, furnished w:ti; Otters of marque. The Government had not hitherto heard that any such letters had beeu iesued, but they had adopted-means to protect 8.-itish commerce and property by informing Sir A. Milne that Mexican agents with letters of marque were supposed to be in the United States aud there could be no doubt a good account would bs given by that admiral of any privateer's attempting to interfofo with British commerce." So far well. But, if we are not mistaken, Sir A. Milne commands in the Atlantic, and it is difficult to perceive why, if the danger cxist3 on the Atlantic side, it should not be equally imminent on tho Pacific, in which case the interception,of a gold ship will most probably be the prize tried for. A vessel from a Californian port might be in the Southern Seas, and stop a gold ship between here and Cape Horn before any idea of danger was entertained. ■ " .

At the Resident Magistrate's Court ycsterdny, three persons were brought up who had, on tho preceding evening, been apprehended as vagrants on a charge of gambling. It appeared that Detectives Tuck well and Hitches, "Irani information received," went to Raphael's Saloon in Staffordstreet, and there, in a, room with closed door?, found the prisoners and some other persons seated round a table, on which were cards and a cribbagcboard, besides materials for supper. Tho detectives had, on first entering the house, heard loud voices, among which they recognised that ot Raphael, and a sound as of the passing of money Shortly afterwards they saw Raphael, and, in reply to their inquiries, he told them that there was nobody in the room. They then entered, and found the prisoners :as already stated. All the prisoners had money on them, aud'two of them had passage tickets for Melbourne and Hobart Town respectively. One of t\e prisoners stated that he had a store in Sandhurst, Victoria, and Mr. Ward, when appealed to, said that he had known him there. Mr. Ward was engaged for the defence of the other two., and submitted that their having money in their possession was a prhna facie evidence of their having lawful means of support. Tho magistrate was of opinion that the had been laid under the wrong clause of the Act, and therefore dismissed them all, but, in discharging the prisoners, told them that they had had a very narrow escape on a technical point. Thatcher's morning concert takes place to-day, and we see from the advertisement tliata strong force of instrumentalists has besn engaged, and with Madame Vitolli, Mr. Leeman, and Thatcher himself, will no doubt ensure a successful and entertaining performance. The concert commences at half-past 2 o'clock. The offices of the Supreme Court, Resident Magistrate, Registrar, and Sheriff, will be closed on Thursday, tho 12th inst., the Fust Day. We understand that Mr. Logic, the head of tho Customs Department at Dunedih, went yesterday to Port Chalmers in. order, if possible, to arrange that a part of the Custom House building or Custom House ground there, may be.used fir the Telegraph Station. The Telegraph -nation in Dunedih.is to be near the new Custom ! House building, and orders have been issued for its erection. Jo'lni Lannigan the man accused of having set fire to the United States Hotel on Saturday, last, was examined at an inquest before the Coroner, Henry Ho worth, Esq., yesterday, and' discharged, there being no evidence tr show that he' had committed the act in question. It will be seen from the particulars of the inquest respecting the late fire at the United States Hotel, that the neighbourhood of "Walker-street has had a narrow escape from conflagration Had the discovery of the fire in the bed room of the Hotel beea delayed a few minutes longer, there is little doubt that the whole block of buildings on that side to Walker-street would have beome ignited. In reference to the letter in yesterday's paper respecting the cattle by the Warren Goddard, we arc able to state that the writer is mistaken as to their having come from Victoria, They wero bred in Norfolk Island, and are the genuine prcduceof that island. Ouv correspondent appears to have been misled by the. terms of the Customs report, the Warren Goddardjiaving been entered ias "from Melbourne via Norfolk Island." Thi r, Iwe understand, arose from the fact of there being no Customs at Norfolk Island to give a clearance. At the Princess' Theatre last night the " Black Doctor" was repeated. On this occasion tlio principal character was taken by Mr. Tom F<twcett, in consequence, as .was understood, of some " difficulty" with Mr. J. M. Wolfe, who played the part on Monday, when the play was produced | for the first "time. Mr.Fawcett had undertaken the part at almost a moment's notice, mid it speaks volumes for his quickness in study that ho ■ was :ib!e to go through the part not only respectably i but with very decided effect. We observe by an advertisement that the Town ' Board arc prepared to receive tenders to metal Rattray and Maclnggan-srrcets, and to lay crossings of squared pitching stoves, in the line of Princes-street, at the intersections of High-street and Rattray-strect. It was fully half-past ten o'clock last night when Cobb's coach arrived from Tuapeka, and when it did make its appearance it was so battered and dismantled as to he scarcely recognisable. It appears that the coach had a capsize ut Mount Stuart, when what a sailor would call the "top hamper" was all cairicd away and smashed uji. The king-bolt also came out. Fortunately, nobody was hurt, so the coach was righted, and it being found that the wheels and body of the vehicle were all right, the •fragments of the top part were packed in and the journey resumed.

SOMKTIIIKB IJKE A SI'.NSATIOU DllAMA.i— People sue bidding hi^h for theatrical *'sensations" just now; but the Russians, as Uio most extravagant and barbaric patrons of _li £, can afi'ord to command splendours and wonders bsyon I the reach of Freneii or E:i-j:'is!i pmsss to compass if we m-iy" believe in. fin Account which appears in the Gazelle Miisicalp of a new ballet ju«t produce 1 at St. Petersburg. Tins h, "The Mummy," of which M. St. Georges lifts made the pro' ramme and Signor Puanii tlie music. To put the ballet on the stnge lias cost 130,000 francs. Tlw sttiry is this: —A daughter of one of the Pharaohs has beea lying1 in a trance for thousands of years in one of the pyramids of E^'vpt. A young traveller f.d's asleep in her tomb-chamber. The Genius of the Pyramids appears, and resuscitates not mu-elr the Princess, but all her court into the bargain. Old Egypt comes back with its mysteries of Isis, its tiger-hunts, its combats of slaves. The princess (it is not clearly stated why) \~ fluncf into th ■ Nile, and after h.ivinjj fallen from the flies to the footlijrhts throush water, is made welcome by the River God ; who, in a sumptuous fashion, convokes all the. riven and lakes, fir and near, to trive hor a handsome reception. Finally, a watfr-spout, done in real water, bnn-tinir up nailer her cench (for sliells, it seems, arc to be found in the Nile as wellasin Lurline'sllhiuc,) raises the reanimated "mummy to dry land'again. A f.ibu!<msii!iolhopsis, historical and monumental, winds up the traveller's dream.—What next?— Athcnceum. D.SATH or Miss M. Trek.—Amon» the deaths of t'n- month must Ik noted that of Mrs. Bradshaw, known to the delight of many a playjroer some 40 ycais a^o, if not more, as nils'? 51. A. Tree;-for whom Hisliop wrote much of his Sliakspeare music— - who wa» the oriuinal singer of " Home, sweet home,'.' in " Clari,"—a" singer .with a cordial, expressive mezzo-soprano voice, and mnch rca feeling.— Athenawn. _ . .' _ •',.,..