LAYING THE FIRST STONE OF THE TUNNEL ARCH ON THE LYTTELTON RAIL WAY.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 246, 3 October 1862, Page 5

LAYING THE FIRST STONE OF THE TUNNEL ARCH ON THE LYTTELTON RAIL WAY.

On Monday la>t the cenmony of laying the frst stone of the tunnel urch of the Lyttelton and Christ church Rmlway was celebrated in the Heutheot*' valley m the pr.sence of a numerous assembly Of ™c o i;e^ ;i"°V y itself ' wllieh wa* performe-l by Mi* W. 8. M orhouse, there is little to he said as from the nature of the ground it was difficult t'c obtain anything more than a bird's-«-ye view of what was going on. The stone, a fine specimen weighing about half a ton, from the quarry over the tunnel, baviuir been deposited on its proper bed, the Provincial Engineer proceede I to adjust it by square and levef 1 his being satisiactoriiy effected, Mrs W. S Moor' house spread the mortar in a most wo kmanlike manner with a silver i rowel presented on the occasion. Archdeacon Mathias then deposited the custjmajry oil and corn, and dosed the proceeding with'a shoit suitable j.rayer invoking a blessing on the work. Ihe signal being passed upward tliatall was nuudi. d, three cheers were given by those who were coMiueled to take all on faith, the nature of the ground not enab ing them to see the ceremony At this stage of the proceedings the company adjourned to partake of a very elegant and substantial dejeuner winch ha,l been prepared by Messrs. Holmes and Co., under the superintendence of Mr JBirdsey Isot the least interesting part of the entorl tainment was the- tunnel itself, which was lighted up through its whole length to enable visitors to explore its gloomy recesses. To those who did not avail themselves of the opportunity of seeing how muoli has been accomplished; it may be satisfactory to know that 400 yards has been opened out at the Heathcote, and a similar length ar the Lyttelton end. It is now intended to com- ! plete the working to it* proper wze, and tocommence the masonry ami brickwork at .ach end simultaneously. A large number of bricks of .excellent qu».l.ty have already been made, and others are beina: quickly burnt in the val ey and at Pi'eon Bay When the facings are competed, and the brickwork finished, better ventilation will be afforded and there will be greater facilities for more rapid progress Since the commencement of the tunnel workihrc' somenfteen months back, 80?J yards nave been compleed, though not of the full dimension require! The who c length of the tunnel is 2,838 yards: The P'-esent rate of progress is about 28 fret per week 17 •fcthe Lyttelton end, and 11 at the Heatncote. With the expected borirur machinery at work, 50 feet per week, under favorable circumstances, will be accomplished In the former case, th«j tunnel may be complet din four years and a quarter; in the latter, it is possible.that the work may be accomplished within three years from the present date.— Lvttilton Times.

A most danng robbery was attempted during broad daylight, on the af.ernoon of Tuesday, afc a jeweller's shop occupied by Mrs Fredmah. A soldier belonging to the 14th Regiment, at present stationed here, after loitering about the door for a few minutes, suddenly dashed his hand through one of the panes of glass in the window, and abstracted three watches, two gold and one silver. Mr Fredman, who saw the act ran out of the Bhnp and seized the perpetrator, who with the assistance of a neighbour, was secuml and finally handed over to the police The motive for this almost insane act, so certain must detection and punishment have appeared, was, if rumour be correct, tnar" tbe soldier in question had just undergone a sentence of confinement for sune military offence, and was deterrained for a time to get beyond the control of his officers, an object hr has certainly attained by ex^ changing- the discipline of the ranks for that; of a prison.— Wellington Independent ■ The Albbrti,asd iSßTTHtas.—The passengers by the Matilda Watfrnbach have been encamped some two miles out of their line of road, alongside Lamb and Melym's flour mills, where they have remained with their b*ggage, iti the hope of being able to make some more satisfactory terras for the carriage of their goods than those offered by the proprietors of bullock teams m that locality. We are Happy to be abe to state, that on application to General Cameron he has generously placed halfa-dozen of -the- Lmd Transport bullock-teams at their service: -jVew Zca-

The Anniversary of the Battle op the Boyn «. The Orangeman of LMmrn, LuVn, Por todowiii, and Londonderry a»d the districts th-se towns, have indulged ia the processions and displays usual on the 12th July. The Oatholioi however, do nob seem to have been provokedL fn/o any demouetranou of violence, and the.QQnstabuJarv have active in noting thQ^ngleade^Tllfe TarloS FS^T?' H ftnypartyemblenw wer* displayed tf the localities above named. Belfast, up till Sunday evening, had been perfectly tranquil. From the west of Scotland the,report* KenenUly show that thedav ffij^i dißturbWrif»*' «WP Without d£