IHE Otago Daily Times " Inveniam viam aut faciam." DUNEDIN, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 286, 19 November 1862, Page 4

IHE Otago Daily Times " Inveniam viam aut faciam." DUNEDIN, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 19.

On Friday last the Dciily Times attained the first anniversary of its existence, and we feel that, without rendering ourselves liabk to the charge of undue egotism, we may indulge in ,a few remarks on the occasion. It scarcely becomes us to speak of the different rank which Otago has taken in the scale of New Zealand journalism since the publication oi the Daily Times, but we may refer with pride t:> the general success which has attended its career. When it attained its fifteenth number the office in which it was printed w as. bur.tt down, and during the interval of sevcra weeks between the re-erection of suitable premises and the supplying the deficiencies in tht plant, caused by the fire, the supporters of tin paper exercised the most generous forbearance in regard to the unavoidable short-comings that its peculiar position necessitated. Cmn menced originally at a quarter its present size, the Duily Times was enlarged on the first of January to half its present dimensions, and on the fourth of March to its full size ; and although during the winter it might have been more profitably diminished, the proprietors steadily persevered regardless of commercial considerations. Its circulation averaged during the tirst five months 1,500, and since then over 2,000 ; so that c urmg the twelvt months the number of papers has considerably exceeded hall a million. The proprietors may say that they have taken advantage-of the support afforded them to spare no expense on the paper. In addition to the hiime staff, they have secured correspondents at the gold fields, at the principal towns throughout the colo.iy, and at Melbourne, Sydney, London, and Edinburgh. Some time since it was found necessary to increase the price of the paper from that at which it was originally started, but the proprietors have it in contemplation, as soon as they can effect it, to submit to a reduction.

The various details connected with the i conducting of a daily paper are generally ill i understood. People who read their paper in the morning little think of the number of per=ons engaged, and the hard work involved, in its publication. Tbey have no conception of the labours of the Editor, Sub-Editors* Reporters, Readers, Clerks, Compositors, and Machinists, whose united efforts bring belbre them in a convenient form, and at a trilling cost, the relation of the events that are passing around them, not only in their own immediate iocality but all over the world. The facilities afforded by the interchange of journals, to say nothing of the telt graph, ci.able the world's history to be epitomised daily in every quarter of ihe globe ; and he who, wherever his destiny places him, does not read this history gets l* behind his age." It may be well conceived that ihe exptnses of a daily paper cannot be incurred without a large amount oi encouragement. The proprietors are in the hands ol iheir supporters, and the success oi the one is synonymous wilh the enlightened libeialitj ol the other. We, thereiore, without any parade ot modesty, may say that the people ol Ot ego hn\ c the mseivc s to thank for the dimensions to which the 'limes has attained. For ours el \es we only ask credit that tbe proprietors have not taken advantage of that support, to economise the expenses calculated to improve the paper, and place the savings in tieir own pockets. They have shirked no cost which the improvement of the paper necessitated, aud the additions they are now mating "of another machine, and a powerful steam-engine, they- hope will enable them to largely increase the facilities they are able to afford to subsciibers and advtrti.-ers

Other improvements they hope to make, as Otago hi conies less isolated from other places, and enjoys the advantages of .telegraph lines, and auGiuonfcl roads. In regard to the policy ot th paper, we believe we n ay'tnn-t to the verdict of our readers. "Whiitt we have maintained our independence, we have not abused it. "We have only censured whea we

thought there was cause, and have never, through favoritism or friendship, refu-cd to censure \vhen the occasion required ifc. Linked with no party, and identified with no faction, it haslxen our object to advocate those measures which we deem d cilculited to promote the we fare and progress, not alone of th.c Province, but of the Colon)'. Provincial jealousies we have studiously attempted to break down, in fact, Otago, with a European population equal to that of the whole of the Northern Island, is essentially the metropolitan Province; and the duties and responsibilities of this position we have sought to inculcate. 'We will conclude our somewhat egotistical remarks, by the assurance that we should not have ventured on them, did we not feel that iv referring to ourselves, we are speaking ofthose to whose support the paper owes its present condition and position.

Auckla>t>, it seem*, aspires like Geelong, to have a djUect of its own. Our readers have probably mostly heard of the Geelongese dialect, and perhaps the curious amongst them will feel an interest in the new vernacular, which, for convenience sake, we may call Aucklandtse. It is a curious mixture of several types-— the figurativeness of the Maori is combined with the fulsomeness ol an Eastern language, and both eng-rafted on the English idiom. But a few easy examples will be the readiest means of insight into the Itw language, and, for the nonce, we will assume the functions of an Ollendorf, and try to he p our readers to an acquaintance with its mysteries.

We ihould say that although incipient symptoms of the language have for a long while been viable, it was not until the discovery of the gold fields of Otago, and the consequent intense desire of the Aucklanders to have gold fields of then- own, that they displayed any signs ct viruleuce. Thus, iv connection with the supposed gold fields we have its most strongly marked characteristics, and for a first lesson we cannot do better than run through the Aucklanders'gold-field vocabulary. It will be observed,- that whilst employing ordinary words, the peculiarity conshti in attaching to them extraordinary meanings—a process which clearly makes the language exceedingly difficult ol comprehension. Quartz, which by ordinary acceptation would be calkd auriferous, that is to say in which the presence of gold can, with more or less tffbit, be discovered, the Aucklanders dub "specimens;" -whilst what are commonly calkd t-ptcimens they term nuggets. The precious metal in its natural state, which is generally called nuggets, or gold dust, according to the size of its occurrence, they always sptak of as " pure gold," although the purit} consists in its being worth nearly a pound an ounce less than Victorian or Otago gold. Proceeding to the application of these peculiar definitions, ceiupled with the figurative and bypeibolic characteristics of the Maori and Eastern languages to which we have already alluded, v c find an amount ot difficulty arise in thtir comprehension, not readily conceivable.

The Coromandel Gold-field was puffed into notii c, in February last. Up to the end oi September, the exports of gold amounted tc only £2,005 but unuer the terms of the new language,, we would suppose that every pounc sterling waa a pound "weight of gold. Thus from August the 6th, to the 23rd, the AY« Zealander ccrresponoent writes of a considerable larger amount of gold, than experience pro\ es vas actually ac^u red during the whok of the seven months, lie speaks of one hundred and thirty ounces of quartz, yielding sixt} per cent, of pure gold, of £300 worth oi gold in one day, of SO lbs weight yielding 60 per cent gold, and of quartz running 250 ozs to tiie ton. Again in another batch of letters, irom the Bth to the 27th September, we are told of £ICO worth, £300 worth ; and o. 19 lbs, 10 lbs, 5 lbs, 10 lbs, .16 lbs, and ol 20 ibs, of pure gold; worth in reality between £3000 and £4,000. On September the 24th, vveiind Irom the same authority, that a gentleman ollered SI a minute for permission to work in one of the claims; the writer then pledges his own belief, that before the end o. the week, hundred-weights of gold would be .ouud, finishing with a second-hand statement of Quartz containing 20 to 30 per cent of gold, being packed into porter casks ana sacks. He is evidently serious in ali these statements, he is not attempting to be witty like the funny persons who talk of two claims bottoming on the same nugget, or to indulge in other similarly mild pleasantries. But Aucklandese has no lin about it, it is as staid aud dignified as it is flowery anu hyperbolic. We have no leisure to refer to other writers, or we might instance even our own correspondent, who occasionally indulges in recondite speculations concerning the Auckland reefs being the source of the Otago gold, the said reefs having, by a peculiar process, shot their products under Cook's Straits, to turn up again in the south part of the Middle L>land. In fact, ali communications from Auckland seem to be written under the influence ot Auro-phobia. Only in one private communication do we find the sensible remark, "Notu withstanding the great talk of the richness " of Coromandel, the result in gold is excetd- " ingly small." There can, of course, be no harm in the people of Auckland choosing to -adopt a peculiar method of expressing their meaning, but the form they have selected is one calculated to mislead both themselves and others. The story is told of an officer, who telling his sentry to shoot the first man who approached his post, himself shortly afterwards fell a victim to his own instructions. The Aucklanders appear to be meeting a similar fate; they are the only persons who are falling into the ambush they themselves have set. The diggers who have been enticed to Coromandel have bten working on the assistance principle, and not content with this alone, they have besides slj \y inserted their digits into the Auckland tradesmens* pockets in the shape ol obtaining large prices for claims to be thrown into companies, the shares of which the innocent Aucklanders have greedily snatched at. Thus there has been a quartzmining company mania similar to that in Victoria, only based upon less grounds, for the whole results of the Coromandel fields are less than those that axe constantly turning

|up in out of the way spots in Vicj foria, . and which are disposed "of in a j single newspaper paragraph. It appears that it was not until Thatcher arrived in Auckland that the people began to awake io their true position, and many were thegloomy looks as the clever satirist adding insult to injury, began " chaffing. thvm about their fa bld field. We have no wish to detract from the wealth of Coromandel, on the contrary we have opened our columns to many of the absurd exultations indulged in over its prospects. But it is time an end should be put to the obstinate, wilful, biinddess. If the Coromandel Field were what interested parties endeavor, to make it out, the Maories would not have parted with it, and the skilled miners who first visittd it would have offered them better terms than those Sir George succeeded in negotiating. Jtfut the Maories never did believe hi it, and the Aucklanders in the inflated language they have adopted have deceived none but themselves.— 1' They would be dupes, and victims and they are." '

Vfe are surprised that the Government seems not tb have taken any notice of our suggestion to co-operate with the Postmaster iv the ma a services, for which he is culling tenders for the ensuing year. We presume there'can be no twp opinions of the value of promoting coach communication with the gold fields. But coaches caunot find support alone in passenger tiaffic • and it is as much the duty ofthe Government to aid them with mail subsidies as to do the same to coastal and river steamers. The one opens up tbe country the same as the other. The tenders which Mr Barr has asked, do not stipulate lor the use of coaches, and tenderers will, therefore offer the use of pack-horses, as the cheapest piau' The money so expended will- be useful only for postal communication, whilst, with a slight addition, it could be made instrumental to procuring coaching facilities. The value of tt line of coaches to the Dunstan aud Tuapeka is not to be cxa«irerated j but the Postmaster, whilst'askin/ior tenders for a tri-weekly service to the first and .huly service to the second, does not even demand alternative tenders. Admitting that the Executive might hesitate to.increase the expense without reference to the Council, what possible objection, could, there be to ask the Postmaster to call tor alternative tenders, and leave to the Council Hbout to meet, the option of supplementing the Amounts asked for pack-horses to the extent suffi--01. Nt to meet those tor coaches ? The decision on the tenders can. safely be left lor a f^v weeks aa ,he services have not to commence till the begiu.iing of the coming year.

A gentleman who arrived here a few days ago torn the North Island, and who has recently had .ccasion to Havel overland through the principal lativc districts South of Auckland, informs us hat the colony is on the eve of another war with he Maories. He says that a most warlike feelinaactuates the natives, and the impending struggle s freely canvassed by the various tribes. Although he was personally treated very kindly •y the natives throughout his journey, yet he wag -iven clearly to understand- that they wero ne-mies to the Government, and would support he position they had taken at nil cost. Tho tatives would appear to have a regular system ol •ommunication between even distant tribes, as ie found sin 11 isolated tribes, who were as ,'ell \isteel up in respect to the movements of Sir Jeorge Grey, as was our informant himself. Afc iie Waikato, the natives were in an .unsettled tate, and the number of midnight meetings, and he passing to and fro of messages between the iiiereut villages, indicated anything but a paciiic tate of affairs. The report that Matatuuere (the \laori King) had embraced Roman Catholicism is •tatcd to be incorrect, and his dusky Majesty s alleged to be offended at the insinuation. Tho .{oman Catholic Missionaries'arc said to have -ieen very busy amongst the Waikatos, and by a iberal disbursement of tobacco, pipes, and other ■laori luxuries, have got into considerable favor. )ur informant saw one of these reverend gentieuan, a young and good looking priest, paddled town the river, by a picked crew of young Maori .lebcs, who made the banks echo with tlieir aughtcr and voices, a3 they beat the water to .he measure of a not unmusical chauut.

We were yesterday favored with a view of the dans of a new steam-vessel, now building iv tho Jiyde, for the owners of the Geelong, and mended to run to and' from Dunedin and Dyttleon, and the intermediate por.s. She is being .uilt of iron by those eminent builders, Messrs. Jenny and Co., of Dumbarton. She will be .iropelled by paddles, which will be driven by a liagoual engine of 100-hors2 power.* In size, the tew steamer will be about twice as large as the -ieelong, her gross tonnage being 380 tons, whilo hat of the Geelong is 170 tons. Her din ensiong vill be as follows :—Length, IGOl'c ; beam, 22ft. .laving been carefully built to order, expressly or the coasting trade, she will combine several mportunt advantages. In the first place, to nable her to accomplish her work, it was essea- ■ ial that she should not draw much water iccordingly we'find that she is guaranteed to ake 100 tons dead weight on a draught of >£ft. She is also contrived to allow of accommodation for passengers, as *yell as for stowage. One especial comfort will ie found in the fact of her having a par eleck. flush fore and aft, similar to that of die City of Hobart, which will geatly conduce to iier convenience as a. passenger ship. She is to steam from 10 toll knots. The contract timo for her completion will expire on the Ist December, on which day the builders should-hand her over tb the agents of the owners, and it is expected that she will be out here and on the berth m April. From the careful orders that have been sent home, and from the well-known character of the builders, ifc is confidently anticipated that tho new vessel will be, in every why, a credit to the Port. She is to be named the City of Dunedin.

We are informed that a very extensive bush Qre took place some time on Monday evening or Tuesday morning, in the neighborhood of the lVortfi East Valley. It appears that some persons '.-mp'.oyed in clearing a portion of the bush, set fire to ifc, and the recent hot and dry weather having rendered the underwood easily inflammable, the fire spread rapidly into the neighboring property, destroying about five acres of valuable bush, and burning a large quantity of firewood that was cut and stacked on the ground. Tho damage done was very considerable, and the loss to individuals, we are given to understand, will amount to over a hundred pounds. It is highly necessary that, at this season of the yekr.°tlia clearing of bush by means of burning "shouLUe very carefully undertaken, particularly iv the vicinity of the city, where the bush is not only valuable as firewood, but where risk is run that «he fire..may. reach dwellings in the nenrhborhoud. To miners and others camping up the ointry, we would give a word ol caution, us a sing ■ fire carelessly left burning may do aa immense amount of damage.

The .Oddfellows have always been odd in this resi ci t, that they ate never slow to acknowledge eve-iy attention paiel to their comfort. The latest example of tliis is a presentation address to Mr M'Neill.of tl.e Queen's Arms, who has for some time been giving his brethren of the L<yal Luiedin Loige uuommcdation for their meetings, &c. Tbe document, which is a beautiful specimen of uaiigraphy, engrossed in goid and tints on fine vellum by Mr Hodgkins, runs ts follows :— '• Loyal Dunedin Lodge. M.U.1.0.0.F. Otago Di.-triet. To Brother Host M'Neill. Sir, anel Brother,—We, tbe undersigned officers, on behalf of the brethren of the above lodge, have great pleasure in forwarding to you this special vote of thanks for your urbanity of manner, civility, and constant attention to the ■wants of the lodge, and general ctmrtesy to its members ; and sincerely hope and trust that the Divine Dis[ oser ot events may prosper you in all your undertakings/ 'J he " testing clause," as lawyers call it, with the seal of the lodge, and signatures of the office-bearers follows. -

" The Green Bushes" was produced last evening at the Theatre Koyal to a very good audience. Every one knosvs the tale of the " Gteen Bushes,',the picture of Ireland as it was, and America when the lied Indian disputed the European's advau'ee foot by foot; yet still the story has a never-failing interest, and when the characters are painted by worthy hands, and the scenery presented as it should be, few, if any, regret having passed an hour in contemplation of an age that is past. The two grand requisites were provided in the Royal so well that little could be left to the imagination, which, too often, is obliged to supply gaps left open by tbe carelessness with which a piece is put upon the stage. Mis C. Holt as Miami seemed a very child of the prairie, possessed with all the desperate love, or deadly hate of an untutoied mind, From first to labt her acting of the character was excellent, and the applause which so frequently greeted her was no moie than she deserved. The faithful foster sister, who clings to the fortunes of '• the house," thiongh good and evil report,found an admirable delineator in Miss Harriet Gordon, whose singing of the plaintive Irish melody, that gives the name to the piece, was much admired. Miss Montrose, as Geraldine, acted thepirt well, particulai ly in the scene when she asks Miami, to save her husband. Mr Ryan was scarcely the beauideal of an Irish chieftain, but as the outcast on the wide prairie, ho succeeded much better. Mr Hydes as Muster Giirmidge, and Mr Dale, as Jack Gor.g, were till that could be desired—looking and acting as if they had " been to the manner bom" for the parts. Mr R. B. Dale was really excellent, he threw an amount cf genial humor into the character he assumed, which kept the house in roars of laughter. Mr Ilaygarth did not seem at heme as 1 eptainDartois,and a couple of unarmed "dummies,'' was but a poor display of military force, hut lliesi-vere minor delects, and on the whole the piece went cfi' most Eucccs.«fu)ly. It was followed by the farce, " My Free ions Betty," the leading el ai actus being fuetniued bythe Misses Holt, and Montrose, with Messrs Dale, Manly, and Chalmers. This farce owed its success in no snmll degree to the capital acting of Mr Dak*, then whom there is not abetter antidote to melancholy in Dunedin.

Mr Clnrnnce Holt will take his first benefit in Diit.edin, en Friday evening, at the Theatre Ro)a), lor which occasion a five-act play, written expietfcly for Mr and Mrs Holt when in England ■will be produced lor the fitst time in this country. Ike- play is entitled " The Battle of the Heart, crtl.e Pirate Merchant."' Apart from the undoubted attraction of t»o decided a novelty, we feel M.tUiied that the high c&timation in which Mr Holt is held an an actor, and the claims he 1 as vi en the \ ullic of Dunedin for his exertions in eftabli.sl.ing the drama in this city, are amply sufficient to secure him a bumper house for Ins j ber.efit. ! " The Cricket on the Hearth" wap repeated hut evening at the Piincess' Theatre, and again it vas a cenq.kie Mtcce&s. V\ t noticed this piece ho i. uth at length in our issue of yesterday, that we have now little to add respecting the performing c oi hiM mgl.t, unless that Miss Neville's liily Slow Ley v. us, if anything, more evidently annud tlii.n en the fiibt representation; that Miss E. Wifc-urmri's laturahiena as Lot was again nutli aomiieel : and that.the other characters we.ie all well up tv the mark. The care with which the " hritincta" of the piece was attended to is especially worthy of praise. The capital Liv lei que of "l'u&s in Boots" concluded the tvtr.ii g's enti itair.merits. J:t.ch suiprise is exprcsseel that Mr Patterson htii: net tl.oi.gbt fit to disavow any connection with tl.e Election on Saturday, aud resign the enji} 1.e.r.0r ol repmenth.g a district which has tii./.eo tt c Ajit. It is a curious coincidence that he thc-vdd il.us obtain a seat for which he was kiJi.u;y a candidate. We are convinced that on iifieetie.ii, he will not wish to add to the difii. cully' ot rectifying the m stake, by making it mci !>un thi.t Iciinulpiocteelhjgs thould be taken lo unseat him. We are informed that the race for LIOO a-dde, which was by mistake aovtrihc-d to eeme off torh;y on the Ocean Beach, between Mr Thomas Diekscn's lay gelding lommy, and Mr Jackson's bay gelelii g Billy, is fixed to take place on Thursday (to-morrow). The two causes tried in the Supreme Court yiMtiijiy iMte-iiwnin v. Norton, and Dutch v. 1 tei\ all), euih arose on a dispute respecting a It.iJdir g ; arul in each there was a verdict tor tbe llniniifl. denes and Another v Wilson and Ai.i.U.cr, ai el Finch v. Mt-ikltjohn, will, it is llcv.ght, occupy the court 10-eiay. Of tiie 5G a.\.n.h origiKihy entered feirtrial, 28or cOremain to le etispobed of, two of them being for special jut its. We understand that Mr Fred. Savery, late nefountain at the Bank of New South Wales in Duntiiiri, has proceeded to Wanganui to fill the pe;M of manager of the branch bank at that place. It w ill be seen by a telegram which appears an oi.g our shii ping intelligence, that by the arm i.l t i the Albatross we have one day'slater news fiom Auckland.- The ordy item of importance is the aeleiuss of Mr Williamson, on resuming tl.e fcupuimei.duicy. 'Ihe obioxious fish-market in Princes-street, •will toon be v thing of the past. At a meeting el the Town Board yesteretay, a letter was read inn. tie Pirvineial Seeietuiy, stating that intti notions hud been given to mark ofla site for a fish liiiuket. near ihe Rattray-street jetty. "U c understand that Dr Hector was to have delivered a lecture this evening to the Young Jiu.'fe Christian Association on his favourite topic Gtoie-tj, but has unfortunately been detained in Ihe country. Ilis Honour the Superintendent, i.evu\ei, li.fc kiioly eeme ieiwaio in his stead,' at tl.e iee,uest ofthe committee, and announces a tr.ljtet ol gteat interest md importance, and which we luive i.o dcult in his hands will be illy titaitd. It is entitled "The influence of iLuiviaual txwtion uj oittke welfare ofthe state/

We understand that the mail from Auckland brought down no intimation of the intention of the Government in respect to the Convict Fratson. At the time the mail left we believe the authorities were not in receipt of the Judge's votes of the trial and opinions thereon. Meanwhile the condemned man' continues in good spirits, and evidently calculates much on the efforts that somehow or other he has heard a few persons are making in his favor. The first Court of Appeal under the new Act is we understand to be held either at Christchurch or Dunedin. We presume the decision will depend upon which place will have the largest amount of business to bring under the consideration of the court. The discovery of pastoral country on the wes coast of Otago, would appear to be the more probable, irom the results of a visit lately paid by some Canterbury gentlemen to the west coast of Nelson, who report that the open country was grassed like the Canterbury plains, while what scrub there was could be easily burnt off. As recent events have drawn public attention to the sanitary state of the town, we may instance that part of the beach immediately behind the fish market, and near the Government offices, as being in a most offensive condition. It is most noticeable at night, when the tide is out ; and on Monday evening the stench was perfectly frightful. Notice is given by advertisement that the members of the Central Committee of the Separation League will hold a meeting on Tuesday next, at the Chamber of Commerce, Athenasum, to discuss and settle the draft of a memorial to Hsr Majesty the Queen. The Annual General Meeting of the Taieri Agricultural Society is announced to be held in the Schoolhouse, East Taieri, on Friday, the 28th November, at half-past six o'clock p.m. The First Annual Festival of the Kilwinning Lodge of Freemasons, will be held on the Ist December, to celebiate St. Andrew's Day. Ifc is high time that the inhabitants were bestirring themselves in respect to selecting their representatives at the new Town Board. The election takes place in December, and if they we uld desire to have the affairs of the town properly managed, the ratepayers should be looking about them for the best men to look after their interests, I The hot sultry weather of tbe last few days' suggests the idea whether it would not be a profitable thing to secure next winter a quantity of ice. During the past winter the Waihola Lake could have supplied ice sufficient to have cooled ' the parched throats and heated frames of the ! Dnnedin folks all the summer. We are sure that am thing iv the shape of iced creams or drinks, would cause a perfect rush to the counter of the tradesman who could supply them. Mr H. Farley is pushing vigorously the works for ihe transformation of twenty acres of land at Anderfcon's Bay into a Cremorne or Vauxhall Gardens. A number of men are employed in draining and laying out the ground, and others have commenced the erection of a jetty for the convenience of visitor?, whether arriving by boats or by the steamer which will ply regularly from the new jetty to the gardens. Whoever compiled the prison regulation rules seems to have been affected with a superabundance of " the milk of human kindness." To prisoners of the first-class, i. c., those who have behaved themseves well for six months, is awarded a scale ,of rations that many of the hard-worked laborers on Bell Hill might envy. We proceed to quote it:—l lb. fresh meat, 2 lbs. potatoes, 1 lb. bread, half oz soap, half oz tea, quarter-oz salt, and two ozs sugar, 6 ozs oatmeal, 4 ozs of cocoa ; also two sticks of tobacco weekly. But we would not so much complain of tliis, which is merely a premium to crood behaviour, aa we do to the premium to insubordination heid out by tbe light manner in which offences are visited. For mutiny, for assaulting an officer wilh intent to do grievous bodily harm, or for set-ing fire to buildings, a prisoner can only be condemned to solitary confine- i merit for 14 days at a time, and an interval of forty-two days must elapse before the punishment can be repeated. During these forly-two days he can commit the offences with impunity. We I believe the visiting justices have met with a view to the revision of the rules. In a former issue we briefly alluded to the receipt of the fjr.st number of the " Invercargill Times," a new journal to be published every Tuesday and Friday morning at Invercargill, but our limits at the time would not allow us to do more than simply recognize the fact of the new paper having made its appearance. This reefuit to the already well filled ranks of New Zealand journalism puts in a very good appearance, whether as to dimensions, typography, or literary quality, and promises to be a credit to the province that it aspires to represent. The editor thus introduce himself to his readers:—. " The attempt to establish a second bi-weehly riewsjaper in Invercargill would seem to indicate either that we have great faith in our own powers, or a firm belief in the future rapid progress of Southland. Saying nothing of tbe first, we beg to rest our chances of success on the -latter proposition. The charge of rashness may, perhaps, be laid at our dcor, ibr enterh.g the field where the press is already so ably represented—- " * VS here southern breezes gently blow ; ' but we take courage when we think, not what the Province is at present, but what ifc is likeiy to become in tbe future. Washington Irving, in one of his earlier works, expresses a sublime contempt for what may be the pecuniary results of his efforts in enuring for the public taste; not so with ourselves, we have every wish, and a very fiim intention, to put money in our purse by th« undertaking, and that is as sure a guarantee as the public can have that we shall spare no pains to make the "Invercargill Times" readable. One word in conclusion—or rather before we commence—our columns will be always open for original correspondence on any subject which may justly be made a topic of discussion in a newspaper, but we do not pledge ourselves to the opinions which such letters may contain." 1 he " Invercargill Tirces," of November llth, says: " Last week we -were shown a sample of gold (27 ozs.) from the Moa Creek. Mr Mac Donald, of the Union Bank, in whose possession it vi as, was about sending it to Dunedin for assay. The gold was of a coarse nuggetty description, consieieiably waterworn, but containing a good deal of quartz. In other respects, we shoiild judge it to be of fine quality. The gentleman who brought it to town spoke highly of the locality fiom which it was taken. Owing to the high rates of cartage which obtain iv Dunedin, Riverton appears to be the best point at which to load drays for the Creek. We also inspected a sample of gold from-the Dunstan. Its general character was tine and scaly, interspersed with some coarse pieces, most of them studded with quartz. 1 his sample bore a strong resemblance to some of the gold from the neighborhood of the Tuapeka,"

i Another instance of ignorance, as to where the | Resident Magistrates' Court is held, transpired there yesterday. A firm in Maclaggan-street were summoned to appear and answer a charge of obstructing the stieet, hut when the case had been called non-appearance was reported, and a fine of 20s anel costs was imposed in absence. Half-an-hour afterwards, one of the members of the firm stepped forward, and stated that since eleven o'clo :k ho had been in the premises where the Supreme Court was held, supposing all the time it was the Magistrates' Court. His Worship observed : " That was a flight of the imagination, surely ? I have not a gown on : nor do I wear a wig." Under the circumstances, his Worship reheard the case, and annulled the previous decision by dismissing the action.