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Otago Daily Times, Issue 290, 24 November 1862, Page 4

We publish in another part of our present issue two extremely interesting and important letter* .from our Special Correspondent at the Dunstan. It will be seen that while the reports from the Cardrona are of a conflicting nature, the general prosperity of the Dunstan field has been very satisfactory. By the arnVal of the Storm Bird on Saturday wo are in possession ot Canterbury papers of the 19th mst., and^Wellington journals of the 18th. The new* is not very important. "The Battle of the Heart," was repeated, at the Theatre Royal, on Saturday evening, with excellent effect, but to a rather thin house. This evening, « The Carpenter of Rouen » i« to bo produced. The us,nal meeting of the Dunedin Debating Club will be held this evening in Gray's Assembly Room, Rattray-street. The subject for debate is ,«.. Which is the better form of Government, monarchical or republican ? " The s.B. Queen will not start oa her voyage northwards natil the arrival at Port Chalmers of the Pride ofche Yarra, which will leave Duuedin Jetty at 10 o'clock this morning. The Oai«o is announced to sail for Melbourne on Wednesday. It will be seen by the letter. of our Special Reporter at the Dunstan that the next escort froni that field is expected to bring down at least twelve thousand ounces. Among the articles to be shown at the forthcoming Industrial Exhibition not the least interesting will be the samples of mineral productions, especially when accompanied with accounts of how obtained, at what cost, value, and other particulars. The samples of.coal will, no doubt, particularly attract attention. We have been favored with a view of letters; accompanying samples of coal from the mine of the^Kowai Coal • Company, in the Canterbury Province, and from the Gray River, on the west coasfc of Nelßon. The Kowri coal has, it appears, been tested in a variety of ways with the most satisfactory results It is obtained from the foot of Mount Torlesse* forty miles from Christchurch, but as the intervening country is very level it is intended to lay a tramway for its conveyance. The Grey River coal is worked by the natives, who will deliver it at the anchorage at 20s per ton. We have to acknowledge the receipt of £2, from his Honor Judge Gresßon, as a subscription to the Tamar fund. We hare handed'^amouiil •ver to the Committee, ■•"""'Y .

The banks in Victoria lowered the price of gold 9d an ounce on the 2nd of this month, consequent Upon a fall in the rate of exchange on London,

Two men were brought before the Resident Magistrate on Saturday, charged with setting fire to the bush, near the Water of Leith. As it appeared that they were " new chums," and as the police did not press for a penalty, they were dismissed with a caution. It cannot be too steadily borne in mind, that apart from the public interest in the preservation of the beautiful natural bush of the Town Belt, it is the duty of all to do what they can to prevent the lighting of fires in the bush, as the most serious consequences to private property and even to life itself, might result if a fire were once to get head in the bush surrounding the town.

The drama of "Eugene Aram" which was played at tho Princess' Theatre, on Saturday evening, is one which must be condemned, as false in spirit and therefore vicious in tendency. Despite the fncfc, that Bulvver has made Eugene a model of sentimentalising feeling and studiousness, he was a murderer, who took away a life with less provocation than many have had whose memories have been execrated for the simple brutality of their crimes ; and the very reason alleged for the deed of Eugene—that he was consumed with a yearning for knowledge—ought to have supplied strength to bear a taunt of poverty, and cannot with the slightest show of fairness be sec up as an apology for beiu."1 stung to the madness of murder by that taunt. The pure and fervid love of Madeline Lester for Eugene becomes dangerous in its exhibition upon the stage ; and the fond anticipations of a future blissful meeting, with which she sighs out her existence, wnile he has never done more in expiation of his deed than stilling his conscience with weak comfortings of philosophy, are in direct opposition to the simplest teachings of religion. The two parts were excellently played. Mr George Fawcett was most trufhful in his representation of the cool, self-possessed man, ever fearful that his long-hidden secret will be revealed, yet ever dreaming that he may cheat justice, and strong in the belief that, at least, he can escape the hangman's hands ; and Miss Emily "Wiseman, perfect in tho sweet devotedness of Madeline, only wanted a little more of the passion of grief to have been entirely satisfactory in her playing of tho p.irt. The scene between the lovers in the condemned cell, was really worked out with exquisite tact and taste ; Madeline's graceful straining for the kiss which she knows will still her heart, boing as tenderly and touchfagly done, as anything we have for a long time seen upon the stage. Mis.i St Clair was well suited with the part of the lively Elina ; and Houseman and Dealt vy had full justice done them by Mr Tom Fawcett and Mr John Dunn. Again, the burlesqtio of <! Cinderella" was most successful ; but it would not have been less so, if there had been an absence of "gag." This evening, "David Cojiperfield " is to be produced.

A letter appears in another column, in which the writer complains of the little support awarded to the Athenaunn. We must confess that this neglect of so useful an institution, says very little for the taste of the people of Dunedin. In addition to the use of a fine reading room stocked •with the latest Colonial and English newspapers and mngazinos, subscribers have the priviledge of taking away books from the library. The library contains a good collection of the works of the most popular authors, including novels, histories, travels, &c. Subscribers are also allowed to take away one copy of a magazine, after it has been in the institution one month. We would secondly refer to the delightful articles to be met with in •ucli magazines as All the Year Hound, The Cornhill, Temple Bar, &c.; indeed, not to read them bespeaks a person behind hand in the current literary coin of the day. When we add that the subscription is only 10s a quarter, and that the institution is conveniently situated in the centre of the town, we trust we have said enough to induce an addition to the subscribers' roll.

During the 20 weeks, from the Ist May to the 13th Soptemoer, there were 4,452,423 visitors to the International Exhibition ; being nearly 200,000 less than visited the Great Exhibition of 1851 during the same period, the number in that year having been 4,G47,2G3. Up to the date given, the receipts from all sources were £390,000. The Exhibition was to be kept open until the Ist November certain, and the Commissioners had received the right of further prolonging the time. The Invercaryill Times, of November 21, has the following, '.vhich we presume may be regarded as the latest from the Nokomai :—" A gentleman, who arrived yesterday from the Nokomai, gives the following items of intelligence :—' Supplies at present all come from theDunstan. A slight rush took place about 12 miles from the head of tho Nevis ; a good number were doing well. At the nineteen-mile rush there are numbers doing well, hr.t a great scarcity of provisions prevails in conF-eqiieTKv of the difficulties to be encountered in fi:vv.;\rdir;x them, the roads being very bad.' At Potter's Gully, twenty miles below the nineteenrnilc rush, there were about 2,000 persons at tho time our informant left, and judging from the numbers which were hourly arriving from the Dunstan, which is only twenty miles distant, there can he no less than 4,000 there at present ; all the country cast of Eyre River is auriferous. There" arc a few scattered parties working at the Hokanui, fine gold and black sand being found." b

The " old folks afc home" are, we are glad to find, not left in ignorance of the appearance of our picturesque city, as it was some eight months ago. In the Illustrated London News, of August 30th, them is an admirable reproduction of tiie l:\vge photographic view of the city taken by Mr Mclhuish, of Prr.ices-street. The picture has the line, of llattmy-slreat and part of that of Mac-laggan-street in the foreground ; the jetty crowded ■with vessels ; the hills over Anderson's Bay ; the sandhills, and the ocean in the distance. 'The same paper contains a view of the Tuapeka gold field, also from a photograph by Mr Mcllmish ; and a short but very favorable account of the gold fields, and the pastoral and agricultural resources of the Province.

I The "New Zsalander," Bth inst., says :—"The schooner Sea Breeze, Captain James Tautari, arrived from the South Sea Mulanesian Mission cruise yesterday morning. The Sea Breeze is last from Norfolk Island from which place she made the run in ten days. t Tho mission this season has been very successful; a large number ot islands not before visited have been opened to civilisation, and a number of their inhabitants brought over to this country for instruction. Captain Tautari reports that the natives of the different islands have been very peaceably and kindly disposed towards them this trip, and that no trouble whatever has been experienced in holding communication with them. We regret to have to state that the llevs, Messrs Dudley and Fritt have for some time past been seriously indisposed."