COUNTRY NEWS.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 3367, 20 November 1872, Page 5

COUNTRY NEWS.

(i-KOM OUR OWN COKRKSI'ONDKNTS.) WAU'OKI. I have lately visited tho scene of the operations of May and Co. This plucky ittle party of four commenced, inorothan .ivt'lve months ago, the arduous task of jutting a race capable of carrying Hi heads A water from Blackmail's Gully ami tho lead of the Waipori River to their claim lear Golden Point. The distance from Blackmail's to (lie claim is 10 miles, and rom the head of the river an additional '> milcß. From the nature of the ground md the smallness of the party, their suc;es» has been deemed problematical, rhey have brought the water from Blackmail's within three miles of their jlaim, and expect to be working with t by February; after which two of ;he party will continue the race to the river, while the others work the claim. It A'ill necessarily be a considerable time before this enterprise can be finished, but ;hero ia no doubt that if the party show ;he same pluck and perseverance as utherto, they must eventually succeed ; md from the large extent of payable ;round that the race commands, they vill be amply rewarded for their great mtlay of labour. Mr Squires, of Tua•eka, with that munificent disinterestedless for which he is distinguished in the listrict, proposed to them that they should make a junction with the Golden ['oint Water Race Company, of which he 8 manager ; but, notwithstanding the /cry liberal terms offered by Mr Squires i.e., that he should have ](i hours water md they 8 hours), May and Co. were toally unable to appreciate his kind offer. The 0. P. Q. Co., for the past three weeks, have been sinking the old shaft ; md during this period all hands have been knocked off, with the exception of the shaft-men. They are now 27ft. below the old level, and have opened out Oft. From the bottom of tho shaft. Crushing will be r^Bumed as soon as they have j made sufficient headway with the stone, j when every confidence is entertained that they will have some very good cnishings. They are still vigorously prospecting at the Devil's Creek, but, as yet, the result* ire little to brag about. With the exception of a few good specimens, the itone unearthed has been poor, narrow, iiid hard. It is proposed shortly to send % few tons to town to be tested at the Government battery. There is but little general mining news of any importance. Possibly, as the men are beginning to wash up, I may be able to send you news of jiomc good " washups." I heard to-day that a miner named Angus Brown, working in Timber Gully, on the Lammerlaw, dropped across a 9oz. nugget this week. A concert in aid of the School Funds wa« given in the Oddfellows' Hall on the 14 th inst. The local amateurs, under the conduct of Mr Booth Hurst, mustered in great force, and by their services realised over £13 for the School Committee. KAITANGATA. Tilings are looking as prosperous as ever. We can now rejoice in the prospect of getting a pair of good boots when required, as the shoemaker is now fairly settled". There is also a butcher, who has resolved to give the place a fair trial. His prospects to many seem small, but L for one think and hope they will be mistoken. Two have failed to establish a bnsiuess, but the population is much greater, and consequently the demand will also be greater. The increase in trade haa also necessitated the establishing of a blacksmith's iorge. It will also be a great boon to the place. Until recently the most of the people went to Balclutha, a distance of eight miles. Our coal has been greatly run upon of late. Many teams have found their way down here from as far as Lawrence. The Company are scarcely able to supply the demand, as things are not quite in working order yet. The punt is also being pushed ahead, and men are busily engaged in making the approaches to it. TUAPKKA. A great number of the people in Lawrence have gone to Gabriel's Gully to-day, on the occasion of the opening of the Quartz Crushing Company's works there, and no doubt the expressions of joy will be great amongst them. Warm weather and dusty roads will certainly render a good supply from the brewery very ac coptable. The fruit crop promises well this■j-car. At the Magistrate's Court, a summons was heard in regard to a cow being maltreated and injured afc the Blue Spur, but the witnesses did not give auftittivnt evidence, and judgment was given for tho defendant. A legal gentleman waa fined £2 and costs for assault Tho birthday of the Prince of Wales

was kept up last, week, to the advantage of fche livery stable-keeper and constitutional mvigoration of the pleasure seeker. TAXASVU Shea) ing in this district i« pretty well advanced already, and a good deal of the wool is on its way to Dunedin. One or two of the stations will have finished by next week. Thie ia considerably earlier than former years, bat an impression prevails that November is a better month to shear in than December. The weather has been very favourable, and men are sufficiently plentiful. A bullock-driver named Black had a narrow escape from being killed on Tuesday last. He was driving his empty waggon towards the Victoria Saw-mill, sitting on the fore part of it. When descending the hill, a little beyond the Police Camp, he accidentally fell off, and before he could get himself clear one of the wheels went over his head, cutting it Blightly. It is nothing short of miraculous how he escaped s» easily, as the waggon is a heavy one, and the wood was hard and dry. As it was, his head was bandaged up, and he was able to continue his journey. The managers of the Cemetery held a meeting on Monday evening, when a code of regulations was drawn up and adopted. The Prince of Wales's Birthday was wholly unobserved here. ST. IJATHANH. The miners are all fully employed, and water is plentiful. Most of tho claimholders are already preparing for the general wash-up at the end of tho year. The Scandinavian and United M. and E. Company's claims are being worked day and night; shareholders in those Companies may therefore rely on a fair dividend on the Ist of January. The Energetic Quartz Mining Co., Rough Ridge, are likely to be involved in litigation at tho very outset of their career, Mr Samuel I rider, of Blackstone Hill, one of the original holders ot the Great Eastern quartz mine, which the Company have taken up, being prepared to dispute possession on the ground of priority of application. It is to be hoped that some amicable arrangement may be arrived at. The ground in dispute has been worked and found payable years ago, and there can be no doubt that, with proper machinery and good management, good returns could be obtained, not only from this claim, but from half a dozen others in the same neighbourhood. Mr Hislop, tho Government Inspector of Schools, examined the District School here a few days ago, and expressed his satisfaction at the progress of the pupils. Mr John Ewing—who it will be remembered had hid sentence for shooting a Chinaman, caught in the act of robbing his tail-race, commuted to four months' imprisonment—accompanied by Mr Armstrong, M.P.C., arrived here on Saturday last. A large numbor of Mr Ewing's friends proceeded on horseback as far as Hill's Creek in order to give him a welcome on his return, and on the arrival of the coach he was greeted with three hearty cheers. This speaks highly as to the opinion entertained of Mr Ewing in this diHtrict, where he has resided for the last seven ysars. The rumour mentioned in my last letter, as to tho intention of the Water Companies to reduce the price of water, has received confirmation. I have it on good authority that a reduction will take place early in January. This is good news for tho whole district. Everyone will participate in the benefit, and I am certain that the Companies themselves will sustain no loss by their liberality.