VICTORIA. (FROM- THE DAILY TIMES CORRESPONDENT.)

Otago Witness, Issue 556, 26 July 1862, Page 6

VICTORIA. (FROM- THE DAILY TIMES CORRESPONDENT.)

July 16, 18G2. The committee appointed at the public meeting to originate a Direct Steam Navigation Company have so far matured their plans, that a prospectus is now being prepared v itli a view to i fairly launch the project under the style and title I of " The Australasian and British Steam Navi- j gation Company." A very large number of | wealthy colonists and men of influence have j taken the matter up, and it is in a very lair way of i becoming a success. The almost unvarying certainty with which the Great Britain makes the passage in sixty days, or even fifty- five, is a tolerable guarantee of the possibility of superior vessels doing the entire journey in ten or fifteen days less. The Castlemaine election resulted in the return of Mr. George Smyth, a local barrister, by a majority of 100 over Mr. Finlay, the Government candidate, who was again considerably ahead of Mr. Carpenter. The other candidates had withdrawn, and therefore had only a fenv stray votes from some admirers tbat might not think the others deserving, and therefore used their vote conscientiously. Mr. Smyth, it appares, will sit, with the opposition, or take the " Independent" corner of the House. He is a gentleman very generally liked in his own neighhourhood, andfrom all I can learn, will be a very useful member of the Assembly.

A movement has been set on foot in this colony to collect subscriptions to relieve the distressed operatives in Lancashire, The leading merchants of the city have already made a very good beginning, and committees are being organised in all the principal towns of the eolonv, and it is expected a very large sum will be collected and sent home by the next mail. Sydney has also commenced to subscribe to so laudable an object, and perhaps Adelaide will also, no doubt, follow such praiseworthy examples. As a sequel to the disclosures affecting the management of the Yarra Bend Asylum, we have had lately some very disgusting and appalling revelations, relative to the way in which insane persons are treated in the Western Gaol, and also in the various gaols and lock-ups throughout Victoria. One instance is given, of a man conveyed to the gaol, suffering from temporary insanity, but otherwise robust and in good health, dvin:; in a faw weeks emaciated and diseased in various ways, through want of proper treatment. The disclosures have resulted in the Government ordering the immediate removal of all lunatics from the gaols to the Asylum. Some time ago, a very influential committee of the admirers of Mr. Wilson Gray was appointed to raise a testimonial to that gentleman. Subscriptions had como in so fast, that two or three thousand pounds would certainly have been raised, which would have formed a very handsome testimonial indeed ; but Mr. Gray is quite a peculiar man, modest in the extreme. Other men would not only jump at such a thing, but would actually be the gentle movers to set their friends a-going in getting up these testimonial*, but Mr. Gray declines. At iirst, it was expected that the refusal was only one of the ordinary kind — that which all are more or less guilty of, like the maiden —

" Whi&pe-ing she would ne'er consent— consented."' But Sir. Gray was resolute; it was not his natuie to accept reward for what he consideied only his duty. The subscriptions arc therefore being returned. Mr. Gray appears to draw a fine distinction between pay and reward, lie advocates payment of members, but he will not accept reward for services rendered, which the State at present cnmpels them to perform without pay. When Mr. Gray next advocates " payment of members," he is likely to be listened to as a most disinterested and honest kind of man, which all his friends have long known him to be ; and this last act of his will convince his few detractors that they have mistaken his character, and that he really is a man of the right sort. A new weekly paper has been started, entitled

The Victorian. It aims to be a general family paper of a liigh class, and without sectarianism oc bigotry. Its leaders and paragraphs, and new? generally, however, show it to be the organ of the Catholic party, and as such it will always be looked upon as a class paper. It is a most instructive fact that in politics and everything eKe tlie Catholic lenders are the only parties who en' "no bigotry," and yet use every means in their power to carry out their own ends in a most sectarian spirit, and it would appear their cry is got up merely to throw dust in the eyes of the public whilst they carry on their designs more securely. The new paper is an instance of this sort. It is in reality a Catholic paper with veiy strong prejudices, yec it seeks to be Victorian, aud disclaims bigotry. Now, if it will only plainly avow itself as an organ of the Catholic party I am sure it will receive a very general support from that body, who are sufficiently numerous and powerful to support a journal of their own. Tbe alarming nature of Kerosene and Paraffin has lately been most painfully brought before the public. As respectable tradesman's Avife, on Emerald Hill, was lighting the lamp and burning some oil on the wick, an explosion took place, and she was so dreadfully burned that she died shortly afterwards. It appears now, from investigations made, that a great deal of Kerosene will ignite at temperatures from 80 to 130 degrees, and that much of what is sold is of that nature, but that none is safe unless it will not ignite at 130° Fahrenheit. The alarm was increased wheu it became known that in some stores in Melbourne thousands of gallons were kept, and that in the event of a fire the kerosene would run down the streets in a burning state, water not being able to extinguish the flame ! The City Council have, with praiseworthy alacrity, taken steps to introduce a bye-law to prevent the storage of this dangerous fluid in too large quantities. The following is a very simple test: — Mix a cup of cold ■water and a cup of boiling water in a basin ; this will produce a temperature of about 130 deg. In this float a small tin saucer with a teaspoonful of kerosene for two minutes, then apply a lighted wax match to the kerosene ; if it lights, it is dangerous, and should not be used. If the taper is extinguished, the kerosene is perfectly safe as an illuminating agent. 'The Orpheus steam frigate called here yesterday, on her way to Sydney to relieve the Pclorus. She had on board a son of our Governor, Sir Henry Barkly, and he was permitted to land at Queenscliff, on leave to visit his father. He is a junior officer on board the Orpheus. The Criminal Sessions commenced yesterday, but nothing important has yet transpired. The bushranging exploits in New South Wales are of a very extraordinary character. A number of robbers stuck up the Lachlan escort, and

took 3,000 ozs. of gold and a large sum in money. ' The police, under Sir F. Pottinger, gave pursuit, and coming on the tracks of the bushrangers, assisted by a black tracker, they followed them at full gallop for twenty miles, and at last came within sight of four men with a pack horse. The robbers finding themselves pursued, let the pack horse go, and fled. The worthy police baronet secured tbe pack horse, who had 1500 ounces of gold aud a number of notes. This exploit over, the same gentleman overtook three suspicious lo'd.injj individuals, and gave chase, capturing tuo of them, with I.jO ounces of gold andatreasmy lag. The other escaped and had informed his mutes of the circumstance. These, to the number of eight, waylaid Tottinger, a fewdays ago, when near Burrangong, with the two prisoners. The eight bushrangers fired upon the police andrescucd their two comrades. They even threatened they would return and retake the gold still in possession of the police. Such daring feats on the part of such lawless bravoes show the Sydney police to bo of a very inferior class indeed, as no Victorian officer Avould have lived after such disgrace, but died in the execution of his duty, and defended his prisoners to the last.

A Miss. — In another part of the garden I saw a crown lying on the ground ; it was made of cardboard and red satin, stiffened with rusty iron wire, and sown all over with dull white beads ; it appeared to have been used either for private theatricals or for a child's toy ; I tore off naif a dozen of the beads, ■which I put into my pocket as mementos of the day. I saw a room full of little cabinets, every cabinet was full of little drawers, and every drcwer was full of little bottles containing scents a;id spices, some were liquid and some solid ; some arreeable and some very nasty, some like pills and others like their concomitants, but as there were none that I liked, I left them for the next comer. I met a man with a little bag full of gold coins which he had jmt found, and bought one for half a fcovercigu; at last, thorougly wearied out, I returned to camp, and gave away the beads I had plucked off the tawdry crown ; but imagine my astonishment, when I was told that they were most beautiful pearls. I afterwards received one of them back, and -estimated, at'' a rough guess, that the whole crown must have 'been worth two thousand pounds.— Tfie Sftannon's Brigade in India, By Edmundffope Vcrney, Lieut, iJ-iV,