HAMILTON'S.

Otago Witness, Issue 662, 6 August 1864, Page 11

HAMILTON'S.

(FROM THE DAILY TIMES CORRESPONDENT.)

The lecture announced in my last to come off on the 15th instant, was delivered by Mr Warden Broad, before a cwwtle 1 audience, including many of the fair sex, am) indeed " all the beauty and fashion" of our diggings township. Owing to the unavoidable absence of Cnptnin Hamilton, J.P., Vlr Joseph Bremner was called to the chair, and ■' though unaccustomed to public speaking." as he Slid himself, his debut was most successful, and ungaroished witU any of th&tmauvaisehonte that might reasonably have been expected from a new oeginnerat chair-taking in the presence of august personages. Mr Broad introduced his lecture by.sagely suppo-ing his audienca had all come here in ships, and that he, knowing the enthusiasm Englishmen had for wooden walls, thought his best discourse would be to tell them a, few half-sailor, half-iandsman yaras a*>ou'. ships, and what occurred on board ships. Introducing the aulirnce to the minner in whi h ships were former y sent out to the colonies, what swindles perpetrated on the piasen gers, and how on the ; r complaining they were tossed from captain to owner, and then charterer he proceeded to dilate on the " curio-,itis of the quarter deck," the toinrh yarns of the oddities of captains whom most in the room knew, if not personally, at least by reputation— how they acted on board and ashore, how they felt when before the magistrates, and how racy were the yarns about some of the old "salts." Gradually his circle widened, and then came the proV-j-ional "ship doctor." the genus fond of " the medical comforts," and to be petted by the single girls, none eseancd his notice ;we had tha doctor doted on by the females, and when the caSin wa3 adorned by the lock*, (not Fcalplocks like the Indian wigwam) of 200 girls, and whose greatest act of affection towards a friend was the handing, as a relic never to be narted with, of an oiled ringlet worse for wear. Thoa we ha\ the aged doctor, whom daily tensinqs by unr nied passengers made his life unsuffevable, and who groaned in spirit till Hobson's Bay was happily laying on the ship's ice bow ; th» dandy doctor and the slovenly doctor — hut M D.'a were not the only ones spoken off, we have the colonial gentleman, the attentive gentleman getting up classes, and putting down dancing, and thinking the passage out was the only change passengers had to improve *heir minds. Then the foppish and love making clergyman, illustrated with a full and particular account of the doings of a certain Mr Crouch, who made love indiscriminately, and found the girls had been reading Mi^outian life and manners, from a certain tarring and feathering one day administered to him. <\s each familiar uame came up, and a go')! droll anecdote was given, a hearty laugh showed the audience luily appreciate'! the nmuserupiit. an I aftjr d tailing the method now adopted iit home and in the colonies res»eclively, for outward and homeward comfort of passeniror'i, the lecturer c^nc'uded by thanking the large audience in the ronin for giving their mites towards an orject tint was for the benefit of the working rain A vote of thank-* to Mr Broad was propo-ed by a mim-r, and carried by aec'amation ; nnd with thanks to the chainnai, and a few words of acknowledgment to Mr Barher, for his kind permission to use tho room, the audience si>parak n 'l. Qtiw amount for t'ekets, L 33 6 ; CapUin Hamiltoa'a sale, j.lO. Total, L 43 6s

linmelhtely after the lecture, a few friends of M> Sineonk, including the government, banking, and commercial interests, met at the Crystnl Paliica Restaurant, to give that gentleman n farewell supper on his ieivin? the district ; and after a most recherche ''spread " had been disposal of, th<> toasts flew round merrily. Of course tiie Queen an'l Royal Family we-e not forgotten, and the government had a spexial call. A song wrs interpolated between rach toist, and no flinching ; indeed I know the alphabet wns sung, as a rtuet, by two well known gentlemen, and called forth special ch°erJ. The worthy chairman, C. Broad. K'q.. R.M .gareseveralt-ongs atd the rnthusias'ic vice, Dr- Foppoly, nev»-r forgetting his native laml, Garibaldi, an I aspirations, pave us the ' Mazzinian Hymn," nnd the " La Garibaldi an," amid torrents of applause I need not dilate on the joilitv of the evf>nincr, a^nrl how each one seemed determined to make the mo-t of it. How one commercial gentleman tried to hit f'e ''hanking interest, " but found himself in the wrong box ; how another wanted to teach New Zealand g'-ograpby, bun gotseveral admonitory "questions" put "to him ; how " Ever my Country" was applauded, and the "Englishman"'' trie-1 t;o g'lin the day with the "Ivy Green," claiming a hearty applause ; and anew local song about a diggings not a hundred miles away, breaking down through the emotion of the singer, and fears of the hero. The jollity ceased about the small ho';r*, and all thought they had passed a happy evening for ones, on Hamilton's.

During the week the weather has bepn beautiful, more like summer than winter, but severe frosts have bepn constant attendants, and done no good to the races, which consequently have broken away on several occasions. Extended claims are in no ways diminishing 1 , and several are paying pretty good wages. 'The Perseverance Company washed up their paddock last evening, and disposed of 60 ounces this afternoon The escort closed with 1355 ounces, rather smaller than last one, but it is expected that a much larger one will be sent down this next fortnight. Several cases of importance on the criminal side of the R. M. Court here have been heard these last few days. On the 20th, a man nampd Geddes was brought up under two charges.— lst, jumping a miner's claim, at the Serpentine with a personated miner's right; k and 2nd, assaulting a man named Collins, as it turned out, for giving information about the false right. It was proved that Geddes was rather a rowdy customer., and used to rows ; consequently, on the charge of personation he got finea 15 or one month's imp isonmerit, and lost the ground jumped ; and a simi'nr decision was made in the latter charge. Another man named Cluncy was charged by Constable Mayberry with escaping from lawful custody at Coal Creek, besides oth?r previous minor charges It seems that Clancy waa a terror to the storekeepers there, through his drunken hubits, and on the night he was arrested had had a bit of a roohann in the public street, when he was arrested by the constable, nnd handcuffed. Af- w

hours later he escaped through a ruse, and was pursued by the coustable into the « toal Creek River ; and after a long chase, in which he was very materially assisted by a well-known Warden, (who was coming in the coach to Coal Creek at tha time), he succeeded in aeain securing his man. and keeping him this time. Mr Clancy having abused and 1 eaten the constable, and being a character we.l deserving free quarters, was treated to two months' gratuitous lodging in the Hamilton's gaol.

Hyde. — Hyde is materially increasing in size and population. The rush to the Mareburn did not turn out any thing gr?at, so the most of the miners returned. Any quantity of applications fir extended claims are being made, mostly for ground on the second Gully, and from the water supply beinsr abundant sluicing is going a-head. Several discoveries on the true or second bottom have been made, mostly at a great depth, generally between SO and 100 feet, and in one case 14 dwts to 'he dish were obtained, and generally very good heavy gold struck. The Bank of New Zealand have removed their branch from Hamilton's to this place, so that now there are two banks at each diggings. I estimate the population at the very least at; 10 0, and think it is daily growing larger. The Mutual Improvement Society hwe requested Mr Broad to re-deliver his lecture at Hyde for the benefit of the Hamilton's fielief Fund.

Serpentine.— From the Ferpentine Valley diggings there is not much new 3at present. About 150 miners are at work spread over the diggings, but most working on the Deep Oreek, into which" a water-race has been brought. Moderate wage* are bung made, and a large ru«h is expected in the spring, when the weather will be less severe than it is at present. Many of the popu'ation went off to Pieton, but are expected back aeain.

Pigbtjrn. —The late Pigburn rush has turned out very good gold lately, and on the spars at the head of the long wandering gully, jdwt to the dish has been obtained ; about 40 miners are steadily at work. They are delayed in operation by the water. More in my next,