West Coast Times. AND WESTLAND OBSERVER. FRIDAY, DECEMBER 24, 1869.

West Coast Times, Issue 1328, 24 December 1869, Page 2

West Coast Times. AND WESTLAND OBSERVER. FRIDAY, DECEMBER 24, 1869.

Whilst by no means approving of the West land Public House Bill as a whole, here is no doubt that it possesses some merit, and will be in a great degree •productive of good in one direction. It has been customary heretofore on the

West Coast to grant licenses far too readily to persons of bad or even infamous characters, and if £30 was paid, no questions were asked as to the respectability or otherwise of the licensee. Thus, some women of the most abandoned character openly kept, what were nothing more than licensed brothels, without in the least degree concealing, or even veiling their abominable calling. This, at any rate, will now be ! put a stop to, and if a license is obtained I l>y any notorious person, the fault, will be between the police and the Bench "•ranting' if. At the same time, we certainly <ln consider it, under any circumstances, a farce to remit the decision, wlien licences are opposed, to the County Chairman, whoever he may be. j Tn saying this, we hove no intention of \ referring to Mr Hoos personally,, but j think that the holder of the office, having sis it were a direct interest ip ; ! scraping as much licence-money into the Treasury as possible, might not at ■nil times he a dispassionate avid unprejudiced j'idge, especially if the County continues in the sore .srate of irapecuniosifcy (hat it' is at present. Thoug'.i, do doubt, Mr Hoos yesterday was not in the least degree influenced by such temptations, still it is singular rhar, witliout_exception, all fhe, liceuses a-ked were granted, ,in spite of facts 1 that to our inexperienced minds appeared particularly strong. ' It' really seemed as (hough the action of the police and- the trouble they had taken were considered as • -.■mutt'Ts of fornv and we hardly think that in future they Tvill take the' same- pains to rake up evidence. It is true that con--ditions are imposed, but these, very probably, will not be very strictly insisted on ;- and so far the Act, in some respects, may 'be. almost considered a dead letter. At t.he same time all who have been opposed may be considered, as it were, under surveillance, aud we doubt uot, if the police catch any tripping, they will be strict with them. The ensuing, week or two will unquestionably be a severe time of trial, and it. is •to be' hoped that the evils alleged, if they really exist, will be j abated. Another good has been brought about in the operation of this, Act |by the investigation that the back premises of many' licensed houses'' have received, and with such evidence to to guide him, the newly appointed Inspector of iNuisauces will very likely

be greatly aidpd in the discharge of his duties. As we have previously lvmui lvi'i], we think tlutt, tfiiJug t'w disposal of any ap]»lioations whatever, opposed or not, out of the hands of the local Uench is a great tnis-t-fce, and one that as s-oon as possible should be rectified. Because it hapP^jip thuf. a qunrum cannot he jj-ot togetlicr on one day, it does not follow tluit it cannot, on the next, and very li^le public jneojivpiiience be o«-c«' i'mi)c<l I>v *>n: ii (tn ti !jo"i'nnifnit. But i he pos'-ihilif ' of'iuo q-sonnn could. aiaiost ci-itniulylio prevented if, as we suggested yesterday, .additional Justices, whose avocations vvould pei;mit attendance to their magisterial duties, were appointed. This could be done at once, and as the creation of aJ. P. is not an expensive process, we cannot see why it should be delayed when found necessary . If the Act is to be admiuistei-ed at all, the materials to do it with s-hould ,be provided. . Of I course, no alteration in. the law, how-, ever needed, could be made till' the, Assembly meets again, which will not be for six mouths ; but 1 by providing a ; largvr stock .of justices, a bench to carry it out as it stands could' always be secured. We certainly think, that no County' Chairman should have authoiity of the kind, under any ciiv 1 cumstances whutever, aud in that idea we think the public will agree with us.

•On Monday next there will be no paper issued from this office, and* advertisers wishing to make anuounemerits for Boxing D.iy must necessarily avail themselves of to-mor-i jw's. uaper, and send their favprs'in-as soon (.3 possible, to secure insertion. Together vith' to-morrow's issue we Shall publish our isual Monthly Summary, in tiiiie for thes:s. Tararua, that will be despatched' for Melbourne in time to 'catch the homeward mail» Koout Monday next, '

Last night Thatcher introduced his diora'nic entertainment, entitled "Life on the Goldfieldsj." It was very well received, and deservedly appreciated by the audience prer sent, and bursts of laughter were elicited at 'the quaint und humorous commeu-' tii ry or explanation. It consists of illustrations of gpldfielus^ life and incident, together with the characters- that flourished^ the early period of the discovery of gold in Australia. The truth of the road and other paintings can be well understood by old Victorians ; and those who have never been in that colony can obtain much useful information in a most amusing manner, by going and listening to it. The entertainment is interspersed with characteristic songs, which were given in Thatcher's best style, and the whole W'.s interlarded with local allusions of a piquant nature, which told amazingly with the audience, and kept them in roars of laugeter. Mr Daniels sang " The Sexton" with exceedingly great taste ; and on being encored, gave " The Wolf," securing hearty pplause in rendering both. Small gave two 1 1; his best characteristic Irish songs in his usual rollicking comic style, the second being the encore. The conclusion of the performance was a rather broad local song, of which a legislator and some Chinamen were the subjects. To-night, the performance will consist of a repetition of " Life on the Goldflelds" (the last time), and Small's celebrated Stump Speech, which alone is worth all the price of admission ; and as to-morrow being Christmas day, there will be no performance, we would recommend those who wish to hear and see the entertainment before the Christmas rush* to avail themselves of this opportunity.

In the Resident Magistrate's Court, yes-, terday, Mr Cosgrave, of Revell-street, was summoned for having, by placing some cases in the street, obstructed a right-of-way. The information was laid under "The Municipal Corporation A.et, 1867." The defendant pleaded not guilty, and contended that the information was wrongly laid, as there was no part of the Act of 1867 that related to' the obstruction of streets and thoroughfares. His Worship held that the 13th scheule of the I Act did. Mr Cosgrave contended that it should be' specified 'in the i summons under which part of the Act it was' laid. 'His^Vorship ruled that such was not necessary. After, some discussion regarding the amending of the 'Summons, which specifidd Weld-street, when the cases were actually in { ,a rigl J; -of - way, ' his Worship ruled that the case must" proceed. After hearing .evitlonce. Mr. Cosgrave said lie would remove the eases if • they were an eyesore to the polite, but' he .believed they were on pai-t of his. own section. His Worship 1 tbld defendant' to remove the ca<=es ; ,but as' he had imagined 'they were on his section,, he would, not inflict a fine. „ ,f, f „ ,' „ „ . -: A fatal accident 1 is reported 'from Greymouth, 1 1^ appears .that on.Wednesday afternoon Dunne's boat, deeply ln.den with.icoals j left i he pit to come, down Lhe river. She had also, as passengers, five diggers and two, drovers. When abuut two. miles jfrqni Greymoulh,,,the boat struck on a snag, which knocked a hole in' her. bottom,' but being in "partially shoal watery she did not sink,' but drifted into the deep water, bumping 'along over the shingle. Several of the men here struck out for the shore, but the others stuck to the mast until she had'passed over the deep hole ; the rest of the' men then left her ;. and • then it was discovered thtit one of the diggers was missing. None of the men in the boat saw the man, and it was only when they were taking to the water that a digger said, "My mate is missing, he must be drowned." Three of the men could not swiib, and the one who was drowned ynas one iof them. It is said j that the poor fellow who is drowned had thir y ounces of, gold on him, The whole of the party came into Cobden, where their wan ( s were relieved. j

The Duke of Edinburgh Theatre Cafe has recently passed ,into the hands of Mr R. Walker, lately of the Casino. During the short time he -had the house, lie has effected great improvements, whic.li at ill, no doubt be appreciated 'by his patrons and friends during ,thepi^spnt season.

.a'xo'J uvJ. s..'ii J« i *---

A meeting of the Regatta Committee was held last night, for the purpose ot receiving the report u£ Mr G. P. H. Gallop, tha secretary. The subscriptions received, the amount of which he had handed over to the treasurer, were fsund to be yery satisfactory, and equal to the expenses to be incurred. The meeting gave the secretary a vote of thanks, for the manner in which the subscriptions had been got in, and the satisfactory manner in which be had performed his duties and kept the accounts. It was resolved—" That all parties entering boats will have to wear caps the color which the boat carries, and also that cards of earh day's races will be issued e.ich morning, containing the races, colors and boats entered for each race."

To-morrow night the City Minstrels (a,la Christy) will make their first appearance -at the City Theatre, in Weld-street, and 'ttieir performance is likely to be exceedingly good and amusing. Amongst the minstrels ; are< some really good singers and musicians, and, from personal knowledge of rehearsals, we can bear testimony to the very excellent manner in which they have so far acquitted themselves. The theatre has been repainted and redecorated throughout by Mr Meyer, and looks particularly cheerful and' elegant' with the improvements that have been made> There are three prices, to suit the tastes and pockets of all classes, and we have every c^n" fidence that the minstrels will meet with a good share of public patronage. An accident occurred yesterday to a man named John M'Gain, who wak' working in the Great Victorian Claim, Kanieri. Through some mismanagement, on whose part has not transpired, whilst engaged in ' the claim, he (broke hfc leg. The' poor fellow'Tvas immediately brought down to town, and_as soon as possible was taken over to the* Hospital, where we learn that he is progressing i av t orably. / •; ' ■ , i " " „ - ? ' y Great preparations are being ' made at . SRanelagh. Gardens' for -the 5 fete ' which is to come on off Monday, the 27th instant. The garfle'ris (1 have been fenced ' in, the ground levelled, and a grand pavilion erected. The i walks' in ' the gardens ' have been tastefully! )lait}iout. Weinberg's band will be ! in 'attend^ ance to. discourse sweet music ; but the jgreat feature of the day will ( .be the Baby Show, although amusements of various kinds will' hot be wanting' tb amuse those who may feel inclined to take a trip over the river.

The nomination fora-candidate -to represent the ''Kanieri District ''in the ' County ' Council to6k place yesterday at the Kanieri, when the following candidates were nominated : — Henry Lee Robinson ; proposed by , Henry Griffiths, seconded by Wiiliam -Smith . Frederick Dale ; proposed by Joseph Montague, seconded by William Veal. William ■M'Leari'; proposed' by Francis' Graham,* seconded by Harold Dare. , James Gemm-ll ; proposed by Ambrose Creber, seconded by Thomas Thompson. The show of 'hands was,:— H. L. Robinson, 22 ;F. Dale, 5; W M'Lean, 2 ; J. Gemmell, 3. 1 -' A poll was then demanded on behalf of Mr W. M'Lean. The poll ( will take place ou Wednesday the 29th instant, and will be held at the following places : — Police buildings, Kanieri ; Small's store, Woodstock ; Grinnell's store, Blue Spur ; M'lntosh's store, Big Paddock ; Tramway Terminus Shed, Arahura. The poll will be declared at Kanieri, on Thursday, 30th December, at 1 1 a.m. : "It has been determined by the directors of the Ross United Steam Drainage Company that the christening of their engines shall take place on Wednesday next, the 29th inst It is expected that Ross will on that occasion be visited by a large number of persons f rdrri Hokitika, when they would no doubt pass a most pleasant day. A company, consisting of Messrs Malfroy, Prince, Cuming,' Paul, and Ritchie, has been appointed to carry out all the arrangements, and in such hands these cannot be other than complete.

A case of drowning in the Tokamariro River, near Milton, took place on the lOtlr inst. The Bruce Herald relates the occurrence as follows :—lt: — It appears that a man of the name of George Balfour, a painter by trade, and pretty well known in Milton, had gone, along with Mv Eeeves, bootmaker, down to the river on Thursday evening to set lines for the purpose of catching eels. Early yesterday morning Balfour went by , himself co lift the lines, and while in the act of doing so, it" is presumed he must have fallen, into the pool, about five feet deep, and have been unable to recover himself, and' ;wheve lie was found' between 11 and 12' o'clock in the forenoon. The place where he 1 was drowned is not' far from the trout pond/ and as the pool .is not of large extent, it is conjectured that he must have had a fit, to 'wni(ilv-»vfe >! Understand, he' 'has ' latterly* been subject. Eears of some accident began to be entertained when the deceased did not return £iVbreakf;fe(; ;' and, on Mr Eeeves and another going to sparch for him, w^s fpuncLwith j his face downwards, and grasping part of a ! ;line and 'some grass. The iockmrrence was reported to the police, and, under the charge of Mr Pilkington, the body' was atone* removedto an outhouse at, the Commercial -Hotel. The" deceased "was unmarried, a' quiet and inoffensive map, but ; unfortunately addicted 1 to' drinking habits.

One, of the principal hotels: in AViiipo'ri has 7 the following sign painted in bold letters 1 ' .over the door <:* — " Meals,i'*lsji r beerJ J 3d ,;< stabling, free !" According to the Tuapeka < Times, great" excitement Iprevails^in^ consequence — everybody getting drunk, and numerous assaults taking place. "' '"' , v , The Otxgp Daily Times, of the 13th inst., says: — ""With reference to the capsiziug of the Blanche Barkley on Monday last, we are " now able to state that, Mr Lewis, ' the : owner and former master of the cutter, was not on board of her when the accident' took place, but was engaged in working on his ground in Dowling Bay. The cutter left j her usual anchorage for a fishing cruise on, that dayj, in charge of two men, named GeorgeXilley and Francis Drake, both aged .forty yearsThe former came out in the ship Pampero, and • was a' native ' of Margate ; the latter' has been engaged in and about Port Chalmers for the last seven 1 'year^. and was a native of Yorkshire. Pre^ vious to starting, Mr Lewis cautioned the men not to go outside if there was any sea onThis injunction, however, was not obeyed until the cutter Was in- the 'break, when it was observed that an attempt wa; made to run her' in, but in wearing round a sea toppled over her quarter,, completely smothering her and she settled down before assistance could be rendered. , There wap/ia^commimication ■< - j

with the heads yesterday, and it is not yet known whether tiny of the bodies have been recovered. Both of the diseased are believed to have been unmarried.

The Charleston Herald has the following reference to a claim. Perhaps some of our mining friends may pick up a hint or two from it : — A few months ago, Mr J. G. Jackson, late smelter at the Union Bank, Charleston, purchased from "Mr = 'RichaTd Roehfort two shares in a prospecting claim at Roeh fort's Terrace, three miles south of Brighton, for" the sum of £1200*' Subsequently he bought out the remaining share holder for £600, thus making the' original cost £1800. For a few weeks he worked the ground on the same principle as his predecessors, and realised almost sufficient to covdr first ( cost. But fearing that he was losing gold through defective appliances, suspended operations of washings, and proceeded to erect entirely new apparatus.' ' 'After about four months labor the new plant was com" pleted. It consists of three hundred feet of boxes, a water-wheel, and an amalgamator/. The wiishdirt, which is coni'pdsecl of gravel and sind, is 'conveyed from the face to ! the hopper by truck; thence it passes over four ' tables, twelve feet by eight' in' area each.' 'The 1 first-is covered with copper plates, and the regaining three with plush. •< After! leaving th,e tables, it passes into a.rnn of over two hundred feet of boxes, lined, with pe,riorivted ir.n sheets, the rough side turned outwardsBy this means not only" are all the stones well cleaned, but the small lumps of cemented sand are broken. At 'the l en*d of "the boxes a hopper plate "is placed; and here the stones are t passed on oiie' side while the' fino' / dirt is carried over the wheel, breaking aiiy pieces of tlie cement that might have escaped thp passage' of the boxes, and- thence over a set of copper and plush covered tables. t The wheel is not; larj*e, being required only to drive thq amalgamator. 'Underneath the' latter,' a peculiarly constructed trough' is' placed, winch" enables the operator* to' collect the amalgam without the trouble pf£ jpanning off. .-After the sand loaves the trough it.is conyey.ed^tp^hp tables i-i front of the wheel. , By' this. , mode of washing it is believed that scarcely a particle of gold is- lost. l ' ' The' entire plant cost in round numbers £600. The ground yet to be 'wivrk'e'd'is in area P 2i ! ,606 Bq'iiare feet, and the face at present is' fourteen feet" ! in' depth From 150 to 200' loads of dirt afe put through weekly, and at. this rate it will take two years to exhaust the ground, i . Three weeks" ago Mr Jackson resumed washing, but stop" ped again for the Christmas holidays on 'Saturday last I.'''1 .' '' The result was "disposed of at the Union Bank ' of -Australia yesterday, and the Bank receipt showed the following , figure?, :— 3 7,5 ,ouuce3 14- dwts. 6 -grains gold ; Talue, £1,427 14s Id. From these facts Sn'd' figures ifc will be seen that Mr Jackson lias made another lucky speculation.