West Coast Times. SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 1878.

West Coast Times, Issue 2758, 2 February 1878, Page 2

West Coast Times. SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 2, 1878.

The three banking institutions who were asked to tender for the Borough loan of £35,000 have notified, in a most unmistakeable manner, that they have no intention of entertaining the advance, or even a portion of it. Each institution has adopted its own course of conveying the same meaning. The Bank of New South Wales simply ignored the Council's communication, and made no reply. The Union Bank evidently considered that, as a matter of courtesy to the Corporation, an acknowledgment of the receipt of their application ought to be forwarded, but beyond that,theydid not express the faintest opinion upon, or intention of, either applying for, accepting, or decliningthe loan itself or the Corporation's banking account. The Bank of New Zealand, who, by the way, are the bankers of the Council, left no misunderstanding whatever as to their intentions in the matter. They contented themselves, if not the Council, with simply stating that the Bauk was " not desirous to tender for the account." And this, too, while thanking the Corporation for the information and " opportunity afforded." Were these two words intended, we wonder, to convey any special meaning ? With an overdraft of over £3000, they at least

have an ominous sound about them.

Possibly the communication may be intended as a forerUnne'l" to one of those curt printed eplktles which sdinetimes do emanate IVbril quarters kilown sis Sweating rbbms. So, for a time at least, the matter bf the loan is in abeyance, and vvaits the will of one or other o[ the fraternity of capitalists who may have a heart willing, and A chest largo enough, to advatice £35,000, or less, for a term not exceeding thirty-five years. WhVn the action at present being luken by nearly all the Australian Banks is considered, it is not to be wondered that tho modest request of the Council was hot. entertained. Bdtfi the ariiount and Ihe terra for which tlie loan was asked were beyond a reasonable limit. The Council did not give Ihe matter sufficient consideration at the outset. The amount was increased several thousands at dtle sitting, and after very little debate. No euquiry whatever could have been made as to tho probaoilitios of floating such an amount, and the result therefore is nbt in the least to be wondered at. The Council had better modify their desires at once, and without calling for any more tenders, .ippoint a Committee to wait on the Banks, and make enquiry on what terms and to what extent they will advance on debentures to the value of, say £10,000 for a period of ten years. Beyond this amount, we do not believe any of the local institutions will treat vlith tlie Council at present. The probability of England being involved in war has affected the money market at Etoine and all over the colonies. The needy condition of the New Zealand Government has possibly made the bank of the same name more closely watch its advances, and even at the smaller sum named, it is questionable whether the Council will be able to conclude satisfactory arrangements in that quarter. The proposed water supply, drainage, river protection, and other measures so fully commented upon of late in the Borough, may therefore be looked upon as shelved for the Lime being. At all events thero is little prospect of their being undertaken on the magnanimous scale proposed by the Corporation, who should have tested privately the feelings of the bankers before publicly those of the electors.

His Honor Judge Weston will hold a sittings of the District Court on Monday next, the 4th instant, at ten o'clock,

There was ho police business at the licßidcnt Magistrate's Court yesterday, and ouly one debt case King v. Fleming, which was by consent adjourned until Tuesday next. \le=srs Bonar and P.ittcu, J.Ps., were the presiding justices.

Thn fine dry weather we have been experiencing lately has its drawbacks. One is that iv many of the drains a mass of decaying filth accumulates, poisoning the air suid most offensive to the smell. As an example the Scwell-street drain, between Hampden <md Stafford streets, may be pointed to. The state of this drain is horrible. Iv Fitzherbertstreet, Ilampden-strcet, and Stafford-street) at its junction with Tancrcd-street, there are also some filthy deposits in the drains. Unless the Borough Council attend to this matter at once there is no doubt that sickness must result.

We would remind members of the Westland Permanent Building and Investment

Society that the usual monthly meeting will be held in the Wharf street office this e^euing, commencing at eight o'clock, for the payment of monthly subscriptions, repayments on loans, applictions for class A and B share?, &c, &c.

Mr W. Ramsay, one of the candidates for Municipal honors at the forthcoming election, publishes an address to the burgesses in another column.

Hokitika stands much in need of a town clock. It appears hopeless to expect the Post Office authorities to place one where the public can see it, so that it devolves on the Corporation to have one fixed in tront of the Town Hall building, when the present daily inconvenience vrhieh result* iv many ways f I'orn the diversity of opinion iv clocks and watches, may be removed.

The Borough Council election will take place on Monday next.

All claims against Messrs Hanson and Evans in their late sweep ou the Champion Race will be settled this evening, at nine o'clock.

The fitst meeting of the newly-elected School Committee will be held in the office of the Central Board, at four o'clock this afternoon.

We clip tho following from tho Ross Guardian of 31st. The County Chairman, Me&srs Seddon, M'Whirter, and Dale, M.C.C.s', accompanied by the County Engineer, arrived in Ross on Monday night, to inquire into the bona fide character of the Mikonui Water Race. At 9 o'clock a meeting of the Race Committee was held at the Road Boad Office, where all the visitors attended, when the merits of the work were fully discussed. Yesterday morning, in consequence of pressing business, the County Chairman and Mr Seddon returned to Hokitika by the morning coach ; but Messrs Dale and M'Whirter deferred their departure until evening, and accompanied by the County Engineer, the two members for the district, and several of the leading men of the town, visited the Mont dOr and Greenland claims, and examined part of the ground the Mikonui Race would command. On the return of the party another meeting was held at the Road Board Office, but nothing of importance transpired. The nomination of caudidates for the office of Mayor of the Borough of Ross took place at the Road Board Office ou Monday forenoon, when the following gentlemen were nominated :— Mr Joseph Grimmond, by Messrs Blair, Furkert, and Colquhoun ; Mr William Lockington, by Messrs Joseph, Nielsen, and Thomson ; and Mr Camille Malfroy, by Messrs Kidwill, White and Costello.

The young prodigy who has become pretty widely known as the Australian Mozart has been the sxibject of a painful dispute between his parents. As the Argus describes tho circumstances, it appears that the child is illegitimate, and that the name he

| has to bear is Ernest Brown. His father

and mother have lived together for a number of years ostensibly as man dliHl frife; and have a family of foiir children; of wlioiil tills! otic is the eldest. I'iie jjiire'nts lately quarrelled ab'but sonib crigafecliibut iliiit wtis baclcj or to be made, for fclic fciiild, aitti their vibleiit differences' led to Separation. Bot'.i piiHies whiheil to possess the prodijjy, and they appeared lately before the Chief Justice, in chambers, to hilvb tlieii 1 bliiiliia decide'cl. As the law only recognises the mother as the lawful custodian, liid Ilortdr ordered that the child should be given up to Rosifln Brown. Some rjeraons who happened to be piesent at the time the parties left the court witnessed a most unpleasant spectacle. The child was at once caught up the Rev. Fletcher Long, who appeared to be the only male member of the victorious party. The little fellow set up loud outcries, and strove as hard as one of his tender years could be expected to do to get free. He constantly screamed out, " I won't go with you." The father, fdrwhom an unmistakable preference was shown, could only play the part of an onlooker, and hover round the group. So decided a resistance was shown by the child that Mr Long had to take temporary rest on one of the outdoor benches. All the time the child kept up loud screams, and appeared to be bu the verge of convulsions. A cub was then procured, and Mr Long got into it with the child still in his arms; the mother followed with a female friend, and two very small children, for whom there had been no contention. The party tlien drove off. The name of Miss Christian, the vocalist, is mixed up in the affair as one of the supporters of the mother.

The Bruce Herald of a recent dale contains the following letter: — " Sir,— Can you inform me if Sit George Grey or the Colonial Treasurer have committed themselves to the payment oE an old grog score or scores, by the appointment of one whose name flourishes in my books for sundry driuks, as a Justice of the Peace in the Colony of New Zealand. If not; perhaps, his brother Justices (you say there are over 1000) will combine and pay from one peuny to sixpence each, winch would go so far towards asoert lining, if not wiping off, the debts the individual has left behind him in his travels, wherever misfortune has hitherto cast his lot, viz., — Port Chalmers, Duuedin, Milton, and Balclutha. It you, Mr Editor, will get me appointed treasurer of the proposed fund, I will do my best to ascertain the many old scores stuck up in the 'Province, besides my own, and furnish the list as a suitable addendum to the next edition of " Johnstone's New Zealand Justices of the Peace," showing tlurising generation by what course of (mis) conduct in life tlioy may succeed in attaiuing the honors of a " Justice." Yes ! Justice is blind on this occasion — as blind as I have so frequently soon the latest recipient blind- Jrunk at my expense.— l am, &c, Publican."

The Auslralasiau comments i\h follows on the correspondence betwecu the Governor and Sir George Grey on the subject of Sir William Jervois's proposed visit to the colony : — When Sir George Grey was requested by the Governor of New Zealand to niako arrangement!! for placiug the Govcrumeal steamer Ilincmoa at the disposal of Sir "William Jervois, for the work of inspection of the coast defences, he replied this could not be done, the steamer being required for other special purposes. The accounts we have since received from New Zealand agree in asserting that since the prorogation the steamer has ouly been employed in taking Sir George Grey and his friends on excursion trips. Those circumstances raise some rather important questions affecting the personal honor of Sir Goorge Grey. When Sir George Grey returned this answer to the Marquis of Normauby were the " special purposes " he had in his mind the excursion trips that have sinco taken place ? If so, and lie wished Lord Norrnanby to fairly understand the position, would it not have been the manly and honest course to state so definitely ? If Sir Geortje Grey meant that the work of surveying the defences could not be carried out because the steamer was wanted for pic-nic purposes, ought he not to have openly said so, and placed that statement as his defence policy boldly before the country? On the other hand, if some other work for the steamer was contemplated at the time, but theinteution has since been abandoned, would it not be interesting tv know what this work was? These suppositions do not exhaust the possibilities of the ense; there is ono left, that when Sir George Grey was mentioning some special service for the steamer, he was relying on a ground that he knew had no real existence, and was only adduced for the purpose of evasion and deception. We must leave readers weighing the case in the light of all circumstances to balaucc these probabilities, and estimate the degree to which Sir George Grey's character is affected by them. Holloioaijs Pills and Ointment. — Bad Legß. — When from injury, feeble circulation, foul blood, or neglected chill, inflammation, succeeded by ulceration, has attacked the lower limbs, the sufferer may turn for n cure, without fear of disappointment, to Ilolloway's celebrated Ointment, whose fame for such disorders has resounded throughout the habitable globe, and testimonials in all languages have been received universally praising this celebrated Ointment. Iv all old cases, Ilolloway's Pills should be taken while his unguent is used ; both together are most effective, and the cure is accomplished painlessly and readily. Under their joint curative influence the worst wounds or ulcers assume a more healthy character, and shortly begin to fill up or contract and soundly heal.