NOTES OF THE WEEK.

Westport Times, Volume II, Issue 277, 20 June 1868, Page 2

NOTES OF THE WEEK.

The Hokitika Literary Institute lias sustained a serious loss. The Observer says : —" The two cases of books which we reported in our last issue as having been thrown overboard from the p.s. BrUco when she was on the Grey bar, were, we are sorry to inform our readers, the property of the Hokitika Literary Institute. These books had been selected with great care in England, and although insured, their loss is greatly to be regretted, as a considerable time must of necessity elapse before they can be replaced." A vestry meeting of the Church of England was held Thursday afternoon, the Lord Bishop of the Diocese, the Rev, W. B. Harvey, Messrs Williams, Moore, Parry, Whiteford, Garland, Haskins, and Winstauley (church warden) being present. The meeting had been called in consequence of the Bishop being in Westport, and was for the purpose of considering the advisability of taking immediate steps towards gathering funds for the erection of a church in Westport for the use of this denomination. Several resolutions were passed to the effect that the time had come for the erection of a suitable building, to be proceeded with. The cost is estimated at about £3OO and it will be built in the immediate vicinity of the present parsonage. His Lordship it appears has been some two months away from Nelson, chnrchbusiness, laying afound-ation-stone in that place compels him to hurry back instead of holding a meeting at once, but he will return in a few weeks, when he will preside at a public meeting, at which a committee will ' be appointed to co-operate with the present church authorities in raising the required funds and carrying out the object in view. In the interval, his Lordship expressed his belief that he could obtain some assistance in Nelson towards the building fund. He has, on his late trip, visited Christchurch and other places on the eastern- side of the island, Hokitika, the Grey, Charleston and other places on the West Coast. On returning, he will hold a confirmation during his visit. In reference to the parsonage, he expressed his great satisfaction at the manner in which the committee had fulfilled the duties entrusted to them, but expressed a hope that the offertory in future would be larger than of late, as it was not sufficient to meet the demands on it. Our episcopal friends will, we hope, take this hint. The stipend of the minister is £3OO, out of which the district is only called to pay £2OO, the diocesan supplying the balance. In addition to this, there are other necessary expenses, and we are sure we only need state the fact, that the funds hitherto supplied through this source proved deficient for the objects intended, to induce the members to come forward liberally. The escort arrived on Wednesday from Charleston, with a very large amount of gold, all three banks having availed themselves of this opportunity. The amount we have not been able to ascertain. It was reported on Wednesday that new ground has been opened near the Waimongoroa, by Barry and party, who have now been at work there for some weeks. They either have applied or intend to apply for a prospecting claim, we are told, but cannot vouch for the correctness of the statement. The grouud is between Deadman's and the Waimongoroa, and is abont nine miles from the Orawaite bridge. We shall be able to supply reliable information on the subject in our next. We hear that a gentleman named Thorpe has been appointed surgeon to the Westport Hospital, but we do not know where he comes from or any other particulars respecting him. We are told however that he is a gentleman of standing and skill in his profession, and if such is the case, his appointment will no doubt be a welcome one. A rather celebrated character on this coast, named Samuel Symms, has come to grief in Otago. His last exploit in this part of the world was persuading our Nelson friends that he had found gold at the Moutere, and on his report turning out colored in more senses than one, he went to Otago. When there he was arrested for obtaining money under false pretences, and was tried and convicted on the 4th instant, but sentence was deferred till the 6th. We extract from the Daily Times the evidence given by the prosecutor— Hyman Cohen, who said—l am a publican residing in Dunedin, and know the prisoner. He was for seme time ftaying at my house. He told me that an uncle of his had died in India, and had left him some money. He showed me a number of documents supporting his assertion, and upon the faith of the promises and representations he made, I advanced him about

£2OO. About 10 o'clock on tlio morn- s ing of the 27th April last, he came to c me, and handed mo a letter. I opened c the letter, and read it as follows : ] " Administrator-General's Office, Feb- c ruary2lst.—Dear Sir—l am in receipt t of your letters of 20th July and 20th t August, the first bearing a power of s attorney, which I regret to say, was ( perfectly useless. However, the whole ] of the dividends, with the interest added, will be paid by the Agra and Masterman's Bank, during the present ' month, when I will pay the same to ( your credit into the Oriental Bank, of 1 course deducting charges and expenses. '' I find they have no branch nearer than Melbourne, so the draft will be upon that place. I have instructed them to advise you of the same, so that you may calculate upon hearing from them by the next mail. I am, &c., J. C. Hogg. P.S.—You will have to sign a receipt in full for the amount before the bank will pay the draft; this is as a protection to me. I enclose a statement of accounts, which I trust you will deem satisfactory." I said to hiin " Symms, how is it that you did not show me this before," and he said " I have only just received it." He then gave me the statement of accounts, and asked me for some more money. I told him that, as I found the legacy was to be paid in Melbourne, I would require a proper voucher, authorising me to receive the money there. He said he would give what I wanted, and I went and consulted a solicitor as the form of document to be drawn up. Upon my return, he signed the following order to the Oriental Bank Corporation, Melbourne : " Please pay the sum as per receipt sent herewith, dated 27th day of April, 1868, to Mr Hyman Cohen, publican, of Dunedin." He also signed a receipt in full as required by Mr Hogg. "While the witness to his signature was signing the documents, Mr Fargie, the wine and spirit merchant, came and took the prisoner away. He came back again at about half-past three or four. I told him that I had heard from Mr Ward that the latter had seen a letter bearing the imprint of the Oriental Banking Corporation. He denied that such was the case, and assured me he had not received the money. I then gave him J2B. It was upon the order, and upon his representations, that I gave him the money. Two afterwards when I told him that I bad been to the Bank, and found out that he had received the money, he denied that he had done so. By Mr Wilson : 1 was with him when he was arrested. I took a cheque from him for £l2O. It was dishonored. I am sure that it was on Monday, April 27th, that I gave the money, and 1 swear that it was between half-past three and four o'clock. I swear that there was not fifty pounds worth of drink supplied to him during the ten months that he stayed with me, and I deny that I furnished a house, and supplied the prisoner with liquor while he was living with a woman. There was no person present when I gave him the money. He had been staying with me for some months. He has had above £l7O in cash from me." The New York correspondent of the Sydney Morning Herald reports that Professor Anderson, the well-known Wizard of the North, has met a sad end, having committed suicide in Cincinnati, where he was performing, first having killed his little son. Domestic trouble is assigned as the cause, the despatch stating that Mrs Anderson had the day before left Cincinnati in company with an employe of her husband's. She was telegraphed to on the road, and on receiving the terrible intelligence, she returned to the city. The Argus of May 23 says :—" The Attorney-General announces in the Gazette of yesterday that the ' Act to make permanent provision for a branch . of the Royal Mint in Victoria' has been left by Her Majesty to its operation. We hope, therefore, soon to see a mint in full work in Melbourne. We are informed that the demand | of the tunnel company to drain the twenty claims, in the third township ; at Addison's, has been rejected, the company having demanded more than £2OO, for which they originally offered \ to relieve those claims of water. The proprietors of the claims are constructing a tunnel for themselves, and have altogether relinquished any assis--1 tance from the tunnel company. The Wellington Independent of June 6th, states that Dr Hector has not yet reported upon the specimen of gold-bear-ing quartz submitted to him for analysis, but it is quite understood that the golden specks in the stone, so eagerly looked at by many pretended connoisseurs, and pronounced by them as the right metal, are nothing but some kind of pyrites, many of which often assume the appearance of gold, having, however, a much higher hue. Mr Coutta Crawford brought into town, some years ago,

specimens quite similar to those now creating such a temporary furore. Thoy contained metallic indications similar to Mr Groves' specimens, and a number of them, we believe, were obtained by that gentleman from some leaders of the same reef which Groves has prospected. Some of the specimens in question were placed at the time in the Museum. The New Zealand Herald, of the 2nd inst., says—" It will be in the recollection of our readers, that during the month of March, last year, considerable excitement was manifested when it was made known that Mr D. Kirkwood, of Onehunga, had absconded from Hokitika, in the schooner Stanley, and duped his creditors to the extent of about £20,000. A meeting was immediately held and attended by the most influential merchants of Auckland and Onehunga. At that meeting, Captain Davis, formerly of the schooner Stanley, made an affidavit that he had shipped to go down with Kirkwood to Hokitika, and onhisarrival there, Kirkwood had requested him ' to ship further on, out of the colony altogether. This the captain refused to do, as did the crew. Kirkwood thereafter cleared the ship (Stanley) for Guam, and immediately he sailed he gave Captain Davis a cheque on the bank for upwards of £3,000, which Davis took to the bank, and for which he received the amount in sovereigns. He hanedd the sovereigns to Kirkwood, who immediately afterwards sailed away. Davis saw the vessel sail and was aware that Kirkwood was on board. An application was then made for a warrant to apprehend Kirkwood as an absconding debtor, which was immediately granted by the Resident Magistrate, and was forwarded to the British Cousuls stationed in various places. A deed was also signed by each creditor, agreeing to pay a sum not exceeding 2£ per cent, on the amount of the expenses of his capture, and his being brought back to Auckland. Photographs of ! Kirkwood were also obtained and sent 1 to all known ports, offering a reward ! of £SO for his apprehension. One of the creditors also undertook to proceed to Melbourne and Sydney, thinking he might call there before pro- , ceeding on a long voyage. Nothing, • however, was heard of the delinquent, or the vessel, until very recently, whe i r [ Mr C Davis, the mortgagee of the vessel, received an intimation that he was trading between some of the ports in Japan. That gentleman immediately sent instructions, with full power to seize the vessel, to Melbourne, San Francisco, and Japan, and it will be ; some satisfaction to those creditors ' who interested themselves on his disappearance, to learn that the vessel has been seized at a place called Hiago, a . new colony recently established near ' Yokohama, in Japan. The Stanley arrived at Hiago during the month of ' March last, in command of. Captain | Clarke, the same person who shipped ' in her when she left Hokitika, and was seized by Mr E. Von der Heyde, a brother to Mr Yon der Heyde, of the firm of Henderson and Macfarlane. ' When the vessel was taken posses- ' sion of Mr David Kirkwood was on t board, but as no instructions had been I received there to arrest him, nothing - could be done in the matter. The > Stanley is now in possession of the J mortgagee, Mr C. Davis, and it is prob- > able she may soon return to her i native waters with a cargo of eastern i produce." ! The following items of Sydney news ; are up to the 27th ult. :—The Government intend withdrawing State aid , from 36 denominational schools at the I end of the year.—The Bank of New . South Wales at fiofala has been 1 robbed of £I7OO. Barnes and M'Grath were hanged at Bathurst on 5 the 25th. The fall was so great, that 3 the convicts' necks were nearly torn from their bodies.—White gloves were I presented to Judge Lutwyche at the 3 Brisbane Assizes.—The Gympie Creek " diggings are slightly improving.—The a shock of an earthquake was felt at Manaroo on May 17.—Flour at Adej laide was at £22 10s on the 27th ult. 3 The Freemasons of Westport are - determined to celebrate the natal day 1 of their patron saint most worthily, - and on Wednesday next, a ball in every way worthy of the order will be b held in Westport. Particulars may . be seen in our advertising columns, . but we may add that the ball will be, in the truest sense of the word, i respectable, and no one need fear that fc their wives or daughters can have j cause to blush at the company they will there meet. The stewards have ~ been most assiduous in their exertions . to promote the comfort of the guests, i and the ball will be, without doubt, j the best by far that has ever been given in Westport. |

The following is reported as occurring in the Police Court, at Auckland:—•' Francis Holmes Hull, J. P., M. H. 11. was charged with having on the 20th May, unlawfully assaulted James Benstoad, steward to his Excollency the Governor. Defendant pleaded not guilty. Mr "Weston appeared for the defence. The magistrates suggested that the case should be settled out of Court. Mr Wynn said, .according to his instructions, no assault whatever took place; defendant absolutely denied the alleged fact. No compromise, or withdrawal of the case would be listened to. The bench said tho,' case must go on. Mr Weston said ho regretted that such a ease should come before the bench, wherein a Justice of the Peace and a member of the General Assembly was charged with assaulting a servant at Government House 011 tho night of the ball. He hoped, in the event of a conviction, that no paltry sum of £5 would be inflicted, but that defendant would be sent to gaol for two months. A more disgraceful caso never came before the Court —a man calling himself a gentleman —an Esquire by his commission, a member of the Assembly, invited as the guest of his Excellency the Governor to the ball in celebration of the Queen's Birthday, actually so far forgets and degrades himself as to use the foulest language, and actually to strike the servant of the Governor, because of some mistake about a cloak which had been left in charge of Benstead, who had charge of the cloak-room. No one, he believed, but the complainant and defendant were present when the assault took place. The evidence adduced, clearly established the guilt of the defendant, who was ordered to pay a penalty of £5 and costs, or in default ten days' imprisonment. Mr Weston asked for counsel's fee to be allowed. Tho bench said their judgment was £0 and costs, and they could not alter it. The fine was almost immediately paid. The JVew Zealand Herald, of June 2nd, says : —During the past week upwards of IGOO ounces of gold have been brought up by the steamers Tauranga and Midge from the Thames.—A handsome building has been erected at Shortland for the Union Bank of Australia. There is ample accommodation afforded for the usual departments; also for gold-buying and smelting.— The Bank of New South Wales is about to erect banking premises at Shortland. —A thirty-roomed house is about to ho erected at Shortland (Thames), which indicates not only the prosperity of the place, but the want of extended house accommodation. Mr Christie has sold a quarter-share in Hunt's claim for <£2,200, Mr Hunt himself being the purchaser. We have been reliably informed that on the 21st ultimo, after the sale was made, quite .1000 ounces of gold were taken out of this claim in the space of a couple of hours.—Tho quantity of gold exported from the Province of Auckland, during the quarter ended March 81st, was 8105 ozs., value £26,476 ; of which 6050 ozs. was exported to Great Britain, and 2366 ozs. to New South Wales.—A new church, named St. George's Church, was opened at Shortland, on May 21th, by the Yen. Archdeacon Lloyd, of Auckland. The residents at the Shamrock lead and those who have business there, complain and with great justice, of the vile state of the track from Addison's to that place. It is said to be even worse than that at the Six Mile, which up to the present time borne the unenviable reputation of being the worst 011 the Coast. The track is one long swamp with ccasional mud holes with manukau stumps sticking up in their midst, on which horses every now and then impale themselves. In some places the horses sink up to their bellies, and in others it is utterly impossible for them to carry any load whatever through it, so the goods have to he handed along the edges in the best way that the packers can. The distance is about a mile and a-half and we are told that a track can easily be made at slight expense. There are nearly 100 diggers on the Shamrock, besides stores there are six whims, two whips, and eight wheels, and such a population have an undoubted right to be regarded in this matter. A memorial was presented about a week ago to Mr Kynnersley,and there is little doubt that he will take such steps as are necessary on his return. A correspondent of the Colonist writing in reference to the Brunner Coal Mine at the Grey says —" The Brunner Coal Mine is now being worked by the Government, until the Executive make up their minds what to do with it. It is under the superintendence of Mr Dent, and the works are being carried on in a rather more workmanlike style than heretofore. or instance, the late company of

Melbourne capitalists (!) have been taking the coal out of tile faco of tho mine, at a cost of about 5s 3d a ton, whilst at present Mr Dent is working on a plan furnished by Mr Burnett, driving three levels right into the mine, at a cost of 5s a ton, and from Is to 5s per yard in addition, thus considerably increasing the cost of the coal to the Government, but improving the mine and rendering tho future working of it safe. It is now delivered at the pit mouth at 12s, which is a trifle over the cost of it, after reckoning all expenses, such as management, new rails, repairs to trucks, &c. It is boated down by tho contractors a; 7s 9d per ton, and sold wholesale at 255, and the demand exceeds the supply." By a Gazette published on the 9th instant, wo see that the General Assembly, which was to have met 011 the 23rd inst., is further prorogued till the 9th of July next. In the same Gazette notice is given that £50,000 worth of Wellington Provincial Debentures will be payable on the Ist of July, 1869. The Caledonian men are taking up the hospital question quite as warmly as those on Addison's Plat, and there is every certainty that from both those places a handsome subscription list will be shown. We quite agree with the very reasonable desire expressed at Addison's Plat—that when the annual committee is elected, tho subscribers, both there and at the Caledonian, ahould have the power of voting at their respective places of residence. There cannot be any reason why such should not be, and as they are contributing liberally we should like to see representatives from both places chosen as committee men. We have the painful task of recording the total wreck of the schooner Louisa, of.this port, bound for the Grey in ballast, with the loss of three men—all hands on board. We have no particulars to hand further than that the illfated craft went ashore near the Saltwater Creek. She left here on Wednesday last, and had been caught in some of the frightful weather that has prevailed since that time with the above sad result. She was built at the Buller. and has been a truly unfortunate craft, On her first attempt to cross the bar she capsized and was towed in bottom upwards ; she has always been considered a most dangerous boat. The lost men are Edward Cody, master; Frank M'Clusky, and a man, name unknown, who was working his passage. M'Cluskey has been in the hospital some time, and this was his first spell of work on leaving it. We do not know whether either of the sufferers are married men. In a paragraph referring to the Council printing, the Wellington. Journal says—" Newspaper proprietors are put to considerable extra expense during the session of the Council. It is a mistake to suppose that—and we regret to say it—the proceedings of the Council are interesting to the general reader. In proof of this, we may mention the fact, that while wc had to print three editions of the Journal containing the account of the late fire, the paper containing his Honor's speech, and an account of the opening of the session, was less in demand, than any we had previously published. The following are the subscriptions gathered by Messrs Glennon and O'Donovan in support of the Addison's Flat reading-room : —Tobias Glennon, £1 ; Dr Donovan, £1; Daniel Garvey, £1; Casset and Forceau, £.l; John Loughrey, £1; W. Campbell, 10s; G. Zanetti, 10s ; Patrick Twohill, 10s; Edward Harris, 10s ; F. Halford, 5s ; Patrick Byrne, 10; Charles Woolfe, 10s; Edward Ryan, 10s; William Malony, 10s ; Michael Fox, 10s ; Michael Sullivan, 10s ; Stempson and Co., 10s ; Patrick Gleeson, 10s ; John Lark, ss; R. O'Donnell, 10s; Miles M'Fadden, 10s; John Sheahan, 10s; John Quigley, 5s ; Annie Cooper, 5s ; Edward Harbridge, ss; M'Neil and M'Lary, 10s; Terry O'Connor, ss; David Twohill, 5s ; J. Biley, 5s ; Terry Tracey, 10s? The terrace reported to have been opened at some little distance from the Old Caledonian, has after all turned excellent, though only a few days ago it was characterised as a duffer. Evans and party have struck gold in payable quantities, with wash from eighteen inches to two feet and a-half thickness, aud deepening as it goes in. This is not a mere assertation but has been tested by any number of miners, who all are satisfied of the genuineness of the discovery, take it from the hesp or knock it down for yourself, being the order of the day with the prospectors, to any that are incredulous Already from 100 to 150 have taken up ground and the terrace promises to prove both extensive and rich. It is situated about a mile and a-half from the Caledonian, in a direct line, on the north side of

the Orawaite, and it runs right down to that river. There has been some little discussion as to the title the newly discovered ground should bear, and some hasty godfathers christened it Now Brunswick terrace. Tho prospectors, who surely have the best right to desiguato their own bantling, wish to have it called Giles' Terrace, and this name wo understand it will bear in future. The prospects already washed are most promising, and there is little doubt that the lead will yet be traced much further north. The Government, in the Supplementary Estimates, are determined not to be too liberal in their grant for tracks between Mokihinui and Razorback, a distance of something like 70 miles of seaboard. All that is set down for- opening up tracks along that length is £SOO, a sum so thoroughly insufficient as to bo, for all the purposes for which it was voted, practically worthless. We have received a copy of the amended mining regulations for the South-West Goldfields of this province, and it would be well for miners and others to make themselves acquainted, as far as possible, with the alterations that may have been made in its provisions. Pending the receipt of copies in sufficient number to supply public requirements, we shall be happy to let any one, wishing to do so, have an opportunity of perusal. The following additional particulars in reference to the loss of the schooner Louisa, appear m the West Coast Times of Saturday last in its Greymouth shipping report: schooner Louisa, with a cargo from the Buller, arrived off the river about eight a.m. on the morning of the 9th. A severe sea soon arose, and the vessel, with distress flag hoisted, was seen for a long time struggling on the edge of the break. After some time, her head was turned shorewards, apparently with the intention, on the part of the captain, of beaching her. She was riding over the surf in good style, when a sea struck her more violently than the rest, and, probably owing to a shifting of her cargo, she turned completely over. At this time the crew were seen on deck, but although Messrs Morris and Wallace Woolfe waited in the hope of saving life, no signs were seen of either of the crew. The vessel, after a severe knocking about in the surf, came ashore south of the Salt Water, where the greater portion of her cargo was safely discharged. She is a complete wreck. The number of crew as at present known was three, viz., Captain Cody, Gay, and another seaman (name unknown until returns from the Buller). The dead bodies of the crew were found on Thursday between the Arahura River and Waimea track. An inquest was to be held on them on Saturday.