AUSTRALIAN ITEMS.

Westport Times, Volume III, Issue 355, 19 September 1868, Page 4

AUSTRALIAN ITEMS.

(FROM THE " LEADER.") Chinese Grambliug received a slight check at Maryborough, on Saturday, 22nd ult. The local journal says ■ —• " Various complaints having been made to the police, of the evil consequences arising from the unrestrained gambling practices of the Chinese at the Camp, a descent was made on Saturday evening upon a nest oftheseindividuals, who were then in the height of the excitement produced by the game. There was a very large crowd of Chinese engaged at gambling, and at first the appearance of the pohce caused a little dismay, which ,however, soon vanished into murmurs of dissatisfaction at the unwelcome intrusion of the visitors. The police, however, were nothing daunted at any display of resentment, and secured six of the men, who were duly brought up on Monday morning, charged with being in a common gambling house, with no lawful excuse. A remand was obtained to enable the police to prosecute their efforts more effectually to put down what has already become an almost intolerable nuisance."

James Jerry, a teetotal lecturer, was, on the 26 ult., at the Wangaratta Police Court, fined £3 and £6 2s costs, or in default fourteen days imprisonment with hard lahour, for using abusive language towards Joseph Moss, landlord of the Commercial Hotel. It appeared from the evidence that Perry mounted a wood heap near the hotel, calling out, " Come on boys ; I'm going to give a lecture against this den of infamy." In the course of his lecture he parenthetically mentioned that Moss was a low, idle, disorderly fellow ; that he kept adisrepu--lablc and disorderly house, both night and day ; that Mrs Moss was like tho

woman Solomon mentioned in the Book of Proverbs, chapter % front the 10th to the 24th verses ; that tshe was always trying to entrap the people into her house; the dress that Mrs Moss wore belonged to othe women and their children. Ho pointed up to the sign-board, and said, " look at it ; it is red ; it is the emblem of rapine, bloodshed, murder and death," and advised all those present to keep clear of it ; as the house was the

The Alfred Memorial Bells for Ballarat may be considered a fact. Already £4OO have been sent home to Messrs Mears and Stain bank, the famous bell founders of Whitechape), London, for a peal of eight bells, the largest of which will weigh no less than twenty-three cwt. Very liberally has the firm of R. and S. Gribbs dealt with the committee. The bells will cost about £llOO landed in Ballarat. Messrs Gibbs, on receipt of £4OO, agreed to take the balance three months after arrival; and in case of the money to complete the purchase not being" forthcoming at the period named, to have the option of-selling the bells. It is right that the power should be given, but, of course, the people of Ballarat will never permit the occasion to arise.

"Another Child" says the Warrnambool Advertiser, " was lost—for a few hours only—in the neighborhood of Woodford Forest, on the morning of the 24th ult. A little girl, three years of age, daughter of a person in the employ of Mr Lindsay, of Wools- . thorpe, wandered away from home to follow her father when going to his work in the morning. He did not ob- . serve the child, and the little thing at last got bushed. She was missed by ' her mother, who gave the alarm, and . the neighbors turned out in a body, and about four o'clock in the afternoon the wanderer was discovered. Nothing has been traced of the other child lost, and the probability is considered very strong that she has been kidnapped, some blacks who were in the neighborhood being suspected." Alluding to a story told by an hon. member in the Assembly when the vote for the aborigines was under disc- ssion, the " Ararat and Pleasant Creek Advertiser" says :—" The _ circumstance on which the tobacco incident was founded occurred to the late , Mr Edward Stone Parker, who, for many years, acted as black protector ' at Mount Franklin. Mr Parker was | visited by Mr Lai robe, and during the stay of that gentleman he expres- , sed himself as much interested in the . aboriginals, but held doubts as to the probability of reclaiming and christian- . :ising them, Mr Latrobe being of , opinion that no influences would make much perceptible change upon their [ condition as a race. This view was strongly combattcd by Mr Parker, who, wishful to prove his theory correct, invited Mr Latrobe to accompany , him to a place where one of the tribes was located, and amongst whom were three or four christianised aborigines, who had proved themselves thoroughly consistent, since they had yielded to the precepts and teachings of the missionaries. The two gentlemen proceeded to a number of mi-mis situated on a rise of Mount Franklin, and Mr Parker having ascertained that his proteges were within, called them outside. Now it had unfortunately fallen out that the supplies of flour had not been served out from the station that morning, and the inmates were not in the best of humor; but this fact was not known to Mr Parker, who, on seeing them emerge, failed to detectthat appearance of calm and cheerful resignation which he expected to see upon their dusky visages. He nevertheless invited one Billy, who was the most promising of the lot, ' to gib it halleluiah.' Billy's under lip hung very ominously at the request, and, instead of replying, he snuffled his nose with his blanket, and added a prefix to hallelujah which he had learned from the less respectable society of bidlock drivers, and which was rather condemnatory than otherwise. ' halle-100 yee! you gib it flour.' Mr Parker turned on his heel without speaking, and walked in silence and discomfort home, followed by his equally silent companion. From that period Mr Parker's views of the aboriginal question were less Utopian and more practical." A very clever capture of a couple ot most notorious Chinese burglars, we learn from the "Ballarat Courier," -was effected by constables Colan, of Learmontn, and Hamilton, of Burrumbeet, on the 26th ult., near Trewalla. About seven o'clock on Wednesday, 26th ult., information was given to the Learmontb police that the store of Messrs Lewis and Bain, Learmonth, had been entered during the night, and a quantity of drapery stolen. Information was immediately despatched to the outside stations, mounted-consta-ble Colan proceeded to Miner's Rest

and thence to the Burrumbeet station. On reaching the Litter ph ce a singular circumstance occurred, which eventuallv led to the capture of the bur. glairs'. Constable Hamilton, of the Burrumbeet station, bad been over at three o'clock that morning with a prisoner to the Learmonth lock-up. On returning borne about six o'clock a.m., he picked up a skirt, with the ticket on it, about half a-mile from Learmontn. This gave a clue to the direction taken with the booty. Both eoflrtables started for Beaufort, and when within a mile of Trewalla, they saw the head and legs of a Chinaman protruding from between two bundles. On putting gnme questions to John, his answer in every rase was the inevitable "no savee" On searching the bundles part of the stolen property was found. On further questioning John as to how he came by the goods, he, after some hesitation, said, " Me slept public-house, Burrumbeet, last night; one Chinaman came six o'clock this morning cave me £1 to carry them to Beaufort.'' When asked where that Chinaman was, he first pointed towards Mr Russell's house and again towards Beaufort. Constable Colan then left Constable Hamilton in charge of this prisoner, and proceeded in the direction of Beaufort in search of the other. When he had proceeded about a mile, he saw a Chinaman carrying two bundles, about half a mile off the public road. The constable dismounted, stripped himself of superfluous and loose clothing, and gave chase. John, eveins; his pursuer, eased himself of his burden, and bolted through the hush. After a chase of two miles, the constable secured the Celestial. Turning him right about face, John was brought back to the bundles, and after a refusal to shoulder the burden, with the "no savee," and " too muchy me," John, with much reluctance, took up the bundles, and retraced his steps, in charge of the constable. _On coming up to the other prisoner, in charge of constable Hamilton, the latter, during the absence of constable Conlan, had found two other bundles on the opposite side of the road, where the first prisoner was caught, each containing a portion of the property stolen. The prisoners were then escorted to Burrumbeet, and thence to the Learmouth lock-up, where they were safely lodged at half-past nine o'clock the same morning. On examining the contents of the bundles, the whole of the stolen nroporty was found. Tn one of the bundles was a complete set of housebreaking implements. " Killed by a meteor " is the startling heading to a paragraph in the " Brisbane Courier" of 25th ult, Our eontemporay thus tells the story: — " Several of the vessels just arrived from the southward report that there was a great deal of electrical atmospheric disturbance on Monday and Tuesday nights. On board the schooner Urania a man was killed by the explosion of an electric meteor. The vessel was at Crowdy Head on Monday, 17th August, about midnight, when a heavy south-westerly squall came on, and all hands were called to shorten sail; a seaman named H. Gr. Sales was steering, and at 12.30 a.m. on Tuesday the 18th, a meteor, like a ball of fire, fell immediately over the vessel's stern, and exp'oded with a loud report resembling that of an heavy piece of ordinance. Sparks of fire was scattered all about the deck, and the steersman was killed by the shock. Every one on board felt a violent shock like that of a galvanic battery, but none of the crew were injured except Sales, who was at his last gasp when picked up. His body showed no marks, but appeared' blackened. Some six or seven hours after decomposition set in, and the poor fellow was buried over the side, When the fire-ball burst the flash was so intensely brilliant that the steward, who was lying in his berth below, declared that he saw the fire through the seams of the deck. The cabin at the same moment was filled with smoke, which blackened the papers lying about. The discoloration of the paint was like that produced by smoking the ship with charcoal. A peculiar smell was experienced for some time after the explosion, and a quantity of flakes like the soot from a steamer's funuel « were scattered .-bout."

mO BE BAFFLED, AT TllE TRAMWAY HOTEL, Molesworth Street, THIS EVENING, SATURDAY At half-past 8 o'clock," FOUR GOLD NUGGETS. FOUR PEIZES. Sixty-five Members at sp. each.