THE Inangahua Times. PUBLISHED TRI-WEEKLY. WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 19, 1881.

Inangahua Times, Volume II, 19 January 1881, Page 2

THE Inangahua Times. PUBLISHED TRI-WEEKLY. WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 19, 1881.

The holidays having terminated, duties bare been resumed at the different schools in the district, but on Thursday (to-morrow) a fl peoial holiday will be grauted, to enable the children to take part in the public pic-nie. ' An liin fortunate woman known nd '* Mary the Maid/' ; who has fdi? dome time lived in a very miserable way, in a hut at the top of Broadway, was on Monday 1 last brought be* fore the Bench on a charge of vagrancy, and sentenced to threa months' imprisonment in Hokitika gaol. She had on several occasions applied to the County Council for charitable aid and received it, the last time a sum sufficient to enable Her to leave the colony, having been voted, Sue however, only proceeded to Grey month, and there devoted the money to other purposes and returned to Reefton -some months ago, since when slid has been living as stated. It is estimated that during tbe late holidays in Reefton] fully £1,000 Was diverted from tbe ordinary channels of business to purposes incident to the season. The inevitable" Art Union/ has of course, once more opened its ponderous jaws and taken the largest bite from the public pocket. Then there 'has been the customary but far more legitimate round of bazaar?, pic-mesj and school outings) besides entertainments of various ■fendi. Ther^e is no doubt that all this is in a measure significant of the general wellbeing of the community, but as far as regards | the destination of the bulk of the money thus expended, or lavished, it becomes a ripe question as. to bow, far this annual jerking at the purse»sfcfingfl.of the people is permissible or eveh consistent with a healthy conditiou of private life. We refer now more particu- | lariy Ao what are termed " Art Unions." It i U only the other dsijr thnt a man in Beeftdn endeayoured to " Art Union," a horse and ! cart and a cow. It would be dißc?u't to say what particular 1 denomination of " Art" a ! ppavinea* horse or Triel&hs cow fall under, but the effort, for a wonder, did not succeed: Year by year 1 these co called " Arf- Unions," are becoming more 1 and move intolerable, and a great blessing would be conferred upon the commatiifcy if some effort was made to suppress them; They are at the beet of times unwholesome exactions upon the people, and b>ing to the dazzling and seductive dress with which they come before t lie public, mop • rip a heap of money which otherwise might find its way to a long-suffering butcher, buker or storekeeper. , We understand that a movemCrit is on foot to establish a newspaper at , the Lyell. The inhabitants are anxious for journalistic representation^ and as the mines there a3 a whole ■ nre weekly improving, it is felt that the time has come for the advocacy of a local paper. The necessary arrangements have, we believe, been already entered intoThe Pic-nio CommHee met at the Odd Fellow's Hall, on Monday evening the 17th itist., when there were present Mr Lynch, (chair,) Messrs Jones. Scnntlebury, Steelp, E 'ridge, Grieva, Puno., Sampson. Adams Cochrana, Alexander and Colling After th° njinutes of fhe previous meeting had been rejad anrt oonfinned. the various sub-oom" mtttees browglit in tbeir report^ frojh which it trunsoire'd tbnt t-hfl finrtu«ial position of the committee was satisfactory, and that nil urrarijEjeraents iii connection with Uie Pir-rno wiTein a forward state. The mm of £3 6i-6A fo'lHctfd Hy Mr ■Kooney, at Boatman's vvms 'nji'ideri in, »nd £22 .wua set down ns thfl ii.iiounts uf contrtti^Li '»J yo exp»;pti'd Irom

various sources. The sum of £10 was voted to the sports committee to be expended in prizes, alsd in providing platfornrand merry-go-rdiind. Progress reported and the meet** ing adjoiirfled till 8 p.m., this evenicg. The contract for driving JJOO feet of straight tunnel and 75 feet cross cutting irt the Golden Point Co., has been finished; and pending the calling for tenders and letting an Another contract for extending the tunnel, the opperations are at a standstill. Some of the directors are expected from Greymouth -during the week* when arrangements will be made to resume operations. It is expected that 70 or 80 feet additional driving will strike the reef. Tlie repairs how beiri* done to the battery shed at tbe Golden Fleece Extended, are being pushed on with great vigour to enable the Co., to resume crushing by the end of next week, by which time a plentiful supply of stone will have accumulated and filled the paddock, The stone looks well, and it is anticipated that a high average will be maintained, when crashing again commences . Those of our citizens who were present at I the farewell banquet given to Judge Westdn, on his leaving the bench and district in October last, will not have forgotten the earnest and practical speech he made in reply to tbe toast of the* e^Teningj yhe|em Jie reviewed his career tia the West Co^iFand iri flattering J terms alluded to the main characteristics of j its people, which he had had an opportunity of studying from itiany aspects. He then said, that the impression formed in his mind from the kind and considerate treatment he had received from the people, could not fail to accompany him wherever he went, and tinder whatever circumstances he might bs planed in the future. After warning us to avoid reckless speculation and to guard against the many mistakes and error's, which ar£ of not unfrequent occurrence on a new field, he concluded by pointing out the scant recognition bur energetic 1 efforts to open the vast mineral resources of the district had receivedfrom successive 1 ebverments, and promised that it would at all times afford him pleasure to spread the knowledge of the existence of our hidden wealth, and to advocate our best interests whenever an opportunity offered. Similar promises are frequently made on occasions of the Rind; and, although they may be well meant at the time; they are generally soon forgotten. Brit in this case we were fully assured of the sincerity of the promise and its due fulfilment as soon as an occasion Would arise. This opportunity has now offered itself in connection with the project for connecting the East and West Coast of the island by railway via the Ada Pass and Reefton, which is now being agitated in Can* terbury, and in Which Mr Weston is taking a a prominent part. Speaking to a resolution at a meeting of promoters of the scheme held in Christchurch, the claims for recognition of! our district particularly, were brought under notice, as a field for safe investment, and as offering peculiarly advantageous outlets for surplus capital, laying idle on the hands of our neighbours. We are very fortunate in meeting the honest advocacy of sac{i a man as Mr Westoh) whose opinions will always be listened to 1 wjith interest* and whoseinfluence when exerted in oiir behalf, cannot fail to result beneficially, but we should our&elven not remain inactive, however powerful friends we may possess, but should to the best of our ability, strengthen the 1 hands and assist them in their endeavors to benefit ourselves and the country, when important questions like the present occupy public attention* It is not supposed that the railway question should as it does, from the all absorbing topics of conversation among us. We should show that we are fully alive to the importance of being included and forming as it were, the centre of the operations of this grand scheme. To give effact to this, it would be necessary in the first place, to call a public meeting in the district, for the purpose of appointing a strong committee to cooperate with the Christchurch promoters, and to assist them in every possible way in the great undertaking, tt might be said, that our influence at present is * too small to weigh in the matter. Not co however in this case, proall as it undoubtedly is \t cannot fail to be felt in a good causo, and two votes at th«* next meting of Parliament will be a consideration, and as the successful i?sue of the enterrpise only jests upon the chances of obtaining reasonable concessions f.n land along the contemplated line, every me ns should be exercised in a legitimate wiy to obtain a guarantee from the Government fiat the privileges sought will be secured. And ns the demond does not. seem excessive, no stone Bhoold.be left unturned, and no asni^ance should be withheld from the men who have inaugurated the project, and who desire success in their undertaking. Were a sub-committee Organised here, material aid in many ways could be given ; additional facts, data and statistics, could be prepared for transmission to head quasters, and every pos«ible information given of our mineral and other deposit I',1 ', which could not be ob« tamed in the short time Messrs Thornton and Brown devoted to the purpose here. Owing to a. dissolutiou bf partnership pi* dered by the Waeden of the Sistricti the claim and privileges held by Keriian McCarthy and G-asler, at fbe Alford river, Cannibal Gor^e, are offered /or purchase by tender, »-eceivable at the Wardens' Office Reefton, until noon on the 26th inst. The claim is now in full working order, and will for years to come give remunerative employment to the purchaser. Each mail from the southern portion of the district, for the past month or two, brings some news of small quantities of alluvial gold being found and sold to the storekeepers. Tbe last letter we have perused containing similar news i$ from Mr Thomas W<ird. of Paringa, addressed to Mr Linnemann, Revell Street. Mr Ward writes : — '• There are a few men setting in the gullies, and all are getting gold. One man I know eot a nice patch. of flight ounces of coarsp. gold since I wrote to you U;t. I -bought a nice sample yesterday." WO. Times. Th«y were talking about emergencies, And somebody asked a mild-looking stranger what bo would do if suddenly placed in givat p'ril.

He said he hardly knew, but be thought he should follow his usual practice and crawl under the . bed. The ladies in the party thought he milst .be afraid of thunder afcorms, but the m«n fcbew be was married. driffithV valuation, which is so muct referred to in IHsh news jnst now, was a valuation of land in Ireland made in the year 1825, by a civil engineer, named Griffith, under instruction of Government. The valuation took many years to complete, and before it was finished the letting value of land had men greatly. In iss4 Mr Griffith ! estimated that his valuation of Limerick was by that time 25 per Cent, under its real yalue. The Irish tenants who are claiming to pay rent according to Griffith's valuation would not like fo be paid for their butter and beef according to the rates current half a century ago. Sir Henry #easenu?r, who was recently dined by theLottdon Common Council, and presented with the^ freedom of the city, i« one of the benefactors of. ths age, having rendered the production of steel possible at 80dols. a ton instead of and in a apace of twenty mintite?' i^ad of three w^eeii; and in quantities of twenty^Jbpns at a time instead of five or six hundred weight. He has revolutionised the|*rliolo., Application of ir6ri to I the arts. In^igiarit the iteel .trade has ] with much sympathy from the London magistrates.! On September 3t)th a Mr Pain applied at the Merlborough Street Police Court for a summons against Miss Houghton practising is a healing medium, for having j obtained 5b from Mr Stuart Cumberland. | Mifx Fain^tated that , on the visit of Mr J Cumberfauil Miss n Houghton declared that Bho was' m commttmcatbn with the spirits* j tod that she could cure him of neuralgia. She said fchat her )• controlling spirit " was ! Dr Harvey, discoverer of the circulation of the blood, but that as her " control doctor " Was not there she would prescribe for Mr Cumberland herself. She accordingly gave him three pills, for which she chargeJ ss. The pills upon analysis turned out to be sugar. Mr Mansfield granted the summons, as well as three others, against Miss Houghton, as a rogue and Vagabond. The following letter Under the heading of " Clerical Puffery," appeared in the New Zealand Times on the I7tb instant. Each issue of the New Zealand Christian .Record contains a notification that correspondence is to be addressed to the editor, The Eev J. Elmalie, M.A. Among the many records of its Christian experiences, this polite organ has just made known to its readers that it has disbevered a den of " haboonish infidelity " in the Dunedin Free-thought Association, winch it describes as a society "obscure and unenviable notoriety," a confusion of terms that lends tbe Echo to suspects that one great lessen prized by religious professors is to spoil their education fend forge! their manners \-°- To the Editor of the New Zealand Times — Sir,— The Rev. Messrs Patterson and Williams have beeh quick to repudiate the assertions attributed to them by the New Zealand Christian Record, with the effect, however, of leaving tbis purveyor of religious intelligence a reputation for veraoity somewhat battered. I wonder who is responsible for the large amount of evangelistic an 4 clerical puffery which graces the columns of that journal ? We are not surprised at the puffery of the cheap jack or tbe mountebank, third rate tradesman or the' political quack, but it seeml somewhat out of place in the case of persons who ore perpetually enjoininl* their neigbors "to be clothed with humility." Do the reverend or non-reverend gentleman in these parts, whose performances are invariably re/orr'ed to in superlative terras, do their own puffing, or has the Wellington correspondent of this veracious journal a special retainer for this work ? — I am, &c, Anti« Humbug.