Untitled

Inangahua Times, Volume II, 21 January 1881, Page 2

There are (writes our Lyoll Correspondent) about forty men set in at the New Bush, on Welchman's Terrace. The party who were putting in the prospecting tunnel after driving 70ft, came upon a face of rock standing perpendicular, in the drtie they put in an up : rise 22ft. Before getting to the top of the reef and found it necessary to put in a second tunnel, which they ' have driven 80 feet. Mclntoah. whose claim is nert to the tunnels lers ground, was the first to get payable gold, he got as much as from one to seven dwts. to the dish. There are about 4o men on the ground tno3t of whom are sinking 1 and driving. It will take about a month before it will be proved whether it is only a patch or a lead, if the Jafctur, there is room for hundreds . Mclntosh has washed six ounces from a paddock 4ft, by 10ft, during tha holidays. The gold is course-,- and found on the bottom in a tough kind of mullock, there being very little wash. There is no use in miner's coming at present, as the ground is deep sinking, being about 80feet, Some hundreds of anxious young eyes were turned wistfully at the sky yesterday morning trying to discover a rcot iv the cruel clouds which threatened to descend, and upset the whole of the pic-nic arrangements, The day certainly did not open propitisiously, and from the car Meat hour till 9 a.m. it really did appear that many young hearts would have to go a sorrowing. The Pic-nic Committee met at 9 o'clock to consider the situation, and as the sandwiches were reported to be cut, tho cakes and other good things all in readiness, it was formally Jagreed to carry out the programme of the day. Although tbe weather yesterday waa tho reverse of favourable, the children mustered in strong forco at s the Oddfellows' Hall, and when the procession started at 11 o'clock there must have been quite five hundred youngsters hot with expectation of the delights in store for them. The procession as it filed down Broadway headed by tbe band, presented a pretty sight. The day was observed as a holiday. Nearly every business in town being closed at 2 p.m. By noon the weather wore a more favorable appearance and thus encouraged people flocked to the ground in great numbers and by 3 p.m. there could not bate been less than a thousand persors present ; a commodious platform ha i been pro» vided, and dannng formed a principal source of pass-time to many grown-up persons. The sports were <arried out without intermission and were so conducted as to «pread the prize?, over the largest number j the sweetmeais provided should hove been ample for twice the number of children, but as is usually the case in Keei'ton. hundreds of wolfish men and women preyed upon the eatables, and were with difficulty prevented from gormandising everything. There is something positively humilitating and contemptible in the spectacle of a horde of grown up pers sous laying themselves out for a square gorge on such an occasion as a children's pic-nic. Mr Beecho's plant for treating tailings at Boatman's Creek is approaching completion, and will be ready in a d;ry or two to commence operations on the heaps, which have been stacked for a con.-i derable time just below the crushing companies battery. This lot is not expected to turn out us well U3 thosa tailings iv the creek, which through the actiou of water have become concentrated, and from ' which splendid prospects are being obtained, but nevertheless remunerative returns are fully anticipated even from the poorest lot, as frequent tests have demonstrated their pay--1 able nature.

A Chinese firm hare taken those pi'eraise9 opposite Messrs Forsyth and Masters lately occupied by Mr Cockburn, as a saddlers shop, and will in the course of next week open bustae?s as groccre and general storekeepers. The locality is suitable for the enterprise, and the inhabitants of Upper Broadway will have »n opportunity of investing in the many fragrant commodities usually to- be found in , similar c tablishmeuls, The three berdans of *he .Battery Company in Boatman's Creek have been engaged in treating some of the accumulated tailings, which have beeu saved from running into the creek. The berdans foive only been at work for a ehovfe time and no cleaning up has taken place, but nil appearance* indicate that results will be satisfactory. Owing to the | water-wheel requiring repairs, the process of \ reducing the tailings has been interrupted, but will again be resumed in a few days. The Boatman's people are making exertions to hold races in their district on St. Patrick's Dav, and have already received sufficient support to consider the matter settled. At a meeting held the ojhev day the sum of £28 was subscribed in./jthe room, and estimates made of probabilities, whiA showed that the' sum of about £150 could be offered to be run for. Cpunty lioraegoply wilt be allowed to ls^p'-et#,'an I d*l^^ I settled, will, in all probability, be run on Fein Flat, Mr Williams having kindly offered his couvse fre^of charge. Ueefion has been canvassed for Bubscriplions, aud the meeting of the committee will be held at Boatman's next Monday. During the day«shi't on Wednesday an accident occurred at the Keep»it«Dark mine, which, ulthoujjh not serious, will neverthe» leß3 cause the sloppag? of the work in the low level for a few days. It appears that whilst the brace-man wan loweriug down the cage to the bottom of the shaft he got confused j and instead of shutting off the water from the winding wheel, whereby the hoisting is done for the. contractors of the bottom level, he let still more water on, which caused the rising cage to run up to the poppet-heads, the clutch broke, and the axle of the drum got twisted aud bent io such a manner as to necessitate a new one. As these cannot be replaced here the order was telegraphed to Greymoulh. and is expected to arrive here by to-morrow's coach. In the meantime the contractors will be idle. Work-in other portions of the mine is not affected by the ac 7 cident. The Franzini Company, who have been performing very successfully in all the West Coast town 8, will reach here by coach tomorrow evening, and will perform on Saturday night in Dawsou's Hall. The Dunedin Star states that fifteen oTicera of the Public Worku Department of the Middle Island are now being dispensed with. This makes between seventy and eighty who have left since the end of the financial year. The reductions in the North Island ure on the same ssale. The Paris Temps is much alarmed because England has established a coaling depot iv the islands of the New Hebrides. When England once sets her lobt upon an island or a continent it means annexation. The French (Government should have long since taken possession of those islands, which, irom their close proximity to the penal settlement; of Hew Caledonia ; shoald. Lave been occupied by Fiance. Our contemporary gives a horrible description of the iudiscipline, the revolting immorality the increase of murders, &c, which desecrate the convict establishments. Yet: they are so disgusting as to cry aloud for the intervention of a stronger power than the Governor appears at present to have at hi* disposal. The " Daily Times " learns that Mr Herbert Cox, F.G.S., assistant Government geologist, is now engaged iv Nelson in re«es.amining the extent and value of the chrome deposits which are to be found in various parts of that Pr3vincial District. This mineral is likely to come into great prominence, owing to the recent discovery in (Jermauy of its enormous value in the process of leather tanning. By the use of chrome the tanning of leather may be' completed in from two to ibrea weeks, whereas by the old process it took from eighteen montbs fo two and a-half years—indeed, to turn out the best leather seven years have been occupied. It will thus be seen ihat the chrome deposits in Nelson are not uulike\y to prove of immense odvantags not only tp that district, but to the colony at | large. The Government have consented to ! assist in sending Home a trial shipment of about five tons of chrome, and it is part of Mr Cox's duty to select the deposit from which this shipment shall be procured. In connection with a burglary case heard at the Supreme Court, Dunedin, (says a recent Star) Mr Justice Williams remarked : •I see that Oamaru is described inthe indictment as a city. It is a very important place, I know, but is it entitled to tbe designation ?' Tue Crowu Solicitor replied : ♦It has not got a bishop, your Honor, and it takes a bishop to make a city, I believe, or au Act of Parliament. I do not know how the title got into the indictment. A proposal to deepen the entrance to the Otajjo Harbor by two feet for the sum of £5000 was received by the Harbour Board. The "Times" sdys that the method to be adopted was not explained in the letter, but it was stated that only £150 would be required for machinery, and that tbe work would be done in sixty days. By the terms of the letter, however, the Hoard is asked to pay the expenses of two gentlemen from Sjdney, and their living expenses while the experiment is bein# made, aud in the event oi failure, the loss ot tli is sum, the £150 lor machinery, and the services of the launch would iuli on the ! Board. Tha chairman thought the proposal was too crude to bo entertained, and said ihej might any day receive a dozen such applications. Mr Fish also thought ie would not do ti> allow amateurs to experiment at the cost of | the Board . Mr Malheson wa3 not disposed | to treat the matter seriously, but Me Mill and j A? r Walter expressing opinious in favour ol ; the scheme being considered, the letter was referred to the works committee,