The Inangahua Times. PUBLISHED TRI-WEEKLY. FRIDAY, JULY 22, 1881.

Inangahua Times, Volume II, 22 July 1881, Page 2

The Inangahua Times. PUBLISHED TRI-WEEKLY. FRIDAY, JULY 22, 1881.

Thb Wellington correspondent of* the Christ church Press, who writes }with a pretty good knowledge of the intentions of the Ministry, says there is no troth in the report lately circulated regarding the alteration of the basis of representation on the West Coast, and in other parts of the Colony. It will be recollected that a telegram appeared in our columns the other day announcing tbat tbe southern portion of the West Coast was to te divided into four electorates, and be describes bow this impression got abroad. He says : " A map showing one of these various alternative schemes was acci« deDtally seen, through breach of duty ob tbe part of an officer, the result being that Ministers are besieged with suggestions for the alteration or reconsideration of what bas never yet been determined upon* I repeat tbat nothing is as yet decided aa to boundaries or distributionof the new districts beyond what I tele* graphed Some weeks ago. T he on'y new departures which have yet been.proposed are as follow :— Ist (he increase of the total number of European members to 91 instead of 90 ; 2nd, to give the additional member thus provided to the East Coast of tbe North Island, that 'district to be divided Into two, having centres re» sportively at Tauranga* and Gisborne ; 3rd,' tbe quota of population ' to be an average of 6661 for town districts, and 4996 for country districts, the latter thus being 25 per cent less'tlian towns. I have previously telegraphed tbat it would be proposed to make Wanganui a single seat, and give the second member to the suburbs: Of the 91 members 55 would go to Hie ; South Island, and 36 to the Nortb. All this, however, is still merely under consideration", and I have i t on autbori y that absolutely nothing bas yet been settled or even df finitely pro* posed, but several alternative schemes were merely drawn up for discussion in Cabinet." Ibis explanation will, of course, be accepted for what it is worth, but bas apparently failed to satisfy tbe Hokitilta members, who have since been worrying the very soul out of the Go* vernment to alter tbe proposal. It does yot appear, bowever, that the alteration Vindicated bas been received with dis« favor either in Kumara, Greymoutb, or here, but its actual acceptance by tbe people will, of course, depend' very mncli UDon the proportion of representation alloted to each of the proposed elector* ates. ■ »

It may be gathered from our Parliamentary telegrftnis this morning tbat the doom of tie present Ministry is sealed, the Opposition counting upon a safe majority of seven ou tbe division upon Mr Or* mond's motion. Tbat the local govern* moot proposals of the Ministry hare failed to satisfy the country We have nerer hesitated to believe, for in our opinion no amount of patching: up 'of tbe existing county system can save it from tbe judgment which bard experience has brought upon it. It bas bad a fair trial and bas failed lamentably in every essential of its framers' design. For our own. part then we can feel but small cons cern for tbe fate of any Government seeking to perpetuate it. A return to Provincialism pure and simple we should certainly not desire to see, but something in tbe nature of a moyeable Council for tbe whole of tbe West Coast, with a simple road board system would to our view meet every demand. A change from tbe present system there must be. if it vrcre for no other reason than that it is at present practically dead.

This is what the New Zealand Mail thinks of deputations generally, and the Inangahua deputation in particular :— " Deputations to Ministers are amongst the things to be expected during Parliament, and are not only quite legitimate, but laudatory as bringing the people into intimate communication "with tbe administrators of public affairs. But like every other good thing, this one of deputations may be overdone, and appears to us to have been decidedly overdone in the case of a remaikable deputation from the Inangnhua County Council. The Inangahua Times very properly is seyere in its strictures upon the whole business, which briefly' put, was the appointment of a deputation of two to proceed to Wellington to wait upon Ministers, out of a meeting of three of the County Council. Like their ill ußtrious predecessors of Tuoley-street, these three constituted themselves "the district" and sent two of themselves away to worry Ministers, first, however, voting the sum of £75 out of County funds to defray the expenses of the journey. As might have been expected, they tfere- not , received here with ambassadorial honors, the upshot of the offair being that they were requested' to place their business with the Premier in epistolary form. We have not bpard tbtf result, but the- case is one coming within the category of deputation nuisances that call for immediate and stern repression. Two by three forsooth ! What next." We learn from a gentleman who left here a few weeks ago for Tasmania that mining prospects there are not by any means as brilliant as they are supposed to be by persons away from the placp. Our correspondent writes thiit at the present time tbe field is as du'l as' the Inangahua. At the begins ning of the year ihere was a tremendous spurt on in tniuing. 2>a3ea v were applied for by hundreds, and snch was the height of (he fpv^r tbnt- dozens of comjjiiniefl were floated flui'y, fiur 1 if v:a.f v..'> un-'/osiKiion ihi'ic; *o s--<?

scrip in these mushroom ventures spring from par to 6s and 7s within tvrentyfour hours of the pegging of the ground. Thousands were made daily by people, and for a time it was impossible to go wrong. Several miuei were pouring out gold at an astonishing rate, the yields in some instances running 08 high as four and five ounces to the tori, and monster cakes of gold weighing three and four thousand ounces were exhibited in the bank windows in the city, adding new fire to the excitement, until the beads of the frugal, slow-going and conservative fLauntestonians were fairly turned. An then the history of quartz mining repeated itself. A collapse followed, and in their descent the rotten stocks dragged down the sound ones, and the prosperity of the field fell away as fast as it was created, until now the utmost slagna* tion prevails, and| there as here, people are looking forward to spring to bring about a revival. Our informant entertains a hopeful idea of the field generally, and is confident of its ultimate return to a sound and prosperous condition. The lesson taught the Launceston people has been a severe one. The bulk of them had never been out oi Tasmania, and were therefore unskilled in the wicked ways of mining speculators- and so fell easy victims to the mania. 1 We learn +hat a gentleman in Reefton who ' irt'^r n^^ttiiintnfl hirr**"*'* *"* *"*lmlf nf ..Iff* Weaton «t the late election, yesterday re-ceffed-n private*felegr»in from a prominent Auckland member advising that local pres • sure should be brought to bear upon Mr Weaton to secure his vote for the Opposition. We need hardly say that the only action likely to be taken in the matter is this announcement to the public. Tbe next sitting of the District Court will be held at Reefton on the 22nd August. A« yet there ate only two or three bankruptcy applications down for hearing, but we believe that several civil cases are impending. A special meeting of the County Council was called for Wednesday evening, but owing to the absence of members a quorum' could not be obtained, 1 antT the meeting was oonse* quently adjourned till Tuesday, the 26th instant, at 8 p' m 1 . Tbe meeting was called for the purpose of levying b separate rate for fire-prevention purposes, in compliance with a pet ft ion presented to the Council. . A counter petition was also lodged against the striking of the rate. The whole mattei stands adjourned to the date mentioned. As an outcome of the recent agitation by the residents in Lower Broadway, noted in this journal some time since, 'men are now employed erecting a temporary wall to pre« vent the full force of the current in flood time from striking the bank of the river below the bridge. The lowest tenderers for driving the Low Ldvel Tunnel have not taken . up their contract, and the directors have therefore given notice to the next lowest to hand in a list oi names of the party proposed to be employed. Should this not prove satisfactory it is possible that fresh tenders will be invited. We were shown yesterday a good sizs specimen, by one of the directors of the Welcome Company, said to have been ob taiued from the No. 6 level of that mine If was one of the richest specimens we have seen for some time. We remind the public that the drawing oi Jacques art«union will take place at an early date, so that those who desire to secure tickets should do so without delay. Among the provisions of the corrupt Practices Bill now before our Parliament, which the Government intend to propose, there will be one to the effect that no candidate shall be entitled to spend money on an election except through an official election-a<rent, who will limit the expenditure to the amount required for defraying expenses absolutely necessary. Then a provision will be inserted making it illegal to incur any expenses for the private conveyance of members to the polling bdbth. Speaking on the question Dr Wallis argued that provision should be made against the bribery of newspapers, against Ministers giving balls and dinners, against the dishonest and dishonorable practice of nursing constituencies by members giving bonarriuras to libraries and charities. In a recent issue' we (European Mail) remarked favorably upon the importation of Australian fruit into this country. When three dozen small peaches are sold at Covent Garden market for 555. tbe suggestion arises that it would be well to export peaches. As might have been expected, a very vigorous mania commenced in Tasmania after the first few successful crushings, and it continued for several months. Shares of any and every description were saleable. A shrewd man had but to take up a 10-acre lease at a cost of £13 or £14, throw it into a prospectus, and away went bis promoter's shires at £30 or £50 a-peace, without more bdo. — Lounceston paper. A little scene in the Victorian Parliament is thus described by the Argus •—Mr Bent cleared himself from the imputation of having used slang words in the Legislative Assembly. The Speaker lately took objection to the phrase • put up ' as low and improper. Now, Brighton is a respectable constituency, arid the residents, Mr Bent saye, feel deeply hurt at the idea of their representative so far forgetting himself as to lapse into slang, and many of them have addressed themselves to him and stated how sorry they would be if the habit grew upon him. To clear himself, Mi 1 Bent appeared in the House with a formidable copy of Johnson's 'Unabridged Dictionary,' from which he quoted authorities for the use of the phraso * put up.' Shakespeare used it. Bishop South, and Boyle, and Butler, and Addison. The most effective passage was from L'Estrange : It is prudence in many cares to put up with the injuries of a weaker enemy— (' That's what I did with Mr Lauren?,' interjected the hon. member)— for fear of incurring the displeasure of a stronger '— (' and I Vas in fear of the Speaker,' continued M«'Bent.)' The House was satirs fied, and Mr Bent's character remains unblemished. Late Iritcra by the San Francisco mail rti-

nounce that the Right Rev. Dr Moran, of i Dunedin, had, after experiencing a most agreei able voyage, arrived in that city, and was about leaving for l^ew York, i The Australasian thus speaks of the Hon. Graham Berry :— " He will return 'To the : vile dmt from which he sprung, unwept un- . honored and unsung." Is that mud sling* If it be true, as affirmed by a writer in the Wellington Evening Po9f, that Dr Lemon dis» missed a telegraph operator from the service, because the said operator's brother was one 1 of the ' Btrikers.' tbe sooner Dr Lemon is kicked out of office himself, the better for the public service. The police in Tirginia City (United States) arrest all boys under sixteen years of age who I are caught in the streets after eight o'clock at night. If the Police of the Colonies were authorised to do the same, it would be a grand cure for larrikinism. The Hon. Mr Scotland hails from Taranaki. This is his opinion on the Gaming and Lotteries Bill. Before the Bill was read, Mr Scotland gave vent to some extravagant views ' ■ on the subject. He eaid the Bill did not go far enough. Gambling should be . wholly > abolished. Lotteries for works of art were decoy ducks, money being the real object. Racing was a barbarous, cruel sport and getting up a race or found at a race meeting should be sent to hard labor. No half measures would stop tbe great evil. The extensive shipment of frozen English fish, brought out by the steamer Cuzco, was disposed of by auction on Thursi , day, aays the Argus, at Messrs. Greig and Murray's rooms. The shipment consisted of , 62001 b. of salmon, 50001 b. of soles, 25001 b. of , turbot, and 16)30. t>f cod. The fish was , packed in baskets of convenient Bi'ze to suit all classes of purchasers, and arrangements were made for parcels to be kept frozen at the Australian Iceworks for any reasonable time. The attendance at the sale was unusually large, numbering nearly 1000 persons, and , competition was exceptionally keen. The . salmon was all disposed of at prices ranging i from 4s. to 5s 6d., the soles at 3s. 2d., the turbot at 2s. 6d., arid the cod at Is 7d, per lb. The total proceeds of the sale amounted to £2900. Purchases were extensively made , by managers of clubs and hotels, as well as • by the fish merchants of Melbourne and the larger inland towns* > The absurdity of that text question for oath taking in the R.M. Courts had a ludicrous illustration the other day ia a town not very • far from Wellington. Prosecuting Constable : I Do rou krow what will become of you if you tell a lie ? ' Female defendant. 'Qto to h — ll' And then tbe magistrate reproved r her for committing the officer to that tropical • place, and then the defendant's father ex--1 plained that she meant she would go there as f the penally of a lie. But the dispenser of justice said he was certain she did not mean ' that, from the tone in which she said it in, However, after niuch arguing, she was per- ) mitted to proceed on the understanding that > she should go to h— ll if she lied. And she • did. Did what? According t<b-Mr ~H*y tar's (Government i Statist) Year Book, 1879-80. compiled from the records of the Lands department, the area : of Victoria in round numbers is 56,000.000 acres, of which lands sold and under terms of i sale by free selection, 21,393,678 acres ; lands covered with scrub, trees, rough mountains, . &c, 12,106,332 acres; balance, 23.000,000 acres of Crown Lands under licences to squat- • tiers', held principally by Conservative memj bers and ex-members of Parliament or their '. cilents, each holding 3,000,000 acres downwards, at a loss of about £400,000 per annum rents. These runs are situate principally in the N,E. districts of Beechwortb, Ben alia, ': Omed, Gisborne,' GHjipsland, and the N.W. districts of the Wiinmera and Swan.hill, and smaller portions in the other eleven districts. From the Adelaide boundary up the Mur- ' ray River to within threa miles of Swan-hill, 268 miles as the crow flies, six squatters hold ' that frontage,' 3.240,300 acres of Crown lands, of which about fIOOO acres is freehold. There are about 245,000 sheep thereon running in paddocks. There are not 20 white' laboring men employed thereon as boundary riders attending to those sheep per anpum, who are , assisted by 'a few aboriginal men called darkies, do the wo-k, and not one-fourth proper rents of those lands paid. The hon. Robertson, MX. C, is licensee of 3 runs fronting the Goulburn River from Seymour down to Murcbison, about 33 miles, by an average df about §2 miles, fiee of scrubland only fit for sheep Tbe sheep are in paddocks, with about three ; boundary riders, about one»fourth rent charged and paid. There is no freehold areas on these runs, bo to speak.