Adelaide Morning Chronicle (SA : 1852 - 1853), Monday 9 August 1852, page 2


LOCAL NEWS.

I THE NEW COINAGE.-We are thunderstruck

? to hear that the Government, notwithstanding

their express engagement, are hesitating about establishing a Mint. Surely the experience of California, where 15 mints were established by private parties and proved profitable, is suffi-cient to demonstrate that one in South Aus-tralia is a safe speculation ; and now that the Home Government have positively sanctioned the institution of Mints, it would be disgraceful if this colony were to flinch from an enterprise which must prove beneficial to the whole of the Australian colonies, and eminently lucra-tive to our colonists. We shall return to the subject in our next.

CROWN LAND SALES.-We are sure it must gratify all true friends of the colony to find from the following table, which we have com-piled from our files, that the land sales are rapidly increasing. The amount in July is rather above the average of the last two years, which was less than £8000 per month.

Land Sales. 1852.

Private Con tract. Auction. Total.

£ a. £ s. £ s. m January.... 673 O .. 673 O M February .. 5>5 0 1329 IO 188* IO M March .... 719 0 1929 15 2648 15

April. 1607 16 195 15 1803 ll <

May . H28 0 1555 0 2683 O V June . 2622 0 1829 0 4451 O Joly.5820 8 2532 5 "8 352 13

£22,496 14

The above list shows very clearly the pro-gress of confidence. Undoubtedly there has been for months abundance of cash in the colony, but in these strange times thete was apparently at first a reluctance to make fixed investments. This has passed away, and we now confidently predict that the average of the present will not be less than that of any pre-

vious year.

MESSES. MORPHETT and PHILCOX, had taken their passage by the steamer.

THE STRATHALBYN MINE.-Thia Mine has been sold in England for £12,000.

AGRICULTURAL AND. HORTICULTURAL SO-CIETY.-We are happy to hear that his Excel-lency has signified his intention of being pre-

sent at tue dinner to-morrow.

THE GOLD ASSAV OFFICE.-The quantity of gold deposited on Friday, was 4,413 oz>. 5

dwt 16 grs.,

which, valued at £3 11s per oz,

amounts to. £15,667 3 5 and, adding the total of pre-

vious deposits, viz ..._ £854,288 19 9 gives a present total of . £869,956 3 2

DELIVERY OF GOLD INGOTS.-The following

are the deliveries since our last;

South Australian Banking Company.-Nos. 2288, 22S9, 2290, 2295, 2296, 2363, 2370, 2374, 2376, 2232, 2234, 2235, 2291, ?293, 2366, 2367, 2368, 3369, 237I; 2435, 2439, 2441, 2442, 2444, 2445, 2447, 2500, 2377, 2379, 2SS0, 2382, 2263, 2270, 2271, 2281, 2282, 228-}, 2284, 2273, 2274, 2275, and 1

lot for Government.

Union Bank of Australia.-Nos. 2200, 2292, 2294, 2297, 2298, 2299, 2364, 2365, 2372,

2375, 2440, 2448, 2267, 2269, 2272.

Bank of Australasia. - Nos. 2356, 2357, 2358, 2360, 2361, 2362, 2429, 2430, 2431, 2432, 2433, 2434, 2436, 2437, 2438, 2383.

THE OVERLAND ESCORT.—Mr B. Ross writes on July 23, that Inspector Alford had left Bendigo direct for Adelaide in the previous week with 25,000 ozs., leaving 13,000 ozs. for the next escort. Mr Reynell had left for Ben-digo to receive gold there, and was not to re-turn to Forest Creek till the 13th August, in time for Inspector Rose's Escort.

TEMPERANCE FREEHOLD LAND AND BUILD-

ING SOCIETY.-We are happy to be able to announce the resumption of active operations by this excellent institution. On Monday evening last (this day week) a special general meeting of the members was held, to appoint a trustee in place of Dr. Eades, who has left the colony, and '.hree Directors ; and aso to mike formal arrangements for recommencing the payment of subscriptions and other business. Mr James Hollins oc-cupied the chair. Mr Wm. Crabb, of Hindley street, was elected Trustee; and Messrs M. ti. Crosby, of Brown-street, C- Pitt, sen., of Mar-den, and D. Noel, of Wright-street, Directors. In consequence of the absence of the Secretary, Mr G W. Cole, it was necessary to appoint a pro. te n. cffi.er to fill his place, and Mr Hollins was unanimously chosen to occupy that post.

CAPTAIN CADELL AND THE MURRAY. We are informed that Captain Cadell, of the Queen of Sheba, is actively carrying out his measures for opening up the navigation of the Murray. The latest intelligence of his move-ments is, that he has started for Swan Hill (a point on the river a considerable distance above the great bend) having with him a boat formed of canvas, stretched upon a light wooden frame-work, in which he intends to descend the Murray at least as far as Wellington, and probably to the Goolwa, to examine the actual condition of the river channel, with a view to providing in time against any obstacles that might be found to delay the accomplishment of his purpose hereafter.

LECTURE on THE GOLD FIELDS.— An in-teresting lecture was delivered on Wednesday evening last, in the Wesleyan Chapel, Pirie-street, on " t; e moral and rrlijnous s:a!e of the dimers." Tits lecture" wa< ti'.e R*v. J. C. Symons, who has iate'.y returned to this colony, after a rather lengthened trip to Melbourne and the diguinps.

DINNER TO CAPTAIN FELL.— On Wednes-day last, Captain Fell ;:n<l his Chief Officer, Mr McKiuimn. dined by invitation with a number of the passengers fr'im Melbourn;, by the Reliance, in hf r hist trip, at the M.'dd and M a» pie, Norwood, the landlord, Mr Beddies, being himself one of the pa-se: g vs. Various toasts were given and responded t.>, a id by aid of eloquence and harmony a long evening was very pleasantly ¡-pent

SKETCHES at the DIGGINGS.— In one of Bryce Ross's letters from Forest Creek, we find the following statement :—"I have just seen a number of exceedingly spirited sketches,

taken at Forest Creek and Bendigo Diggings during the last month, by a well known Ade-laide artist, whose name I am not permitted to mention at present. I must say they afford an excellent idea of what life is here ; the land-scape sketches are true and most picturesque. This gentleman intends to publish them shortly, in Melbourne or elsewhere, according to pro-bable circumstances as to obtaining facilities for the execution of the project.

ABORIGINAL FOOTPADS.— On Tuesday after-

noon as a girl, named Margaret Scanlan, was returning from an errand, on which her parents had sent her, she was stopped near the New Court House by four aborigines, who robbed her of a 5s order and 2s 10d in silver. The child gave notice of the robbery to the police, but as she stated her inability to identify the blacks if she saw them, nothing could be done in the matter. Her parents live near the

Prince of Wales in Angas-street.— Times.

HALF-YEARLY EXAMINATION AT THE GER-MAN SCHOOL IN FREEMAN-STREET.- The usual Half-yearly Examination of the children at-tending the German-school in Freeman-street was held on Tuesday last. We are gratified at being able to report again quite as favorably as on the two former occasions when we at-tended the examination at this school as to the proficiency of the pupils in the various depart-ments of instruction. Both the boys and the girls were examined in geography, natural history, reading and arithmetic, and certainly acquitted themselves very satisfactorily, re-flecting great credit upon Mr Hansen, who has had the management of the school during Mr. Schleinitz's temporary absence. The speci-mens of writing, both in German and English, were of the usual variety of excellence, some being remarkably good. The proficiency of the children generally in their English reading and in their English dictation papers, was as noticeable as on the previous examination, and afforded additional evidence of the abilities of Mr H. Nootnagei, under whose superin-tendence this department of the school has

been carried on. The examination was at

tended by F. S. Dutton, Esq. M.L.C., and Mr W. A. Cawthorne, Members of the Central Board of Education, Dr Wyatt, Inspector of Schools, and several of the parents and friends

of the children.— Register

A CORPORATION FOR NORTH ADELAIDE.— The inhabitants of North Adelaide are anxious to repeal the municipal union existing between them and the southern portion of the city, and as a first step towards the accomplishment of their wishes, they held a meeting at the Queen's Head, Kermode-street, on Thursday

evening last, at which Captain Bagot presided. ' A series of résolutions were moved and

adopted, and a Committee elected to draw up

memorials to the Lieutenant-Governor and the Legislative Couneil urging the necessity of a separate Corporation for North Adelaide.

JETTY AT PORT WILLUNGA.—Mr Hays, the Colonial Architect, is about to visit Wil-lunga shortly to report upon the propriety of erecting a jetty at Port Willunga. This step is the fruit of a memorial on the subject, signed by a number of the inhabitants of that district, which was presente! to his Excellency about a fortnight since.

THE OCEAN STEAMER.—Messrs. A. L. Elder and Co. have received an intimation that the sailing of the Australian had been post-poned from the 3rd to the 7th of June.

THE BAR AT POST ADELAIDE.—A Minute, expressing the fullest approval of the means in operation for deepening the bar of thf? harbor, has been forwarded to the Chamber of Commerce. Mr Laurie conduelen í.ome ex-

periments on Thursday last, under the înspèc < lion of the members of the Trinity Board and

the Harbor Master, which were sufficiently successful to induce the Board to direct that a channel, 200 feet long by 60 wide, should be buoyed off and operated upon, by blasting and dredging, immediately.

THE EMIGRATION AGENT.—A paragraph appeared in Saturday's Register reflecting on the above officer. The writer has evidently been misinformed, for Capt. Butler interposed no obstacle to visitors to the vessel beyond what the regulations prescribe, and knew only by hearsay that the Government want men for

Port Elliot. .

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