Cite: http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article3719621

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THE NEW COLOMY OF BRITISH

COLUMBIA.

(From the S. M. Hîrald.)

TUB progress of the colony of Brit'sh C ilum'ii.i will always have an interest for Australia. It is the only British possession on the eastern shores of the Pacific, and it

will some day be the terminus of a trunk , line of nil way that will cross the continent of North America, passing entirely through British territory, and that will not only form tho great highway between England and China, but will bo the best and quickest lino of travel botwen England and Australia, eclipsing alike both the Suez and Panama routes. The prospects of the completion of such a lino of railwiy are, it mii3t be ad- mitted, rather remote. The project has been officially laid before the British Cabinet by the Canadian Government, and its gran- deur and imperial importance earnestly urged. But the Chancellor of the Ex- chequer shakes his head at the prospect of incurring debt, though even in so good a cause. " Peace hath her victories as well .is war." But peace has no such chanco of wringing taxation out of the pockets of the ncople. Eighty millions sterling are paid lown pretty readily for a Russian war, and in extra fourpence in the pound on the in- come-tax is paid almost without a grumble ro build a channel fleet and fortify the coast. Dut the House of Commons that would as- sent to, and even applaud, this expenditure, .vonlJ not consent to an outlay of from ten to fifteen millions sterling to layan iron band icross the whole breadth of British North .america, though such an outlay might pos- sibly have political and commercial re- sults that would tend ultimately to strengthen and aggrandise Great Bri nin far more than any continental war. The undertaking is one of too colossal a i ature to come within the scope of ordinary .irivate enterprise, and the colony of Canada is not in a position to undertake it on the strength of its own resources, its revenue being airca ly overtasked by the guarantees it has given to the lines now in course of completion. The project will therefore re- main in abeyance till the natural rlevelop nent of the colonisation of the territory forwards it by dogrees as a local work. \.nd nothing will so much tend to precipi- tate this result as the rapid grow'h of the importance of British Columbia. The con- centration of a largo population there will make an overland communication of more lirect and obvious utility, and hasten the oolitical federation of the North American .olonics. To start tis a gold-mining country is not, in many respects, the best omen for ''uture success, nor does it lay the surest foundation for steady and progressive in

lustry. But gold seems to be the most noworful agent for attracting population ; ind of those that aro thus drawn together, nany gradually gravitate into more settled lepartments of industry, who would not in the first instance have been allured to ..he spot by the prospects of such particular

icenpations.

Tho latest accounts from the ^Times cor-

espondent represent the auriferous resources

if the colony as in a course of steady deve- lopment. A good many miners are returning 'o California, some satisfied, some dissatisfied.

But all almit the fact of the ter. ¡tory being I mriferous over a wide extant of country. The miners have penetrated to distances of four hundred miles from the coast in search >f the precious metal, though tho expense of getting provisions there has neutralised the value of the gold found. These adventur- ous miners make excellent pioneers, and they ! not only open out tracks, but discover the

characteristics of tho country.

At the first rush to tho Frazer River liggings there was a great deal of specula .ion as to the site of the futuro metropolis ind seaport of the new colony. The depot >f the company had been at Victoria, on Vancouver's Island, but this was ill adapted r,r> serve the trade of the main land, a great loal of which was likely to come down the .iver in craft of too fra il a character to cross .he strait. The Americans, with charac- teristic sharpness, tried to found a seaport iust within the United States boundary, and nit a track thenco direct to tho diggings, but the physical geography of the country was mfavorablc to this speculation, and it fell -brough. One of the first things Sir Bulwer Lytton did when establishing the colony was to send out a s lect party of sappers and miners to survey tho country. And it has rested with Colonel Moody to sottlo the lilficult and somewhat dcltcato question, as to where the site of the metropolis should be fixed. He has chosen a spot a little way up the river Frazer, sufficiently far to facilitate its military defence, yet not far enough to be difficult of access for the pur- poses of commerce. The embryo city has boen dignified with the title of Queenborough ind at'tho first land sale, three hundred xnd ten town lots were sold at an average price of two hundred and eighty-eight dollars each, some favourite lots fetching as high as nineteen hundred dollars. Of course there is always a groat deal of speculation at such a sale, especially when such a crowd of sea- soned land-jobbers were collected together as .vere likely to watch the fall of the inte Uoneer's hammer at Queenborough. But at elie same time, it is pretty clear that a good nany who have gone and settled in the new '.olony have formed a favourable estimate of its probable prosperity.

Private specula'ors are likely to succeed .it fir-it better than the Government. The cost of working the administrative machinery is in excess of all available revenue, and for

few years British Columbia will probably need a'little help from tho British treasury. The miners' licenses cost so much in the

.M<wion as to bo barely worth keeping up TheGovernorlookswis'fu lyattheAut-tr lian .im .tillite, and would like to bo able to im- pose anexpirt duty. But his territory is conterminous with that of a foroiyn S a'o,

.vindican be easily reached overland, an MI tho absence of banks and rogujar gol buyors, and escorts, diggers mostly carry their earnings about with them. The tarif! has been raised-a fertile resource with distressed Chancellors of the Exchequer but the consumption of the colony is too small to mako Chat tell tip muih. The land sales offer a partial and immediate

relief, but town lots cannot bo off rod for I salo every day, and the Colonial T'reasurcr I shin will be no sinecure

The resyui'cea of the colony, however, cannot fail to bo gradually unfolded. A pleasant climate, fertile land, timber, coal, and fish, are sure to afford occupation to those whom gold has ceased to charm, or failed to reward ; and there seems to bo fair prospect of a steady and reliable commerce being established.

DISMISSAL OF THE KIAMA PILOT.-Cap- tain Stobo lins been dismissed from .the offico which ho held as pilot of Kiama. It is asserted that he took up the Government moorings in tho harbour, and when tho Rapid steamer went into part, there was nothing to moor hor to, and she was com- pelled to steam about in consequence. Tho

matter being represented to the Government,, Mr. Stobo btvs been dismissed, '

MR. GLADSTONE.-Very different was the appear ince of the Chancellor of the Exche- quer when he leaped from hi3 seat to reply to his predecessor (Mr. Disraeli ) He was evidently excited; and in countenance, man- ner, and bearing ho showed his excitement. Mr. Bright, by watching his opportunity, succeede 1 in getting first upon his legs, and must " have caught the eye of the Speaker" first. But this phrase has a technical mo ming when it is said that " Mr. So-and-so first cauiht the speaker." It is not under- stood that it was literally so, but rather, that Mr. So-and-so was the man whom the Spsikor wished to address the House. Ge- nerally, the first that rises gets piecedence; but when a Cabinet Minister rises, Mr. Spea- ker calls upon him in preference to any other. There were loud cries, and long continued, for Mr. Bright and, for a time Mr. Bright stood his ground. Bat Mr Gladstone, in a somewhat defiant manner kept his position. He had been called upoi by tho Speaker, and he maintained his righ1 against all claimants, and soon the clamou" weakened, and at lenath died away. It ha« been noticeable that Mr. Gladstone has spoken with more energy and excitement since he has been in office ; and, being more excited, he has been more concise and les« diffusive. On the subject of the Roman Catholic claims he broke forth, in answer to a sneoeh from Mr. Whiteside, like a tornado : and, though he spoke for not more than twenty minutes, he compressed into his sneech such forcible nrgnments, such preg- nant facts, and such withering sarcasm, that ho made the Attorney General for Ireland writhe in his seat. And, on oppning hi« Budget, it was a subject of generil remark how closely the Olnneellor stuck to V\ snbject, and how plain, nnd lucid, and concise he was in his statements. We know not that wa ever listened to a mor" masterly statement. On former similar oe risinns Mr. Gladstone has spoken for four hours and moie, bilton this he only occupied two, and on the occasion in question ho was equally forcible and concise. Some of his

sentences were eni^rammatic in their terse- ness.-Illustrated Times.

THE Upper Hunter district continues to ruffer from wan o of mo sture. The Scone enr nsnonlint of the Mercury, writing on the 21th says, that the effects of the intense heat and drying winds which havo prevailed for sevpral days past havo told most seri- ously on the cattle feed and waterholes, many of which are entirely dried up. The various bullock and horse teams passing and repassing speak for thomselves as to the want of rain along the road. We hoar (con- tinues the writer) various surmises as to the wheat crop, and none of them are of the most promising character. Things may be be'tter, so many say, but they can hardly be much worse ; but we m ist leave it to the will of Him who can send us the latter rain, to gladden the hearts of His people.

THE state of the weather and pasturage on the Murrumbidgee, in the vicinity of Wagga Wagga, is thus described by the Express of Saturday last:-The continued absence of rain begins to be seriously felt in this neighbourhoid, and leads many persons to prognosticate that wo shall this summer suffer from sevore di ought. Some of the gardens which a few days ago looked bright and green, aro now completely burnt up, and tho grass is already getting scarce. So far as the pasturige is concerned, it is perhaps

not too late for it to revive if wet were to

come at once, but we very much feoLthat the

crops of eerc ils aro already serious'^^if not irremedi ibly injured. A large nurgbor of store cattle havo crossed the ri vermin ing

the week, but should the dry weatue? con- tinue it is scarcely piobable that tSp$ will bo marketable at any price. Already they are a complete drug. ^?

fsr*

The Goulburn Chronicle gives a6J§un

favorable account of the season in the Smth ern District :-The fair prospects with wWch the spring opened have been sadly clofiffl

Soveial weeks of dry weather, with freq^gt

hot winds, have given a seveie check vegetation ; herbage of ovcry kind has becor quite withered, and even the grain crops g

beginning to suffer. The unseasonab^, warm weather we hid experienced was-'

followed on Sunday night by a severe fros^

which has done an immense amount Of mischief to tho gardens and oichards. The greator part of the vines have been cut off, tho" house vines only escaping, while the cherries, plums, peaches, and apricots, havo

all suffered more or less. In some of the

gardens in the neigbourhood there is scarcely any fruit left beyond a few apples and poars. At Rossiville, Brisbane Grove, Wollogorang, Tiiranna, as well as the gardens within and near the town, the destruction has been very great. The same is tho case at Bungonia. The misehief is not confined to the fruit. Potatoes, peas, beans, &c, have boen injured. It is hard to estimato the damage done by this single night's untimely frost, but it must havo amounted to many hundred pounds. This visitation is felt tho more severely as there was previously every appeaianoe of an abundant yield of fruit,

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