The Sun.
London, England, 1865-02-14 00:00:00

for Patna has been good, but heavy receipts have caused
prices to decline, with a still downward tendency.
Sales.—Malwa, 1,203 chests ; highest' price, 41 3 taels ;
lowest, 450 taels ; closing at for good, 455 taels ; :oft cakes,
450 taels. Patna, 392 chests ; highest pric), 365 taels ;
lowest, 340 taels, which is the cicala.; rate. Stocks.—
Malwa„ 1,381 chests; Patna, 1,064 chests.

AUSTRALIA.
THE COLONY OF VICTORIA.

We take the following from the Melbourne Argus
of the 24th of December :
" The first Session of the fourth Parliament of
Victoria was opened by commission on Monday, the
28th of November. On the following day the Go-
vernor attended in person at the Legislative Council,
and addressed to the assembled Legislators the cus-

tomary speech. We are promised a Land Bill, to be
introduced without delay, which shall ' be simple in
principle, unencumbered with superfluous and im-
practicable conditions, and calculated to bring the
lands of the colony within easy access of the public
at large, while dealing equitably with existing inte-
rests.' The tariff is to be readjusted, partly by the
reduction of duties already chargeable, and partly by
the imposition of duties on commodities hitherto un-

taxed. TheLegislativeCouncilistobereformed. Bills

are to be introduced for the regulation of mining

interests ; for providing water to the goldfields ;

for the amendment of the law relating to public in-.

struction ; for the amendment of the insolvency law,
for establishing Post-office savings-banks ; for im-
posing a legacy duty ; and for several other pur-
poses of minor importance. The speech concludes
by alluding, in turn, to the three great questions of
transportation, colonial defence, and border cus-
toms. As regards the second of them, we are in-
formed that application has been made to the Home
Government for a material contributioh, in the
shape of ships and guns, to assist in securing the
colony against aggression, and upon the other two
subjects papers and despatches are promised.
" The Intercolonial Anti-Transportation Confer-
ence has commenced its meetings. It will be re-
membered that some months ago the Chief Secre-
tary of Victoria forwarded a despatch to each of the
neighbouring colonies proposing that an Interco-
lonial Conference should be held in Melbourne, to
agree upon a common course of action with
regard to the transportation question. Two of the
colonies, South Australia and Tasmania, agreed to
the proposal; and the representatives appointed by
their respective Governments arrived a short time
ago. The delegates from South Australia are the
Chief Secretary (Mr. H. Ayers) and the Commis-
sioner of Crown Lands (Mr. Blyth). Tasmania is
represented by her Chief Secretary (Mr. White) and
her Treasurer (Mr. Meredith). The representatives
of Victoria are the Chief Secretary (Mr. M'Culloch)
and the Attorney-General (Mr. Higinbotham). The
first sittings of the conference took place on the 19th
inst., but the proceedings being conducted in pri-
vate, nothing authentic has yet transpired. Mean-
while the agitation on the subject of transportation
is still continued with unflagging perseverance and
enthusiasm. During the past month a great num-
ber of anti-transportation meetings have been held in
various parts of the country, and there is scarcely a
village in the whole colonyin which a petition has not
been signed, protesting in the strongest terms against
the continuance of the abominable practice of trans-
porting convicts to our shores.
" THE NEW ZEALAND WAR.—This month the
war news again yields in interest to the political. Sir
George Grey ultimately accepted the resignation of
the Fox Ministry, and a new Government was com-
posed, consisting of Mr. Weld, Colonial Secretary ;
Mr. Sewell, Attorney-General ; Mr. Fitzherbert,
Treasurer ; Major Atkinson, Colonial Defence
Master ; Major Richardson, Postmaster-General.
Mr. Weld, Major Atkinson, and Major Richardson
are members of what is known as the War party.
Mr. Weld, in his statement of the Government po-
licy, declares that the double system of government
by Governor and Ministers has resulted in evil to
both races in New Zealand. He will recommend the
Assembly to request the home Government to with-
draw the whole of the troops from the colony, and
instruct the Governor to be guided by his constitu-
tional advisers. He recommends a small standing
colonial force, and a strong military post about the
centre of the Ngatiruanui country. If the Governor
differs on any material point with his constitutional

advisers, he would place his resignation in his hands.
It is not yet known how far this policy will meet
with the approval of the Legislature. In the province
of Auckland the new Ministry is highly unpopular,

inasmuch as it asswnes office with the fixed intention
of removing the seat of government to Wellington.
On the occasion of their introducing a new tariff all
the Auckland members left the house, and business
could not be proceeded with. Active operations
against the rebels remain suspended. The Waikato
districts continue quiet, so it may be hoped that,
though the leading chiefs have not tendered their
submission, that the struggle here has practically ter-
minated. At Taranaki, however, the position is
unchanged. The foe still has possession of the
country beyond the guns of our redoubts ; he still
forbids the settlement and cultivation of the lands
he fairly disposed of, and the settlers are still un-
able to return to the homesteads they were forced
from. Gen. Cameron is, however, at Taranaki, and

the Governor's speech contained an intimation that
steps would now be promptly and energetically

taken to restore order.
" THE GOLDFIELDS.—Now that the end of the
year is drawing nigh, it is satisfactory to know that
the yield of gold has been well maintained. The
exports alone furnish reliable data on which to base
this conclusion, and up to the present time these
amount to only a few thousand ounces below those
of last year, to be very probably brought up to an
equal quantity by the export of next week. It must
not be supposed, however, from this that there is
any return of prosperity to the poorer classes of
miners—the pick-and-shovel men, as they are called
on the diggings—for they have each year a greater
difficulty in finding a living as the old and shallow
ground is worked out. In no one twelvemonth has
there been such an addition to the number of men
on the goldfields working for hire, and the total
yield has only been kept up by the increasing re-
turns obtained from the deep leads, and by the very
much greater quantity of gold which has been taken
out of the new reefs at Wood's Point and on the
Gipps' Land side of the ranges. The turning-point
has apparently been reached at length, and the
failure of the shallow ground will soon be more
than compensated for by the increasing yield from
mines properly 'so called in which capital has been
invested. The old independence of the miner is
thus in a great degree lost, but with that indepen-
dence.ence ,
and there
thewas
atltoeor oftenaltered
state recklessness
things
will
and improvi-
give more
stability to the
yield of gold and all connected with
this interest, and the men working on wages
will
in reality be able to live better, and far more free
from care than the majority of them did when
nominally their own masters. With regard to pros-
pects otherwise, we have only the old
story
to tell,
except that companies are almost daily
of b •g
ecomin
more numerous. The usual number -
new
reefs have been opened, and the usual
number of new rushes have taken place,
but none of these have been to ground likely
to afford employment to more than a limited
number of men. The best of these last is the neigh-
bourhood of South Dunolly, where a lead has been
traced away from a spot worked for some time
there. Some of the claims on this are rich, as many
as six or eight ounces of gold having been frequently
taken from a bucket of wash-dirt ; and most of the
land near has been sold, and this interferes much
with the progress of the work, miners never liking
to pay for claims on private property until they are
pretty sure that these are of value. None of the
other late rushes promise to become of any especial
importance. On the older fields, deep sinking is
becoming more and more the fashion, and boring-
rods are in great request. This mode of trying deep
ground is now
shares has •
Unproved very generally adopted, and much
preliminary expense s thus saved. Speculation in
quite died away, beyond what always
must be f
the result '
prospects in o early information as to
any of the mines, and the
companies formed
Water is now are formed for work.
becoming
country, and this promises
scarce. in many parts of the
in this respect which nuses to be the worst summer
the miners have
had for some