LOCAL AND GENERAL.

For the Davis benefit concert on Saturday night the Garrison Band and Fire Brigade have volunteered their services, and Messrs Milner and Thompson have kindly lent a piano. The Canterbury Acclimatisation Society recently sent about 25,000 trout fry to Kaikoura, and it speaks well for the care exercised by the rajiger in charge that the shipment was delivered without the loss of more than a dozen fish. The business at the Police Court this morning was very quickly disposed of. There was only one prisoner, a male first offender, who was fined 5s for. drunkenness with the usual alternative of imprisonment. Messrs C. Louisson, W. Langdown and W. D. Lawrence were the presiding justices. When the Papanui tram was leaving Cathedral Square last night one of the horses attached to the car slipped on the rail, and in falling knocked his companion's legs from Tmder him. As both animals fell with their backs outwards and their legs on the intide they naturally struggled wildly, and one of them was cut on the shoulder. The horse-shoeing competition promises to bb an interesting feature of tbe Canterbury Agricultural and Pastoral Association's November Show. All the work will be carried out on the ground, the Association providing tbe iron, anvils and forge. Each competing blacksmith will be required to bring a horse, but .on arrival at the ground the horses will be drawn for. The membership of the Guild df Courtesy recently formed by the committee of the East. Christchurch district school now exceeds five hundred scholars, and the Chairman has ordered. two. hundred moreoards of memberahip. The movement has been enthusiastically taken up by bath teachers and scholars. Parents generally have expressed their appreciation of the efforts of the committee in inaugurating the Guild. A magic lantern entertainment will be given to the members on Friday night by Mr T. Crook. Mr T. Fitzgerald Faulkner, the Mind organist; has resigned his position as organist and choirmaster at St John's Church, Latimer Square. The Railway Department has, says the "New Zealand Times," received cabled advice that five class " U " engines (the most powerful modern type of passenger locomotives) are about to be forwarded on t'J this colony by the makers, Messrs Sharp, Stewaft and Co. One was shipped by the Wakanui, which is to sail .his week ; two will be forwarded by tbe Gothic on her next re-turn-trip ; and two by the Matatua in tihe succeeding month. A novel entertainment is being organised by Mrs Howie, the well-known singer, to raise funds for the Davis family, who were burnt out in the fatal fire at Sydenham. It will take the form of an open-air concert, to be given' on Saturday evening in Market Sqx___>e- tihe Mayor having granted the use of the Band Rotunda and green for the purpose. Mrs Howie has already received promises of assistance from most bf the leading singers of Christohurch. Mr Nicholls de•sires to acknowledge the receipt of £9 5s volunitarily contributed towards the relief of the sufferers. Mrs Davis was admj_ted to the Hospital last night, her injuries being worse than was antkipat-d. A large number of school children yesterday attended/the funeral of the boy who lost his Kfe in the fire. Mt Superintendent Smith, of the Christchurdi Fire Brigade, yesterday approached the business manager .'for Mr B. FuHer'i-i Waxworks, which . are at present exihibiting at the Oddfellows' Hall, and he at once offered to give the whole of the proceeds of the matinee to be held on Saturday aftern^oii towards the funds foi "providing xeliei fori&e family,

Nt^xt Wednesday, evening the Chamber of Commir fie will hold "a' special meeting "to" discuss the subject of-Federation. After the .general meeting of the Linwood Rifles, held last night, twelve members of the corps, who had volunteered for active service in the ■- Transvaal, had their height and chest measurement taken, for submission to the Defence Department. The motor tricycle, purchased by Mr Actbn- Adams in Paris during his recent trip to the Continent has been landed in Christchurch, and is how on view at Mr R. Kent's establishment, at the corner of Papanui Road and the North Belt. The tricvele is one of the most up-to-date patterns, being of the Dion and Bonton type, and is a fine example of modern engineering. The motive power is gas generated from petroleum, and the tricycle can attain a speed of twenty-five miles an hour on the roads. The Superintendent of the Christchurch Fire Brigade, accompanied by Mr C. M. Gray, chairman of the City Council's Fire Brigade Committee, last night conducted a numbsr of tests in Sydenham with the Brigade. The fire engine was tried at thirteen sumps, and t at only two of these could a supply be procured, and that only after waiting from five to eight minutes for water to rim into -the. mains from the Sydenham baths, while the engines, were, constantly choked with debris from the sewers. All . the trials showed that the.Brigad y e wjere right in taking the engine to the batli's on Sunday night. The new traffic bridge over .the Waiau was formally opaned fcr traffic on Tuesday. After the work had been passed.. by the Council's engineer, Mr R. A. ..Chaffey, a number cf the members of tiie County Council drove across anl declared the bridge open_ The bridge,, which was designed by Mr 0. Archer, is built on the truss principle and was ten months in' course of construction. The' whole superstructure, with the exception of the stays and. braces, is composed of the* best ironbark timber, and should be serviceable for a lifetime. The total length is 44 spans of 40ffc each, with supporting beams lOin x lOin thick, and the decking is V.D.L.., Sin x.4in, capable, it is estimated, of • carr ying forty -tons. The total cost (including a contract of £1600) i-.'ne'ar'y £5000. " Th- Government fcontribiitecl '-£2000, and. tse' balance its divided .between tbe Amuri, K-adkoura*. and Cheviot County Councils and the Awatere Road Board. The bridge been towered 2ft below the original level, yet it is so arranged I that ihe water-way is practically the same. I The lambing this season, both in North and South Canterbury, .has been most prolific, and on a great many estates 150 per cent has been recorded, but it is not often that cases, of ewes having five lambs at once have been heard of. This, however, has beien the' case on Mr C. F. Todhunter's Westerfield 'Estate, in the Ashburton district, where a three-quarter-bred English. Leicester ewe gave birth to five lambs at once. All of them are thriving, but three have been taken away from the ewe, and are being brought; up by hand. On the same estate twenty ewea of a similar breed have produced triplets, and all of them are growing well. On Mr M'Lean's estate at Greenpark two ewes have given .birth to four lambs apiece, and nine ewes have had triplets. Another prolific ewe is owned by Messrs Hopkins and Co., who purchased her as a lamb in 1886, and have since kept her as a decoy, for leading the sheep into the slaughter-house. During that time she has had eleven sets of twins, and although she is now nearly fourteen years of age, she is well and hearty. .