LOCAL AND GENERAL.

The subjects of address in St. Paul's Church to-morrow will be— in the morning, " Mediation "—Exodus, xx. 19 ; and in the evening, " Confession Cast Back " -^Mat. xjryn. 4. We have been requested to say that Divine service, will bo conducted to-mor-row at Westniere at 2.30 p ra. and evening service at Upokongaro at fi.iJO. Those desirous of spending a day up the river will have an opportunity of doing so on Sunday, the Wairepe being advertised for 10 a.m. and 2 30 p.m. Messrs F. 14, Jackson and Co. are the local agents for Shaw, Saville, and Com. puny's s.s, Mamari, now loading at the Heads, Those taking part in the match Carpenters v. Press C.C. are reminded that the gamnwill ba played on tho ft. John's Hill ground, commencing at 2.30 sharp. The ordinary monthly meeting of the Fire Brigade was held last evening. Ordinary routine business was transacted, after which a successful wet practice was held. Tho Eov. C. H. Garland will preach tomorrow morning on '' The Service and Worship of Sous' 1 (Psalm ljcvi 2), and in the evening on '' God's Means of Granting Pardon and Peace " (Romans ». 1). At Messrs P. R. Jackson and Co.'s sale to-day ths privileges for tho Wauganui Caledouian Society's gathorinjr, which takes pltice on the 22nd inst., will be offered by auction. Members of tho Wanganui Glass liall Club are reminded of the opening match for the Club's trophy, which will be fired this afternoon on tho Club's ground, near tho RiHe Rsnge. The last match for tho trophy was won by Mr C. H, Chavanne. The s.B. Btormbird will be loading tallow from the Headß Wharf this (Saturday) morning and leaves for Wei. lington at 12 noon. Intending passengers are reminded that the Castleoliff train leaves town at 10.30 a.m. At Marton yesterday, before Messrs Simpson and Johnston, J.P.s, a man named Jtfiipbting ■nas charged with stealing a bay gelding, property of M. Burke, on 23rd November last. After hearing the evidence the accusod was committed for trial. A boxinn matcg, which oxcited a groat deal of interest, between Harry Luing, the New Zealandor, and Joe Goddard, for the championship of Australia and a substantial sum, took place in Melbouro on New Year's night. Laing won after 12 rounds, punishing his opponent severely. Mrs and Miss Evelyn Prico, of Camp-bell-street, announce that their first term for the current year commences on Jauuary 22nd. Mrs Price is now forming classes for producing and training the voice on (he Continental mothod, aud ladies and gentlemen wishing to join are requested to send in their names as early as possible. At the Police Court yesterday, before Msssrs J»meß 'Thain and Thomas Bamler, j p.'t- Wiliia-m Gorman was charged on tho inf ormaMon .ot the police with having, on December 2?tJi, made use of indecent langut^o in St. Hjll-Etrco^. H,is mother-in-law (Mrs Sarah Litrkijjs) was similarly charted. Hoth pleaded not g,uilfcr, but : after hearing the evident tho Court hold both ofTencos to have been provod, and entered a conviction against tho ac. cußed, each of whom wore sentenced to imprisonment during the sitting of tho Court and oidored to pay the costs, 12s in each instance. The following have beon selected as the representatives of the Wellington Amateur Athletic Club at the Championship masting to be held in Dunedin on the 17th of nest month :- -100yds, Hempion and Harley j (WOydF.'ftempton, Wynyard, L W. Hirley, and D'Arpy; Wyds, N. Gurr, Wynyard, o-nd b'.'.rcy; $$Qyds, N, Gurr, and R. Gray; I mile, Morp.oth and Gray; I! milea, Morpel.hj 120 yds Hurdles, 11. Balgor and C. Gores 410 yds Uurdlps, 11- Utitgcr and D'Arcy; Long Jump, H. Goro and U. Entgor; Putting tho Weight, 0. McCormack ; Throwing the Ilammor, 0. McCorjiack. Wio iollowiii!,' lottov has, by authority of tho llorouev Council, boeu forwarded to iho Sricroliiriea '.of the iqcal rowing <illll'S;— "'It has Jjuen lopoi.tdd So" ma Council t!ia(. persons) ar.o in tho Illicit of ; bathing at all UowfSftf the d#y;md in impropor costumo at or uosr ili« fjc/f.fc sheds, T/iupo Quay, also that youths mid Qtlifira congregate thnre and indulge in foul languauo, to tho annoyance of persons using the river as a pleasure resort. Will you bo good enough to make inquiries as t.) whether this tUtement is correct, and if to for ycur club to tako such measures as tboy »ifry /JW" best to suppress tho nuisances complc-wl P f -" Alr Pnnwl'i Town ClcrV, has also coniijxunicate^ pith tho police, nailing their co-operation ju tho mutter, and no dotM combined s^ep? will bo takou to effectually stop the Hi*:fck,es complained of.

Mr Morgan succumbed to his injuries yesterday afternoon, passing peacefully away at about 4,40 o'clock. His body will be removed to his late residence, Dublinstreet, from whence tho funeral will take place at 3.30 p.m. to-morrow. In Sydney Harbour, on Christmas Day, while a dog was in the water closo to a fcloping-stone landing-place, a monstrous shark seized the poor animal, who with a loud fcreara seomod al first to escapo its clutches, but the shark fairly roso out of the water, and seizing it a second time disappeared with it. Despatches received via New York show that tho damage caused by the bombardment of Eio de Janeiro is enormous, about 300 houses having been ruined at Nicthoroy, and hundreds damaged. Some hundreds of lives hava also been sacrificed. Tho rebel fleet is now btated to be awaiting thoarrival of President Peixoto's new squadron, to which it will give battle. Tho revolutionists havo ton firstclass wuvdhips with 3000 men and an abundanc supply of provisions. We r.re glad to hear that Mr J. C. Blackett, who has been a rasident in Wan.ganui for some threa or four years, and whoso musical abilities have been so freely giv6n in the assistance of any and all good objects during his sojourn amongst us, was Just night entertained by come of his moßt appreciative admirers in Mr G. Shorn fl"s studio, whop he was presented with a small but useful present of local niaunf.' cture. Wo heartily wish him n safo and pleasant journey Home andaspeody roturn A story is told about ono of the newly elected Mnyois in t'ia North of England which is pood c<n'.Uij;h to ba tcie. Entertained at n biiuqucii aftor his oloction he, in returning I hanks, was anx'ous to make it known that no party considerations or personal fHilinpyirh'nild warp his action whilst holiiii;: ths high oflitw to which he had been called. "In fact, gontloman," he slid, " in my opinion tho Mayor of an important borough liko this should bo, liko C'!C3ar's wifo, all things to all mon." The Mining Journal comments on a caso in which a Now Zealand seaman obtained in the colony n verdict for .£760 against a stevecVro f>r whom ho had been working, oil account of iniury through allegod nugliiionco. It remarks that the confirmation of the Colonial Courts' judgment by the Privy Council establishes tho panciplo that tho defence of "common omployment" is only available when tho employee guilty of negligence is a fellow-nmployen of the person injured. The French journal "Eclair" has published an article in which M. Fiourena, a former Minister for Foreign Affairs, censures the Government for not acting upon the proposal of the St. Petersburg Cabinet for a demonstration of the combined French and Eussian fleets on the Coast of Morocco, as a counterpoise to the presence of tho British Squadron. It ie, the article concludes, imperative that Franco and Russia should boldly assume the guardianship of Islam, the one in Africa and tho otlsr in Asia. There is a good deal of complaint among those who havo to travel on the Huntervillo section of the railway about the kind of carriages in use. It is said that the line is utilised as a sort of refuge for all the ancient and uncomfortable carriages in the colony. Indeed, as the main line train draws up at the Junction passengers may be heard remarking on the sqmM wv4 fetora. - VqqV-to^ totoo,^ ranged, behind the engine ready for a start for lluntprville, and an acquaintance with tlie interior dosa not tend to dispel the idea. Better carriages should undoubtedly be put on the line, for the amount of passenger traffic on it quite warrants the change. With reference to Now Zealand tho Exoter Clazetto says: — " We nover could understand the rush of immigration to such countries as Brazil, the Argentine Kepublic, &c, whon Englishmen can easily find a home within our own dominions where they can speak the language, and where they may livn under an enlu'Mened and just lcc<l Government, and oynr bo certain of. an abundant supply of goc,(f food. As for clnthcs, well, Mr Harrie, of Helwill Manor, ia wowing a suit of clothps which he I ought for 253 in New 7/Wand ; The colony in a. Jong way off but it sentns to be a good placo when you get there.'' A special moetinc of tho directors of tho Wangiinui Public Library was held last ovoning, wbon thoro were present— Slessrs Dymock (In tho chair), Withers, Nixon, Powoll, JTowcombe, Martin, and Stewart. The minutes of tho last mooting wore read and confirmed, after which the annual report, with balanco-sheet and usual statistics, was roid and adopted and ordered to be printed and laid before the annual meeting of subscribers, to bo hold on th 9 2Gth iusfc. It was resol.-ed that, viewing the correspondence bwtween tho Librarian and Mr W. 0, Watkins, it be an instruction to the former that Mr Watbins be not elijjiblo to be recoivod as a subscriber to the Library. At Palmerston on Tuesday evening last tho halffyearly meeting of tho Oroua Lodge of Druids was held, Tho oloction of officers for tho ensuing year having been decided, the installation ceremony was conducted by the District Prosident, P,A. Bro. A. A. Sykes. of the Bishop jLodge, Wanganui. A,t tho close of the ceremony a hearty yoto of thaa^B wa* accorded him for tne manner in' which he bad officiated, i^nd a vote of confjilonce ju the Grand Lodge for hayjng appointed him to the District Presidency wi^s also carried. At tho conclusion of the business the President was entertained at tho Royal Hotel by the officers and members of the lodge, Bro, Sykes returned thanks for the hearty manner in which he had been received, and expresued the pleasure he felt in being present. Happening to pass tho Mupoum on Thursday afternoon we looked in and discovered the Curator up to his eyes in work. Availing ourselves of a courteous invitation Ij " inspoct progress," we were surprised at what had already been accomplished, and still more so when upon inquiry wo learned that the ghss casos had only been furnished a month since, and that Mr Drew has only his spare time after business hours to devote to their arrangement. liuieod, it is remark able how quickly ho has, single handed, placed co many of tho specimens in their places. Tho whole of tho right side of the building is to be occupied by New Zealand spocimons, which will of courso bo tho Museum's strong point. The first exhibit that attracted our attention was a lar^e case of New Zealand fishes. Those are vory complete, and many of thorn looked mora life-like and fessh than some we havo seen in the fishmonger's barrow. Next follow a number of cases of New Zealand bird', the very natural attitudes and positions in which thay are arranged seeming to illustrate their life history, tin impression which is still further enhanced by tho placing of the charming little thicks and n'sfcliug near the parent birds. This is a good idoa, and we hope Mr Drew will be ablo to follow it out with B,l] the Jjirds, as it gives tho natural history of (.he' suocios i;A a glance— first tho chick, llion tbt> first ycyr.'s nluuiage, and tho full adult bird:;, male and female. Passing on the specimens of Nejy ZeaUnd mollusca and cnulaco'i aro reachod. These aro very nicsly arranged on neat bcnrds covered with a light green paper, and each spocimen is lalelled with its scientific name, common name, and locality. Tho Curator informed us that boforo the Museum is openod ho intends to label every exhibit, so that each will tell its own story. The Museum will also jjo vory strong in Maori things, and #U;o4ciy yery' many native ethnological ;>peCT9ous aj-.e Jh' their pluc??.' In the centre of fchp flo.qr, faeiDg jlhedoor, aro the beautiful whito s.eg.l, moa skelo.tpns, Ac. On the loft hand side aro (,6b foreign mammals aud birds, painted with nature's moat lovoly colours, the charming metallic tints and gorgeous colouring shining up beautifully in tho afternoon light. Concluding our inspostion with an examination of tlio sholla and uiinorals from 'foreign lw;ds, wo turuod to the Curator aud nuturally u*kod when ho expected to officially npan" the Muslin. Mr Drow jupliud, " I don't know. J give every sp/trp ipfljjjent I can, j[tisa single-hiiuded job mid ens Uiaf. few ,cau kelp me \.t I am doing my bost, aud must ij.sk the B^bscribors and the public to Ji&ye patieD^e. 1 am more anxious than they can be to sco it opened, but being my own taxedermist, in fact having to do everything that ij required, you can easily imagine it is no small task." After thanking Mr Drow for his courlosy wo left, fooling that it was no idly .thought to wish him every success with his w.orjf, £ Excess which he so richly degerye&,

The frosty weather at Home told heavily on the accident assurance companies. One company, whoso headquarters are in London, received intimation of no fewer than 226 cases of Droken legs within seven days. A Presbyterian older up Auckland way was recently asked how tho kirk got along " Aweol, we had 400 members. Then ivn had a division, and thore woro only 200 left; then a woo disruption and only ten of us left. Than wo had a horesy hunt, and now there is only mo and ma brithor Duncan loft, and I ha' groat doot3 o' Duncan's orthodoxy."— Truth. This year, in the annals of tho Lord Mayoralty ot London, will be memoruble from the adoption of the new Chief Magistrate, Tyler, of the electric light in his official coach, not the gorgeous old tumbril that belongs to civic history, and makes its appearance every 7th of November in the barbaric procession for the benefit of the masses, but a new and splendid example of modern coachbuilding and decorative art, in black, gold, and red. This sumptuous vehicle is now charged with electric batteries and lamp?, and so illumined will flash through murky London with the fitful brilliance of a firefly. There is every reason to believo this bright example will bo followed by the wealthy " carriage folks "of London, and tho waiting rows of vehicles on great ceremonies will become lines of " light and leading ! " On February 1 (says tho N.Z. Uerald) thero will be three vacancies amon« the seven Bishoprics of the Anglican Province of New Zealand, namely, those of Melanesia, Waiapu, and Wellington. It has been announcod by telegraph that tho Archbishop of York and the Bishop of Durham, to whom tho trust wrs delegated by tho Diocesan Synod, have nominated the Eov. W. Danks, M.A , to the Sco of Wellington j and the Archbishop of Cantorbury, with Bishop Solwyn and tho Eov. Dr C:drington, have ncminated the Rev. Cecil Wilson, M, 1 , to tho Missionary See of Mulauosia. Mr Danks is motor of Richmond, /orkshire, and Rural Dean, and has boon a select prenchor of the University of Cambridge, He graduated at Queen's College, Oxford; in 1868. Mr Wilßon is Vicar of Moordowu, Bournemouth, and graduated at Jesus Collcgo, Cambridge, in 1882. These nominations wilJ, if accepted by Mr Danks and Mr Wilson, have to be submitted to the Standing Committees of the New Zealand Dioceses for confirmation. Consequently the new Bishops can scarcely be consecrated in New Zealand before June at the earliost. " A friend of mine," says a writer in an English contemporary, lately asked another friend down to the country for a day with the hounds, promising him a mount on one ot those ' nicest little horses in tho world ' which are sometimes apt to prove a little disappointing. He was represented as being a wonderfully clever fencor; you ' couldn't throw him down if you wanted to/ the visitor was informed, though he had not oxproased a do3ire to do anything of the sort, aud indeed had a decided preference for animals that stood up. Was the horse quiot ? — the visitor preferred them that way— was the next question, and the creature's demeanour was described as habitually kmb-hbo. The next morning the steods wore brought round to the door, and tho visitor perceived tbat the animal he was destined to mount, if it resembled a lamb at all, resembled the most frisky and frolicsome of the raco. ' Quiet as a lamb ' when you tome to ttw&Vi oi ft, \s %vwi&stiV>\& w V«& meanings. In the face of the curvings, buckings, and other performances, it was a little nard for the owner of the animal to renew his praises, tfut he was a man of resource. The hoise stopped for - a moment, planted nis forelegs firmly down, and launched out mightily with his hind one 3. The visitor looked at his host, but the host smiled affably. ' Wonderfully easy kicker, isn't he ? he observed with admiration." 1 he Shaw, Savill, and Albion Company's now steamer Gothic, built by Messrs Harland and Wolff, of liolfast, w.ll leave the colony for London on the Bth March. The Gothic is the largest steamer engaged in tho Australasian t ade, her gross tonnage being 7730 tono, hor length 400 feet, breadth C 3 feet, aud horse-power 6000. :he is expectod to maintain a sea-goiap speed of 13 knots per hour, throughout tho voyago, and is commanded by Captain Jennings, 8.N.K., late of the s s Doric. Her passenger ifcc'omodation and appointments are most luxurious, and there aro cabins on the main deck, the ijppor deck, and on the promenade dec|t, the cabins on tho latter deck beingfitted with bedsteads, instoad of the ordinary sleeping berths. The rates of passage money are piactically the same as tho existing tariff, with the important exceptions that thero are no second saloon or second-class berths. Fifteen first-saloon cabins on tho main deck will bo let at thirty five or forty guineas per, berth, according to the number occupying each cabin, and the passengers using these cabins will enjoy all the privileges of first-class passongers and mees at tho same tables. The steamer has also excellont third-class accomodation in the poop for 114 passengers, Thore is no doubt that early implication will be necessary in order to secure berths in this magnificent Btearaer. One of the horticultural journals states that' tho prjinge'troe in Tahiti is not cultiva.tsd, but gr»ws ia the wild s.tiite, propagation being carried on by raiders, such is rats, etc., scattering f-heseed, which, owing to Jlho moist warm climate, gorminHj^s with cerf^iD^y and rapidity. With .certain exceptions, occasionally foijnd ,QQ pleirings made for dwellings, plantations, and roadways, the orange tree in Tahiti grows in the bush, straggling, moss? onTeloped by tendrils and creepers, and surrounded by woods, and in this natU' rally weakened condition is becomiug an easy prey to the many species of scale and insect pest now so prevalent, and so caielessly introduced during the last fow years. The more vigorous treeß found in the open are hotter able to resist the ravages of thi3 evil, but the consequences in course of timo to the so-called orango groves of Tahiti must be evident to all ; still the native, who so greatly depends on the orango crop as a source of income, docs nothing whatovor to save the trees. Uo niiikos no attempt to clear the uhaos of jtin'glo surrounding them, or destroy the post; he contents himself with living simply on tho fruits of naturo, so long as they aro provided for him. Colonol Frasor communical9s an interesting note to " Nature " on a dwarf stocfc livin? in the Eournoul district of the Madras Presidency, not far south of the River Kietna. In speech and intolligenco they are not distinguishable from the other natives of that part of India. But it appears that these pygmies all belong to a family of which the male members havebeon dwarfs for generations, They marry ordinary nativo girls, and thi> female children grow up liko those of other people. When, however, tho males attain tho ago of six they cease to grow, at least, al the normal rate which rales previously, and become dwarfs, Colonel Craser describes these stunted specimens of humanity as almost helpless, and quite unable to waik more than a few yards at a 1 time. It is evident, therefore, that that this arrest of development is a truo disease, and not simply ordinary growth on a small scale. For dwarfs are in illmost every instance sharp of intellect, and both healthier and longer-lived than giant's who usually "break down at the knees" and dio early. Tho heart seems unequal to pumping blood over so large an area of body.