TOWN AND COUNTRY NEWS.

Lyttelton Times, Volume XIX, Issue 1099, 23 May 1863, Page 4

TOWN AND COUNTRY NEWS.

Canteiuh-ry Mimical Society.—The first annual meeting since the amalgamation of the two societies m Christchureh, was held last evening, at the Foresters' Ilall. It was numerously attended; ,T. C. Wilson; Esq., Chairman, J. Ollivier, Esq., Vicechairman. Mr. Bonnington was unanimously elected Conductor and Leader for the year. The .President and Vice-President gave an invitation to a soiree, to be held in the new Music Ilall, as an appropriate opening, at an early date. The Mail.—lt is stated that the City of Ilobart offered to bring the mails from Melbourne, but for some reason the offer was not accepted. Public Holiday.—Tuesday has been proclaimed a public holiday in honor of the marriage of the Prince and Princess of Wales. Electro-Biology.—Captain Wilson gave his first lecture on this subject on Thursday night last, at the Foresters' Hall, to a numerous audience. He gave an interesting account of the principles of the science and of some extraordinary cures he had effected by the aid of mesmerism. He took two liorse-shoe magnets, and having abstracted the power from one he restored it again to its original force by what he called induction; he also stated that one magnet was capable of imparting its own power to a great number of pieces of steel without losing a particle of its own attractive force; so, he argued, healthy persons possessed a power which could be exerted upon individuals in a similar manner. Several persons seated themselves on the platform as subjects for the lecturer to try his skill upon, but after a long trial he was unable to put any of them to sleep, which he attributed to the coldness of the room. Upon a " subject" of his own, however, he produced the usual mesmeric sleep, rigidity of the muscles, &c. Several medical gentlemen examined the patient and acknowledged there was a " something more than ordinary" in the appearances he exhibited. Mr. Wilson expressed his intention of giving a series of lectures, and no doubt he will be more successful with his illustrations upon a future occasion. The Arsis Act. —In consequence of arms and ammunition having reached the North Island from this island by coasters, and passed into the hands of Maories, strict orders have been issued by the General Government to all Customs officers to institute the most rigorous search on board all vessels leaving New Zealand ports coastwise, with a view to the seizure of arms or ammunition. The Arms Act penalties are very severe and make the sale of arms without license felony. We may as well mention, as a caution to captains, that the act makes it a misdemeanour to allow arms to be brought on board. We trust that every New Zealand colonist will unhesitatingly notify to the authorities any intention he may become aware of of forwarding arms destined for Maori use in the North. The Mortality among Cattle at Akaroa.— From the Provincial Government' Gazette' of Tuesday last we take the following account of a post mortem examination of the cattle at Akaroa, performed by Mr. Hill, by order of his Honor the Superintendent:— " To T. W. Maude, Esq., " Provincial Secretary. " Dear Sir, —According to your wish, I accompanied Mr. Inman to Akaroa, and have inspected his mob of cattle. Upon my arrival there, I found that no fresh cases had broken out. and that three of those that had been ill had recovered, or nearly so; I had these driven up into the stock-yard, and examined them minutely, but could not detect the least system of pleuro-pneumonia, or in fact any affection of the respiratory organs at all; I then inspected those animals that were upon the run, and had them likewise driven into a stock-yard; these animals to all appearance were in a healthy state, not a symptom of any contagious disease amongst them, and the greater part of them in very good condition, the cows more especially. A heifer which had recovered, and which Mr. Inman said had been one of the worst cases, I caused to be destroyed. The post mortem appearances were as follows:—Beginning from the larynx, the whole length of the trachea or windpipe, the bronchial tubes, the mucous lining membrane of which was perfectly healthy; the lungs themselves and the pleura were in as healthy a state as I ever saw. Upon opening the cavity of the abdomen, I found the capsule of the liver slightly diseased, and a few small abscesses in the structure of that organ, which are not uncommon. Upon examining the stomachs, I found them to be healthy, until reaching the abomasum or true digestive stomach of the ox, the mucous lining membrane of which was in a highly congested state, more especially the pyloric end or beginning of the duodenum or small intestines, with slight ulcerated patches in different places, and some quantity of pus in certain portions of them. In fact, the whole length of the intestinal canal was more or less diseased; the other organs were in a healthy state. " I should have made a post mortem examination of the animals which had previously died, but they were too much decomposed: I am sorry for this, as the disease would have shown itself in them in much plainer form. lam of opinion that the cause of this diseased state of stomach and intestines, and likewise the death of the others, has arisen from some vegetable poison which the animals have taken. I cannot think that the ashes from the wood burnt during the recent fires would contain enough alkaline salts to cause it. " I remain, yours truly, " Thomas Hill, M.R.C.VS."