News in Brief.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume xxii, Issue 6457, 29 December 1904, Page 2

News in Brief.

. A road race will ba hold at Wheatstone on 11th January. The nominations close on Saturday, 6th January. A charge of £1 oaoh will b3 levied on bookmakers at the Tinwald Races on Monday next, Jan. 2nd. A counterfeit coin factory has been discovered in the vaults of a synagogue at Jerusalem. On Saturday, 7th January, at their West Street Auction Mart, Mes3f3 .Frie<Hander Bros., Ltd., will offer for salu a complete threshing plant.

A. Palmerstonian who lost a Tattorsall's swe;>p ticket ten months ago fou?id it the other day. He made inquiries in Hobart and happily discovered that he had won ,£SO, which was duly forwarded.

At Ballarat (Victoria) the other week a juryman applied to be excused from attendance because he had promised to give the bride away at a wedding on the following day. The Chief Justice, Sir John Madden, said the policy of the law was to encourage matrimony, and granted the application.

Cigarette-smoking his gained a remarkable hold on the natives of Indii, and the sale of the cheap cigarette has developed into an important branch of trade. The Chinese are also readily taking to the cigarette, and British merchants almost monopolise the trade.

A commercial traveller named M'Masters had a very unpleasant experience on the Rarawa between Onehunga and New Plymouth last week. He went down into the hold to look at a racehorse, and while he was thus engaged the hatches were fastened down, the sailors being unaware that a passenger was below. The imprisoned traveller endeavoured to attract notice, but it was not till some three hours elapsed that attention was directed to his predicament.

An outbreak of .fire occurred in a peculiar manner in the shop window of Mr London, chemist, Warnambool, Victoria, recently. The rays of the setting sun shining into one of the windows were focussed by a large bowl of amber-coloured liquor, setting fire to a pile of b*th gloves, and soon filling the window enclosure with smoke. The fumes brought Mr London to the scene, and the burning articles were removed. Portions of the gloves were reduced to cinders.

"It's good to be a Chinaman sometimes, after all !" was a remark overheard at the Greymouth Magistrate's Court the other day after the Magistrate had convicted and discharged a Chinaman charged with a breach of the Borough by-laws in riding a bicycle between sunset and sunrise without a light. A week before the Magistrate fined several Europeans 10a and 7s cost for the same offence. The reason why the Magistrate let the Jhiuaman off waa because "he did not know the law." " But" added the Magistrate " you mustn't do it agaiD, and should warn your countrymen."