TABLE TALK.

Auckland Star, Volume XXVII, Issue 87, 14 April 1896, Page 1

TABLE TALK.

Star Summary on Thursday.

Harbour Board met to-day. S.s. Manapouri left^or the Soafcn. Oufcward 'Frisco mail on Saturday. Desperate battle with the Matabeles. The Italians are chasing the Dervishes. Brunnor Fund Athletic Carnival to* niorrow. Steamer Waihora arrive* from the South to-night. * The Vf eafcporfe coal export laeb week was 4,100 tone. The Hon. A. J. Cadman left for the South to-day. Wreckage it reported to hare came asbore at she Chatham Islands. The British war ship Wild Swan was ab Tahiti when the Richmond left. Countess Wachtmeieter lectures to-night in tha Public Hall, North Shore. The Gorernor of Tahiti aad French. Oceania is at present in Auckland. The, late rains have brought oa tho growth of grass well in the conatty. A flour mill will probably bo started again at Ngaruawhia, Waikato, shortly. Captain Ruasei), M.H.R., arrives from Napier by the s.e. Waihora this evening. Several police recruits left Auckland today by tke s.s.: Manapouri for the South. Whalebone never was so scarce in tho world as now. Id Bella for £2,000 per ton. Various changes are announced in connection with the Union S.e. Company's fleet. A Gazatto extraordinary, issued to-day, further prorogues Parliament till May 16th. Tho trade of the Cook Islands ie increasing with Auckland, and decreasing with Tahiti. On the island of Rarofeonga there ara 2450 natives, who own 124 buggies, several , bicycles and one piano. There are at present 75 male and 49 female patients at the Auckland Hospital. Typhoid cases are still coming in. The Tonga Islands yield annually aboab 12,500 tone copra. Tho crop will be much affected in 1896 by the last hurricane. Buggies are so common in ltarofconga that many of them are used for carting goods, lumber, fruit, and other produce. A large quantity of fruit has been placed oa the Auckland market by the South Se» Island steamers Richmond aud Southern Cross. The Greymouth coal export laßfe week was 2,231 tons,-and. the timber export for the week was 314,486 feet and 2,333 sleepers. The Devonport Borough Council intends visiting Rangitoto Island on Saturday, in order to look out the proposed line of road to the top. Coal prospecting is to be carried on be- . tween the Waitangi and Taheke streams. Bay of Islands, and boring tools are to be eenb up there to-night. The s.s. Takapuna took away yesterday £2120 worth of bullion, the product of tha Crown mind's recent crushing, en route to" England via Wellington. j There is a dispute at Karotonga orer tha succession to the late Queen Pa, of Taki-, tumu, the Arikis refusing to recognisa Maretu, Pa's adopted eon, as her successor./ A negro twisted an old native woman's; neck lately on the island of Aituiaki, Cook' Islands, and left her for dead, iv order to get £200 which she was in charge of. It ia proposed to banish him to a email desblita island called Tak'utea — practically "marooning." \ * Yesterday afternoon, Mrs Dr. Burnaby delivered a lecture in the V.M.C.A. Hall on "How to Prolong Life," to a largo audience of ladies. At the close of tho lecture she gave pyschometric roadingo of diseases to about*so ladies. She will lecture again next; Tuesday. • His Honor Mr Justice Conolly has granted probate in the wills of M&rtha Lambert, Sarah Piggott, Edward Bxelby, William McSlynn, Joshua Ockleston, Selina Richards Edwards, James Clsrk, and Fredk. George Cassel, and letters of administration ia the estate of Marblia Brown (deceased). At the usual monthly mooting of tha Auckland Ministers' Association yesterday aftoruoon, a .discussion took place on the subject of " The Church and tho Community." ' The Revs. A. Peters and F. Warner were appointed a CommiUea to consider tha advisability of a house to house visitation. The Raroconga newspaper, "Te Torea " says : "Look at the large tracts of beautiful fertile lands lying idle in our midst. The owners will not or can not cultivate thesa lands themselves, and still hold on like grim death, strongly objecting to any onfcsiders occupying the game. As tho lands are really owned by very few, and as landa can nob be sold In Rarotonga, it seems a pity that there is not more facility for cultivating." "Te Torea," the Cook Islands paper, says : "There is trouble looming ia Mangaia. The judge, police, and big men. of Tamarua have fallen back to the old plan and divided the Court fees among them, instead of leaving them, according to the new luw, tii 'ac spent in useful public works. King John and the other judges went to Tamarua and found this had been done. They therefore decided that the Judge Tearo and. the police should be dismissed and new ones appointed. Tha Tamarua people refused to allow this, and the dispute has been referred by King John to the British Resident."