TABLE TALK.

Auckland Star, Volume XXVIII, Issue 247, 25 October 1897, Page 1

TABLE TALK.

English mail arrived.

Mararoa in from the South. Waihora arrived from Sydney. . Hospital and Charitable Aid Board met to-day. . . . "My Friend from India" at the Opera House to-night. Sugar is said to be the most sustaining for long distances. Happy are the cyclists who take the world as they find it. A conversazione, will be held in the Catholic Institute on November 2nd. Mr Dignan is to be asked to stand for another term as Mayor, of Auckland. The steel yacht Isfrael carried away her mast in the harbour yesterday afternoon. To-day is the anniversary of the Battle of Balaclava, in the Crimean War,, in 1854. The Talisman gold mine return for the past month is £3,044 4.s from 1,010 tons of ore.

A copra-laden barque, the Gyda, belonging to Norway, has put into Papeete (Tahiti) in distress.

t Gordon, United, and Parnell Cricket Clubs scored wins in the Domain on Saturday afternoon. The Gordon .Highlanders have been complimented on their gallant charge on the enemy at Chagra Pass. Richard Henry.Keast, the "evangelist," was brought up "again at the Police Court this morning, on remand. An English mail of London date September 17th arrived here by the steamer Waihora from Sydney this morning. A Company lias been formed in Napier to recover salvage, from the wrecked s.s. Tasmania and if possible to raise her. The General Conference, of the Australasian Wesleyan Methodist Church will he opened in Auckland on Wednesday, the I.oth .prox.

, The Government has virtually agreed to most ot the resolutions passed by the recent Acclimatisation Conference,, and is preparing Bills to give effect to them. The Great Boulder mine at Kalgoorlie (W.A.) has turned out over 4*^.tons of smelted gold The last output for two weeks was 3,3860z smelted gold. . A new postage stamp is .'to be shortly added to the stamps in use in the. Cook Islands. . It is to be used, for parcels, and as a postal and revenue stamp also. Up to the present date .the. Government haveacquired 6,741,594 acres of native land in the King Country (Rohe-potae) and other localities in the N orth Island. .

. A number of New Zealanders leave Auckland to-morrow by the s.s. Mararoa for Sydney, in order to witness the running of the Melbourne Cup to-morrow week. Sermons in aid of the Home Mission fund were preached yesterday in the Wesleyan - Methodist city and suburban churches. .There were good attendances at the services.

Mr A. M. Ollivier, the well-known Christchurch cricketer, died on Friday. His funeral took place on Saturday afternoon. There was a very large gathering,' and all the athletic organisations were strongly represented. .

Yesterday, the Rev. Mr Soltau commenced a series.of Evangelistic services in. Ponsonby. In the morning he preached at » St. Stephen's Presbyterian Church, while in^ the evening he spoke at St. John's. Wesleyan Church. In the afternoon he addressed a meeting for men -only in the Ponsonby Hall. T, In a petition .which has beentseht by a number of Rarotonga merchants and residents to the * Governor of New Zealand it stated amongst other things that vessels sailing under the Protectorate flag of the Cook Islands are permitted to cruise without certificated masters, thus rendering life and property insecure. Mr Luke Evans died at Masterton • on Friday at the age of 76. Deceased was in his youth a man-o'-warsman on H.M.s. Rodney and Castor, serving on the latter with Lord Glasgow. He was engaged in the Kaffir war, and was present at the wreck of the Birkenhead.

Petty officer G. E. Spinley, of the Ponsonby Naval Artillery Volunteers, met with an accident at Mount Eden Rifle Range on Saturday afternoon. He was marking at one of the targets while a firing. competition was going on, when a shot struck another target, and the bullet glanc-' ing off embedded itself in the back of his hand. He had the wound dressed at the Hospital by Dr. Baldwin and was able to return and fire in the competition.

In June last the British* resident at Rarotonga sent to Mr Cheeseman, of the Auckland Museum, some branches and fruit of a discoloured and diseased orange tree. By the last mail Mr Cheeseman wrote :— '' The branches and fruit were somewhat withered, but sufficiently fresh to make it quite certain that the trees were suffering from what is called *- sooty mould,5 a fungus disease/which appears after trees have been attacked by certain insect enemies secreting a kind of honey dew, on'which the fungus first develops. The branches, sent had also numerous scale insects of several species, and a few other injurious insects also. Taken altogether the branches were in a very diseased state, and spraying with Insecticides or fungicides is strongly recommended for most of the diseases.

At a cost of £50,000, two German vessels are fitting out in Hamburg for an expedition to the South .Pole, under Professor Neuraeyer. It is intended that the two ships shall penetrate to the meridian of Kerguelen Island in order to explore a part of tiie Antartic Ocean hitherto scarcely touched. In the south of the Polar circle an observation station will be erected, and a part of the .scientific' staff, will remain there for two winters, making careful observations especially of meteorological and magnetic phenomena. One ship will keepin communication with the outer world, and the other will explore unknown regions towards the magnetic South Pole. It is hoped to penetrate behind the mysterious coasts of Wilkes Land and Victoria Land.

Some little consternatiou was caused (says the Rarotonga paper of a recent date to hand by the Upolu) when it became* known that a man of unsound mind was roaming about Rarotonga. It appears that the man was landed from the Upolu on her lajst trip from Auckland. An Act was gassed last year: "To Prevent the Deportation to the Cook Islands of Objectionable Persons." The liability for landing such people falls upon the master or owner of the vessel bringing them, and amounts to a fine not exceeding £100, recoverable in the Arikis' Court, Avarua. After landing the man called himself Alexander Cook, and later on "Jesus Christ." On Captain Macbeth, of the Upolu, being informed of the . state of affairs he ao once consented to take him back, and the man was immediately conveyed on board.

. Single robe lengths in black and coloured exclusive dresses, the latest Parisian styles and effects, from 19 9d. Smith, and Caughey, dress merchants. See their new dress advertisement.—(Advt.) Picanniny biscuits are specially made for children and invalids by J. Bycroft and Co. Limited, sold in air tight tins. "Ask for them."—(Advt.)