YESTERDAY’S NEWS.

Evening Star, Issue 3078, 31 December 1872, Page 3

YESTERDAY’S NEWS.

Miss Nichols, of the Grammar School, Tokomairiro, has been elected schoolmistress of South Dunedin School, in place of Miss Calcott, resigned. A pension of L7SU a year, under the Government Pension Act, has been granted to Colonel Sir Thomas Gore Browne in consideration of his Colonial services. Th» Scottish Company of Volunteers have elected Sub-Lieutenant Henderson to be First Lieutenant, the position being rendered vacant by the resignation of Lieut. Dunn. For the oflice of Sub-Lieutenant there were two candidates - Scrgt. Fredric and Vol. A. B, Spalding. The latter gentleman was promoted to the position. Another good house witnessed the repetition of the pantomime last evening, which went well from first to last. The comedy was “Book the third, Chapter first,” a sparkling little piece, in which Miss Colville as a jealous wife, and Mr H oskins as the friend who cured her of her malady, played with great spirit. The last scene of the pantomime met with the usual approbation. On the evening of the 24th inst. a fire broke out in Mr Crawford Anderson’s bush, Inch Clutha. The fire extended over about seventy acres of pretty thick bush ; it also burned Mr Anderson’s stock-yard and a house of his, which he had rented to a man named Lawson. The fire is supposed to have occurred through a tire which a man named Cole lit some two or three days previous on the adjoining section, for the purpose of burning a lot of scrub, from which direction the wind blew very strongdnringthe day and night of the occurrence. Mr Anderson estimates his loss at about L4OO, none of which is covered by insurance. The following amusing description of a three-legged race at the Nelson College sports, on the 11th inst., is from the Evcnhuj Mail .•—This was the last, and, as is usually the case, the nr st successful of the day. In order to determine wfio should be coupled together, numbers in duplicate were placed in a hat, and those who drew corresponding ones were to run in pairs. The consequence was, as might have boon expected, that the couples were assorted in the most fantastic manner, without regard either to their size, power, or speed. Two of these, however, happened to comprise four of the biggest competitors, and they naturally went to the front, hut when within a few yards of the winning po.-t they jostled and fell, and formed a foundation for a heap of others who tumbled on the top of them, the consequence being, that one pair, to whom the race seemed hopeless, came in the winners. The hat that contained the numbers was on this occasion guilty of a strange freak that gave rise to no little amusement. On the numbers being called it was found that Stafford and Luck ic— not the Stafford and Luckie of the political arena, but offshoots from tho

parent tree—were to run together. The coalition did not prove a success The boys strained every nerve, did their very btst to win, but it was of no use, Stafford and Luekie cmild not be made fo run in double harness, and the want of confidence that was felt from the start iu their ability to win, when thus tied together by.the leg, was hilly justified by the result.