LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Evening Star, Issue 10340, 14 June 1897, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

' * —:, _ Tj^vioklaj^^rald' Bta^tfeat> ;^tte ars||amen and fPpure, iMfat ci|£jiwho are fiiyjui' to che£&iumj|j|l|it. establisfinttnts wlpEurtMfeans oaiidgtt in— .jjpfo jn— tosto% JPlE*'*" penny or shilling" opium are others who are the victims of the morphia, ohloral, and ohlorodyne habit, and who have lost all power of self-control as completely as the habitual drunkard. Court Robin Hood, A.0.F., celebrated their anniversary by a social in the Foresters 1 Chalmers, on-lrHajr" evening. The hall had been nicely decorated ior the occasion, and there wero about sixty couples present. Dancing was kept up .with much spirit until an early hour this morning to the musio supplied by Mr Yates, vocal selections being interspersed with the dances by the Misses Austin and Howetson, Mrs Tullook, Messrs E. Smith, Austin, Liddle, and A. D. Fail. A recitation was given by Miss Mayhew and a sailor's hornpipe by Mr J. Murray. Messrs E. Smith and Austin acted as M.C.s; Mr E. Moss oatered satisfactorily. The weekly meeting ot the Parliamentary Union was held in the Chamber of Commerce on Friday evening. Mr J. B. Callan (Speaker) presided, and there was a fair attendance of members. The question for discussion was the 'Amendment of the Land for Settlements Act, 1894.' Mr D. W. M. Burn opened the debate with the following motion:—"That in the opinion of this House the Land for Settlements Act should be amended by the addition of a section to the following effect: ' That any person wanting land for settlement shall ba at liberty to forward to the Land Office application stating (1) the quantity, (2) the quality, (3) the locality preferred of the land he requires; and that on the accumulation of a sufficient number of such applicants, of whose bona fides the Land Commissioners shall be satisfied, steps shall be taken forthwith to acquire land according to the provisions of this Act.'" The other speakers who took part in the debate were Messrs P. Barr, A. H. Burton, J. A. Soott, E. C. Huie, S. D. Cronin, W. Donald, and Dr Batchelor, after which the mover replied. A division was then taken, resulting in the motion being negatived. The subject for next week's debate will be the action of the Dunedin Licensing Committee at the recent licensing meeting. " I have no dividend to offer you, gentlemen, but I have a very good brand of whisky in the next room," blandly observed Mr Joseph Thomson, the chairman at the half-yearly meeting of the Stock Exchange of Melbourne Company, and the members instantly availed themselves of the consolation. At a meeting of Waikari (North Canterbury) residents on Wednesday night it was decided to promote a petition for the compulsory acquirement of the Glenmark Estate. Mr Meredith, M.H.R., stated that he had the* authority of the head of the Land Purchasing Board for saying that Mr Moore had withdrawn his offer for the purchase of the estate by the Government. " Did I understand you to say that you are unmarried, madam ?" asked the lawyer who was cross-examining a Chicago woman. '■ I do not know what you understood me to say," replied the witness, " but that is what I said. I have been unmarried—unmarried four times."