BREVITIES.

Evening Star, Issue 11607, 18 June 1902, Page 1

BREVITIES.

A practical and thoroughly successful test of the May-Oatway fire alarm was given ye&terday afternoon at the premises of Mr J. Edmond, Princes street, in the presence of a number of electrical exi>erts. Mr J. A. J). Adams lectured on 'A Trip Through America' at the Y.M.C.A. Literaiv Debating Society last evening. A seven-roomed house in Cliaucor road north, Napier, owned and occupied by Captain Nelson, was burnt down last evening! The flames liad a good hold when discovered, and, except a box of clothing, nothing was saved The insurances arc at present unknown. Dr Cowie's resignation of the Primacy of New Zealand does not take effect till {September 30. At a crowded meeting held in the Foresters' Hall, Auckland, last night, after addresses iiad been delivered by Mr Fowlds, M.H.R., 'he Rev. Mr Davidson, the Rev. Mr Gittos, and others, resolutions were carried calling for an inquiry into the declaration charging Mr Hutchison, S.M., with exhibiting bia,s into the application under wheh a license was granted to a hotel at Manngaturoto. ,_,- , Messrs David Barron, Charles Wilfrid Seymour Chamberlain, Robert Chisholm, Charles Edward Wisdom Fleming, and Geo Malcolm Thomson have been appointed membersof the Honorary Advisory Board of the Portobello Marine Fish Hatchery. The National Burgher who did splendid work towards the close of the war, have been disbanded. Colonel Girorard, C.M.G., dn-ector of the Cape railwavs. who is himself a French Canadian, was seated between two Boers of French extraction I Commandants Vilonel and Celliers). He instanced the freedom French Canadians had enjoyed under the Canadian Constitution, and pointed to the unique position held by the Canadian Premier, who is a French Canadian. The colonel's remarks produced a good impression on the Boers-. With a view to increasing the railway rates, the Queensland Government have decided to raise goods rates 10 per cent, and passenger fares 12£ per cent, from July 1. In this colony concessions will be made about the same period. On the 3rd inst. Sir Philip Fysh stated in the Federal House that the Commonwealth would lose from £40,000 to £60,000 through the closing np of '' Tattersall." A new venomous snake has been discovered in North Queensland. It has been named "Queensland Bartoni," after the Federal Premier. The Commonwealth Postal Department has decided to put an end to the custom of franking letters and telegrams sent by Royal Commissions and committees appointed by the State Parliaments. The Rev. R. M. Turhbull, formerly curate of St. Saviour's Cathedral, Goulburn, New South Wales, bus come into a fortune of £50,000. Mr Reeves gave a reception in Mr Seddon's honor ou Monday at the Imperial Institute. There were 300 guests, including Mr Chamberlain, all the Agents-General, Sir Westby Perceval, Sir Walter Buller, Colonels Cradock, Porter, Sominerville, and Madocks, two ex-Governors (Earl Glasgow and Sir James Fergusson), and Sir Charles Dilke. The colonial Premiers are to be entertained by Mr Chamberlain on the 24th inst., and by the Prince of Wales next day. The colonial troops in England are doing sentry duty in turn at the Hotel Cecil". The, Natal Carbineers led off on Sunday, and were followed by the New Zealanders. The programme of the new Victorian Premier includes a reduction of Ministers from nine to seven, and of members from ninety-five to fifty-six; single electorates, and the ratepayer's qualification for the Legislative Council; and economy in the Civil Service. The Queen reviewed the troops at Aldershot on Monday, and received a royal salute on the king's behalf. Mr Seddon was among the notable colonials at the saluting base. Queensland proposes to remit a number of sentences of prisoners on Coronation Day. The Australians' innings against Sooth of England closed for 154, and the home team responded with 138 (Trumble, eight for 58). The- visitors had made 105 for three wickets when rain, again caused an interruption of the p] a y. The authorities of King's College, London, have abolished religious tests, except for professorships and lectureships in divinity. Thirty-two of thirty-five French riflemen were massaered at French Guinea On the 21st inst. the colonial Premiers will be the guests of Tord Harrowby. Wade at Niagara Fails, Lord Kelvin expressed the opinion that the electric power would soon be- transmitted to New York, 400 miles away. At one manufacturing estab.ishment he saw the process wbei-by nitrous acid is made from air. At another he saw some wonderful electrical furnaces which transformed valueless carbon into valuable graphite. On hearing the process described Lord Kelvin remarked: "It ought to be easy to manufacture the diamond " If precedent is to .be followed (says the Speaker") there will be a number of peerages created at the Coronation. Queen Victoria created eleven, and both George IV. and William IV. twenty-two but some of the.se were merely higher honors conferred on existing peers, the main interest in the forthcoming list of honors will be in the lower degrees—in the baronetcies and knighthoods, which will be considered the fitting rewards for .service* to science, art, and literature, if, indeed, art and literature an- to be recognised. The Prince of Wales, as President of King Edward's Hospital Fund for London, has received from Mis SaintK-l Lewis the first quarterly instalment of the munificent annual subscription of £IO.OOO, which she. will give to the fund during her life. This represents the interest on the amount bequeathed to the fund by her husband, the late Samuel Lewis, in which sum Mrs Lewis has a life interest. Police-officer .lones, of the Leeds City Police Force, has received an intimation that one of his pictures, entitled ' Summer,' has befn hung at the Royal Academy. The constable bas regularly sent up works for fonr years, but this was the iirst occasion on which he has gained the much-desired distinction. This year be forwarded seven works, and the one which has been hung measures thirty by twenty inches, and represents a moorland scene in the summer. Mr Jones is practically self-taught. Mr J. Harding, of Harrowgate (Eng.), has a hobby for collecting pence for various charitable instituions. Altogether he has collected 126,000 penniei*—£s2s. He signs a receipt for every penny collected. A short time ago a peasant of Finisterre (France), who had come into an inheritance of £4OO, sold off his effects, and went to Paris. Mistrusting bankers and lawyers, he hid the money in a cupboard which occupied a corner of his garret. One day when he opened the drawer to see if his treasure was safe he was horrified to find that a nest of mice had almost completely devoured his fortune.