LOCAL AND GENERAL

Gisborne Standard and Cook County Gazette, Volume II, Issue 203, 2 October 1888, Page 2

LOCAL AND GENERAL

The new opera house at Wellington is to be lighted by electricity. The Maori footballers play their first match in England to-morrow against Surrey. The return match between the South Island and the Englishmen was won by the latter by two points to nil. In our report of the rinking carnival last Friday it was omitted to state that the Humane Society’s medal was, during the evening, presented to Captain Anderson, with a few words of complimentary reference by the Mayor, The rush to the Mahakipawa and Waikakaho goldfields, in Marlborough, still continues, but there appears to be a difference of opinion as to the prospects of the fields, soma persons asserting that there is nothing to warrant a rush. Commandant Booth says the saddest thing that has befallen the Churches is that they have ceased to be persecuted ; that the world and the Churches get along vary comfortably together, whereas if you kick the devil he is sure to return it with interest. In Sydney a learned authority has attributed the recent earth tremors in Now Zealand to the fact that in and about Christchurch the surface has been pierced by artesian wells. Under the city and the plaias adjacent there is a shingle bed, through which an almost inexhaustible supply percolates, and be contended that these wells have caused a subsidence ol the earth, and hence the earthquakes. On re-opening the inquest on the late 'fire, the Coroner said he had seen by the Gisborne Standard that the jury were eonvorsing with, and passing papers to the counsel on Wednesday last. He did not see any papers passed, nor did he hear any conversation between counsel and jurymen. He saw Mr Croft speak, and at once stopped him. After that, he saw nothing that could be objected to. If such things were done, or any conversation was held, of course it was not tho correct thing, but if such was the case it was done entirely without his knowledge. The foreman said such a thing never occurred, Mr Brassey said tor his part he had had no communication with the jurymen. It was merely a reporter's fad.

Referring to the alleged phenomenon at Geraldine recently, an Oamaru paper says :— The other day the good people of Geraldine discovered a yellow powder on the surface of the water in their tanks. As the phenome non occurred just when their minds were full of volcanic disturbances, they jumped to the conclusion that the powder was sulphur. All the surroundings at the time too, seemed to be favourable to the deposit of something from the lower regions, for a writer describee the meteorlogical conditions of the period in the following terms: —There were “ dark masses of wierd looking clouds and earthquake phenomena.” This was all very strange, but it is still more strange that after these extraordinary symptoms, the yellow deposit should be nothing more than the pollen from the tassels of the pine and other trees now in blossom.

Ths Children’s Skating Carnival on Saturday afternoon was a great success, the Maypole dance (ths main feature) being performed with remarkable grace and precision. Those who took part in it were Nellie Scott, Nellie Matthews, Lily Graham, Dotty Johnston, Donald Porter, Claude Slubbs, Fred. Stubbs, and Johnny Graham. The hall was nicsly arranged, and the scene was a very pretty one, the number of spectators also being excellent. The grand march was gone through in capital form. The most graceful skaters and tastefully dressed girls were Nellie Scott, and Nellie Matthews, and Nina Trafford alsq looked very pretty. King Scott was the diminituve medium of much enjoyment to the spectators, his get-up as a nigger being exceptionally good.. In the evening the Maypole dance was again gone through; the first figure was done splendidly, bat the children appeared too tired to achieve anything like the afternoon’s success. During the afternoon Mr Crawford took a photograph of tho group, the photograph being very successful and will be on exhibition to-day. An amusing incident which has not yet been recorded occurred tlje other Saturday day evening, when the performing bears were going down the street. Among the crowd which followed the beats was a gentleman of youthful appearance. A number of boys were exchanging jests with the showman, and he, mistaking our friend for one of his youthful tormentors, said to one of the bears, " Here, catch that boy I” The animal did as he was told, but the gentleman did not like it, and shaping up to the bear struck it on the head. This led to a row with the showman and a breach of the peace seemed imminent, the bear quietly looking on and wondering what on earth the row was about. Had the gentleman" reflected ha would have known that there is very little satisfaction to be obtained by punching a bear’s head, for bad ha used a siedga hammer it is doubtful whether the animal would have been the least discomposed. The Napier Telegraph, oommenting on the projected visit to Australia of tho Maori Hake Company, siys: “ Now, while we wish every financial success to the scheme by which Australians are to be shown a bit of bastard savagery, for the Maori of to day makes a miserable failure of a haka, we predict for it a failure. Mr J. Soott, at the time of the Sydney Exhibition, took over a haka company, aud only fennd out his mistake when he got there. It is the same Mr Soott who is now managing Warbrick’s football team, and it was not his fault that a haka never filled a tent. The fact is a haka is only worth a passing glance when performed by hundreds of real savages, and then no modest person would care to look at it. A haka under any other circumstances is about as stupid and uninteresting a show as a Walt? by two semi-intoxicated men performing on a race-course to the strains of a brass-band,” A rather amusing scene was witnessed In Gladstone Road on Saturday afternoon, when a rather burly looking Maori woman, who had been indulging pretty freely, wanted to have a "round” with Constable Brooking. The woman it appears was causing Mr Longley much annoyance in his shop and would not leave without tho assistance of Constable Brooking, who had to carry her bodily out and deposit her on the footpath. He had no sooner let go his hold when she suddenly jumped up, at the same time making use of anything but parliamentary language, and attempted to strike him. The constable had to call upon some men to assist in holding down his charge until the ' arrival of a cart. In the meantime a scuffle ensued, the Constable having his shakoo I knocked off. It ultimately ended in the " bracelets ” being adjusted and the prisoner was then, with great difficulty, placed in a cart and convene I to the look-up. She was brorpht before Mr Booth yesterday and fined ISA and cart hire, or in default 84 I aoutn The aiiß ;y war paid. I

A meeting of the Fire Brigade takes place to-morrow evening. All members are requested to attend.

The Mutual Improvement Society met as usual last night. The elocution class occupied the attention of members. The City Rink will in future be opened each morning and afternoon, but only three evenings during the week, Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday. The hall can be engaged for meetings, concerts, or dances. The harbor poll is to take plane on the 20th October. This looks like rushing through with a vengeance. We have not even heard mention yet of a public meeting or meetings being held, and the promised information has not yet been placed before the r tepayers. Another of the series of fortnightly entertainments will be given this evening in the Wesleyan Church at 7.30. A capital programme has been prepared, comprising solos, choruses, instrumental selections, recitations, readings, etc. As before the charge of admission will be only sixpence.—Ad. The usual meeting of the Borough Council takes place to-night. One item of business involving an important principle will be the application of Mrs Clarke for a remission of rates. As it now transpires that Mrs Clarke is the holder of different properties we cannot see how Councillors can do other than allow matters to take their ordinary course.

Amongst the Anglo-New Zealand magnate who have suffered most seriously from the depression in the colony and depreciation in the value of land is, says the London correspondent of the Dunedin Star, the Hon. Thomas Bussell, C.M.G. He has just given up his splendid country seat, put* down (horses [and carriages, etc., and otherwise retrenched vigorously. It is whispered that |£200,000 would scarcely cover his losses during the last few years.

Among the angling intelligence recently published is the report of a desperate strug gle between a young lady and a salmon. The fish was the aggressor, for while the lady was boating on the Avon near Bath with her maid the salmon leaped out of the water, ‘ hit the maid on the face,' and fell to the bottom of the boat. A fierce combat ensued, with the result that the young lady pounded the fish in her mackintosh, and the salmon figured on the breakfast table the following morning.

On Wednesday last a young woman, who has for some time past been a servant at an hotel in Napier, attempted to commit suicide by taking poison, while in a state of great excitement. She was engaged to be married to a young man, and it was arranged that the ceremony was to take place at the Registry office. At the appointed tima the young woman put in an appearance, but the faithless lover was non est, and enquiries instituted elicited the fact that he had left for other climes. The state ol the poor girl’s feelings can well be imagined, and she went to a friend’s bouse, and there took poison. Medical aid was at once summoned, and she was removed to the hospital. Next morning she had sufficiently recovered to appear before the Court, and Inspector Kiely, after relating the facts, said he thought the girl had been punished enough already. The Bench was of the same opinion, and after cautioning her as to her future conduct, dismissed the haorge. A romantic story about tho Glasgow Exhibition is going the rounds. An official, it is stated, picked up a lady’s pocket-book purse at the moment a gentleman was passing. The latter naturally stopped and assisted the official in looking for a clue to the owner of the purse. "Oh ” exclaimed the official at last, "hereis the owner's photograph, any way,” and then hastened to add, as he took it out of the wallet, “ Why no, it isn't, it’s not a lady’s photograph at all. It looks—you will excuse me for saying it—extremely like one of yours, sir,” and he turned to tho gentleman who had been assisting him. The latter at once admitted that it was his photograph, and said he thought he could find the lady to whom the purse belonged. And he did find her, the romance of the story being that the discovery of the photograph revealed to him the young lady’s secret. They are to be married next mouth. This wonderful affair is not the slightest comparison to the feeling of astonishment that some evince when they become aware of the advantages of buying boots at Garrett Bros’.—Ad. The Liverpool journals report an exciting incident which occurred in the menagerie at New Brighton. Mdile Esmeralda, the snake charmer, was attacked by a large cobra, which was coiled round her body. The serpent, excited it is supposed by the roaring of the lions, flew at the young woman, and inflicted several wounds on her arm. Another snake bit her on the forehead, from which the blood flowed freely. Mdile Esmeralda, although nearly blinded with blood, finished the performance, and managed to place the cobra as well as the other serpents in the large box where they are usually confined. A doctor was then called in, and cauterised the wounds on the arm and forehead. This took place on the 2nd of August, and the next day the performer when engaged with five lions wan again attacks 1. The young lady had concluded her performa ide in the den, and was presenting the revolver she had just discharged at the head of an animal named “ Flora,” when the beast struck her with its paw, inflicting a serious wound on the young lady’s hand. Further mischief was only averted by the keeper, who sprang forward and dealt the lioness a blow with a whip, which sent " Flora ” to her corner growling fiercely. In the meantime the lady beat a retreat and had her injuries attended to by a doctor. The menagerie was crowded at the time, and great excitement was caused by the incident. The Lyttleton Times thus concludes an article commending the perpetual leasehold system of land tenure :—What New Zealand has always wanted has been a land law to assist men with a pair of hands, some experience and a small capital to get on to the land, and rpake homes for themselves there without burdening themselves with debt. The evils of the oash purchase system have been so plainly seen in Canterbury during the last tea years that we should dread a recurrence to it without alternative as an evil only restricted by the narrowing limits of the agricultural land still remaining in the Crown’d possession. That the perpetual leaseholder should have the power of becoming a freeholder in course of time most people will admit. We have never argued otherwise. But It passes, our understanding that men should be found at this hour to talk " spreadeagleism ” about the Imaginary independence of the average freeholder, as compared with the serf like condition of the perpetual leaseholder. Which is the more independent—the unhappy mortgaged freeholder, whose very vitals are being eaten away by tho gnawing tooth of interest and compound interest, Qr the Crown tenant, secure for ever in tho possession of his acres, subject only to the payment of the lightest possible yearly charge ’ The usurer and his mouthpiece may advocate the old system ; we prefer the new.

Francis Achille Bazaine (whose death was noted last week), was born in 1811, and having passed through the Polyteohnique, entered the army in 1831. He served in Algeria, and took part in some of the heaviest fighting with the Arabs. He commanded a brigade of infantry, in the Crimean War in 1853, and had a command in the French Expedition to Mexico, whioh ended so disastrously to the unfortunate Emperor Maximilian, whom Napoleon 111. had used in this ill-designed enterprise. Bazaine was a type of those military commanders of France who gathered round ths President of the French Republic and assisted him to become its master and Emperor of France. When the war broke out between France and Germany, Marshal Bazaine was in high command, and his capitulation of the great French fortress of Metz after a siege by the Germans of seven weeks, when 3 marshals of France, 50 general officers, 6000 officers, 173,000 men laid down their arms, branded Bazaine with indelible disgrace. Tried in 1873 by court partial, he was sentenced to degradation and death. Tw latter part of the sentence was commuted for imprisonment on the Isle St, Marguerite, in the Mediterranean, from whioh his wife assisted him to escape. In the death of Bazaine there passes away another of the names whioh recall to Freuchmen one of the most deplorable epochs of their history—the rule of a man who rose to power through treachery and the blood of innocent fellow oitizans to deprave and debase the political and social morality of Franca, and whose career closed in the worst disaster ever BsperieuCffd by that great ruitied.