BREVITIES.

Gisborne Standard and Cook County Gazette, Volume II, Issue 238, 22 December 1888, Page 2

BREVITIES.

A reality—summer. The top of the season—Crawford’s tap. The maiden speech that pleases.—” Yes.” The Garrison Band “ musioate ” on Christmas eve. Native footballers beaten by Llanelly— a goal to nil. The schooner Gisborne is due from the north to-day. Two popular questions—Freezing meat and oppressive heat. The next issue of the Standabd will be on Christmas Day. If a man has brass he can get along with very moderate supply of tin. There are 114 candidates for Dunedit Education Board scholarships. H. Thompson, nf Gisborne School, is a “ phenomenon ” in Standard V. An alleged Maori horse thief was brought down from the Coast yesterday. Mr E. K. Brown loft last night for Australia. May good luck go with him. The correspondence budget of The Time* in salaries alone is nearly £30,000. Arrivals in the colonies exceeded the departures last month by nearly 200. Mr John Baldwin, having broken two blood vessels, is in a very critical state. The safest way to rid yourself of your wife’s female friends is to make love to them,. A blacksmith at Newcastle has oome into an estate in Sootland valued at £1,000,000. The new pro-Cathedral at Napier was on Thursday consecrated by tha Bishop of Waiapu. The Cambridge cheese factory is now receiving between 700 and 800 gallons of milk daily. Tha Conservatives got a msjonty of 436 over the Homa Rule candidate in the election for Colchester seat.

The Equitable Insurance Company is still doubtful as to which course is most expedient, windup or go on. It is claimed by medic il men that smoking weakens the eyesight, but see how it strengthens the breath 1

An Auckland coachbuilding firm last week had no less than thirty vehicles of various kinds to finish before Christmas,

The Matawhero Factory last night made its first of this season’s shipments of cheese—a fine sample of about a ton weight. Messrs Graham, Pitt, and Bennett to-day sell the privileges for the Boxing Day races, and also at 2 about forty colts and fillies. Four Dunedin Chinamen have subscribed £BO to the Exhibition, others £2O, and further canvassing arrangements have been made.

A large gathering of natives takes place near Rotorua, on Christmas Day. Many Maoris are expected from Napierand Gisborne.

The members of the Napier Working Men’s Club are considering the adviiablenese of starting a cricket club amongst the members. - An important will case involving several thousands of pounds is to be heard at the February sittings of the Supreme Court at Dunedin. If the working men only did justice to themselves and the colony, the unemployed of to-day would be the employers of tomorrow 1—“ Puff.”

According to the investigations of a Paduan University fever annually attacks in Italy some 250,000 persons, of whom fully 25,000 die. The latest joke—Rector “ Belcher ” has made “a strong’attack on the system of publishing full details of scholarships and competitive examinations.” A Napier fruit owner who is troubled with depredations of juvenile thieves intends to inject chemicals into some of the apples, for the benefit of the thieves.

It ia said that Mr. P. Cunuinghßm, who began colonial life as a sack mender, has netted £150,000 out of the rise in prices in grain and produce generally. It was stated at the H.B. County Council’s last meeting that the Council was overdrawn to the amount of £2053 18s 6d. The amount of rates outstanding is about £l5OO. The Auckland Young Ladies’ String Orchestra made a most successful debut last week, large numbers being unable to gain an entrance owing to the great attendance. Evangelistic services held in Auokland last week cost £3 5s a night, while the collection only amounted to an average of £1 Some business men in the city made up the deficit. Anyone found with mullet in their posses* sioo during the months of December, January, and February are liable to heavy penalties ; purchasers, hawkers, . and fishermen are alike punishable.

The conversazione to welcome the Bishop ot Waiapu on his return from England, in the Athenroum Hall, Napier, this week, proved a most pleasant gathering, the hall being filled to its utmost capacity.

An Auokland paper says the Seamen's Union is the grossest tyranny that has ever yet been exhibited in these colonies, and will be found to have struck a heavy blow to the cause of trades unionism.

The Queen's bounty has been applied for twice within a week. One of the recipients was the wife of a Manchester clerk, whose three iufants are living, and whose husband is only earning 12s a week. Articles of agreement have been signed at Christchurch between Harry Dunn and George Robinson for five style wrestling match, to be held at Wanganui on the 19th January, for £lOO a side.

The Napier people seem to be hard up to find something that will make an excuse for a holiday—or is it that they may as well shut up as open ? They declared a half holiday on the occasion of the opening of a pro-Cathe-dral.

A boy eleven years old, named McKee living at Leperon, Taranaki, was shooting sparrows with an old revolver, and got his hand in front of the barrel, when the revolver went off and shattered his hand. Two fingers were amputated.

Colonel Pollard, the ofHoer second in command of the Salvation Army in Australasia, is to make a tour of the colony this month, and it is hoped he will be In Wellington on New Year's Day. On that occislon an Indian durbar will be held, in which 200 soldiers will appear in Indian costume, The Nelson Colonist offers to head a subscription list with £6 5s to pay the costs of the Nelson Mail in the recent libel action, when it was mulcted in damages for giving a fair report of a meeting of the Nelson Edacation Board. That’s something like journalism—the whole colonial Press ought to accord its support to the Mail.