Miscellaneous Extracts.

Hastings Standard, Issue 254, 23 February 1897, Page 4

Miscellaneous Extracts.

BITTEN BY A SNAKE

Whilst playing on the verandah of his father's house, at Ivoondrook, N.S.W., a boy six years of age named Walter Meddings was bitten on the ankle by a snake. His leg was securely ligatured, the wound scarified and strychnine injected, after which he was driven fifteen miles to Kerang to the doctor, and is now out of danger. Another case occurred to a Chinaman named James Ah Cheong, market gardener, who was pulling beans in his garden when a tiger snake fastened upon the middle finger. He shook it off aud immediately had the finger ligatured above the wound. He recovered under medical treatment.

A PECULIAR WILL.. Frank Ives the well known champion billiard player of America, has made one of of the strangest wills on record, Ives can strike a billiard ball with a cue harder than any man in the world. Corbett, Fitzsimmons, Sandow, and other athletes and strong men have competed with him, but he has not been beaten yet. He has consulted eminent physicians on the subject, but they gave him little satisfaction, except to say that his profession has led to the development of muscles which prize-fighters and strong men do not use. As Ives cannot settle the question to his own satisfaction, he has taken steps to enlighten others after his death. In his will, he orders that his right arm be severed from his body, and sent to his physicians for dissection. The real secret he thinks, will then be discovered. The rest of the body he desires to be cremated,

AN ILLEGAL INTERMENT. At the Wanganui Police Court last week a charge of illegal interment was brought by the police against a resident of Fordell, who had buried the body of his newly born infant in a box in his back garden, believing it to be a still-born child, and not knowing that it was against the law to so dispose of it. The medical evidence then taken showed that the child was not still-born, but had only just breathed, and, in any ease, could not possibly have lived. The police accordingly brought the action for illegal interment. His Worship (Mr Kettle) in commending the action of the police, touched on the serious nature of the offence, and expressed the hope that the present case would act as a warning to the public. He said that although ignorance of the law was no excuse, he would in this instance inflict merely a very nominal penalty. A LADY BICYCLIST IN TROUBLE. At the Melbourne District Court Johanna Mackay, of " Rosebrook," Riversdale road, Hawthorne, was charged with negligently riding a bicycle. The evidence of Constable Hawkins, on traffic duty at the intersection of Swanston and Flinders streets, showed that defendant was riding a bicycle along the latter thoroughfare on the 29th ult., when she collided with an old gentleman and " sent him flying." He was a man 71 years of age, and resided in the country. After the accident he was carried into a shop, where he had to remain an hour before he could proceed on his way. Defendant did not sound her bell or give any warning. She was travelling at the rate of between four and eight miles an hour. This evidence was borne out by other witnesses, and defendant, who told the Bench that she had sounded her bell, was lined 10s. THE DIAMOND MINES OF KIMBfiRLEY. In a lecture on the diamond mines of Kimberley delivered recently at the Imperial Institute, Professor Crookes, F.R.S., said that the four principal mines employed about 8,000 persons, of whom 1,500 were whites and G,500 blacks. From two to three million carats of diamonds were turned out of the l>e Beers Mines in a year, and up to the end of 1H92 ten tons of diamonds valued at £60,000,000, had come from those mines. In 18!)5 there were found 2,1:45,511 carats of diamonds, realising £B, 105,958, at an expenditure of X' 1,701,818, and leaving a profit of .£'l,-101,115. The De 1 Veers Company could raise more diamonds than were represented by those figures, but it had been found that the demand for the stones did not exceed four or four and a half millions sterling annually, and tlie output was accordingly restricted in order to maintain prices. Large diamonds were not so uncommon as was supposed. Stones weighing over an ounce (151-5 carats) wore not infrequent at Kimberley, and the largest found so far in that mine weighed 12MA carats in the rough and 228 A carats after beirnr cut. The largest known diamond, weighing 970 carats, was found at the .fagersfontein mine, ami is now being cut at Amsterdam.