Untitled

Hawke's Bay Herald, Volume 13, Issue 1047, 11 May 1869, Page 3

"A Question to be Asked:" — If Secret Voting be adopted, and Spinsters get votes, how will tbey like to be called Ballot Girls? A certain Fop, who was arguing with a bluff clergyman on the immortality of tbe soul, asked bim, " Now, where do. you think I shall go after death P". " Wher-, ever your tailor goes," was tbe calm reply. Vicissitudes of a Victorian Squatter. — Tbo vicissitudes of squatting life- are indicated by the following paragraph from tbe Pastoral Times, .in reference to Messrs F. and G. Desailly: — Our Lachlan correspondent mentioned in his letter of last week that these gentlemen had abandoned tbeir stations there. We bave been making enquiries as to the accuracy of tbo reporfc, and ib is nofc yet confirmed. Wo hope it is not true — we hope as well for tbe sake of these spirited squatters as for the public. The failure of a squatting firm,' possessed once of sucb large means and vast experience, would be a serious blow to the interest itself. Five years ago the Desailly s bad amassed a fortune of £80,000. With tbis sum, and with -tfeeir great practical knowledge of squat- ■ tinglV^ts entirety, they plunged in the waterless" wilderness north ofthe Upper Lachlan, and loi*rfr-4he whole of their capital. They left the^SC§ne of tbeir misforbunes last week, perhapS^for ever. Theso misfortunes were mainly ciltlg^dby ' drought. After leaving Mossgiel stations'" they made thoir way, via Hay, to tbe hon. William Campbell's stabions, in the rear of Couargo. Between Hay and Gonrago, tbe rain which tbey bad prayed for during four or fivo years, overtook them, and followed in tbeir wake liko a deluge. But the storm threatened tbe lives of tbe Desaillys ; tbey were travelling in an open uu ggy through such rain as tbe white man never saw hero before. For four weary days and nights they ' voyaged' — for it was through water — and for fortyeight hours tbey were without food or shelter, when tho buggy became buried in a swamp. To try and extract ifc, thoy took as much of ib as tbey could to pieces, bub in vain. There ifc stuck and there tbey left ifc, in order to save themselves from destruction." Our contemporary concludes by expressing a hope tbat tbe rain may assist to retrieve the forbune of Messrs Desailly, and enable them to reap a return for tbeir outlay. The Divining Rod. — The Albury Banner thus refers to the divining rod: — Some interesting particulars on tbis subject bave reached us from a German gentleman resident at Jindora. He says tbat the efficacy of the divining rod is generally looked on as a well established fact in Germany, and among the agricultural selectors from tbat country who have settled in this, disbriefc. In some instances it has been used before selecting land for farming purposes. Tho land thus referred to by our correspondent was avoided by froo selccbors as being desbitute of water, but was lately taken up by Germans, who asserb that tbey ascertained by tbe divining rod that plenbiful streams of water were bidden uuder the unpromising surface of the land. The rod is said to work in anybody's hands, and to bo in no way indebted for its virtue to the individual who holds it. Tbe essential thing to be observed is that the rod (a two-pronged or bi-furcated twig) must be cut from new wood of not more tban a year's growth, and any sort; of tree will do so long as this condition is observed. In this country, however, our informant gives tho preferonce to twigs of red gum. He says that a few years ago a party of German miners from the Hartz mountains (tbat stronghold of mystery and fairy tales) might have been scon afc Castlemaine sedulously going over tbeir claims with the magic rod looking for indications, not of gold, but of water, in which they expected to lind deposits of alluvial gold; and it is only in connection with such deposits of that metal — namely, alluvial gold — that aur informant fancies tho divining rod would act. Tbe rod is said to be attracted or drawn downwards with considerable force on passing over a subterranean watercourse, and at tbe samo time, our informant avers, a sensation is felt in the liands ofthe operator similar to tbat which i man feels on taking bold of tbe poles of in over-strong electro-magnet ; he cannot ;hrow tbe rod away without considerable 3.ffort, bufc there is nothing of the nature Df a "shock" such as would be felt from in ordinary electrifying machine. Tbe Sermans hereabouts use the rod in the jrthodox way described in the "Antiquary" — namely, by taking hold of one fork in each hand, while tbe handle or thicker end of tbe twig is pointed outwards in front of the operator. Not content witb furnishing us with the above particulars, our correspondent hazards a theory to the effect that tbe rod was probably known to tbo Egyptian priests, and that Moses knew something about its virtues when he came on the water at the rook!