NEWS AND NOTES.

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume X, Issue 1923, 7 May 1888, Page 2

NEWS AND NOTES.

Alf. Bush, the Australian half-caste, who made the record 23ft 4iu for long jump, at Botany, died of consumption at a native pah near Narrabri not long since.

Mr. B. Coyle has entered an action against the Feilding jockey Club for the recovery of £2, which the club compelled him to pay before starting Lady Artist at the late meeting for arrears due to the Hawera Club for nominations on the mare.

The committee appointed to report on the most suitable site for holding the next Agricultural and Pastoral Show, will be called together shortly. A report must be prepared before the annual meeting, which is required by regulation to be held in June.

Tbe liabilities of the fifteen banks which have suspended payment in Buenos Ayres are set down at seven million pesetas. A peseta is worth 9^d, so that the actual liabilities are under £280,000. This is a round sum, but is sounds much less alarming than seven millions of pesetas.

The result of the sculling match was looked for with much interest in and about town. The betting was generally slightly in favor of Hanlan, the odds taken being about 4 to 3 on the Canadian. The report of the race shows that Kemp is a strong and plucky oarsman, and well defserved success.

Shortly after eight o'clock on Friday night a remarkably large and brilliant meteor was observed in the southern sky, just below and to tbe left of the Southern Cross. It fell in a slanting direction towards the right, rapidly changing color in its progress, from bright fire-red to an intensely deep blue, gradually fading, and breaking into portions, then finally disappearing. The meteor was quite a sight for those who happened to witness it ; was of three or four seconds' duration, and lit up the country almost like daylight.

Condemnation accumulates. Mr. Ch.isPharazyn, writing to tbe Wellington Post, endorses Messrs. Beetham and Buchanan's opinions with reepect to the Central route, and says : — " To justify the construction of the Central lino on the ground that it will open much valuable land ior settlement, must be admitted to be out of the question, and I think few will agree that in the present state of our finances we can afford to spend vast sums of borrowed money on a trunk line passing through such worthless country. If Parliament nets with wisdom and honesty, it will decide to stop the line where ie is, and to give up the idea of connecting Wellington and Auckland by any route for some years."