TOWN & COUNTRY.

Lyttelton Times, Volume XLII, Issue 4326, 23 December 1874, Page 2

TOWN & COUNTRY.

Gift Auction;— -This affair in aid of S. Paul’s parsohage, Papanui, has been so successful, that |be promoters have decided tb ' ooritinue it tb-day, s ■ <; 1 ! TeliKQhams fob ‘EKCHiAiirD. —As the Tararua will probably, leave the Bluff at 11 a.m. on Thursday, telegrams for Europe and Australia must be sent to the Christchurch office before 10 a.m, ph.that day. Excuesions. —The s.s.Bruce is announced to leave Lyttelton on Boling Day for Pigeon Bay, and the Halcyon is laid on tb take passengers to the exhibition of the Banka Peninsula Pastoral Association on Dec. 29. The Autumn Mbetino.— The Canterbury Autumn Meeting of the 0. J.C, will be held on April 23 and 24. . The programme comprises four events of 100 soys each, on the first day, and on the second, there is the great Autumn Handicap of 300 sots. Full particulars will he found in an advertisement. :

Db BuxiiEß. —On the application of Mr Duncan, as counsel, Dr W. L. Duller, of the Inner Temple, London, was yesterday admitted by his Honor Mr Justice Gresson, a barrister and solicitor of the Supreme Court of New Zealand. Dr Duller intends to commence practice in Christchurch. ' j CONEEBENOET OB ! EOAO BOAED CHAIRMEN. —The meeting called for yesterday lapsed in consequence of the chairman : and secretary not being in attendance! The gentlemen present Were Messrs J. N. Tosswill, Fisher, H. J. Tancred, Fisher, H. J. Hall, and T. I. Joynt, the latter of whom attended in hip official capacity as Provincial Solicitor. j West Coast Views.— Mr Sherlock, of Gaul’s photographic festab]dphm6ht, : has succeeded in turning out ten excellent views of West Coast toad BCeridryV- taken in the neighbourhood - of Power’s Uctrommodation, house. It is Mr iGaul’s intention to obtaid views of the best portions of the scenery right through to Hokitika, and he will commence the tour early next month j taking with him all the necessary apparatus to enable him to carryioUt his projeot satisfactorily. ’ Christchurch Harmonic Society.— This society will give the second cpncert of its present year, this evening; in the Canterbury Music Halh The first part consists Of Haydn’s Imperial Mass, and the second. Men-: delssohn’s music to Bacine’s “ Athalie,” The.' final rehearsal was haid yesterday, and was so satisfactory as to give ievery promise of a highly successful performance of the great works that will be presented this evening. Tickets are procurable at Mr Bonnington’s and all the musie sellers. ■ - > r. ■ Waikabi.— A correspondent informs us that a school will, in .all probability shortly, be •rected in this rising settlement, Mr W. Parkerson, who leases; that fine property of the Dukeof Manchester in' the Waikari, hah given the school, committee'tWouCres of his land within a hundred yards of the proposed township. The . committee, consisting of Messrs Tosswill, Dixon, MLean, and White having received the grapt of land from Mr Parkerson are now - using all 'endeavours to forward their project, and hope before the Winter sets'in to have the'school erected! The children of the district have hitherto been much neglected for-want of such a place to attend. v- ' ’ ’ ' !

KAIAPOI , Faemees’ Club.— The ordinary monthly meeting of this club was held at the. Eaikainui Hotel, on Monday evening last. There were twenty-two members present, and. Mi Joseph Clarke presided. Mr T. Hill, M.R.C.V.S.L., read a paper on “PuefpjSral fever in CMttle,” after which a’discusßibtfthok place in which most of the members joined. A vote of .thanks was unanimously passed to Mr Hill for his valuable paper. It was then resolved that any professional gentleman reading a paper at a meeting of: the club be elected an honorary member. It was decided that the next meeting of the club be held on Jan. 18, when Mr J. Beharrell will read a paper. AquaticsI.—The* 1 .— The* second 1 competition for the cups given by Mr Blakiston, captain of the Canterbury Bowing Club, took place yesterday evening, the course being one mile and-a-half, starting at Wright’s and' - winning at Herdson’s. The boats and crews entered were—Cygnet (north bank), J. Gray, bow ) J, O. Jones, stroke; B. Mountfort, obi. Moa (south bank), M. Bowron, bow; M. Lewin, stroke; B. Mountfort, cox. Mr Crosbie acted as starter, and Mr Blakiston as judge,' A good start was effected, and thp Moa soon obtained a lead,'which she maintained for about three htondred yards. Jonefe then quickened up and went to the fore, ultimately winning with ease. The time was 12mine B3seos.

New Thhateb.—A meeting’ of promoters •f the above was, held at Mr Charles (Jlarkis suction rooms, yesterday afternoon. Present—Messrs’!/. Walker, Wynn Williams, and Bohniugton. Mr John 01hviera$ended this meeting and submitted to those present the contemplated scheme for the Ocquisition of up oxtended area and- the erdargement-of- the present theatre. , It.was.rssplved that in the event of the '' scheme being accepted and 1 acted upon by . the shareholders, the promoters of the intended company would give it their support. Mr Ollivier, having expressed his intention to convene tin early meeting of shareholders in the present building for the purpose of obtaining their concurrence, then withdrew, and the meeting adjoumed'sine djs. BaWIOBA 'WHSIBY^i‘r. : CiE6,ffIT.--TThe quarterly toeeting Wak held on -Monday, in the,Sonthbrbok’Ohu:rchi inching; H. Bull (oheimaii} ahdi the Bev John Armitaga. There were, thirteen members present. The number pf Church members was teported to he ninety; The income, including balance and proceeds of tea meeting in hand from last quarter, was £77 18s 2d, the expenditure being an equal sum, A vote of thanks was passedto Messrs Little and Graham for their, services as circuit stewards during the past year. Messrs J. Little and Thomas Wilson wirp , thpn k elected to the office of circuit stewards. In the evening a meeting of <thjs Local Preachers’ Mutual Improvement Association was held at the house pf Mr D. Graham, by whom tea was provided. " !

yoitTNTßna Inspection, The 'usual monthly infection of Head-qiwrters' after which, .the : Yolphteere: '*;«»; : ’ in Various ' This yas 'ths first inspection'at which the Artillery, ‘paraded; with the hew Snider breeoh-lpadihg rifles[ Prior to dleraisaing the brigade, 001. Pabke presented the prizes.won at the competition amongst members of the Artillery on Deb. Id.' The first was Messrs PctersSn and Oo.’s' ou^. to Sergt. Tiper; the second;, a pi^oeof plate; given by Sergt. piper, won by ]&m, Burnett 1 ;, and thethird, a sum of by, Quarter-master Sergt. BaveD. Aftcr parade, ; a meeting of the Engineer Corps was held ih the Orderly ,Boom, when it was decided-that those members/Who had hot competed for Dr Frankish's, prizes should fire on Saturday next.

" jsportc will oome off in s ■HHb nft«L4ne Junction Hotel, on Boyinmßjmjnlaven o’clock. V On Saturday naow Whiteside, while swnitwflown in the river Sposite of his Honor a brown paper m^|;he" 'riter about-three feet from the ih 1 mallow water. Having fished out the opened it, and found it to oon-taib-tba.dead body of a female child. There was also a large stone in the parcel, placed -tbew-for-the- "makmg"ir 'rinkr Information was given to the polioe ; and on Monday afternoon an' ihquesl was beld oa the Hotel.-befOTe-Dr Coward, Coroner, and a jury of whom Mr Charles Beyonh the facts relating; tjOitbediscoveiy iq,the rivef," nothin g was elicited; at the inquest to lead tb the apprehension of the person guilty of ,the ' oohcealmffht of birth; ; Tbe hpdy toq jar depomppsed, to enable; piedipri. gentlenitfd tb i say whether the child was born dead W alive!; under thes't ciroamstances, the jury returned verdict of “ Found Head.” !

GAiNiuq A Loss,—An 4-merican paper stater that a wagof whs offered recently by one of the workmen in a steam planingundls ib West Chester, Pennsylvania, that* hone- oj their number could remain In the ctfVihit-Todbi pf! the.inill, which hata.poiuibnttempetatare .of about l4odeg, for the period of one hour.' One of the men accepted the bet; the which were only Idol a side, were placed in the hands of a shopmate. the heated aparfment under the mill was entered, and the test of endurance began. The fellow; won the dollar, reinaining for the, stipulated time; but the lean, gaunt, emaciated figure that, came! from put Or the furnace required more than ■ dbllar’s worth of provender to supply his loss of flesh.

French Suicides.— The following facto are extracted from a report of thp French Minister of Justice. The number of suicides reported to the authorities for 1872 were 5276, or 161 more than those of 1869, and 272 lew than those of 1868; the department 'of the Seine contributing one-seventh of the total. Seventy-eight per cent, of the total bekiiiged to the male sex, or Is‘per 100,000, the remaining 22 pet cent,, representing the female sex, were in the proportion of 6 per 100,000 ; 2312 or 45 per cent, of the suicides had recourse to strangulation, 1463, or nearly 8 per cent., to drowning, 581 tp, Jreorms, ?78 to charcoal, 206 to cutting instruments, and 107 to poison. The - causes were 1 poverty and ’reverses, 453 ; family misfortunes; 732; love, jealousy, debauchery, and bid cpnduct, 315; drunkenness, 513 ; physicalsuffering, 629 j various, 473; insanity, 1568; capital crimes, 23. ; ' ! Tea and JDsthexics.— The last eccentricity of the great arthritic of' the present day is setting up a tea-shop! Subscribers to’the Pars Clavigera have lately received from Mr Buskin’s Kentish publisher, Vith their copies, a card with the name ‘‘Harriett Tovey, tea and coffee dealer, 29, Faddington-street, Port-mah-square,” printed upoh it; ahd atthe back a irritten statement to the effect that "Mr Buskin’s object in setting up this, shop iatjiat thß poor round about may be able to get’their teh arid' coffee pure and unadulterated.” The , adulteration question' dertainly presents’ an' alarming aspect when wh find that it awakens such “ divine wi-ath ” in . the, , bosom of ah ethical and sssthetical Professor as tp lead him in the interests of humanity to rush iuto. the tea trade. 'Wo have tested, Mr’‘Buskih’«,tea and find it excellent; hut for bur.own.pairt we would willingly: drink chopped broomsticks rather than lose the ‘‘aesthetic tea”, of peculiar, flavour which Mr Buskin has/ hitherto served put tO US. 'li.'v'l Germany and the Navigator Islands. ■—-The Pall Mall Gazette' says:4--Thpinler-ference of the Germans in Saihba ia hy no means so strange as. : if inay appear to.be’at first sight. . Indeed, it is almost’ to. he wondered at that, nothing; of 1 tfip sort has! pocu#e$ 1 before. Nearly the whole hf th? Samoatrade, as well as that of the more remote islands, is at present in; the hands of Germans. The great house of Godefroi, of Hamburg—the Kings of the South Pacific, as they were formerly called—has foriyenrsexercised almost undisputed control ih; Samoa, and its agpnts are to be found in evpry corner of' Polynesia. Samoa, has of late, been examined -by ah American who .is anxiojus toa induce thjj United States Government to annex the group, but it would Seem to be the opinion of the majority of his countrymen that they have enough,coloured ‘men .on their hands already.. The beauties of Samoa have often been enthusiastically described. If the real facte were knoWn, outraged prudery would long since l have organised a special erttsade against the islands. Hapia is the Corinth of Polynesia. ; >

Peice of a Wife.— The New York Times, own correspondent at San Francisco writes'to that journal The Chinese r are in some respects Very mueh like ,tt*. They buy their wives. A Chinaman here, in want of a wife, scrapes together his. wages and sends the amount, home, generally' to his father or mother, with the order for a Wife, and they go into the market and make the best bargain they can, according to the money to he invested. Sometimes the. amount is small and really a flrstrclass article .cannot be bad.for the sum, but the old lady generally does her ’be* and ships ovdr thrwbihhn “consigned to her son, who meetsher at the steamer-withiik bill of lading, pays (ftoighj; ERdjD|iftrges£ahd takes'his property. It woaamiscellaneous consignment of this sort that was grabbed by our zealous authoritiesblit Judge Field, of thp -United States Supreme Courtj'daeided that'the proceedingsiarh illegal; add’ordered the discharge of the squad.. If any of your readers want to know the price of a real useful wife, of this sbrt; of reliable colour, warrahted'to Wash (Mondays),! can informthem, as my Celestial, Ah Sam, who dusts out my office, has recently imported bne.Sam sent money io his mother, and in due course of‘time the. purchase arrived, and,Sam broughtr her dojrn for my in* speotion. She' was as ugly a Chinese woman ae l ever saw. T said, " Sam,-not handsome, eh Sam says, “ No, no handsome much,; handsome gal cost heap moneyi and all time kick up bobbery,” , Jam had the oorreot idea of it, and was wisely content with a plain article that was 1 most likely to stay by him. Sam informed me that the yrith. freight .ana charges, was 1 800 dole—all it was worth) if I am a judge of that species of goods, gained from a mild experience, : n, T . r: (; i'