TOWN AND COUNTRY.

Lyttelton Times, Volume XCVI, Issue 14416, 5 July 1907, Page 6

TOWN AND COUNTRY.

. During June the rainfall at Rakaia totalled 0.76 in, and at Alford 0.85 in. The coal and blanket fund has been augmented by the following contributions:—J.W.P. 10s, Lieutenani>Colonel Knight ( (Salvation Army) £1 Is, " Abot " £1 le.

A very dene© fog prevailed! yesterday morning, and railway operations were considerably hampered. Fog signals were freely employed during the despatch, of the earlier traffic.

At a congregational meeting held in the Amberley Presbyterian Churchv,on Tuesday evening, it was unanimously agreed to secure a new organ. The organist of St Andrew's Presbyterian Church, Christchurch, will be asked to give an organ, recital in connection with the inaugural ceremony. A narrow escape from death took place at the Ashburton railway station on "Wednesday morning, as the 10.55 train from Christchurch was drawing into the station. An elderly woman stepped on to the line, but the driver observing her applied the brakes, and brought the train to a standstill when the engine was within a few inches .of the woman.

The Mayor has been advised that there is no provision in the Loans xo Local Bodies Act far taking a recount in connection with any loan proposal. Under the circumstances the proposed recount in the Sydenham Ward in connection with the water supply loan suggestion has had to be abandoned. Steps will probably ; now be taken to arrange for a fresh poll in the Sydenham Ward. At the annual New Zealanders' dinner in London, the High Commissioner {Mr Reeves) said : —Prosperity, brought its temptations, out if the newspapers did not worry the Government into worrying Parliament into worrying the moneylenders of the world into lending us more money than we ought to borrow, he. did not see why New Zealand's prosperity should not bo maintained.—(Hear, hear.) It was based not upon one industry only, but upon a dozen, all of which., were receiving the energetic development of the industrious colonists. Altogether he did not see any reason to anticipate any change in our happy prosperity.

A collision between, a motor-car and a pedestrian, in the early dusk on Wednesday added another to the list of citizens who regard the horseless carriage with an unfriendly eye. The pedestrian was crossing Colombo Street when a car approached at some speed, giving him no time to get out of the way. He was struck on the hip and knocked over, a portion .of the car striking his feet with sufficient force to tear the soles from his boots. The driver of the car stopped and inquired whether the victim of the accident was hurt, but on being told that no bones were broken, be quickly resumed his journey. The pedestrian, who was in no way to blame for the collision, was left to provide himself with a new pair of boots.

Property to the value of £IO,OOO was involved in a case in which the Native Appellate Court gave judgment at Wellington yesterday. It concerned the will of Wi Matua, Hawke's Bay, made in 1903. Tn addition to devises to the testator's wife and other persons, a devise was made of the testator's interest in land comprised in the Whawakanga block to Charles William Reardon. The devise was subject to a provision that, within twelve months of the- granting of probate of the will, R/eardon should pay all the testator's debts. The first application for probate Was heard by Judge Butler, but he died without giving a decision. On rehearing before Judge Palmer, probate was refused on the ground that the circumstances attendant upon the execution of the will were such as to cast upon it a suspicion that it was not the last will of a free and capable testator. The Appellate Court yesterday upheld the judgment of the Native Land Court, and dismissed the appeal.

Small birds exercise considerable discrimination in the selection of their diet, and what is greedily devoured one day will be rejected on the day following. This affects particularly the laying of poisoned grain, and some county councillors of Bruce have had peculiar experiences in this connection. _ One councillor informed the Council on Tuesday (says the " Otago Daily Times ) that he placed some poisoned grain, two years old, under some trees gome time ago, and picked' up afterwards one hundred and sixty dead birds under one tree. Thinkiaig that old poisoned grain was preferable to new, he immediately procured an additional supply, only to find that the alert sparrow had no regard for the abundance placed before him, and absolutely refused to notice it. A settler in another part of the district has recently had a similar experience, and wrote .to the Council that ho had, as a result of one day's poisoning, secured' one hundred and forty dead birds' under one tree from one-year-old poison. Some of the councillors are anxious to know tlie result of a repetition of the operation, as their hopes have been, raised, in the same way only to find that the small bird ;s something more than fastidious in regard to food, and that he -looks with suspicion on the corn that is scattered with a- lavish hand to lure him to his destruction.

Lamp Season, 1907.—Fletcher Bros, have a good assortment of useful Lamps. Hanging Lamps from 7s ud, Hand Lamps Is each, Tabic Lamps from 2s lid. Chimneys, Globes, Wicks, Shades and. Burners also in stock at low prices. 1

The Sailors' Homo, Lyttelton, Jia* '\ received magazines and illustrated papers from Mr Guise Brittan, Ohxistchurch.

During the quarter ended June 80, the following old age pension business was transacted at the Ashbur.ton Magistrate's Court: —New applications ra» ceived 18, granted 14, refused nil, pending 14; pensions renewed 87, re* fused nil.

The e ale of Mr Christmas' s picture* took place yesterday afternoon, with only fair results. " The Blacks' Camp" realised £l4 10a, and other prices ranged from £2 10s to £l3. The re. mainder will be on view this morning for private sale.

The annual social of the hotel' em» ployees of Christchuroh took place last evening in the Art Gallery. About two hundred couples took part in the Grand March. The social was very success* ful in every respect, the total attendance approximating to three hundred couples. Tho music was supplied by. Fox's band.

Two passengers from England by ths Tongariro, which arrived at Wellington yesterday morning, were dealt with under the Immigration Restriction Act. One, an infirm man, was required to enter into a bond that he would not become a* charge upon the Stat*. Tho other, who suffers from tubercular disease, will be sent back to England at the shipping company's expense.

A Press Association telegram states that last evening the Timaru t Main School Committee discussed a cireulai from the "Wellington Citizens' Bible-iru« Schools Committee, and passed ths following resolution: —" That this committee agrees to the reading of th* Bible in State schools, but does no* approve of ttie restrictions of the teaching to members of the staff only. There were two dissentients, the Eff A. E. Hunt (chairman) being one. There was an. attendance of nearly one hundred boys at the social of th« "Boys' Own," or junior branch of th» Y.M.C.A., on Wednesday evening. Th« Chriatchurch telegraph messengers were the guests of the evening, and they, in common with the other boyi present, thoroughly enjoyed the pro* gramme of songs, recitations, and games. During the evening it was an* nounced that tne result to date of ths membership campaign, now being conducted by the boys, was an increas* of the roll number by nearly' fifty-

At the usual meeting of th« Y.M.C.A. Literary Society on Tuesday evening Dr Chilton gave en instructive and interesting lecture on " The Life of a Plant." Mr C. Weuf occupied the chair. By means of lantern views the lecturer was enabled to illustrate many of the wonders of plant life, particularly their love for the light, and their power of adapting themselves to varying Tna lecture was highly appreciated by all present, and at the conclusion, on the motion of the president, the Rev J. Mackenzie, a hearty vote of thank* was accorded to the lecturer.

An inquiry by the officials of the Tramway Board was held at the sheda yesterday morning in reference to the. oar which was the cause of the accident on the Papanui Road on Wednesday. The controller and brake gear were found to be in perfect order, and there were no signs which would indicate that the car oould not have been stopped in the regular way. In any case, means are provided to cut off the current independently of the controller, each end of the car being fitted immediately above the' motormans hea4 with what is called the circuit breaker, which is available at all times for outting current off or on. It was also pointed out that the air brakes which are used on these oars am so powerful that the wheels .may be locked even with the power full on. At the monthly meeting of the New Brighton School Committee on Monday evening, a circular issued by the Wellington Bible-in-Schools Committee provided considerable discussion. A motion was moved expressing disapproval! of the inclusion of Bible-teaching &* part of the school ourrioulnni. The chairman (Mr Withers) referred' to the difficulties met with in other countoea in connection with the question. He favoured the formation of a Bible-olass> under the leadership of a minister oi religion after the usual school hours. Mr Bargrove moved as an amendment that the proposals of the Wellington Bible-in-Schools Committee should be approved. Mr D. G. Macfarlane seconded the amendment. On a show of hands being taken the amendment waa carried by six to two.

There was a large attendance at ths monthly •meeting of the North Canterbury Poultry Club on Tuesday evening. Mr W. Y. M'Cracken was m the chair. The secretary (Mr 0. W. Bell) reported that indications assured a very successful show, entries being premised from distent parts of the South Island. Several special prizes were Five new members were elected. W'th reference to the installation of gas m the Drill Hall, carried out by the club under an arrangement with the volunteers, Captain Borthwick wrote that the system of lighting wasi not satisfactory for general purposes, and. the' Volunteers had now decided to install lamps of their own. The matter was referred to the Gas Sub-committee to deal with. Mr J. Bishop was appointed cartaker for the show, and it was decided to engage the brass band £« usual. The arrangements for the supper were reported to W well m hand. The show will take place on Julv i» and 24, and entries close on Saturday.

During his recent official visit to the Gisborne Masonic Lodges the M.W.tr.M. his Excellency the Governor (says the "New Zealand Craftsman") humpa* onsly related hia woes in oonnectioS with the care of his case of Masoma clothing on the journey by wad from Napier. The Grand Secretary, true ta the traditions of his ancestors, had cannily informed his Excellency that the clothing was valued at £7O or ±.»u, and consequently on the Tough overland trip from Wairoa the case containing it was a source of continual anxietv to him. He had been compll* mented on his courage and determination in persevering in spite of the terrible state of the roads, but he eaidi there was n.f> great merit in J that, though he did consider that the manner in which he stuck to that £BO case was worthy of the highest praise. On one occasion, when they came to where a culvert used to be, and had to leave the coach and tramp through mud and slush, which reached the knee®, ho was horrified ia find on eafely reaching terra firma that the £BO package was left behind, and, after its, recovery he registered a mental vow not to lose sight of it again, and on arriving at another washout shortly afterwards he shouldered the case and straggled through triumphantly. His secretary; who had got through with a small bag, congratulated himself on at anyrate having a dry but his Excellency, ruefully regarding the historio and valuable case,/ remarked that) though the contents were probably dry, he was very much afraid they would not give him, a very corafortabla change. • •'

The great auction sale of Messrs Smith and Son's jewels, watches, eto , will be continued at M'Kenzie and' Willis's auction rpoms at eleven o'clock to-day. Buyers it yesterday's sale ok taiiied marvelkrtfe bargains, beautiful jewel rings, gokl and silver silver and plated goods being sold far very much less than cost price. 1. .

Best value given in Gold, Silver and Nickel Watches. Engagement Rings and Gold Muff Chains, Ladies' Gold. W 7 atches from £1 15s, Gold' Brooches from 6s 6d. ■ K. Grieshaber, Jeweller* 155, Colorado Street, X 3371

A Napier telegram says:—By "Wednesday's mail a draft for £244 was forwarded to London, representing sub■criptions raised by the Napier "Telegraph" on behalf of Pearson's fresh sir fund.

It is understood that Mr Thomas Bell of Murchieon ? who lost his wife and'was himself injured in the Brooklyn tramway accident a few weeks ago, ia claiming £2OOO damages from the Wellington City Council. One of the new steamers mentioned in the London cables as having been ordered by the Union Company is to be a cargo loat of the "Waiter* type, and will be of SSOO tons <JW weight. It is not intended for »ny Bpecial trade, but will be employed as a general carrier. Record entries have been received for the annual poultry show at IS elson. They will number within a few of 1200. All sections show a large increase, but especially pigeons and can'»ries. There are numerous outside exhibitors, including fanciers from Auckland, "Wellington, Canterbury, Otago and Sydney. In Chambers at the Supreme Court yesterday, letters of administration were granted in the estate of. Thomas Griffiths, of Annat (Mr Hall), sureties to be approved by the registrar. Probate was granted of the will of Thomas Guy (Mr Bishop). In the case Grimes t. the "Waipara Road Board, the minutes of the decree as to the injunction were settled.

The quantity of gold exported from New Zealand during the past half-year •was 226,475 ounces, valued at £904,948—a decrease of 38,646 ounces of the value of £165,486 compared with the corresponding period last year. ?The export of gold last month was, 26,702 ounces, valued a,t £104,459, W •gainst 48,640 ounces valued at £195,556 in June last year. The quantity of silver sent out of th© colony last month was 91,231 ounces, of the value of £9342.

A Nelson telegram Bays that the •bipment of Motueka apples to London, guaranteed to the extent of a penny per pound by the Government, has given disappointing returns, owing to poor prices and damage. Four hundred oases were sent, and could be carried only as ordinary cargo, consequently some of the fruit was bruised and others unduly squeezed. The shipment also arrived at a time when the markets were totally glutted, and arealised only 2s 6d per case. At the weekly .meeting of the Ashburton County Rugby Union on Monday evening strong exception was t»ken to the Hakatere Club defaulting with its Junior team, and the, f ollo\yIng motion was passed:-—" That this Union refuses to accept the Hakatere Junior team's defaults, and, further, that unless, the Junior team's future engagements are fulfilled the Union, will take steps.to reclassify the Junior and Third Grade players of that club. In the event of non-compliance with thi* resolution the club's Third Grade engagements shall he considered defaulted. ' The request from the Old Boys to allow their Senior team to withdraw from the competition was granted. A match played between the Boys* High School and the West Christchurch .School resulted in a win forlthe latter by nineteen points to nil.

"With this issue will be found a circular from Messrs Beathand Co., Ltd., announcing the inauguration of their Red-Letter "Winter Clearance. The wealth of bargains offered certainly any .member or the gentler sex to relax her jealous hold of the family pursestrings, and invest now, while, as the ■firm claims, every pound will reach the limit of its purchasing power. 1308

This is to notify the public that today begins Black, Beattie and Co.'s Annual Sale. Great reductions all round' will enable you to save a lot of .money in the purchase of general •drapery. The stock is clean and well assorted. Mostly everything you ask for will be found here at reduced rates. f Come while the selection is good and make your purchase., 1988

A HOPELESS CLAIM. Tlie London correspondent of the '" Argus " writes:—We have news from •Rome of a remarkable claim that is being presented against the British Government. But likely to come of it, excepting disappointment to ite promoters. They axe the representatives of the Peruzzi, family, long known in. Florence as the greatest 1 hankers in Europe. In. the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries the Popes appointed the Peruzzis to collect the Papal dues in England, and remit them to France. They were thus brought into connection with the English Kings and Court. Altogether the Grown borrowed £2,400,000 off these Florentine bankers. King Edward 111., in his Royal way, ordered & suspension of the repayment of loans granted to the State. That edict ruined the Peruzzi bank. But the Peruzzi family have always.endeavoured to keep the claim alive, and when King Edward was in. Eome_ in 1903 on© of tlw family wrote to him, and reminded him of the British indebtedness With interest of 4 per bent on tho original loans, there ia a little hill against this country of over fifty millions sterling. But there is also the Statute of Limitations. STEEL PAVEMENT. • Paris (says ih& " New York Sun ") is experimenting with the latest thing in* pavement They call it steel pavement, but it is really a concrete pavement re-enforced with a steel framework. The trial section of it has been laid on the Rue Saint-Martin, in front of the Conservatoire of Arts and In•iuaVies. The metal part of the pavement is a plate of perforated 6teel, with strong bolts of steel running through it between the perforations. Each section has some resemhlance to ft steel harrow, only the prongs project equally on each side, and they are ►quare and blunt. The plates are arranged close together on a bed of rough /boncrete such as is used for wood-block pavement. Then a specially-prepared tement is shovelled upon them in a •oft condition, and rammed down until It makes a 6olid mass, with the steel frame just levelled off evenly with the tapper tips of' the prongs. The steel prongs are so olose together that the fboe of eveTy horse' and every wheel of any width must Test in part on them and in part on the cement. It is expected in this way to secure a highly .Curable but distinctly uneven surface, We on which horses will have sure footing in' all weathers, and on which they ■an secure the necessary, purchase to Ball heavy loads. It will be superior io aapbalt in ultimate economy and to wood, both in the better footing that It affords to horses and in the fact that It will not admit of dangerous ruts de» f eloping. The sample laid cost thirty ftiHings a square metre, a little metre fan a equare yard, but when tho work done on a large scale it is believed . Ihe price can be out to about twentyEve. The life of_.such a pavement without serious repairs is estimated at ten , fears as a minimum.

"A MATTER OF EIGHTEENPENCE." "This is not an unimportant case," ■■id Mr Justice Murray at the Quarter Passions at Sydney a few days ago, when charing the jury in the matter •f an indictment against a tea canraiaser, " although the amount in question is only a matter of eighteenpence." It was the principle at stake that gave the ca6e an importancp to the judicial mind (says the "Daily Telegraph"). The accused had been charged with felling a half-pound packet or tea for '% full avoirdupois pound, and also with certain prizes, which wore not It was not an un•mmoa thine for people of shady

character, said the Judge, to go about selling tea which was not of good quality. And it was very unfortunate for honest canvassers, who were down on their luck, and who were penalised for the unscrupulousness of others. After the jury had brought in a verdict of guilty the police informed the Court that certain dealers bought tea in the city at 2Jd a lb, and put.it up themselves. There were numbers of householders who had been taken in with the class of tea by canvassers, but all they did was to throw the stuff away and say nothing more about it. " And has no attempt been made to analyse this tea and test it by an expert?" asked the Judge. Addressing the prisoner, his Honor said that not only did he sell stuff that would probably poison, but he stood in the way of "honest men earning a living. If another person could have been linked with the prisoner, they could have been charged with conspiracy. The accused seemed to have entered upon a systematic career of fraud, although it was only a matter of eighteenpenco in this case. A month for every penny concerned was evidently sufficient to meet the case, and so the accused was ordered to Bathurst Gaol for a year and a half.

THE "STAR." Saturday's "Star," in its Ladies' Page, gives to women at once a fashion magazine, a cookery book, a medical treatise and a delightful dissertation which must appeal to every young wife upon the foibles and sms of men.. The page contains: —"Pages from the Diary of a. Debutante' "Tight-lacing and Heart Failure, "Romantic Stories of Famous Families," " A "Woman Explorer," " For the Housekeeper," "The Sins of Men, " A Few Uses of Kerosene, and "Household Hints/' In Saturday's issue there will also appear another instalment of Tom Gallon's new serial, "The House of Many Voices. Chief among the many short tales and sketches are:—"Nature's Symphony," " Sketches in. the King Country," "The Night-air Superstition," "His Last Proposal," and " Ghosts of the Sea." All gardeners wil] find items of information in " "Work for the Week," while as for the "Week," it is certain'that the most morbid of its readers will be constrained to laughter. In the eight o-elock edition will appear, besides the latest cables and telegrams, full accounts of the sporting events of the day. LADIES' CHEAP BICYCLES. We have a line of 25 ladies' bicycles ready for sale at £5 for cash. Every machine is guaranteed reliable and in good running order. Ladies can save tram fares by investing in a bicycle. Money dairy spent in tram fares is lost forever. Why not invest the weekly tram bill in purchasing a good reliable bicycle, which can be obtained on weekly payments of ss, and costing on terms only £6. We invite ladies to call and inspect our stock of cheap ladies' bicvcles-. The line of 25 machines will soon be sold out, and the best and most stylish will be picked out first; therefore, do not delay, but call at once at Adams Ltd., late Adams Star Cycle Co., 138-140, High Street, Christ church. 1988