The New Dunstan.—Before us we have a map of the coming town, and a miserable production it is. The artiste evidently was a Sunderland youth, loving his native district beyond all control. We find the following appellations given to the projected streets, and a most unwarrantable change in the name of Hartley-street is to be effected—Sunderland-street it is to be known by, and the following are the favorite names given by Mr Convell to the veins of traffic through our town:—Bridlington-street, Ham-burgh-street, Whitley- street, Redcar-street, Longston-street, Cheviot-street, Berwick-street, Harilepool-street, Newcastle-street, Head-street, Scarborough-street, Tees-street, Shields-street, Hull-street, Tynemouth-street and Seaton square; and most ridiculously, the street leading from the Oiterion Hotel to the Camp is called Coquette-street. There is not much in a name, 'tis true, but we protest against having these Yorkshire and Sunderland names forced down our throats by any broad-spoken surveyor, and name our streets we must, at some public meeting that will be held. Hartley having been the cause of bringing the Dunstan into existence, why his name should not stand good for our Main-street we cannot devise. The Dunstan is to be known as Clvde, no doubt, to please the taste of a number of cannie old Scotchmen. The present name is known over the world on account of the prominence of the district as a goldfield. Clyde will not for years be known, and will, at best, but be deemed a paltry, unmeaning village in some obscure spot of the Province.— Dunstan News. The Use of Dogs in War.—Now, what is war at all but to conquer or destroy your enemy as quickly and effectually as possible, until he submits or an agreement be come to. The cavalry charge at Balaclava was pronounced by a sensible Russian officer, "not to be war, although very fine," for the troops went point blank ic the face of destruction, and met with it. If I can, by ambush, surprise an enemy's army, it is pronounced glorious. If I trap him over ground that is mined underneath, and blow him to pieces —the same. If, with a regiment of horse, I can ride over and trample under the horses' hoofs a thousand men of the enemy, the deed is applauded ; and if the same thing could be done by an elephant or any other animal, why not ? It is as well to be destroyed by a dog as by a horse; one seems to me as much English as the other. The New Zealanders are men of great physical power, and possessed of undaunted courage—of that there is no doubt—and individually would be far more than a match for the English, unless skill, knowledge, and superior means, together with all other aids that we possess, be brought into play, as well as to be met with simple courage. Depend upon it, if " An Englishman" were personally engaged in the war, he would be glad to save himself from such an enemy with the help of horses, dogs, cats, rats, %r anything else that would assist him in doing it."—Correspondent of the Melbourne Argus. A Fast Story.—An Englishman was bragging of the speed on English railroads to a Yankee traveller seated at his side in one of the cars of a "fast train," in England. The engine bell was rung as the train neared a station. It suggested to the Yankee an opportunity of taking down his companion a peg or two.—• What's that noise ?' innocently inquired the Yankee.— 1 We are approaching a town,' said the Englishman. 'They have to commence ringing about
10 miles before they get to a station, or else the train would run by it before the bell could be heard? Wonderful, isn't it? I suppose they haven't invented bells in America yet ?'—' Why, yes,' replied the Yankee, ' we've got bells, but can't use them on our railroads. We run so tarnal fast that the train always keeps ahead of the sound. No use whatever; the sound never reaches the villages till after the tram gets by.' —' Indeed!' exclaimed the Englishman.—« Fact,' said the Yankee; ' had to give up bells. Then we tried steam-whistles, but they wouldn't answer either. I was on a locomotive when the whistle was tried. We were going at a tremendous rate—hurricanes were nowhar—and I had to hold my hair on. We saw a twohorse waggon crossing the track.about five miles ahead, and the engineer let his whistle on screeching like a trooper. The next thing I knew I was picking myself out of a pond by the roadside, amid the fragments of the locomotive, dead horses, broken waggon, dead engineer lying beside me. Just then the whistle came along, mixed up with some frightful oaths that I heard the engineer use when he first saw the horses. Poor fellow, he was dead before his voice got to him. After that we tried lights supposing that they would travel faster than sound. We got some so powerful that the chickens woke up all along the road when we came by, supposing it to be morning. But the locomotive kept ahead of it still, and was in the darkness with the light close behind it. The inhabitants petitioned against it; they could not sleep with so much light in the night time. Finally, we had to station electric telegraphs along the road, with signal men to telegraph when the train was in sight); and I have heard that some of the/ast trains beat the lightning fifteen minutes every forty miles. But I can't say as that is true—the rest I know to be so.
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Lake Wakatip Mail, Volume II, Issue 62, 2 December 1863, Page 5
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931Untitled Lake Wakatip Mail, Volume II, Issue 62, 2 December 1863, Page 5
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