BY THE WAY.

Mataura Ensign, Issue 717, 29 March 1900, Page 5

BY THE WAY.

Windy. /' ' ' „ " Plague still bad in Sydney. , Thirty-one cases in quarantine, one death, and another seizure. The attempt to establish gold mines at Karoii (near Wellington) has been given up. The syndicate alter spending £1700 has surrendend the lease to the City* Council. Nine meihbeis of the Legislative Council and two members of the House of Representatives have sons in the New Zealand contingents who arc serving or tire accepted for service iv the Transvaal. ' A Mrs Jones who died lately at Chester, aged eighty -t even, was the mother of thirtythree children. Some time ago she won a prize given, by a periodical to the mother of the largest family in the United Kingdom. During -the severe weather prevailing at Merthyr Tydvil. a cabraun returned to bis stables after a ball, and was later on found frozen to death. His horse had nearly perished. The loss to the insurance companies by the fire in Warner's Hotel at Christchurch is nearly ?5 per cent, of the fcital amount (£11,000) of insurance on building, furniture, fittings and stock. Edward Hockey, aged 15 years, fell from a bicycle whilst riding on the Trafalgar Park track at Nelson on Monday. His skull was fractured, and he died without recovering consciousness. The annual meeting of Ihe Gore Killes to have been held on Tuesday evening was postpone&until Tuesday week on account of the small attendance of members. The firstsfed of the Waipara-Cheviot railway was turned by the Hon. Hall- Jones yesterday. The Premier and a large number of visitors from Christcburch were present. At a meeting of Ly Helton milkmen the other evening it was decided, on account of the scarcity of grass, lo raise Ihe price of milk to 4d a quart from April 1 to September At a well-attended meeting of Crookston farmers on Monday night, it was unanimously agreed not to employ any mill on which the wages exceeded 9d per hour. Mr and Mrs Jas. Cullen, of Outram (foundcis of a well-known family bearing that name) celebrated their golden wedding last wei-k. For shooting a pheasant on Sunday Frederick and Herbert Taylor, of Wim Irish, were fined £2 and costs at Saffron Walden Sessions. A Wigan boy, playing with a detonator cartridge in school, pushed a pencil into it. The cartridge exploded, and blew oil the thumb and two h'ugtis of his right band, and destroyed the sight of his right eye. A chaplain at Chievely describes the wreckage of houses by the Boers' and their childish destruction of stuffed birds by pulling the heads off, and addß, "If this is a sample of my psalm-singing brother Boe.r, I don't think much of him." The death is announced from London of Field-marshal Sir Donald Stewart ; uged 7(5 years. The Queen leaves Windsor for Dublin on Monday. The Channel Squadron precedes her Mnjestj's yacht. Mr Aichibald Park, one of the veterinary surgeons of the Agricultural Department, died at Wellington yesterday, aged 50. He lately underwent an operation for an internal complaint. Ti e formal opening of the Nugget Co.'s dredge at Upper Waikaia is being performed to-day. The Waitahuna Farmers' Club has resohed to support the action of Wyndhain settlers in the effort to secure an equitable amendment of the Kabbit Act. Hartley and ltiley shares were suld in Dunedin yesterday for £24 2s Gd.