LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Manawatu Standard, Volume 3, Issue 44, 16 January 1883, Page 2

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Mr James Linton announces an irnporth ant sale of rural sections of first-class land near the Rangitikei Line, .and within easy distance of Palnaeraton. The advertise* ment will be found well worthy of perusal. We are requested to notify that Mr James Jenkins, the recently appointed colporteur of tae British and Foreign Bible Society, (Wanganui Auxiliary Branch)>is at present pu a visit to Pal* merston, and intends to canvass the dis» trict daring the next few day». The offer of the Melrose estate, Wellington, as a site and grounds for a luuatic asylum has been declined, the property being, m Dr Graham's opinion, unsuitable for the purpose. A large bush fire was raging this tnorn;ing, directly behind the new Club Hotel, although possibly the distance intervening between the two is greater than would be imagined. : We again remind our readers of Professor Huso's entertainment m the Foresters' Hall this evening. A drunken man was picked out of a gutter m Melbourne with LBl3 m his pocket. A proclamation appears m the Gazette defining certain portions of land, tuteu for the Foxton-New Plymouth railway, such land being bet wee i • the points one mile twenty-live chains and sixteen miles.

The attendance at the Choral Society's practice la-t night was small.

Next Monday, 22nd January, will be observed by all branches of the Bank of New Zealand on the Coast, south of Waverley, as a special Bank holiday, as the annirersary of the Wellington Province.

Messrs Hounslow & Voight's new ad« yertisement wii'l be found elsewhere. It will be remembered these gentlemen were formerly of the firm of Foster, Hounslow, .and-Voight, Mr Foster having retired from the firm to start business on his own ac* count. The Wairarapa Daily states that Dr H. H, Spratt waa thrown from his horce last Tuesday evening at Mormon's Bush, and fractured bis skull. R© was unconscious for a considerable time, but is now slowly recovering. He was brought into Greytown on Wednesday morning. Proceedings m the City of Glasgow Bank liquidation came to a termination on November 21, and at a meeting at Glasgow , it was announced that, m spite of predictions to the contrary, the bank had, after all, paid 203 m the pound. Solvent shareholders had been called upon j to pay £2750 per £100 share. Four septuagenarians died m New Zealand last month, the oldest being a male of 78 at Wellington, The others com* prised a mab of 73 at Auckland, a female of 76 at Dunedin, aud a male of 72 at the same place. No deaths of octogena-» rians are recorded. A large tree on a dry summer's day throw 8 into the air many barrels of water. This is forcibly pulled from its attachment to the particles ot soil and lifted to the extremities 50 to 100 ft above, using m this fully as much force as would be required to raise the same by mechanical means. There was lately moored on the Thames at Westminster a little steamer destined for pioneer mission work m Africa. As a piece of engineering, the steamer is a little wonder. The object the builders had m view wn3 to provide a boat which could be readily taken to pieces and easily taken overland. It can be taken into 800 pieces, any one of which a man will have no difficulty m carrying. The accomodation on board, considering the Biz 9of the, boat is admirable, and its engines can be worked at a high speed. During December, 1832, four*' violent'j deaths— i.e. resulting from other than "natural"— occurred m New Zealand, none beini/ at Wellington. One was from si! istroke (for which we observe the French name, coup de soleil, is used m the Rexister-Geoera 's report), which occurred at Auckland. One at Christ, church was caused by accidental suffo. cation. There were two suicides, both at Dunedin. One was by throat-cutting; m the other case the unfortunate man threw himself m front of a train m motion. The European Mail, speaking ot Sir W. Jervoissays :— " He now leaves South Australia to take up what is admittedly the most coveted post m the colonial sera vice/ Another convenience for travellers is faßt coming into use. Little books, cleg» antly got up and odoriferous, are sold containing what are termed " soap eheets." Each leaf m the book is suffi - cent to wash the hands and face. A traveller, can thus carry a month's supply of soap m a very small compass. The New Zealand railway traffic returns for the four weeks ending 9th December last have been published. The receipts for the period from 1358 miles of railway were .£70,522 lls 60, and the expenditure for the same period £48, 235 §a sd. For the corresponding period m last year the receipts were £97,820 15a id, and the expenditure £89,739 83 lOd