NEWS AND NOTES.

Manawatu Times, Volume V, Issue 125, 16 March 1881, Page 2

NEWS AND NOTES.

The Catholic Church.— We have been asked to intimate to the members of the Catholic congregation that to-morrov, being St. Patrick's Day, Mass will be celebrated.at.St Patrick's Chu?oh at 11 o clock. with the usual service m Ihe evening. A Warm Corner,- as a pro^f of the terrible heat emitted at the mill fire, wo might mention that part of a small creek some little distanoe at the rear of the mill was fairly dried up, and a good -sized erl wa»r"hc»iv«'r d ai '"tor n.-rMy baked a» tf it had teen ntacse/*. mw* oven. ■

Palmerston Rifles. — Q-overnm---t inspection is gazetted for 7 30 p to., on the 18th instant. Painfull Accident.— Wr Jones, m the. employ of Mr E. Warburton, teceivci a nasty kick from a horße on Moday, while m th« act of holdinsr him to be shod. The animal reared an l struck him m the face with its hoof, cutting his lip and chin m a nasty manner. The Juvenile Cricket Match. — A match between th- We.9t ml Criikef* Club and the Lillywhites took place on Saturday. Wickets were pitchei at 1.30 the West EndVrs having the disadvantage nff.la.yinp: with two men short. Double figures were obtained by one only, that one being Bernard, a West Bn 'er. The match was won by the Lilly whites by 15. Harvest Operations.— We are informed hy a gen* emai who travelled through from* Sandon la9t week," that harvest, operations there are m full swine, threshing being pushed on with as quickly as posnible." * . here were last week no less than five steam-threshing machines a' work m .hat dia'rict. the farmers evidently taking advantage of the fine weather prevailing. A Bad Loser. — As the afternoon train from" Wanganui, laden with a number of the bookmakTrig fraternity., wa? passing outside th at town, two stones passed throu h the windows of one of 'he car.iages to f he great alarm cf the occupants who were princi ;>allv bookmakers. Perhaps some unluckj wieht has been hard hit at the races and thus 8 ught to revenge himself on the professional "gath rers of the spoil." Tb» ■ fle.nce is a very serious one m the eye of the law. as the ofEender, if captured will doubtles*** experience. St. Patricks' Day.— We would remind our readers th-tf to-m»iow ouJPoxton friends will offer us. 8 "Tie in<iuo-»-merit to enjoy our holidays m their district m the shape of a Bac^Meeting. Th prizes offered are good valffi. and consequently large fields should ga Tvr at the starting post for each ev%nt. The _--t tra n for Foxton leaves Palmer *-t"n at 8 SO a.m., a-^d the train that usually leaves Foxton at 4.25 p.m.. will be detaine-i one hou - . Boroughr Council Tenders— Tht following- m a list of t nd-*rs received f r various works on roads m the Borough : — Formation m Featherston-street —B. F. Charles, :9s 5d per chain, (accepted) ; •i*Oollins& M'Carthy, 19" Gd. Formation m College-street A. Kleman £80. ( iccepte ' ; J. J. and W. Leigh, £86 ; J. Evans. £93 lOs ;J. stearin, £125 Formation m Ferguson street — »". F. Charles, £40. Ac cepted) ; A. Kleman. £49 10s ; W. Rvans aad J. Heaton. £60 ; C. «osenthal, £55. Metalling Feathers f on-str..et— Collin-? and M'Carthy, £22 1 6s (accepted); V I'osen thai. £27; R. E. Charles, £28 10s. Park Road drain— George- Franklin, -£15 5s 6d, (accepted); E. F. Charles, £20; Weily a-id Co., £26 ; J. J. and W. Leigh, £31 19s. A Nasty Accident.- A nasty accident happened to Mr. Silver, of the Rangitikei Line, on Saturday last. It appears that a riding party had been organized between a few ladies and gentlemen, Mr Silver being one of the party, and when on the return journey, a horse that a lady was riding, just in front of Mr. Silver's horse from some unexplained c use started kicking, and in lashing out, first, struck his horse on the shoulder and then struck Mr. Silver himself on the shin, tearing the flesh and muscle and causing a very nasty wound which became so painful, and was bleeding so profusely as to necessitate a rest, while Mr. Harry Waldegrave came on home and procured a buggy, with which he returned, and conveyed him to Mr Waidegrave's house, where he is progressing favorably, although entirely incapacitated from using his leg. A Praiseworthy Step.— The Rev. Mr. Keating, with comm---ndable zeal ha« taken BrepsB r eps to remedy to some extent the evil arising from the lamentable ignorance of some of those unfortunate youths who. most likely through no fault of their own have m their childhood receive" little, ■ no education at all. It is Mr Keating's intention to hold aclassoßce or twice a week for the purpose of instructing those who shculd feel inclined to avail themselves of his kindness, m the principal branches necessary. We believe it is his intention to charge a small weekly amount, just sufficient to pay foi-bonks;- slates, &c. The first class was held on Monda-. night m a cottage near the Trig Station, and we believe that Mr; Keating will try to make arrangements for the use, oncla anights, of am >r** convenient room;—- His great-desi-e is to see an interest tak n m it by others m th» town, and a fair statt given it. so that m the event of his not being able at any lime to personally attea-", there shall be someone ready to step m and help. Fire at Terrace End. — Through the. medium of our advertising columns, Mr. Charles thanks those kind friends and neighbors who assisted him m extinguishing -the late fice. Mr. Charles also informs us that the readiness with which Mr Deards got his engine across the roa** and m working order was most praiseworthy, and'he attributes thf saving of the property to the speedy and efficient manner m whioh the hose was brought to bear on the flam s for although the efforts of the neighbors were most laudable, it is feared that buckets of water would have st iod a poor chance of extinguishing the flameß. During th -evening* after-th- fire -Mr. Charles to. k t c precaution to fill three or four 'mcketa an i a la-ge bath with water, an I it was very fortunate that he did so, for the fire hroke out again a l >ont 5 a.m the nex ! nrorni g. and had it not ''eeri for this pr caution there is little doubt but that this seco <l outburst would have r suited m b»rnin • the house to the ground. It appears that Mrs. Marsh, sen., Mr. Charles' next door neighbor, heard something crackling, an I called her husband who went into the garden, hut oould see nothing when after a time the noise was so distinct thst boh Mr. a<d Mrs. Marsh arose, and then saw that fire was coming: through the roof near the chimnej . An alarm was raised at once, and the inmates aroused, neighbors were also speedily on the scene, and th * prompt application of tome buckets of water quenched the fire which bad just caught the shingles. Another fiv minutes and it is more than likely 'hat th fire wm'd have made such headway, that it would have been impossible to cope with it. Mr. Ch tries estimate*". hi-» Ws at a "iv £20.

PABENTAL Buuta.li'it.— a ease m which a father had serio >sly ill-treated hisdaugher of nine years of age, waß heard at the Dunedin Polioe Court on Monday, The gM presented a dreadful appe'ranoa, her whole face being blaok ana swollon, pnrtiou:arly round the eyes, out of one of which she could not see for the swelling. Around one of her ears, too, the skin was bruised and greatly discoloure 1. When she removed her hood, quite a murmur of sympathy ran round the Court. The father was fined -AU), with two montlis' imprison-^ ment m default, for the assault. The Bmkrald's avenging Tqub,— The following peculiar paragraph about H.M.S. Emerald's oruise m the Islands appears m the Sydney Bulletin \ —All the newspaper have had the wrong btory. The Emerald -nj-c ' h -rse'f t\ ten ltd • :ivcn?«r. Ther Ye captured »• qw. auaall nigger " it's true, b»t

have made at least- 1200 darkies ite thdust, hhrapn**! 'li 1 t c fatal work The crew* saw what rh**y di--* see. On thin=r was regret' ed At dusk one, evening a cawoe was chaßed. N ot a soul live 1 und r •hat withering musketry &<•*. The ca • • c had b^en «• m mn;*d " by worn n— tha* was th**. regret. Everyisl md lost several hundr d men. The train leaks ou sometimes ; this time through •' that one litte nigger." SCULLING- CHAMPIONSHIP OB 1 NEW ZEALAND — rl<*arn. the Wellington scu'W, says he is unable o 'lise th- £100 or £200 s ake required by Albert White, of Me - cury Bay, to be deposited befire he will contest the sculling championship of 'he Colony ; but he wilt-back himself for £50. He suggests that White, P H. "Duncan, of Canterbury, and he. should each depo-it £50. and pull m Weling'toi Harbour for th *. stake and the championship. Unpleasant Position.— V novel way of ca ching a warm of bes was unint-n---tially tried at Dacatur, Mioh.. the other d*y, by a younz man who is not likely to repeat the pxperinv-nt i" he can help it. He ran towards the swarm with a green bouvjh m bis hand, over which the queen bee poised, and then a'ighted upon his hat. In a twinkling the 'others followed, an i completely covered him, being so closely knit together that he ould scarcely breathe. A box was procured, the man's head s uok into it, and the swarm finally workod off and hived. Destruction OP OxPOBD UNIVERSITY Boathousk — At midni/ht on Jan. 8 fire brok-f out at the new Dn versity boa'house on the Isis, Oxford. "Water was plentiful, but, owing to th** position of the buil.'.irg wiich is approachable only by the towing path and through meadows, no appliances fc extinguishing fire could b» used. In the course of an hour the roof and outer walls had given w iy, an 1 every vestige of some 37 boats, which b-d.ngel to the University and College Boat clubs, was dei**troved. The boa'house -as erected at a c st ot nearly .£2oo' >, and th boats it contained were valued at f om £1500 io £2010 Among t em w- re th • trial eight-o>»r '.oats mos"; of the summer eights, and a few of of the torpids. The origin of tlie fire is unknown. Singi-g and Health.— Some re searches of Professor Monassi-in, of St Petersburgh. during the autumn of 1878, h ive led o very int resting results m iegard to the influence of Mn2'ng upon the health. 'c exainineo" 222 hinge -s ranging between the at;es of nine and fif'y-thr c. He laid chief weigh' uoon the growth and absolute circnmfi rence of th*. chest, upon the com-arative relation of the latter to *h" tailm_s i >f the subj"C , and upon fie pneu nittometric and spirometric condition of the singer. Ifc appears to be an ascertain d fact from Dr Mona«sein's experiment that the relative, and ev -n the absolute circumference f che-i's is ijrrtater amongst singer than amongst those wh do not .sing, ani that it increases with th "growth and age of the singer. The profess reven says that -inging may be pla*ed physically as th antithesis of drinking spirituous liquors : the latter hinders while the former pr •- motes the vitalisation of the bloo'i, and consequently the norishuieut of the system. Electrioitv.— Two systems of lectric lighting have just been tested m Ne>v York, Broadway was i luminate 1 for thre-.i quar quarters of a mile by a series of Br -sh lamps, fifteen m number. The circuit loriiainei ten ihousanl feet, of jvire. Each l-ght wies imated at two thousand candle powei. suppo>in ; tha fu'l force to be concentrate 1 on one point. T- c lights aimed all nitthr, and the exhibition will continue for one mon'h, to enable. the company to d termine 'h" question of expense and to f railiarise the public witb the light. Mr Edison gave a similar exhibition of his system at Menlo Park, for the benefit of the Mayor and Common Council cf York. More than thre<- hundred l*mps gave a steady mellow light, tinged with enough yellow to relieve th** eyes fom the intense bright nss of th** electrc light. Mr Edison is to be allowed to operate m the districts between Wall street and Prin ing hou^e iquare, east of Na-sau street. He purposes lighting this district and furni-hing th • power by electricity rb a substitute for steam power. Two eldctric light companies are being formed at Brooklyn. Intellect m Brutes. -A correspondent writes to 'Natu-e': — "Many years ago, while m Ceylon, I lived m a house m 1 slave Island,' raised on a high plattorm. The steps up to the door had become loosened, and behind them a colony of frogs had esta'-lishrfd themselves. One morning I watched a snake (a c .bra) creep up, insert his head into a crack, and seize a frog, which he there and then swallowed. But the crack that admitted the thin flat head and neck of th*- ophidian would not permit of the same being withdrawn when the neck was swollen with the addition of the frog inside it. The snake tugged and struggled, bnt m vain, and aftar a series of futile attempts di*gor^ed its prey and withdrew itß head. Bu' the ight was tantalising. Again tho head was inserted m the c* ack and the ove'ed morsel swallowed, and again the vain struggles to withdraw were nne wed. I 6aw this re peated sevtral tim s. ill, gaining wisdom by experience, the snaku «eizd ihe frog by one leg. withdrew it from its coigne of v intage, and swallowed it outsi le.— ifi. L. Layard." Fashion. — It is said (remarks a home paner) extravagance m feminine dress has risen to such a itc'* that the Princess of Wai. s has determined to s*t the fishion of simpiioi.v, m o-ier to put a st p to thoutlay nnd bad ta< c. .u>d amo igst lh •• fir«i thing* fei be a» . isK<- 1 are U,m uoeurM" for heal fring.-s Tain ■ > Sli m-.-*r naps am jpr^ys. Tha ' 'rmcess it will b- rem-m nered. was the introducer of 'he j <rse bodic-, but then she w 'F-: it m its proper pla<.*.e, on board the royal vaiht, where it* colour Cnavy blu- ) and pliability „f tex'ue r ndered the garment particular!" saita-ile. wheteas now our fashionables introduce the style into every t-ulet, whether for promenading dancing or home wea , and m c cry color, white, black bl:e, or r d without regard to appropria-cness. No o c wil* regret the iabooing of the Tarn O' banter caps which are certainly the most pet feet arr nigemunts worn for some time for rendering pretty faces plain and plain ones more so, but few of th*. monstrosi ties have b en seen m our streets, and the effect upon th wearer was s j far fiom pleas s-ng that ie is not to be wondered at that the numbers continue to remain sm ill, Plants and Plant Pood.— Some plants are surface fe ders, •'.«., their roots are short, usually 8m 11, and num -rous, an i on y penetrate the upp-T pirtions of the soil, as m the case of the onion, turnip, and the cerealH, though thi latter are perhacs medium rather than shallo v feeders It is easy to see that such crops must derive their nnui-shment from that portion of 'he soil which their roots penetrate, and are therefore surface exhausting. On the other hind, clover, lucerne, and the long roots, as carrots, parsnips, &c, are deep feeders and exhanstive to the lower portions of the j soil. These facts have a dieot bearing on .the succession of crops and the application of fertili --era, If af^r+iliser is applied to the land it has a tendency downward, and i its descent depends upon the solubility of the substance and the porosity of the soil. I To have, therefore, *hv, ier.st lose an-! the q ti'-kesf. returns, a surface fee-ling c-op is tiie Que to which to Apply the "ertiliaer

and this crop <honld be foil wed by a et-p-**r feeder ne_t season, whi-.h will bring 'he sinking food to the surface again. Itis m thiscapa- ty that th« c]ov-r crop is so v du able m a rat tion. ft is a great point to k>'ep the plant-food within the reach of the roots of the plant, and it can be best done by applying, it to a surface feeding rop, and foil w it up (down rather), by a deep f eder, the roots of which penetrate far down. Cavterbuby FaBMEBS' co-opebative Association.— the general p.ub'ic havenot heard much of late regarding -the Canterbury Parmer-.' Co operative Association, but its c irectory and manager (Mr . Wafcjsins).. have been sß^ily'andJunorrtfusively working m the interests of tie shareholders. Extensi c st rage accommodation- has-been secured m Timaru. into which large quantiii s of grain are 'leiug received from nu >- scribers to await sale or shipment; and the management are now engaged m effecting charters for the conveyance of grain to the home market. Probably the association was tooJ| late m getting into w. irking order to secure any advantage m the matter of f eights this year, but freight charges are not. the only ones to be c insinered. Arrangements of a satisfactory character for the reception and disposal of ihe grain m England are, we understand, in' process of completion, and the management confidently expect, to be able to show shipping subscribers that their interests have been advance I by joining the association. Bomethiig has also been done m the matter of subscribers' requirements. Extensive orders have been sent horn -. for grass seeds and other exp-msive agricultural seeds, and at the p-esent time~"**ewcastle c >al is being supplied m considerable quantities to snb scribers, at 31s per ton m railway trucks, the o-dinary pri<>»*for this being 40s to 455. When it is considered how many tons of coal are required for the threshing of the grain of South Canterbury, the saving to th-. members on this item alone will be.se n.to be very considerable. — Timaru Herald. jhe AsTRoN'tMY op 1881. — After tbe ta-te given for astronomy by Mr. Proctor's visit, our readers may bj interested by the following paragraph from the -New lork Sun on the astronom.cal events ot 1881 ; — •• The sky will not present such a brilliant pageant again this century as it does dvi ing the present year. Among the phenomena ar a remarkable -erius of conjunctions, and dou le an i triple conjunctions. The most interesting of these is the great twentvyear co jun tion of Jupiter and •■aturn m \pril. Ab this conjunc.ion occurs m the s gn Ta trns, whioh astrologers say rules Turky and Ireland, they feel safe 00 a-c >un of recent occurences, m pre dieting very momentuous effects m those co intries from the cotijnnctioo. There will a so be conj mct'oris o; Jupiter and Mars, V-'-nus an J tpit;r, tiaturn and Venus, and th far-away L'innts U anus aud Neptune wil play a part m tbis remarkable planetary lnvee. Venus vill rearm her greatest brightness, and her delicate crnscent should be a favorite bject m the amateur astronomer's telesc pc Saturn opens wider its w>nde ful rings and Jupiter is remarkably brilliant. Wars will begin to brighten m the atter i»art ol the year, and then his snowy poles and sha iowy continents wi'd again become the admiration of those who gaze through tel -scopes. In short, then; will b-< no end of att aotionp m the starry heavens, and all tha prognostications oi soo r hsayers will not be able to darken the s<y of 1881." Tricks of War —The tricks and stratagems of war m the Basuto country are something akin to tuose which gamekeepers adopt m thi* destruction of "vermin." The foil win cxtrac from a private iette?, written by a nfle v(dunte.:r, appears m the (Jape Times ot the 20' h December last :— We went nut for beven day s patrol, which expire ' on the 1 tth inst. but on the 2nd the colonel s'*nt for fre-h supplies for seven days Tbe fir-;t seven day were spent on tie seen.; of our wood patrol, w.iere we had two fights, and a nieht attack, accounts of which, I have uo doubt, you have already received. Before leaving, thinking that the niggers would like some atnuiement a hole was dug m which was place i one poind of dynamite. A carbine was buried and fastened by a string to an ammuniti n case, so that when anyone opened tne case the carbine wou'd go off and explode the dynamite, thus causing the amusement. As soon as we started, I want off to the ridge, where we had lunch on the day of the wood patrol, to wa^ch the effect, but the niggera finked the guns, and would not go near until we were well out of sight. Just before we arrived to our present laager we heard the explosion, and scouts on the ridge stated that a crowd of niggers assembled m the laager, aud four spied the case ad made for it at the same time, one opening it, and three looking on ; the next instant there was an earthquake — and the four Basutos disappeared. The crowd made tracks, forgetting m their hurry to take their aor.se -, which galiopped ail over the country. Doubt l-'ss, thin will have a wholesome effec, and cause them to fight shy of our camping places. The Army. — The Pali Mall Gazetto \ gives the following particulars respecting the nati -nality of the troops statijned m Ireland, which will be of interest at the present moment : — *' Nothing strikes one so much as the sti ange difference between the position of the various battalions according as they fail under the heads of English, Scotch, or Irish localised regiments. Of the ("ngli-h battalions, there aye 46 at home anrl 63 on fore gn service; of the Scotch bittalions. tari*e at home and 11 on foreign s-irvioe ; and of the Irish battalions, seven a liomn an ! nine n foreign service. At lit'-** the stu 'ent strange to English custom* might be inc'ined 'O complituent the Irish b t'alions on the'r g od luck m having more than ha f their nu-nber at home, and- ' localised.' Rut a further analysis of the figures would athf*r surprise him. Out of the 46 Kntrli^h battalions on home senice no fewer than 18 are m Ireland, while the 1 ish battalions have m their wn country only one sditary example — namely, the lt)4th at Dublin. \nd if he turns to the Kl4th Kegiment, m ano her part of the \rmy ' ist. he will fin 1 t'*at it is m reality the Bengal F>siii rs. Not one of the regiments spe'dv iy known as Irish and localised m Ire'and is pr iq its ow.n country, much less its own distri.it. The Scotch regiments, on the other hand, have only thre-*. battalion-" at home : but two of them a r e q tartured m •"•c itlacd. the third being m camp at Aldersbot. There is no English or Irish Battalion m -cotland, which is therefore entirely garrisone" by its own people; while there is pnrelv Irish battalion m Ireland, nor any Sootoh, the whole force there hein ' English." Utilising the vSharks.— ln the list o. exports fiom Queens and, Western Aub tralia. Fiji, and other, parts 'of Australasia, •' shark's fins" figure as a considerable item, along with oth-r aricles with the names of which the European m rchants aresoaroely familiar. Sharks of various speoies are abundant m the warm waters of these tropical and sub tropical regions, and the natives and settlers turn them ti good account m various wnys. The first prooess is to cut off th- back fins, which are of great value, fetching m ihe market frotn £90 to £100 per ton." They are ext«n a ively used m making gelatine, The back fins are th* best, Tielding gelatin-* of a superior quality but all tbe Tins are moio or res* valuable] The opera'ion is crssi'y accom i!ish**,d by merely placing a knife at the bottom bf the

fin, cutting it ofi level with the back. The fin is then allowed to thoroughly dry m the sun. When afterwards placed m warm water, and the rough skin soraped off, the result is almost pure gelatine. But the fins are by no means the most valuable portion of the fUh ; the liver contains an immense quantity of oil, which is largely used-for medicinal and other purposes. The*extrao« tion of the oil is also an eagy matter. The best method of obtaining the utmost .oil from the liver is to place it m a steam-tight receptacle, and force m -fteam to the pressure of four atmospheres : but a large proportion can be obtained hy simply cutting up the liver and allowing it to drain, or "placing' it under^ressuTO^-In=this:ca«eithe-. oil often becomes'thick, but that obtained by the former process has a beautiful amber color, which" fades btfexposuredxTtffe^Bgß-tr It is often used instead of cod-liver oil; being equally efficacious. It has, however, an unpleasant taste aud'disa'greeable smell, which maybe slightly improved by allowing the oil to drain through charcoal. A good deal of tbe oil sold as "Dugong" is really shark oil. The carcase of the shark is als'> sometimes utilised, and is of considerable value. If, instead- of jbeing thrown away and allowed to pu*refy~in the water, it is subjected to the samejjrocess as the liver, a quantity of oil* may be extracted from it, and the residue may be used as manure. - '-.