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Nelson Evening Mail, Volume IV, Issue 66, 20 March 1869, Page 2

No sooner was it certain that General Grant wotild be elected President than it was observed the size of his mail-bags enormously increased. Letter carriers were discharging piles of letters into his office from morning till night. The General himself was waylaid at every corner whenever he passed over the threshold of his door All this, of course, signified the desire of many thousands of patriots to devote their energies to the services of the Government. But General Grant is one of the " toughest jobs" to which office seekers ever yet addressed themselves. He unmercifully snubs personal applicants, and all letters he turns over to his Staff. These gentlemen open the envelopes, and directly they see the word " office*' they have instructions to put the communication behind the fire. " The General does not want to see any of these applications," said a member of the Staff to a visitor lately. "He thinks possibly there may be some good men among them, and he does not Avant to become prejudiced against them by being forced to consider their claims now." — Court Circular. Drought in Queensland. — Speaking of the long continued drought in Queensland, the Melbourne Age says: — It is notable that the sheep are actually unfit for human food, inasmuch as, from having been so long fed on pine leaves — the only food available —their bodies have become completely saturated with turpentine. . That this means utter ruin to many a squatter we need scarcely say; and of course the plight of their station-hands is proportionately wretched. Groups of 20 or 30 may be seen lying about the waterholes— (which are usually 80 miles or so apart) — wending their way coastwards, their conversation, naturally enough, turning upon the misfortunes of their former employers — "What has become of Mr ?" " Oh, he is gone with the rest — completely done up.' "Poor fellow. And Mr ?' "Well, he gave me his cheque for £50; and I say, mate, I'll sell it to you for 50 pence.', " Not if I know it," is the rejoinder. Queensland has hai many troubles during her brief career as a colony, but nothing to equal this. The amount of labor which Mr Gladstone has undergone during his recent electioneering campaign may be estimated from the fact that his speeches delivered before the electors of South Lancashire, and sent by telegraph to London and elsewhere, comprise 59,915 words, or allowing 2,0C0 words to a column, something like 30 columns of newspaper matter. Mr Bright's speeches, delivered recently in Birmingham and Edinburgh, comprised 39,982 words, or about 16 columns and a half of newspaper matter. — Court Circular. A freight train on the Union Pacific Railroad was stopped on the 30th October, about two miles west of Alkali station. The train was

captured by cutting the ties in the centre, and thus spreading the rails, so that when the cars came along about 2 o'clock in the morning, they were piled up together and made a perfect wreck The railroad bridge near by was burnt by the Indians apparently for the purpose of destroying the passenger train that was soon to follow, but the Division Superintendent, Mr Nichols, who had come down to the wreck from Alkali station with a locomotive, fought his way through a large force of Indians who had got between him and the station, and succeeded in telegraphing the passenger train in time to prevent their reaching the scene before the Indians dispersed. Mr. Nichols also telegraphed to Fort Sedgwick for troops, and a companv of Pawnee Scouts and a battalion of calvary, under Major Hughes, were dispatched to the rescue ; but before they arrived, the Indians had fled'. The Indians who made the raid belong to the" Sioux and Cheyenne tribes, and were supposed to number about 1,000. Great complaints are made along the line of the road at the inefficiency of the protection afforded by the Government troops. They are mostly infantry, and are utterly unable to compete with the Indians, who being well mounted, are enabled to commit their depredations and effect their escape before the infantry can reach the scene of trouble.