LOCAL AND GENERAL NEWS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXXVII, Issue 11368, 10 May 1900, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL NEWS.

Os Friday afternoon the Countess of Banfurly has kindly consented to be present at the opening of the bazaar at St. Ifcniabas' Church, Mount Eden. Captain Alexander (His Excellency's private secretary) is still confined to his room, through the effects of his recent accident while riding in the Ellerslie district. He has had a further mishap which will partially retard his complete recovery. In endeavouring to get about his rooms on crutches he had the misfortune to slip and slightly strain his foot and knee. Not withstanding this misadventure lie ha! been able to attend to official business And correspondence. Captain Alexander is » good spirits, and the public will be glad to see him about again, a* owing to his geniality he is deservedly popular.

The Herald Monthly Summary for transmission by the next outward San Francisco mail, will' be published to-morrow (Friday), Those desirous of forwarding the Summary to their friends in Europe, America, etc, will have ample time to do so, as the newspaper mail closes on Monday next, at 9.* o'clock a.m., up to which hour paper? M mailing may be obtained of runners at the post office. ' This mail will be due in London on Wednesday, June 13.

Captain Edwin's prophecy regarding th« flooding of rivers was verified as far as Oliintmuri River was concerned, the ne. . downpour of ruin cm Tuesday causing a og fresh. This was more apparent at■ l.u about, noon yesterday, and had the ram Sep up there is hardly a doubt but that» «' severe Hood would have been «?*»«"' Fortunately, however, the weather w and though the river is still running «n™». on a level with the bank in some p» - there is hardly any danger of a flood! «W the rain commences again. Very litue age has been reported, the worst being -w portion ot the main Karangahake-vi« Road, at a point near the Woodstock £» parly's large dam. The turbulent state, the waters hero caused the road to be un mined, and there was a danger of tne slipping away. The manager of the v j stock Uompanv, however, had a W ..., of men engaged all day to-day, widenn.fe road, under the supervision of the j. engineer (Mr. Armstrong), and no*" 1 ger of a heavy slip at that pomt W d obviated. The dam itself stood tie « test splendidly, and beyond the loosening one of the wings, no harm was occasion whatever. On Tuesday afternoon there was;» 8. attendance at the sale of land at t\»» Altogether 32 sections in the townsiui t • offered for sale by Messrs. Mackay ana . auctioneers, and under fair compete 1 , salesmen cleared '.he above lots at ranging from £9 10s up to £42 IWi a 0 ■■/■ for a few small sections lower prices "<•' ■ ceptcd. - , Soma important cases in connectioni the Daley estates are ponding for » - nie at the June civil sittings of the m Court. The official assignee is taws / tion on behalf of creditors. ~.

I SsPlyn-'DudW Alexander, of the 14th 8 ftp'*? /lord : Banfurly private secre- ! Jt«« iB1 8 received i letter from * feTl,ite ' Sr-V)'? ,5 Second Battalion West York- ''**%£& Field Forces, South Africa, I fci(« X old servant of Captain Alexan- •' '- iofSI He writer Sates his letter Lady- \ *»'»• rim.) March 5, and says :-" I write •- i • @ li l - v/Hot on the Second D Reserve. i6it you for your . certificate. I tn at out with the battalion, but I i' ; ffcHjg Volunteered to come with a draft -: ' ■ V? V p'mber Captain Tew was in com- • ■ " ' IB V.® I „m ' clad to inform you ok batta- ' m LZ Ta splendid name here. We did I |inn -J' work at the relief of Ladysmith, 'i «S a -front of us. You trill have •;{ ■■}.**&■ flb i,i| t ;poor Captain Bernej being SfJ February 15. The last day of '* ■' relief we lost five officers (wounded), viz,, WW Tew Captain Jones, Lieutenants l\ Kin* Boyle. The other reginie»ta have V : Earned tis 'the dogs of war.' General ■ ■ fife after every engagement congritulated ; -"' We are having a rest here, vhich I Vnkwe have well earned." The Queen has Ed nleased to grant the restoration to ; I « i4th the buff facings which it wore ■■' ■■'•'■'/, Lrlv I wntury and a-half, and which " Retaken away in 1881. The restoration ?. - (the facings has been in recognition of the .j : Jgiment's gallantry in the Natal campaign. ■ ! Hnnsiderable anxiety is being felt by the f : ies and friends of Mr. William S. 1 ■■'•-.:Sn sharebroker, as to his whereabouts, ■i ■'- „he dm not been seen since Saturday, as 1 Led in yesterday's issue, when lie was ? •"•;■ jHX office/ on the Mining Exchange, and :; 1 bffifldtei a good deal of b " iness He was ' lit seen on Saturday afternoon, shortly I I Wore two o'clock, in the Mount Eden dis"6 -V ; Met and, apparently, going in the direc- •' 'In of Mount Roskill. It was his custom, ■■■ for sonie years past, it i,.said to go out Lirdi the shore of tho Manukau, in the rLaon of ttfe Blockhouse, and Green Bay. A Lted-Constahlo Creea, of Avmdale, and ; £ ted-Constab!e Shearman, of Ellerslie, ■'• ' We been searching the districts around, - ';'- 'v We found no trace of the missing geni! man ~ The other members of the force ' the "citv and-suburbs are also making in- : r "Siries with ? view to getting a due to his | iSpearance. The district to which he -': ■ ■■• JCustomed to go is somewhat lonely, : : •:S it is feared he may have met with an I ' Senior been seized with illness, as ' I Snot, ii» stated, in good health.

r The Eduction Department has recently 'foiled new-regulations making considerable Idm in the standard examinations. By advertisement appearing elsewhere in this m head- teachers of public schools are invited to attend a meeting on Saturday morn- . at' the Wcllcslcy-street school, for the 'Lee of considering the new conditions Lff which the forthcoming standard examinations will be carried out. We underrtand that Mr. Petrie, chief inspector, will he present to assist the meeting with his adlice./;- ■

'!'The funeral of the late Mr. J. Friar Clarke took place yesterday afternoon, at Purewa Cemetery- 'As the interment was private, nnlv the relatives and personal friends of he deceased were present, the latter includin a number of the members of the Auckland Stock Exchange.

The Ponsonby residents will shortly have in agreeable opportunity of contributing to the Indian famine fund. Madame Laura Daw the well-known contralto vocalist, is organising a grand evening concert to take ice in the Ponsonby Hall on May 31. in aid the fund, and a number of leading artists have promised their assistance.

Vlit was reported to the police authorities that a man was lying ill at Horseshoe Bush. Wade, required attention. Mounted Constable Miller, of Devonport, went out and brought him to Northcote last night. He ra thence brought across in the ferry steamer and taken in the 'ambulance to the hospital for medical treatment. His name is Thomas Senton.'aged 67, and he bad been following tlic occupation of a gumdigger.

;. The rainfall of Tuesday and yesterday morning, which amounted to 2.41 in, or nearly 250 tons to the acre, appears to have broken tothe drought. The following is the ramfall for the present month till date :—2nd fat, 0.03 ? 3rd, 0.03 ; sth, 0.01; 7th (111; Bth, 1.83 ; 9th, I.sß—making a total up to date, of ,3.59 in. The rainfall of Tuesday and yesterday morning has very beneficially 'affected the Western Springs, the level 'of the gathering ponds having been raised about Sin, which represents nearly two million gallons, and the main pond is now at the level jt was in the middle of February last, The lifts were put on yesterday morning, over a third of a million gallons of water having been pumped into the Ponsonby reservoirs during the night. Edgecumbe's Creek and the Asylum springs have also shared in the benefit of the rainfall, and are now yielding much larger quotas to the city water supply. At the meeting of the Waterworks Committee of the City Council yesterday afternoon, it was decided, owing to the improved state of affairs, to turn the water on again in the city at night, and this decision was accordingly carried out. Owing to the heavy downpour early yesterday morning "the street gratings in Patteson-street, Freeman's Bay, got choked with debris, and were unable to carry off the volume of water which banked up the pavement, and pedestrians had to make a detour to get up Franklin or College Roads. Not the least of the benefit of the rainfall was the clearing out of the watercourses and open drains of the stagnant'surface drainage.

r In the course of the domiciliary visits of the police, Constable Markle has been visiting the Bemu'era district. He has furnished the following report as to a dwelling and dairy premises in that district, to Inspector Men,' who has furnished a copy of it to w«;_Remuera Road Board! which holds its meeting to-day), and the Sanitary Commissioners, lhe„coiistable reports, have also communicated with the local body respecting the fame premises. Constable .Markle slates that from information received and complaints made he went to the place and found it in a fearful state. The dwelling-house was very dirty, and the bedding in one of the rooms ™7 dirty. The yard was simply awful. We wis a large rubbish tip in the yard full of soar grains and hops, carted from the brewery. They were rotten and smelt very Md.' The pens where the cows were milked Were full 0 ( rotten grains. The vard was overrun with fowls, ducks, and geese. The yard was covered with lumber and dirty radish. The dairvman is milking six cows, ar "l selling the milk in the district. His young son was ordered to the hospital by Dr ' Maskellar on the 4th inst. . . f Messrs. Thou. Cook and Son are nothing ."not up-to-date. We have to acknowledge ' receipt of pamphlet, announcing a conducted ; WW from London to the battlefields of Cape • »y, and the Orange Frca State, visiting >»petown; Belmont, Crass Pan, Modder St Kimberlev, Jacobsdal, Storml rg. ; oloemfontein. Magersfontein, and Paardeocrg ..where General Cronje and 1000 of his men ; nrrendereit to lord Roberts), etc. A ™' er feature of attraction will be the opWlltlity afforded of seeing the garrisons nil L' jI S o{ communication, "the absent""Med beggar, out on active service."

t. , Ie WW volunteer corps accepted by the rae Department total over 2000 'men. »| are principally mounted infantry. .. v,.■.additions bring the volunteer forces g<s? Zealand up to over 10,000 officers »nd men.

leavv %mes correspondent writes:—Very | • nieht — fell in lllifi disll ' ict on '' u,;s(liiv ! ■ i; Mr m! isl the various creeks to run 18. ' !t is statol tliat 100 logs were '-■'■■■.J" i down. to the Kauri Timber Conies booms at Parawai. inert ei 'fwinance which takes place to " ;• th. , V Venin " in the &*y Hall, in aid of §§ Cvcli l I °' feena E " ? nolds l 0 the World ' s He\ 8 lanil>lonsl,i P i! at Paris, promises to f Cut? 8 ' ] ' udgin fa y the demft,,d v 'ded hTV > P ro S r!,mrne W 'H bo P ro " '• 'Sort win i lxs Gaiety Com Pany. and every jj ,„..'"' ' e "ate to make the performance : ' ;f o ne M ': as . Po9sihle ' As the object is :■:' »odniihin >Peals to a " ccM * and athletes ; : .: : :,, : :. " D ; the .attendance will be very large. Boat/ \?; Ct i ng n{ lhc Wanganui Harbour '■■'■ tio n n'f u • r ™tehell, in urging the erec- ' taent nf V Vl)arf - at Aram °no for the ship£;nit«rfiV?aid tkt Wan ? anui was the ' ' WanT-ii for stock raii between the ■. the AS? r nWftt " Rivers. The bulk of - .'- Vbe2;cr7,"' ( ; r ' "l ent down to Wallingand thfT "/ lack o{ facilities at Wanganui, Motion !„ < age (:ll!,r e nn coal there. A 11*4 lwl\" 0 - of th * election of the wharf r^fe^4V.^ n supported only by the mover. ■^ : .. :.■•:.-.' - . -. ....