LOCAL AND GENERAL NEWS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXXVII, Issue 11540, 27 November 1900, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL NEWS.

Arrangements have been made to despatch the R.M.s. Alameda to Francisco somewhat earlier than originally anticipated, and her mails ill therefore close here at eleven a.m. on Thursday, the 6th ilisl., in lion of the a-qunrter to eight p.m., as previously fixed.

The mail steamer Mariposa left San Francisco at ten p.m. on Thursday last with the English and 'American mails, and is expected to arrive at Auckland on December 12.

The Huddart-Parker steamer Elinganiito left for Sydney last night with a number of passengers and a large general cargo. Included in the cargo were 2306 sacks of mint*, 187 cases of apples, 222 packages of fungus, and a quantity of dairy produce and timber, and a large shipment of concentrates from the Thames goldfields.

At the weekly meeting of -the Devonport Borough Council this evening, Mr. Mays will move : "That tenders be called, returnable at next ordinary meeting, for the works authorised in Domain-street and Grey-street, and that plans and specifications therefor be prepared by an engineer."

The following notices of motion 'lave been tabled for the next meeting of the City Council :—Mi. Patterson to move, 1. "That two cesspits be constructed at the corner of Pitt and Randolph Streets, and that two dangerous water channels in Pitt-street at the same place be removed." 2. "That tlx footpath on the right-hand side of Pitt street from Randolph-street to Newton Rone be kerbed and channelled." Mr. Hainan to move : " That as soon as the water -s secured from Nihotnpu, and we have an ample supply for all purposes, the Council reduce the charges of water for' closets from 30s to 15s per annum."

Dr. McArthur, the local coroner, lias accepted the position of relieving magistrate. He will shortly go to Wellington temporarily.

Yesterday afternoon Commissioner Tunbridge held a parade of the Auckland police at the police barracks, O'Rorke-street. He addressed the men on the superannuation fund, and other private matters. Inspector Cullen was present at the inspection. The Commissioner visits the various suburban stations before he leaves for Wellington.

During the hearing of the charge of perjury against Mary Katherine Lock at the Supreme Court yesterday, one of the witnesses, Walter Williams declined to answer a question put to him by the prisoner, as to whether he had a conscience or not. He said that the question was a somewhat diiiicult one to answer, but subsequently confessed to having a conscience.

The Ponsonbv post office is just having the finishing touches put to it, in order to being opened for business next Saturday, in charge of Mrs. M. Wallace, as postmistress, formerly of Waiwera. There will also be a telephone bureau, and a messenger to take out telephone messages. The alterations have been carried out under the Public Works Department, to the premises formerly belonging to Mr. Payne, corner of Ponsonhy and College Roads, and is an ideal she :V>r a post office for a populous district !i!:e Ponsonby. The entrance is on the corner, which leads into a vestibule, where there art. half-glass doors, and thence to the public office with sliding door. On the St. Mary s Road side is fitted up a post office box, for posting letters. Letters posted to the post office will be delivered from thence. The new post office, with its accessories, will be a great boon to the district. There -is comfortable living accommodation provided for Mrs. Wallace, .the postmistress.

A serious accident occurred about six o'clock last evening near Ellerslie. Three residents of Howiclc were . returning home from Auckland in a trap, viz., Messrs. Findlay, Hardgrave, and P. T. Gill, the former of whom was driving. Shortly after passing the entrance to the slaughterhouse, on the Panmure Road, the horse in the trap, which was a young one, suddenly shied. The wall adjoining the road was less than 2ft in height, and the trap, horse, and its occupants were thrown over it into a gully 14ft deep. The first two gentlemen named escaped with severe bruises and minoi injuries, but the latter, Mr. T. P. Gill, received severe concussion of the brain, and also a large incised wound to his scalp. A passing trap conveyed Mr. Gill to Mr. Fallwell's chemist shop, at Ellerslie. Dr. Erson was immediately summoned to attend Mr. Gill, who, he found, was suffering from concussion of the braip. and ordered his removal to the Ellerslie Hotel. Constable Sharman was present, and gave every assistance in his power, as also did several other people. , Mr. Gill still lies at the Ellerslie Hotel in a critical condition. The horse was severely injured, and the trap was broken up. How the party escaped is wonderful. .

A native meeting is at present in progress at Parawai, and is expected to occupy some three or foui . days. It is expected that about a couple of hundred natives will be present. The object of the gathering is to nominate candidates for membership in the Maori Council, under the provision! of the Maori Councils Act, which was passed last session. The law now give! the Maoris a measure of local self-govern ment, and power to rate members of kiangas, for the purpose of maintaining th« roads leading to them in repair. They will also have to attend to the sanitary condition of native villages. The recent native land legislation will also form the subject of discussion at the meeting now beinc held.

A somewhat remarkable circumstance is reported from the East Coast, where a number of blackfish came ashore in a bay between Raukokore and Te Ivaha. According to the report, one of the fish came into the bay about 10 days ago. It was stranded on the beach, and was followed by a school of the same variety, numbering over 40, which were all secured by the natives on the coast, and are. now being " tried out." It is expected that about four tuns of oil will be the result of the catch.

Yesterday John Brown, employed at Price's foundry, Thames, had the tops of two fingers badly crushed in some machinery, and was attended to at the Thames Hospital.

A boy seven years of age, son of Mr. Duncan Murphy, met with an accident at Coromandel on Saturday evening, which led to his breaking his arm above the elbow. He and another boy were riding a horse when Murphy fell off. Dr. Cheeseman attended to the lad's injuries.

The alterations at the General Post Office are being carried on under the supervision of the Public Works Department, and are of so extensive a character that they are not expected to be completed before February.

Yesterday a very young stoat was caught by a cat on the premises of Mr. W. Ellis, Auburn-street, Grafton Road. It is the size of a rat, not quite full-grown, and is apparently one of a litter. If stoats come as near the town as this they will make havoc with the fowlyards unless the residents take vigorous measu/es to suppress the pest.

At St. Stephen's Native School, Parnell, the public unfurling of the flag, presented by the past and present boys, will take place on the schoolgrounds, on Saturdaj, at three o'clock. The Most Rev. the Primate will, at the request of the boys, perform the ceremony of unfurling the flag. An interesting programme of gymnasium exercises will be rendered by the boys, with the accompaniment of Hunter's Garrison Band. All who take an interest in the Maori race are invited by the boys to be present, .

At the meeting of the Harbour Board, toBay, Mr. Datxe will move "Ihat the Board consider the necessity of providing a suitable cattle landing for the port of Auckland." ' I Mr. John Fathers, who was mining at the Thames in the early days, ana also at Waihi, and who more recently occupied the position -of secretary to the CuiWindel branch of the Miners' Union, died ot Sunday night in the Coromandel Hospital.\ The funeral of the late Mrs! Taylor, relict of the late Mr. Wm. Innes Tailor, will leave Glen Innes, West Tamaki, ftk* the Presbyterian Church to-day, at ljalf-past two o'clock. • The remains of the late Mijs. Scott, wife of Mr. A. N. Scott, headihaster of the Karangahake school, were conveyed yesterday morning by train to Ohaipo for interment. The cortege, upon leaving Karangahake, was very large, and included the scholars attending the school, .41*0 the members of the School Committee,', all of whom were anxious to pay their last tribute of respect to deceased. The coffin was covered with beautiful floral wreaths.

A service will be held at eight o'clock this evening, at St. Mary's Orphanage, Pon--Bonby, in connection with the anniversary of the consecration of Bishop Lenihan, as Roman Catholic Bishop of Auckland. J'he children of St. Mary's Orphanage, under the guidance of Father Patterson, will give recitations and musical selections. Father Patterson, assisted by a number of ladies and gentlemen of musical talent, will also give a concert, both performances being held in honour of the occasion.

On the 6lh inst. the telegraph wires between Paeroa and Karangaluke were interfered with, and as communication between the two places was interrupted, Mr. Brown, the Paeroa postmaster, made inquiries to ascertain the cause. An official also went from the Thames, and an investigation of the line showed that a wire rope had been taken across it at Rotokohu. The obstruction was at once removed, and, as a sequel, .Robert Patterson, timberinan for the Talisman Consolidated, was brought up at the Police 'Court and charged with interfering with the line. John Bowles and Edward Paton were also charged with the same offence. The defendants pleaded guilty, but stated that they were ignorant of causing any trouble ot interference with communication. The line they had stretched across was used in connection with the conveyance of mining timber from the side of th? hill across the gully. Unfortunately the rope broke, and a portion curled round the telegraph wires. The defendant Patterson, stated that he was solely to blame, the other two having only helped him. He expressed contrition, and asked that whatever punishment the Bench thought fit to ilnpose would be inflicted upon him. as he did not wish Bowles or Paton to suffer, after giving him friendly assistance. The Bench therefore dismissed the informations against the two latter, and fined Patterson ss, and costs £6 12s. The costs being very heavy, defendant was allowed three weeks in which to pay the amount.-

An explosion occurred at Beaufort (Victoria) on November 18, in an unexpected and somewhat mysterious manner, whereby an old resident, Mrs. Charles Trompff, received injuries which afterwards terminated fatally. The house in which tha explosion happened is situated under the Camp Hill on the Waterloo Road, and was in the early days used as the police barracks. Mrs. Trompff, who was 71 years old last March, had lit a fire under a square oven, built into the wall, which, as it baked badly, had not been used since Christmas. She was mixing dough beside a table on the opposite side of the room, and had just sent her grandson, Leslie Chellew, aged 11 years, to the dairy for some milk, when a tremendous explosion was heard. Neighbours living 50 and 100 yards away describe it as resembling the discharge of a cannon. The boy ran back, and found his grandmother lying half in and half out of the room, breeding profusely from a wound in the head. Neighbours also came, and medical assistance was procured. The oven door was blown off its hinges, and hurled against the sash of the window, close beside the spot where Mrs. TrompfT had been standing. She was evidently forced by the concussion against the ■window. Five weatherboards were blown off the side of the kitchen beyond the window, and crockery was smashed on the dressei. The window panes were covered ■with Mrs. Trompff's blood and hair. The local police, upon searching the kitchen, found the remnants ot a powder flask between the oven trays, and the conclusion arrived at is that this flask contained powder, which exploded through the heat of the fire. Mrs. Trompff was unconscious all day, and died without having recovered consciousness at eight o'clock the same night. It is not- known how the powder flask came to be in the oven. Mr. Trompff and his son, Mr. E. Trompff, were away mining at the time of the accident.

Mr. John Ross (of Sargood, Son, and Ewen), who arrived by the Zeilandia from Sydney yesterday morning, accompanied by Mrs. Ross, has been on a nine months trip to the Mother Country for the benefit of his health. He visited Bad Nauheim, a noted establishment in Germany, where he placed himself under the care of Professor Schott. There are about 20 to 30 doctors there, who make a specialty of certain complaints. There were beautiful grounds surrounding it, and everything was done to make the time pass agreeably to those who went there for treatment. Mr. Rosa' doctor assured him that he had got a new lease of his life, and he returns to the colony feeling better in every way for his trip. The German peasants worked from dawn to dusk, and there seemed to be no eight-hour labour day for them, but they seemed on the whole contented and happy, although under a personal rule, which Englishmen would get restive under. The shopkeeping class seemed to have much the same hours as in England. He found, the Germans very good people to get along with, and he saw none of that hatred of the English, of which we heard so much in the colonies. The cities were beautifully clean, and the administration good. In Switzerland. Belgium, and France, he saw none of the bitterness against England so much spoken of. .There was a section, of course, but they were of no account, and their action was inspired by the reptile press of Leyds and Co. At the Paris Exhibition some words insulting to the English were put up at the Transvaal department, but the inscription was ordered down by the French police authorities. In Britain the friendly feeling towards the colonies was wonderful, and would do the colonies a great deal of good. Everything wat, booming, and living was as dear at Home as in the colonies. The leisured class was inquiring as to the sport, shooting, and fishing to be obtained in New Zealand. Ncwhere he had been had he seen any scenery excelling that of New Zealand, and lie thought we should be able to turn a portion of the golden stream to our own shores. Everything should be done to popularise the Lake Country to the English tourist.

The ChrisEchurch police are handicapped in dealing with the bad characters who are prevalent in their city at present (says Truth) owing to the reticence of people who have been robbed or assaulted. One gentleman, well known in departmental circles, hailing a cab a few nights ago, asked to be driven to a certain street. Presently the cab stopped, and, jumping out, he found himself in a yard. He demanded what the cabman meant by driving him to such a place, and the latter replied that he had been waiting all night to get a chance at a " blank " like him. and promptly rushed at him. With commendable presence of mind the hero of this adventure struck the cab-horse a blow on the nose with his stick, and the animal thereupon bolted with the cab. The scoundrelly driver was compelled to follow his horse, and thus was prevented from carrying out his nefarious design. . There are two cases of typhoid fever in the Thames Hospital, one from Waihi fnd one from Thames. On Saturday afternoon the Newmarket Fishing Club had their opening afternoon of the season. There were a large number of visitors, and some good hauls of fish were obtained..