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New Zealand Mail, Issue 860, 24 August 1888, Page 22

A Southern paper speaks of the power of the new tariff “to fill the veins of our commerce with the wholesome blood of active, independent, wage-earning consumers,” The Chief Justice will leave for Napier and Gisborue to-day for the purpose of presiding at the criminal sittings of the Supreme Court in these place*. His Honour will be absent about three weeks. Ou taking his seat iu the Supreme Court on Tuesday, his Honour intimated that there was no chance of the case ot Arnold v. Brazier being taken in the Supreme Court until after the Napier sittings. The case Wills v. Anderson, an action to recover part of a section which was partly heard last Thursday, has been adjourned until his Honour returns from Napier. Newcastle coal is said to be hardening in Christchuroh in view of the impending strike. The Press contains the following paragraph : —We hear that in consequence of the threatened strike of coal miners in Australia the Christchurch coal merchants have been inundated with orders for coal, and in some cases have had to decline to execute orders for the quantities named, until it is seen how the difficulty is going to terminate. One coal merchant yesterday, who had coal coming from Newcastle, stated that he was asked 35s per ton at the ship’s side, which means about 503 per ton rlelivered to the householder in Christchurch, of course a very considerable advance ou the ordinary prices. The servant girl difficulty (says a Melbourne correspondent) has recently come to an intolerable state.) Female servants are not to be had, even at very high rates of Wages. For this, to a large extent, the leviathan coffee palaces are responsible, the Federal Coffee Palace, as I am informed, absorbing three hundred girls, the Grand Hotel two hundred, and others in like proportion. The Exhibition has taken a large number of young women to look after the stalls and mind the refreshment bars. One establishment here, of course a colossal hostelry, lost in one*day ninety young women who had received better appointments at the Exhibition. It does not appear to be so much a question of wages as of the character of the employment. The work at the Exhibition is, of course, not laborious, aud the hours are not over long ; besides which the opportunities for flirtation are unlimited. The demand for young women, therefore, is extremely brisk. „ A wonderful family, the late members of which would seem to have discovered the elixir vitae, or some means at least of considerably rivalling Methusaleh, has, writes the Paris correspondent of the Daily Telegraph, just been brought to. the notice of the public by a statistician, who makes centenarians and longevity his special branch of social science. The seat of this remarkable family was at Tarbes, in the Department of the Hautes-Pyrenees, where its last survivor, Joseph Ritas, has departed this life at the comfortable age of 118 years. Ritas was born in Spain on August 21, 1770. His father lived to the age of 111 years, and his brother died a few years ago at the age of 111. The mother and paternal uncle of Ritas were equally long-lived, having far outstripped the allotted span of ordinary mortals. Neither his wife, however, nor any of his children survive him. He did not marry until he attained the age of 50.

The Benevolent Society Trustees held their nsual weekly meeting on Tuesday afternoon in the Council Chambers, there being present—Messrs S. Danks (in the chair), G. Allen, and A. Wilson. A family of eight, who had recently come from vVaitotara, applied for help, but the Trustees declined to do anything. The Secretary stated that a man who had been on the books of the institution had procured a situation in the country. A woman, who had come from Manaia to be medically treated, applied for £2 to enable her to go back. The Trustees declined to grant the money. A man with a family, who had been on the books for some time, applied to be assisted to go to Sydney with hi 3 family. No action was takea. A man who had corns from the Auckland district about six weeks ago, asked that the Trustees should supply him with leather, so that ho might start iu business. No action taken. An application by a woman, who stated that her husband had gune away in search of work, for help in the shape of rent allowance, was declined. The case of a.girl, who had come from Hobart, and who had been confined during the past week or two was considered. Aid was applied for, and it was decided to take no action pending certain inquiries. Several reductions were made in the ration scale, and one or two cases were struck off the list. An account of £4, due to the Union Steam Ship Company, was passed for payment, and the Trustees adjourned.