Items.

Oamaru Mail, Volume XVI, Issue 5097, 6 October 1891, Page 4

Items.

A gentleman, holding an important position in one of the principal mines, writing from Broken Hill under date September 11th, to a friend in Auckland, says:—"Things are terribly dull here just now. and there is a very quiet market. Unless a change comes soon, .some will go under and bring down others as well. Tasmania is attracting all attention at this time, and will continue to do so during the coming summer. Much of our capital"has been withdrawn and taken over there. Our great want is water. Many a time have I wished for a New Zealand rivulet—if it was only to look at. Dozens of Thames men are here —miners principally, of course.'' For the past few years the New Plymouth district has produced a large number of splendid fat cattle for the Christchurch market, but now Canterbury appears to be turning the tables on the northern breeders, for the steamer Terranora left Lyttelton for W aitara with 200 head of young stock. She has been engaged to take 1200 head in all, and these will be fattened in the northern district and will be available for the Christchurch market in a year or two hence.

The Advocate's Awahuri correspondent writes : —I am sorry to hear that Mr Harry Mends, of Awahuri, has sustained a big loss, half of his sheep having died quite suddenly after lambing. They were splendid sheep, and seemed to be in good health and condition, but it seems as soon as they lamb the sheep fall and die. There are several farmers losing sheep in the same waj-. As far as I can hear they cannot account for it, unless it is that the sheep are in too good feed and too fat for iambing. It is stated that Mr A. H. Malcolm, the general manager of the Australian Mercantile and Loan Guarantee Company, is the same persou who formerly resided in the Manawatu, where, .as a member of the firm of Gillett Bros., he achieved an unenviable celebrity. He was also formerly well known as the promoter of the unfortunate Caswell Sound Marble Company.—Post. On Thursday evening (says the Christchurch Press) Captain Romerill, of the Kaliu, bound for the Chathams, took several pigeons belonging to Mr J. Mather with the view of trying whether the birds could be made useful to bring a message from the sea as well as on Land. At 11 o'clock on Friday morning four birds were found in their loft, one bearing the following message from Captain Romerill:—" 7 a.m., 75 miles out, all well." On Saturday morning the captain was to liberate three others, the boat then being some 250 miles from port. It will be interesting to watch whether the pigeons can manage this distance over the sea, for if they can there are many instances in which their services as letter carriers will be utilised.