EIGHTY-FIVE YEARS AGO

Otago Daily Times, Issue 27197, 28 September 1949, Page 4

EIGHTY-FIVE YEARS AGO

• FROM THE FILES OF TKS ©tatio ©ail? TElmes DUNEDIN, SEPTEMBER 28, 1864. The Southland papers report that the Scotia has not yet completely broken up, and hopes are expressed that the valuable engines may still be saved. Boring, for water on the artesian principle appears to be coming into adoption in this colony. Christchurch has several artesian wells, and we now learn that one is being bored at Invercargill.

The last escort from the Marlborough goldfields brought down only 9070 z of gold. The Havelock Mail ascribes this to the want of confidence by the miners in the safety of the Treasury at Havelock, and the fact that, a large proportion of the gold finds its way to Nelson.

Amongst other things that Southland is to contribute to the forthcoming exhibition is the model of a fireextinguishing machine and alarum to prevent house-breaking, invented by Mr Dixon, of Invercargill. The virtues of this machine appear to be of a rather novel, ndt to say wonderful, character. For example, on an attempt at house-breaking being made, the machine is so constructed that it would show the word “thieves” illuminated. and also perform the feat of pointing in which direction the foiled robbers had decamped.

A report on the retail prices in the local market says:—Poultry are scarce and still very dear. Bread is retailing at lid to Is 4d per loaf; flour 4d per lb; butcher’s meat 8d to lOd per lb: mutton 8d to lOd, pork Is per lb, veal Is per lb; bacon Is to Is 6d; butter, fresh, 2s 3d to 2s 6d; salt Is 4d to Is lOd: cheese, Colonial, Is 6d, English. Is 6d to Is 8d; eggs, fresh, 2s to 2s 6d, imported Is 9d to 2s; ham Is 6d to 2s: milk 8d per quart; fowls 10s tc 12s per couple, ducks 12s per pair, geese 15s to 18s each, turkeys 15s to 30s each: rabbits 4s to 12s per pair; pigeons 6s to 8s per pair; flounders 3s to 10s per dozen; grooers 6s each, ling 2s 6d to 4s each, rockcod Is to 2s each, eels 9d to Is per'lb, crayfish 3s to 4s each, oysters Is 6d per dozen.