A CRYSTALLINE SHROUDN.

Otago Witness, Issue 2399, 22 February 1900, Page 44

A CRYSTALLINE SHROUDN.

Br a Baxkeu.

Eerujiifnl, surpassingly beautiful, is the virgin nvmtlc. of pure white, dazzling snow which n the winter of temperate regions ofttimes veils all nature, enwrapping her in a pall of spotless purity, bedecking the trees and shrubs with graceful pendent tufts, and concealing the rnany-hupd landscape beneath its enfolding screen. And if examined closely it will be found that tlie struolure of this frozen vapour is still more beautiful, for it is wholly composed of minute ciystals of ice, shaped in innuraerabla cl-ffeient forms of most elegant and chaste des:gn, more strikingly and exquisitely bsfmtiful than those wlio have not seen them would well havp imagined.

The crystals, of which more than 1000 clistk.ci forms are said to have been ob=ervpd, are invaiiably combinations of six separate but similar patterns, mostly grouped in geometric regularity round a central hexagonal stm- of; varying model ; some a series of six feathered shafts, each e'ecoratpd .vith trident-shaped spicu'es; or perhaps the spicules are absent, the base of the" pb aft starting from a shield formed of six ornamented right-angled triangles arranged round a similarly shaped escutcheon. Some resemble six formidable-looking, serrated hercules' clubs, set in a central base; some, a six-sided axle on which are arranged a number of wheels, also six-sided; some, a central rosette from which start fillets and spines symmetrically disposed in a complicated though perfectly tegw'ar kaleidoscope pattern ; whiles perhaps amor rst the most beautiful of all is a star' formed of sharply-pointed barbed lances, each decora '•'d with a number of prismatic ornaments, the centre being also composed o£ equidistant "mller prisms. Under the microscope the r i ished ice-spangled spicules glisten brightly uni ), in a few seconds, the graceful object " has dissolved into a niimite drop of water.

But however "beautiful snow , may be, yet wlieji a heavy fall is accompanied by storms and hurricanes, the results are sometimes terrib'e indeed. Perhaps the most severe visitation of the Vmd which Cas been experienced in England dxr'ng the present century was the great blizzard of 1891, when the counties of Cor n\v oil and Devon, -were chut out from all comnvoiucation by road or rail for a week or -mote. Tho g' oat fall of snow was heralded by a severe and long-continued storm, in which many vessels were v/rccked; and then came the Siiow, driven by the hurricane ■with a force which rendered "it impossible tc fight against it, many a hapless wayfarer being overtaken; for some of whom the snowy pall proved to ho theii winding sheet. Still the fall continued, heavier and heavier, without inte) mission or cessation until at length m many places it had reached ? height of 6ft or 7ft. Country houses were isolated, their occupants being half starved ; even m towns it was impossible to proceed along the streets until trenches had leen dug; while trams were lost and snowed' up, the wretched travellers being imprisoned hi intense cold, and without food, which, when, the tiams were discovered by search parlies, was let down into the carriages through tha chimney apcriure in the roof. At lengtli, after several days' strenuous efforts, a steam, plough, pushed by three or four powerful engines', succeeded in forcing its way- through, the tremendous obstiuction, and with the aid of thousands of workmen traffic was resumed. But however pure and however white ths beautiful snow may be, there is that which is whiter. For. if we tmn rrom our misdeeds and do that wh .eh is lawful and right, pleading for forgiveness in the name of Him who died for our sake, the b'oocl-ied stain of our sins shall be wash'd away, and we shall be made whiter than til- purest snow.

A movement is on foot with the object of securing the extension of the Seaward Busk railway to Fortrose township, instead of following the route originally proposed. On Thursday the boiler of the 1 Richards's Beach dredge rolled into the river while being unloaded. A sq\iad of willing workers under the supervision of Mr James- M 'George got to work, and the boiler was safely goft ashore about 3 a.m., after a night's hard work.

At an enthusiastic meeting at Winton on Saturday night, it was resolved that a volunteer corps be formed, and its services offered to the Government. Sixty names were handed in at the meeting. A suitable range, allowing of firing up to 1000 yards, has been secured. The following extraordinary advertisement appears in one of the Cromwell papers: — " Warning to Boers. — It has been decided by the Committee of Jnvestigotion that on and after the 13th inst. Cromwell and the surrounding districts will be made unfit for any Boers as a place of residence, and they are requested to note the fact. The Investigation Committed meet to-night at the usual time and place. — By order." Two residents of Charleston came to blows a few days ago over that absorbing .topic of interest, the Transvaal war, with the result that they were arrested. The justices of the peace who heard this, their first case, having been only recently gazetted J.P.s, fined tho accused 2s 6cl. Tho Boer upholder promptly paid the amount, but the Britisher could not raise a colour. The chairman of the justices thereupon paid the fine, and when the court had adjourned, the two went to samjrle the ale at the nearest pub., attended by a number, of loj r al citizens.

Elixir R. Pejtjamikt, Barrister and Solicitor, Albert Buildings, Purees street, Dunedm (oH"csite C.P.O.^, haa trust moneys to. lead a* a#jttS\ r <Kl security,.— Adpit