LOCAL & GENERAL.

Otago Witness, Issue 2437, 28 November 1900, Page 32

LOCAL & GENERAL.

Owing to the floods the south express on the 19th inst. was over four -hours late in reaching Gore " (says the Ensign), and, to the consternation of most of the local residents, no mails or daily arrived. A newspaper famine of unusual severity set in, and probably only one Otago Daily Times was available in Gore. This was obtained under lucky circumstances. Just before the train left Gore the thought struck a popular local medico that some one among the passengers might have a copy of the morning paper, and a hurried forage was made along the carriages. Inspector Pardy happened to possess a Times. Possession of this he very generously yielded up, and bidding for the solitary copy quickly ran up to a fabulous figure. The" fortunate possessor would not part with his prize, and after withstanding a siege by dredging punters eager to learn the state of the share market, was enabled to bear it home in triumph. During the evening the paper proved a veritable -circulating library, passing as it did under the scrutiny of many scores of local eyes' most of them intent upon the condition of things dredging. The Education. Board on Wednesday received 99 applications for the position of janitor of the Normal School. • These were referred to the board's Normal School Committee to recommend six names to the board. News has been received from Poona, India, of the death orr-the 22nd ult., from typhoid fever, of Miss Jessie D. Blair, daughter of Mr and Mrs John Blair, of Abbotsford, Green Island. Miss Blair was engaged in mission work in connection with tho Scottish Free Church in Poona at the time of her decease, and was esteemed by all .who knew her. It Avill be remembered that she took part with Mr and Mrs Lowe and. others in a farewell j meeting held in the Victoria Hall in August ] of last year. Much sympathy will be felt i by many of our readers for her parents and i relatives. Her mother is now returning from, i Scotland, which she recently visited in company with her son, engineer of the s.s. Perthshire. We learn thai our respected townsman Mr Walter Paterson lias not left this colony permanently. He has pimply proceeded to the neighbouring colony of Victoria on a visit to further mission work among 3(, the Chinese there. The talp of the Breeloug blacks, when it reached England, attained startling dimensions. The performances of this pair of half-. ; castes were expanded to the dimensions of a national rising. Here is a paragraph taken from "an English paper ju&t to hand: — "Advices from Australia, says a Laffan telegram, state that the blacks in New South , Wales have risen against the whites in the outlying districts, and massacred great numbers of the inhabitants, who were taken entirely by surprise. A large proportion of the victims were women. The murderers have fled into the bush, and the police, aided, by native trackers and bloodhounds, are in close pur- s suit. There is widespread excitement throughout the councry districts. Isolated farmhouses have been abandoned, and the i women have fled iir terror to the nearest town." The Supreme Court was engaged through- j out Thursday in. hearing further evidence in the case of M'Kenzie v. the Roslyn Tramway Company, a claim for £1000 for injuries sustained by the plaintiff while travel- I ling in the tram to-vßoslyn in Decem- j ber last. The plaintiff's case was concluded in the morning, and much of the ground of the defendant company's case was covered in the afternoon. The evidence, 6O far, is remarkable for the conflict of testimony between the doctors called to support the plaintiff's case and those subpoenaed on ■behalf of the company. . Mr Sim has still fiv.e, medical men .to call for the defence, so that the case is not likely to close before this evening. It appears that the loss of stock by the recent flood ij.t the Taieri was not' nearly po great as was at^first thought, a number of the horses^ and- cattle which i were believed to have been drowned having since turned up. So far as can be ascertained now, only six or eight horses are missing, and something like 20 head of cattle. Mrs Edwards, on whose life an attempt was made by her husband, is progressing favourably. Mr W. Wyinks, of the Dunedin Lands Office, has been promoted to the position of district land registrar, registrar of deeds, and examiner of titles at Invereargill in succession to the late Mr Morgan, who died a few days ago. It may interest candidates at the various degree examinations of the * University of New Zealand which have just concluded to know that all the answer work which had reached the Wellington office up to the 19th inst. was forwarded to England by the steamer Maori, which sailed on that day. The remainder will be sent by the first direct steamer. The cabled results may be expectecl about the third week in February. On the invitation of the management, upwards of 100 of the senior pupils of the Mornington School, accompanied by the head master and the first and second assistant 'masters, last Thursday afternoon paid a visit to M'Leod Bros.' soap and candle factory. The object of the teachers in taking their pupils through the works wa& to give the boys and girls a practical object lesson, and to test their powers of observation and description by making "A Visit to a Soap and Candle Factory " a subject for a future composition. Most of the pupils had provided themselves with pencils and notebooks, and they all took the keenest interest in what they saw. After

spending a couple of hours both profitably and pleasantly the children assembled in the yard at the works, and, on the call of the head master, gave three hearty cheers for the manager (Mr Ziele). The ordinary meeting of the Dunedin Photographic Society was held in the society's rooms last Wednesday evening, when there was a very good attendance of members. Mr R4R 4 A. Ewing (president) was in the chair. Several new members were elected. The President drew attention to the forthcoming intercolonial exhibition, and trusted members were preparing for it and would enthusiastically take the matter up, and also to the opening of the Yacht Club's season, at which members were requested to be with their cameras, it being the spot chosen for the second field day competition. He also mentioned that Evansdale was the spot chosen for the field day on Saturday, December 8. At the conclusion of the ordinary business, Mr A. J. Barth gave a demonstration on lantern slidemaking by ' contact printing. The different manipulations were carefully watched, andthe results proved ver/ successful. Following the demonstration, the lantern was brought t into use, and many slides were shown, on the ! screen by Messrs Melville and Barth, amongst which were some of last Saturday's outing. All were greatly appreciated by those- present. The Minister of Justice has ordered the construction of six portable houses in Auckland for the accommodation of prisoners to be sent to -Rotorua for tree-planting work. The buildings will be on wheels, so that they can be dragged along the railway. Twenty-four ■ prisoners and five warders are to be sent. \ Mr W. Keller, jun., of Hofcitika, who was one of those to join in the hurly-burly of the Christchurch carnival, had one or two unique experiences. In the course of his journeyings looking up old Coasters, he repaired to Lyttelton, and decided to visit the gaol to see Mr M. Cleary. It appears that he arrived ai the outer gate simultaneously with the appearance of a detective with three prisoners. When Hie man of many keys opened the door, the warder passed Mr Keller in with the visitors whose presence was a forced one. Taking in the situation, Mr Keller promptly proceeded to explain matters to the warder: That officer, however, said he had heard the Fame talc of protested innocence before, and turned a deaf ear, the result being- that the Hokitika man was duly locked up with the prisoners to await examination, and passed the time exchanging confidences with his newly-made acquaintances in durance vile. ■ Fortunately (says the Guardian), when the time came to parade- for examination, Mr Qlcary appeared on the scene, and the West Coaster was set at liberty. A verdict for ££00 and costs was on Friday returned for the plaintiff in the Supreme Court case Miss, M'Kenzie v. the Roslyn Tramway Company. The claim was for £1000 for injuries sustained by the plaintiff while travelling on the tram to Roslyn in December of last year. Qu- Miller's Flat correspondent telegraphed on ' Friday that James M'Leod, who was" 1 supposed to have been lost while proceeding with Mr F. Laloli to the head of the Taieri, has been found. The two started from Miller's Flat ]ast Friday, M'Leod acting as guide. Near the Dismal Swamp a fog came on, and, losing then way, they camped for the night. Next day they were put on the right track by a miner, but they separated some time later, intending to meet again at a certain gate. As M'Leod did not turn up, Laloli made his w~ay back to the miner's hut and reported the < ireumstance. M'Leod made his way to the hut of a Chinese rabbiter, six miles from Miller's Flat, and arrived there in a very exhausted condition on Tuesday 1 night, having travelled a considerable distance on his hands and knees. The Chinaman did what he could for the man, and then reported his' arrival at Miller's Flat. Search parties had been out daily. Some strong remarks, on the lack of discipline among our young people were made by j Mr Justice Edwards (telegraphs our Welling- | ton correspondent) in summing up on the first lof the Stoke cases. The jury was aware, he said? that -one of. the great evils at the present time Avas the growing feeling ofjnsubordination among the young, of which our criminal courts offered only too many instances. It was shocking sometimes to look at the calendar and see the number of persons charged with crimes who had New Zealand set down as their place of birth. This unfortunate fact, in his humble opinion, was very largely due to the fact that the necessary discipline was no longer enforced as it should be, and a spirit of insubordination was growing up among the young which was dangerous to the whole community. William Smith, who suddenly disappeared from Alexandra last week, was found in an exhausted' condition on Friday among the rocks above the Manuherikia bridge. He was brought before Mr Gunion, J.P., on Saturday, charged with lunacy, and was remanded for eight clays ior medical examination. The Presbytery of Clutha met at Kaitangata on Wednesday for the induction into the pastoral charge of the Kaitangata congregation of the Rev. R. Scott Allan, late of Sydenham. There was a large muster of the members and adherents of the congregation, to whom the proceedings throughout were manifestly a source of deep interest. The Rev. W. H. Heron, of Waihola, presided, and preached a sermon from Acts i, 8. The usual questions were then put, and satisfactorily answered by Mr Allan, who was thereafter solemnly inducted into the pastorate. The Rev. W. S. Currie addressed the newly- | placed minister and the Rev. Mr Kilpatrick , addressed the congregation. Mr Allan was then conducted to thejdoor of the church by the Rev. R. Fairmaid, the former minister of Kailaii^ata^ and by him, introduced to the

people as they retired. A welcome social was held in the evening and was very largely attended, the church being crowded to the doors. Mr Currie, who had been moderator during the vacancy, presided, and the meeting was addressed by the visiting ministers and by Mr Kelly and an elder of the congregation. The latter presented Mr Currie with a purse of sovereigns in recognition of his services. A handsome pulpit chair was during the evening presented to the congregation by Mrs Anderson, sen., who has been for many years connected with the church. The presbytery was entertained at dinner between the services by Mr Aitcheson. Altogether the occasion passed off most successfully, and is an omen of good augury for the future of Mr Allan's ministry in Kaitangata. An accident of an extraordinary character occurred at Port Elizabeth, South Africa, recently. The Government employees were attending to the wires on the telephone poles, and a native who was assisting and who was on top of the pole, by some means allowed the wire to drop down upon those of the Tramway Company, which carries the current for the cars, and immediately was electrocuted. He let go his grasp and would have fallen into the street, a distance of fully 30ft, but his clothes caught in a. projection from the top of the r.ole. When the body was brought down it was found that life was extinct. Death must have been instantaneous. The Patents Office has accepted complete specifications in the following applications for letters patent : — James Macalisler, Invercargill, rotary disc ridger; P. S. Irwin and S. J, Luke, Dunedin, improvements in dredging appliances; D. and J. Rapson, Kakanui, wire strainer, cutter, and key, combined. Knox Church is to undergo a thorough renovation. Portions of the interior walls are to be stripped, replastered, painted, and kalsomined. The huge scaffolding which is now being erected is to be carried to the top of the tower, which is to be completely overhauled, painted, and sanded. The roof will also be attended to, and the whole of the outside of the building will be pointed and the Oamaru stone facings painted. The work has been entrusted to Mr Watson. The Christchurch Press states that a private letter has been received from Dr Fenwick, medical officer to the second New Zealand contingent, who was invalided to England, which is dated Capetown, October 12. The doctor writes : — " I arrived here yesterday, and am leaving for Pretoria to-night. I hope to rejoin the contingent, but fear the, second no longer exists. Lieutenant Dumaresq was a fellow passenger, and has returned to Blocmfontein. Corporal Orme is now in Mr Pileher's-' office. I met Sergeants Hay and Sykes, who , are at Wynberg Hospital, and hope to return to New Zealand shortly. They looked, very jolly. ' I also ran across Private Chesterman, who is with Lieutenant Hume at the Castle. - Mr Pilcher has been a real trump to the New Zealanders, and we are all under great obligations to him. He never seems too busy to help one." The New Zealand Times saya that after the conclusion of the ca?e of alleged perjury against Louis Locke at the Wellington Police Court on Tuesday, a Chinese interpreter discoursed to a small audience on the matter of Chinese oaths. The blowing out of a match, he saici, was not of much avail a.a a means of getting a Chinaman to speak the truth. "That only means he will get no light," he explained. A court official suggested that the breaking of a saucer was a more effective foim of oath, but the interpreter discounted that form also. " Cut the head off a rooster," he said; "that is the way j. it means something terrible ! If that be done, either in a court of justice- or in a cemetery, a Chinaman will generally speak the, truth. He considers that a lie under such circumstances will cause him illluck all his life, and a horrible experience after death. Cut off the rooster's head," he concluded-, " that is the only way to get the truth!" Enginedrivers are reminded that the examinations held by the Government will take place on December 4-. Forms and particulars may be obtained at the office of 'the inspector of machinery. The friends of the Hon. John M'Kenzie will be much gratified to learn that the health . of the hoc. gentleman, has improved to such an appreciable extent that on Saturday last he was able to visit Bushy Park, and to spend the day at his son's residence there. Mr Pilcher, in a letter to the Premier, draws attention to the fact that the autho1 rities at Capetown have refused to accept hib cablegrams as military messages free of cost. Therefore ho is obliged to pay 7s scl a wor'l for his messages in relation to the -whereabouts of troopers, etc. He is not even allowed to send them as Government messages ab reduced rates. Referring £o this fact, in conversation with a New Zealand -Times reporter, the Premier said : — " Why, they actually charged this colony customs duties for the stalls, fittings, and equipment -which we landed from the troopship Knight Templar at Durban. They refused to admit them free, notwithstanding the purpose for which they had been used." Tn the Supreme Court on Saturday, before his Honor Mr Justice Williams, the caae of i Murray Riissell, mining engineer, v. the Leviathan Gold Dredging Company (Limited) was continued. Mr W. C. MacGregor appeared for the plaintiff, and Mr J. MacGregor for the defendant. The plaintiff was further cross-examined, af f er which his case wa=3 closed. Mr J. MacGregor opened the case for the, company, speaking on the lines of the statement of defence, and called Mr A . > C Broad, a director of the company, to give evidence. This witness denied that the com- 1 pany agreed to employ the plaintiff as dredge- j master. He was employed to do work for , tlieia A but not in that capacity, and his scr- ,

[ vices could be dispensed with at a \veek*a \ notice. Counsel addressed the court, and his Honor reserved judgment. Mr Oakeley Archer, city engineer of Christchurch, has for the past few days been on a visit to Dunedin, and has been devoting hiß time to visits of inspection to various corporation works, including the city abattoirs, the gasworks, and the reservoirs. His attention being attracted by the recent discussion.' on the proposal to dispose of the nightsoil by^' burying it in the Sandhills, he on Sunday w went out to the Sandhills near Lawyer's Head, to see the site and to also ascertain what ' has already been done out there. This me- ',1 thod of disposing of the material has been t successfully pursued in Christchurch for a, great many years, latterly under Mr Archer.* j supervision, and therefore his opinion is en- | titled to weight. The result of Mr Archer's ; investigations shows that the nightsoil can ,b« * deposited at the Ocean Beach, from one end '■ to the other, without creating the slightest. ' nuisance. In Christchurch the stuff is buried i in the sand within a few chains of the main. ' road leading to New Brighton, and although ] this has been going for many years there hasnever beei the slightest ground "for complaini, | although the area used is about 10 acres in. ! extent. Mr Archer states that' at the- Ocean | Beach at least two acres a year could be,per--manently reclaimed and jnade ready for plant- | ing. After the fertilising- process -anything. ! will grow on it, from flowers to forest trees. j It being a public domain, it could be trans- , formed into a beautiful spot where nurseries J could be established and all sorts of ornai mental shrubs and tree 3 introduced. I The Rivers Commission held a sitting in I Dunedin on Saturday morning, when, ther'j : were present Messrs H. A. Gordon (chairman), I Hayes, and Flatman, M.H.R. It waa de- ! ciefcd to proceed at once with tie inquiry as to whether the Awamoko and Kakanul Rivera should be declared sludge channels. The commissioners left for Oamaru by the north express. Our Wellington correspenderii, telegraphs: " Captain J. C. Cooper has just returned from, an eight months' trip to the old world. Captain Coopes went Home on behalf of a locaL syndicite interested in the Chatham Islands sponge fields to investigate the sponge indusj try at foreign centres. In an interview with! | a Post reporter Captain Cooper said tbafc the greater portion of his time was spent in. the Greek Archipelago, the spongefields o£ . which at present supply the world's marker. • There he saw the whole process, from diving to the final preparation for the market. An 1 important English sponge-dealing firm expressed the greatest " interest in the new; spongefialds of New Zealand waters. So much were they impressed with a pcoisample of the Chatham sponge that tnejr offered to 'equip {he, initial expedition to the '. islands with vessels, diver 3, etc-., an condition that the first ""tak*e" of sponges, was sent to them to be tested and valued. The Wellington syndicate, which is composed of ai few enterprising business men, ha 3 accepted the offer, and it is expected that the expedition will start out about Marcii uesl. Afteriiis experience in the sponge centres of the old world, Captain Cooper is sanguine that from, . the Chatham fields Now Zealand will be" able to build up a successful industry." It is understood that the following hava been elected by the Otago Educational Institute to represent Otago at the council meeting to be held in Wellington in January. Me A. M. Bar'nett, Mr 0. D. Flamank, Mr 0. J. i Hodge, Miss Hooper, Mr J. Jeffery, Mr Geov Macdonald, Mr J. W. Smith. Mr W. Gray. M.A., was among the elected delegates, but not being able to go forward, his place has been filled by the next on the list. Mir Davidson, of Mornington, also attends the council in his capacity as one of the council** executive. Tlie hospital returns for the week are: — Remaining from the previous week, 109 ; ad- - rnitted during the past 'week, 24- ; and discharged, 27. . Janet Bruce died, during last week, and the patients under treatment stand at present at 105. Mrs Edwards, who has been in the hoa* rrital for some time under treatment for injuries received from her husband, has nowt recovered, and left for her home at Kaitangata, where the tragedy, occurred, on. Saturday. It is r said that the miners on Westport sidc*have not taken kindly to the introduction of the "iron man." into the mines down there. This is a labour-saving hewing machine, which* drills and cuts the coal into squares, doing the work of the pick, and needing only unskilled labour to take away tha stuff. Somaof the miners have said that through the use of the " iron man " a great deal of waste results, as the machine, according to theirntatement, cannot work out a seam with tha effectiveness of. the trained miners. At the closing pession. of the Peace Congress in Paris a resolution in favour of the formation of an international peace union was , adopted. Mr W. T. Stead, in supporting the 'resolution, apologised to the Congress c or s , being an Englishman, and expressed regret that he could not call himself anything else. Our Cromwell correspondent telegraphs on Saturday: — The annual show o£ , the Upper Clutha A. and P. Association was held yesterday, ' The morning was fine, but the afternoon was windy , and dusty. The attendance of the public •, was good, and the entries up to previous \ year 3. There wa.s good competition in the sheep and cattle classes, also hacks and lighS draughts. Financially the show was successful. Mr J. F. Herbert, of Ardmore, is presenting a Union Jack of the Times pattern to the KeLo school. We have received &übscriptions towards theMrs Thomas East fuud of 10s from J. M. and £1 Is from 0. WE.. Gordon*

""A few years ago," writes Mr J. B. C. Huxham to the Sydney Telegraph, " a manleft Austria, and settled in Auckland, New Zealand, leaving a son of eight or nine years old at home. Recently the son, at his father's request, left home to join him, but on arrival in Sydney could not obtain a. I passage to Auckland, in consequence of the laws of New Zealand relating to immigration, made since his father arrived in that country. The boy, now about 12 years old, must therefore return to Austria, or starve in Sydney, although his father is prepared to receive and provide for him in Auckland. The New Zealand Union Steamship Company say they are forbidden by the New Zealand Government to grant him a passage. This," Mr Huxham says, " seems to be an exceptionally hard case." . The Caversham bazaar was brought to a close on Saturday. In the afternoon the .school children gave several action songs, and ,-went through a number of dances. The Alabama Minstrels gave a performance in the evening. On both occasions there were large audiences, and business was so brisk that all the goods on the stalls were sold right out. About £80 was taken during the day. The will probably result in £300 beinij Realised, £100 of which goes to the school committee and the balance to the volunteer - -corps. Before closing Captain Loasby heartily thanked the stallholders and others who 3iad taken so much trouble in connection wit'j ihe bazaar.