LOCAL & GENERAL.

Otago Witness, Issue 2651, 4 January 1905, Page 26

LOCAL & GENERAL.

Comparatively few city folk have seen the mass of bloom displayed by the lupins on the Tomahawk road during the last three or four weeks. The great display begins a few hundred yards north-east of . Tahuna Park, and stretches on either side , of the road for a couple of hundred feet, forming a complete avenue of lemoncoloured bloom, running for nearly half a mile. The perfume is delicious, and the effect of the beautiful lemon-coloured stretch of bloom on either side is much more grateful to the eye than the bright yellow glory of a broom or gorse field. The seed pods are beginning to form now, so that the next few days should pretty well see the end of the bloom. The trees "planted in Chisholm Park • are making Steady growth, and will- in course of time, s completely transform this at one- time aridstretch of sand, and thus complete the good work 60- effectively begun by the lupins. The success -of this • experiment demonstrates , the .possibility of successfully planting the whole range of sand dunes fronting the- ocean, and thus inducing the formation of fresh hills on the beach in favourable localities. The South Australian Register publishes a letter written by a member of a firm carrying on business in Colombo, Singapore, etc., stating that the idea has been started among Oriental traders of boycotting Australian produce as a protest against the Commonwealth legislation excluding Asiatics from Australia. Writing from Colombo, he says: — "-I have just returned from Singapore, and while there our .manager, .in referring to this matter, said that "the native community was very bitter about it. A tamil- doctor of good reputation, with a large practice among both European and native people, and a friend of the manager, and who was formerly getting j supplies of eucalyptus oil from us, but had j ceased to' do so; when asked why simply said he could not get it from an Australian firm, and further that the native paper to which he was a subscriber had been urging, its readers to avoid Australian produce as a retaliation for their Exclusion Act." . "Matters in connection, with the Otago Farmers' ' Union. Mutual Fire' Insurance {Association have 'now reached an advancedstage, and the first; general meeting, of the-, association will be held in Water street on Friday,' January, 13, at 3.30, p.m. The business at the .meeting "will be the formal adoption of the name of the association and th© place -of its office, the election of " a board of directors, the adoption of the tariff, and general. The wonderful change that has taken place in the purchasing power of money is well illustrated _by a case which the Rev. Andrew Clark cites in an interesting article on "The Manor of Great Waltham" in the Essex Review. He takes from the manor rolls this instance: — "July, 1401. — John Parker, senior, surrendered to his son John, and said John's wife, Christina, his messuage and quarter-virgate of copyhold, conditionally that they shall keep. John (senior) in food and clothes (both linen and wool) well and sufficiently for the rest of his life, or else, at John's (senior) option, pay him 10s a year." Mr Clark adds: "Ten shillings as a fair equivalent for a whole year's liberal board, lodging, clothing*, and washing is noteworthy." There has been a good deal of curiosity as to what provision Mr W. W. Astor has made for his daughter, whose marriage with Mr Spender-Clay has just taken placet According to club gossip, he has given her a settled income of .£30,000 a year. There . is talk of a large present to th© bridegroom (whose - private means are 'comparatively email), but? the -truth as to this is not likely to be .known outside the Astor family circle. Mr Astor himself has a partioular horror of publicity where his private affairs are concerned — at least, so he has led "English people to infer. They -are inclined to regard his reticence as somewhat of a pose, for it not only exceeds their own, but is several times more pronounced than that of most American, millionaires. His daughter should find some difficulty in spending her income, even in these days of expensive amusement. The marriage provision is an addition to a considerable fortune of her own, which came to her by inheritance; and on the death of her father, if she survive him, she will receive a lump sum of several millions sterling. c As a result of visits recently paid by members of the City Council to Ross Creek a number of residents in the Wakari district have .been served with notices by the town ' clerk requiring them to discontinue polluting the water which finds its way into the Ross Creek reservoir. It is probable that • litigation may result, as the propertyowners referred to contend that the notioe , means depriving them of the ordinary us© ' of their holdings. ' *It is tuiderstood steps are to be taken ' to bring back to the colony an Auokland gentleman, well known in insurance circles in. the northern city. Just as the Sierra was leaving Auckland on her last trip to San Francisco' he stepped on board, ao if to see a friend off, but failed to disembark. An examination of his accounts led to the discovery of some serious irregularities, and the manager of the company concerned, whose headquarters for the colony are m Dunedin, is now in communication with the police authorities-

Regularly as the holiday season comes round individuals lacking in sense, imagination, and invention resort to the practice of placing a written scrap of paper in a corked bottle, which is then thrown into the sea, generally to drift ashore with the next tide. The fiist oE iho crop reported this season was found by tho Misses M. and N. Bruce on the Waikouaiti Beach on Wednesday evening, and at once forwarded by them to the Union St&am Ship Company's office. The scrap of paper in the bottle bore the following inscription: — " County of Ayr ; terrible storm 40 miles off Otago Heads ; slightly damaged ; report to paper. — Seaman." The County of Ayr left Dunedin on Tuesday and reached Lyttelton on Wednesday morning; having experienced light baffling wind up to 2 o'clock on Wednesday morning. It is to be regretted that ■ some of these would-be practical jokers are not caught and given a thorough good ducking. The executive of the New Zealand Farmers' Union,, in a circular to the-various branches of the organisation, says : ' ' The Labour .party all over the Commonwealth i has made a distinct attack upon producers, and here in our colony a party has been formed and-a platform put forward which is a menace to- the farming community and j opposed to our union. The platform de- I clares, amongst other things, for nationalisation of the industries of the colony. Th© proposal to establish a State bank, • etc., implies a belief in the efficiency of paper money to add to the wealth of the State, j It is opposed to the freehold tenure of the i soil, and in favour of harassing the State peasantry by ' periodical revaluation.' In < the election £,nd constitution of local bodies | it advocates the dangerous principle of ! representation without taxation. It favours the referendum, which would remove all responsibility from our representatives; advocates the abolition of th© Upper House ; and demands statutory preference to unionists, which strikes at freedom of contract and personal liberty. It is the fear that ! some of these planks of their platform may ) be passed which ~iias caused such an unrest I amongst the Crown tenants and the desire of many of them to convert their holdings into freeholds." In a recent interview, Mr Bragato, the ■ Government viticulturist, stated that he ' was firmly convinced that grape-growing . and the manufacture of wine would in a [ very short time prove themselves among , the most important industries in th© colony, especially in Hawke's Bay. The climate of New Zealand, as well' as the soil, are, he said, peculiarly adapted' to^the production ' of grapes from which th© most popular wines are made.- -Vine-growing is as yet practised only on a limited scale, but the demand for the locally-made wine is steadily ' growing, end at the pr-esent time far ex- ! oeeds the available supply. Mr Bragato j said that a 10-acre vineyard can be planted i for £30 per acre, and when the vines are ! in full- bearing the land will yield £60 worth of fruit per acre. Th© annual cost of maintenance, gathering, etc., would amount to about £10 per acre. Wine is now selling at from 8s to 12s per gallon (in bulk), and Mr Bragato thinks that he will soon see j the day when we will be able to purchase j the finest quality wines at 2s 6d per gallon. A Melbourne telegram states that a sen- j sational occurrence took place at about aquarter -to 11 o'clock on the night of December 18 at th© Oakleigh branch of the English, Scottish, and Australian Bank ! (Limited). A masked man was surprised in ' the passage by Mrs Nicholls, the wife of i the manager, her husband being absent from home at the time. When asked his business the intruder expressed a desire to j "see the boss." He was ordered off the premises by Mrs Nicholls, and, without j making any display of violence, he walked ' to th© door, which closed .behind him. As ! Mrs Nicholls was congratulating herself on ■ getting rid—of an unwelcome visitor so : easily, she was considerably startled by j hearing .two shots in succession which were fired at the door. Tlie man- then jumped" ' on a bicycle and rod© off in the direction of Surrey- Hills. „ News of th© occurrence ' was- brought to the Oakleigh police station by a boy about "half an hour after- ' wards, and the polio© were immedi- ; ately despatched in pursuit of the man. ' Mr Nicholls returned home shortly after- i wards, and found bis wife considerably ' upset by the occurrence. i A singular breaoh of promise action was > heard in Sydney last week, when a Mrs j Finlayson sued J. R. Hall for £10,000 j damages. A promise to marry was, it was t alleged, made 20 years ago ; it was also J stated that the promise was renewed last • January. Mr Justice Ping said that with ; regard to the contract of marriage — and • the same applied to all contracts — if the parties went on in a way that was incon- ■ aistent with the existence of that contract ' he should say to the jury: "You may': presume from that that there is a recision , of th© contract," and in the case of a con- '. tract of marriage, where th© contract depends upon mutual affection", and so on, ' if they found people allowing 20 years to elapse without writing or visiting, although ; for six years living a-quartcr of a mil© ' apart, it was the very strongest evidenceof recision. In this case there wer© circum- j stances more extraordinary, h© supposed, than any ever put forward in any court of justice. It was said that truth was

stranger than fiction. If these facts were true, they were such as he supposed hardly the most daring novelist would put forward. The jury, in less than 10 minutes, returned a verdict for the defendant. During the American Presidential election some very interesting old electioneering stories were revived. One, recalled by th© Manchester Gtiardian, concerns Senator Blackburn, who has a reputation for making long speeches. In his younger days two political opponents carried their difference to such a length that only a duel could settle them. They met by arrangement, and Blackburn was present as referee. Befor© they met the referee was called upon to say a few words indicating the precise terms of th© contest. It was early dawn when Mr Blackburn began his address, and so fully and_-preeisely did he lay the terms of th© contest before the combatants that it was late evening befor© he. had finished. The anger of the duellists against the referee entirely submerged their anger against each other. They shook hands and buried their hatches, -but they never forgave Blackburn. All accounts agree -that the- starling- in Australia., just as is th© case in New Zealand, has developed into a very serious pest in many of the fruit-growing districts. The birds (says the Age) have become . very numerous in the Lillydale district, and" last year proved very destructive to tho grape crop — in fact, it is felt that unless some action is taken to keep down the pest the vine- growing industry in the district will be ruined. The birds have now got as far as Mildura, and the Director of Agriculture, when on. his recent visit, strongly advised the settlers to take active measures against them, and especially during the nesting season to destroy their nests. Mr French, the Government entomologist, has suggested the organisation of shooting clubs for the purpose of maintaining a raid against the birds. The starling is an insectivorous bird, but it has developed such a liking for fruit that its services as a destroyer of insects appear to be greatly outweighed in the fruit-grow-ing districts by its ravages in orchards and vineyards. Jt is easily frightened — at least it is not characterised by the audacity cf the sparrow, — and the use of a little gun- ( powder might serve to scare it away from places where its presence is unwelcome. j Another trouble .is reported from Shelly Bay, in Wellington Harbour, which is the headquarters of the torpedo arm of our ] naval service-. •It appears (says th© corre- \ spondent of the Christchurch Press) that j quite recently a lieutenant took > up his quarters at the bay, bringing a cadet with bim. On -a recent Saturday- one of th© men was told he was to act as an orderly; part of his duty being to clean the cadet officer's boots and make his bed. He declined, and handed in his resignation, being assisted by the fact that he had influential friends. On the following Monday the men were paraded, and a volunteer for orderly work was called for. But there wer© no offers. One of the men was then picked as orderly, but he declined to be made a servant, pleading the regulations as a justification of this attitude. He was arrested by the lieutenant, and the lieutenant is stated to have fined him 10s, ordered him to be confined to the barracks 10 days, and stopped his late leave for 10 months. An appeal to the lieutenant-in-charge resulted in that officer upholding the other lieutenant's decision, and it appears the man can get no redress, as there is no provision for a higher appeal. In the meantime, the men ar© taking turns in the important duty of cleaning the cadet officer's boots. The Latter Day Saints, more popularly designated " Mormons," are still carrying on a vigorous campaign throughout England. Their official journal states that in the last six months 27,856 "strangers' "__ houses have been \isited and tracts left. The proselytising crusade is carried on ohiefly by young men 'from Utah. These young men maintain themselves entirely out of personal or family means for the two ; or three years during which their tract j distributing crusades last, at a cost of i about £4 each per month. Not a penny do they receive from the Mormon Church — their work is a labour of Jove, and they wander far arid wide, enduring much hardship. The chief of the Mormon mission in England claims that they make about 80 converts a month. Of between 300,000 and 4-00,000 Mormons all the world over, there are about 6000 in Great Britain, of whom 500 are. in the London. Conference. A "solid Tribute to British shipbuilding, armour-mak'ng, and guns has just been j paid by Brazil, in spite of the allurements i of Krupp, backed by the " first commercial i traveller of Germany." The way the Japanese ships have stood the wear and teai" of war was sufficient recommendation. Brazil, which has quite a respectable collection of old warships, is going in for a modern navy. A commission has been in Europe for some little time, and has , decided to place nearly th© whole of the • order in England. It is intended to con- | struct three battleships, of 13,000 tons, of the Triumph type ; thre© armoured j cruisers, of 9500 tons, of the Bayan type; ! six destroyers, of 4-00 tons ; six torpedo j boats, of 130 ions and six of 50 tons ; also . thre© submarines and a 6000-ton transport. All tho guns are to be of the Elawick

type, while the whole of the armour will be made under Yickers's patents. In the face of this strong addition to the Brazilian navy, it remains to be seen what the Argentine and Chili will do; what they are not likely to do is to sell any of the warships they now possess. Mr Hunter, a well-known American sociologist, recently declared that oneeighth of the total population of the United States is poverty-stricken, being insufficiently fed, inadequately clothed, and insanitarily housed. They are the victims, Mr Hunter asserts, of deteriorating economical conditions. They are prone to tuberculosis through malnutrition. School children ar© hungry because their parents are, underpaid. Already present conditions compare badly with these which existed at the time of Charks Dickens's tour, when beggars were unknown. Mr Hunter believes that poverty in America will soon be more acute than in Europe by reason of economic feudalism, which is rivalling the worsfe . , features of l,be ancient baronial system. " ' The- spcrotary of the Wanganui Astro* j nomical Society states that a -storm i 3 !■ raging on the sun. On December 8 great spots were observed through, the. .big tele-. • scope in the observatory to be covering a. I great part of" the disc with very high. j hydrogen flames, showing on the -edge pf the orb. This week the sun spots hadi ' spread themselves over two-thirds of the .sun's diameter, being of enormous, area. I According to Mr Wragge's theory these [ storms may be influencing the weather, and | may account in large measure for the atmo- | spheric disturbances in Australia and New Zealand. The Russian Court has been thrown into ; an excited slate (says the correspondent of I the St. James's Budget) by the announcement that the Prince Regent of Bavaria I lias conferred the rank and title of Countess | upon the -morganatic wife of the Grand ; Duke Paul of Russia, fhe Czar's uncle. I Henceforth she will be known as the Coun- ; tess Hohenfelsen. The Grand Duke hag ; been in exile for two years because h» j married this lady in opposition to th© Czar's wishes. She first married an engineer named Pitqlkovs, was divorced from, | him, and then \married Colonel ValeriaI novna, «n officer bf the Russian army, whodivorced her because he objected to- the marked attentions which the Grand DukePaul " paid her. - The Grand Duke leffc - Russia, and_took Mme. Valerianovna to - Livorno, where they were wedded according 'to the rites of the Greek -Church- by -a Russian priest,, who had been bribed- to* perform the ceremony. "For this the Czar- . expelled -his uncle from- th© Russian army, ! confiscated all his estates, and banished him | from Russia" for life. Simultaneously tho s Grand Duke was deprived of all distinctions ! conferred on him by the German Emperor. | The German Emperor's magnificent plans ! for improving inland navigation in Prussia | have been -brought a considerable step • nearer to realisation. The decision of the • Prussian Chamber of Deputies to recomi mend the construction of the canal from ' the Rhine to the River Leine, near ' Han- : over, and to deepen the channel of the ; River Weser*from Hamelin to Bremen is I only a part of the* brilliant scheme for conj structing a waterway from the Rhine to> the Elbe, and for improving navigation facilities on nearly every river of any importance in Prussia, but it is an immense' ; step forward, and will doubtless inspire the | Kaiser and his advisers to renewed effort ;to complete the far-reaching project. For I nearly six years the Agrarians have opposed I these reforms. Their influence was felt not j only in th© Prussian Diet, but in the Prussian Court, and on more than one occasion, was the cause of almost revolutionary changes in those circles which had the honour of being nearest to royalty. Th» Agrarians opposed the scheme for the most ..selfish of all reasons, because they feared that the construction of these great waterways would materially reduce agricultural prices, and would attract labour, which is ! scarce enough at present, away -from the larger farms. All through the struggle over these canal bills they have been supported by German Liberals of all parties, as it is recognised that* the construction of tho canals will bring in its train an enormous development of industry in Central Prussia, and will do much to relieve the tension on railways, which even now are over-burdened with an almost unmanageable goods traffic. One immediate benefit will be the possibility of cheap transit of coals from Westphalia and Silesia to the centre of the country, and this cheapening of coals will bring a rapid growth of industry in its train. The cost of the work, which has been sanctioned by the commission, is estimated at £12,287,500. Tho old idea of establishing in London a council of the empire, which has been discussed for a quarter of a century without leading to anything, has (says the London correspondent of the Argus) been revived! in a new form by Mr Haldane, Sir F. Pollock, Mr W. Pember Reeves, and others-. Th© most recent, and perhaps the mosfc suggestive, proposals emanate from the Agent-general for New Zealand, whose idea, seems to be to build something definite andt permanent on the proposed periodical Premiere' Conference. Why, he asks* should not a, council of the empire be at; once formed, composed simply of the Secretary for tho Colonies, and th© Prime Minis-

Ters oi vjanaaa, Australia, JNew Zealand, and Cape Colony, the last-named to xepreBent South Africa until its federation. Such a small and compact body, he thinks, could act either as a committee of the King's Privy Council, with the right of audience, or independently of the Privy Council altogether. A meeting could be held in London, or elsewhere, every second year, and in, the intervals the members could consult by telegraph or writing, discussing in absolute confidence any Imperial question which any of its members desired to bring forword, or which any Government within the Umpire might wish to bring under notice. Mr^ Reeves suggests that auxiliary to this Email inner council of the Empire there should be set Tap a permanent committee of advice and inquiry, with its headquarters in London, composed of practical, hardworking men with no desire for publicity. Its duty would be to discuss, thrash out, and report upon all matters remitted to it by the council of the "Empire. It is admitted that -this scheme is only a stopgap, pending ihe realisation of the federal idea). DiscTtssing ihe -burden of South Africa, - in Australian paper mentions that in the Transvaal, with, a' population of less- than. 300,000 whites — nmch-Jewer than there are in South Australia— there are now 125 officials, exclusive of railway officials, draw--" ing average salaries of £14-70 ,a year. The Police .Force, with -its inspector-general, four colonels,- one" chief' of staff, three 'divisional commandants, -three lieutenant-colonels, 16 majors, 79 captains, and 136 lieutenants, (the lieutenants get nearly £9 a week), costs £1,500,000 a year, which «is £300,000 more than' all the Police Forces of Australia, Tasmania, and New Zealand combined. And this in addition to an army of 10,000 men. The ambulance- arrangements for the con r veyance of, injured -persons on the .railways, although fairly satisfactory," are not as com- . plete as they might be. While a number of railway stations aTe furnished with an ambulance stretcher for the use of the injured, -a large p umber of other stations are not so -equipped, and in the latter .category - the station at Waitati is included. •- As a result of this -want the unfortunate youth - Davis, who met with a -painful gun accident at Waitati' on Boxing Day, -was probably subjected to more, suffering than was _necessary- After being' shot in- the leg at short - range with a full charge-of- dipt, he received amateurish but kindly treatment from his., companions, and was afterwards conveyed in a cart to Waitati township, where he was attended, to .lay Dr-Gault; of the Inebriates' Home. Some- houES-ifterwards'Tie ■was-con-▼eyed" to the -. railway, station, and vas no, stretcher was procurable" he^was^placed upon' the floor of "the' brake-van of -the late express, and taken in this manner to Dunedin, adie.tance of 17 miles: Now "the brake-van is not the most comfortable x>n the train to travel on, "and an injured -person lying on his- back on the- floor of the van" must necessarily be subjected to severe jolting. The brake-van of each train is furnished with an ambulance kit containing splints, bandages, etc., and also with facilities for suspending from the roof a stretcher or hammock for the use of the injured, but there are no stretchers or hammocks, and where, as in the case of Waitati, these are not obtainable, the onlyalternative is to place the "injured traveller on the floor. What seems to be necessary. is either that every station should be furnished with an ambulance hammock or. that each brake-van should have one or two such hammocks or stretchers folded up and strapped against the inner wall for use in case of-emergency, and we feel sure that if this matter "is. taken up by the St. John Ambulance Society and brought under the notice of the railway authorities it will re-ceive-prompt attention. The medical evidence given at the inquest on the youth Davis was that his deaTh,-which occurred two days after the accident, resulted from shock and. hemorrhage, -and either of these con-., <Jitions jwould not be 'improved" by lying stretched out upon the floor of a railway Tan travelling at a. high speed over a narrowgauge line such as that "between WaitatLand Dunedin. The return of infectious diseases recorded at_ the local health, office for the month chows- that ■Chere^ have been reported during that period two . eases of- scarlet fever (both in ihe country),' three oases of typhoid (one in the town and two in the country).,, seven cases of tuberculosis (all in the country), and "10 'cases of' diphtheria (one in the town and nine in the country). These appeals. ±o' be something "of an epidemic of diphtheria in Invercargill, vrhenoe -nearly all the cases are reported, these being, however, situated in half a dozen different streets. Detective Connolly made an arrest on*Friflay under somewhat unusual •eiremnstanees. A men named William North was "wanted" for liaving stolen £4- Ss from another man. named David Coulter, at Kaitangata, and Detective Connolly caught a glimpse of North on board the northern express train as it was moving out of the Dunedin station. Though the train -was then moving at come speed ,the detective manag-ed to jump on ijo-arfl, and had his man- in custody bvjthe time the train reached Port Chalmers. There captor and captive' alighted, and returned to Dunedin later on. Doubtless the present high prices of stock in the colony have something toj&SSMB$£ the fact that there was no bid fojp§|Hmng for the lease of "the Beaumont xuns "offered for sale Tjy auction at the Crown Lands Office yesterday. The runs (numbered 170 a to E and 353b) are situated in the Tuapeka «nd Maniototo Counties, comprise 69,000 acres, and are offered for a term of 14 years

at an upset rental ot ±;auu per annum, mo doubt the lease will be shortly reoffered in due course. Mr Charles D. Gardiner, who has been appointed by the Hanover Street Baptist "Church to act as evangelist in connection with the Mornington and Maori Hill Churches, began his ministry on Sunday, taking the morning service at Maori Hill and the evening at Moriington. Mr Gardiner has been engaged for some four years j in home mission work at Invercargill on behalf of the Presßyterian Church, but owing to a change of view with regard to baptism has recently joined the Baptist Church, and hopes ultimately to entsr the ministry of that Church. Mr Gardiner has considerable gifts as a preacher, and it is anticipated that both the caiises he is to serve will benefit largely by his labours. A social meeting to welcome Mr Gardiner to his new sphere of service will be held at Maori Hill on Friday next. "Vice-admiral Day Hort Bosanquet, who succeeds Sir Archibald Douglas in the command of the North American and "West . Indies station, belongs to an old Huguenot family, whose ancestors in England fled from Lunel in Languedoo after the Revocation of the Edict of Nantes, and, though bred to ''the law, made a large fortune in the land of his adoption as a merchant. Admiral Bosanquetfs grandfather married an aunt of the rich Mr Hoiford, "of Dorchester House, "■ and -through her obtained the Northumberland Estate, where the admiral was born. The Common Sergeant of London is another of this family. lie comes from the Bosanquets of Dingestow Court, Monmouth, the seat of the head of the family. A third is B. J. T. Bosanquet, known as one of tKe best all-round cricketers of to-day. The port of Durban is generally cited by most travellers in South Africa. as a remarkable instance of the British faculty of colonising and reproducing the commercial instincts of the race in places abroad. Today -this South African seaport has a rateable value of £10,000,000. Exactly 60 years ago .ifc was a sandy wilderness, with a small blockhouse in its midst, besieged by a commando of Boers. British reinforcements were 600 miles distant at Grahamstown, in the Cape" Colony, and on the present King's Birthday . an " intrepid Natal farmer, Dick King, Tvho alone Jtnew the_ way through a pathless land, started on his perilous ride for relief. With his life in his hands he rode for 10 weary -days through the enemy's country, and eventually reached Grahamstown. It is to him that Durban— not only Durban, -but Natal—to-day owes its" existence., and prosperity. -, v _. - '• "_" There were .some autobiographical touches about .the Australian : Prime Minister's address at.the annual^ speech day of the Scotch " College^ "Melbourne^ on December 15. Mr Redd was apparently never regarded as a good .boy. He never "succeeded,, he told bis- . hearers, 'in gaining .more 'than one' prize during his scholastic career. That treasureu mark of mental attainment was for general proficiency. Apparently Mr Reid's school days were neither/ prolonged nor. productive of much- good. He hinted, delicately, that he was more diligent in " playing the wag " and contracting sudden and mysterious illnesses than in aspiring to shine in the classroom, and he bewailed the fact that consequent deficiencies in his -book learning had to be made~-up after working hours when he was earning his own living. Mr Reid, in all -humility, .a little later, held his position up as an example of what a boy may hope to - reach. Remarkable scenes were witnessed at Ply' mouth on November -17, resulting .from a leakage of electric' current in Cornwall street, a central thoroughfare. One- of the cables crosses the roadway a short distance below "the surfate, and just after midday it was noticed that as horses passed over this spot they suddenly sprang forward, as if struck sharply with the whip It was soon dis- ' covered that they were victims of an electric shock. A'large crowd watched" with interest and -amusement the strange antics of the ! horses as they came in contact with the \ electric zone, and in some instances it was with difficulty that "the- drivers kept their 'animals frooa bolting. Meanwhile people '.walked freely over, the ground, their boots j apparently acting as non-conductors. Dogs were, however," affected equally with horses, and cut some queer capers. Eventually the borough electrical workmen commenced digging up tho • pavement to locate the leakage. During a speech at Wanganui Mr Haselj den referred to th© necessity of opening iup trade with. South Africa. He stated j that during the whole time he was there j he had eaten frozen meat every day, and none of it was from New Zealand, but all from Argentina. They could eat all the meat there that' we could send, and if only we sent good butter there we should make a name for it also. There was, he said, a grand opening in South Africa for all the products of New Zealand. The story of the life of Mr Arthur Pearson, whose acquisition of the Standard still flutters the dovecotes of Fleet street, is (writes Mr H. W. Lucy, in the Sydney Morning Herald} very interesting. I have heard it from his own lips, and I daresay, j as it is something to be proud of, ■he will I not resent the retelling. Educated at Westminster, he was designed for the ministry, an avocation followed by his father and other members of his family. At the end of two years' preparation, he came to the conclusion that he was not meant for the Church. An accident directed his footsteps into the field of periodical literature, in which he has since largely loomed. He came across an announcement in the Strand

Magazine setting forth a mathematical problem, and offering as a prize a clerkship of £100 a year in the Newnes establishment. Pearson won the prize, and took his seat at the desk in the office at Southampton street. He- rapidly rose until he became manager, the various undertakings built •up around the Strand Magazine feeling the influence of his energy and wealth of resource. At the end of four years he concluded it was time his services received fuller recognition than was current. He asked for a particular salary, not extravagant in the circumstances. His proposal not being entertained, h© left, starting on his own account with Pearson's Magazine, a grain of mustard seed that, as all the world knows, has since branched forth into a lordly tree. The large Hurunuiorangi Lagoon, situated close to ihe Ruamahunga River at Gladstone (Wairarapa), is stated by the Leader to be gradually filling up, and there is a likelihood that it will soon present an area of the most fertile land in the. district. In 1830, when the first European visited the Hurunuiorangi, the lagoon was half a mile in length and 400 yds in breadth, and covered with water, where gathered many of tne New Zealand native birds. The Natives stated that portions of the lake were bottomless, and the home. of the taniwha and giant •eels. The floods from the river have successively deposited layers of silt in the waste of water, which gradually commenced to fill up. ■ In one of the years there were so many floods that half an acre of land was reclaimed!. Twenty years ago there were portions of the swamp 40ft deep, but the filling-in has proceeded so rapidly that there now remain only about 15 acres of comparatively shallow swamp. H.M.S. Hebe recently carried out an important and interesting experiment in connection with the investigation into the North Sea outrage by the Russian Baltic fleet. It will be remembered that it hae been alleged that there were no hostile warships in the North Sea, and that the Russians mistook the Hull trawlers for Japanese torpedo boats, and even after the latter had been illuminated by searchlights from the Russian fleet. One night Past month, after dark, the Hebe turned her searchlight upon a steam-fishing drifter of the Hull type, •which was in motion, and simultaneously a photograph was taken of the little craft, which, it is understood, will in due coursebe submitted to the International Commission of Inquiry. The experiment was conducted about a mile off the harbour, and viewed from the shore the drifter, when illuminated, bore no resemblance to a torpedo boat.. ' , Colonel Renard, director -of the Pare d' Aerostation at Meudon, has (according to the Temps) sent a report to the- Taris Academy of Science on , a new aerial propeller which he has constructed -and which, owing to its lightness, may cause a new departure in the construction -of .flying machines. The propeller is two metres fifty centimetres in diameter, is absolutely rigid, and resists to a wonderful degree the pressure of the air. Its most important feature, however, is its lightness. It weighs only three kilogrammes, and in future models the colonel believee he can reduce the weight still further. A propeller of the ordinary construction of a. similar size would have weighed about eight kilogrammes. He hae obtained "the extraordinary lightness by a novel use of the centrifugal force which helps the rigidity of the propeller. Hitherto attempts in the same line have been made to utilise the centrifugal force by means of lead weights, but this caused the edges of the propeller to be uneven. The method Colonel Renard' has adopted avoids this difficulty,- and "he believes that the problem of sustentation in the air by means of. screws will be greatly facilitated. Our Palmerston correspondent writes: — The large lOffc x sft plate-glass window, valued at from £9 to £10, on the premises .of Mr J. Appleby, photographer, was, for the second time, broken late- on Sunday night or early on Monday morning. The same window, together • with three others, were wilfully broken on the night of the 17th inst. The police have the matter in hand, and^it is to be hoped they will succeed in tracing the miscreant. A coxiple of weeks ago a man named Lewis Campßell, who arrived in Melbourne as a stowaway on a German cargo steamer from South Africa, called on the police, and stated that he wished to relieve hie conscience in .regard to a murder at which he had assisted some three years ago at Newcastle. The police heard his story, but he was unable to get anyone to arrest him, and he returned to the vessel, and went to Sydney and repeated his story. The man was taken into custody. Detective Brown left for Newcastle with him, the man undertaking to point out the spot where the alleged crime was committed and the victim buried. The man stated that he was born in Newcastle in 1870, Hut was reared in Austria. In August over three years ago he overheard a conversation in an hotel, the result of which was that he joined three men, one of whom was a miner, who had a quantity of gold in his belt in dust and bars. The party went out of the town about two miles, and in a lonely spot the miner was murdered, and the three men divided his gold between them, the share of the man who is making the confession amounting to £500, which was paid over to him principally in £10 Bank of England notes. The three then went to Hobart in a sailing vessel, where they separated. The rest of the man's story was that he went to South Africa, and while sick in a hospital his brooding wrought distress of mind, and eventually he stowed away on

the German-Australian line- Bielefeld for Australia. The murdered man's name, h& said, was John Wilson, aged about 40, and he gave a detailed description of his appearance. The man failed to find any trace of the spot where the crime was alleged to have been committed. ,"' Our cablegrams this week announce that the siege of Port Arthvir, with the terrible slaughter attending it, has been ended. The Japanese successes during the past few days has forced General Stoessel to conclude that further resistance- is hopeless, and he has written to General Nogi concerning the terms of surrender. Jt~ The ceremony of seeing the eld year cat and the new year in was celebrated in various ways on Saturday night, but generally in the old-fashioned way of the ringing of bolls, blowing of whistles, and otherwise making as much noise as possible. The weather was most inclement, a cold southwesterly wind having brought up heavy driving rain, and though this cleared off about 10 o'clock the streets were very wet. The streets were not so crowded by shoppers or pJeasure-seeke/s as usual, and tradespeople complained that business was less than for many years past. The cold weather drove many: indoors before midnight, and the average man, no doubt, invited a friend to " toast the auld year." When the Town Hall clock boomed out the chimes for the hour the sound of tHo 12 strokes was drowned in the clang of church and fire "bells and the whistling of factory and railway engines, and then a fusilade of bombs, crackers, and rockets was heard in all directions for some minutes, gradually dying away to a few splutters of squibs , and Catherine wheels, after which those who ' had remained abroad returned to their homes, and soon the city was deserted except for the policemen on their beat, or a noisy group of youths determined to " see the last of it." The electric car traffio was exceedingly heavy, but the service was maintained to" excellent time. The southern horsecar traffic was very congested. Almost every car was crowded to excess in the busy hours. The two trains to Oamaru, where Caledonian sports were being held, on Monday carried 159 passengers, and the specials -to Waikouaiti, where races were going on, took away 574. The north express carried 142 and the south 133, in which were included 21 for Queenstown. Two hundred and fifty travelled to Port Chalmers, 180 were conveyed to Henley, and 137 to Mosgiel. The returns for the north line show an "increase of 307 over last New Year's' , Day,- and a decrease of 111 as far as the south line is concerned. The forty-third annual sports gathering of the Caledonian Society of Otago was opened .at the Caledonian Ground on Monday, when, in spite of the inclement weather,' about 6000 people attended, and £239 was taken ■at ' the gates. - Go"od performances resulted in some of the events, and , great interest was taken in the principal races. The wrestling contests were par- . ticularly exciting, and some of the struggles • were very close and protracted. The two i famous Scottish athletes, A. A. Cameron j and G. H. Johnstone, gave an exhibition o£ wrestling and of throwing the heavyi weight. • At Kaitangata on Saturday Henry Farquj.harson was convicted of the theft of a saddle, the property of a neighbour, and fined £3. The accused was also convicted of stealing a stockwhip from another neighbour, and was ordered to com© up for sentence when called upon. During the week ended 31st December ; the number of patients admitted to the | Dunedin Hospital *was 20, and the number ' discharged 22, the total remaining in the | institution being 89. One patient (John j Davis) died during the week. Invitations have been sent by Bishop Grimes, to Cardinal Moran, of Sydney, Archbishop Carr, of Melbourne, and the j principal prelates in Australia, to be present on the occasion of the opening of the Roman Catholio Cathedral at Christchurch, which is fixed to takd place on i February 12. Though it was hoped that" j he might "be able to attend, Cardinal Moran is not expected to bo present, as his health will not permit of arduous journeys. Arch- • bishop Carr, of Melbourne (who laid the foundation stone of the cathedral) will be present, however, in company with Bishops : Corbett, Dunne, Murray, O'Connor, and Revell, of Australia, and Archbishop Kelly, cf Sydney. The bishops of this colony 'will be present, and 50 priests will assist in the function. It is expected that there will be an enormous number- of visitors, particularly from "Westland, and arrangements have been mad© for overland excursions from that portion of the diocese. In order properly to accommodate the visitors provision has been made for admission by I ticket. Prissts from Australia who have seen the* cathedral praise it as successfully j challenging comparison, in point of beauty, I with the cathedrals of the Commonwealth. At St. Paul's Cathedral on Sunday last the Most Rev. the Primate referred to thewar between Russia and Japan, and urged that flic church at Home and in the colonies should ■ondea.vour to extend her influence so as to prevent war, to suppress pride, and to emphasise the value of love, joy, , and peace. Bishop Nevill suggested that the next Lambeth Conference should deal ■with the question of preventing war as most urgent. He eulogised the conduct of Mr Balfour, Prime Minister, in referring to a Court of Arbitration the settlement of the recent trouble between England and Russia.

Mr Hall-Jones told a representative o*. the Timara Herald that there is no truth in the statement of a northern paper that Mr W. P. Reeves has been appointed High Commissioner for two years. He could give a definite assurance that no decision had yet been reached by Cabinet in regard to thia office. A "Wellington correspondent informs the Lyttelton Times that many of the branches of the Liberal and Labour Federation express regret that their delegates will be unable to attend the conference on the date fixed on account of harvesting operations. The executive, therefore, has dec-idec? to postpone the conference for a month oi two, when a big gathering is expected. The Aitutaki correspondent of the Auckland Star says that the decrease in the export trade from the Cook group is a verj serious matter, and is one that should receive the careful and prompt attention d the Government if it is wished that the group shall make any show at all towards being self-supporting. It has to be remembered that, while trade has seriously fallen oft", the expenses of the group have greatly increased mainly by the large munber oi officials that bavo now to be paid big salaries, all of which the group is also expected to meet. Added to this comes the £800 or £900 which ought to be set aside to keep the ledger of the Government auxiliary schooner Countess of Ranfurly evenly balanced. Colonel Gudgeon, the New Zealand Resident Agent, recognised the faci that th© vessel is a total failure, and consequently has urged the New Zealand Government to as quickly as possible relieve the islands of her keep. It is stated in official circles at the islands that the vessel will shortly change hands and go into another trade, and that Captain Champion, bet present master, will be her future owner. Twenty years ago the trust debt on Trinity Methodist Church stood at £2000, and meanwhile £700 was expended on the building in improvements end renovation. Through the liberality of the congregation the debt was reducedv to £300, at which sum it has stood for some* time. A few weeks since the minister of the church {the Rev. C. "H. Laws. 8.A.) announced that it would give him great pleasure, and assist him in his work, if this debt was liquidated by the end of the year. Promise slips were issued to every adherent of the church, and suclf was the result of the eppeal that the Rev. Mr Laws was able to' report at the . evening service on Sunday that promises had come in to the extent of £317 18s. After the service a further sum of £2 2s -was handed to the treasurer, making in all £320. The pastor asked the congregation to sing the doxology in thankfulness, in which ■ all heartily joined. TrinityChurch is now a debtlees church. The Circuit Fund has been in credit for sonn time.