NEWS IN BRIEF.

Otago Witness, Issue 2818, 18 March 1908, Page 68

NEWS IN BRIEF.

The health of the Right Hon. Joseph Chamberlain is reported to be steadily improving. A carnival in Sydney in aid of the Noble testimonial was attended by 10,000 people. The American fleet, under Admiral Evans, has arrived in Magdalena Bay, Lower California. On the saucer-shaped cycling track at Melbourne De Fraga motored a mile in lmin 9 2-ssec, which is said to be a world's record. The Blue Anchor liners on their future Homeward journeys will call at Plymouth. The death of Mr Henry L. Bischoffscheim, "the well-known London philanthropist, is announced. His age was 79 years. Mr Justice Nevill has sanctioned the sale of W. and A. Mac Arthur's warehouse, the pioceeds to become assets of the new oompany. Mr Cyril Jackson, the well-known educationist, has been appointed chairman of the London County Council's Education Committee. Mr Price, the Premier of South Australia, attended the Lord Mayor's luncheon and conversed with the Prince of Wales, who expressed the greatest interest in Australian affairs. In connection with the shooting by Gren, the Swedish discharged lunatic, who fired a dozen shots from a. Remington rifle at Christiania Castle, a later report states that one bullet penetrated King Haakon's study. ! Silver is quoted in London at 25 9-16 d per ounce. The Thursday Island police party captured and «hot two murderers who recently killed a member of the Aurukum Mission Station. The Natal Ministers' minute to the Governor (Sir M. Nathan) desoribes Mr Jellicoe's letter as so patently false as to render it too contemptible for notice. The Emperor of China's marriage lines were discovered hanging: in a tavern in Southern Germany. Th^J disappeared when the Germans entered Pekin Palace in 1900. They will be restored to China. Owing to a number of planters in the State of Kentucky acquiescing in the tobacco tax, night raiders in a few months destroyed £10,000,000 worth of property. Thanks to wireless telegraphy, 600 passengers (including many women and children) were safely transferred froTjn a burning steamer to another off City Island, New York, in the vicinity of the scene of the s.s. General Slocum disaster gome few years ago. The total quantity of wheat and flour afloat for the United Kingdom is 4-,530,000 quarters, and for the Continent 2,855,000 quarters. The Atlantic shipments were 135,000 quarters, and the Pacific 45,000 quarters. Mr Hughes (Governor of the State of New York) has promoted a waxworks exhibition and a museum of national history, which reveal the terrible congestion prevailing in the "flats" of New York. The conditions under "which thousands of families eleep at night and work by day are shown to be equal for uncleanliness and wretchedness to those of the worst sweating dens in the East End of London. The Times' Vancouver correspondent states that the immigration situation is becoming absurd and a. dangerous muddle. The Supremo Court discharged the 18 Hindoos who had been arrested, on the ground that the Natal act was ultra vires. A German who was quite a desirable immigrant was refused admission because he came from Australia. The attempt to prevent the granting of naturalisation papers to some Japanese fishermen is causing more indignation among the Japanese than any other anti-Japanese movement on the part of the British Columbian Government. Latest reports etate that in the flooded districts in New South Wales the water is receding. In Tamworth. in the main street, it stood waist deep, and much damage was done to buirinese premises. The caretaker of the show ground, with his family, was rescued from the roof of a house. A youth named Poneonby was drowned while attempting to swim the river. Round Boggabri, Narrabri, Gunnedah, and Wawa wide areas of crops are submerged, and it is feared that there is much damage. Serious losses of tsock are reported. The Narrabri cemetery is under water, and a funeral was blocked. The railway for miles is flooded. There are many wash-aways, and the service is dislocated. The farmers along the lower Manning River will lose heavily. The Stanford-Merthyr Colliery at Kurrikurri is flooded, and work had to be stopped. A 13-year-old boy, a stepson of Mr John Galloway, of Motulcaraka. Auckland, has been missing since the 13th met., active search having failed to find any traces of him. As a result of the recent gales, the record of .a tragedy of 1906 Eas been discovered at Pukeatua, near Riverhead, Auckland. In November of that year a settler named Wilks gave food and accommodation to John Pallar, a wandering gumdigger, who was never afterwards seen alive. While searching for a new site for the house, Mr Wilks discovered Pallar's skeleton in a clump of pines about 300 yardo from the house. There were no signs of how Pallar died, and an open verdict was returned at the- inquest. The Lawrence Fire Board's estimate of expenditure for the first 15 months amountß to £200. The value- of the fire brigade's plant and property is estimated at £200. The Milton Fire Board estimate the expenditure for 12 months at £513. Of this £50 would be given by the Government, leaving the insurance companies and the Borough Council to contribute £251 TQs each. The Rev. W. Wright, of Columba Church, was nominated by the Oamaru Presbvl-rsry for the position of Moderator of the Ofasyo Synod. The Oamaru Presbytery has raised the Dunbaok-Macraes charge to the church extension platform. There ie a scarcity of qualified nurses in Auckland, and it is suggested to the Hospital management there that the age for probationers should be reduced from 23 years to 21 years. At a land ballot in Auckland the Commissioner of Lands stated that out of 21 applicants for one section, no lees than 16 had been thrown out because they already possessed land, thus leaving only five genuinely landless applicants. The Works Committee of the Dunedin City Council claims to have saved £400 by working its own stonecrushers and supplying the etone, while the quality of the

metal was better. The council declined »J» J suggestion made by owners of quarries about Dunedin to invite tenders for the supply of metal, as they believed the price at which it would be offered would induce the corporation to abandon its Woodha,ugh quarry. During the hearing of a charge at Christchurch against Mrs Stewart Scott of practising fortune-telling it was made to apnear that the police matron believed in "for-tune-telling, and she would certainly beware of the dark man against whom she had been warned. The accused first used cards and then resorted to spiritualism. The bench, in dismissing the case, said the charge of using a subtle craft with intent to impose could not be maintained. At the adjourned meeting of the creditors in the estate of Moore and Roberts, butchers, Dunedin, Messrs W. Brown and Co., who had examined the books of the firm, stated that the bankrupts had been purchasing stock at a certain price and selling retail at the same price, consequently there was no profit made, and the firm had been carrying on at a loss all the time. Mr Brown was satisfied they had no intention to deceive. They sold meat at what they paid for it and their trading expenses were accumulating. They had been in business for 11 weeks, ajid had gone back at the rate of £30 per week. The book debts totalled £132, but the official assignee did not expect to realise more than £60 from them. The estate was left in the hands of the official assignee to realise to the best advantage. I