NEWS OF THE DAY.

Patea Mail, Volume VIII, Issue 1023, 18 April 1883, Page 2

NEWS OF THE DAY.

Court Patea A.0.F., intend to celebrate their anniversary by a ball on the Queen’s Birthday. The Kakaramea sale held by Mr F R Jackson will take place on Friday at 1 p.m. We remind settlers that Messrs Nolan, Tonks and Co will hold their usual sale at Manaia to-morrow, commencing at 1 o’clock. In the case of the Harbour Board v. the contractors for the railway works, heard at the B.M. Court yesterday, judgment was given with costs for the defendants.

, 4 Mr D J Williams was nominated for the seat, vacant by M-r-Wilson’s retirement; and as he was the only candidate proposed, he has been declared elected.

A'.meeting* of-, the Board of Reviewers, for hearing, objections in respect of property: within the Board, will be held at the Court House,-at eleven o’clock, oh Thursday, May 3. An old offender,/ Kate O’Brien, was arrested by Constable Crozier yesterday morning for drunkenness. She was lying on the footpath in Bedford street in an almost helpless state, and while on her way to the lock-up she gave vent to her nvell'stored vocabulary of filthy language.' The result was an interview this morning with R. C. Tennent Esq, J.P. at the R.M. Court, and on the application of the constable a remand (ill to-morrow was agreed to. Kate was profuse in her. thanks to “ his Lordship ” as she styled Mr Tennent. The premises opposite the Bank of Australasia have been opened with a large and valuable stock of watches and jewellery of all kinds, which it is intended to offer for the next three days at unheaiM of reductions. The reason for this cheap saleis contained in a word—familiar to all of us —“ bankrupt.” Of course the stock is not bankrupt, although it is a bankrupt stock which is now being offered. People had better call and see for themselves, for there are some very nice things on view. The Napier had a rough time of it.on the way up. She left Wellington on Friday evening and soon after encountered a fierce north-west gale. She made for Tory Channel, hut as the weather continued bad a course was shaped for Queen Charlotte Sound, where under the friendly shelter of an island she was brought to anchor. She lay there on Sunday ami Monday ami loft yesterday morning at five o’clock, arriving off the Patea bar at 3 p.m. There was a heavy sea running and dead neap tides," in spite of which,'however, Captain Fisk brought his vessel across in safety at 6.30, about au hour before high water, A musical entertainment and dance, in aid of the funds of the Kakaratnoa Institute, will be held in the local Town Hall on Wednesday next, 25th instant. A conveyance will leave Patea at 7 p.m. for tho convenience of visitors.

The elections for Road Boards cannot' be held in the first week in May, as required hy the Act, owing to a delay in the completion of the Valuation Rolls. Fresh notices will therefore require to be given when the Valuation' Rolls are received hy the Road Boards. A copy of the following telegram has been received by each of the Boards :—“lt having been found necessary to extend time for completing valuation rolls to end of April, elections cannot be held first week in May. Time for election must therefore be extended, but as this cannot' be done till after the statutary date has elapsed, steps will 'then bo taken to extend time to first week in June.—J. Sperry, Commissioner.”

The most wonderful race on record (says an exchange) was that between Messenger and Beach the other, day in Australian waters. Largan, the English sculler, was also in the race, but had his boat cut in two by a 14ft open sailing boat shortly before the start. He, however, started in a borrowed outrigger, but retired after going 200 yards. The weather was very rough, and, after changing places repeatedly, Messenger, who was leading, had bis boat burst open and swamped forward by a sea, the after part sticking up in the air about three feet. Beach, who had broken his slide, and was pulling on a fixed seat, then shot up to him, and yelled out, “I’ve beaten you now.”. Messenger was of course inclined to give in, but the people on the steamer yelled out to him to go on in hopes something would happen to Beach also. Sure enough they were right, for in a few minutes the stern of bis boat sank, and the bow cocked up at an angle of 45 decrees. Then messenger, seeing hope once more, removed his feet from the straps, took off his roller slides and held them in his month, and then, standing up in his boat, half of which was completely buried under water, he turned round and sat straddle-legs across the boat, his legs dangling in the water —a templing bait for any shark in the vicinity. He faced the nose of the boat, and, after an hour’s hard rowing, during which the water was breaking over him, he rowed his boat stern first the last quarter of a mile, and passed the flagship a winner of oho of the most singularly-contested races ever recorded. After swamping, Beach gave up the contest.

In London last year 78 fires were caused by children playing with matches, 154 from lamps, 106 by candles, 144 by lights thrown down, 22 from smoking, 100 from defective flues, and 126 from sparks from fires. In fact- it'seems that there, as here, nearly 90 per cent, of the total number of fires arise from preventable causes.

The throne which is to be used at the Czar’s coronation is to cost £2OOO. It will be of black ■ oak/richly, carved in antique Slavonic patterns, with a canopy supported by columns ten feet high, and ornamented with Imperial eagles, ami with a scroll-work bearing the coats of arms of the fifty-six governments of Russia. The chairs for the Emperor and Empress will be placed on a dais hung with crimson velvet richly trimmed with gold.

A. mis-spelled word may load a wliole generation off the right track. “ Nine tailors make a man ” is an old saying, and a good illustration of onr statement. To look down on the worthy profession of the cloth-cutter because of such a proverb shows a want of proper instruction. In the olden time, when a person died, the church bell tolled once for every year the departed had lived. But from the tolling of tho bell no one could tell whether the deceased was a man or woman. To satisfy public curiosity, perhaps, on that subject, tbe sexton, after tolling the age, gave eight quick strokes of the boll if the doceaned was a woman, and nine if it was a man, and these quick strokes at the end of the tolling were called “ tailors,” because they wore at the tail end of the whole business. Hence the proverb, “Nine tailors make a man.” Mr Crosse, Surgeon Dentist, will visit Wavcrlcy on the 20th insfc, and I’atea on Tuesday, May 1. The Annual General meeting of the Patca Steam Shipping Company, will be held at the Company's office, on Thursday, April 2Gth, at 1 p.m. At a recent card-party at the house of a popular London dentist, the counters used were false teeth. At Jirst the ladies present seemed very sensitive about touching the little while heaps, but. as the evening wore on, the more false teeth each fair dame possessed, the happier she seemed. Whcii the counters were totalled-up at the end of the game, there were twenty-three more than had been originally given out. This is how fortunes arc made in London, Truth states that the gentleman who negotiated the sale of Caen Wood Towers, at Higbgate, to the cx-Khcdivc Ismael, purchased the property at £10,090, and resold it on the following day to Israel’s agents for £90,000,

A poor fellow recently died at Poole, in Dorsetshire from want of nourishment and medical attention. llis death, however, was not due to the neglect of the, relieving officer or the callousness of a board of gnardiarisy The man ; would not have a parish doctor, for fear of losing his vote .at elections. Bather than to do that he preferred, to fun the risk of death. ’Tis better to die than not have a voice in the country’s councils, is the lesson taught by the death of the Poole elector. But could not, asks Truth, the life of such a man have been saved by unofficial charity?