LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume VI, Issue 645, 8 March 1879, Page 2

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

The losses of the Colonial Insurance Offices, and the branch offices of the English Companies during the last ten weeks in New Zealand, amounts to one hundred and thirteen thousand pounds. This is stiff ; but there will be dividends, bonuses and money placed to "rest account" notwithstanding. It is as good to be an in-, surance office as to be a Dank. The Rev. W. L. Salter has adopted the plan, now almost prevalent, of announcing the day previous, the subject for the Sabbath services. In doing so, we are certain that very many, knowing that special matter subjects are to be treated, will be induced to attend who otherwise would not in the least be interested. By reference to the advertisement, and readers will find the particulars of to-morrow's services.

In our local columns a day or so past we mentioned that of the twelve tire buckets belonging to the Government buildings, four had disappeared, and the remaining eight contained no water. To-day we observe all the buckets are in their bucket, holes and the whole filled with water. Such is the stupendous power of the press ? The good results arising from advertising in the local newspapers, and the liberal use of printers' ink, has been well exemplified in Mr. Adair's case. Being a genuine sale, and made public in both Maori and English, Mr. Adair's establishment is so crowded through the day, that his empioyees can scarcely find time to serve the demands of buyers. Almost everybody thinks, says the Alta California, he would, make a good reporter ; still, almost everybody wouldn't. A few months ago the leading Sheffield manufacturers sent a committee of artisans to the Paris Exhibition, paying their expenses, on condition that they would report on the particular branches of machines with which they were connected. A committee was appointed by the manufacturers to wade through the reports, and see what improvements they suggested. Committee No. 2 has just reported on the reports of Committee No. 1, and out of the 19 reports submitted by the artisans, there is hardly anything of practical value, and much that cannot be understood at all. If the Sheffield manufacturers had sent over a few newspaper reporters, they would have had a valuable and exaustive report, with details and suggestions in whatever branches they set the boys at work. The Greymouth Argus thus speaks of Sir George Grey's miserable parting shot at the Marquis of Normauby : — "A more utterly contemptible affair has not occurred in this colony, and the jacks-in-the-minis-terial-cabinet that jump so willingly at the Call of their chief are really deserving of pity ; for their suitability for beinpr the inmates of a lunatic asylum is gaining ground every day. An English paper remarks that the agitatation which has been set on foot against the remarriage of divorced persons in church gives some interest to the figures which follow. From the last annual report of the Registrar-General it appears that during the sixteen years ended in 1876 there were 696 marriages of divorced men and women. Of these marriages 77.5 per cent, were between divorced men and spinsters or divorced women and bachelors ; 20.5] per cent, between divorced men and widows or divorced women aud widowers ; while only 2 per cent, were between divorced men and divorced women. The number of these marriages appear to be rapidly increasing. During the eight years ended in 1858 they numbered 225, while in the succeeding eight years ended in 1876 they had increased to 471, or more than 100 per cent. The proverbial wit of the Irish jarvey is- often times mixed with an undercurrent of stern reality that is as touching as it is eloquent. Driving through Sackville-staeet, Dublin the other day on an outside car, the wretched appearance of the horse suddenly struck me. I said : " Pat $ou ought to be taken up for cruelty to animals, driving such an old screw as that." "Be gor, sur," was the quick reply, " If I didn't dhrive that, I'd be taken up for cruelty to a wife and six children."