LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume VI, Issue 870, 22 August 1879, Page 2

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

The Government have raised a small force of Maoris, selected by Major RopafcaT from amongst the Ngatiporou, for the purpose of proceeding to Patea, near to Waimate, West Coast. Twenty-five ar- ■ rived to-day from the Coast, and have been placed on rations. We hear that it is proposed to augment this force shortly,, and make the number to be located there up to two hundred. On Monday and Tuesday evenings, the 25th and 26th instant, at 7.30, most probably m M'Farlane's Hall, evangelistic services will be held, m which the. Bishop of Waiapu, Archdeacon Williams, Rev. J. S. Hill, and the incumbent of the parish, Rev. E. Williams, will take part. As these services are always well attended, and m many cases much good results from them, we have no doubt but that the Hall will be well filled. Mr. Allan McDonald telegraphs that he would have been here last steamer, but that he lost his passage, having been unavoidably delayed at Opotiki. He states he is doing very well there, and at Tauranga, where he now is. He will arrive by next boat for certain. At the sale rooms of Messrs. Ferris and Pitt may be seen a small consignment of Californian-grown potatoes, the like of which has never before come to Poverty Bay. They are intended for seed, and each potato is large enough for a two-man meal. But it is not altogether, their size which recommends them. When boiled and stripped they can scarcely bo distinguished from balls of flour. They have all the characteristics of a full-grown wellflavored " mealy potatoe ;" and the man m Poverty Bay who eau produce facu-similes of them, or indeed, anything approaching them, will not be long m finding a market at top market rates. The schooner^ Telegraph, which arrived m the river this morning from Oamaru, brings to the order of Mr. Richard Kelly seed wheat, oats, and maize, of a very superior quality — finer could not have been grown.. The shipment reaches the port just at the nick of time. We can only hope that Mr. Kelly's judicious enterprise will meet with its reward. This shipment , of cereals has been placed m the hands of Messrs. Ferris and Pitt for sale, and will, no doubt, find ready customers. Another of the excellent shilling entertainments by the members of the Gisborne Volunteer Band will take place to-morrow evening, m the Masonic Hall. The programme .will be found m our advertising columns. There will be songs by our most , favourite amateurs. There is the band with new pieces. There is a " screaming " : farce, and there will be the inimitable i Levy "drawn and quartered." The whole J is based on the desire to give a good mixed 1 popular entertainment which shall suit all • tastes, and the admission is the small I charge of one shilling. | i

Mr. Woon, Secretary to the Library, received intimation to-day from Mr. Rice, Secretary to the Board of Education, Auckland, m answer to an application made by the Committee, that the grant of £46 made last year by the Board of Education is still available. - The conditions are that the said grant will be expended m works to be selected by the Committee, At a little after 4 o'clock this afternoon the fire bell rang out an alarm. There was the usual excitement, and cries of ' ' where, where ?" It was soon ascertained the cause of the alarm was at the "bachelors' hall," m Lowe-street. Some debris m a box m the kitchen had become ignited, which ignited the wall and soon reached the roof. Before the contents of the house could be all turned into the open space, the fire was subdued by numerous active volunteers.

The examination of witnesses m the charge against Matene Kaipau and 7 other natives, for riot, was concluded last night at 9.30, and the accused were committed to take their trial at the next sittings of the Supreme Court, Wellington. j* At the general meeting of the Football Club, held at the Masonic Hotel last evening, it was decided that unless a really good representative .team be formed to proceed to Napier, it would be advisable to abandon going until next season. We are of the same opinion, unless a team be got together capable of going down with some sterling chance of winning, that it would be advisable to postpone the return match as proposed. We, however, think that striking the iron while hot, and retrieving our defeats this season, would be the most satisfactory to all footballers. In the event of our men going down, they will m all probability be able to play a match against the Wairarapa team, who lately played Wellington a very close game, and would have won, but, like the Gisborne team, they did not understand how to play m union, and consequently, although playing against inferior men than themselves, got beaten. We understand that they are likely to visit Napier early next month, and the Napier footballers are anxious to arrange that Gisborne would have a chance of playing them, thus making a series of matches. As so much dissertation has ensued tbrough the Umpires not being able to agree, our players maintaining that last year's match m Napier was lost through unfair decisions, we advise that some perfectly competent gentleman to act as Umpire go with the team. The Club are pressed for money, but still have assets to cover the whole, there being something like 40 subscriptions due which the Secretary states he is unable to collect, giving a few of the replies he generally receives on application, viz., " All right, old man, I will let you have it to-morrow. Ten shillings, is ten shillings now. At any other time than the present, I would gladly give a guinea," and other answers of an evasive character. The meeting decided that Ijhe only way to raise funds was by the concert system, and accordingly intend giving an entertainment next Friday week, part dramatic and part vocal, and that a meeting be held on the ground to-morrow after the usual scratch match, to see what players definitely signify their willingness to go to Napiej*. It is proposed to play the return match English v. Colonials tomorrow week.

It would appear as though some of the best scullers m the world will visit New South Wales during the coming Exhibition. Haulon has challenged Trickett, and the latter will no doubt pick up the proffered gauntlet. Laycock has his match on also with the champion, and Rush is not satisfied with the defeat, and intends again trying conclusions with the best oarsmen. It is rumoured that Elliott, who was lately defeated by Hanlon', will also come out to regain his lost, laurels, and New Zealand contributes two aspirants for rowing laurels m Hearn, of Wellington, and White, of Mercury Bay, Auckland. Courtney, the American puller, who has professed himself so anxious to measure oars with Trickett, has been invited to come out, and altogether lovers of aquatics who may visit the Exhibition will probably have the pleasure of witnessing some of the most magnificent contests the world has ever seen. Hanlon, Trickett. Elliott, Courtney, Rush, Laycock, Hearn, and White will form a rowing galaxy of talent seldom, if ever, got together before, and the winning man of them will truly be the champion oarsman of the world.

An Invercargill tradesman m the nursery and seed line has had his eyes opened to "ways that are dark," practised by other than the habitants of the Flowery Land. The Western Star says that, anxious to extend his business, and by way of offering facilities for opening up a trade m the interior, he advertised that samples would be forward on application. He patiently awaited the result. By-and-bye |he received a number of letters from some obsecure and out-of-the-way place, requesting "samples" to be forwarded. Of course this was done with alacrity, the tradesman expecting that a profitable order would be the result. Weeks rolled on, but no orders came, although applications for " samples" continued to be received. The tradesman at last became suspicious, and on making inquiries he found that a number of people had been stocking their gardens on the cheap with "samples." The confiding tradesman has registered a vow that he will be more particular m future, to whom he sends " samples-"