"SIT" AND "SET."

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume VIII, Issue 1285, 31 March 1881, Page 2

"SIT" AND "SET."

Many of the agricultural journals are rarely troubled to know whether ft hen sits or sets. If some editor of dignity would Bet a hen on the nest, and the editors would let her sit, it would be well for the world. Now a man, or woman either, can set a hen, although they cannot sit her ; neither can they sit on her, although the old hen might sit on them by the hour if they would allow. A man cannot sit on the washbench ; but he could set the basin on it and neither the basin nor the grammarians would object. He could sit on a dog's tail if the dog were willing, or he might set his foot on it. But if he should set on the aforesaid tail, or sit his foot there, tha grammarians, as well as the dog would howl. And yet, strange as it may seem, the man might set the tail aside and then sit. down, and neither be assailed by the dog or the grammarians.

The following is a verbatim et literatim extract from the letter of the secretary to a local school board in a country town to a firm in Sydney : — " I am desirous of Being informed whether you would supply me with four school desks, to Be Capable of holding 6 (six) children with iron legs and cedar tops, aud what the freight would be to ; also the price of iron legs each if you would sell separately, or without the wood." The firm replied they had no children of the kind disciibed, and always sold whole those they had.

The energetic action of Postmaster James, of San Francisco, is causing a special train to be sent after the overland mail train and overtaking it in time to forward Now Zealand, and America mails for England, was referred to in American December exchanges in laudatory terms. The American Exporter for January mentions that, in appreciation of his enterprise, a letter has been received by Mr. James from Mr. W. Gray, Secretary of the Postal Department, Wellington (New South Wales, the paragraph says, conveying to him the thanks of the PostmasterGeneral for " the accomplishment of the quickest time on record between the colonies and London — the time from Sydney and Auckland being forty-two and thirty-seven days respectively."

The surface of the moon, at the lunar noon, is about the temperature of boiling water. " Mamma, can't we have anything we want?" — M Yes, my dears, if you don't want anything you can't have."