PUBLISHED EVERY EVENING

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XIX, Issue 6293, 13 February 1892, Page 2

PUBLISHED EVERY EVENING

GISBORNE, SATURDAY, FERRUAffY 13, 1592. TYPHOID FEVER.

There are more cases of typhoid fever now in this district than for several years past, but the disease does not prevail to such an extent as to cause any general feeling of alarm, though it is a personal and public duty for everybody to adopt all possible precautions to prevent the spread of the fever. A notable feature of the local fever is that in proportion to the population there are aa many cases in the rural districts as in Gisborne. Tho origin in most cases cannot be directly traced, but the accepted opinion is that the water supply has very much to do with the disease. We do not suppose that anyone is now so stupid or reckless enough to drink well water if it can be avoided, but where no other is to bo had, boiling should always be resorted to ; in fact, at this season of the year it would be advisable to boil water from any source before consumption. The Municipal byolaws provide that a tank shall be attached to all dwellings, for the storage of rain water, hut there is nothing done to compel householders to keep their tanks in a clean state. As a result, there are in this town numerous tanks, the water from which is daily consumed, which have not been cleaned out tor years past. The consequence of this neglect is the accumulation of foul doposits several inches deep. The water from such tanks is probably as dangerous to health as if the supply were drawn from a well which only receives surface drainage. If the household supply of the greatest necessity in life were in a'l cases properly looked after there would most likely be a considerable abatement of the fever in the Buy. This week Dr Lines reported to the Hospital Trustees that there was a person suffering from typhoid who had been engaged at a dairy which supplied the town with milk. From the number of children who are attacked with the fever, the doctor concluded that the milk supply was the principal means of spreading the contagion. Pie also stated that a number of cases of typhoid from Ormond treated at the Hospital were distinctly traced to a public dairy. From his long experience and extensive practice, Di\ Innes is peculiarly well-qualified to express an opinion on the subject. After his warning, it would be criminal on the part of parents to neglect any precaution to avoid conveying the fever to their children by means of milk. If mothers entertain the slightest suspicion as to the supply, the dangerous properties of the milk should be destroyed by boiling. Milk, of all food articles, is the greatest conveyor of disease Wo are glad to say that the local authorities promptly acted on Dr. Lines' advice to put into force the provisions of tho Public Health Acts. Sir Faram, the Borough Inspector, was immediately despatched to inspect the dairy at which the fever case occurred. He reports thathefoundeverythingclean about tho premises, but recommends that the place should be asphalted. It may be mentioned that it was a servant of th.o owner of the dairy who caught the fever, but as she was actively employed in the work of the dairy, this fact renders the situation more dangerous with regard to that particular place. The public supply from that source should be stopped. Some time ago, it came under the notice of the Melbourne health authorities that a large number of persons who obtained milk from a particular dairy had been stricken down with fever. The dairy was inspected, and it was found to be in a most clean state and the arrangements appeared perfect. However, ifc was discovered that nightsoil had been placed at the roots of the fruit tree 3in the orchard, aud that the drainage went into a creek at which the cows drank. That was how tha fever originated. The above allows that great care should be exercised as to the nature of the water given to dairy stock, so that in this way fever germs may not be conveyed in the milk. There is an idea her© that Qieborue and district fa

Store than ordinary subject to typhoid fever. That is not the case. The Government vital statistics for 1890, the latest to hand, show that in proportion to population there were as many oases treated at the Auckland and Wellington Hospitals as at the Gisborno institution. A very large percentage of the total number of fever cases in the Bay are treated in the Hospital — a higher percentage, we have reason to believe, than in other parts of the colony.

In another column Mrs Browne notifies the publication to-day of two excellent works by the late Mr Direy.

The City Band's concert programme for to-night is :— March, " The White Squall ;" quadrilles, "Patience;" march, "The Anchor's Weighed ;" waltz, " Mia Cara ;" polka (cornet solo) , "The Royal Trumpeter ;" march, " A Soldier and a Man."

" What are you?" asked Sergeant-Major Moore of a Maori witness at the Police Court this morning, with a view to ascertaining his occupation. "I am a man," was the prompt reply. Another Native, asked the same question, said, "I live at Tarewa and look after my wife and children."

At the Police Court to-day a man named Jas. Rowlands who, Sergeant-Major Moore stated, was arrested yesterday with the articles in his possession, was charged with the larceny of two lbs of bacon, and a loaf of bread, the property of T. C. Christensen. He was remanded till Monday.

Business in the buying and selling of stock appears to be very brisk in the district at the present time. Mr Corrigan has just completed a purchase of 6500 ewes for Mr Beaman's station, Napier, and the sheep were started on the way early yesterday. Mr Corrigan has received further instructions to purchase another mob of 2000 ewes for the same gentleman.

The following is an extract from a letter received by a local business firm from Messrs Murray, Roberts & Co. dated Napier, Thursday last : — Re quotations of sheep. There i* a slight drop all round especially wethers, but we do not think it will last as sheep are wanted badly in all the bush districts. You can quote four-year-old good cross-bred ewes Us (id, fill mouth 10s 6d, 2 tooth ditto 12s fid, wethers fat 11s 3d, wethers stores 10s 6d — all Hawke's Bay prices.

< 10-morrow the anniversary services of Wesley Church will be held. On Tuesday evening next, 16th inst., there will be a conversazione in the Theatre Royal, the Mayor presiding. Addresses are to be delivered by Canon Fox, Mr DeLautour, the captain of tne Salvation Army, and Rev Mr Gibson. An excellent programme of vocal and instrumental music has been prepared, and in the interval a fruit banquet will be served. Special arrangements are made for the admission of families. With so many attractions the entertainment should be a grand success.

In an advertisement in this issue Mr E. D. Smith announces that he has re-opened the Medical Hall, Gisborne, with a large and fresh stock of drugs, chemicals, a^id toilet requisites. Mr Smith has been long and favorably known in the Hawke's Bay distrie*, having been in business for the past six years in Hastings, and for many years previously he was a resident of Napier. We have no doubt that the excellent reputation he has earned in the neighboring district will be sustained here.

A meeting of the members of the St. Patrick's Day sports was held last evening and was largely attended. It was decided to hold sports again this year, and a strong committee was formed to carry out the various necessary arrangements. The meeting was unanimous in this, that the carnival this year shall be made far more attractive than heretofore, and the great endeavor will be to afford continuous entertainment for the patrons, so that the attractions will not only be athletic contests, but all sorts of fun and enjoyable games will be provided. That is the way to secure a large attendance of the public, and if the committee only succeed in their endeavors, the sports are sure to be a great success. As there is so little rowing in Gisborne just now, local oarsmen may read with interest the doings of their friends in Napier. The junior double sculls and the first heat of the senior fours in connection with the Napier Rowing Club were decided in the inner harbor on Wednesday afternoon. In the double sculls Rudman and Mackenzie beat Lindsay and Aitkin, in the first heat. Cato aud Shaw rowed a bye. The final was then rowed by Rudman and Mackenzie and Cato and Shaw, resulting in a win for the latter. Time, amin. 4Ssec. In the senior fonra, distance 1£ mile, J. I. Cato (stroke), Von Stunner (3), Hughes (2), Jago (bow), rowed Patterson (stroke), Wilson (3), M'Vay (2), Kiely (bow). The former crew won in lOniiu 20secs. Hutchison (stroke), C. H. Cato (3), White (2), and Mountforcl (bow), will row Cato's crew iv the final. A remarkable phenomenon was witnessed last night by a number of people in this district. The night was a fine one, the moon being at its full, and the sky particularly cleav of clouds. Shortly after 10 o'clock there were noticed two white lines running apparently parallel across the heavens from north-cast to south-west. The lines were thin bands, perfectly defined about a quarter of the width of the milky way, or not quite the breadth of a rainbow. Unlike lunar rainbows they had no prismatic colors. One gentleman who observed the strange sight says il was just as if the whitest clouds to be scon in the skies were drawn out into long bands, with perfectly distinct edges, and st retched across the sky. The lines appeared to l>c exactly straight, and had not the mathematical curve of a rainbow. They were not the tracks of meteors, for they were visible after 11 o^lock, probably later. This, which has relation to a Gisborne matter, is telegraphed by the Wellington correspondent of the Auckland Herald : — It whs stated that several Natives on the East Coast havo purchased lands from Europeans which, while in possession of the Europeans, were regarded as rateable property. The Maori owners of these repurchased lands deny their liability to be rated. One of them is stated to have formerly represented the district in the House of Representatives, and claims exemption upon ;i strict interpretation of the Lands Act. The matter has been referred to the law officers. During the stay of the Ministers of Public Works and Land in Nelson, they were the guests of Mr Trask, the well-known butcher in that town, who is at present Mayor. It is eaid that the hospitality of Mr Trask was on a very liberal scale, and that the two burly Ministers had a real good time. In order that no harm might come to them or their host, a Government orderly patrolled Mr Trask's garden during the stay of their Mightinesses the Ministers, and part of the time there were two orderlies ! A deputation from Richmond waited ou the Hon. Mr Seddon on the Nelson racecourse and asked that a policeman might be stationed in their district. But though a constable is much needed there, the Minister refused the request on the score of eoonomy. People who saw th« two "men in blue" patrolling Mr Trask's garden could not help making very severe remarks anent the treatment of the Richmond people. The Minister could not afford a constable for a district that really needed one, but he must have a couple of orderlies watching Mr Trask's residence whilst he and the Minister of Lands were there, as if they dreaded assassination! — Press. For the last thirty years the prospects of the pastoralists in the western districts of New South Wales have never been so gloomy as at present. * What with the low price of fat stock, with store cattle unsaleable, the dreaded bush fires, the more than probable drought, and the invasion of the rabbit, the squatters' position is not enviable. The Weather. — Weather forecast for 24 hours from 9 a.m. to-day : Wind between north and west and south-west at all places northward of Napier, Taupo, and Raglan, and botween north-east and north and west from thence southward to Blenheim and Nelson, and between north-east aud cast and south at all other places. Barometer further fall everywhere, but rising at all places northward of the East Cape, Taupo, and Raglan after 12 hours. Sea hea^y on both coasts. Warnings for gale and rain have been sent to all places. Synopsis of last 24 hours : Throughout the country the barometer has continued to fall steadily with moderate to fresh northerly winds. — R, A.

Atl opera house is about to be built in the Square, Palmeraton North. The New Zealand Times states that the Earl of Glasgow has a first cousin, Mr Alexander Boyle, who is settled in Christchurch, and is married to a daughter of the late Michael Studholme, of Waitnate. In Southland good general servants*{cannot be got " for love or money," The Invercargill girl, like her companions in other cities and towns, prefers a business which allows her to have the evenings t» herself" The wet weather has done considerable "mischief to the harvesting of cocksfoot grass-seed. The settlers around Ormondville calculate that their district has lost fully £7000 in the value of this one crop. The exodus from Australia to New Zealand still continues. The steamer Tekapo which arrived at Wellington from Sydney on Monday brought over one hundred and thirty -four passengers. At the recent trial in Invercargill, it came out in evidence that Hatch's schooner has been taking the skins of females and paps, which are prohibited being killed. It is considered probable that Archdeacon Mules (Bishop-designate of Nelson) will be consecrated in Wellington at the expiration of the session of the Diocesan Synod. The Rev. W. J. Mayers has stated at Wellington that he has received in the North Island alone £1000 in donations for Dr. Barnardo's Homes. As the owner of the celebrated sire, Musket, leased for life to the Now Zealand Stud Company, the late Lord Glasgow's name was familiar in this colony. It is reported (says the Southland News) that a well-known business firm in Invercargill is bringing an action to recover £10,000 damages from a banking institution. Ths case will not, however, come on for hearing at the approachiug Supreme Court sittings. The commercial travellers have sent a memorial to the Government, asking for legislation to the effect that as regards the suffrage they may be placed in the same position as seamen who are absent from the electorate at sea. Our New Governor, the Earl of Glasgow, is not entitled to sit in the House of Lords unless as a representative peer for Scotland. He is, however, very wealthy ; according to the Financial Reform Almanac, his landed estates comprise 34,356 acres, and yield a rental of £40,276 per annum. A man at Hastings was locked out of his hotel the other night. He went to the town firehell and rang it in order, as he afterwards explained, to find the watchman and get him to rouse the hotel people, He was fined £2. A curious reversal of the usual order of things was observed at Carterton the other day. A young couple got married and at once set up housekeeping in the house of the bride's parents, sending the old people on the usual honeymoon tour instead of going themselves. The sea has within the last few days delivered up on a Wellington beach a boat ■with a human foot in it. These mortal remains have been indentified as belonging to one of the men who were drowned by the capsizing of the Wellington pilot boat as far back as August, 1889. The stewards of the Wellington Racing Club held a meeting the other night at which it was decided to charge the public only 10 per cent, on the totalisator in future, but as this year's programme is based on 11 £ per cent, the alteration can only come into force after the steeplechase meeting. Mr Walter Bentley's New Zealand tour has so far been a veritable triumph. In Dunedin for several consecutive n'ghts money was returned at the doors. The Company is a powerful one, and the pieces M'ell rehearsed. The performance of "The Bells," " David Garrick," " Hamlet," &c, were spoken of by the press as being the finest ever witnessed in that city. In recognition of Mr Bentley's talents and of his old associations with Dunedin, he was presented with a. handsome testimonial on the night when " Hamlet" was played. This is one of Mr Bentley's greatest parts. Mathias the Burgomaster in " The Bells " is Mr Ben^ley's chef d'eeuvre. It was this play that brought Henry Irving into prominence, and is the most weird and intense conception that ever filled the stage. The Premier caid at Wellington :— " We have been considering the propriety of extending the usefulness of the labor bureau by the establishment of a farm, so as to place on it people who are otherwise unable to find work. We believe that such an establishment can be made self-supporting, and will absorb a large amount of what may be termed "fugitive labor." Any complete scheme of extension of what is now proposed is at present a matter in embryo. Any scheme requires a little time for development. If what is now proposed is a success, and corresponds to what we may reasonably expect of it, other farms will be established in the same way. The Government recogniso that nothing is so injurious to a country, nothing so wasteful, as au unemployed class. We think that no man should have an excuse for not obtaining employment in this couutry." Our Auckland correspondent writes : — An influential, syndicate has been formed here to introduce the Tarawera water boiler, which has recently been patented in and out of the colony. The invention is a vei'y clevev one, for by the application of the water jacket principle to an apparatus like an ordinary tea urn, boiling water is produced in from 27 to 37 seconds, according to the conditions under which the test was made. Exhibitions were recently given of the apparatus in Sydney before assemblages of the principal residents, and amongst those who took an active interest in it was Lady Jersey. The New South Wales rights were sold by Mr L. W. McGlashan, of Auckland, manager of the syndicate, to a Sydney firm for a substantial sum, but it is intended by the syndicate to work the patent in the other colonies and in England and America. A factory here has been wholly engaged to manufacture tho boilers, which are now being made in thousands. Agents are to be appointed in every district in the colony. An ex-New Zealander in Melbourne writes as follows to the Auckland Star regarding New Zealand fish : — " The fish, when it can no longer be sold as fresh, is smoked here and sold at double and treble the price smoked fish would fetch in New Zealand. The weather, which is very hot just now, Is making the people turn their attention to our fish, which is considered a perfect delicacy, and i*etailed by the " store " at about the same price as meat. Indeed, as to the success of the enterprise there can be no doubt, as a visit shows it to be patronised by all classes, and still seems to be increasing in public favor. The whole of the space in the next two or three steamers to arrive has been fully engaged, and this surely is a sufficient sign that the management are not afraid of the venture turning out other than a success, while opening up a new industry for New Zealanders. The shop is fitted up on a new principle, and is the only one so fitted here. Floors, walls, and ceilings are all tiled, while the counters are all marble, so that it can be washed out daily with the hose, and thus avoid all the objectionable smells noticeable in other shops. The windows are fitted up as cool chambers, so as to keep the fish in a frozen state, while similar chambers are provided for game and poultry." Some curiosities of the working of the marriage law were stated in the Anglican General Synod. The Rev. Mr Coffcy related that he had unearthed a case where a lad of 18 was married to a widow of 40. A complaint was made to him by the youthful bridegroom's mother, and on enquiry he was told by the Registrar that the applicant- had worn a high collar and had looked tall, and so had been able to carry out a deception as to his age. The Rev. Mr Pascoe mentioned a case in which, after a man had assured him that he was a widower, he (the speaker) had learned that his first wife was still alive. He informed the Registrar to that effect, but the man had* moved to another district, where he was enabled to complete his bigamy. Some amusement was caused by Mr T. Wells' (Auckland) suggestion that in order to ensure that due notice should be received of intention to many, the applicant for a certificate should be made to give 14 days' notice of his application in a newspaper circulating in the district. A select committee of the Synod is to take the whole subject of the marriage^ laws into consHevfttion.,