Poverty Bay Herald. PUBLISHED EVERY EVENING. GISBORNE. SATURDAY, JANUARY 17, 1903.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XXX, Issue 9642, 17 January 1903, Page 2

Poverty Bay Herald. PUBLISHED EVERY EVENING. GISBORNE. SATURDAY, JANUARY 17, 1903.

Mr W. 0. Skeet has received advice that the schooner Awanui arrived at VVhitiauga (Mercury Bay) after a rgugh passage of 19 days. The Gazette notifies that provisional specifications have been accepted from James Paterson, of Gisborne, carpenter, for a bicycle attachment for the safe currying of a child or parcel, etc. At a meeting of the Committee of the Gisbjome Racing Club last evening Mr A. T. Danvers was appointed handicapped.' to the Club for- the meeting, owing to the ill-health of Mr C. D. Bennett. The telegraph service was out of gear again to-day, the wires being interrupted between Gisborne and Napier. Our supply of telegraphic news is considerably curtailed m consequence, the messages having been delayed at Napier. The Farmers' Union Executive, al their meeting to-day, endorsed a resolution from the Tolaga Bay branch that a separate Land Board be created for this district, and decided to ask the co-ope-ration of other local authorities. Mr H. Bull lias been made the recipient, by the members of Holy Trinity vestry and choir of a pair of handsome silver entree dishes as a mark of appreciation of his valued voluntary services as organist. The Wellington Homing Pigeon Society Hew a race from Gisborne to Wellington on Wednesday. The air-line distance is 245 miles, and Mr T. J. Ldghton's Premier, with a velocity of 1150 yds per mimite, won. Wesley Church Services on Sunday will be conducted m the morning by Mr W. Frazer. In the evening Rev. B. F. Rothwell will preach; subject, "The Blasting of Hell's Gate ; stand clear while the fuse is lighted." The Yen. Archdeacon Williams and Mr J. Thornton, principal of Te Aute College, arrived m Gisborne this morning on their way to Tuparoa to attend the ajinual conference of the Te Aute Students' Association, to be held next week at Tamatn o Mihi. "Remember My Bond" is the subject of the Rev. J. G. Paterson's sermon at St. Andrew's Chui'ch to-morrow morning. In the evening, Mr Leigh, of the Poona and India Mission, will speak on the power of the Gospel among tlie Hindoos. The information m the case of obscene language kid by Air George Schmidt, and heard at the Police Court yesterday, was against John O'Grady, and not against the two natives concerned m the Wae-renga-a-hika disturbance. It was to O'Grady that the Magistrate's remarks were addressed. Messrs McKMey and Son notify that their mail coiwh leaves Gisbonie for Tolaga on Mondays and Thursdays, and Tolaga on the return on Tuesdays and Fridays. Messrs McKinley have been upon the road for so long, being the pioneers of coaching along ihe Coast, that the travelling public must know .of the good service they give. It was reported to the -Whataupoko Road Board yesterday afternoon that the newly-appointed poundkeeper was resigning "because he had not a thick enough skin." During his term of service lie had done good work m impounding, running m as many as 16 stray animals m a night, but the path of duty was apparently found to be a thorny one. We acknowledge receipt of a copy of the Union Company's handy and useful New Zealand Tourists' Vade Mecum. In the reference to Poverty Bay we notice that 'the population of Gisborne is given as 2731, which, though officially correct, does an injustice to Gisborne, referring exclusively to the population of the borough and taking no count of the suburbs, of which Gisborne is so largely composed. Ml * Leigh, who preaches m St. Andrew's Church, to-morrow evening, is a director and adviser m. legal and financial work of the Poona Inland Mission. He is now on furlough, having suffered ill-health for some two years past. Mr Leigh is likely to remain m. Gisborne for several weeks, and it is likely that he will hold the pulpit at St. Andrew's, whilst the Rev. J. G. Patersou, takes a well-deserved holiday. A meeting of the Committee of the Horticultural Society was lield last evening, Mr A. F. Kennedy, president, m tlie chair. Accounts m connection with, the late show were passed for payment. The result of the show was satisfactory, £10 being carried forward after paying prize money and all expenses. It was decided 'to hold an autumn show on March 6th, and the Schedule Committee was instructed to get the programme out as quickly as possible. Mr W. Mclntosh, of the Tourist Department, Auckland, arrived at Wairoa lost week from Gisborne via Morere, and went to Waikaremoana next day. Mr Mclntosh cycled from Gisborne to Waikaremoana, and will return via Tiniroto taking the steamer from Gisborne to Napier. From there he will cycle to Palmerston, Wellington, Wanganui, tlie upper reaches of that river and on to Taranaki. After spending a few days climbing Mount Egmont Mr Mclntosh will return to Auckland. Long meetings have been , the order of the day with the new County Council and yesterday was no exception, members sitting from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Cr Matthews suggested .that the meetings should commence at 10 a.m.— The Chairman: Or once a fortnight? Members did not favor frequency of meetings, and the Chairman laugliingly remarked that he could shorten the proceedings very considerably, but they must be prepared if he came down, on them hard when they wandered away from the point. Tlie financial position of the county was discussed at the Cook Council meeting yesterday afternoon, the feeling being that the Council required Government assistance to enable it to bear the expense of maintaining the roads.— Cr Gray thought the Council should make up their miuds what they should ask tlie Government for. — The Chairman was afraid that the works enumerated m the estimates of tlie Finance Committee (published yesterday) were not those upon which the Council could obtain grants.— Cr Harding instanced main trunk lines like Gisborne-Tolaga-East Coast road, the Motu and Wairoa roads as roads wliich the Government could be asked for assistance. — Cr Gray thought the Government could be asked to take over the road from Wairoa to tlie East Cape. — Cr Harding said he would not go so fair as to request the Government to take over these arterial roads, but they could ask for assistance towards the cost of maintenance. At the meeting oi the Farmers' Union Executive to-day Mr Redpath (Alotu delegate) pointed oinVlhe large number of grazing runs which Mere not paying anything to the county rates. He thought the Minister of Lands should be written to and requested that these runs should be made to pay the same rates as other lands to the local bodies' funds. About £300 a year was being lost to the county funds. — The Chairman (Mr Macfarlane) said the loss m rates was greater even than stated.— Other members pointed out that it would be an injustice to ask present leaseholders to pay rates, and Mr RedpatJi replied that, he did not mean, his resolution to be retrospective. Finally the following resolution was adopted : — "That tlie Government be written to and requested that no new grazing run Leases be granted carrying immunity from, local rates, and that the Government be requested to come to terms either by extension of lease or otherwise with, the existing leaseholders." Our Te Karaka correspondent, who has paid a visit to the newly-established sawmill m the Wailiora bush, states that the mill is erected about three miles t from the Te Karaka crossing, on the edge of tlie bush, with, a tram running about 300 yds along the edge of tlhe bush to supply it. The ■owners intend continuing the tram to the Te Karaka crossing. The mill at present has one .travelling beiich. and one breast bench, each with circular saws. The erection of the planing machine has just been commenced. At present there is a 10 h.p. engine on. the works, and another, for the some mitt was landed a few days 'ago. The water used m the mill is forced up from tlie Waihora creek, through a l£in pipe a distance of about 250 ft, the pump used being a No: 4 Douglas. The mill will be ready to supply timber to the markets m about a month. Thie timber m the Waihora bush is of first-class quality, judging from that used for the erection of the buildings. When the mill- is m. full working order the output is estimated at 10,000 ft a , day-

The Hon. Jas. Carroll visited Wangauui tliis week, where he consulted the surveyors as to the cutting up of several large blocks of land along the Wanganiui river. During his stay m England the Premier arranged for the purchase of two blood horses for breed ing purposes m t.l io colony, and it is understood that they are now on their way out. Lord Raufurly has a second edition of his "Roll of Honor" m hand, tlie revision containing additional names of veterans and New Zealanders who served w itJi irregular corps during the Transvaal campaign. As a result of Dr Mason's conference last week with the Nelson City Council, it was resolved to proceed at once with the establishment of a tent hospital to combat an epidemic of measles and scarlet fever with which the city is troubled. Messrs T. Crosse (Kumeroa) and C. Elgar (Peathierston) will act a.s assessors m the Milburne estate compensation case, ; whicli will be heard before the. Chief Justice at Napier on the 25th instant. If the Mount Vernon case can be taken at the same lime the same assessors will act. Fifty men have been put on the Springfield end of the Midland railway, where there is a good deal of tunnelling work to be done. Tenders are now being called for the Staircase viaduct, on this sect.ion. The structure will be 200 ft from the river-bed, and will have two spans of 192 ft and otto of 60ft, the total length of viaduct and approaches being 563 ft. Metal windguards are to be provided. Mr Joshua Tucker, of Ashburton, has received a letter from his son, Captain Fred Tucker, who is at Durban, Natal, m which he states that he considers the new colonies m South Africa will be- re-stock-ed within two years. He also says that: the high price of the New Zealand and Australian stock practically precludes it from being purchased, and that m consequence supplies will be drawn principally from South America. It is a far cry to the meeting of Parliament next June (writes the Wellington correspondent of the Lyttelton Times yet political gossip is already busy rumoring that a motion- of censure will be moved on behalf of the Independent members representing tho southern constituencies relative to the administration of the Education Department. It is declared that the motion will receive large support from the Ministerial side a.s well as from the Opposition. The season m North Auckland (reports the WhangarcM paper) is remarkably backward, so much so indeed that fruits that are usually ripe at Christmas and New Year are still green and hard, notably m the case of Irish peach and Astrakaii apples, also the Early River peaches are still unripe. The only thing that- has not suffered by the continued cold and rain is the grass, which' is m splendid condition, to the joy of dairymen and graziers. The Hastings Standard states that Mr P. K. Johnston, of Lord Hawke's team of cricketers, who is studying at Cambridge University, where he is a member of the 'Varsity team, is a nephew of Sir William Russell, whose sister married his father, the Hon. Randall Johnston, at one time member of the Legislative Council m New Zealand. The family-are at present residing m Kngland. MiJohnston has had previous experience m colonial cricketing tours, and is spoken of as a coining batsman of a vigorous type. In various parts of Englamd coal pits extend for a. considerable distance under the sea. The most remarkable of these submarine mines is at Whitehaven. For no less than four miles under tlie Irish Ski, and at a depth of about 100 fathoms, a great tunnel has been hewn out. Hundreds of miners work day amd night m tlui pitch-black "galleries'" with a world «f water high above their heads. It is a remarkable fact that long before gas was used as an illuminant the then manager of this submarine mme — which already m those days stretched for a quarter of a mile under the sea — proposed to the authorities at Whittihaven. to lay pipes from the town to the pit m order to light the streets by means of the natural gas which the mine produced. Mr F. G. H. Moore, who arrived at Wellington by the Corinthic last week, narrowly escaped being drowned at that port on the night prior to his leaving for the South. While going down the wharf he mistook his bearings, and m making a slight spring from the vehicular part of the pier to what he believed to be the pedestrian way he .had actually sprung over the wharf into 22ft of water. Realising his position, Mr Moore determined to hold his breath m going down for the first time, and to make an effort to strike out for one of the posts on coming to the surface. Fortunately, crossbars were attached to the one he reached after swimming for six or seven yards, and to these he. clung until his cries for help brought •him aid. An accident occurred on the steamer Monowai on Wednesday on her voyage from Sydney to Wellington. The supply cock of the refrigerator blew out, filling the lower deck of the ship with the fumes of ammonia. In tlie engine-room the fumes ignited from a light m the room. The fumes spread through the ship m a thick fog. They almost suffocated a man who was asleep m a bunk close by. There is no doubt tlie man would have been suffocated at once had he not had the presence of mind to put his head out of a porthole. After several men had made attempts to rescue their unfortunate comrade, Mr Ronald, second engineer of the ship, after two unsuccessful attempts, pluckily broke through to -the man, and took him to a place of safety. The rescued man was almost suffocated, and could not have lasted much longer iai that atmosphere. The fire was extinguished by putting a hose over the side and through a porthole. Civilisation, on contact with uncivilisatian, seems to be exercising almost as prejudicial an effect upon the vitality of the races of the Arctic Circle as on those of Australia and Africa. Lieutenant Peary brought back with him from liis late expedition news of a mysterious epidemic which had seized the Esquimaux. It had reduced the numbers of tliose at Smith Sound from 300 to 234 m seven years, and this year their numbers scarcely reached 200. Diminutions similar m kind are taking place all over the Arctic Circle. The Alaskan Esquimaux have sunk from 2000 or 3000 to 500, which may now be said to be the sum of the population between Point Bairrc-w and the Aleutian Island. Part of the lessening of the population is due m. this instance, no doubt, to a lessening food supply. The whalers who have destroyed seal, walrus and Polar bear, are the delinquents here. The 10,000 population of South-West Greenland is fast sinking, m spite of the immigration of Danes; and Labrador, which once had a population of 30,000, has not now 15,000. The whole population, of the Polar regions is now calculated at only half what it was 20 years ago. The visitors' list at the Hot Springs Hotel, Morere, for the past week is as follows:— Mr W. M. Mclntosh, Miss .Eastwood (Auckland), Dr. H. A. Gilmer, Miss Gilmer (Wellington), Mr J. Anderson (Tiko Kino), Mr W. S. Robertson, (India), Mr W. Stewart (Scotland), Mr F. Skey, (Dunedin), Miss E. Chambers (Tauroa H. B.), Mr and Mrs E. Ellison, Master Ellison (2), Miss Ellison (Dunblane H. B.), Mr F. E. Gaddum (Mahia), Miss R. A. Black, Mr A. H. Boyd (Waipukerau), Miss A. Black, Mr Siminonds, Mr Riddedl (Napier), Mr J. Greene (Hastings), Mr C. B. Thacker (Christchurch), Miss Williamson (Auckland), Mr T. Barrett( Poeroa), Mr and Mrs Cyril White,. Mr H. M. White, Mr Williamson, Mr F. Woodbine-Johnson (Wairakaia), Misses Newman (2), Master Newman (Ormond), Mr and Mrs Woolhouse iWaerenga-a-hika), G. Smith (Te Arai), Mr P. C. Dolhel, Mr D. Black, Miss Hallett, Mr P. Crone (Wairoa), Miss Stevenson (Matawhero), Messrs Coop (2), (Christchurch), Messrs Ross (2), Miss Ross (Mohaka), F. Faram (Maraetaha), Mrs Steele, Master V. Steele, Miss Faram, Mr H. Evans, Mr G. Marsh, Mr W. Aitkin, Mr and Mrs Brown, Miss Golding, Mr McKenzie, Mr and Mrs Mackay and 3 children, Mr Hamblett, Mr McDonnell (Gisborne), Mr B. Williams, Mrs Hay den, Mr Smith (Mahia), Miss Walker, Mr J. Farmer, W. A. Fletcher, Mrs Jefferson (Nuhaka). Dr Chappie, of Wellington, who recently returned from a visit to Sydney, interviewed, said: "l visited the Sobraon, a training sliip m the harbor, where a great city shoots its human debris. Here 415 little boys — the waifs and strays of Sydney — find a motherless home. They appear well and kindly treated, but wear a timid imprisoned look. 'Why are you here?' I asked a motherless bairn. 'Because I slept out at nights.' Another why, 'Because me father beat me; 1 still another why, 'Because he drank.' And the boy sheeted it home. An agricultural college drawing from Australia and the world attracts 100, and a reformatory, drawing from Sydney, must accommodate 415. These boys were thin, undersized for their age, and undeveloped, mostly. They come m numbers from the only class m the social organism whose fertility is unimpaired, the pauper, the drunkard, the criminal and the slothful. A sentiment against maternity has flourished like a weed m Sydney society, and a lady of good birth and education, good p}iy* sique and heredity, with a diamond ring on her finger that would keep a child for the first five years of its life, will tell you that 'children are an expense.' While she steeps her brain from dawn to dark m slushy novels she will declare that 'children are a tie.' In New South Wales m 1884 there were 30 births per 100 married women ; m 1888 the number fell to 28, and to 20 m 1898, or a decline of one-third ml 5 years. Thus the best capable of producing the best stock, largely from selfishness resulting m that old Roman craving for a wedded but childless life, have ceased to maintain the birth-rate, while the degenerate still breed on, and the defectives, bam for society and the State to support, are an increasing ratio."

One day last week over 400 cases of fruit were scut away from the railway station at Hastings, H. 13. In Edinburgh it is proposed to devote £200 a year to Bending lour grocers' assistants abroad to study foreign trade. A large Newcastle' (N.S.W.) coal mine company has withdrawn from the association wliich for several years has controlled prices, with a view to quoting prices below the 11s per ton standard. The Maoris at Whatarangi (East Coast) are now making great hauls of fish, the reason being that the crayfish are now casbing their shells, and are besieged by ■all sorts and size* of otiher fish. Porpoises and cow fish are also reported m great abundance. The American barque Mary Hasbrouck (at one time regular trader ' between Auckland and New York) was totally wrecked at Arroyo, Porto Rico, on October. 31. Tho barque was loaded with timber, and ran on a reef. All hands were saved, and at latest reports it was thought that a portion of the cargo would be saved. The Tourist Department has been advised that a party of wealthy Americans will make a tour of the colony m October, mainly with the object of seeing the natural beauties of the colony. It is probable that a number of Canadians, including representatives of the Canadian Deportment of Agriculture, will also visit the colony about the end of the year. A notable order is just being finished by Messrs B. Petersen aavd Co., jewellers, of Ohristchurch. It is for a handsome granny chain, at a cost, m round figures, of £1000. The chain, it is stated, is the most valuable piece of jewellery of its kind m the colony. The chain, and settings are made of 18-carat gold, m which there are set the following precious stones — 132 diamonds, 16 large whole pearls, 5 rubies, 6 blue sapphires, and 6 yellow sapphires. As a result of the destructive hailstorm which visited Cheviot on Saturday, all the glaziers m the settlement are working al high pressure. One resident who measured some of the hailstones found that tihey were an iiioli and a-quarter m size by the rule. In the track of the storm scarcely a window was left unbroken on the south-west side of the buildings. Oats and hay crops were flattened to the ground as if a mob of sheep had been driven over them. The Chinese do many foolish things, but also some wise ones. Large proclamations have recently b»-en. posted throughout Yunnan, exhorting the people to plant trees broadcast. The trees of Yunnan suffered terribly m the Molmmmodan rebellion 30 years ago, and no earnest effort has yet been made to repair the loss. Official rank is promised to all who plant 10,000 trees or oveir, so tihat possibly tlie Chinese love of a button may lead m a few years' time to the changing of some of tihe.se barrein hills intio well-wooded and useful tracts of country. The French Minister of Public Works has just forbidden the culture of all fruits or vegetables destined to be eaten raw m ground wliich has been watered with water drawn from. sewers likely to be contaminated by drains. This decision is based on the results of recent experiences, which prove that tuberculosis bacilli, which lose their virulence at the end of three months m river water, conserve it for ten months m sewer water ; that baccilli that have been m the ground are still harmful at the end of three months, and that, poured into the ground on wliich fruit and vegetables are cultivated, they contaminate the products themselves. The Victorian Chief Commissioner of Police (Mr T. C. O'Callaghan) is evidently satisfied with the result of his experiment m instituting a bicycle patrol for night duty m the streets of Melbourne. Six months have already been spent m this work, and it is intended to give it a further trial of six months. The men, having weathered the winter months without permanent injury, look forward to a comparatively pleasant time during the summer nights, when they will be required to spend eight hours m .wheeling through back streets. The older and more influential members of the detective force are exempt from this duty, the nature of which, consisting as it does m rough riding without lights, is best fitted for the single men m the department. It is notorious that volunteering for some years has been a war between enthusiasm m the rank and file and red tape m the staffs, while the funds that were so badly required for the force have been absorbed m supporting a crowd of glittering but inefficient* officers. The repeated protests have been made against the piling-up of clerks and subaltern officers of obscure purpose on the pretext of coping with extra work entailed by sending the New Zealantl Contingents to South Africa. This abuse has gone beyond the bounds of decency, and although the last contingents were paid off three months ago, the staffs remain, whittling pencils and yawning. It is understood that these extra • clerks, euphemistically designated "temporaries," are to be dismissed forthwith, and that the practice of employing uniformed officers as junior clerks will also receive a blow. On the whole, the reorganisation scheme, so far as it can be outlined, is one that does credit to the Minister and to the Commandant, and will generally satisfy and reassure the public. — N. Z. Times. * The Westminster Gazette tells the following story, whose author is a Consul Resident at Tangier: "The French Government presented a fine automobile to the Sultan, and sent over an expert chauffeur to run it for Mm. The potentate was charmed by the new means of covering the ground, and it looked as though horses and state carriages would go to the stable for good. But one day, when the Sultan was spinning along a road, the machinery got out of order and the carriage escaped from, the chauffeur's control. Then a tyre exploded and the steering gear refused to work. The machine ran away. The Sultan called upon it to stop, but it refused to obey. Then the machine struck a rock, and both the Sultan and the chauffeur were launched into space, while the automobile turned over with the wheels still spinning. The Sultan was not badly hurt, but he limped back to town, and sent tlie royal blacksmith out with the royal sledgeluimmer to smash tlie royal auto to royal smithereens. Then he forbade by an edict, an order to ukase, a law, a proclamation, and a bull that any of his subjects should ever import or use an automobile. Clmstchurcli is to have a great harvest festival and iloral fete on March 17th, St. Patrick's Day. Tlie Floral Fete part of the affair will be similar to the fetes which have proved so popular m the past. But that will be only one feature of the afternoon's entertainment. It is hoped to hold a military sports' meeting m whicli all the crack corps of' Canterbury will take part. With the object of making the harvest festival character of the carnival as representative as possible it is intended to invite the co-opera-tion of the. various A. and P. Associations throughout the province. The idea is that each Association shall provide a display of agricultural produce of all soits, and coming at the end of a harvest such as, it is hoped and believed, will have been unequalled m the history of Canterbury, there should be no difficulty m making a first-class exhibition of tjic agricultural wealth of the province. In addition to these attractions, it is hoped to provide a number of "side shows" of popular interest, and altogether, if the various schemes all take shape, the Festival should provide much of the jollity and amusement of an old English Fair. The Sicilian brigand Yarsalona promises (says the Rome correspondent of the London Daily Teiegraph) to have even greater fame than the redoubtable MusoBno, as already 600 persons are waiting trial for aiding him. The trouble is that Vorsalona himself, notwithstanding all the efforts of an entire army, of policemen, carbineers, and soldiers, still proceeds m eluding justice. As a nfotter of fact, not only the army but tire navy also is participating m the chase, as the Admiralty, on the request of the Home Office has put two men-of-war at the disposal of tlie' police to prevent tlie brigand's escape by sea to. Mata or to Tunis, where these modern Sicilian heroes generally go for rest when their own country becomes too worm for them, being ready however, to return as soon as vigilance is relaxed. Varsalona is now not alone, but is at the .head of a band which is supposed to number eight, and comprises some of the most daring malefactors, who are together responsible for 31 murders. The chief of the police, who is directing the manoeuvres m search of Varsalona, says that the campaign is a most difficult one. What has been done up to now is mere preparation, and is to be followed by a period of action, which, he thinks, will ultimately lead to a conllict, m which, Varsalona, alive or dead must fall into the hands, of hj 8 pursuers! . A Port Elizabeth telegram, dated December 2, m the Natal Mercury, says A limejuice bottle, covered with barnacles and containing three meteorlogical papers—viz., one for the Nautical Magazine, one for the Sydney Observatory, and another for Dr Wragge, of Queensland, has been taken from the sea at Cape Receife. The bottle was thrown overboard from the Aberdeen ship Patriarch on September 29, 1896, at 50.8 S lomr 72.4J E latitude, The papers sigt ed by the of the vessel, which was then 77 days out on her passage from Antwerp to Port Peru. The position was S., 80deg. W. from Cane Slew 2060 miles, and 8 81deg. E. from Se Receife, 2300 miles. The nature of the Indian ocean currents would not allow the bottle to return to the westward It must have been carried east through Bass Straits round the Australian Continent by counter-currents running northward between Australia and New Zealand into the tropics, and through the Torres Straits and westward across the Indian Ocean, till the current landed it at Cape Receife, having come- about. 14,000 miles m 2252 days, averaging a steady progress of six miles for the bottle e^ch day. ' -*& f"»fr ■

The New Plymouth Borough Council I has sensibly decided to ;ulinit iv porters to Committee meelings. A race for oil launches is to be added to the programme of the Auckland Regatta. African cholera is very prevalent at the Thames and Tauratiga, and several children m Uiu lai'tor diiH.vict have succumbed to it. Trains are It; run on to t.^e wharf at Lyttelton next monltli, enabling passengers by steamer to step from the carriage to the boat or vice versa. It costs the Wanganui Charitable Aid Board between £60 and £70 pn 1 annum to supply lite iiunaiiGS of the Jubilee Home with tobacco. Each smoker is allowed a large stick of tobacco per week. An immense haul of kiiigfish was made at Napier on Saturday. About four teas of the fish were secured, and there were i m addition a large quantity of floundtru, I mullet, kahawai. The largest kingfish i weighed 84lb, and the smallest 301 b. I The main object of the visit which Mr | Gilruth, Chief Government Veterinarian!, is making to Auckland is to ascertain whether experiments made to stamp out the "bush disease" m cattle m parts of the Rotorua district, .have been successful. The Liverpool ship-dealing firm of H. E. Moss and Co, state lliat as a consequ- , ence of the slackness of orders, ship--1 builders are cutting their estimates, and ! to-day ia 7000 ton dead weight boat, about 360 ft long, and with a 9-knot power, could be built for £42,000, against £60.000 two years ago . The Auckland Harbor Board has received 117 applications for tihe newly-ad- ( vertased position of engineer. It is expected that the selection will be made during the present month. The salary is ; £1000 per annum, the Board having, of-. ,te.v some squabbling, decided to employ i a thoroughly-qualified engineer at tliis salary. Private letters have been received by :the last San Francisco mail confirming 'the cabled report of Miss Maud Beatty's i engagement at Drury Lane as principal boy m the pantomime of "Mother Goose" at a salary of £40 per week. After the pantomime season Miss Beatty will do a round of the halls, appearing at three each night. The writer of Agricultural Politics m the Mark Lane Express says: — Mr Hanbury may be taken to be strong eniough to resist the renewed efforts which are being made to remove the restrictions i upon the importation, of Argentine cattle into this country. The agitation is chiefly m the interest of the big towns and of the traders dwelling therein,. It has no force of public opinion behind it. Sir William Russell, says the Dunedin . Star, will not be a candidate for the i Speaker-ship. He- is strongly of opinion i tliai Mr Guinness ought, by reason of his ' long service as Chairman of Committees and Deputy-Speaker, to be elected to the [ positiou, though he acknowledges that ; mutiy members of the Opposition will be found supporting the candidature of Mr McNab, if tlie member for Mataura is . nominated. '• ' Whenever an outbreak of anthrax occurs m this colony the Government quar- • ontines the land for it period of two : years. This is reiulered necessary by the danger .of the spread of the disease, tlie germs of which infect the whole of the > ground manured with imported bones mii effectively sterilised. Past experience shows tlmt the danger of a recurrence of the disease after two years is very rei mote. The- Railway Department finds that ' there is a great diversity of opinion as to the size of grain sacks wtiich will : commend itself to grain dealers, and at . the same time meet the representations of workers, who have urged that the 2401 b sacks caused serious injury to tlie men, engaged m handling them. If Che Department decides upon any alteration m ■ tlie size of sacks, it will give tlie public ; twelve months' notice, so as to enable i stocks to be worked oflf. There is considerable dissatisfaction m 1 the Railway Department over the way '■ iv which classification is carried out. It ' appears that the staff, instead of being 1 classified and promoted according toterm 1 of service, is arranged very often according to the age of the member. This ■ method of placing age and, as it is feared, influence, m ffont of competence and • length of service is creating a lot of heart-burning. Dr. Dawson, of Woodville, who. was with the Colonial troops m South Africa ; does not attribute the prevalence of enteric fever, and malaria to the water consumed. He says the water was usually free from contamination, but there were heavy winds and severe dust storms and • the germs of disease were wafted with the dust. In dealing with the wounded lie found that most of the recoveries were from wounds m the head, bad abdomuial injuries, such as bullet wounds, were almost invariably fatal. Representations were made to Sir J. Ward hi Auckland last week as to the desirableness of discarding the use of seated wagons for holiday traffic. To cany the public m carriages m various parts of the colony would, the Minister pointed out, cost £1,500,000, and for Auckland alone the outlay involved would amount to half a million sterling. To accommodate hhese carriages, which would only be used on less thau a dozen days m tlie year, special storage would be required, and there they would lie rusting and decaying for want of useWhile m Europe, Mr W. G. T. Goodman (electrical engineer to the firm of Noyes Bros., contractors for the Dunedin electric trams) made a trip upon the highspeed railway between Berlin and Zossen. This railway, which is about 30 miles m length was built with a view to experiments, wiih high-speed locomotion, and a rate of 120 miles an hour is often achieved upon it. Although not travelling at this rate, Mi' Goodman found the speed attained during Ais 'trial trip sufficiently high to impress him with the possibilities of the system. A trip oai Che mono-rail to Elberfield was anotlier inte- : resting experience. Last week the som of a well-known Woodville resident, named Motley, was arrested and charged with desertion from H.M.S. Mildura five years ago. Since , then Mr Jellicoe, acting on behalf of the accused, lias placed the circumstances of the case before tlie Admira lin Sydney, and the Inspector of Police at Invercargill has seen the captain of the Wallaroo, who is the officer m charge of the New Zealand station, and learned from him ' that he had no further use for the man m the navy. On this information being • placed before the Magistrate the case was i struck out. ■ A circular letter lias been addressed by ' Mr F. Buxton, C.E., of Nelson, to mem- [ bers of both Houses of the New Zealand Legislature, protesting against llie grant- '■ ing of leases of the Parapara iron, deposits ; to Messrs Cadman and Co. at the Warden's Court, Collingwood, on December 10, which, Mr Buxton contends, is contrary to law, and has petitioned to be j declared null and void. Mr Buxton states 1 that he has £2,500,000 of capital awaiting ' his arrival m London with "leases secured from the possibility of being jumped," ' and will "employ 7000 hands and found a . second Pittsburg at the Parapara." He does not want the promised bonus of £20,000. On the night of the eruption of Tarawera m 1887 some 30 or 40 natives were I buried beneath the debris, which was [ thrown out by the volcano, and which fell upon the little Maori village of Mount, . on the shore of tlie lake. Up till the present all trace of the site of the village has been lost, the face of the country having been changed by the eruption, i On Sunday, Air Warbrick, one of the Government guides m the locality, discovered a skeleton at a place evidently ; once the site of the pah, and probably ; others will come to light as the element's ; remove the traces of the great eruption. '. Some thirty natives -were also entombed . at Te Ariki, at the southern end of the ' lake, and these are still beneath the debris of their wrecked village. The municipal abattoirs opened at Hast- : ings last week are thoroughly up-to-date. The walls are constructed of brick, with concrete foundations and parapets, and are plastered inside to a glass-like smoothness for sanitary purposes. Hose and stand-pipes are provided, with hot and cold water, for cleaning the walls. The : nice from the cattle yard leading to the pithing pens has been made very narrow, about 2ft lOin wide, just enough to allow a beast to move forward. The pithing pens are Bft by 3ft. The races for' sheep •and pigs are of proportionate- width, and for the latter scalding vats are provided. Rails and trolleys are m abundance to take the meat to the cooling room, the walls of which are flushed wiin a constant supjjly of cold water. Everything that <xtn possibly tend to cleanliness ;md healthy surroundings has been supplied. A powerful ram keeps the tanks always supplied with water. Steam pipes give the necessary power for the scalding vats, and there isalso a powerful steam pump. A few days ago' a cable message informed us that the brewers of Blackburn (England) had closed a number of licensed houses, valued at £100,000. It is probable that the publicans of Blackburn have followed the lead of the publicans of Birmingham, where the municipal authorities intimated pretty plainly that the time had come to reduce the number of licenses. Thereupon the publicans held a meeting, and appointed an independent and trustworthy valuer, who first selected the houses which would almost certainly have to be closed. He valued these on lines approved by the trade, and then estimated m what degree the remaining houses would benefit by the closing of the others. On this basis he determined what proportion the owners of the remaining houses should pay towards recouping the losses of the owners of the closed houses, and it is reported that 'the publicans were generally satisfied with the result. The same plan has evidently been followed at Blackburn, and it would appear from this that the system is one which is gradually finding favor among the trade at Home.