NEWS OF THE DAY.

South Canterbury Times, Issue 2673, 13 October 1881, Page 2

NEWS OF THE DAY.

The annual general meeting of the South Canterbury Caledonian Society, will be held at the Grosvenor Hotel at eight tomorrow evening. The business comprises reception of last year’s accounts, and election of office bearers for the ensuing year.

Mr Edward Wakefield addresses bis constituents at Tcmuka this evening. It is to be hoped that he will be accorded a better reception than at his first attempt to address his electors on the last occasion, and it may be expected that this will be the case, as any opponents who may have any desire to amuse themselves at his expense, and the expense of the rest of his audience, will remember that they have to deserve fair treatment for their own candidate, or candidates, as the case may be. The Geraldine County Council received a telegram while sitting on Tuesday, informing them that the Government had postponed the general county elections from Nov. 9 to Nov. 16, on account of the former date being a public holiday. It has been questioned whether the Government can postpone the elections for a week for such a reason, the Act itself providing for their postponement for one day only in such cases.

The Yeomanry Cavalry went through their regular camp drills to-day, and in addition the two troops, A and B, turned out tor reconnaissance duty in the afternooon, under their respective captains, Colonel Ellis, Major Burwell, Captain Gardner, and Lieut. Crosbie, of the Southland Hussars, together with some non-com-missioned officers of that Corps, arrived yesterday, to witness the review to-morrow. This will no doubt attract a large number of spectators, and the townspeople seem inclined to make a holiday in honor of the occasion, The drapers of the town notify that their respective stores will be closed in the afternoon.

The telegraph stations (171 in number) which have recently been closed to the public on Sundays will also be closed to the public on statutory holidays.

The census taken in April last shows the population of the United Kingdom to have then been 35,216,502. London contained 3,814,571, or more than all Scotland, and the manufacturing and raining district of Lancashire contained nearly as many as Scotland, whose population was 3,731,370. The population of Ireland was 5,159,839. London gained during the preceding two years more than any other city in the Kingdom contains. The Auckland Board of Education resolved to ask the Minister for Education what 1? the precise moaning of the word it householder H in {ho Education Act.' A variety pf definitions had been given to it, in the .country districts especially, and it was desirable Mb? J? oiut should be settled. It seemed doubtful unmarried sons living with their fathers yetp legal householders. The »Bruce H >» BSiWc for the following 1 " A ludicrous incident occurred in connection with Kholers’ waxwork entertainment at Milton. The host of the Commercial Hotel sent a man in his employment across to the hall to inform the Messrs jfholcr that dinner was ready Opening the door #pd beholding an individual standing just jmsidc, j;p made the desired announcement. Unxc | afterwards, (ha Kholers apt coming to i their dinner, Mr G oopihfi inquired if they had been told. The map Replied ‘ yes, I told the cove Just inside the Jfttfii | a few hard words the landlord said 1 Why, i that was a wax man,* to which the [ messenger responded ‘Well, wax or no wax, hs had a pipe in his mouth.”

The Wellington police have been busy among the bars lately, Several licensees have been prosecuted for Surufey fading and for “ reducing ” their grog without notifying the fact. One landlady said she always put one gallon of water to every five of r am she bought, though, as she said, she did not know what bad been done with it before. One sapient lawyer said ho did not see any harm or wrong in watering spirits in this way, since nearly every purchaser watered it in his tumbler. The Magistrates recommended the licensees to buy their liquor by weight, that is, to use a hydrometer to ascertain its strength.

A telephone exchange is now in opera' tion in Auckland.

The lata Mr Moorhouse’s life was insured for £6,000. The Napier A. and P. Association Show is now on—yesterday and to-day. 288,000 bushels of corn in one line was one of Rufus Hatch’s recent sales in New York.

Mr W. L. Simpson, Resident Magistrate at Dunedin, has resigned, having accepted a business appointment. The Auckland Steamship Company is to be wound up, collapsing from internal weakness, not extra external pressure. The creditors of Hummer & Co, Auckland, who were offered and refused 7s 6d in the £ to be paid in nine months, have accepted 8s 6d in the £.

By the concert and ball at St Andrews, last week, in aid of the fund for instituting a public library, £9 12s was netted for the fund.

The anniversary of Knox Church, Waimate, was celebrated in a most successful manner on Tuesday, by a conversazione and concert in the Oddfellows’ Hall.

Sir George Grey is reported to be still suffering from the fatigues of the late session. “ The old man isn’t what he used to be.”

The wheat crop of Illinois this year is estimated at thirteen and a-half million bushels. Last year it was thirty-two millions.

It is stated that Messrs Beetham Bros, up to the present have liberated about 600 cats on Brancepcth station. The supply of catflesh from Wellington, however, is falling off.

The corner stone of the Waitaki High School, Oamaru, was laid yesterday, with considerable ceremony and the usual congratulatory speechifying. The site is some distance from the town, but it is near the north railway line. During the year ended 31st March last 1310 persons selected and occupied 165,364 .seres under the deferred payment regulations, an average of 126 acres each. 180 of these settlers took up 22,426 acres on the Waimate Plains, averaging 125 acres each.

Mr W. Green, pastor of the church of “ Christian Disciples,” in Dunedin, and a busy controversialist, intends to resign his charge, and stand for one of the City seats. Mr Kirkwood, of Wanganui, has a celebrated trotting mare named Our Pony. She got away from the groom yesterday, and bolted up the street at full gallop, ran into a dray and cut herself up badly.

A bushman named Gibbons has been committed for trial at Hawera for selling ammunition to natives. A nice thing to do in the present state of that country; but whether he deserves hanging or twentyfour hours depends on how much it was.

Four years ago (says the “ Prairie Farmer”) thirty-two acres of rugged hill top a few miles back of Oakland, Cal., being unfit for cultivation, was planted with Eucalyptus globulus (bottle gum), GBO to the acre, and it is said that this tract with its valuable crop womd now command G,OOO dollars.

A strong nor’-wester set in about halfpast nine this morning, and dust and sand have been flying about all day most annoyingly. Those who must be about found the “ wind’s eye” a dirty one ; but their own were soon as bad, and grumblers shut themselves up as soon as possible. The “North Otago Times,” commenting on the Allan-Massey libel case, just heard in the Supreme Court at Dunedin, expresses the opinion that “ eventually we may even reach a time when it will be universally held that if the matter of a libel is true, the libel is justified, and that if the matter is not true, the libel can do no harm to anyone in a civilised community.”

An American paper says the Czar of Russia agreed to give Elder, the builder of his turtle shaped yacht Livadia, a bonus of £IO,OOO for every knot over fifteen that she should make on the trial. “On the trial trip Elder’s own men were on board and drove the engine to its utmost limit. The fires roared back in the furnace, sparks flew and all the Russians ran away.' Elder’s men hung on and sent her down the Clyde like a railway train. Seventeen and a half knots, and £25,000 extra for Elder 1”

At the Supreme Court, Dunedin, yesterday, in ihe cases of claims against the Government, arising out of the Kensington crossing railway accident, the following verdicts were returned :—Mrs Mayo, who claimed for the loss of her husband, £SOO ; C, C. Aimstrong, £2OO ; Fairbairn, £175 ; Lloyd, £75 ; Keyes, £SO. Except Mayo’s all the claims were for injuries. The point whcthQi’ the Government is liable, in view of the section in the Public Works Act declaring any person on the line within a mile of a railway crossing when a train is approaching a trespasser, was reserved for argument iu Banco. Mr J. H, Shaw, a candidate for the Te Avo (Wellington] scat, addressed the electors last night. He spoke in favor of a property tax, and against immigration, but would dp what .could be done to get farmers witty capital to come out. He was of opinion ttyatthe Agept-fienprul’sdepart-ment should be abolished, Hp characterised the Native Department gs a monstrosity ; at the same time be considered with Major Atkinson that the Native difficulty should be overcome once and for all'. He .pndopspd Mr Bryce’s policy, and .expressed thp opinion .iUtf it been carried out the native difficulty would havp tycen settled. Auckland ip be prospering. The Herald •” ju a rqcpt issue says ;—The reeurrpnee of ttync wpattyer tyas given a fresh stimulus to tyuityling operations, and both in town and suburbs % building trade is busy. Wc understand that two or three largo blocks of buildings are being contemplated to be built as soon as the simmer w£xth,cr has advanced somewhat, and the next city valuation should show a large increase in the amount p£ rateable property within the limits of the borough. A Wellington Volunteer Corps had a <:tyurch parade the Sunday before last, and the band, on returning, played the opening chorus and “ Tarautara,” fronj the “ Pirates.” A number of people proposed to get up irate protests against such -'profanation of the Sabbath.”

Liverpool is to have a new water supply, giving fifty-two million gallons a day.

J. Herman’s Consultation is rapidly filling. Will positively close on the 28th of this month.— [Advt.]