LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Temuka Leader, Issue 1650, 22 October 1887, Page 2

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

AUCTION Sales. —Messrs J. Mundell and 00. bold a large sale of skins at Geraldine on the 30th October, and their monthly stock sale on November 2nd. Concert at Woodbury. —A concert will be held in the Woodbury schoolroom on Friday evening next in aid of the new Presbyterian Church at Woodbury. Train Arrangements for Timaru Races and Show. —In our advertising columns will be found the train arrangements for the races and Show which lake place at Timaru next week.

Customs Revenue.—The Customs revenue collected in the colony for the September quarter amounted to £324,507, as against £337,032 for the corresponding quarter of 1886, Wool Sales.—Mr W. S. Maslin intimates that in conjunction with Messrs N. Dunlop and Co. he will hold regular sales of wool during the present season. He is also receiving entries for the Geraldine stock sale.

Larceny. — A Chinaman, who gave his name as William Chew, was arrested by Constable Willoughby on a charge of stealing a cigar-holder from the Cn-.ildine Hote'. He will be brought up at the Geraldine Court this morning. Imports and Exports. —The value of the imports for the last quaiter was £1,845,132, as against £1.981,768 for the same quarter last j;e*r. The value of the exports was £1,118,739, as against in the September quarter Jot 886,

Sale op Property.— Mr K. F, Gray holds a most important sale of freehold property al Temuka on the Ist November, on account! of Mr F. Arenas (who is leaving New Zealand on a visit to England), Mr Batty, Mr Gunnell, and others. Particulars will be found in onr advertising columns. Anniversary Services. The ann ; - vorsary services of the Sunday school in connection with the Primitive Church. Temuka, will be conducted to-morrow by the Rev. W. J. Dean, of Geraldine, Besides the morning and evening services a children’s service will be held in the afternoon. On Tuesday a tea and public meeting will be held in connection with the same.

Accident. A ploughman named P. Malarkey met with an accident, whereby one of his arras was broken, while ploughing at the Maori Pah,. Milford, on Monday last. To avoid getting wet he was riding the p'ough through « pool of water, when the swingle tree to which the horses were attached broke and he was dragged from his position, with the result above mentioned.

Shipping Returns,— The following is a return of the number, tonnage, and crews of voseo's entered inwards and outward* for the quarter ending Sep'nmber Ist ; Inwards; 164 vessels, 129 925 tons, and 4601 men ; ou 1 wards : 161 vessels, 115,575 tons, and 4484 men. For corresponding quarter last year—lnwud* : 109 vessels, 118,831 tons, and 46 <7 men ; outwards ; 109 vessels, 118,197 tons, and 4763 men.

Waimats Races. The second day’s racing of the Waimats Racing Club t >ok plase on Wednesday. Results; Hand cap Eurdlss, of 20 sovs, Mr McMahon’s Flatoutoher 1, Mr P. Jones's Ooryphe- 2. October Handicap of 25 sots, Messrs Hobbs’s Jack R Mr A. Boyle’s Vanity Fair 2. Ticiting Rios, of 15 sovs: Mr W, 8 Martin’s Will-if-T-cao (eei) 1, Mr Paterson's Wairaat (70 secs) 2. The Hack Silling Him-, of IQ sovs, was won by Mr O. H. Cardens Frp«. mason, and the Consolation by Mr Oowie’s The Brewer, ' ' ,

Gold Export —The following is a return of (he quantity and value of gold entered for export for the quarter ended ‘September Ist : Auckland, 76350z5, vilnari at £29,682; West Coast (Mi ‘die ' Island), 23,5660ze, valued at £94 357; Otago, 20,640'zr, valued at £81,456. Corresponding quarter last year, 60,2960 z valued at £235,871, wore exported. Eire.—By a fire on Thursday last Mr R. Smith, farmer, Kukahu Road, lost a tent, a great part of its contents, and a quantity of oils, and hid a narrow escape of losing a dray. Advantage was being taken of the dry weather to burn up a lot of loose straw, and owing to the strong wind that sprang up the fire got beyond control. Had it not been for the assistance of some neighbors the loss would hare been greater.

Railway Returns, —The railway returns for the four-weekly period ending 18Ui September show the receipts to hare been ; North Island, £20,937 6s ; Middle Island, £42,960 17s; total, £63,898 3s. Expenditure: North Island, £18,553 3s lid j South Island, £33,582 8i lOd ; total, £52,135 12s 3d. The receipt* from the Humnui-Bluff line were £3B 729 14g sd, and the expenditure £30,564 lie 2d. Post office Returns —The postal revenue for the quarter was £46,670 9a 7d, bh against £44,838 13s 6d for the same quarter of 1886. Telegraph revenue was ; Paid telegrams, £22,870, as against £25,759 last year ; Government telegramo, £10,605, as ngninst £6400 the previous year. During the quarter money orders to the amount of £127.200 5a were issued, and £121,822 paid. The amount of savings bank deposits for t.ha quarter was £327,195, ai against £290,567 la«t year. Withdrawals ware £285,751 as against £345,140. The total amount of postal odes sold was £12,076, as against £9,527 last year. The Wbatubk.— During the last few days very windy weather h s been experienced, and changes of temperature have been v»ry frequent and sudden. Some few instances of damage by the wind have been reported, Mr E. Mitchell, of the Waitohi, had a shed partially unroofed, and a shed belonging to Mr Morris, at the Point, also sustained damage. The force of the gusts ah Geraldine yesterday may be gathered from the fact that the front of the new Volunteer Hall was concaved to the extent of several inches. The front presented a flit surface to the wind of about 40ft bv 25ft, and it is somewhat weakened by the large doors, two windows, and the ventilator which are let into it, The damage to the building is, however, trifling, and can be easily remedied by a stay. The wind also buret the lock clean off the door.

The Victorian Railways —The last Victorian railway returns show that the lines have earned 4£ per cent, upon the total capital invested in the lines now opened for traffic. The total revenue is £2 453,000, and this sum pays expensed (£1,427,000), interest (£P85.000 net), and 1-aves a balance of £40.457 to go towards the expenses of the Windsor collision. The working expenses are 58 per cent, of the income as against 67 per cent, when tho Commissioners t#ok office. Since the Commissioners took office they have reduced rates and fares to the amount of £250,000 per annum, or 10 per cent ©f the total earnings of the lines. Tho country Hues are a drag upon the system at present; but it is recognised that they are necessary for the development of the country, and that they will create remunerative traffic. In reference to the Windsor accident, tho Commissioners recommend a system by which the liability of the Department should be limited to £1000; the traveller to assure beyond that sum. A Narrow Escape.— Messrs H. W. Moore, A. E, Hawkins, and W. R. Evans had a narrow escape of being seriously injured on Thursday evening. They had been on a fishing excursion down the Waihi river, and about 7.30 p.ra. had mounted into their trap for the purpose of returning to Geraldine. Immediately upon starting, however, the horse commenced kicking violently, and after smashing the trap considerably bundled the three fishermen out unceremoniously with their rods and lines, much to the gentlemen’s disgust. The horse gettmg away with the trap made a bee-line for home, but on turning into tho road the vehicle was upset. Just then Mr J. Turner, of Geraldine, came along' and took the house out, when tho disciples of Isaac Wa'ton, who had commenced a weary trudge home, came up and took possession of the runaway. _ The party eventually reached Geraldine, tho trap having suffered the greatest amount of damage.

A Notable Fieb.— The fire which occurred about two months ago on the premises of Mr W. Whiteley, "the universal provider,'* at Westbourne Grove, London, it one which will live long in the remembrance of London firemen, At tbit fire, which destroyed seven houses, forming a block six storeys high, there were at work thirty-four steam fire engines, from all parts of London and district, b sides manual engines, ladders, and fire escapes, with a great number of men and horses. The number of engines and men employed, it is staled, exceeded any instance on record. Towards the extinguishing of the fire the Grand Junction Waterworks Company supp'ied three million gallons of water, a large quantity being also drawn from (he West Middlesex Company. Notwithstanding the great efforts to save the buildings and stock, the premises were entirely destroyed, several firemen being crushed to death by failing debris. It is estimated that the loss to Mr Whiteley was over half a million, a small portion only being covered by insurance, Mr Whiteley, who has been the victim of four large fires sinoa 1882, believing that the fire was caused by incendiarism, has offered a reward of £2OOO on the conviction of the offender.

S.O. Educational Institute.-" At the annual meeting of the South Canterbury tfiduoational Institute, held in Timaru, there was a very representative gathering of teachers, Mr Wood being in the chair. The balance-sheet showed that there was a balance of £2 3s lOd to the credit of the Institute with a few outstanding assets. The following officers were elected for the ensuing year: Mr Q-. A. Aitken, president • Mr ,T, Thomson, vice-president; Mr T. W> Wake, secretary and treasurer. A committee of management was appointed consisting of Messrs Wood, Watson, Steven, Vallanlyns, Walker and Bryars. Mr An ken, the president elec*, was deputed to represent the Institute at the Nelson Conference in January, 1888. A discussion then took place on the proposed amendments in the standard syllabus, and the secretary was instructed to forward the. amended syllabus to the Central Institute, On the motion of Mr Aitken, it wis resolved to request the council of the New Zealand Institute to draw up a pupil teachers’syllabus to be submitted to the Minister of Education in order to secure un’brmity of elimination. It. was al«o resolved to request the New Zeal;nd Instilu'c to move in the direction of scouring a col mi d do of s ilanes in order to remove the anomalies exiting under the present system. The meeting then terminated.

' Acclimatisation. —Mr N. 0. Nicholas, ■ccompanied by Messrs Wright and Hood, brought from Mr A. Perry's estate at Kingsdown last Thursday about 120 young perch, which he, liberated in the Park Creek, Rooney’s Creek, Cemetery Creek, and the creek at the Leya Farm. Mr Nicholas caught 150 fishes altogether, bub about 30 of them died on the way home. They weighed from 2ozs to 2lbs, and were caught by means of a small net and brought to Temuka in milk pans. They were liberated m a sound and healthy condition, and may be expected to multiply rapidly. It is six years since Mr Perry liberated the first perch in his own creeks, and now the place is literally full of them* OoMPiJMBNTABT. —The Christchurch Telegraph says Advantage was taken of the anniversary of the Band of Hope, Spnngston, to present Miss Wills, who is about to change her name and leave the district, with a beautiful marble clock and a purse of sovereigns. Miss Wills has acted for the past eight years as organist of the Wesleyan Chapel, and was held in high esteem by the members. The presentation was made, in an appropriate little speech, by Mr W. Taylor, au old member of the church, and leader of the choir. Mr Wills feelingly replied on behalf of his daughter, and the Rev. Mr Simmonds notified that Miss Taylor would act as organist in succession to Miss Wills. The young lady to whom reference is made in the paragraph above quoted is a sister of the Rev, P. Wills, who was in charge of the Wesleyan Church in Temuka «p to the time of his death,” She has come to live in Temuka district, having been mar.-ied to Mr W. Hoiwell, on the l7ch instant.

The Brave Engine-driver. —The New South Wales Railway Commissioner has recommended that in the case of Mrs Wilson, the widow of the driver who was killed on the occasion of the Peat’s Ferry disaster, the ordinary rule as to gratuities should be departed from. The widow was paid her husband’s full wages for three months, and she received the £3OO for which his life was insured. The Minister of Public Works has now approved of the recommendation that each of the four children be paid £IOO, to be invested for their benefit until they each in turn strive at the age of eighteen, the interest of the money to bo paid to the widow towards their support, and that £6OO be paid at once to the widow, making £IOOO in all. The commissioner says Wilson stood manfully to his post at a time of supreme peril, using every means which occurred to him to avert an accident, and was killed in the execution of his duty.

NeW Gaias-CiEANiNG Machine.—Anew grass-cleaning 'machine has lately been invented by Mr K. F. Gray, of Temulta. The | difficulty in cleaniug grass seed by means of the ordinary machines induced Mr Gray to en- ' deavor (o effect some improvement on the method now in use. He found that samples 1 dressed by hand riddles were infinitely 1 superior to those passed through the majority of the machines in common use, and he has, i therefore, made the motion of the riddle to resemble as closely as possible that of a sieve ; worked by hand. The machine as now in ’ use in his stores is a very simple one. It : consists of three riddles one above the other, : made of various gauges of perforated ainc, , and beneath these is a small chamber which , receives the good seed. This is conveyed into ( a trough, from which the sacks are filled. ( The seconds are carried into another trough, . and thence to sacks, while the “cavings” with foreign matter fall direct to the floor. The machine is fed by means of a large 1 hopper, wbicii m the machine as now erected oan be filled from an upper floor. In an ■ ordinary portable machine a slightly different > arrangement would be made. The machine 5 oan be driven either by hand, horse-power, • or steam, and the motion may be described as eccentric and rotary,' This is obtained by means of a vertical crank shaft. A simple 9 arrangement allows the riddles to be raised or r lowered to any angle, and by this means the I seed passes more or less quickly over them, j Seed twice dressed by this machine appears to j be wondei fully free from deleterious matter, , and it appears to be particularly successful in removing the obnoxious hair-grass. The 7 model of the machine was made by Mr Gray himself, who is a skilled engineer, and the > large machine, as now erected, was the work 5 of Mr Colville, of Milford, who himself has r obtained some local celebrity for improve* i ments in grass-dressing machinery. • To the ladies of Timaru and surrounding 1 district. Another reduction to meet the 5 times. A cup of tea or coffee with oike sup- • plied at all hours at the Railway Refreshment i Rooms for fid. Luncheon as usual, A i waitress in attendance for ladies. The , Shilling Lunches still continue at the Club Hotel. D, McGuinness, Proprietor.—Advt. 1 ' > SYNOPSIS OF ADVERTISEMENTS. I A, H. Brisco, Geraldine—Wants a boy. ’ Concert at Woodbury—On October 28th. N.Z. Railways—Arrangements for Timaru 1 races and show. i , K. P. Gray—Holds large sale of property , ai Temuka on Nov. Ist. i J. Mundell and Co.—Sell skins at Gerali dine on October 31st; hold monthly sale at i Geraldine on November 2nd. W. 8. Maslin and N. Dunlop and Co.— 1 Held sales of wool during the present season ; are also receiving orders for Geraldine monthly stock sale. T. and J. Thomson, Drapers and Silk Mercers, Timaru —Notify that they have made special preparations for visitors during Ihe show, and enumerate a few specihl hues they are now offering.