The Taranaki Herald. PUBLISHED DAILY. TUESDAY, OCTOBER 4,1898.

Taranaki Herald, Volume XLVII, Issue 11339, 4 October 1898, Page 2

The Taranaki Herald. PUBLISHED DAILY. TUESDAY, OCTOBER 4,1898.

MrW.S. Littlejohn, M.A.. has been appointed Principal of Nelson College, out" of 57 applicants for the position. • At Auckland on Monday James Ross was fined £2 and costs on' two charges of selling liquor at Kawau without a license. The general committee in charge of the Floral F3te arrangements will meet at' St. Mary's schoolroom on Wednesday afternoon. , A young man named Lambert, from Tarata, has been admitted, to the hospital, suffering from a broken leg sustained while bushf ailing. „ • • . . - , , Constable McAnerip brought a man named lamb ia from Mokau on Monday to undergo, a fo^tnighfcr imprisonment in the New Plymouth gabl for using obscene language. ';; ;. s . j ( Despite the rough -weather last month the dredger Thomas, King did some cx r cellent work at the harbour. - Some, 230 trips were made, removing 14.1C0 cubic yards of sand. . Mr Ruddick, the new chief dairy expert, will not arrive in New, Zealand until the end of the year, hav ; ng been instructed to visit London first to make enquiries into various matters' affecting ,the trade. , A six-roomed house on the Hurford Road, belonging to Mr B. T Dawes^ was destroyed by fire on dunday inght. The building, in which was stored 90 sacks of chaff, was unoccupied. It was insured in the JK oyal office for £ 100 . The origin of the fire is unknown. There was only one defended case jd'alt with in the Magistrate's -Court on 1 Monday afternoon— Sampson v J. Bishop., clairi'^t'in-'connection with a fencing matter. Judgment was given with costs for defendant, for jr whom Mr Weston appeared. Mr Wilsbn "(MrMty'y) represented the plaintiff.*-.. , Mr A. Bayrieg has reeeiVecf a letter from M. i*. Brown, MH.R.j acknowledging n^eipt of the petition askings the Government to make some^pfo'visiori 1 for Mr C Tash, who lost his legs by a railway accident recently. Mr Brown says the petition will be presented on Wednesday, and adds that he will do all in his power to further its obj j et. The balance-sheet of the South Bri'ish Insurance Company for the year ended 31st August chows a profit in ttfe revenue account of £5,955, which, added *to the amount brought forward from' last year' leaves £16,582 at the credit of jprofit and loss. Out of this an interim dividend was paid in April of Is 6d per share, and payment of a further 2s per share is now, recommended, leaving to be carried forward £4,8 31. Tfie destruction- of the Norwich Public Library, by fire is probably the greatest disaster that has ever befaliea scholarship in East Anglia. 1 his library is not the public free library, which is a very fine one. It is the library started last century by the Martineau family, and swollen for a, hundred years past by numerous bequestß. As an institution it has long been _ the centrU meeting-place of East Anglian, scholars and students, and amongst its 60,000 volumes were many rare and a number of unique' treasures that can never.be replaced?.' ; A convenient and attractive" looking shop has just been erected in ! the' East End of the town to the order "of Mr Frank Scriven b r. The buildfngis situated on the corner of Devon and Watsonsteeets, and it has been constructed espe* cially'for Mr Bcrivener's requirements us a general produce dealer — a purpose which it admirably serves. The building has a pleasing Exterior, and is ornamented Wiih'a suitable verandah. The' shop itself is large and roomy, and is fitted up with all the necessary conveniences, while the ad joining room's are also suitably arranged. The building isa pfcasing acquisition to that part of the borough. Mr Messenger prepared the plans, and Mr Campbell was the contractor. •' r A Hungarian engineer , named Chlodowekif ba^ invent^ jfn jtftoq&tic brake which on being tried in Hungary recently proved so efficient that all the engines on the Hungarian lines are being. provided "?s%s, a °%,lLi^ l . s , a iL fc^ 8 ' tried :in Austria.- It differs from Ih3 vacuum and Westinghouse brakes, inasmuch as they require la- be 1 set in motion ,by some person, whereas this one does not. As soon as a jolt or" anything else' disturbs the even motion of the train, the two air valves of the new brake, one on either side of the engine, open of their own accord, and pressing on the wheel with irresistible force, it stops the train within a few yards. ' , . The borrowers of books and the lenders thereof will be amused by tte letter which the late Sir Edward Burne Jones wrote to a friend who returned some books lent to him 30 years before. " The return of these books," complained the artist, " has simply staggered me. It has also pained me, for it seems to raise the standard of morality in these matters, and perhaps to sting the susceptible consciences of book borrowers. I have many borrowed books on my shelves. I would rather the owners should die than that I should have to think about these things and return them. I have two costly volumes that were lent to me before that little incident of ours, which, you may remember, was in Red Lion square. I hope the owner is no more, for I simply will not give them up. And you have made me uneasy, and have helped to turn an amiable rascal into a confirmed villain. Your affectionate Ned* '

We are informed that some of the public are under the impression that the concerts on Friday and Saturday evenings in the Theatre JKoyal will consist of selections from the phonograph only; this idea is altogether erroneous. The larger part of the programme each evening will be the views shown by the kinematograph ; living pictures of the SpanishAmerican War, Gladstone's funeral, &c. In a letter received to day (Tuesday) the Edison Company say that they will show pictures of the finest American Warships several views of the ill-fated Maine, and many others of scenes illustrative of the seat of the war. After giving a long list they add, "Besides these there are at least 24 living pictures; and, in addition, comic Gladstone, Grey, and football. So think we promise plenty." The connecting lecture will be given by Mr W. J\ MacDermotr, secretary of the Auckland* Band of Hope Union. Concerts have been arranged for Inglewood on Monday next, Stratford on Tuesday, and Eltham on Wednesday.

Justice E. T. Conolly, arrived by tfiel Takapuna last night. The Supreme' Court opens at 11 o'clock to morrow. I Dr. McCleland notifies, elsewhere that he will remove on Thursday next to the residence in Vivian street lately occupied by Mr F. S. Canning. Mr Tunbridge, Commissioner of Police, who has been on an official vivic to New Plymouth, returned ; to Wellington by train ten-day (Tuesday). " When you talk about fcbe Legislature you get at the fountain heai, and that stops all farther talk," reverently remarked a native in the Police Court on Monday. Hon Mr Thompson, Minister for Justice, was' in New Plymouth on Monday. The hon. gentleman returned to Wellington by train "this (Tuesday) morning. '• . Five of the eight Maoris concerned in the ploughing at Pihaina have entered into the recognisances to keep the peace »s ordered' by the Court. 1 he other three decline to do so. The alternative is twelve months' imprisonment. The presentation to Mr T. E. Taylor is to, take the. form of an American roll lop office desk, with a silver plate suitably inscribed) .and in .addition a purse of sovereigns to enable him to take a holiday trip after the session. ' "'"'■'' Ngarangi, one of the Maoris implicated in the trespass cases dealt with on Monday, stated that he objected to the Public Trustee administering the .estate he was interested in. His Worship said he was afraid that was at the bottom of the trouble, Mr Fisher, aerent for ther'Public Trustee, pointed out most of the beneficiaries had no objections. " Yes," added Ilia Worship,' "they-'ate wiser men."' "* Mr J. Gilmour forwards^ the September number of the Ansira'asian Review of Reviews. The feature of greatest interest to New Zea'anders is an article by Mr t % E. Taylor^.YT.H R., on "Why 1 Proposed the New Zealand Police Commission, and. What It Has Done/ Mr Stead contributes, a character sketch of Bismarck. The Battle with Cervera> fleet off t'anliago^is described by. Winston Churchill j and Sir B. '0. Braddon contributes a defence of .the Bwddoth clause in the Federal "Bill.'" A new feature Ihis month, is a series^f^very beautiful reproductions of pictures by the late iSJr E. Bnrne Jpnes, which alone are worth the pric*e of the He ; iew over ancl 'over agaiq^ News has reached. Stockholm of Herr Stadling's expedition, which has gone to look for tracesof ( Andree, It is. to the effect ttie 'BeVKn corresp'ddtient of the Standard) that the expedition arrived some weeks ago at Belum, near the mouth of the Lena, and that trappers who visited the New, Siberian Islands last winter found no vestiges of Acdree's expedition, nor were any discovered near the rivers A uahara and Indigirka. Herr Stadling's expedition is -now going 'westward to seaich for Andree -from the Taimyr Peninsula to the Yenisei. The authorities and the people are extremely obliging ; but J,he hope of finding traces of Andr6« ia becoming fainter and fainter.' < . An antique and curio " dealer in r Sey mour-place, Marylebone-road, exhibited in his window for"thr«e days, as the re-ult of a wager, a number, 20 ii all, of English sovereigns mixed with other coins, the collection being surmounted with a,ticket bearing the words, "Th^Ve coins 15s 6d each." For a few clayii only!" Although mixed with other coins, the sovereigns were the most conspicuous. Strange to cay, there were no purcba-ers. One timid individual went into the shop and nervously inquired if the coins were i: good." He was told by the shopkeeper that the coins were there to be sold at the price marked, but no other Information could be given^ He left without -purchasing. Afterwards the newsg6t' round Marylebone that soveieig'us were to had for 15s 6d, but it was too l»'e, -The trader had won the wager audjiac! withdrawn the sovereigns from fche.wihHowr For^ several reasons, says the" French Journal' des. Debat*, it is impossible to wisk Dr L&jds snecess in his .renewed negotiation for a loan fdr the Transvaal Government/ To begin- with,' it,u not good policy to lend to a spendthrift. LeSsthan 10 years ago "the Transvaal Republic was satisfied with expending 20,G00,000f . a year, but now theexpenditure has risen to 125,000,000f., a sum oat of- proportion to the merits of the country. In 'the second pJace, Presideht'Kruger lias b'eglected'to do anything for- the mining industry, in which French capital to the extent of 1,200,000,000. is invested He has permitted the most scandalous abuse's' in his .Government, 1 and he *is rruining. hi« country, besides seriously injuring French interests— two excellent, reasons- for rfes jeoting bis overtures; .••./■" ■ "-'Vih.^ " A correßpondenton the A*ridi frontier lets out an edifying little 'fact as to the rifles surrendered to the British after the campaign. A' number of them were euapiciously new, *nd it appears tbatfnatire gunsmiths on the frontier," taught m. British armouries, ' did a' brisk trade in manufacturing rifles for " surrender " as soou as it was known that this was to be, one of the terms' of peace. There was a good bit of delay in giving in the number demanded, and it now turns out that the cause of that delay was that they could not be manufactured any quicker. An Aftidi will sell his wife or anything else on earth that he possesses to buy a rifle, and having bought it nothing will induce him to part .with it. Had k ngland waited for sound, serviceable weapons that had been* really used during the war. she would be waiting still. The heterogeneous collection she obtained was of old, useless guns or new ones made to "••ill" and " surrender."

A valuable discovery was recently made at a lime works at Stockton, Warwickshire, where a magnificent specimen of an ichthyosaurns platyodoahas beenexposed to view. The monster fossil was found in the blue lias, and the greatest care was taken to preserve it intact. The measurements of the skeleton are as follows : — Head, 4 feet by 2 feet 5 inches; body, 5 feet by 2 feet 3 inches at the fore paddles, and 1 foot 5 inches at the base ; length of fore paddles, 2 feet 3 inches ; length of hind paddles, 2 feet 3 inches ; length of tail 10 feet 2 inches ; making in a total length of 19 feet 2 inches. The head was in perfect preservation, showing the teeth, one only having been dislodged and imbedded in the upper portion of the snout. A few of the vertebrae at the point where the tail joined the spinal column were missing, but the ribs were clearly discernible. The discovery proved, in the words of a local newspaper, a veritable Klondyke to the fortunate finders, for people from all parts of the surrounds ing districts crowded to see it. . Mr H. W. Lucy, in one of his always interesting letters to the Sydney Morning Herald, tells a good story of the late Mr Bajard. Mr Bayard, he saya, was attractive in many ways, including his personal looks. Handicapped by deafness, he sometimes succeeded in carrying the infirmity off oply too well. There is a story told, probably invented, about him at a country house which is at least characteristic of his manner. At the dinner table someone told a little tale that vastly amused the company, to all appearances none more than the American Minister, whose handsome face beamed with laughter. " Capital," he said. "That reminds me of a story, perhaps not so good — certainly," this with a gracious bend of his head to the raconteur, "not so well told-rbut perhaps you will allow me to repeat it." Forthwith he started, and to- the consternation of the cotnpany began to recite the very story they had just ap» plauded. Seated at the other end of the table, he had not caught even the drift of the first man's narrative Happily it was polite well-bred audience, and it was not till his Excell ucy htH fioi-hed that the laughter that choked them was allowed to burst forth. Mr Bayard' probably thought he had never before told that particular story to bo appreoia-' tive an audience, ',