MISCELLANEOUS.

Taranaki Herald, Volume LIV, Issue 13234, 4 August 1906, Page 3

MISCELLANEOUS.

I The Westport Times of Tuesday, say !it is stated that a gentleman whi took a prominent part in the reccn [ flection campaign in Westland ha! been served by the defeated candi date with a writ claiming £50( damages for. alleged slander. The Westport 'limes says the Brun ncr mine, which for the past thirtylive years has been the chief pro ciiicar m the brey district, andwhiwi at ouo time employed two hundred men, is now a very small concern, only ten men being engaged in getting coal, which number wili shortly ue reduced. Both the tenders submitted by New Zealand firms for the Arthur's Pass tunnel on the Aiklland Jfoxlway have been 'declined -by the Government. British contractors state that sufficient time wns not allowed to jjermit of an export visa tang ami* examining the locality. Fresh tenders will be invited, six mouths being allowed 1 for reeviviruj theni. A man aged about 50 was found in the Auckland Domain last Friday in a shocking 'state through negieet and starvation (says the Star). (Jonstaole Curtin. who was called -to the Domainin consequence of a report tivat a man had been found there in a dying condition, saw an , individual in a very weak state. He was revoltingly dirty, and in " such an iinacia-ted condition that liis bones showed prominently through the tattered clothing. The man stated he had had no food for several days, and as he possessed no home, he had -been sleeping out in the Domain. Constable Curt in took tuo unfortunate man to the hospital for treatment. Miss Studholme, of Wellington, who is advocating cremation instead ot burial, is supported in her crusade 'by Dr. M'aßon, chief of -the Health Department, who says that cremation is undoubtedly the best method c f disposing of ihe dead. The Wellington Uity Corporation has -reserved a portion of the Karori Cemetery for a crematorium, and it rests with the community to decide whether earth burial will be superseded by tb<i more sanitary 4 system. Largo numbers of people have expressed approval of the cremation proposal. Subscriptions aie being ■ -blamed with a view. to the establishment of a crematorium. 'With regard to the scheme laid bofore the Minister in charge of the Public. Health ■ Department (Mr McGrowon) y Dr. Mason, Chief Health Officer of the colony, for the inspection of children ■frttondrng ihe public and ofrh«: schools, it is understood t>-at the. Minister widl introduce le^i--lation this coming session to on-able , the proposals .generally to be given effect' to. The. Minister is convinced th-at the scheme of Dr. Mas n, with same modification, would result in irvWculable benefit to the children. The whole question of the electrification of the Melbourne suburban railways* is being considered, by the Victorian Government, which is in close consultation with the Railway Commissioners as to the best steps to ho taken: Prom 1 the -information at present in possession of the Premier it appears that the electrification of the whole of the suburban railways would decrease the cost of transport by hatff.as compared with, steam, while the. present rolling stock would "be available for country lines. It is psfcimaled that - the conversion would cost about £800.000, and that the reduced cost of working would cover the expenditure in five years. The Premier states tha^N even if it took tpn years to repay tbe outlay tho investment wouW be a good one financially, apart from the additional facilities afforded to the travelling public. ' - - The death in EnglaudNs announced of Lieutenant Tulloch; who was cominuesionixl by the -Itoyal Socity to conduct investigations "; into the cause of the . 'disease known as ' •'»' <slecjphr;r .sickness" at Entebbe. Lieutenant Tullobh was himself attacked by the disease, and succiknbed after a three months' illness, which progressed with unptiralle.leji'rapidirty/ ' In rtfieronco ta tHe CanadiaiY Pacific Railnmd, :.Mr i^Najb, « M/H.E., * ■ \xhqb. 'tntcrvivwed in Auckland said, that he was much Tnt-erested in the woa'khig of the roadl What hro saw strengthoned his opinion that we in New Zbalaud are working' in right Jine§ in keeping t|iese things' to ourselves: The C.P.B. work on" the land-grant sysand the; value of the unsold land wau»kl n-rore tha^ ; • consiructf : thc railM^iy from ocean ±o A oca n. V»an<>bii\or .is pi.a<:tically owned by the C.P.R. "You cannot." -said Mr. ilcN>a.b, %i go from -tilib -cdiy/ J ;^o 'the', ocean" without crossing thfir land. You cannot send a cable out o£ Vancouver or get one in cxcqit through -the C.T.R. office. They alm'St own British Columbia, mid it liook-ed to me as if for ever and ever they would draw their tribute from British Columibia for the ki.nwlo privilege of waking a railway that pays well its^ir-for the work. With us .the '.profits wcnild have remained in ottr couniry^ although /the interest" went to London^ but the'pro-Gts-of ail raihya-y's.-.that 'actually own law! 'in- panada, as wejl as, the interest on "cost of construction, goes, nq&to Canada, but to Park lane' London. " ' " ' Apropos of the T . 'reception gj?ven to the i^on. .W. Hall- Jones, as Premier on Saturday, the fact may 'be noted (saj^s the Timaru .Herald) that Mr Flail-Jones is the second member for r£maru to kcottic^ Premier of .the colony. 3ir Stafford occupieS ihat ..position^ while representing this jqnstituency over 30 years ago. . : The M'aofis are in quite a nervous rfcatfe/jp,! mind since the escape of the n-isoner 3?ox from Waiptapii ' gaol says the , Hot Lakes Chronicle) . It is asserted";! in 1 the " : 'village f that'- •tQue :-priiofters from '^Wai^a canlp gome over hg-hillg jnto the,, fcainga,, and • there jeg, for Vj toTbacco. . It ; has T^en pointid "out -that^St wdiild be 1 a 1 \^ery easy natter for one of tlie prisoners to issault a Maoi^i who has gontj out to lis little piece of cultivation, and

to take possession of his clothing as a disguise for the purpose of es/s ca PpiO jubere recently died in poverty in tt Canada Samuel Hawkins jSfapier, the iS finder of the largest nugget of gold the world t has ever seen. It was iq found on a-n Australian claim, «n<c measured 2ft 4'iai long, 10in wide, and J^dn to 3in thick. Jt was shown to Queen Victoria at Buckingham Palace, and for some time the finder received £50 a week for allowing the 2 nugget to be exhibited at „ the Crystal Palace. A cast of th© nugget is ' now in the British JUuseum.