"BOILING" WITH IMPORTANCE.

Observer, Volume XXI, Issue 1182, 24 August 1901, Page 8

"BOILING" WITH IMPORTANCE.

A man named Danger, who lias a hhop in a Southern city, a little while ago moved across the street, and hung out this notice: "J. Danger, from over tlte way." His successor, on entering the shop vacated, thereupon put up this notice in big, bold letters : "This is* the safe shop. No danger here." -He's a wag all right. ■'■•••. ■ •••-( • r .«.- It is^to be hoped that; when the Newtoni.." gHost " is caught he will be soundlj&.thrashed by his captors in recognition of the distress he has caused tfo^mahy nervous women. The other lfight, a suburban resident return ing^home. with his wife left her on the frdht verandah while he went around |W the back to let her into the house. ,'*. When he opened the front door, found her lying senseless. The ."|host" had passed a. moment bef ore <t . Since then, the woman has been, in "a very delicate state of health.

Grocer Smeeton seriously told the Conciliation Bo^rd this week that 37s (kl was a fair wage for a grocer's carter. Also, .Charles Hammond, Mr Smeeton'g carter, said on oatli that he received 37s 6d per week for about 65 hours work. > This is rather more than 6d per hour. Nuft'sed' ..■ - In Dunedin, the city of the Scots, where Presbyterian ministers ought to be as plentiful as mulberries, there is just now a demand for?' supply "that doesn't seem to be satisfied.. Last week, at a meeting of. the Presbytery, the Rev. D. Borrie announced that "there were ten or eleven vacant charges, and there was not a single probationer to put into one of them. The Presbytery," he said, " were never «(o hard up for ministers before." A shilling " wanted" in any of the' Auckland papers would soon rid Dunedin of that scarcity.

Surely Mr Stichburylis Joking when he says there are fifty per cent, more deaths in the Auckland Hospital than in the Wellington one. Ahem ! What is wrong? Are we running the Auckland Hoapitftl too much on the thrifty principle? Or is the mortality in Auckland this year exceptional ? We know that people have misgivings about taking chloroform at the Auckland Hospital, but unless this singular mortality is satisfactorily explained, they will also ihave misgivings about going there at all.