LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 32, 19 June 1868, Page 2

LOCAL AND GENER AL.

Mesmrmbm,— Captain WlUou will deliver another louturo on mesmorlsm, &0., at an oarly dnto. Footham..— A olub has bcon formod In connection with St John's school, and numborfl thirty mombera. Vllkavy Snoh\— Tho weather ban boon unusually sovoro in tho south •wostorn part of tho province and It is foarcd that the loss In sheep will bo vory considerable, XLicaTcrai".— Tho Uov W. J. llabons will doltvor tho third of tho sorios of wintor looturcn at tho Wcaloyan Church, Durham streot, this cvonlng, Tho subject is " Tho Bnglish Reformation," Look-up,— The Government have decided to oroot a look-up at tho pollco dopOt In Armagh utroot. Tondora aro asked for, and must bo sent in not lntor than noon on Juno 25. ,<lMMtOUA'rtOM,— Tho Immigration department Is proparod to Mtoolvo applications for froo p/iflsugos from England, for ulnglo womon botweon tno ngo.i of 15 and 35, and assisted pan .age» for ulnglo mon and families, Avow UoAt) Hoard.— rt Is expoctcd that the' pt'Ofl.eodliigs on Monday uoxt will bo moro animated than thoy havo bcon at nomi-nation-hitherto, as thoro is ovory likelihood of muoh opposition in tho roturn of mombors. IfiNANOur, I.i.rroHM.— Tho working committee of tho Association mot last night at White's Ilotol. Mr Stovous presided, and tho othor mombors presont woro Messrs Hooves, Hnrman, Inglls, Cutlor, St Quontln, and A, Duncan, Tho ostlmatcs passed during last sossion of tho Assembly woro gono through, and aovcral reductions proposed aud agrood to. Thoso will appoar in tho Anal roporfc. jfef OAoaiiT. — Louis Borlinor, tho German gbntloman roforrcd to in a paragraph which wo pnbllßhod a fow days ago, as having evaded capture at tho Cass, has boon brought to town, and Is now lodged In Lyttelton gaol for debt. Berliner wan arrestod at tho suit of Tivontymau and Cousin, and whon brought baok tho Slipriil! at onco reloaded htm on tho ground that ho was out of tho provlnco whon captured,- Ho was al liberty only a fow hourS whon ho was pounced upon for another dobt. Itis said that ho threatens to bring nn action against Twontyman and Cousin for illegal arrost, Tkadi. .Proti.otk.Ni— A meeting of tradosmon in the city was hold yosterday, at White's hotol, for thu purpoßO of discussing a cortaln olauso in tho Kosldont Magistrates Act passed last Houston. Tho olauso provontn Imprisonment for debts bolow £\Q, It was tho unanimous opinion of tho meeting that tho olauso wao Injurious to the Interests of tradesmen. A committee, consisting of Messrs Shoppard, IC. B. Bishop, aud A. Duncan, wan appointed to draw up a petition to tho General Assembly, praying for tho ropoal or amendment of the clause It was also decided to ask tho co-operation of tradonmon In Duuedin In tho movomont. Tho formation of a Trado Protection Society was also mooted, and Mr Jameson undertook to prepare a sohomo. A voio of thanks to tho chairman (MrShcppard), terminated tho proceedings. Thki*t.— Early this morning, tho till In tho front 011100 of our contemporary tho Prem was brokon opon and a small amount of monoy and sundry lottor*. abstracted, It appears that tho machinist omployod on tho oatabllshn.ont wont to work, and passod through tho front door, which ho left ajar, into tho buck promises at nn early hour, Somo timo af tor, ono of tho ollico hands having occasion to opon tho till, whioh was locked, found that tho bottom had bcon ahattcrod, and somo sllvor, togothor with a numhor of lottoro for Mr Draper, of tho Chatham Islands, oarrlcd away. Tho thief had evidently ontorcd tho ollico after tlio maohlnlHt, tho front door bolng all right whon first unlocked, and omashod tho wood with aorno hoavy instrument— sovoral of which woro lying at hand. Tho loss of tho monoy Is not of muoh importanoo, but tho lottors for Mr Drapor aro from England, and woro to havo boon forwarded to hint by tho next mall Although probably. UHOlefl. to a stranger tho lottors aro, no doubt, of importanco to Mr Drapor himsolf. Tho thlof, no doubt, took thorn in tho hopo that thoy might contain money, as a tologram in an untouched onvelopo was left behind a. worthless, Tho lottors and monoy comprised tho solo conton is of tho drawor. Tiiio Caiiandinih at Kaiapoi. — Tlioho talented artistes gave ono of thoir oxocllont concerto at tho Kaiapoi Institute last ovoning, Wo aro sorry to say there wan a very poor houflo. This may bo attributed almost entirely to the fearful stato of tho roads in tho neighbonrhood of tho town, Tho concert opened with one of KUckonM four part songs, " The Happy Hunter." Ml«« Fanulo then Hang " My mother bids mo bind my hair," and later in tho ovoning, "Tho Lady of tho Lea," both of which woro loudly npplaudod. Mr Shorwln »ang "Tho Bolls," byJklfo, nnd » Lot me like a Soldier fall," from Marit-ma, In excellent fltyle. Miss Hasina sang " Ssvect bpirit," by Wallace and " I cannot mind my wiicol mother," fairly carrying nwny the J audience, An oncoro was demanded, and, considering the thin attendance, most liberally responded to, with a brilliant Italian air, Tho nnme was tho case with the duets botweeu tho young ladlos. " Trust hor not," by Balfo, and tho flnulo duct, *' O'or tho Hill, o'er tho Dale, Tho audience posltlvoly declined to go till an oncoro was granted, Madame Civrandlnl sang " Como music with thy softost tones," and " Tho Harp that onco through 'Para's Ilalls," also, a buffo duct with Mr Shorwln, and a selection from Trovatoro —all of which were rendered in an artistic manner, To-night tho company will appear at 'Lolthflold, and ou Saturday at l.augiora, at both of which plaoos, wo hopo, thoro will bo a good attendance

Papkr Boats.— Paper has been put to all Horts of good and bad v .cd, to the advantage or dotrlment of mankind} but the latest and most useful development of the medium of thought is its adaptability to tho boat-building purposes. It makes a craft for racing, excruitte, and pleasure-boats unsurpassable in strength, solidity, and beauty, it offers a smooth and polished surface to tho water unattainable by the old process ot varnished and snnd'pnpcrod bottoms. Thoy aro unusually dry, and unlto tho least weight with the maximum strength. Single shells arc now constructed weighing completely rigged, twcnty-llvo to thirty-eight pounds. They aro durable to an extreme Mr Waters Is the Inventor, and In the perfection of his Idoas hus been materially assisted by Walter Rrown, who is a sciontifio bontbutldor as well as an accomplished oarsman. Gr.A.M Houbbs,— You sco a man who is always In a state of activity, and who feems mUerablo If for ono moment he Im. nothing (o do. You immediately pronounce him a pattern of industry j but you aro wrong. Break hii glass houso, nnd you will sco beneath this flattering outside a mind so torpid, that neither the desire of fame or glory, nor oven wealth, can rouse It to action, Wo havo no sympathy with those restless beings, nor aro thoy ovor happy • for though it bo truo as SbnkospcaTO says, that there is n tide In tho iviMrs of men which, taken at tho flood, leads on to fortune •, yet, considering (ho shortness of life, wa aro not euro whether tbo wisest courso U not to lay-to at times in somo qnlot nook, nnd enjoy tho presont snn> shine. When a rising curront of wind be propitious, wo can sally out if wo aro tired of our snug haven, and, though wo run the risk of not reaching our goal, wo have at least enjoyed somo moments of happiness ; whereas tho constant rovor is over looking for the haven of rest, and though ho passes a hundred oliolco spots on his courso, he goes on ever hoping to find something better, nnd dies with his restless wishes unsatisfied. As to thoso mon who " havo got so muoh on hund that thoy havo got not a minute to spare," wo confess that wo aro rathor scop* tlcal of their untiring industry, You need not break their glass houses, for the panes aro so thin that you can see tho interior. You may probably porcolvo a largo canvas on an easel, or n library tnblo covered with shoots of manuscript • and, if you poor further, you will hco the inmate playing at pool or at whl .t with somo follow hardworkers. Heaven forbid that wo should deprlvo him of his nmusomont, which, within proper limits will keep tho brain in order. Wo know that at times our friend. docs work hard, and well too • but ho acts on Impulse, whilo your real hardworkor is moro methodical, nnd though tho latter docs not at times pursue his occupation uninterruptedly for sovornl days and nights, yot ho ultimately turns out tho greatest amount of work, Oystkiw at thk Pyramids.— l always supposed tho Sphinx to be made of one solid block of granite, but I was griovously m1... takon. It is simply shaped out from a mass of rock in situ, nnd two or thrco formations, speaking geologically, go to mako up its substauco. Ido not protend to any groat knowledgo of goology, but I hollo vo 1 am correct In stating that its base, or body part, is num. mulitio I Inn fit ono, nnd its neck and head a rough kind of oystor-bed, What will my good friend Sam Buckland say whon he hears that tho great Sphinx Is in part mado up of fossil oysters ? And, furthermore, what will ho think, I wondor, whon ho peruses what I nm now about to writo for his especial delectation ? But I must begin my story at tho beginning, I wandered away from my companions in company with two Arabs, in order to And such beetles and reptiles as might bo hidden underneath tho stones, scattered about upon tho sandy plain intervening betwixt tho pyramids and ono of the linmom-o causeways made for rolling up the building matorlals when the pyramids were built. Overlooking this hugo causeway la a kind of oliff of rock from which workmen aro at this timo busily quarrying out stones for building purposes. Stono after stone was turned ovor by my Arabs, and under most of them I gleaned a rich harvest of b.otlofl, &c. I found •* Lord Scaraboug at homo," and at onco pounced upon him as my lawful prize. In turning ovor tho stones I canto unexpectedly upon ono that I fancied was mado up In great measure of fossil oystcr-sholl-i ■ but being quite unprepared for such a discovery, and nover for a moment dreaming that I should lind foflsiboystern scattered round tho pyramids of Egypt, I really doubted the evldcnco of my own senses'. I thought to myself, If Igo and say to my friend, " Uauorman, I have found oysters in tho desert," nnd after all tho shell., should turn out to bo thoso of somo other mollusk, nnd not oysters at all, I shall for for ever after bo laughed at, and— may I say it, Mr Editor, «« chaffed." I resorted to a slight, but I maintain, perfectly permissible deception. I, ho to speak, docoyod my geological friend, under proton co of allowing him something worth looking nt, to tho stono containing tho oyster treasure, and then to my oxtremo delight he said, "Why, that stono is full ot oysters 1 " or words to that effect, I could hnvu danced round tho stone from shocr joy, but I did not, nnd instead we climbed up the face of the cliff to And out from whence tho stono upon the plain had fallon, It was easily found t overlying tho nummulito limostono is v vsst oyster-bed, nnd In it I found oysters of nil nges and sizes, from tho tiny spat, I should say not a your old, to the full-grown mollusk, which moasurcfl full five inches from tho hinge to tho edgo or lip of tho shell. The little oystors wore stioking to stonoa, to older oysters, and often in great clumps or bunohes to on* another,, If we could only propagato oystors now as oystors evidently multiplied and spatted in tho Miocene Sen. in whioh sea theso which aro now fossils at tho pyramids lived and flourished in prc-hlstorlo times, natives would soon come down in prico, and we should bo able to purchase a dozen for the prico wo now havo to pay for a single oyater.

LiTTj.K Hiver Road Board.— A meeting of tho abovo board was held on Monday, tho 15th Inst., nt tho Beach Arms, Lake Ellesmoro Tho minutes of tho previous meeting wore read and confirmed. It was resolved that a rate of 9d in the pound be struck for tho year ending 18 .8.11.1.9. A letter was read from the Provincial Secretary, advising that the sum of ,£2OO has been placed to tho credit of the hoard, to bo spent on main roads, as por plan proposed. After a grott deal ot discussion. It waa resolved that MrT. H. Parkinson wait upon the Provincial Secretary to obtain n proper explanation of the loiter, The terms of the letter appeared to bo greatly at variance with the ideas of the board. , Ji^A Present.— .lt has often boon remarked, and with somo truth, that n province does not care for nny of its neighbours, so long as It rids Itself of troublesome offenders ; and Canterbury lias not Ixjen behindhand in raising its voico against -neb a system. But here is n 01180 in point, in which the authorities resort to tho snmo objectionable practice. •Somo time ago, a certain female arrived at Lyttelton from England, at tho oxpense of tho Government. She was not long in the colony before sho betrayed her true character; nnd, since a short time after her arrival, she has spent tho greator portion of her existence |lv Chtlstcluirjl. jjnol, on charges of drunken- ; ness and dbac<mlty. Sh*. Ins g- \lnsd for herself tho unenviable appellation of "an old offender," nnd his Worship has become tired •f tho frequency ot her appearance before him, Tho cost of keeping her in prison almost constantly amounts to something per year, and the Government hai considered it expedient to get rid of her, and thereby economise, by paying her passago to a province In tho North Island, We havo purposely refrained from mentioning this individual's name, as we hope, with the authorities, that the change of scene may have some effect In restoring hor to tho proper paths of life. No ■_ Company C. It. V.— The ordinary monthly inspection of tho Itangiora Volunteers was made by Captain and Adjutant Rookei yesterday, in the paddock adjoining th. drill-shed. The members assembled at 12 o'clock, under command of fiicut. Dudley, to tho number of twenty-five, nnd the othor o'llcers present were Ensign Mcrton and Dr Tripe. Tho examination of tho arms and accoutrements was perfectly satisfactory, and tbo manual and platoon exercises, followed hy sundry company movements, and skirmishing with blank cartridge, a'though scarcely so perfect aa might hare been desired, were more than creditable, considering tho almost total absence of a Bloff drill instructor during the post few mouths. On conclusion of tho drill, Captain Rookes expressed his gratification nt finding such an ..•.optionally strong muster, nnd regretted that they did not make as good an appearance at the inspection held by Col. Haultaln, as it would havo given him a much more favourable opinion of tho corps. He strongly urged upon tho members tho necessity of rcgulary attending the weekly parades, and he thought it very probable, if they made proper application, that a drill instructor would be again nilowed them. It may be remarked that tho members of this company are determined to maintain its existence amongst tho corps of the province if by any meana possible, and it would be greatly to be regretted if the Defence Office should see any necessity for erasing them from the regimental roll. Tho spirit of emulntivo energy which tho men have shown under the many difficulties that have beset their path deserves somo littlo concession on the part of the Government j and as it is more than probable that n resident of influence in the district will accept tho command on the retirement of the present captain, tho company will bo enabled to comply with every requirement of tho Volunteer Act.