Local and General.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 112, 22 September 1868, Page 2

Local and General.

Magisterial. — There were no police cases set down for hearing at the v liristchurch Magistrate's Court this morning. y^CiiE Trout Ova. — The ova received last week from Tasmania are progressing in a most satisfactory manner. Very few of the eggs hare gone bad since our last notice, and on Monday hatching commenced. The curator is yet confident of his first calculation as to the number likely to be brought to life being correct. The live perch received at the same time as the ova have been turned out, and every precaution taken to prevent them getting mixed with the trout. ome of the perch, and a few of the tench bred in the gardens, will be removed to the neighbourhood of Lake Coleridge in a few days. vJ^Pavalry Cup. — The monthly competition for this cup took place at Hillsborough yestcrday^The conditions are, that it shall be won twicTTbefore becoming private property. ()u the two previous occasions it was carried of? by Cornet Slee and Sergeant Coombes, but neither of these succeeded in heading the list yesterday, and it still therefore remains in abeyance. The weather was in every respect favourable, but good shooting did not result. The conditions were five shots each at 200, 300, and 400 yards, with Hythe position and targets, and^the following are the scores made : — Cornet Sice, 22 ; Sergeant

Coombes, 30 ;. Baudmaster Northcote, 29 ; Trooper Judge, 30 ; Irooper Prccce, 27 ; and Bandsman Hammersley, 1 3. The tie between Coombes and Judge was won by the latter, and he will hold the cup until next month^i Ashley Bank. — A public tea meeting will be held in the Ashley Bank schoolroom on Friday, 25th inst., to afford the inhabitants i an opportunity of expressing their esteem of the liev. Mr Fendall, who for the last twelve months has had the spiritual charge of the district, and also to express their regret at his removal. Several clergymen of the principal denominations are invited. Hkathcote t-OAD Board — An ordinary fortnightly meeting was held at the Board Office, Ferry Road, yesterday. Present ; — Messrs. Fisher, Kennaway, and Garland. The minutes of last meeting were read and confirmed, after which the following correspondence was read : — Letter from Mr F. Wakefield, C.E., referring to the overflow of the river Courtenay, and suggesting a plau for utilizing it in improving the navigation at Sumner. With the view of detailing this more fully, he requested that a section and plan of the canal reserves, from the estuary to the river Avon, near Stanmore ! Bridge, and thence in as direct a line as can be I made to the river Courtenay, near Templer's — where he assumes the overflow to proceed from — should be furnished him, when he will return full particulars of his scheme. Letter from the Secretary to the Christchurch Gas Company, calling attention to the imperfect drainage near their works, and enclosing copy of a letter on the same subject sent to the Christchurch Borough Council. Letter from the clerk to the Christchurch Borough Council intimating the receipt of one from the Gas Company, and stating that as the drain from the spot complained of passed through a portion of the Borough, a committee had been appointed to confer with one from the Board Should they deem it advisable to appoint one. Memorial from residents in the valley relative to the Hills road. Letter from Mr Moule stating that Dr Ilaast was willing to defray the expense of making a road from Armagh St East to Stanmore road, and requesting that the Board should depute some one to see that gentleman on the subject. The correspondence was considered seriatim. The Surveyor was directed to acknowledge that from Mr Wakefield, and afford all the information that lie possibly could from existing surveys. The letters from the Borough Council and Gas Company, were directed to be acknowledged, and Mr Kennaway was appointed to confer with the sub-committee appointed by the former respecting the drainage referred to. The Surveyor Avas instructed to report upon the condition of the Hills road ; and, also to see Mr Moule on the matter referred to in his letter informing him that, if Dr Haast defrays the cost, the Board will superintend the formation of the road. The hurveyor reported upon the various works in progress in the district, after which several accounts were passed, and the Board adjourned till Monday the sth of October. Agricultural and Pastoral Association. - A meeting of the committee was held at Messrs Wilson and Alport's rooms, at 2.15 p.m. yesterday. Present — Messrs George Gould (in the chair) A. Duncan, Washbourn, E. B. Bishop, (lion, secretary), Wilson and Fereday. The Secretary reported that he had written to the Secretary of the Acclimatisation Society, enclosing the resolution passed at a former meeting relative to the desirability of importing insectivorous birds, such as rooks and starlings. The chairman stated that the committee appointed at a former meeting had gone into the matter of prizes, and recommended various alterations — amongst others that three Merino rams should constitute a pen instead of five as heretofore, and that there should be no restrictions as to feeding. With respect to other sheep, the committee had allowed the catalogue to remain as before, with this exception, that they added another prize for the best ewe, so that parties having one good sheep only might be able to show it. This alteration applies to the whole of the longwoolcd classes. r Wilson inquired if it did not apply to Merinos as well. The chairman replied in the negative ; the eommit'ee, thought that Merino sheep were bred in so much larger quantities than others, and that therefore the sheep farmer would have such an amount of Merino ewes to select from, sis to render it inadvisable to permit competition for the prize to be offered for the best ewe. The committee's recommendation was that the prize should be open only to longwool.s. The committee had crossed out the Cheviot, Hampshire, and Shropshire Downs, and hud increased the number of fat wethers forming a pen from five to ten. As to cattle, the catalogue stood as before as far upas the 10th class. Hitherto, a prize was offered hero " for the best fat beast, male or female," and the committee -roconimended prizes to be offered for the best fat bullock and for the bes^t fat .cow. They crossed out the prize for the best barren 'mare or gelding, as they considered that a prize ought not to be offered for anything of the kind. The class "thoroughbred hordes " wont on as before, but the committee made the addition of a prize for the best gelding or filly foaled since 1867. C'n-aes 21, •J.i, and 24 were struck ou ; pigs ana poultry were the same as before ; iv the class, agricultural implements, an extra prize was recommended ; for. the best plough of !New Zealand make; the class , dairy produce, cured pork, &c, were the same as formerly. The entrance fee . for sheep, hitherto ten shilliiign, had been made, the same as that for cow* and horses — namely, five shillings. The committee also recommended prizes for the articles of > local manufacture which were stated in a previous issue. On' the motion of Mr Duncan, seconded by Mr Washbourn, the report of the committee was approved. " Mr Wilson stuted that at the last meeting of the Poultry Association, Mr Fereday and himself had been appointed a deputation to wait on the committee of the Agricultural and Pastoral Association, to request them to accept the

sum of £5, to be devoted to the extension and improvement of the show of poultry at the next exhibition. The Poultry Association desired to be permitted to offer a further sum of £2 2s for the best prize pen. The Poultry Association wished to make these donations in return for the liberality shewn by the Agricultural and Pastoral Association on the occasion of their first exhibition at the Town Hall, and in order to shew that the spirit of co-operation pervaded both societies. The meeting accepted the offer. Some discussion took place concerning the arrangements for the exhibition of poultry at the forthcoming show, and ultimately Messrs Wilson and Fereday expressed themselves as being satisfied with the recommend- i ations of the committee. The sum of £25 was passed to Mr Bishop, in order to defray whatever expenses he might necessarily iv- 1 cur in respect to clerical assistance. The meeting then appointed judges for the various classes. Af forwards a sub-committee, consisting of Messrs Graham, Mitchell, and Norman, was appointed to make the necessary arrangements in preparing the yards, pens, and ground for next show. It was decided that the secretary should write to/ Colonel Packe, drawing attention to the cir# cumstance of the proposed volunteer encampW ment taking place at the time of the sho\vj[ and requesting the re-consideration of the matter. JEolian Organ. — The Sydney Morning Herald says that an ingenious chief, named William, resiient at Nikualofa, in the Friendly Islands, has erected a curious openair instrument, made vocal by the winds alone, like the JG >lian harp. In front of his house, not far from the sea, he has s«-t up no less than 400 lung bamboos, nil standing on their end", and notched in various places, so ns to bear some resemblauce to orgxn pipes, or flutes. Besides this preparation for harmonious whistlings, of which the roaring of a cathedral organ csn give but a very fnint idea, each pipe or flute i.% provided with sonorous shells", by which the casual sounds produced by JE>lus are intcnsifle<l and varied to an unlimited ext nt. When the wind is high the effect of this instrument is terrific, almost chaotic ; but at times the sounds produced are considered to be not unpleasant, and are listened to by the great chief, William, with a serious joy which it is impossible not to uppreciate. It is considered to be the thing at Tonga to go and hear the Chief William's great organ. The I!amib Plant. — The Australasian of Sept. 5, has the following : — The ramie plant, to which we have more than once called attention in this journal, is exciting serious interest as a substitute for cotton. It will be remembered that it is indigenous in Java, where a cloth has long been woven from the fibre. Ten years ago it was introduced into Mexico, and iitsfc year, for the first time, in Louisiana. 'I he following are" its. advantages : — The fibre is as strong and as fine as that of flax or cotton ; the plant yields, in the tropics, four crops . a year, each crop of more pounds to the acre than a cotton <rrop ; it requires little labour after the ground is piepared, extending its roots and propagating itself almost indefiuit.ly ; it is not liable to] be (Jestroye'l br the caterpillar or t»i.si«>r :.g' i u-\ ciea commonly .katrtict-ve to cotton; fin illy, it fetches in Kuropc double the pr:i:e --f the best Sea Island cotton, and four time;; Mint 'if the Upland. The price now in Louisiana is sixty cents, but it is expe::tod tiint it will be ultimately much cheaper than the pn-sem staple. The ur.ienUfic journals vhich gi^'e us these particulars omit to *uy if the ramie is necessarily confined to tropical latitudes, or if its culture, like many other trojjicil products, is not likewise possible in a temperate climate. It seems that for superior t issues, such as lace fabrics, the material obtained from India has for some time been eecrerly used by a few mills in Prance and England. The Commissioner of Agriculture in Washington has also pronounced upon the valuable properties of the ramie, and we ar<? told tha' the manufacturers of Manchester and New York are calling in advance ior all that cm be raised in the Southern States, where this year it is extensively planted.