Local and General.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 198, 31 December 1868, Page 2

Local and General.

Agricultural and Pastoral Association.—A meeting of the committee will be •held on Monday, Jan. 4, at 2.15 p.m., in WiK son's Buildings, High street. __ The Trout.— The public will be glad to ""learn that, according to a letter received by Messrs Sheppard and Co. from Mr Oakden, - the latter has s.uccessf ully transported ten , brace of trout to Lake Coleridge. Mr Oakden, -.writing on Dec. 29, says : — " I successfully turned out the ten brace of trout at 2 p.m. last Thursday. From the lively manner in which they darted into the pond, I don't think they" felt the removal." We hope to •""bear further good accounts from Mr Oakdeu. Kaiapoi Borough Council. — A special meeting was held yesterday, to consider what proceedings should be adopted with reference to the visit of Sir G. Bowen. It was decided that a committee should draw up an address und forward it to the Superintendent. The bridge question was then discussed, and it was resolved that a deputation should wait upon ths Provincial Government with the following resolution : — " That his Honor the Superintendent be . requested to delegate his' powers under the Kaiapoi Bridge Ordinance, 1368, to the Kaiapoi Borough Council." Rakaia. — This river again suddenly rose on Saturday last,. The five-horse ferry wagon, in crossing from the south side with a -load of wool, wheri about midway, was obliged to return ; and in recrossing a stream which a few minutes before had ' been quite low, the strength of the current carried the wagon and horses down the river. Through the intrepidity of William Compton, the principal ferryman, and others, the driver and horses were with great exertions saved, also the wool, but the wagon was smashed. On the Thursday previous, the large telegraph pole on the south side was washed down. "" . Alarm of Fire in Lyttelt s. — This day, at oue p.m., the inhabitants were startled by the ringing- of the fire-bell. The Hook and Ladder Brigade assembled in large numbers, and got out the engine, which, we are glad to say, was not required, as the fire, which •was in Exeter street, was soon extinguished. -It appears that the occupant of a cottage, Mrs Rutledge, was cooking her dinner when she discovered that the fire by some means had got in between the skirting-board and the fire-place. .Assistance was at hand, the boarding was pulled down, and the fire was fortunately subdued without any great damage. Great praise is due to the Hook and Ladder Company for their prompt at- - tendance. A Cantkiuiury Volunteer Abroad. — The following extract from The Times will be read with interest by many persons in Canterbury. The Mr Duncan therein mentioned is Mr AnJrew Duncan, the son of one of the first settlers in Canterbury. Mr Duncan, who is now prosecuting his studies at Cambridge, was for some years a private in No. 1 Company, Canter: ury lUfle Volunteers : — " The Volunteers and the Belgian Tir National. — The Directors of the Belgian Tir National have just issued their report upon the late competition?, and the list of prize winuers shews that the English Volunteers who competed were able to obtaiu a good position in the "All Comers' " contests, especially in the long range competitions. The competition of first importance was that of the ciblefixe at the long range, in which each competitor was allowed only two " series " of five shots, and the shooting had to be with armes dc guerre, the distinguishing feature of such arms being that they must be capable of use against an enemy. The first prize i 3 given by His Majesty the King, and this was won by Mr Duncan, of Cambridge, with 23 points — namely, three cartons and two bull's-eyes. The prize is a dozen " couverts " of silver, 24 pieces of plate, value of about £18 or £20, and the entrance fpp-fr>r the two chances, of winning this was

Pcblic Ball. — "We understand that a public ball will take place at the Town Hall on Friday, Jan. 15th, the day after the races, in honour of the visit of the Governor. The ball will be under the patronage of the members of the Jockey Club. The Races. — The railway fares from Christchurch to the Kacecourse Station on the race days, will be : — For return tickets, first class, 2s 6d ; second class, Is 6d ; third class, Is. Ordinary fares from all other stations. These unusually low fares ought to give the railway plenty of business. Oxford Rural Sports. — Preliminary measures for holding the annual rural sports on New Year's Day are being made, and, in addition to the usual diversity of amusements, there will be either a trotting or hurdle race and tilting at the riug. A ball will be held in the evening as a suitable wind up to the day's recreation. The Visit of His Excellenct the Governor. — A special meeting of the City Council was held yesterday morning, when the committee submitted a report on the j arrangement of the reception procession and the order to be adopted to and from the! Railway Station. They also brought up a a draft -copy of an address, and both were approved. It was also decided to give a; dejeuner in the Town Hall on the morning of his Excellency's arrival. A list of gentlemen to be invited by the Council was then drawn up and approved, after which the meeting terminated. L ytt elton Reg atta. — Arrangementshave been made with tbr Heathcote Regatta committee to have the Champion Scullers' race pulled again in conjunction with the Scullers' race at Lyttelton •, all boats must be I entered as for the Lyttelton Regatta. The time for such entry has been extended to 10 a.m. on the morning of the Ist January. The extra prize for the Heathcote Consolation race will be competed for on the same occasion, by the same boats and crews. This latter will come off before the Duck Hunt. The new railway carriages lately imported will be available for use on the Regatta-day. In this way, the crush and disappointment of last year will be avoided. The railway will be able to take, easily, any number of passengers that may present themselves. L The Five at Oxford. — The bush is stul on fire, and continues to spread. On Saturday afternoon, the flames ignited a gorse hedge skirting the garden of Mr H. Wilson, and rapidly communicating with the house, the whole premises were destroyed in a very brief space of time. Fortunately, all the property inside the buildings was saved, and the progress of the flames in that direction arrested. On Monday night, the wind was blowing so strong from the north-east that iv some places it literally blew the fire out, but in othprs, sparks were carried long distances, and alighting on dry moss or trees, created further flames. By this means, the conflagration was extended until it is now estimated to cover between 1700 and 1800 acres of ground, and it is impossible to say where or when it will end. The Bays, or more properly speaking Sutton Town is the part of Oxford most in danger at present, some of the houses being only just on the outskirts of the bush, and the fire within a (chain or two of them. Concert. — Last night an appeal was made to the public which we should have regretted to have seen less heartily responded to. There were not many empty seats in the Town Hall, but the character of the institution for which the concert had been arranged, deserved nothing less than a crowded house. Iv every respect it is entitled to the support of the public whenever called upon, and more especially when backed by such an exceptional programme as that submitted last night. Mr Bonnington being prominently connected with the first part of the programme ensured the success — musically speaking — of the concert. The j stringed band . under command of his baton afforded a treat to all lovers of music. " The Occasional overture was their opening piece, and later in the evening they contributed selections from Zanberflote, arrauged by Herr BUnz, and the '-* Mount Cook Waltzes " by Mr- C. Bonnington. It is unnecessary to say how correctly each composition was rendered, but we must express some surprise at the comparatively cool reception awarded them A good round of applause did mark the conclusion of each, but the high character of the music and brilliant performance, especially of the two latter, deserved an encore in preference to others of a more pretentious character. Following the overture, Miss Rowley sung •' The Pretty Mocking Bird " in her usual pleasing style, and its success was much enhanced by the flute obligato played by her brother. She was warmly applauded ; and Mr WoleSge was vociferously encored for the song " Mrs Jones' Evening Party." He gave it with much humour and a comic assumption of the female voice, to which he added ! sufficient gesticulation to make it effective. The vocal serenade " Stars of the Summer Night," by Mr C. Merton, Mr 11. I hompson, and Miss Oakes, was given in a style worthy of the music, which is the arrangement of Mr Bonnington. Mr Merton contributed " The Standard Bearer." He was applauded and narrowly escaped an encore. Mr Tankard's oboe solo was very well executed ; and " The Country Pair," by Mr C. Martiu, brought the first part to a close. His happy manner of treating it excited considerable merriment. The second and third parts of the entertainment were entirely appropriated to the Christy Minstrels, who, besides singing some negro melodies in good style, propounded the usual witticisms through the medium of Bones and Tambourine. They also sung "We are a Band of Mothers " in character, and gave a burlesque on the Anvil Chorus from " H Trovatore. In the former their make-up and mode of rendering was greeted with much laughter, but the Trovatore travesties are but barely passable in the hands of professionals.

f*B&RA.L Spohts— A very well arranged, attractive, and somewhat mysterious programme of an entertainment to take place in the Town Hall this evening, in aid of the fund for rural sports, will be found in our advertising columns. The public will no doubt be anxious to learn who the gentleman is thatfigures in this programme as " Japan No. — (Japanese Interpreter his - appearance in Christchurch)." We are sorry that wt cannot afford any information on this point. The promoters of the entertainment positively refuse to say more than this — that the gentleman is well known in Christchurch, that he will disclose some very wonderful traits in the Japanese character, and that if the public have any doubts on the matter, they can set them at rest by a simple ai*d cheap process. We presume this means that the secret will be found out by a visit to the Town Hall this evening, at the ridiculously low charge of one shilling.