AUSTRALIAN NEWS.
iT EVENTS OF THE WEEK. I ;V v> [Special to Press Association.] ! ;. " " SYDNEY, Jan. 11. * A HEAT WAVE. « > A heat wave of groat intensity swept j across the southern portion of the con- ., tinent west to east during the week. Bad • f as the effects wore to those inured to a i ■warm climate, it must have been a revela- -'>. tton to less hardy strangers within our 1 gates. Monday is a day to be remembered. Tho atmosphere was like a blast from an j. open furnace, withering up grass and plants. Not content with being merely hot, the sufferings of the people were intensified by the presence in the aii' of '- - sinoko from bush fires. The highest temporature was recorded in 1863, when 1 . 106 9 was attained. On this day, however, tho heat was not so prolonged. While ■ " . 86 deg. was registered at nine in the morning, the thermometer showed 95 at that hour on Monday, the heat continuing. f '\ • all day. The very pavements burned the {' ' feet through the boots. Horses fell in the ' , streets sunstrnck. The heat luckily was a ■" dry one, there beinsf only about twentyfive parts of moisture in the air. In such places as foundries work was practically at a standstill. Kiandra, noted as being the coldest spot in the colony, had the . -wonderful reading of 81. A new extensive monsoonal change was reported from Carpentaria. Seven inches of rain fell at Port Darwin in twenty-four hours, but the » great expanse of scorched territory over ■which it must pass before reaching here vail probably extract all the moisture. SYRIAN HAWKEBS. The Syrian hawker nuisance has reached so acnte a stage that several magistrates ■' refuse a renewal of license. On the other hand, some magistrates are inclined to grant licenses where nothing is known ' against the applicant. In order to attain uniformity, it has been found advisable to call the full Bench together .to deal with ■ applications: This will be done next » -week, whe^n some hundred Syrians will try ' to get tickets. . THE SHERIDAN CASE. Sheridan, convicted of murder,, met his ' fate with great fortitude. He had a sad and painful parting with his wife on the " previous evening. Mrs Sheridan, after the J ' farewell words were uttered, completely *, broke down, and was so overcome with ft grief that it was necessary for an official to ** assist her from the cell to the gate. She V wept piteously, and a little three-year-old ,k caild trotting by her side, could " be heard '" between her sobs murmuring, in heart--3g ( rending tones, "If s cruel, cruel." The £' v body was handed to friends for interment P 1 ', outside the . gaol. The funeral to Hfi 1 3 -W,averley cemetery was attended jby a Wm l'< v^*°l warder, Sheridan's wife and daughter ml* 'aad an intimate friend. ||£ „/ . 'PERSONAL: • |M rt Mr E. T. Gillon has booked to return by X""'" »the Waihora next week. Mr M'Gowan, ||. - Income-tax Commissioner, sails by the jjf; ■' Wakatipu on Jan. 17. &y trade' with japan. |^U Fresh from a visit extending over several sp» months to the land of the Mikado, 'Mr jjfSS ' Marks, Japanese Consul in Australia, res»-' - turns with a glowmg account of the corns' ■* ' iliercial advancement of Japan and full of %h "sanguine expectations as to the 'develop--■j.. ' ment of trade between Australia and / Japan. The war being, over,. Japan s,- has resumed her industrial' march with K renewed vigour. Mr Marks. is ..confident. *jst\ * that before long her influence will be felt %* to some purpose in the. markets of the, I:' 1 ivorld. Japan is rapidly becoming an $ important manufacturing Power, and is f determined to push to the front. She is % fully alive to the advantages of reciprocal £ relations with Australia and the big market '" the island continent offers, the New South <. "Wales /declaration for freetrade being a p special incentive. At the request of the a Japanese Minister of Commerce, Mr Marks s, formulated a scheme for the development !* ' of trade between tho two countries, which ' ' was warmly received and strongly supported by all tho Chambers of Commerce. The scheme proposes that the Government should subsidise a mail steamer line to Australia, should start woollen mills ' throughout Japan and remove -5 per cent • dnty on Australian wool so as to encourage T its importation, offer facilities to- open ' branches. of the insurance companies of ' Australia, and offer other encouragements w to woollen and other trades in which f v - Australia is interested. He is confident fe of seeing a large trade grow tip at an early W^ date. Sydney, as it is a' free port, will ?iT probably be tho terminus of the mail line aiV - and the chief centre of business. \ ' MELBOURNE, Jan. 11. !• JINGOISM IN MELBOURNE. r y The jingb element seems to exist here to a gi cater measure thnn in. the other colojdies, judging from the fact that- Melbourne / ( is the only place where any feeling was - manifested over the events transpiring, in Europe. The Australian Natives' Associam tion gave vent to its' joy in a way that p must be comforting to Lord- Salisbury. .When the news of Lord • Salisbury's attiv tudo reached a gathering of. the Natives' Association, jfche -latter; cheered England. When feelings are aroused like this it is "* always considered the correct thing "to get / ""*£ movement on. foot, and the movement in v the air at present is to help England 'by *— finding out how many volunteers can- be gatheredinthecaßeqf war. ThelocalTominy Allans is said to be active. Tie torpedo flotilla proceeded to Swan Island yesterday, and will remain three weeks for the purpose of drilling the men in running torpedoes. The railway employes project to form an engineer and transport corps, which could manage the railways in the event of the military taking control. Lord :•• Brassey, interviewed at Launceston, expressed the opinion that there was no likeliliood. of 1 concerted action by the Powers against England. France certainly would iiot join , "iv ith England ' unless the latter was prei pared to assist Franco in: the recovery of Alsace and Lorraine. The, Admiralty's. ) r action would have the effect of raising the 1' prestige of England. Lord Brassey con- ' sideredthat the German Emperor's action r -wastheresultof impulsiveness. Referring to the Boers, General Hollect Smith said that lie v ' never saw anyone in the world shoot like the Boers. At the battle of. Laing's Neck 1 ixe saw the Fifty-eighth Regiment go up to their doom. ' He. commanded the force •which covered tlie retreat. ' The troops •went up in close column, which was simply suicidal. The Boers lay on a terraced hill, awaited their coming, and ;then stood- up cool as cucumbers and potted the unf ortuaiate British like rabbits'. Every shot told, and they were self -possessed" 'and : quiet as if. nothing out of the ordinary was happening, while the British fire"d wildly from the hip. The Boers were most humane
people, but cared for nothing except their wives, families, farm, cattle and Bible. As to the possibility of war between? England and Germany, the Commandant expressed the opinion that Germany would do well to let well alone. If she did go to war all that he could say was that it would be a bad thing for Germany. She was just the one Power that England could tackle successfully. If it resolved itself into a question of naval warfare, there was no question as to who would be victor. The result would be that Germany would lose the few colonies she now possesses. Another question which must not be lost sight of was that France would welcome such an opportunity to spring at the throat of Germany in the effort to wrest back Alsacs and Lorraine. He thought that the trouble would be settled peaceably, but it was impossible to say wha;. a few hours might bring forth, and it would be well for tho colonies to be prepared for war. THE BABBIT PEST. In Omeo and the surrounding districts the rabbits have been driven out of pastoral lands by the drought, and are invading the agricultural areas and the townships in, myriads. ■ Though manythousands have been slaughtered, there is no perceptible diminution of the stream. Jan. 15 is fixed for a holocaust, when tho farmers will take combined action to suppress the pest. WHEAT CULTIVATION ON SHARES. The success which has attendedthe subdivision of large h oldings for wheat cultivation on shares, both in the mallee districts of Viotoria and the Murray areas in New South Wales, is generally admitted. A firm recently made an agreement with the farmers in the Goulbum Valley for the cultivation of thousands of acres for three years at a rental of a bag of wheat per acre, the land to be under crop in the coming season. The advantage of the system to the grower is that he does not require to provide more capital than will enable him to plough, sow and reap, the rent being assured. There is reason to believe that other large holdings in the valley will shortly be similarly divided. SPORTING. The Duchess of Portland having won the Robinson Crusoe— Pet Girl filly in the St Albans lottery, the filly wijl be shipped 'to England at the end of the month. • ADELAIDE, Jan. 11. TELEGRAPH RETURNS. The annual returns of the Telegraph Department show the total number of cables sent by all the colonies last year to be 61,000. The number received was 58,Qp0. The value' of those forwarded was ,£454,000. ■/■■'■ AUSTRALIAN PRODUCE. Mr M'Eachern, of M'lllwraith, M'Eachern and Company, has returned from a' visit to England, where he made extensive inquiries into the Australian produce trade. Interviewed, he said that he did not approve of Government inspectors or' dep'fits for 'Australian proditce on the other side of the world, as nien whb went Home from Australia had no knowledge whatever of English modes of business. The result was ' that their labours upset the trade a good deal more than they did good. Government experts were not necessary, as each trade had its own particular expert, who reported to ; shippers the exact condition in which consignments arrived. , The proper place to test produce was at this end. It would be a good many years before special steamers for the live •cattle, trade were built. Shipowners, did not think it would pay to build, but that those who had done well out of the Eiver Plate trade thought of trying it. A much better feeling existed in England with regard to sound colonial investments, and there would be very little difficulty if good dividend-paying companies were to open' registers in England, by which shares could be transferred, of their finding . a ready sale of shares at advanced prices.
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Bibliographic details
Star (Christchurch), Issue 5461, 13 January 1896, Page 4
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1,792AUSTRALIAN NEWS. Star (Christchurch), Issue 5461, 13 January 1896, Page 4
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