Local and General Intelligence.

Tuapeka Times, Volume XVIII, Issue 1181, 19 September 1885, Page 2

Local and General Intelligence.

Mb G. A.. Sala delivered a lecture on " Russia " at Wellington on Tuesday night. An immense audience turned out to hear the talented journalist.

A YOUTH named Pinder, who is a pupilteacher at the Normal School, had one of hia arms fractured on Saturday in trying to jump over a fence at the school grounds.

The meeting of the Domain Board on Wednesday lapsed for want of a quorum, and was adjourned for a fortnight, pending the correction of a proclamation in the Government " Gazette," wrongfully declaring certain streets to be open which were legally closed years ago,

The last trip of the Tongariro, which reiiel arrived at the Heads on Tuesday, was the longest which she has yet made, owing to the breaking of one of her shaft-bearings six days after she left Plymouth. Stilljn spite of the accident, which was speedily patched ud temporarily, the made the run in less than 45 dayi.

The Wethfrstones school ' was examined— partly on Wedoesday and finished yesterday— by Mr Petrie. with the extremely satisfactory result that 87 per ceot of passes was gained, The Waitahuna Gaily School was examined on Tuesday, and Evans Flat on Thursday, but we have not Heard the results yet.

Thire were fourteen male and six female patients in the Hospital last 1 evening. Five patienta were admitted during the week and two discharged. James M 'Con nochie. who was admitted last weak from Horseshoe Bend with his skull fractured and his leg broken is in a very precarious condition, and is not likely to recover,

A body found in Auckland harbor recently has been identified as that of James Reid, an old soldier of the 65th Regiment.

The first drill of the Lawrence Volunteers is announced to take place in the Town Hall on WVdnesday evening, when Mr Harrop will en•ol new members. As an nrflsr for riflss cannot be forwarded to the Defence Minister until 'he minimum number (30) is enrolled, all mc- » nding members should come forward at once. A HAN was sentenced at Aahburton the other day to four months' ica prison meut, without, the option of h fine, for cruelty to a horse. A few examples of this sort will teach the brutes in human sh.ipe that the brutes under them are not specially provided for them to sport their evil passions upon. At the meeting of the Land Board on Wednesday, the Lnwience Borough Council applied .to purchase one rood of land near the stormchannel opposite block XLI., in the above township. Consideration deferred. — A license was issued to John Mucaulay for deferred-payment land, section 18, block XL, Waitahuna West. OUR Raea Junction correspondent writes :—: — We are having very stormy weather here just, now, which is keeping farming operations back a gooddeal. There is very little, if any, seed sown in this district yet. — Tenders have been called for the new school here, and it will be a great blessing when it is finished, as the present building is far too small. Referring to the terrible dynamite explosion at Skippers last week, the Wakatip " Mail " says that Trapp was shattered almost beyond recognition, and lived about two hours, but was completely bliud and slightly conscious. Nolan at first seemed unhurt except from the shock ; but on being examined his side was found to b* blown in, and he died three and a-half hours after the accident. Apropos of the recent revelations of the "Pall Mall Gazette," the "North British Dally Mail remarks that the metropolitan police authorities may well tnke a hint from their brethren at Wollington, New Zealand, who instruct officers en duly to take down the names and addresses of any youths or young girls observed about the streets at night-time uuder suspicious circumstances. On Tuesday, Bch inst., at Blue Spur, in the Wesleyan Sunday School, Mr W. H. Luke, Superintendent, presented Mrs Edwards, on the eve of her departure from the district, with a handsome writing desk as a token of recognition of the services which she had rendered the Sunday School during a loogfnumber of years. Mrs Edwardi feelingly replied, and thanked her co-workers for the handsome preseut which they had given her. We are iv receipt of a number of " Castner's Monthly and Rural Australian," an illustrated journal for the household, treating of agricultu'e, horticulture, and kindred subjects. The information which the magazine contains should be invaluable, treating as it does on almost every subject connected with agriculture, horticulture, and the household. The illustrations are very nicely got up, and give a clear view of the subjects they are meant to illustrate. At the meeting of tha Education Board on Thursday, the tender of Wm. Hay was accepted for % new school and residence at Manuka Creek, the|amount being £447 ; and that of Jas. Gardener for a new school at Raes Junction for £290. The appointment of Mr L. Pope, headmaster, Pukeuri ; Mr J. H, Patrick, Taieri Ferry ; Mr John Wilson, Warepa ; Miss Rebecca Gordon, first-assistant, Tap&nui ; Miss M, Loudoa, mistress, Waipori ; and Miss Selina M. Bennett, mißtress, Kaikorai, were confirmed. ANOTHER victim to the senseless system of cram, which passes muster in this Colony for education, died at Auckland recently. Caroline Stevens, after undergoing the severe mental strain of the late pupil-teacher examinations, took hrain fever and died. These cases are painfully frequent, and if the number permanently injured in bodily health and partially paralysed in mind could be estimated annually the results would appal even the most ardent advocates of the abortive system of State school education. Latest intelligence by cable states that England will support Germany in her pretensions to the Caroline Islands, as far as the commercial aspect of Ihe question is concerned. The British Government, h;>ve declined to fix a date for the evacuation of Egypt by the English force", but an Anglo-TuikUh commission will be appointed to fix a time when the evacuation may be possible. The British Government have recommended Spain to accept the decision of aa arbitrator in settlement of the dispute with Germany in reference to the Carolina Islands. The September number of " Once a Month " to hand has for its frontispiece a portrait of the Hon. Graham Berry, M.L.C., Chief Secretary of Victoria, Several serial tales are continued, and a large variety of readable articles appears in the number. " A tramp to Waterloo,' 1 " Wanderings iv the fern country," " Floral Lesends," and other similar articles afford food for fiveßide reading. On the whole thiß Australian magazine is well got up, and has now fairly made its way in the library and in the household. There was a very good meeting of the Parliamentary Union on Wednesday ni^ht, when the amended Land Bill was considered in Committee. As the occasion was the only one during the session in which the Union went into Committee the proceedings were the more interesting. An amendment to substitute the auction>BYßtem for the ballot-system in deferredpayment lands was rejected, and the bill passed with the clause intact. Next Wednesday the annual meeting of the Union will be held, when amendment of the rules and other matters will be considered. The London correspondent of the Dunediu "Star" says:— The will of the late Mr J. Tunoock Mnxkelvie has just been proved in London at something over £34,000. His J valuable art collection is left to found a museum at Auckland, Mr David Lnmond Murdoch, Mr Albin Martin, Mr John Logan Campbell, and Mr Thomas Russell being trustees under the will. With the balance accruing after the payment of certain legacies, &c, from the sale of his real estate in England and New Zealand, a site will be purchased and a bnilding erected. Two sums are eot apart to pay a custodian &nd for insurance, and the remainder of the money rtalised is to be spent on works of art for the museum.

The disgusting language which graces the Vocabulary of fcha "great unwashed" is too coarse and horrible for refined ears, and when the Police Offences Act made the use of obscene language punishable by imprisonment; without the option of a fine, a step in the right direction to done vile mouths in public places was taken, Mr Stratford, R.M, at Masterton, the other day sentenced x man to] seven days' imprisonment for making use of obscene language while in a state of drunkenness. The culprit made the plea, of drunkenness in excuse, but Mr Stratford remarked that when a man was drunk the filth that was in htm became apparent, still that was no reason why respectable people in the street were to have their ears shocked.

A story is told to the effect that the angel Gabriel once conducted Adam back to the earth to have a peep at the scene of his former sphere of existence ; but the parent of the human race saw so much change that he begged to be taken back. At length, however, Portugal was reached, when the First Man exclaimed, " Let me down here ; it is the same as when I left it." But notwithstanding this delicate allusion to the fixed conservatism of its people, Portugal has set the other and more progressive countries an example which they are not likely to follow for long enough yet, by abolishing its hereditary peers, on the ground that in a free country the duty of making the laws must depend directly' or indirectly on the people's will, and cannot be a matter of hereditary descent.

A correspondent, of the " Daily Times," writing from Queefastown, Buys:— The In« vincible Company have treated the 11£ tons of pyrites, yielding 108oz lOdwt retorted gold. Their six additional berdans when erected are expected to take out of the tailings which hitherto were loßt, about 30oz retorted gold per week, in addition to the gold obtained by the company's ordinary process. The company, as a trial, let 11$ tons of tailings go through their one berdan, and got lSdwts retorted gold out of them. The company is driving in the machine site tunnel as well as in the lower lease prospecting tunnel, and in both the mine manager sees indications of being near the reef. The stone crushed at present is poor, but the mine manager reports that he expects soon again to come on the better stone which he knows is under him. He does not helieve in picking the stone, but crushes as it comes from the reef. The six additional berdans will be in working order at the latest by 31st October. Messrs Kincaid, M'Queen and Co, are the contractors.

While passing Committee of Supply the Public Works estimates were reduced fully £12,000 below the half-million reduction agreed to on Captain Russell's motion. The sum of £13,000 was voted for hospitals and charitable insr,Hut,ioos, £200,000 for harbor defences, and '£€8,230 for school buildings.

The Bnlclutha Borough Council and tha Clutha Parliamentary Uniou have affirmed resolutions endorsing Admiral Scott's views on defence, and the resolutions carried at the close of the nddreßß in Dunedin. If the various Parliamentary Unions of th° Colony would adopt similar practices while Parliament is in session they might in some measure influence current legislation.

At the conclusion of the ordinary business of the Wai-den's Court ac Arrowtown the other day, Warden Hickson ssid that he would entertain no more applications for acre claims at Mount Griff el, and that all new comers would be restricted to claims 100 ft square. He exprassed the opinion that the Mines Department might make arrangements with the Warden to visit the field and report officially upon it, and also arrange for the holding of a monthly Court at Pembroke.

In this «t»e of wooden nutmegs and shoe-peg oats, it is not easy to distinguish the genuine article from Us counterfeit, and it may not be generally known that the sago of commerce is almost wholly made of potato starch, shaped into small balls and then gelatinised by passing over them hot air saturated with steam. So admirable is the counterfeit that there is scarcely any apparent difference between the article obtained from the sago palm and the potato-starch imitation.

The weather still continues to be very boisterous and unseasonable, a succession of wind, rain, and snow on the heights completely stopping all farm work. Uoless a change for the better takes place soon many of the farmers will be late with their spring sowing. Although it is supposed to be spring, the weather of late has a peculiarly wintry flavor übout it. Whether the eclipse or Captain Edwin is at fault we know not ; but perhaps after the equinox is past the elements may settle down into a Btate of rest.

ATimaru telegram says :— " Some shepherds who were recently burniog tussocks on the edge of Lake Pukaki, in the Mackenzie country, state that about dusk in the evening they observed a large black object, which they at first took to be a boat keel upwards. On approaching it, however, it turned round and dashed into the water, making a great splash." West Coast explorers have long expressed the opinion that some strange animal inhabited the lakes of the unexplored wilds, and there may be some truth in the supposition after all.

Commenting on the wool market, the " Southland Times " has unearthed a new field for competition with these colonies. That journal says :— The market is weaker, large reserves of old stopk tending to aggravate the present depression, wbich is increasing. Supplies which are being received from Lapland and districts in South America threaten a permanent reduction of Australian merinos. The number of bales catalogued is one hundred and twenty thousand, aud the number withdrawn twentyone thousand.

A correspondent, writing from Auckland to tha " New Zealand Times " on the 9th inst., remarks :—" The 'Queen of the Pacific' is a very dirty queen just now. She does not seem to know even the rudiments of street-making. Mud covers the ground everywhere, and the smells of a thousand abominations saturate the mu^gy atmosphere of Queen-Btreefc. It is wondeiful how many are wanting partners with money. No other quality is ever thought of. Charity covers a multitude of sins, but money covers them all, and hangs over at the ends. 1 ' Referring to the pun— "A Milner safe: Lady Darham' 1 — which appeared in our columns some time ago, a correspondent writes that a. Miss Milner who loved another was in* duced by her frieada to consent to oa&ny Lotd Durham, bu6 that they had not been mitmed long before the lady lost her reason and had to be confined in a lunatic asylum. Lord Durham thereupon sued for a divorce, but without success. Scarcely a subject for mirth, we should imagine, but in extenuation we may explain that we did not perpetrate the sickly Dun. In Committee on the Local Bodies' Powers and Finances Bill, a clause repealing the Roads and Bridges Construction Act was carried, and the following clause inserted as a compromise -.—That there shall be paid to the council or board of each county, road district, or borough, with respect to rates collectable or collected, half the amounts to which they would be entitled under the plan of distribution described in the first schedule, and £50,000 of the aforesaid payment shall be paid by the Colonial Treasurer out of the public works fuud, the remaining amount required to be paid shall be paid out of the consolidated fund.

The French troubles in Tonquin have not all come to an end yet. General De Courcy, commanding the French forces in ToDquin, sent a despatch to his Government stating that inconsequence of- the attack on the citadel by Anamite Iroopa te has dethroned tha cei^aiog king aud placed Chan Dong on the throne in his stead. Three thousand troops have been despatched to Madagascar, and hostilities will be resumed against the Hovas. As the people of Madagascar are mostly Christian and civilised, their rights should be guaranteed by the Powers aud France compelled to leave them alone.

Referring to the u«e of phosphorus in tha deduction of rabbits in the forest country about Camperdown (Victoria), Mr Peter M'Arthur has iDtimated to his neighbors that he has met with great success during the winter months with phosphorised oats. Recently, in one paddock of 600 acres, 5000 dead rabbits were picked up. It is contended that much of this success is due to having the oats phosphorised on the ground and distributed about whilst the poisoned grain is fresh and apparently very tempting to the rabbits. By persevering in this course, Mr M'Arthur states that he has been enabled to check the rabbit plague to a great extent on his properties.

The odium, theologicum is always the bitterest odium that erring humanity can call down upon its devoted head; and in the name of religion persecution and acts of vengeance of the vilest nature have been perpetrated. The latest victim of religious intolerance is the Rev. Mr Bett, of Tapanui, who has been compelled to resign the charge in which he has for long years officiated as a faithful minister of the Gospel. A religious enthusiast, deeming that he bad received a new revelation from Heaven, set the district all agog with the ernngsliatic craze, and because a staid minister cannot fall .in with the vagaries of these sentimentalists, he must be hounded out of the pulpit. Talk about; nineteenth century enlightenment after, that!

A VERT large gathering of Maoris met at the base of Mt. Tongariro recently, some 1,200 Datives being present, representing all the principal tribes in the interior of the North Island, Both king and queen natives met on a common platform, the object of the meeting being to oement a common bond of union between all the Maoris. Resolutions were passed recognising the Maori king as head of the natives ; unity of the Maori race ; and maintenance of friendly relations with Europeans. It was also agreed to adopt the Native Land Court, and to support the temperance movement. The natives resolved to shut up the hotel at Tokano. and about 600 of them took the pledge. This meeting marks a decided step in the advance of civilization among the Maoris, and differs materially from the fanaticism engecdeied by Te Whiti. If the Maori conforms to constitutional practices, the interests of Maoris and Europeans will aoon beoome identical.

Bx the Tongariro letters were receired stating lhat at the last examinations at Edinburgh University Messrs F, W. Mackenzie, W. M'Lean, B. A., R. C. Strodp, and Westenra (the latter of Christcburch) gained the degree of Bachelor of Medicine, whilst the first-mentioned was successful in obtaining the appointment of house surgeon at the Edinburgh Royal Infirmary, Mr F. H. Jeff coat, B.A. (anatomy demonstrator under Profeisor Turner), heads the list in midwifery and was the prisje essayist in public health. Mr W. A, Fleming, of Baldutha, passed his second examination 5 and Mr W. Allen, of th« Taieri, passed in anatomy and physiology ; Mr Brodie in anatomy and pathology; Mr W. J. Cattan, 8.A., of Dunedin, and Mr L. Barnett, of Wellington, gained medals in. natural history and botany, respectirely j and Mr Somerville obtained two first-class certificates. The "Daily Times v has been informed that the Rev, A. B. Todd (son of the Rev, Mr Todd, of Oamaru) who has completed his stucHe.% gained considerable distinction, and returns to the Colony in November.

Rbsidbnts of Lawrence and Waitahuna will be pleased to learn that Mr J. O. Brown has succeeded in having £1000 for completion of the Lawrenoe drainage channel and £750 for the Waitahuna bridge placed npon the Supplementary Estimates, which were to be considered in Committee last night. He has also got the Government to promise to continue the subsidy to the Hospital as before.

We received information lat e last evening that the Wetherstones School Committee held a attesting to consider the appointment of a hlad master to their school. ' Four names were forwarded by the Board, and Mr C. W. Gr. Selby, of Lumsden, and formerly of Evans Flat, was recommended for the position. We congratulate the Committee oa their choice, for Mr Selby is in every way, a worthy and successful teacher.

Thb Melbourne "Age" of the 7th inst. states that a terrible explosion of 175 packages of dynamite, 1 case of detonators, «nd 70 packages of litbofracteur took place about three o'clock on Saturday morning on board the barque Rockhampton, at Kintberley, on the north coast of Queensland. The vessel was blown to atoms, and not a vestige of her timbers could be found when daylight brok9. According to a telegram from a correspondent at Normanton, the crew while discharging cargo on 3?ricl»y t>ee»m« o-vtAro ot the fact that there was a large quantity of powder on board, and consequently refused to unload the vessel, and abandoned hw. Tha captain, Gr. Killen, appears to have followed the same course. The cause of the explosion is not stated. The Rockhampton, which was a well-appointed barque of 417 tons register, was owned conjointly by Captain Killen and Mr Rennie, both of Melbourne. On the 20th July she left Sydney with 600 tons of miscellaneous cargo fully insured, and consigned to Burns, Philip, and Co. Captain Killen and Mr Rennie, the owners, will be heavy losers, for the vessel was uninsured. The cargo, however, was insared in the various offices for £4467.

T.HB DuniAin "Eraniag SfcarV London correspondent gives the following valuable information on the frozen meat trade : — I called at the office of the New Zealand Loan and Mercantile Company, and had an interview with Mr Paul, the manager. He informed me that the prices of frozen mutton are at present ranging very low— as low in come cases as 2s lOd per stone of 81b — a faot which is due (1) to the large quantity of mutton in the market, and (2) to the comparatively small demand in tbis hot season, when people, as a rule, eat less meat, and many ordinary customers go away for a holiday. The next quarter," however, he expects te be a good one ; it is always good, and it called "the butcher's quarter." He is still certain of the ultimate success of the trade, especially with the gradual adoption, as opportunity arises, of the new "Chamber" freezing apparatus, and with the more careful consignment (or " focussing," as Mr Paul ■aid) of the supplies to fewer hands, so that ■upply in the market might work more evenly with demand. Our produce, he said, is also low. It is worth attention from buttermakers that " Home taste" is more and more inclined to butter with little or no salt.