LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume XXXVII, Issue 11879, 10 November 1893, Page 2

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Gas consumers are reminded that today (Friday) is the last discount dny. Mr W. Cowern announces in another column his candidature for the Patea constituency. Messrs W. Ritchie and G. S. Robertson have been returned for the Brunswick Kiding of the Waitotara County Council. The number of names on the Wanganu' electoral roll has now reached 4500, of whom 1800 are women. We learn that Mr G. S. Bridge, of Waverley, has definitely decided not to contest the Egmont seat. The following will represent the Wanganui Cricket Club in their match against the Collegiate School on Saturday : — Cave (3), Stuart, McLean, Brookfield, Parkes, Shields, Andrews, Gray, and Gordon. Mr H. Forlong, son of Mr Gordon Forlong, of Wanganui, left on Tuesday for Wellington, on his way to Sydney and thence to the New Hebrides, whore he purposes to take up work as a missionary to the natives. Mr Forlong intends to carry on his work at his own expense. Mr Orchard, of Stratford, is now in Wanganui taking orders for hand pamtad opal cards, the work of Mrs Orchard, whos3 work is so well known to many of our readers. The variety this year is larger than usual, while the work itself is fully up to the standard of previous years. The programme to be given by the Palmer-Beaumont Company to-night will be found in another column, and consists of gems from oratorios in the first part and a miscellaneous second pait. Judging by its predecessors we feel sure that a tare treat is in store this evening for those who patronise the Oddfellows' Hall. A prisoner named Green, who was being conveyed from Tamworth to Sydney by the mail train on tho 12th instant, managed to throw himself out of tha carriage near Blanford, about 70 mikg from Tamworth. The train was going at the rate of 35 miles an hour, and Green, who was leg ironed, was killed on the spot Heller's Bonanza Coterie will commence a short season in tho Oddfellows' Hall on Wednesday evening next. Of them an exchange says;—" The first performance of Heller's Bonanza Gator je was very successful in every way. Tho eatertainment was of a diversified natnre— a happy inixturo of fun, music, and mystery. Miss Holler's P-osicrucian somnomism is the great feiture of the entertainment. It was indeed most marvellous, and the answers were given in all instances with a correctness which was most astonishing, having regard to the fact that the invitation was general, and those whe accepted it weivs well-known citizens, with whom collusion was jjot suspecj.sd. Mr Heller is a most versatile entertainer, comedian, humorist, and mjstifier, his laughing songs being trebly encored. Mr Percy Ab.batt a? a musician rankt high. His dongs of ])js own composition were heartily greeted. He is also a splendid pianist, and banjo soloist." The newly-opened Corinth Cannl is about 80 feet broad all tho way from Isthmia and Posidona. At the latter place there is a harbour protected by two mole*, on which lighlhouses are to be erected. At that end there is also a ferry. The bed of tlie canal is of concrete throughout, and a pathway about eight feet in breadth, cut out of the rocks, runs along the whole length of it on either side. At present this struck a German traveller as being rather dangerous, seeing that there was no railing; but he was assured that ample protection would soon be afforded. In a long account of thu opaning ceremony, which has appeared in a German paper, it is said Hint several awkward accidents nearly occurred on that occasion. While the procession of fifteen ships was passing through troin Isthmia several boats and ships had unexpectedly entered the canal at the other end, and some slight collisions occurred. As it was, one of the men-of-war got through with some difficulty. The transit lasts about S~> minutes. The Christchurch Press says :— A boy named Keegan, about 12 years of age, was admitted to the Hospital on Thursday suffering from severe wounds, the result of a savage attack by several other boys his own age and older, near Perth street, JKclunojul. it appears that about halfpast si* o'clock on Wednesday evening, when Hearing the Stanmore road, the boy was set upon and,-. halle.nged to tight, lie did not accept, and tlia crowd of boys thereupon, it is alleged, sd, j^pon him, knocked him down and kicked him, oii/j of the boots used inflicting a bad wound on one ay.c. A lady living ;n Perth street picked up th.9 lad, who i.t is said was bleeding profusoJy, #nd conveyed him to a neighbour's house, lio was temporarily attended to, and afterwards fctk,en to the Hospital, where he was detained by crdjsr of Dr. Aiurray-Aynsley, who considered the injuries severe, yesterday afternoon Mrs. Keegan, who is a widow, interviewed the police. It is stated that most of the boys who assaulted Keegan are residents of Richmond, and that they will probably have to appear at the Court to answer the charge of assault. Keogau will not be able to leave tlie Hospital until Monday next.

The elictric liejhfc is oerUinlv boing I rurned to all manner of usos. The Californian fishermen are pf.-ttinpf tiny electric light 3as bait, which never fail to attract a fine cat;h of fish in their nets An amusing story ia told by a Home paper of the Rev. Dr. Macgre«or, of St. Cuthbert's, E'lin'm-^'i. Entering one of the Scottish , :il;>i,», " tlie weo minister," as he ia popularly called, found that, owing to his short stature, he could not see over the edge. Ilowwver, he proved himself equal to the occasion. Standing on tip-toe, he gave out the Psalm beginning, " Lord, from the depths to Thee I cry," and then sat down to consider the case. But consideration gave no ralief ; he had to stand on tip toe all through the sermon. I There is in Spain a river called Tinto which has very extraordinary qualities. Its -waters, which are as yellow as the topaz, harden the sand and petrify it in a most surprising manner. If a stone falls in the river and rests upon another they both become perfectly united and conglutinated in a year. It withers all the plants on its banks as well as roots of trees, which it dyes of the same hue as its water, No fish live in the stream. Russian geologists are considerably excited just now by the discovery of a " mammoth corpse " on the banks of the River Anabara, in an inhotpital region between Yenisei and Lena. The dead mammoth is " complete in skin, flesh, hair and bones," thus resembling the celebrated specimen unearthed during the last century, which was unfortunately destroyed before Pallas could examine it. As soon as intelligence of the new " find" reached St Petersburg a party was despatched from the Academy of Sciences to investigate it, the loader being the well-known Siberian explorer, Baron Toll. On the occasion of the new Governor visiting the Sydney Zoological Gardens, his attention was directed to a donkey imported from the Soudan, One of the officials connected with the gardens informed the Governor that the donkey in question was the moat expensive animal in the Zoo, having cost somewhere about £370,000. On Sir Robert inquiring how it came about that such a large sum was lavished on one animal, it was explained to him that the donkey was the only tangible thing the colony possessed to represent the sum spent on the Soudan expedition. It is added that Sir Henry Parkes, who was one of the party, observed that the colony possessed other donkeys who had cost even more than the Soudan one. Wa9 this an autobiographical reminiscence. •' Laugh and grow fat " is a well known adage, but the reverse was the case with poor Mr Mirando, pickle merchant, of Spitalfields, who lately died from over indulgence in laughter. He was at a publichouse in Commercial street, and somebody told a funny story which tickled his fancy. He accordingly " laughed very heartily," was seized with a fit of coughing, and fell down. In falling he struck his head against a form, but this was not the cause of his death. The doctor certified that he died simply from suftocat ; on, for which the prolonged gut-' faw, terminating in a cough, S9ems to have been Bolely responsible. Apart from the sad aspects of such an incident to know what story it was which was of so highly mirthful a kind as to produce these disastrous results on a strong and healthy man. Humour of this " killing ' description is rare. The Spitalfields raconteur ought to make a fortune as a storyteller, not only for himself, but for coroners, if paid by fees. On Sunday week when pig-hunting on the Tekapo Block, in the Hawke'a Bay district, four men came across the remaiiu of a man who, from all appearances, must have been dead a number of years. The remains were found between two toi-toi bushes a few chains off a track, well known as " Murray s old track." The men first of all frrnnd the leg-bones, then a couple of ribs, and afterwards two teeth, a bridle, breast-plate and saddle bag, but no traces could be found of the man's skull. All the gear mentioned above was in a rotten condition and crumbled to pieces on handling. There is nothing to show who the unfortunate man was ; and strange to say, nobody about the district remembers any one being missed. It is thought that this poor fellow's horse must have knocked up, and the man,' after planting his saddle, must have attempted, to push on his journey on foot, but perished from hunger and cold before reaching his destination. Communication has been made to the police of Ohingaiti and Mbawhanga. Vegetarians and teetotallers were naturally very proad of their centenarian, Dr Severin Wielobycki, but a third attack of influenza has deprived them of their magnificent example. The doctor, who was the son of a Polish judge, took pirt as a captiin of volunteer cavalry in the Polish rising of 1830. After leaving his country he took refuge in Edinburgh, where he was for some time a teacher of French . He graduated ia that city 115 M.D. at the age of 52, and subsequently practised medicine in various places till he retired 27 years ago. Ho attributed his longevity to the fact that he had never used tobacco, thit he hud nofcfca'tad any kind of intoxicant for 60 years, and that for 17 year 3he hud been a ves*efcarjan, Until attacked by influenza two years ago, be wns in the habit of walking twelve miles every day, and every morning at 5 o'clock he wa3 on the top of Primrose Hill. He win born on January Bth, 1793, One account of the accident at the Hftwera show by which Mr, Edward Olson lost his life, states that he had just penned one of his Ayrshire bulls a few minutees before 12 o'clock, and was fixing tlie animil securely. It is understood that he must have passed in front of the bull, with his back turned, when the animal gored him in the right leg with his left horn. The horn entered a little above the bock of the knee joint, and lacerated the fjesh an,d muscles in a fearful fashion, leaving a gaping wound. It is thought that the bull must then have slewed Mr. Olson round and buttod him against the pen with the other horn, inflicting a ripping wound from the abdomen upwards breaking several ribs. Another account says that the bull gored him first in the chest, and then in the leg, tossing him into the next pen. A son and daughter of deceased were at the show, and when it seen that Jlr. Olson had no chance of recovery a telegram wns sent for Mrs. Olson, wlio went down to Ilawera by train, but too late to see her husband before lie died. Mr. Olson had only just returned from England, where he had purchased the very brute that killed him. Apmpo) of tha high-class " Mysterious Musiciaus " wh.o make the four of seaside places in summer when London is supposed to be empty, Mr. Edwin Drew writes : " A friend of mine who is a good pianist, and possesses a capital tenor voice, has for the last few summers made 1 tours ' round the coast, in disguise, and his average earnings have been from £6 to £8 weekly. He generally gets good audiences, does not work too hard, and is careful with his resources. He looks on these ' tours ' os a profitable way of utilising summer months which in London would bo anything but productive. Anotherfriend' recited ' through Southern England, and obtained handsome results. 'Outdoor amusement' is an art which may be extended and improved far beyond old limits, and many a professional pocket will benefit by trying in the opGn air to sing or ' say ' that which may be worth the attention of holidaymakers. A " well-known traveller," now in Central Asia for the purpose of geographical study, has sent from Tashkend a letter to the Vionna " Piesse," in which he affirms that a military expedition has been despatohod by the Russians from Turkeston with the object of finally taking possesion of the Pamirs, and that Kus3ia intends to settle this cintslion without consulting Great Britain. The St. Petersburg " Novoye Yremya" of July 19th,expreseed attouishment that Ohinu should be assembling a, strong force near the Turkestan, frontier with the object of defending her claims to t,he Pamirs, " seeing thai. Russia's rigbt£ to the Pamir Plateau, composing Shignan and'R^khan, are incontestable, ans that tha Pamirs are use less to China. 'The sole effect of "the j menacing attitude aslumed by (he latter | country will be to abligs Hussia to become less conciliatory, in spite of her p&cific attitude.in order to E^fegj;ard her prestige in Asia." The "Novosji'' dedans tbjjf the British, Chinese, and Afghans musi be kept nt a respectful distance frum the frontier of Turkestan by means of udvanced Russian poEls in the Pamirs, in spito of the enormous expense en( idled by the oeoupiition of the region.

Tenders ura callnd for additions to Chris* Ch'irch. Pl«,n^ miiy h« seen at the ofiha of Mr A. Atkins, H'.K 1.8 A. Tlio grass courts of the AVangnnui I awn T Hnnis Club will ba forma : ly opjti"d tomorrow. / 11 members and their friands are invitod to attend. The following will play for the Carpon-tm-s in thair match aicainat the Press O.C. to-morrow nt 3 o'clock on tho Racecourse : — W. Verney, Gray, Sims, Mowat, McLpan, Copeland, Chisholrc, Martin, Hemingway, Thornton, Battle, and MoLeod. We refer in another column, while dealing with the first performance of tho Company who occupy (he local boards, to the fact that the harp, the queen of instruments, had been practically abolished; Had we been dealing with the second performance we should have spoken more advisedly, for, as Mr Barker's instrument was brought on to the stage last evening one of the patrona of the circle— newly franehised, by tho way, asked softly to her companion " What's that, dear ?" Another of our old residents passed iiway yesterday in the person of Mrß John Wallacp. Tho deceased lady, who -waß well known throughout the district, has been in the colony for some 47 years, 45 of which have been spent in Wanganui. It is only a few weeks since Mr and Mrs Wallaco celebrated their golden wedding. She loaves a grown-up family of seven to mourn, with their iather, tho loss of a good and affectionate mother. The f uueral of tbe deceased lady will leave her lata residence, Eidgway-streel, at 2 o'clock on Sunday. The latest form of entertainment which has been introduced in New York by an American lady of fashion (fays the Pall Mall Gazette) is a Turkist bath party. As few people are rich enough to have Turkish baths and all the accessories appertaining thereto attached to their establishment, it is the custom for the hostess to hire tho most luxurious of the public baths for the afternoon or evening, and thifcher invite her feminine friends. No expense is spared to make the entertainment of a most Bumptuous character Flowors, perfumes and fine linen are everywhere in profusion, and skilled nttendants in the art of massage ure in waiting on the guests. After "the bath, which lasts three or four hours, supper is served; bewitching negligM are exchanged for the smartest of frocka, and the other sex is admittad. It is hardly necessary to add that invitations to intjrtainments of this description are only ac -opted by young people. It is not quite the kind of amusement to commend itself to elderly ladies.