AUSTRALIAN ITEMS.

Wanganui Herald, Volume XXXXVI, Issue 13335, 25 March 1911, Page 7

AUSTRALIAN ITEMS.

THE QUEENSLAND HURRICANE. Damage Estimated at £IO,OOO. A Cairns telegram, states:—The damage iiy the hurricane is estimated at £IO,OOO, the Harbour Board’s loss being from •12000 to £3OOO. No. 4 shed, for bonded cargo, is a complete wreck. The. Chillagoe offices and shed were unroofed and the sides blown down. All the wharf sheds were more or less damaged. The Empire Hotel, Railway Hotel, and Queen’s Hotel were damaged, the balconies carried away, and portions of the roofs and walls shiftad. The Croydon boardinghouse was shifted out of position, and is now .standing at an angle of 45 degrees. The Shamrock boardinghouse, and Reed’s Bail way 'boardinghouse wore considerably damaged. The residence of Mr Carpenter, manager lor Burns, Phil, and Co., svaa wrecked, while six shops in Sach Street, the agricultural inspector’s office, several private houses on the esplanade, and the Argus newspaper’s new office were slightly damaged. All the other buildings iu Spence and Lake Streets had the verandahs carried bodily away. Every dwelling on the fiat between Spence and Wharf Streets was damaged, four being levelled to the ground. Police were driven from the barracks, and the gaol fences were blown down. The storm was heaviest between 4 and 6 o'clock on Thursday afternoon. It was blowing and raining all day until 10 p.m., when the town was a veritable sea. The barometer was lowest about 5-o’clock, when the reading was 29.555. The rainfall for the 48 hours was 13.42 inches.

AN AWFUL LESSON

“All awful lesson must' Lave liccu brought ..home to you and everyone connected with you in the events preceding’ this affair,” remarked the Chief Justice mi discharging’ William Arthur Wellman, whom the jury had adjudged not guilty of a charge of murdering his brother on Christmas Day. The evidence showed that the evening prior to the tragic events had been spent by the two at a- party, where there was liquor in plenty. “This horror,” continued Sir William Cullen, “produced by yielding to intemperance, is one that must remain with you while you live. The position of a large number of young people meeting on’Christmas Eve, and drinking until the large number of them were incapable of self-control, resulting iu so sad a fatality as this, is a lesson which 1 hope no one will forget. You are a young man, and for you the experience has been a bittre and sad one. But. it is one that may profit you, and profit all who have had to do with this unhappy case, not a little.”

A RUNAWAY TRAM

A Irani mishap, which happily was not attnded with serious consequence, occurred in .King Street, Sydney, on Friday last. V car i;om Erskine Street was ascending the hill at the foot of, King Street, when Ihe brake failed to act, and the car began (:o run hack down-kill. Efforts on the part of the driver to stop it failed, and when the turn into Day Street was reached, the car loft the line, and came ro a standstill. No one was injured, though several passengers jumped from the car while it was descending the hill. Luckily the line was clear to , the. bend, so .that no collision resulted. The mishap occurred at a busy hour, about 1.10 p.m., and both tracks were blocked.

COMIC STRIKERS.

At Kenmark, Soiuh Australia; last Monday niglit, instead of the customary strike meeting, a inock funeral was lield of what purported to be the principles of Mr Price a leading grower, who recently repudiated tho union log. The effigy was afterwards burnt. The proceedings were of a wildly ■various character. Arp immense crowd assembled. A doggerel rhyme was pronounced over the remains, in which it was stated that he was bossed by his wife. Mrs Price has taken an active part in opposing the strikers, even going to the length of working in tho fields and driving the dray. At the hotel committee, it was resolved that the hotel should purchase provisions only from tradespeople whoso names were not on the union black list.

SNAKE IN A SHEAF

A son of Mr W. 11. Edmonds, of Picola West (Vic.) was on his way home from school the other week when he picked up and carried to tho house a sheaf of straw. ud dropping it in front of his mother a tiger snake 3)'b long glided out of tho sheaf. Tire reptile was. killed.