The Ashburton Guardian. Magna Est Veritas et Prevalebit. WEDNESDAY, MAY 9, 1883.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume IV, Issue 938, 9 May 1883, Page 2

The Ashburton Guardian. Magna Est Veritas et Prevalebit. WEDNESDAY, MAY 9, 1883.

The ship Nelson, from Port Chalmers, arrived home on the sth inst., having made the passage in seventy -three days. Mr W. J. Steward, addressed his constituents at Waimate on Monday night, and received a unanimous vote of thanks and confidence.

Some crystals, or supposed diamonds, found by Mr Robert Graham between his estate at Waiki and Lake Taupo, are to be tested in order to determine their value.

A public meeting, convened by the Mayor of Dunedin, will be held on Saturday, to consider whether relief should be arranged for the Wild Deer immigrants when they arrive. The amount of damage done to roads and bridges in the Timaru district by the late floods is now found to have been very considerable, and large sums of money will have to be spent by the local bodies and Railway Department to make repairs.

The total receipts of the Dunedin City Council for the year have been £102,390, and the total expenditure £104,187. The Councillors all agree that rigid economy and retrenchment must be the order of the day in future. At the monthly meeting of the Ministers’ Conference at Dunedin it was resolved— “ That a conference be summoned of the ministers of all the churches in Dunedin and the suburbs, with a representative of each congregation, to consider the question, ‘ What shall be done for the purpose of imparting religious instruction in the common schools.’ ” A meeting of the creditors in the estate of Messrs Stavely and Austin was held at Dunedin yesterday afternoon, when about twenty firms were represented. The assets are estimated at about £16,000, of which £12,000 is due to. the Bank of New Zealand, while the next highest creditors are Neill and Co. (Limited). It is anticipated by Messrs Stavely nnd Co. that the estate will pay 15s in the £. After discussion, it was resolved to wind up the estate, Messrs Gibson, Ferrier and G. L. Denniston being appointed liquidators.

The monthly meeting of the South Rakaia School Committee was held’in the Library on Monday evening. Present— Messrs Hardy (Chairman), Chambers, Cox, Oxley, Davies, and Kemble. The master reported that for the month past the average attendance had been 94.3, the highest attendance 118, and the number on the roll 161. He asked that something might be done in the matter of carrying off the water from the roof, which at present all ran under the school; also, that the Committee would purchase a football for the use of the boys. It was decided that the Chairman should write to the Central Board on the subject. It was decided that a football be purchased. The school cleaner having resigned, it was decided that Mrs Moodie’s offer to do the work for nine months at Ll2 be accepted. The Rev E. E. Chambers applied for the use of the schoolroom for the purpose of religious instruction after school hours for two days a-week. It was decided to grant the use of the school on Wednesdays from 3.30 to 430 p.m. for the present, and in event of the scheme proving a success other arrangements might be made for the two days.. A circular was read from Mr Steward, of Waimate, re a now Bill proposed to be introduced in the House next session re alteration of mode of electing committees, etc., and enclosing a list of questions to be answered. The list of questions, which was rather a long one, was gone into and returned. On the motion of Mr Hardy, seconded by Mr Cox, Mr J. M. Broadbent was unanimously elected to fill the vacancy on the Committee, caused by the resignation of Mr Gaarder who had left the district. Accounts for L 3 10 were passed for payment, and the meeting adjourned.

Professor Fraser gave one of interesting lectures on “ Human Science ” in the Waterton schoolroom last evening. Considering the darkness, cold, and state of the roads, there was a fair attendance, and certainly those who attended were well rewarded, carrying away with them much valuable information respecting character reading and self-culture. The Professor lectures in Flemington to-night. At a meeting of the Wanganui County Council held yesterday it was resolved — “ That in the opinion of the Council the dual of local government Jiy the County Council and Road Boards in this County is unnecessary and expensive, and must soun lead to both County and Road Board rates being levied. This Council therefore strongly recommends the ratepayers to take action by petition under the Counties Act Amendment Act, 1882, for the suspension of the Act, and to hand over the local government of the Road Boards abo it to be created under the Road Boards Act, 1882.” Our Rakaia correspondent writes :—The Methven train commenced running again on Monday evening, for the first time for a week. Near Lauriaton, in the cutting, the formation, ballast, etc., was washed

away to a depth of from five to six feet in some places, and the public road has suffered to nearly the same extent. It'is fortunate for the ratepayers in this district that so little damage has been done to the roads. The township of Rakaia was comparatively free from water during the whole of the late heavy rains. The weather still (Monday) looks very threatening.

The Hohxrt Mercury of May 3rd contains an article referring to Captain Logan, of the Manapouri, having on his last passage from New Zealand caused a passenger who died to be buried at sea, within four hours’ steaming of Hobart. The passenger was John McKay, a compositor, who embarked at Lyttelton, and who died after a fit of delirium tremens. It is 'stated that Captain Logan buried the man at sea because the body being on board was offensive to the passengers, and because it would save the deceased a pauper’s funeral, and would prevent the vessel being detained in port until an inquest upon the body had been held. Being satisfied in his own mind that death had been caused by the effects of delirium tremens , and believing that the deceased was a waif and stray, without anyone to call him friend or acquaintance, he acted as he did.

The annual meeting of ratepayers in the Rangitata Road Board district was held at the office, Listnore, on the 7th. Considerable delay took place before the requisite quorum assembled. The chairman, Mr E.. G. Wright, submitted the accounts i r the past fifteen months, duly certified by the District Auditor, Mr J. Ollivier, and upon the motion of Mr Charles Harper, seconded by Mr Napier, the same were adopted and passed by the meeting. In reply to a question by Mr Harper, the Chairman stated that the whole of the rates levied had been collected, and with the cash balance in hand and no out landing liabilities, he was of opinion that the district might be spared the imposition of any Road Board rates during the current year. Attention was called to the damage caused by the floods to nearly every crossing over the Hinds, and the Chairman having promised to put the necessary repairs in hand, the meeting separated. A correspondent draws our attention to the fact that there are at present two very dangerous places on the Longbeach road, which, unless repaired soon, may be the cause of serious accident. One of these is near the main school, between the properties of Messrs Grigg and Barr, on that portion of the road which is unshinglod. According to our informant, the defect is due to the rottenness of the culvert at this place, and a very small expenditure would sot things right. The other damage referred to is a hole between 4ft and sft in depth, at the junction of the Flemington and Waterton roads, near Mr Thomas Taylor’s property. This was caused by the recent floods, and is a source of anxiety to the residents in the district, as on a dark night a trap might easily come to grief. Considering that the defects we have called attention to might be remedied at comparatively little cost, we think the authorities should attend to the matter as soon as possible. We have also to draw attention to the state of a culvert near Winslow, which is in a very dangerous state.

From a War Office return which has been presented to the House of Commons with regard to the ages and length of service of the British non-commissioned officers and men who were present at the action of Tel-el-Kebir, it appears that 398 were under one year’s service, 1206 between one and two years, 1376 between two and three years, 1503 bet wee" three and four years, 1082 between four and five years, 1108 between five and six years, 1270 between six and seven years, 1191 between seven and ton years. 816 between ten and fourteen years, 440 between fourteen and eighteen years, and 164 of eighteen years and upwards. As to the ages of the men, 25 were under 18 years old, 31 from eighteen to nineteen, 67 from nineteen to twenty, 1025 from twenty to twenty-one, 3317 from twenty-one to twenty-four, and 6187 over twenty-four. The number volunteered or transferred from other regiments was 220 ; the number of Reserve men, 1293. These numbers are exclusive of two companies of the 2nd battalion Seaforth Highlander?, from which returns have not bean received.

Holloways Ointment and Pills.— Outward Infirmities. —Before the discovery of these remedies many case of sores, ulcers, &c., were pronounced to be hopelessly incurable, because the treatment pursued tended to destroy the strength it was incompetent to preserve, and to exasperate the symptoms it was inadequate to remove. Holloway’s Pills exert the most wholesome powers over the unhealthy flesh or skin, without debarring the patient from fresh air and exercise, and thus the constitutional vigor is husbanded while the most malignant ulcers, abscesses, and skin diseases are in process of cure. Both Ointment and Pills make the blood richer and puier, instead of permitting it to fall into that poor and watery state so fatal to many laboring under chronic ulcerations, —[Advt.]

The Stranger in London. —That the Great City will ere long be hardly recognisable by its former denizens, all the world has heard. The visitor passing up the Thames now finds his eye gratified by the many edifices recently erected. As he reaches the famous Victoria Embankment, there rises over him on the right hand the new Times office, and on the left hand the new tower-crowned works of Messrs James Epps and Co., both phases of Italian architecture. It may be said that these two buildings are types of the far-reaching business energy of the nineteenth century, for it has resulted from such means that the annual issue of each has come to be estimated by millions. During the last year, the number of copies of the Times is estimated at 16,279,000, while the number of packets of Epps’s cocoa sent off in the same period is computed at 14,749,695. The latter is a large total, when it is borne in mind that in 1830 the consumption of cocoa throughout the whole kingdom was but 425,382163, there then existing no preparation of it such as this, which by the simple addition of boiling water would yield a palatable drink. Truly time may be said to work many changes.— [ADVT