LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume VII, Issue 1641, 20 August 1887, Page 2

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

The EevE. A.Scott, advertises that the next service m the Soafield schoolroom, will be on Sunday week, tho 28 ih mat., and not to-morrow. Mr Walker will addresa the electors at the Hampatead Schoolroom on Wednesday even* ing, at 7.80. A meeting of Mr Purnell's supporters will be held at the Arcade Chambers this evening at 7,30 In 1884 the percentages paid upon the rail* ways of the world were as follows :— United States, 4*4 per oont ; India, 5-8, or taking the rupee at Is 6d, 4-3 : England, 4-2 ; Germany, 4-2 ; France, 4-1 ; Australia, 39 ; Spain, 38 ; Sootland, 37 ; Ireland, 3-6 ; Belgium, 3-5 ; New Zealand, 3-1 ; Italy, 2-5 ; Portugal, 2-5; Buesia, 2-2; Denmark, 2*l; Canada, I*B. Service will be held to-morrow oven ing at 7 p.m. m the Haropstead Sohoolroom. The Willmott Comedy Company opened m Ashburton last night at the Oddfellows' Hall, before a fair audience, the pieces played on the stage being "Tangled," an amusing comedietta, written by the genial Frank, 11 Onoe Again," and portions of " The Guvnor. All the pieces were well played by the Company, and very creditably mounted, applause being frequent and hearty. Mr Willmott eoored quite a suoceea m bis pourtrayal of "Theodore Macclesfield," and he was ably assisted by his talented and oharming " better half." The other members of the Company did their level bast to please, and m this they Buooeeded. The Company appear again to-night, when a " monster change of programme " is promised. We I hope to see Ashburton play-goers muster m strong force and so by their presence assist a very deserving and enterprising member of the theatrical profession. We have been requested to draw the atten. tion of members of the Ashburton County Hunt Club to an advertisement which appears m another column, regarding the meet of Mr Armitage's hounds, whioh is fixed for Wednesday next, 24th August, at tho Tinwald Hotel, at 11 a.m. As these hounds are m first-class condition, members may expeot a really good day's sport, and it>ill also give Mr Armitage's friends m the distriotj an opportunity of bidding him good-bye, before his eparture for E ngland. A football match was played yesterday afternoon between teams from Hampstead and Tinwald S.hojls. The latter won by two points. Some settlers of Alexandra recently found soino fine prospeots of coarse gold on one of the slopes of Pirongia, whioh on being tested yielded about 2oza to the ton. They intend following up the indications m the hope of Coining aoross tho parent reef. An entertainment, which passed off very pleasantly, waa given on Thursday evening at tho Old Mon's Home. The programme included an effective pianoforte solo by Miss Hawson and a piano and violin duet by Misses Kidd and H. Shury. Mrs Crisp, Mils Kidd and Mr Horace Gates contributed a selection of songs, and Mr W. Potter delighted his audience with. two humorous readings. A reading was also given by the Rev E. A. Saott, who presided and who, to fill up the allotted time, desoribed some of his experiences m the oity of Florenoe. At the olose of the enter, tainment Mr Fox, the worthy master of the Home, thanked the performers on behalf ot inmates, and the proceedings terminated with the National Anthem. A collection of 9s was taken at tho door for tho Newspaper Fund. The " Melbourne Argus " thus writes about the unemployed : — There has been a short discussion m the Assembly about the unemployed, and the Premier . has intimated that m tho reoess be means, if possible, to deal trenchantly with tho matter. Experience accumulates uponuß that the relief works area mistake. There is a certain proportion of respectable and sober men m the gangs, but three-fourths of them deliberately knock their wages down at the end of tho week. They absolutely refuse to save any portion of their weekly earnings, and the Government begins at last to sea clearly that it is neither charity nor publio polioy to keep up this game any longer. We clip tho following from the " Wanganui Herald " : — Whilst the rank and file of the party led by Major Atkinson are busy reviling the present Treasurer, Sir Julius Yogel, and oertain journals are trying to foment a quarrel between him and his colleagues, it is rather itartling but reasßuring to find Major Atkinson expressing himself m publio to the following effect, m his late Wellington speeoh m whioh he ib reported as Baying :— •" He (Major Atkinson) would first refer to the speeoh made recently by Sir Julius Yogel at Chriatohuroh which was well worth reading. It was tha ipeooh of a man who could look at more than one side of things, who knew how to put hia views before on audience and the country, and a man who was reasonable and fair m hia politioal opinions," and yet this is tho samo man Major Atkinson charges with squandering lavishly and with wishing to grind the country beneath the wheels of a Juggernaut of debt. A simple method of treating wood with preservative solutions is employed m Norway for telegraph poles. After the poles are set m plaoe a man goes from one to another with an auger with whioh he bores a hole m eaoh post, beginning at a point about two feet above the ground, and boring obliquely downwards, at as small an angle as possible with tho axis of the post, until the point of the auger reaohes the centre of the stick. The auger hole should be an inch m diameter, and, m telegraph poles of the ordinary eize, will hold easily four to five ounoes of sulphate of copper, whioh is put ! into it m the form of coarsely powdered crystals, and the opening then stopped with a plug, bo that it can pulled out and re. placed, It is found that the crystals of copper sulphate disappear slowly, bo that evory three or four months the chargo must be renewed, while tho wood, both aboye and below tho auger hole, even to the very top of the pole, gradually assumes the greenish tint due to the presenoe of copper m the pores. Parents do not uso vile drugs or] nostrums m your families, but use pure Hop Bitters made only by American Co. See and read.

The cessation of land sales has seriously crippled the New Plymouth Harbor Board, which hitherto paid the .interests on loan amounting to £12,000 a year out of the 25 per oent of the revenue arising from land salea m the distriot with whioh it was endowed. A rate of Jd m the pound, estimated to raise £5000, has been levied, but some of the settlers at Manaia and on the plains are resisting this rate, and it is not clear how the board will be able to provide the interest whioh has to bo sent away next month. The Mioister charged with the supervision i of the theatre^ m Paris has deoided that jf or the more effectual protection of the public from the rißk of such another awful calamity ' as that of the Rue Pavart, a brick wall and an iron curtain shall separate the stage from tho auditorium of the Gomedie Franoaise, and that the house shall be lighted by elootrioity. After the Vienna disaster m 1883 this theatre was provided with two reservoirs, whioh are always kept full, and can, m case of need, flood the house with water at the rate of 3000 litres m a minute. A Paris correspondent describes a shocking ooourrence at the Laurent menagerie, at Toulouse. A lion attaoked a musioian who went too near the oage, and tore off his arm. The musioian was accompanied by two artillerymen, who drew their swords and attacked the brute. This, however, only made the lion more ferocious, and he devoured the man's arm before ]the eyes of the horrorEtricken people. Several women fainted at the ghastly spectacle, and everybody left the menagerie. "Rough on Oobns."— Ask for Wells " Rough on Corns." Quiok relief, complete, permanent ourr. Corns, warts bunions. 3 chemists and druggists.