LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume VII, Issue 1680, 6 October 1887, Page 2

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

The mail for Great Britain, the Continent of Europe, etc, via San Franoicoo, will dose at the Ashburton Post Offioe to-morrow (Friday) evening at five o'olook.

High speeda are being gradually attained m steam vessels by the use of enormously high horse-power compared with the size of the chips. Tbe other day a torpedo boat for the Italian Government made the almost phenomenal mean speed of nearly twenty-nine miles an hour m the river below Gravesend ; and the Italian oruiser Dogali, m experimental trips at sea, made a mean of twenty-two and a half miles an hour. The latter is probably the fastest oruiaer afloat, and the high speed has been obtained by the use of triple expansion engines and high pressure steam. It will be noticed that both vessels are for the Italian Government. — " English Mechanic. "

He Hollowat's Pills. — Teaohinga of Experience. — The united testimony of thousands, extending over more than forty years, most strongly recommends these Pills as the best purifers, the mildest aperients, and the surest restoratives. They never prove delusive, or give merely temporary relief, but attack all ailments of. the stomach, lungs, heart, head, and bowels m the only safe and legitimate way, by depurating the blood, and bo eradicating those impurities which are the eourco and constituent of almost every disease. Their medioinal eflicacy is wonderful m removing enfeebled constitutions. Their aotion embraces all that is desirable m & household medicine. They expel every noxious and effete matter ; and thus the otrength ia nurtured apd the energies stimulated

We are glad to learn that the disastrous fire at Invercargill, recorded m our telegrams, will not affeot Messrs MoCallum and Co.'s export trade, as it is only the lower mill which has been burned down. The sentence of death passed on Bridget Mepham, who was found guilty of the murder of her sister, Anna Carlow, at Wangaratta, has bean commuted by the Executive Council to imprisonment for life. j When cows gnaw rotten wood, old bones, etc, it is an indication that they are not getting phosphate enough, Milohoows rapidly exhaust land of phosphates, and m time pastures become so exhausted of the material that the grass produced does not satisfy the oows. There are two remedies : — First, feed small quantities of bone meal to the cows twice a week ; second, spread on the pastures five hundred pounds of ground bone to the acre — this io much the best remedy, because it greatly improves the pasture by increasing the quantity as well as the quality of grass' and it is the most natural way to supply the wants of the cow. Vieuxtemps, the violinist, uaed to relate that one day, when crossing London bridge, ho saw a proor wretch leap down into the stream. There was at ones a rush of eager spectators, and a voice shouted, " I'll bet he drowns 1 " " Two to one he swims ashore t " " Pone I " Meanwhile Vieuxtempa had hastened to get a boat, and wai rowing with a waterman to the rescue of tht unhappy creature, who was floundering about and just managing to keep himself afloat. As they reached him, and were preparing to pull him into the boat, there wai a roar from the bridge, "Leave him alone— there ia bet on ! " The waterman immediately lay on his oarei refusing to make any further attempt to save the drowning man ; and Vieuxtempa Baw him sink before his very eyes. — "Chambers' Journal." We hear that steps are being taken with a view to petitioning Parliament to inquire into certain charges alleged against Mr Fish as a member of the Harbor Board. The proceedings are being taken by some eleotors of Dunedin South. Mr Gore is not, we under* stand, a party thereto ; and it is rumored that a legal opinion already taken is to the effeot that there are grounds for a petition to appoint a select committee, with a view of investigating Mr Fish's qualification to sit. Few people have any idea of the immense consumption of food on board our great ocean liners (says an English paper). The following account of that of the Cunard Line, supplied by Mr John Burns, is interesting, if not positively startling :— Fanoy 4656 sheep, 2474 oxen, and 1800 lambs being consumed or board the Ounarders m the course of a year Teetotallers will regret to hear that th( annual consumption* of intoxicating liquon amount m round numbers to 16,000 bottlei of champagne, 17,000 of claret, 9000 of othe: wines, and nearly 50,000 of ale and porter A trial of a rabbit annihilator was madi recently at Bacchus Marsh, Victoria, wit! most satisfactory results. The maohin weighs 261bs, and is carried by a couple o handles. It consists of a rotary fan, m fron of which is a tin reoeptaole. A couple o light tin rollers rotate, upon which an endles web of woollen material is made to rot at while immersed m carbon liquid placed m th receptacle, which is made airtight. At th front of the reoeptaole a nozzle is placec upon which a piece of indiarubber tubing i attached, the end of which is pushed into th burrow. The prinoiple of the machine is tha the blast from the fanners, passing over th endless web saturated wltn carbon, forces thi fumes through the indiarubber tubing info the burrow. The machine was applied ti natural burrows, and the rabbits were after wards taken out dead at a depth of 12 feet and m one instance at a depth of 30 feet. Some doubt has been thrown on thi evidence of Dr Klein, m reference to the com municability of scarlet fever between humar. beings and cows, by the researches of Dn Jamieson and Edington, of Edinburgh, bui apparently it is only a difference of opinior as to the specific organism whioh is supposed to oause scarlet fever. Whether it is a streptococcus or a bacoilus, there can be nc doubt that the contagion can ba transmitted from the bovine to the human organism bj means of milk. Baoteriology has m recent years made great strides, and it is not improbable that before long the organism whioh is the oause of soarlet fever will be beyond dispute. A committee has been appointed by the Medico-Ghirurgioal Society, Edinburgh, to inquire into the results of Da Edington's researches, and it is probable a report will be made publio m a very short time. An influential meeting of oitizeui was held m (Jhristchurcb, on Wednesday evening, under the presidency of the Mayor, to make preliminary arrangements for the United Fire Brigade Demonstrations next February. A strong committee was appointed under the Chairmanship of Mr Harris, formerly superintendent of the Chrißtohurch Fire Brigade. Four young men, members of the Liverpool " High Rip Gang," who plundered, and stabbed those who resisted, have been sentenced to imprisonment, ranging from 15 to 21 months with hard labor, each prisoner to receive three separate floggings of twenty lashes eaob. A tioket-oolleotor combats the oruel hallucination that the ooming generation of his countrymen will be puny, siokly, and played out. His experience of many years convinces him that the oontrary is the case, and that the average ohild of " under twelve," who travels with a half.fare tioket, is as large as a boy or girl of fifteen or Bixteen used to be m ante-railway days. Another oasa of premature burial has ocourred m Franoe. An elderly woman who lived at an old-world place oalled St. Oven La Rouerie, recently fell ill, and, as her friends thought, died. The funeral took place, and as the gravedigger was preparing to lower the coffin into the grave he heard moans issuing from inside the lugubrious four boards enolosing the presumed corpse. The gravedigger left the coffin int he oare of the mourners and went off with bis sombre story to M. la Maire. That rural dignitary, having duly donned his soarf of offioe and summoned the village doctor, proceeded to the local " God's acre." The coffin was then opened, and it was discovered that the woman had just died from fright, having awakened from a trance to find herself hemmed between tha terrible deal planks. Statutory Declaration.— l, Fraz Eaabe, Ironbark, Sandhurst, m the colony of Victoria, Australia, do Bolemnly and sincerely deolare that on the 25th June; 1877, my eon Alfred, six years of age, was accidentally hurt with an axe on the knee. lat once took all pains to Beouro medical assistance. However, m spite of all efforts, an the 27th August, 1877, le opinion was given by Dr Maogillivray that an amputation of the injured limb had become imperative, m order to save life. At this juncture I oalled on Messrs Sander and Sons, procuring some of their Extract of the Eucalyptus Globulus, and by the application of the same I had the _ satisfaction of seßing my son within a fortnight out of all danger, and to-day he is recovered. I may just add that it was when the crisis had been reaohed that the Extraot referred to was first applied. And I make this Bolemn declaration, etc., — ?ranz Kaabe. Deolared at Sandhurst, m the Colony of Victoria, Australia, this seventeenth day of Ootober, one thousand eight hundred and seventy-seven, before we, Morita Gohn, J.P,— [Apt?.