The Ashburton Guardian. Magna est Veritas et Prævalebit. FRIDAY, MARCH 16, 1888. LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume VII, Issue 1791, 16 March 1888, Page 2

The Ashburton Guardian. Magna est Veritas et Prævalebit. FRIDAY, MARCH 16, 1888. LOCAL AND GENERAL.

The " Gazette " notifies tfaa appointment of Mr C. A. Wray as Resident Magistrate for tho diatriot of Timaru, Geraldine, and Ashburton. *'

The Wellington correspondent of the "Press" cays that according to a rumor •urrent m " The Buildings " the two aubor. dinate Eailway Commissionerships will probably be filled by Mr Hannay (the present Assistant Manager) and Mr 0. Y. O'Conno* the present Under Secretary of Public Works). It is, however, believed m some usually well informed quarters that Me Maxwell and Mr Hannay will be tha two ; but at present I iuollne to think that Mr O'Connor and Mr Hannay will ba the men. All tbia ia of course mere gossip and guesswork as yet,

No. 15 of Leslie's Parliamentary Portraits is to hand. It contains a tolerably presentable portrait of Mr Valentine, member for Waikaia, and what purports to be a portrait of the Hon Mr Michelson, member for Eden and Minister of Public Works, but which bears not the smallest resmblance to that gentleman The annual meeting m connection with the British and Foreign Bible Society will be held on Friday, 23rd instant, at 7.30 p.m., m St. Stephen's Schoolroom. The Rev E. A. Scott will preside, From the report of the meeting of the Chriatchurch Preßbyterjr on Wednesday, we learn that, as the result of the Sabbath Sohool examinations held some weeks ago, the following from Tinwald were successful : — Lower Middle, Catheohism— Annie Meharry, 2. Junior Catechism — Blanche Lewis, 8. Lower Middle, Soripture — Annie Meharry, i ; Annie Lewis, 9. There are 19 prizetakera m this division, Two boya at Tumuf, Viotoria, exploded a paoket of Chinese crackers, which accidentally set fire to the dress of a girl named Mary Horlihy, who was standing by. The girl rushed along the road with her dress m flames, and was so badly burnt that Bhe died shortly afterwards, The deceased 20 years ago had a brother crippled for life through falling into the fire when a child.*

The Mount Somers Distriot having failed to elect a Licensing Committee, the following Committee has been appointed by His Excellency the Governor, viz., Hon W. S, Peter, .Messrs A. Macfarlane, E. A. Peaohe, and W. E. Walker. It is reported m Sydney that 150 men with their families are starving at Garcoar, These men were fotmetly employed m the construction of the railway line between Blayney and Cowra, and it is alleged that the contractor who employed them has drawn all the money ho was entitled to, and left the men

without wages for the past six weeks. The attention of the Government has been drawn to the matter, It is intended to hold m Sydney a women's industrial exhibition, to illuakate the progress m various branohes of work m which women were engaged during the first century of the colony's history. It will be opened m Ootober. An influential Ladies' Committee of which Lady Carington is the head, is now engaged making the necessary arrangements.

Hermann, tho 2)rcstidigitateur, is following Mrs Langtry's oute example and investing his profits when and where he makes them. He recently bought real estate m Chioago, St. Louis, and Pittsburg, investing all told some'

thing like £10,000, and he intends purchasing land m Baltimore, Washington, and Cincinnati with the profits he confidently hopes for m those cities. Tho faith-cure doctor took the hands of his patient, and, looking into his eyes, said, " I can cure you." Patient: " Are you sure? 1 ' " Very Bure. All you've got to do is to believe. Just believe you're cured. That's all." " All right ; I'll try it. Good day." " Hold on a minute, my man. Didn't you

forget something ? " " What ? " "The fee. I charge a dollar a visit." "Oh, yes. Well, believe. All you've got to do is to believe I've paid you and it will be all right." Independent Congo is rapidly assuming all the characteristics of a modern state. A few months ago the Brussels mint struck a large number of silver coins for the new country, and now copper money is added to the circulating currency, Among these are two and and oao centime which shows that some things, at least, may be very cheap on the Congo. Experiments with a quadricycle uianufaotured by M. Vinoent, have been made on an ordinary railway line at Fontin, France, m presence of a committee of military engineers. The speed attained was forty kilometres an hour, and the results were deolared to be most satisfactory. The weight of the machine is only 90 kilogrammes, so that it may be removed from the metals with but little physioal effort. gAn amusing incident occurred recently at Shepparton. A local angler finding sport rather dull set a line to a bush rod, and sticking the rod m a soft clay bank went further down the stream to try his luck. On his retnrn he arrived at the spot just m time to see tho rod pulled out of the bank into the river by a fish. He had a dog with him, and threw a clod of earth after the departing rod, telling the dog to fetch it, The dog immediately grasped the idea, and went for th Then the fun began. As the dog made for the shore the fish pulled m a contrary direction, repeatedly pulling the doge head under the water. After about half an hour's struggling the pluck and perseverance of the dog were rewarded, and his master had the satisfaction of landing a bream whioh weighed 5 Jib. Lovers of the " nip of brandy " should read Colonel Warburton'a last report to tho Home Government on the frauds iv the brandy trade. It seems that the greater part of the " French brandy " whioh reaches England and her colonies is potato spirit, made and sold at Hamburgl at two shillings a gallon. The colonial toper doesn't care. As long as his liquor is hot and strong, he'll drink any diabolical compound his own or foreign distillers like to swindle him with, It is really becoming a question whether any man oan manufacture intoxioating liquor of any description pure m quality, so universal seems the praotice of adulteration and misrepresentation. As a Scottish minister and an English lawyer were riding together, eaid the minister to, his friend, " Sir, do you ever make mistakes m your pleading ? " "I do," Baid the lawyer. «'An' what do ye do wi' mistakes?" was the question. " Why, sir, if large ones, I mend them; if small ones, I let them go. And pray, sir, do you ever make mistakes m preaohing ? " " Ay, Bir, I hoe dune sac." •' And what do yoa do with your mistakes ? " "Oh I dispense with them iq the same manner as ye do yoursel'. I reotifee the lairge, an* let go the sma' anes. No lang e.inoe, as I was preaohin', I meant to observe that the devil was the father o' a' liars, but made a mistake, an' jmi<jl the father 0' a' lawyers.' But the ojistafcq was do sma' that I let it go."