LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume VII, Issue 2315, 27 December 1889, Page 2

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

The Irishmen of Auckland have sent a cablegram to Mr Gladstone, oongratalating him on his 80<h birthday. ' A very handsome cope has been received from Borne by Bishop Luok, of Auokland. The yeatment is a present from his Holiness the Pope. Owing to the dispute between the Ashburton Cyoling Glub and the Borough Oouacil re the racing traok the former Uo4v will not hold their Bports on New Year's Day. Mr Mitohelson has received a cable message trom Hobart, Btating that the Federal Oounoil meats m the first week of February, but the place is not fixed. During the five yearn m \phjoh the Offioial Assignee's Offioe has been opened 369 oases of bankruptcy were reoorded m Wellington. "Last year the number was 58, and the smallest m any year except 1884, when the number waß 39. At the Guristohuroh Baby Show the ohampion prize of £20 (deoided by public yote) was won by Richard B. Munday, of Avonsiie, eged 19 months, weight 36£lb; W. H, McEvoy (Waimate) seoond). The latter took first prize m his olaes (b6ys 12 to 18 months). The •* Daily Time* " is responsible for the statement, on reliable authority, that the late G. H. Ashorof t's defalcation? amount to fully £6000. The railway aooount suu?. ria to the extent of over £1000, St Paul's Ghuroh fuoun about $1300, and the balanoe is made up of trust funds apd dishonored oheques. We understand that Mr Arthur stationmaster at Ashburjon haelbeep appointed to n'^M* »s the BUfloesßer of the late Mr G. ABhoroft Whi]d 9°Pg ratul atiiug Mr Arthur the general feeling when >7: - lM *!»»« JP are sorry to loße so excellent an ou*.. Irom Ashburton. A very unfortunate aooident took plaae yesterday at the Mount Somers Sports at the conclusion of the hurdle raoe. Mr B. Bolton's hcrse was coming m at the finish and swerved oQ the opurse, jumping over the rope at the side and into a buggy belonging lo Mr Peaohe, which was much damaged, the horse's rider also being shaken considerably. The worst damage, however, was the injury caused to a man named Weber, a Springburn resident, who was sitting ia the trap. He sustained a oompound fraoture of the right leg, between the foot and knee. He was at I once attended to on the course and after* wards conveyed to the Ashburton Hospital, being brought dowa the line on a trolly by Mr iX,H, Zgugh. nad » plutelayer, ' ' f

Among recent applications for New Zealand patents is one for an attachment for grinding ohaffoutter knifes by H. J. Joneß, of Ashbur ton. ■ Announcements m connection with the railway arrangements for New Tear's Day will be found among to-day's advertisements. The great pressure on oar epaoe to-day compels us to hold over till to-morrow reports of to-day's B.M. Court, the May field Good Templar Pionio, wool sales reports, telegrams, and other matter. We understand that a trial of the Brantford reaper and binder, and probably also of the Deering, is likely to take plaoe at Mr Oasß* farm on Monday nest, 30th instant. On the same occasion Mr Aston will give an exhibition of his tew patent sheaf adjuster which does away with the necessity of using a butter* doth, and is olaimed to be a great improvement Mr Aston will be on the ground about noon. A Frenoh prisoner who was being taken with some other oriminals m a train from Le Mans to Lill6-le-Guillaume the other day, efleoted his escape m a very olever manner. Having managed to oonoeal a saw about his person, he set to work on tha floor. He suooeeded m sawing out a piece large enough to enable him to drop on the line when the train stopped at the station, and his esoape was not disoovered until the party armed at their destination. 'We learn from the "Press" that a man named Andrew Bruoe, a fireman on board the s.s. Arawa, at Lyttelton, was drowned at 12,30 o'olook on Thursday morning. He wbb leaving the vessel, having just been relieved from duty, m company with a messmate named John O'Connell. O'Gonnell landed on the wharf, and on looking round for Bruoe saw him disappear between the ship and the wharf. The alarm was given, and a seasoh was instituted for the unfortunate man. His cap was the only part of his apparel found. The Hod. B. Mitohelson, accompanied by Mr Goldie, visited some vineries at Mount Eden, said to be infeoted with phylloxera. At Mr Scott's vineyard roots and soil infeoted by the vines with the pest were given to the party to be sent to Dr Hector. It is said that it is more than probable that the phylloxera has already been distributed through the country, seeing that it is five years sinoe the vines were purchased by Mr Scott. There was a full house at the Oddfellows' Hall last evening on the oooasion of the opening performance of the White Star Minstrels (fourteen performers). The entertainment opened with the usual ohair business, the appearance of the performers arranged m a jhalf oirole being very pretty, the dresses of the ladies (five), who oooupied the centre, being very attractive. The programme submitted comprised sentimental and oomio songs, clog dancing, wire walking, the performances of a trained dog, who is exceptionally olever, nearly every item being enoored, winding up with a nigger danoe. The Company appear again to-night with a change of programme. The Italian Minister of Agrioulture and Commerce has jußfc published some very interesting and detailed statistics of Italian emigration during the year 1888. The document shows that 290,936 persons emigrated, as compared with 215,665 m 1887 and 167,829 m 1886. The majority left the ooantry on aooount of poverty, heavy taxation, bad harvests, and the agrarian crisis. A large number of them left penniless. The majority went to La Plate, the United States, and Brazil. The report insists on the necessity of measures to prevent this outflow of the population, and to promote home colonisation. At the beauty show held m Neuilly, and of which I spoke m my former letter (writes our Paris correspondent), the contest seems to be between Miss Amy Vavasour (No 22), an English girl of about 18 years, and Mdlle Quella (No 4) who is from Venezuela. Both are certainly very beautiful, and are of the Bame age, apparently. Mdlle Eoger (No 20), Miss Gwendoline (No £) Iriah, and two of the Sohiohal sisters (Nob 3 and 15), are making a good race for third prize. Altogether there are twenty-two concurrents, and eaoh has a rosette of ribbons and her number pinned on her breast; The first prize yiill be awarded by universal suffrage. The .price of admission is three franos, and everybody votes on leaving the hall. Our Pariß correspondent writes { — An illustration of tb,e danger of dabbling m hypnotism occurred at Montmartre the other night. A number of young men were at supper with some girle, when one of them laughingly suggested the idea of putting to sleep a girl named Lenotre. She expressed herself willing to be operated upon, and was quiokly unoonsoious. To the oousternation of the company, however, they were quite unable to awaken her. After lopg and ineffectual attempts they were compelled to carry her to a ohemist, where at the expiration of two hours, she wbb finally restored to consciousness. The police, getting wind of the affair, arrested the whole of the party, but the polioe magistrate held that no offenoe had been committed under Frenoh law and dismissed the oaee. Between London and Edinburgh the greater part of the journey is done at a speed exceeding 50 miles an hour; the 105 miles between ] Grentham and King'b Cross average 54 miles | for the whole journey} and some time ago the 4 18 p.m. train from Grantham was timed to run 24 miles m 22 minutes, one mile being done m 46 sooonds, or at the rate of 74 miles an hour. Compare this with the antioipa. tions of the last generation. In 1825 the "Quarterly Review," m an appreciative article on the proposed Woolwich railway, depreoated any wild estimates as to speed. "We will baok Old Father Thames," it said, " against the Woolwioh railway for any sum. We trust that Parliament will, m all railways it may sanction, limit the speed to eight or nine mileß an hour, whioh |s as. great aa pan be ventured on with safety,"— «• Nineteenth Century." A young boy employed at the Theatre des Oelestins at Lyons, took it into his head lo see the Paris Exhibition, He had plenty of energy, but very little money, He Bet out on foot from Lyons on the 10th of July, at 10 o'olook m the morning, and nine days afterwards, at half past two p.m. he arrived at Paris (320 milee). He had 11s m his pookot on leaving home, but he had to economise his funds, and by sleeping m barns and living on bread, milk, and lard, he managed to reduoe his expenses to about 3a. He spent a month and ten days at Paris, three days m the week he gave up to work, and the fourth to see the Exhibition and the town. On the 2§th of August, at five m the morning, he sat out on the return journey, He kepi up the distanoe of 55 kilometres a day, and arrived at home on the 4th September^ He spent on the return journey about 3s 6d, and brought back 5a 9d. The tea meeting m oonneotion with the anniversary of Wiilowby Wesleyan Ohuroh Sunday School took plaoe on Thursday evening m the Publio Sohoolroom. Owing to the wet weather there was only a moderate attendance. Tables were provided and preBidrcl over by Meadames Chapman, Haymm, Irwe, MoKnzie, andKenninßton, assisted by many friend?, and furnished very sumptuously, After tea a publio meeting was held m the Ghuroh. Rev G. N.° Buttle m the ohair, at whioh addresses were delivered by Rgv Garbett, the Chairman, Messrs Lowe (Superintendent pf the Sunday Sohool) W. Harding, and S. Chapman, Mr Harding giving an exoellent'address on the benefi s of Christianity m its tfiepts on the daily life. The choir, under Mr Wheeler, sang a number of ( Anthems, and at the olose hearty votes of thttu fca 811 who had BBBiBteS, moved by Mr Grayburn, H£? ndB * b * Mr Jobl} Bayman, were carried by aoolamauTr- AP°]°S Ie c were made for the absenoe of Ray Mr o»!7- and Captain Field of the Salvation Army. / Tbe following further particulars respecting the supposed sahnon taken m the Waikato on Tuesday week' will be interesting to our anglers. The « Auokland Herald's Hamilton correspondent wrote:— -A moßt " important m tbp Waikato river was made to-day. 1^ weighing 18 pounda-soma cay a salmon trout, oiu"*" a » r °wn trout— was taken m the nets used for oatoul^ mullet m the shallows, just above the Hamilton traiuJ , bipdge, It has the salmon's head, and the ! baok is brown, covered with spots, but it has not the yellow belly with red spots of [the ' English brook trout. It is apparently three ' or four years old, and will be probably one of ' the batches plaoed m the river by Mr Gelling, ! or of the fish which to the number of 1000 escaped from his floating pisoatorium during '' the flood. Or it may be the descendant of \ some of those hatched from the ova of the : Californian salmon plaoed m the river many ' years ago by Mr J. 0. Firth, when Chair- f 1 man of the Auckland. AooHmfttiaatioa gQQiety. !