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Dunstan Times, Issue 905, 22 August 1879, Page 2

Mr Pyko returned to Clyde on Saturday last.

Of the two blocks of land in the Poolburn district, Ida Valley, thrown open for selection on Monday last—one under the deferred payment, the other under the agricultural lease system- only one of the deferred pay mens sections was applied for. A special meeting of the Vincent County Council will be held m the Council Chambers, Clyde, on Monday next, for the purpose of considering proposals from the Government for transferring the Carrick Range Water Supply management to the County. The adjourned meeting of those interested in getting up a Spring Meeting wall be held in the Public Library Committee Room. Clyde, on Saturday evening (to morrow). We understand the collectors appointed will bo prepared wdth their report, totalling up to a very respectable sum. Mr Horace Bastings has resigned his seat in the Tnapeka County Council.—This loohs like leaving the ship in distress. The survey of the bloek of land on Earnscleugh run, we understand, is all but completed, but from what we can glean, despite the assurances to the contrary, the block does not comprise the land particularly sought after; hut when it will be open for selection is a question unanswerable. If the same dilatoriness is observed with this as with other blocks, we think it will be well for intending settlers to make up tbeir minds for another twelvemonth's delay.

The sale of Mr Beattie’s property, consisting of hotel, cows, horses, &c., takes place on Monday next, the 25th inst. Mr J. 0. Chappie, auctioneer. (See advt.) The house of Mr J. P. Alloway, market gardener, just outside Clyde on the Cromwell Tioad, a few days ago was burglariously entered and a lot of property stolen, amongst which was the whole of a carcase of a pig that had just been killed, also a quantity of apples. Roast pork with apple sauce is a much admired dish, and perhaps the thief’s weakness lay in that direction. The matter has been placed in the hauls of the police, but as yet they have failed to trace either pork or apples.

We desire to draw attention to the advertisement calling for tenders, for labor only, in the direction of a lot of fencing at St. B.ithans.—Mr J Ewing is the advertiser. This should bo a good job and worth the journey of some of the would-be unemployed, who have been bawling for want of work.

We have to acknowledge with thanks the receipt from the Government Printer of Nos. G and 7 of Hansard.

Mr Simpson, R.M., yesterday threatened to commit the plaintiff in a case before the Court for whispering to a witness in the box. He sai lhe was determined to put a stop to such proceedings, and when he said a thing ho meant it.

.Mr. J. lb Armstrong has consented to contest the last for Oollingwoo I near kelson, in the New Parliament in the Grey interest and has already taken bis passage North.

At a meeting of the creditors of Thomas Chalmers Reid, of Dunedin held on the loth instant, it was shown that the estate would not pay more than 41. in the pound there being only about LldO available for a dividend. The majority of those present expressed their approval of spending a portion of the amount for the purpose of instituting criminal proeoe linns against the bankrupt, for fraudulent bankruptcy. It would appear that the individual remains in gaol, as no sureties have boon found to co bail for his appearance before the next sittings of the Supreme Court.

Air M. W. Hawkins, theaccountant. who, as already reported by us (Daily Times) gave himself up to the police forembrezzling the funds of the Union Permanent Building Society, was brought before the Alagisstrates yesterday. He was charged on the {information of Mr C. S. Reeves, the chairman of the directors of the Society, with having embezzled three sums belonging to the Society, amounting to about L3o<), Mr Maeassey appeared on behalf of the prosecution. The prisoner, who was not represented by counsel, appeared to feel his position keenly, weeping bitterly during the greater part of the hearing of the case. From the evidence it appeared that the prisoner had made a free confession of his wrongdoings to Mr Nation, the Society’s solicitor. After taking tho evidence of Messrs Nation and Reeves, the hearing of the case was adjourned til Friday next, for the purpose of affording an opportunity to examine the prisoner’s books and ascertain the real state of affairs. From a trust worthy source we learn that this was done later in the day. with the result that his pecuniary affairs do not seem to he so serious as the prisiuuer has led the public to imagine. By an excdiange (Southland Weekly Times) we barn that Arthur Wm. Campbell was charged before tho Magistrate, at Invercargill, with selling an envelope containing a ticket giving an interest in a scheme by which prizes were gained by chance. Air Finn, who defended, argued that the ticket was sold by a Air Bennett, ami that no game of chance was proved, as the purchasers of the tickets got what they wanted. His Worship said he thought Campbell, who was merely an accessory before the fact, could not he convicted under the present information. He was only responsible as a principal for his agent if the latter was of weak intellect or otherwise irresponsible.

The Sydney Mail has the following : “In New Zealand a young and,l assume a pretty young lady named Fiddler is delivering lectures on cookery. What a highly useful work ! Would that the fair lecturer were here ! A young lady, or, for that matter, an old one, that can cuuk m a domestic treasure—a fairy on any man’s hearthstone, How much superior must one be that can lecture on cookery. Surely Miss Fiddler nan never lack a beau. iEglos, in the Australasian, writes as follows:—“ One of the party of timbergetters on the Hodgkinsnn (Queensland) died the other day. Poor Chailie was a favourite, and his mates determined, instead of using the customary two sheets of bark, to make a coffin for him. He was measured with a stockwhip, and the packing cases in camo were laid under contribution to furnish material. The result was that when that timber shroud was completed, the poor departed was endorsed “Pickle” on one side, “Tomato Sauce” on the other, whilst, across Ids breast was the familiar brand of the battle axe—that deadly weapon so efficiently wielded by James Hennessy and Co. ‘ I don’t know,’ says a correspondent, ‘ what the first two h.ad to do with the matter, hut upon my soul, dear Aigles, a more appropriate epitaph than the latter could not be found for a great many of those who die in Northern Queensland.’ ’ The Geelong Times is responsible for the following :—“ A singular disposition of property, we are informed, occurred last week in the neighborhood of Drysdale. A foreigner, who had been living some years there, and had acquired a considerable amount of wealth, died. By his will he directed that the sum of L2OO should be expended on his funeral, that is to say, the expenses of his interment to be first paid, and the balance to be spent in a general “ shout ” for everybody livng in the dis tvict. He also devised all his real property to such persons as were his tenants at the time of his decease. The personalty, which is no small amount, lie willed to he divided in equal shares amongst all the widows in the township. Many of tlmse, we are informed, were unknown to him ; but it is said lie took particular care to find out the names of all of them, so that none might he omitted from his charitable qequest The nationality of this benefactorof the widowed and orphans is not known. He is claimed since his death, to have been a German, a Dane, a Norwegian, ora Dutchman.” In one of the California mines a ball has been given a thousand feet below the surface. About fifty couples were invited. The ladies were dressed in caliqo costumes, and together with their escorts were lowered into the m ; ne at nine o’clock. They danced two or three hours. Mammas with daughters on their hands will do a good deal, even in this country (says London Figaro), to catch a coal Crresus, or owner of a big Bonanza, in any form ; hut actually to pursue him into this subterranean treasury is a Yankee notion as yet unimported. Our fortune-fishers will do their level host to draw out the Leviathan ayit.li a hook, hut they draw the line at diving after him. Tliev will descend to anything except the bowels of the earth, and will lower therasela'es to any extent in spirit so long as they are not require Ito lower themselves in the llesh in a basket.

The Dunedin Herald learns that an address to the officers and members of all subordinate Lodges of Hood Templars, urging thorn to active and united effort during the forthcoming election is being largely circulated. The following are a few extracts from the document : —“ Wo arc on the eve of a general election. The struggle over the country is likely to be a severe one, and most, if not all the scats w Tt he closed)' contested. Tibs c.-isls affords to temperance reformers a favorable opportunity for asserting their principles and making themselves felt in the legislative councils of the Colony, ft will he for us as Good Templars, claiming to occupy a foremost place to the increasing numbers of those who are pledged to deliver this fair land from the curse of alcohol, to improve the opportunity, and to see to it that in the coming contest we get pledge for pledge, vote for vote.” “ Kosolve that no man shall, during the coming contest have onr votes who is not prepared to give us an unequivocal promise of his vote when the Local Option Bill, for which we ask, shall be again before Parliament.” The address, which is an empassioned one, is signed by the G.W. C.T., and the G.W.S. The following is a short extract from the ‘ Church Bolls ’ of June 7, about the doings of the Bishop of Dunedin during his tripto Sweden. We must confess that, looking at the poor result on his jo irney, as compared with the win's within his own diocese, his Lordship might have been more usefully employed hern; “The Bishop of Dunedin, New Zealand, had visited Sweden and Denmark on heba'f of the Bishop of London. At Gothenburgh he confirmed twelve candidates and at Stockholm two. At Copenhagen he confirmed a single candidate. The reason of the comparative fewness of these numbers was due to the fact that the countries had been alrealy visited by an Anglican Bishop in Autum last ; but the Bishop made it an important part of his work in the North to present to the local Episcopate copies of the circular le .ter of the second Lambeth Conference, generally to cukivate friendly relations with the Native churches, being accompanied for this purpose by the Rev. T. S. May, a secretary of the Anglo-Continental Society. We Evening Star are indebted to Mr W. 0 Arthur, lion, secretary for the Otago Acclimatisation Society, for the following information concerning the Society's proceedings as opportunity offers all very largo trout are to be turned out in the Clutha or Lake Waibola, it being considered unwise to liberate them in streams containing young trout. It was reported that from 20,000 to 25,00 ova were required to satisfy applications from kindred societies

in various parts of the Colony. Mr F. D. ■Rich, of Bushy Park, reported that he had been very successful in turning out the first lot of red deer, consisting'of two stags and four hinds, which ho had; conveyed in a covered waggon to Trotter’s Gorge, where ho liberated them without any difficulty. The deer immediately took to the wilds with evident relish. The Council decided to send its best thanks and congratulations to Mr Rich, and to present two hinds (red deei) to the Hawkes Bay Society ; but declined a similar request from the Lakes Society, because the cost of conveyance was so great.

A “canny Scot. ” the owner of 278 broad acres, made his bow before the Assessment Court for the County of Bruce on Wednesday last, for the purpose of making a most vigorous appeal against the possibility of bis being mulcted in the sum of £3 Cs 8J under the Land Tax Act. When it came to his turn, he rose boldly to his feet, and after a slight fit of coughing informed his Worship that when he got the notice of the valuation it fairly took away his breath, and that he had travelled 30 mile to object to this most unjustly fixed amount. In reply to his Worship, he stated that he had not brought any witness, as that would have made the undertaking altogether too expensive. Having extracted from his raysterous pockets an almost incalculable number of plans and other documents, he proceeded to demonstrate that the land was at times a perfect lake, and v as at most worth 30s an acre. However, the Bench was not to he gulled so easily, and the valuator, on being put into the box, not only satisfactorily proved that the land was worth from L 5 10a to L 6 per acre, but also happened to add that upon the occasion of his visit to the objector, he met with a by no means civil reception, and had great difficulty in extracting the most necessary information. Hereupon his Worship a Iministered a wellearned rebuke, and kindly intimated to the troublesome customer, that he would sustain the valuation T'he weary pilgrim immediately rushed out in disgust, and co llmenced the return trip to his distant hearth, a wiser, if not a better man.—Bruce Herald.

Under the heading “ How far the Eagle Screams, the following paragraph appears in a Philadelphia paper;— Few people are aware that the proud boast of Englishmen that the sun never sets on the British Empire is equally applicable to the United States. Instead of being the western limit of the Union, San Francisco is only about midway between the furthest Aleutian Isle, acquired by our purchase of Alaska, and Eastport, He. Our territory extends through 197 degrees more than half-way round the globe. The Rocky Mountain Piesbyterian, in commenting on this fact, says : “ When the sun is giving its goodnight kiss to our westernmost isle, on the confines of Behring ssea, it is already flooding the holds and forests of Maine with its morning light, and in the eastern part of that State is more than an hour high. At the very moment when the Aleutian fi-h----erman, warned by the approaching shade of night, is pulling his canoe towards the shore, the woo.lchopper of Maine is beginning to make the forest echo with the stirring music of his axe.”

The writer of “Lon lon Town Talk” in the Melbourne Argus says:- “lam much mistaken if the Prince of Wales has not put his foot in it in espousing the cause of tile gentlemen who wish to marry their wives’ sisters. For my own part I have no opinion on the matter ; hut on happening to say so- i.e., remarking on it as being an open question—the other night in female society, 1 found that 1 had upset the whole beehive. “It was so like a man;” “so thoroughly selllsh, and careless of the feelings of others,” &c. When I asked for an explanation, I got it with something added. “ How could a wife, being ill, send for her younger sister to take care of dear Jack, if this horrid proposition became law ? She would rather come down half dead, and in her dressing gown, than permit such a dangerous tete-a-tele." As for the sister-in-law taking care of his house and children when the wife was dead, that of course would he no longer possible. Upon my word I was so far convinced (as well as being veryfrightened) as to allow that the measure will be highly inconvenient to the upper classes. Whether the advantages conferred upon the lower will bo so material as to compensate for this, I am not in a position to jiulge. What struck me, however, as being intensely significant of the intensity of the feeling against it was that the Prince of Wales, who is the especial favourite of the ladies, seemed to have forfeited their good opinion altogether by his advocacy of the Bill. “ Everybody knows why he does it,” they said. “ It’s because his sister Beatrice wants to marry the Duke of Hesse.” I was quite glad to leave the loom with my life and my hair of beach”