CLYDE, FRIDAY, MARCH 6, 1885.

Dunstan Times, Issue 1201, 6 March 1885, Page 2

CLYDE, FRIDAY, MARCH 6, 1885.

The annual soiree and concert in connection with the Alexandra and Clyde Presbyterian Church will be held in the Town Hall, Alexandra, this Friday evening. Great pains have been taken by the Committee to mak - the affair enjoyable, and we have little doubt but that they will succeed. The programme of the concert in another column is a most attrac ivej'ora, and of itself should draw-together a lot of well wishers of the Church.

The Secretary of the Dunstan Hospital Committee requests us to notifiy that the usual month y meeting will be held on Monday next, the 9th insfc., at 8 p.m.

Mr, Fleming Norton, thb inimitable mimicist, appeared in Clyde on Friday .evening last in his citver and amusing entertainment, .; and we may fairly say Achieved a perfect success. Mr Norton in his particular iue occupies a front position, and deserves to the full the high praises accorded him wherever ha guts. Bis rapid changes of dress, the won Lrful power of suiting his voio ; to the character he is per. sonating, and his facial make up are fairly bewildering, and must perforce, demand, hearty applause, While Mr Norton’s characters range from the bluff “ Country Yokel” to the young-old lady who still thinks of winning a husband, he is as it were to the manner born to them, being true to nature and free from vulgarity, Mr Norton requires but to be known to be appreciated.

Ada Mantua informs ua that the three first prizes in his Dunedin Cup consultation went as follows—lst, to a mus’c teacher, Dunedin j 2nd, to a workman in an Invercargill br.wery. 3rd, to a carpenter in Dunedin.

At the Alexandra South R. M. Court on Monday last, Henry Dennits Wilcox, post master and telegraphist at that place, was charged on the information of James Kennedy and telegraph inspector of Hew Zealand, on three charges of embezzling Government monies. From the evidence adduced it appeared that in all accused was Ll3O deficient, and tliri he was unable to explain same, further than that he got into debt and had, on being pressed used the monies of his office. Evidence having been taken on the three charges, accused was committed to take his trial at the next Criminal Sittings, Dunedin, to be held on the eighth of April next.

No little consternation was created among business men in the district last week by a general seizure of all weights and scales and measures with a view of testing their accuracy. The result of the test was to discover that with but few exceptions all were found to be incorrect, and while it is but fair to say there were no glaring instances of light weights or faulty scales, it is yet true convictions were obtained in every case, even though the weights were but a drachm or so in error, and the scales by just the bare turn of the scale. The Act being very explicit, nothing remained but to fine, and Mr Hickson, R. M., mulcted the offenders each in a fine of 2s 6d and costs, the penalty in each case amounting to ten shillings. Beach won the sculling match with Clifford at Sydney on Saturday last very easily. Ho led all the way, and was two lengths ahead at the finish. Little interest was taken in the match, and the attendance of spectators was miserable.

A peculiar atmospherical phenomenon was witnessed in Adelaide recently. The avhole of the north-eastern portion of the sky was covered with a luminous stratum of clouts. When the diffused luminous had cleared away a centre patch of brigTit'ligU,' having the appearance of a moon|' remained, at an altitude of"4odeg, and with a' diameter, ot abopt -Sdeg, presenting the appearance of a ibidnight sun in the'arctic regions, .y .ui r J ySX-' v" ;

Th# (Ureotor* of the Bank of England hat# Iwued an brder prohibiting any clerk cou* neoted with the establishment from marry* |ng whilo.his Income is less than Ll6O * y«f- Many of the clerical force were on* Mfcedto be married at the time the order was given, and as there are among them some who are earning less than the'amount specified, they are in a quandary. There is the humiliation of being unable to carry out their promise ; the disappointed hopes of their happiness : the mortification of being obliged to explain the situation to a lady all these combine to overwhelm the unfortunate who are caught at the.'momenfc of their engagement by the ukask of the bank. The columns of the are filled with the complaints of these dlstressed mortals, many of whom “are fur. nished with the alternative of a- shit ’ for breach of promise or the loss of their situation.

Lord Chief Justice Coleridge, > jn an address to the Grand Jury at the opening of the antnmn :Assise*, at Bedford, England the other day, spoke at length on the character. of .the punishment which Justices of the Peace frequently inflicted. H 0 strongly condemned the passing of heavy sentences for trifling offences, such as pilfering and the like, believing that such a method was but manufacturing criminals instead of correcting them. In illustration he cited a case where two urchins were sent to prison for three months, with hard labour, for the paltry theft of a few apples from an orchard-an offence of which perhaps many of the magistrates themselves were guilty when they were boys. If heavy s nfences were awarded in such cases, there were no others which were adequately severe for far graver crimes which frequent* ly come before Judges at Assizes,

A writer says :-Tnere is aa evil in con. neotion with the rabbit slaying aßainat which the utmost precaution should be used. It is well known that rabbits, as soon as they have eaten poison, rush off to the nearest water, where they generally die frequently falling into the water and if not immediately removed their bodies putrify, and along with the poison they contain,' contaminate, to water to such an extent aa to render it deadly to any animal that partakes of it, so it will be necessary to frequently examine and clear of the dead bodies all creeks waterholes and the like to which they may have access.

A late issue of the Manawafw Timet g ayai—Just after the business of the District Court had concluded, two legai gentleman backed up their opinions with their fists. Pur a few seconds wigs and long robes were flying'about in confusion, and one of the combatants was struck in the eye. No law points were involve !in this animated discussion, though the aigu« mentswere forcible. The parties in the case were separated by the bystanders, and it is understood that the Kesid.nt Magistrate asked to investigate the matter,

Going from home for news, we learn fiom the Hobart Mercury that an acc'idei.t of a rather peon i,ir natue happened to a lad named AloLareu, of Albertnwn, New Zea, land. While tinployed penning cheep in ihe Wanaka woolshed he had fonn i g mo dynamite caps somewheie, ami not knowing what they were, he carried a few in bis vest pocket, while he had one dangling as an ornament from his watch chain. In jamping a fence, an explosion occurred, wounding him In the right thigh, and lacera ing his ear, which bled profusely. He thought he had been shot, and no little consternation for a time prevailed. It being breakfast time, a hasty search was made round the shed for the supposed misc-eant, who, of course could not be found, but a dynamite cap was picked up on the woolshed floor, thereby revealing the causa of the explosion. Happily the lad’s wounds are not of a serious nature. This is but another instance of the folly of leaving dangerous explosives lying about.

A ventriloquist was giving a show the other day in one of the suburbs. The landlord of a well-known hotel thought he would have a bit of a joke, and placed the dolls on the table, covering them over with his good lady’s shawl. The police were communicated with, and “ from information received,’’ Sergt. —— (an Irishman, by the same token) put in an appearance. No, it never struck the man in blue to examine the “corpses.” Taking it for granted they were dead, he hauled out his book and pencil and commenced operations. “She,” pointing to me of the dolls, “is not so very young,” exclaimed the sorrowstricken sergeant, as he made an entry for the means of identification, of “ red stockings and patent leather shoes.” The chances are that the coroner would have been sent for if the landlord had not commenced to giggle and so put an end to the affair.

By the way (says the author of “Sydney Gossip ” in the Australasian), a sort of jocoserious ” turn was given to tbs inquest oh the Cootamundra railway accident by that intercolonial boss betting man, Joe Thomson. He, with a number of bookmakers, were passengers iu the train, and thus he described his pecuniary losses :—“ I had a LlO note, . 10 L 5 notes, and a lot of cheques in my trousers pocket when the smash came, but when I struck the shore, and asked Harry Giles to feel in my pockets for the ‘ stuff,’ he found ‘nix.* ” One might fi id more elegant language than Joe’s whereby to depict his losses, but the Doric simplicity of Joe’s diction is more pathetic than any possible word-painting.

The following is taken from a Wairarapa paper “C. Hallard, the purchaser of the gate privileges at the Taratahi-Carterton Jockey Club, desires to thank the Wellington people who arrived by the 12 o’clock - train for the patience they displayed in I waiting to pny their entrance.' One man ■ ' jumped the fence without) and twq or three hundred followed like a [ffoch of sheep.

There is a street in Wellington rejoicing in the name of Waring Taylor street. The residents dont seem to appreciate the honor, and are agitating to have it changed to either Drummond street nr Jervois street.

A cue interesting to the evening papers throughout New Zealand will shortly be tried at Palmerston North. where the propropriator of the ifanawatu Standard has been, or is to be, served with a summons for keeping some of his boys at work on Saturday afternoons. The question is whether the Bradshaw Aot applies to - printing? offices.

JJTho formation of the first section of the Otago Central Railway is now completed, and tenders will be called at once for platelaying, after-which-the Wingatui section will be opened for traffic and utilised for the oonveyance of the material tor the Winga* tni viaduct. 4 -

What are the deserts of a wife-beater is, of course, a . matter of opinion.; but the Napier R. M. does not at any rate seem to err on the side Of severity, A than named Robert And a feff {lays ago before him forr-an Be had been in thehabit ofsP3re*ting'ber for years. On the occasion referiwl to hafirst struck her an the face.; then, when she tried to run from the 1 house, struck her with a broom on the forehead, “ such a violent blow that it left a nasty scar,-.about three inches in length,” and as she continued running, he threw half a brick at»her and knocked her senseless, in whjchloqndition she remained (or SO minutes.; sentenced him to seven days’ hara labour, and bound him over to keep the peace for three months, which really seems a very mild punishment. Another mysterious crime|attributed to the Nihilists has just been discovered at Moscow. The police had their attention Attracted to the cellar of an old unoccupied building by the terrible smell which pro* •defied from the place. They found in the cellar the decaying corpse of (P young man whose identyhad been effectually destroyed by the use of vitriol. The fluid had been liberally dashed over the victim, and the Lead, neck, chest, and arms were burned. In addition to this; his head had been smashed, and two large stones with which this evidently had been done were found, covered with blood and tufts of hair, lying near the body. The police believe the victim ■was some young student who had joined •the Nihilists and betrayed -.sOme of theT ssersts. Their theory is that he was decoyed into the cellar by the conspira ors, and after being disfigured by vitriol, finally murdered and left to rot. Search is being mada in the various colleges to ascertain if any ot tho students are missing.