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Evening Star, Issue 3716, 20 January 1875, Page 2

The scholastic profession does not appear to be in good grace in Marlborough, where a teacher recently resigned in order to commence business as a carpenter. The Steele-Keogh company continues to do a capital business at Invercargill. They have now played there thirty-five nights, and the local papers say the company continues to revel in “ unabated popularity.” By the Suez mail to-day there were despatched 2,771 letters and 5,205 newspapers, and via San Prancisco, per Wellington, on Saturday, 3,885 letters and 5,400 newspapers. Of course, only letters specially addressed are forwarded via Suez.

For the seven events which comprise the Oamaru meeting on March 9, L 290 is offered in prizes.—A match at Oamaru between Mr Grove’s Koro and'Mr Smart’s Presto, for 1-30 a-side, distance two miles, was easily won by the former.— Papapa returned to his stable at Auckland by the Wonga Wonga. The Southland Acclimatisation Society is doing its best to stock the rivers -of that district with trout. Very recently 500 brown trout were placed in th? Makerewa, and an equal number in the Waihopai. During the season 700 salmon trout have been deposited in the New River, and 2,000 have yet to be distributed.

Messrs Hawking and Co., of Lyttelton, have signed a contract for the extension of Rattray street Jetty, under the Otago Harbor Board. The amount of their tender is L 12.951. They make no difference between cash and debentures, but take the latter at par. The Board have elected to pay in debentures.

A considerable quantity of additional telegraph wire is now being stretched in both islands. Two additional wires are being laid between Christchurch aud the Bluff, so that soon there will no fewer than live wires between Dunedin and Christchurch. In th>North Island also several additional wires are being put up in different directions, Ahaura, on the West Coast, and everything it had a recent escape from total obliteration. A waggoner named Lardi paesed through it the other day with his team, and shortly afterwards the children playing about the main street began picking, up fragments of a black glittering substance which turned out to be blasting powder. The waggon was followed, and the powder train was distinctly traced i o about a mile from the town, where the driver had stopped. It was then found, and the finders obtained the information with hair standing on end, ttmt ttotare wnte cm* fifty barrels of

blasting powder among the cargo in the waggon, and that one of them had been broken, scattering its contents ia all directions.

There will shortly be a vacancy in the representation for Oaraaru Country district in the Provincial Council, as Dr Webster, the present member, purposes leaving for England, per Calypso, in about three weeks. Dr Webster also resigns his position as an unofficial member of the Government. The ‘North Otago Times’ says ;—“ Dr Webster expects to be absent from the Colony for two years. The names of Messrs Steward, M.H. R., and D. Hutcheson are already mentioned as probable candidates for the vacancy.”

From the official meteorological report for December it appears that the mean height of the barometer at the Dunedin Observatory was 29.662iu.; the highest reading being 30.085 on the Ist, and the lowest 29.266 on the 21st. The mean temperature of the air was 64.3, the greatest heat in the shade being 76 on the 30th, the greatest cold at 40 on the sth. The total range of temperature in the shade was, therefore, 36. the mean daily range being 15.1. The maximum solar radiation was 163 on the 2nd, the minimum terrestrial radiation 38 on the 3rd. The extreme range between the reading of exposed thermometers was, therefore, 88 The total rainfall was 3.202. It Ml on thirteen days, the maximum rainfall in any twentyfour hours being .762 in. on the 4th S and N.E. winds mostly prevailed. The mean diurn il horizontal movement of the air was 106 miles, and the maximum velocity for the month 225 miles on the sth.

Canada’s bright and sensible GovernorGeneral, Lord Dufferin, has given the Dominion a new by-word, which has spread with electric rapidity from one end of Canada to the other. On his voyage oat, being called upon by the emigrants to address them, he alluded to this phrase, which had grated harshly on his ears “He had the misfortune to have too many children.” Lord D. s iid: “ 1 r., marked that perhans no better idea could be given ot the difference between i he old country and their new home than by the fact that whereas in ''ngland a struggling man be overweighted in the batile ot life by a numerous family, in the land u> which they were going a man could scarcely have too mmy children.” Here I w*s applauded lustily, with a cheerful accompaniment of laughter also, when I was further greeted with an approving thump on the back by a stalwart young emigrant, who cried out, ti Right you are, sir; that’s what Cvo been telling Erai'y.” The Canadians hj ive gob the slang phrase, “ That’s what I’ve been telling Emily,” having had the anecdote made familiar by going thejrounds of the papers, and one hears everywhere, “That’s what I’ve been telling Emily.”

The most precocious youth in the Colony, is, we should say, the lad who though only eight years of age wrote the following letter to a friend of about the same age as himself. The f Nelson Colonist,’ which publishos the letter vouches for its authenticity and declares it to be genuine. Names only are suppressed 'in this precious document. “Christchurch, December 6, 1874 : Dear H , I wrote to you and A T , but as yet have received no replies from either of you. You remember a young lady, or a girl some would call her, staying at your place, with red hair, named , She desired me to send her love with fifty kisses to you, but I told her you were about to marry Miss ,so she said, ‘Never mind?’ lam working at Messrs —’s ;it is nothing to do. but write. lam quite disgusted with the Christchurch giCs, and am glad to say that I have escaped fr un that hj it love affair of mine that I wrote to you about : I believe sheistobe Mrs ,or something of that sort. til I hope is that she won’t ruin him, for he’ll have to be tolerably rich to keep her in clothes, as she likes showing off her things On Sunday she looks up 'into the chancel and tries to make me laugh, but I say to myself ‘ N T ot for do.seph,’ and look t’other way Our organ will bo the largest in New Zealand in a week; it is a perfect monster, and the sound it makes is beautiful. This is only a very .‘hart letter, and is otly written to remind you to write quickly to your affectionate friend, ...

It is curious to watch the current development of newspaper literature in America. While the papers of the Western States notably the New York journals—are exhibiting unheard of enterprise, those on the Pacific slope are going iu for Jeamesism of the advapeqd type. We give a sample of each. Gordon Bentutft, of the ‘ Mew York Herald,’ .not only gave at hie oym expense the splendied long range prize carried off by the Irish team, but he published in tha '/ Herald ’ the next morning after the contest a kind of report of the great event that made even Americans store. There was a page of excellent letter-press, describing everything, the ground at Greedra-por, the spectators, the competitors, the firing, asd with this report was given a number of w;oci -engravings, each representing a target, and showing not only the “outer,” “centre,” and the “ bull's eye,” but also the very spot on the target where every bullet hit. This unique way of i cording the comparative skill and success of the Irish and American marksmen took immensely in New York. It was published in the morning at the usual price, ten cents or fivepim-’e per copy, and at noon that day a copy was in demand for a dollar. When the daughter of Sharon, the San Francisco millionaire, was married, the ‘Chronicle’ and other papers gave most minute descripfona of the wedding pageant. But the * Chronicle ’ outbid its contemporaries by giving not only a plan pf the house in which the bride was to dwell, but a statement of every article of furniture, {md a most minute desc iption of the bridal .chamber bed, and bedding, the cost of each article that wept to make up the wedding garments, a lipt of the presents, and a detailed history of Sharon and his ancestors. At the recent marriage of Colonel Grant the bride’s underlinea was described, its cost when purchased, and the number of pieces made known to an admiring world.

Aii i!l-t-eated Wife ” should make her complaints to the police.

.We thank the Rev Dr Copland for a cony of his work, “The Testimony Attested.” It is stated to be a popular manual of the evidence in support of the authority and inspiration of the Scriptures.” We shall give a more extended notice of it when we have had a opportunity an of examining its contents.

At a meeting held in the Cavcrsham Public library on Monday evening, it was resolved to take the necessary steps for opening a Court of AO.h. there. Bro. J. Wilsou, secretary of Court Pride of Dunedin, explained the objects aud working of the Order, after which several persons came forward and signed the necessary form of application.

Mr R. T. Wheeler, the agent here for Mr R. P. Whitworth’s works, has sent us the latest of that gentleman. Under the title of Cobb’s Box,” Mr Whitworth tells, in his happiest manner, a number of talcs suited to all temperaments, which are supposed to be narrated by the drivers and passengers on the boxes of yartojis|of Cobb’s coaches/ To these are added graphic descriptions of Australian New Zealand scenery, and a sketch of King Cobb. The contents of the hook are On the Rox, King Cobb, The Murder by the Hut (New Zealand), How Lame Bradly Came up to lime (Victoria), The Dream Witness (Queensland), Macbeth Under Difficulties (New South Wales), The Ghost in the Glass (Tasmania), sStaSr aad A Gtim ,j “