LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Feilding Star, Volume III, Issue 1, 17 June 1882, Page 2

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Mr H. P. Higginson, Chief Engineer for the Wellington Manawatu Railway, was a visitor to Feilding yesterday We have to thank the Government Printer for a batch of Parliamentary papers, including a copy of the contractdeed made between the Government and the Directors of the Wellington-Mana-watu Railway, which was moved for in the House by Mr Bathgate. The repairs to the Awa Huri bridge are completed, and it is now open for traffic. The work done is of a temporary character, but will stand until the whole structure is overhauled and made strong enough to resist any ordinary flood. The Maoris, as usual, collect d black mail from horsemen during its temporary closing, by towing or leading horses through the river while the owners went over on foot. We are about to lose an old friend, although a new settler in Feilding, in the person of Mr S. Rowley, our hairdresser etc., who has determined to cast in his lot with the people of Palmerston. We regret his departure and congratulate the Palmerstonians on the acquisition of a good tradesman and a worthy individual. We wish him every success in his new home. We regret to learn that our worthy fellow townsman, Mr Hughey, is dangerously ill with congestion of the lungs, brought on by exposure and over-exertion in saving his stock during the recent floods in tha Oroua River. We trust that under the able treatment of Dr Johnston, who is his medical attendant, we will soon see him about again, enjoying his customary health. We have received a copy of " The Settler's Friend," a Monthly Garden, Farm, and Fireside Journal, printed by J. P. Leary, and published by Alexander Ferguson, of Palmerston North. It is a most creditable production, and will be most useful to farmers, amateur florists, and others, who love not only the serviceable but the beautiful in nature. We wish the new Journal every success. Pleughing is now in full swing in Sandon districts, and we understand the acreage under grain this season will greatly exceed that of the last. From the nature of the prevailing weather and the promise there is of its being an exceptionally fine winter, we have no doubt that the farmers will reap a golden harvest, and we sincerely hope our prognostications will be borne out by the fact. One thing must be looked to as soon as possible, and that is the condition of the roads by which the grain has to be carried for export They are now in tolerably fair condition, but a little looking after, especially on Mount Stewart would be wise. There is no need for any expensive work. All that is required is a man to go over it occasionally to fill up the ruts, and so on.

We learn that diptheria and typhoid fever are at present existing in Wanganui, the former in a number of families. A meeting was held last night, at the Junction Hotel, Sanson, for the purpose of forming a local Football Club. There was a good attendance, and 25 gentlemen enrolled their names as members. Mr A. Smith was elected captain, secretary and treasurer. A committee was elected, consisting of Messrs Bruce, Bowater, Johnston, Edwards, Scarrow and A'Court. Matches were arranged to be played with Bulls, Halcombe, Feilding and Palmerston, during the season. We are indebted to Mr G. W. Fowles, engraver, of Feilding, for the new heading on our first page of to-day's issue. We were disappointed by a Wellington engraver, who had accepted our order and promised to complete it in time for to-day's issue, but the engraving was not to hand by last night's mail. In the mean time, we called on Mr Fowles to undertake the cutting of the block in wood, which he did in a highly satisfactory manner. Promptness and energy deserves success. The order for the piles and stringers for the temporary bridge over the Rangitikei at Kakariki was given to Messrs P. and J. Bartholomew on Saturday afternoon, and 30,000 feet were on the trucks en route on the evening of the following Monday. Some of the piles were 45 feet long and measured about two feet at the butt : the shortest length was forty-feet. When it is considered that every tree had to be felled, dragged, by bullocks out of the forest, loaded on tramway trollies, and from thence into the railway timber waggons — the amount of labor expended will appear enormous. It also speaks volumes of the capacity of the bush to be able to supply such a sudden demand for timber of special measurements as this occasion required. The trees from which the stringers were cut were taken to the sawmill and rapidly reduced to the required sizes, made ready for immediate use, and forwarded to the railway station to be also loaded on timber waggons. Cheese-making at Halcombe is being made a speciality by Mr Fergusson of that township. He forwarded a ton a few days ago to Wellington to his correspondents there. The price obtained was equal to retail prices at Halcombe. We had the pleasure of sampling some grand cheeses, weighing upwards of 40 lbs each, at the store of Mr Tompkins ; and found the quality very superior. We have no doubt that in a very few years this district will be as famous as Canterbury for this product. Mr Tompkins sent away a ton of butter last week from Halcombe. He has about twelve or f urteen dairy farmers supplying him, so that very possible encouragement isgiven them to produce as much as possible for foreign markets. A fair quantity of fungus is also offering, for which a fair price is readily obtainable. A large quantity now lies at Halcombe Railway Station ready to be forwarded. Our reporter had his feelings severely lacerated at Awa Huri the other day. He overheard the ominous words, " A narrow squeak for him, wasn't it !" proceeding from the lips of an excited individual who rushed in hot haste up the bank of the river. He dashed his spurs (purchased from G. W. Fowles, saddler, Feilding) into his fiery steed, and with skilful hand and reins (bridle was from the shop of Mr Rapley, also a saddler, Feilding), guided his steed to the store of Fraser Bros (where every thing from a needle to a plough can be purchased at the most reasonable prices) flashing his gleaming pencil (purchased from Mr Carthew, stationer, Feilding) exclaimed " Who is it ? is he saved." Mr Fraser cooly informed him it was — a turkey, and it was saved ! Our unfortunate reporter wrapped his oilskin coat (purchased from R. Loudon, draper and clothier, Feilding) about him and fled past Samuels' Endymion Hotel, where the best of liquors are sold), like a shot. The Marlborough Times of May 20th says :— Yesterday no less than 9 bales of rabbit skins made up of 37,100 skins were brought in by " Big Harry" from the Dumgree station. This will shew the extent of the pest with which our sheepfarmers have to cope. They were all killed since the 1st January last. The total weight of nine bales was 30cwt 3qrs 19lbs. At 2d per skin this shipment will realise £304 3s 4d. The Wanganui Chronicle says.— The Public Offenders Disqualification Act Amendment Bill, introduced by Mr Levestam, provides that persons who have been convicted of felonies — not being capital crimes — and have suffered the punishment to which they were sentenced, shall be restored to full civil rights at the expiration of their sentences. A most extraordinary affair, which has created a little sensation among the members of a certain Church in New Plymouth, is reported by the Taranaki Herald. There is "a man in possession" of the Church in the same fashion as a bailiff, and he has taken up his quarters there on the authority of a person or persons who, it is understood, claim to have a lien over the building, and who are determined to hold possession against all comers. It is probable (adds our contemporary) that when the worshippers assemble for divine service on Sunday next, instead of a rev gentleman being in possession of the pulpit, it will be occupied by the pseudo-bailiff. In the archieves of St. Claude, in the mountainous part of Burgundy, is preserved the following sentence : — ' Having seen all the papers of the process and heard the opinions of the doctors learned in the laws, we declare Claude Guillon to be fully attained and convicted of having taken away part of the flesh of an horse, and eating the same, on the 1st of March 1629, (being a fish day).' For this offence Guillon was beheaded on the 28th of July following. Mr Holmes has succeeded in getting his distress Bill read a second time by a very large majority in the Lower House. The best provision in it that which no doubt gained for it a majority of 21 in a House of 63, is the clause exempting goods, not the tennant's, from seizure by the landlord. The present state of the law simply legalises robbery and rapine in this respect. When the Bill comes to be committed we suspect that it will not be allowed to retain anything else. The landlord's right of priorities not a thing which too many legislators seem prepared to do sway with.

A number of advertisements are unavoidably held over from this issue. They will appear in our next. The auction sale by Messrs Halcombe and Sherwill, yesterday, of the household furniture and effects of Mr George Capper was very successful, the articles realising from fair to good prices. Merchants were somewhat astonished on 'Change when it was reported that the American ship Tabor, 1340 tons regisor, had been chartered to lake a load of wheat to Adelaide, she receiving a £2 freight for the business. It has been known for some time past that the Australian wheat crops had fallen short, and our wheat shippers who are always on the alert, took advantage of the opportunity and made immediate arrangements to send down some of our Californian grain. Wheat and flour have gone to Australia in small quantities by steam and sail at various times in the past, but this is the first entire cargo that has been despatched from this port to Australia in ten years, and it is probably only the the first of many others. Ours it the nearest source of grain supply that our Australian neighbors have, as the voyage can be made in from forty to fifty days, and it has been made in thirty-three. The rate of £2, with a good prospect, of a coal or wool charter from Australia, will probably cause our port to be taken advantage of not only by grain shippers, but also by the ships themselves, as a profitable undertaking. — Alta California. The special Wellington correspondent of the Wanganui Herald writes : — The Inspector of Prisons in his report says that on inspecting the gaols he fou d them clean and in good order, the prisoners healthy and the sanitary arrangements properly attended to. That the much needed work of prison reorganisa tiou and management is proceeding steadily and systematically, and has progressed as well as could be expected. He gives his opinion that the majority of male criminals in New Zealand prisons are not of the habitual and hardened class, but composed of incidental offenders, driven to crime under the stimulus of drink. The criminal population of the colony he regrets to report is, with few exceptions, of the most degraded class and l ng pas all possible chance of reformation. Returns appended to report show that in 1881 a total of 5360 prisoners passed through the various prisons, viz., 4386 males and 974 females, who are clatsified as follows: Criminals, 4,098 males, 951 females : debtors, 157 males and 5 females ; lunatics, 131 males and 18 females. In order that prisons should be self-supporting, each prisoner must earn about 3s 4d per diem, supposing five working days in each week. But those awaiting trial, lunatics, debtors, and many females earn nothing, it is impossible to arrive at any accurate sum which would make all prisoners earn their expenses. £4,391 was received during the year for pris n labor, road metal, &c. ; this reduces the average cost of each prisoner to £36.