Local & General News.

Feilding Star, Volume V, Issue 34, 22 March 1884, Page 2

Local & General News.

A letter from Mr W. S. Staite, solicitor, will appear in our next issue. A number of slight shocks of earthquakes have been felt during the week. Mr Hardcastle, R.M., is still confined to his ro m from ill health, in Wellington. Tawhiao, Rewi, Te Wheora, and Sir Georee Grey have joined the Blue Ribbon Army. They have "put in the peg" for one year only.

Messrs Stevens and Gorton will hold a sale of cattle and sheep at the Denbigh sale yards on Tuesday the 25th inst. The entries are very numerous and a big sale is confidently expected.

Seventeen thousand dentists in the United States every year pack a ton of pure gold into the teeth of their customers. And there is plenty of room for ten tons more.

The Governorship of Victoria is not so eagerly sought for now as in former years. It has been at last discovered by the people at Home, that both brains and money are needed by gentlemen reprc sen ting Royalty in the Colonies.

The Standard says that the Foxton P' ople want another J.P. appointed, who will be civil to the public, a Good Tenjplar, and always ready to act in his capacity when called upon, night or day. This man is not yet a resident in Foxton.

The schooner Alert was te leave Foxton to day for Christchurch with 25,000 feet of building timber from Messrs Warne and Beard's sawmill at Ashurst. The schooner E. U. Cameron is also loading for Oamaru with sleepers from Mr Adsett 's mill at Taonui.

Mr Oliver Wakefield, Under Secretary for Gold fields, was killed by a steam motor engine at Dunedin on Thursday last. He was crossing Prince's street, and, in avoiding an express waggon, was knocknd down by the tramway engine. The front wheels went over his legs and smashed both thigh bones so badly that amputation was necessary. He died half an hour after the operation. The deceased was on his way to Melbourne on leave of absence.

We learn from the Chronicle that the new School Inspector, Mr Bindon, has an eye to the health of the pupils. He discovered that the formation of the desks in use had the effect of giving. j*-upd shoulder., and immediately ordered the desks to be altered. Strange to say, Mr Treadwell objected to the alteration, on the grounds that the custodian found considerable inconvenience in cleaning the desks in their improved form. This means that Mr Treadwell would sacrifice the health of hundreds of children to save trouble to a sweeper.

Mr Fred. Towler has sent us eighteen varieties of apples grown in his orchard. Amongst them are The |Lord Suffield, Golden Streak, Beauty of Kent, York Pippin, Mobs Royal, and Ribs tone Pippin. These apples are all of the largest and most beautiful we have seen in the colony. In color and form they are almost perfect. The keeping qualities ot the pippins are excellent. Mr Towler has altogether 48 varieties of apple trees, 30 of which are bearing now, and during this year he has had 38 kinds in full benring. Mr Towler is now perfectly satisfied that planting onions amongst the trees has thoroughly eradicated the American blight, and he intends to continue the experiment until no possible doubt remains on the question.

The first football match of the season took place at Palmerston to-day.

A match of lawn tennis, between Palmerston and Feilding, is being played at Palmerston to-day.

By the last English mail, Mr Goodbehere, solicitor, received intelligence of the death of his father, at the ripe age of 97 years.

At a meeting of the Halcombe Licensing Committee held.on Thursday, A. P. Dou^jlas, Esq., was elected chairman for the ensuing term.

Mr A. McGlashan, baker, has taken his departure for Masterton where he will commence business. Mr McGlashan disposed of his business here to Mr Matthews.

Sportsmen who are fond of pigeon shooting will have a good season this year. These birds are now ve.y plentiful; they are also very fat, and sluggish in their flight, so that they will fall an easy prey.

The firs! sale of Messrs Stevens and Gorton was held at Cheltenham yesterday. The attendance of buyers was not large. Several lots of cattle were offered and fell at moderate prices. A number were disposed of privately at the conclusion of the auction. We are glad to know that the business done was so encourageing that these sales will be held regularly.

Patrons of the Library aad Reading Room will be glad that the Council resolved on Thursday evening to appoint au hour, from seven to eight, on Tuesday and Thursday evenings, in addition lo Saturday erenings, for the issue of books and also to have a lamp placed outside the door of that institution. Each of these provisions was certaiuly very desirable, and will be a great convemei.ee.

In London on Tuesday last it was rumoured that Prince Nayoleon had issued a manifesto and fled to Switzerland. This information was forwarded by cablegram, and we are compelled to admit that for baldness or uselessnes we have had few paralells among the many stupid telegrams we are favored with from time to time. We would like to be informed what the manifesto was about, and why the Prince fled, and who was after him.

In the course of the conversation in the Council on Thursday evening on the question of either widening the present Manchester Bridge or constructing a new one, the Engineer, in reply to a quesiion from Cr Thompson, gave as his opinion that nothing ot practical value could be done to the existing structure, and that it would be necessary to have it removed altogether and replaced by a new oue. In this opinion we believe he will be sudported by every person capable of forming a judgment on the matter.

Some of the richest men in a certain New Zealand town started in life in a very modest way, and are still plain, unpretentious people, but their sons put on a good deal of style. One of the latter who was better posted in other people's affairs than about his own family's remarked, sueeringly, to an acquaintance

— "Your father was nothing but a simple stonemason." " I know where you got that, information," remarked the other, " From your father." " How do you know that?" "Because your father used to be my father's hod carrier."

The extension of the auction sales of Messrs Halcombe and Sherwill to Ashurst, is likely to prove a most profitable move. During this week a\lr Sherwill made a visit to almost every farmer iv that neighborhood, aud from one and all he received promises of the most liberal support. The first sale wiil be held on Wednesday the 9th April, at the yards of Messrs Whibley Bros, who have kindly placed them at the disposal of the auctioneer. Stock sale yards are immediately to be erected at Lowe's hotel, where the future auctions will be held.

At the "Wanganui Supreme Court on Thursday last, iv the case of Adsett v. the Manchester Road Board, Mr Hutchison, for the plaintiff, asked for an adjournment, which he understood to be by consent, as he bad received a document signed by Mr H. Adsett, and Mr Macarthur. Chairman of the Manchester Road Board, asking for an adjournment. Mr Barnicoat stated that he believed the document to be all right, but he had received no instruction from Messrs Hankins and Baker to the eftect that an adjournment was consented to. Case adjourned till next sittings.