Local & General News.

Feilding Star, Volume VI, Issue 31, 26 August 1884, Page 2

Local & General News.

There was a sharp shock of earthquake felt here early on Sunday morning. We have to acknowledge receipt of the August number of the Industrial Gazotte. We observe that this journal improves with each issue. A mail direct for England, per Tonftariro will close here to-morrow at 7 p.m. Letters should be marked '* per Tougar iro." A large number of cases, under the. prohibitive clauses of the Licensing Act, and for Sunday trading, will be heard at an early sitting of the R.M. Court here. Mr W. H. Voreker-Bindon, Inspector of Schools for the Wanganui district, will examine the Feilding State School on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, the 2nd, 3rd, and 4ih of October respectively. Th» result of the inquiry into the accident to the Riugaroouia at Akaroa Heads is that the captain and officers have had their certificates returned to them. They were not to blame in any way. The war between France and China will affect one of pur local industries considerably. The trade in fungus has already suffered, and local buyers are unable to give more than half the rate* which obtained last year. The Ross Mercury calls the Press Association agent tnere " a drivelling idiot" for sending misleading telegrams away on the subject of the gold finds at Cedar Creek. It says there is not a particle ot truth in the reports. Asher's exhibition of arts is now open at Hamilton's old shop in Manchester street. The advertisement elsewhere only gives a faint idea of the numerous and i various novelties contained in the exhibition, to which, as the admission is free, we would advise our readers to pay a visit and see for themselves. A man named Wakrill was found dead in bed at the Coffee Palace, Dunedin, on Saturday-night last. He was in his night shirt under the bedclothes, and had a revolver in his hand, with which he had shot himself t'. rough the mouth. He was for some time on board the whaler Splendid, and had been drinking heavily since the 9th instant. Tenders will be accepted for running the mails between Feilding and Awahuri on the 27th pros., and no provision is made for more than a tri-woekly servicp. If the settlers and business people thrre rrally want a daily mail service, they must be " up and doing " at once, or the opportunity will be missed. A petition should be forwarded without any further delay. Prior to commencing the stock sale on Tuesday last, at Bulls, the auctioneer (Colonel Gorton) took occasion to remark that the firm were very much annoyed by vendors who gave them stock for sale, which, were duly advertised, and brought buyers to the sale to find that such stock were not in the yards, the vendors having sold the stock from off their farms. The firm intended, so the auctioneer said, to charge such vendors commission in the future, even if they had to take a case to be tested at the R.M. Court. -Standard. Mr >T. W. Thompson, who moved the amendment to the Address in-Reply, was one ot the members of the Grey Ministry. He succeeded Mr W. Gisborne a» Minister for Lands three months before the Grey Administration retired from office A good story is told of him. A friend, who was also a member of the House, was telling him of the improvement that had been effected in the Parliament Buildings, especially in the lavatory department. "Ye can noo," said he, "wash you han»' in comfort." " Aye, aye," re plied Mr Thomson, " but dinna ye think that a' these things will demoralise the members ?" .. • The Yunkees are becoming notorious for the invention of 'infernal machines. Tlieir latest achievement, which hails from. Boston, is, however, for use in open warfare, and is designated the '* War Turtle.',' It is a steel- clad machine, and is propelled by an engine of irresistible power, enclosed in its body* It creeps slowly but surely along the ground, and can even aseend a ateep hill. In addition to discharging 6,000 bullets a minute, Jit is able to throw with accuracy' tw'ent/ dynamite bombs in the same space bf time. Only two* men are required jto" direet the movements of the machine, and they are fully protected'.' the "^War Turtle," as yet, has no,s been publicly tested.. •• .-,_ . ...... ■ .•:; u -; ; „ <, / ■ .■ The Great Diorama of the World was exhibited at the Public Hall o'ri'saturday ! and 1 iMoriday evenings. 'The attendance on neither occasion was' very l large, owing to public meetings being heli in other places in town. The views are splendid, and it is not too much ;to say that theyare the best of the kind we have seen in~ the Colony. The great attraction was the wonderful phenakistoscope, and the applause when this was being produced was loud and prolonged., 'he prizes' given away were up to .the promises made,, and notwithstanding the small attendance, 'the last prize of a goo.d silver hunting watch was donated.

Mrs Mansell has desired us to express her heartfelt gratitude to those friends ■ who attended the funeral of her deceased husband, yesterday. The postmaster informs us that the San Francisco mail will arrive this evening from Wanganui and the window will be kept open for the delivery of letters from 8.15 to 8.45 p.m. Messrs Stevens and Gorton's stock sale this afternoon was well attendedThe bidding was not spirited, btftrfair prices were realised, find all the lots which were not sold under the hammer were after wards quitted at the vendors' reserves. We learn from the Napier Telegraph that at Makatoku, on the land recently sold by the Government, two new sawmills are being erected in the centre of a grand forest of totara. Totara is now being offered at the mills for 11s. The fifth number of The Wanganui Collegian has reached us. This is really a most excellent production and reflects great credit on the compilers. We observe that several Feildmg boys »re mentioned with honor in its columns as good , athletes, musicians, Ac. A contribution I entitled " A ride from Feilding to Lichfield " is from the pen of one of them. The Woodville farmers, says the Post, nre acting injuriously to their own interests in not guaranteeing the necessary supply of milk to the new dairy factory. The general experience of dairy factories throughout the colony has been that 4d per gallon (the price offered to the Woodville settlers) the farmer can make £10 per annum out of each cow. Possibly the woodville wiseacres think they can earn more than this by making butter. If they can they are more fortunate than settlers in other parts of the colony. We learn from the Gazette that tenders will be received at the Chief Post Office, Wellington, until Saturday, the 27th oE September, for the conveyance of mailß as follows : — Bulls and Sanson, thrice weekly ; Bulls, Sanson, Scott's Ferry, and Parawanui, returning to Bulls, thrice weekly ; Feilding and Awahuri, twice and thrice weekly ; Feilding and Kiwi tea,twice weekly ; Makino and Cunningham's, weekly; Sanson and Campbell town, twice weekly. Forms of tender, with the terms and conditions of contract, may be obtained at any post office. No tender will be considered unless made on the printed form. -'*■■"'. •"' ■ " \'. At the R.M. Court yesterday, 'before F. Y. Lethbridge, Esq., J.P., an impounding case was heard in which certain poundage fees had been paid by Mr James Whisker under protest to release some cattle from the Awahuri Pound. The point in question was whether a poundkeeper was entitled to charge poundage fees for every day that the cattle were in the pound, but the court ruled that this clause only applied to sustenance fees and ordered the excess charged to be returned to the complainant, each party to pay their own costs. Our contemporary the Wanganui Herald says : — •' Mias Carry Nelson opened to a fair house on Saturday night. In the first piece, ' Married bliss,' Miss Nelson acted with spirit, and sang several songs in good style. Mr McFaydep and Miss Lottie rendered assistance during the evening, the latter bring deserve edly encored- for her 'graceful dancing. ' The daughter of the regiment ' was the concluding piece, and in the course of this Miss Nelson played and sang several martial airs with good effect." This company will appear in Feilding on next Friday and Saturday evenings, at the Public Hall, when the " music and mirth I loving " section of this community will roll up in plenty.