Local and General News

Feilding Star, Volume XIII, Issue 120, 7 April 1892, Page 2

Local and General News

_ ♦ We are advised from Wellington that there is a comet m the south east now visible to the naked eve. Its business hours are from three to five o'clock in the morning. A new star has just revealed hersolf m the Constellation Auriga. She was first sighted by the llev Thomas D. Anderson. D.Sc, Edinburgh, on January 24. Tlie new star has created quite a spnsntion in the Old World. The " much travelled Symthe " is just " clean mad " because he can't rim her to the Colonies. Yesterday while the school children were out of school for iunch a boy, about thirteen years old, named Sydney Avant (an adopted son of Mr F. Pope), mounted anoiher school boy's horse without saddle or briddlfi. Some of the boys commenced to pelt the animal, with the re . suit that the horse threw Avant, breaking his arm near the wrist. Dr Sorley set the fracture. We are informed by the Manawafu Times :— " That the formation of a Musical Union in Palmerston is not a premature movement is fully evidenced by the way in which the Union is progressing. Mr Drew has now over 70 working beside honorary members, on his books, and he anticipates that he will receive a great many more." The music loving people of Feilding might follow the exn ample of Palmerston in this respect. A Scotch druggist was aroused by the ringing of his night bell. He arose, went downstairs, and served a customer with a dose of salts. His wife grumbled, " What profit did you get out of that penny," was the reply. " And for that ha'penny you'll be awake a long time," rejoined the wife " Aweel," replied the placid druggist, " the Apse of salts will keep him awakt; much loriger. Let us thank Heaven that we have'the profit and not the pain of the transaction,"* We have it on excellent authority that the .Vla.sterton people are thinking of running quite a new man for the Masterton scat nt tbe next election in the interests of the Opposition, Some doubts ] sajs tlio Pahiatua Star, appear to exist as to whether Mr Beet ham could b >ut the present, member, and as they do not want the mortification of a second licking they are endeavouring to bring out a man of who.se election they can be certain. If a real working man came forward it would be a pretty figlit.

The Palmerston North Hospital Board meet to-day. Tenders for public works close at the Manchester Eoad Board office to-morrow. The annual meeting of the WellingtonManawatu Eailway Company was held at Wellington yesterday. A dividend of 5 per cent was declared. The weasels are killing off the hares in considerable numbers about here. The Acclimatisation Society should wake up. \ Poachers are also abroad. ! The football club open the season next ! Saturday with a scratch match comraen- ! cinq at 3 p.m. All the members, old and new, are requested to roll up to time. Captain Edwin telegraphs :— Weather forecast for 24 hours from 9 a.m. to-day — Warnings for northerly gales and rain have been sent to all places southward of N.apier and New Plymouth. A traveller complains that some settler on the Ashurst road leaves his buggy in such a position, close to the road inside a cutting, as to be (in object of terror to horses ridden or driven past it. Recently Mr W. Eathbone sent over to this coast, from Waipawa, a mob of 1200 sheep to a settler residing near New Plymouth, aud yesterday a smaller mob of 747 reached his farm near Colyton. A resident in the Makino has complained to us that there are certain dead trees overhanging the road, the decayed limbs falling from which may prove dangerous to persons passing underneath. They are near the section of Mr J. Bray. Said a tourist : ' The guide book says, Sandy, that yer ancestors made their living by cattle-lifting. Now, I suppose if I'd been there they'd have tried to lift me too?' Sandy : 'Na, na, sir ; ye'd hae been quite safe ; they never fashed them* selves aboot the calves.' It will be remembered that a few days ago Mr Walter Haybittle, who is to aing atthe|Weßleyan concert to-morrow night, was injured by a fall from a horse. Mr Haybittle is now in town and informs us that though he is still very stiff, and has hardly recovered from the shock ho received, yet he will do his level best to promote the success of the entertainment. To-day Mr J. S. Milson announces that on Saturday next he will open a book and stationery depot, and fancy goods bazaar in premises opposite Eade's Corner Furniture Warehouse, Manchester street. As Mr Milson is well known in the town and district, and is an entei Ipnsiug and pushing young man, he is certain to obtain a fair share of the patronage of the public. The Awahuri public School which has been closed for the past three weeks is now re-opened. The school was closed for the purpose of getting repairs done. The building has been thoroughly overhauled inside and out. The old shingles have been taken off and the roof coyered with iron, and ventilators put in. Besides these improvements the school has been painted afresh and a new class room put up. This room wall be a great convenience to the teachers, as before all the work had to be done in the mam building. The match arranged between the Scotch und English, to be played on the the Oval yesterday afternoon, did not eventuate owing to several of those picked not turning up. However, a scratch match was played between sides picked by Kitchen and Bellve, which resulted in a win for the team captained by Belive by a goal to nothing. Considering the majority of the players were novices at the game several of them showed good form and with practice should make first class players. Many of our readers will, no doubt, remember that some considerable time ago the committee of the Fire Brigade issued tickets for an art union. As sufficient numbers were not taken up by the public, the drawing did not take place. In order to keep faith with the holders of such tickets as were purchased, the Secretary gives notice that they are requested to present them at Mr Bray's office, before the 30th instant, where they will be exchanged for cash or cou» pons. We direct special attention to the opening advertisement of the Cash Exchange Co-operatiye Co. of this town. The pubhe are invited to inspect the stock and premises on Saturday next, the opening day. The unique inducements offered by the company should certainly receive a response from all cash bujers throughout the district. They will not only get goods at the lowest possible prices, but will in addition receive a dividend of the profits in January next. We wish the company all success in their new departure. Ordinarily the l!few Plymouth people indulge in a continual crow about the beauties and grandeur of Mount Egmont just as much if they built that blooming anthill, but lately they have " broken out in a fresh place " and are bragging about '• their " climate. The Taranaki Herald says : — As showing what a grand climate we possess in Taranaki we have been seen in a garden in New Plymouth a camellia tree and rose bush (cloth of gold) both with flowers on them. Camellias usually flower in winter, and roses m the spring, but here we find them both blooming in the autumn. Pliny, the Roman historian, says in one passage that " among the Northern Indians " (Hindus) "there are certain ants that extract gold from the mines ; and tins gold, which they extract in winter, the Indians rob them of in summer." J The curious fact comes out that while there is no such species of ants in India there is one to which the description fairly applies in North America. The poffonomyrmex Occidentalis covers the dome of its hillock pith a mosaic of fragments of rocks, fossils, ores, etc. which it obtains by a regular mining operation beneath the surface of the earth. As the soil there is often auriferous, among the fragments stuck over the ant-hill there occur frequent spangles of gold, which are picked off and collected by the natives- Either when Pliny wrote there was a species of a&tin North America which, was known to the ancients, and the ant merely located wrongly by the historian. Naturalists think the former very improbable. Cobbe and DarragU have opened up a beautiful selection of Furs and German Wool Shawls- ___________