Local and General News.

Feilding Star, Volume XV, Issue 338, 13 June 1894, Page 2

Local and General News.

The erection of the Wesleyan Church at Apiti will he completed towards the end of the present month. Last week a man named Samuel Huutcr had his collarbone broken ou the Kimbolton road beyond Birmingham. Mr John Stevens, M.H.R., is at present engaged iv the Native Lauds Court sitting at Turakiua. The Oamaru Mail says there is to be a cataclysm when Parliament meets. Poor Dick ! Mr R. F. Haybittle's striug band has been engaged to provide music for the Oddfcliows' ball at Bulls on Friday. Bushfelling will be commenced this season on the Waimarino Block. Most of the work will bo done by the new settlers themselves. A banquet is to be held iv tho Birmingham Town Hall on Tuesday, 26th June, by the Birmingham Mountaineers' Lodge of Druids. A meeting of creditors in the estate of Peter Rugsted, a bankrupt, was held at the Court House this afternoon. Four Justices of Peace per annum is said to be the allowance made to each M.H.8., of the right colour! A man in America recently obtained a divorce from bis wife because she wore her stockings when she went to bed. To-day Mr Carthew received his usual monthly case of books and periodicals, including "The Heavenly Twins." The selection is the best he has received this year. By the Waitapu from Wellington on Saturday Messrs Abraham and Williams consigned to a southern client a number of purebred Lincoln ewes from the flock of Donald Fraser, Esq., of Pukehou, Lower Rangitikei. The telephone will bo extended to Makino forthwith. The necessary instruments and material have been ordered, ann will arrive early next week. A party of miners at |[i<kitika lately obtained tJOoz-s. of gold for B^d dayn' work while un adjoining claim produced -Ooz-4, for a week. The discovery of petroleum in Somer» eetshire has led to a further search, revealing its existence in fifteen places within a radius of five miles. An interesting description of the Coolgardie goldfield, from the pen of Mr J. A.. B. Johnston, a former well-known resident of Feilding, will be found in another column of to-day's issue. Mr B. Poole recently erected a shop adjoiniug his hotel at Apiti, and we are informed he has now leased the store to Mr O. Ashton, formerly manager for Mr Tompkins, at Birmingham, who will commence business shortly. Among the entries for the Hawke's Bay Gun Club's Open Handicap, of 100 soys, appears the name of Mr H. Woolven, of Feilding, who is placed on the 28yds mark with Mr C. Chcvannes, the well-known Wanganui shot. The handicaps vary from 81yds up to 20yds. Inspector Thompson arrived at Palmerston last night for the purpose of conducting the enquiry into the recent fires in the Square, which takes place to-day. The enquiry will be held before Mr J. Linton, District Coroner, and some startling revelations are expected to be made. Advices received by tbe mail state that young Tal tie, lute ironmonger of Wol ; n : on, who recently left unceremoniou»l:s f»r foreign nans by a direct s earner is in Pco land deir stalking. On the yoyage ho went unuer the name of Henderson, and boasted of haying sold out a Ivautageouslj. Wo learn that a football match between Hunterville and Ohingaiti, played on Saturday last, culminated in a disgraceful wrangle, and two of the players indulged in a pugilistic encounter, lastting about half-an-haur. Such scenes as these serve to bring the game in disrepute, aud tli£> parties should be severely dealt with by the Union. The husband was Scotch and the wife English — intensely English— and the couple were in the habit of indulging in some good-humoured badinage on the subject of nationality. One day " a daughter of the house " aged eight years, asked rather scornfully " Pa's Scotch isn't he mama?" "Gracious child," said the surprised mater, " You musn't talk like that, you're half Scotch yourself." Little jugs have big ears. Mr Blundell, Stock Inspector, while in the Rangitikei district, noticed a weed, which waa a stranger to him, growing in a field of mangolds, The specimen had a couple of large prickly pods, which were full of seeds. Mr Bfimdell forwarded the plant to the Agricultural Department, a report being received back that the weed was commonly known as the " thorn apple," and under the scientific name of datura stramonium, aud was of a very poisonous nature and should be immediately eradicated whero _ecn.

There is a sneak thief in Feilding who is in the habit of annexing turkeys, ducks, fowls, and " other unconsidered trifles." The New York Press says that 2,080,000d0l a day have to be sent to England in payment of interest by America. A racing club will shortly be formed at Levin The Manawatu Farmer informs us the course will be on tbe flat facing the new railway station. The common or garden variety of drunk is very scarce in Masterton just now, and the local papers are proportionately glad or sorry acccording to their several tastes. Mr George H. Saywell has been nominated as a candidate for the vacancy in the Borough Council, made by the resignation of Councillor Charles Bray, junr. The Kiwitea County Council invite applications for the position of County Engineer. For other particulars see advertisement over the signature of tho County Clerk, Mr E. Goodbehere. Mr E. Goodbehere has handed over to tho Secretary of the Feildiug Cricket Club a splendid pair of leg guards and batting gloves, to be presented to the man who proved himself the best field for the past season. A number of " Sundowners," says the Wairarapa Times, who take ail they can get and shudder at tlie mention of work, are " doing " the Eketahuua district just now. Such men make matters worse for the genuine unemployed. Recently a London firm of grocers were doing a good trade. They let a room upstairs, however, to several men, who were afterwards found to be Anarchists. Word went round, not a single customer would go near the place, and the firm are now insolvent. A Scotchman was taken by some friend* to see Niagara. Ono of them pointed to the rush of wafers and said, " Did you ever see anything so beautiful aud strange ?'" The colchman was not to bo carried awiy by an lmje'uous burst of enthusiasm. He replied, " Weel, for bonny I'll m fay, but bay nv>n, for queer I ance saw at tho toon o'Peebles a peacock wi' a wooden leg." The ghastly news (says an Adelaido paper) has been wired down from Port Augusta that we have a leper iv our midst. Iv our northern dependency it is nothing unusual for a Chinaman to fall slowly to pieces. When this takes place in the back settlements the victim is ofteu bunted out by his fellow-coun-trymen into the bush, where he is eaten by the blacks, aud the plague then begins to rot away the whole tribe. A curious meeting at sea is reported. Captain Danwell, of the British ship Astoria, 1385 tons, which arrived from Liverpool at Esquimalt (8.C.) the other day, reported that off Capo Horn he sighted a vessel which on being spoken proved tj be the barque Silver Stream, on a voyage from New Zealand to London. The Silver Stream was also commanded by a Captain Danwell, and tho ships hove -to while the two brothers, who had not met for many years, spent a few hours in each other's society. A meeting of the Manawatu Road Board was held at Palmerston yesterday. Amongst others, the following resolutions were carried :— That the Engineer make out cost of repairs to Awahuri bridge and bridge over Anderson's road line, and that tenders be in by next meeting ; That the Clerk write to the Manchester Road Board asking for a contribution towards the erection of a new bridge over Heuderson's line, as the structure is closo to their boundary and used by their ratepayers. The usual weekly meeting of the 1.0. G.T. |Lodge was held in tho Foresters' Hall last evening, when a large number attended, nearly 50 brothers and sisters being present. Ten candidates were initiated and five proposed, making a grand total of 80 membors joined within tho past six weeks. After the usual business had been gone through the Lodge went into harmony. Bro. Sherlock delivered two speeches in his usual first-class style ; readings were given by Bros. Preswood and Hickford ; Bros. T. Foster and F. Bray favoured the company with songs, and Bro. Wooding contributed a recitation. We have received a copy of The Advocate, with which is incorporated The Methodist, and from what we can gather it will prove a good exponent of tho views held by the Church it re-presents-the Wesleyan Church. The editor, the Rev. P. W. Fairclough, is a writer of no mean order, having contributed considerably to the daily papers in Southland and Canterbury on important subjects. The paper is very creditably printed by Messrs Wilkie and '■ Co., of Dunedin. It contains twelve pages of reading matter, and is issued weekly. Mr Carthew is the local agent. Major Sir George Clarke, in tbe current number ot the North American Review, calls attention to tbe fact that a naval union between England and America is much more within the bounds of prohability than is generally believed. On both sides of the Atlantic tbe democracy are beginning to grasp the truth that " the welfare of the masses is intimately bound up with the security of sea borne trade." Major Clarke is right in saying that the British people, who would not tolerate a European alliance would welcome a naval league with the United States vvith enthusiasm. One of the great guarantees of the future of such a league lies in the fact that it must be essentially a league of democracies. Mayor Keddell, an old Maori and militiaman, was the subject of many stories. Here is one of them. He was on the bench on ono occasion and an elderly Irish lady was charged with larceny. The evidence was clear, and the lady's only defence consisted of a warm appeal to the softer aspect of the Major, on whose head she called down blessings in a rich brogue. When she was finished the unmoved officer sentenced ber to six months. The Irish lady looked at him for a moment incredulously, then dehv* ered a peroration: — "Major," said she. sternly, "Iyo a husband in gaol. Me eldest son's there, too. Me youngest eon's drunk, so he is. Oi've got three girls that's no better than they ought to be, but Oi thank the Blessed Virgin that preser-rves me that none of me family was ever in the militia.'' — Bulletin.