NEWS OF THE DAY.

Globe, Volume V, Issue 561, 5 April 1876, Page 2

NEWS OF THE DAY.

Moonlight Excursion.—The s.s. Akaroa will make a moonlight excursion to-morrow evening, on the arrival of the 6 p.m. train from Christchurch. Borough Council. —The nomination for the vacancy in the Lyttelton Borough Council caused by the retirement of Cr Chalmers, will take place on the llth inst, at the Borough Council Chambers. NorMANBY. —A railway station bearing the above name, and situated near Pighunt ing Creek, about four miles south of Timaru, has just been completed, says the Timaru Herald. Tp:a Meeting. —A very successful tea meeting, in connection with the 8L Alban’s Sunday school, took place last evening. After tea a public meeting was held in the Church, when addresses we:e delivered by ministers and other gentlemen, and some sacred music sang by the choir. Malvern. —A meeting of ratepayers was held in the schoolroom on Monday for the purpose of electing two members in the places of Messrs Jebson and Lilly. Messis Lord, Jas. Bradshaw, and Atkins were proposed. The show of hands was in favor of the two former, who were declared elected.

Opawa Kailway. —Good progress, says the Timaru Herald, is being made by Mr E G. Wright, the contractor for the Opawn Extension Railway. The rails have been laid a distance of four miles beyond the Point, and the formation is completed five miles further. The contractor is just entering upon the most difficult portion of the line, a considerable number of long cutting having to be made. If the present rate of progress be continued, we may expect to seethe contract completed considerably under the specified time.

Communication with Europe. —The following telegram was recently received by the Post and Telegraph Department of Victoria : —“ Statements having been made that messages sent via Suez suffered delay, I telegraphed to managing director, London, and have the following reply :— ‘ Vigo-Lisbon cable been interrupted, now restored ; service has greatly improved. Duplex working over the cables between Aden and England established last week ; will be completed throughout to India shortly.’ ” Rangiora Volunteer Fire Brigade.— After the fortnightly practice of this brigade on Honday evening, a meeting of the committee was held in Mr Superintendent Johnston’s office, the chief officer of the brigade in the chair. It was reported that the funds hitherto had been sufficient to meet the wants of the brigade, and recently forty five persons had given in their names as honorary members. It was decided that the annual picnic be held on Good Friday, and, after transacting some routine business, the meeting adjourned. The Lynch Family*. These talented artistes, the “ Lynch Family of Bellringers,” instrumentalists, and vocalists, accompanied by Hr Charles Keeley, comique and Ethiopian comedian, and Hr A. Statham, pianist, were passengers per s.s. Wellington, from Wellington, this morning. The company have been drawing houses North, and seem to have been highly appreciated. They commence a short series of performances at the Music Hall to-morrow evening. The troupe have a good reputation, and should draw well here. A first-class programme will be presented, and a large audience should be result. Mixed Juries. — A nice point respecting the right of aliens to claim a mixed jury arose yesterday in the Supreme Court in the care of Regina v Philip? Bourgeois, charged with forgery. By the Naturalisation Act, 1870, it is enacted that an alien cannot claim any privilege of the kind referred to, but his Honor seemed to think that the question arose whether it applied to the British colonies, more especially as there was no record so far as could be ascertained, of a convention under the Act having been entered into with Prussia, of which kingdom the prisoner claimed to be a subject The Juries Act states that on an application being made, the sheriff shall forthwith summon a mixed jury. Under these circumstances his Honor took time to consider. Imported Entire. —By the Arawata, arrived from the Bluff a splendid addition to our draft entires. “ Rantin Robin” is a grandson of the celebrated imported horse Lofty, and a son of Young Lofty, who took first prize as a colt at the Southland Agricultural and Pastoral Association in 1867. and as a four-year old beat all comers in 1870. Rantin Robin’s dam Flower has been a winner of nine first prizes, and never suffered defeat. The horse himself is a stylish dark dapple chesnut, standing seventeen hands high, with great power and good action, and has proved himself a sure foal getter. He took first prize as a yearling at the Southland Pastoral Association’s Grand Show ; first as a two-year-old, and the next year first as a three-year-old. This year he again took a first prize. Rantin Robin is the proI erty of Mr J. Mclntosh, who came up with him.

Lecture. —Last evening Mr P. M, Lester delivered the last of his short series of two lectures at the Oddfellows’ Hall, Lichfield street, the subject being, “The Gospel preached by Jesus and His Apostles, not the Gospel preached in the present day.” There was a much larger attendance than on the previous evening, fully 200 persons being present, and, as upon that occasion, the lecture was listened to most attentively, and with great apparent interest. The lecturer contended that the religion of the present day as taught and practised in our churches was not the religion as taught in the scriptures, the word and meaning of which had in many cases been perverted, so as to convey an impression never intended to be conveyed either by the Bible or the New Testament. In proof of his theory Mr Lester adduced a number of instances, in which be said the most glaring theological anachronisms occurred, that only required to be looked into to be at once appreciated by any person of a sound and discriminating mind. As upon the previous evening a vote of thanks to the lecturer concluded the proceedings. The Salmon Ova.— The Canterbury portion of the ova came in the Arawata yesterday. On its arrival both Mr Farr and Mr Johnston, the late curator, were,present, both having received intelligence, Mr Farr that there were two boxes for the Canterbury Acclimatisation Society, and Mr Johnston that one would arrive for him. As only two boxes arrived there was a struggle, but Mr Farr kept possession of both. It is a pity that the quarrel took place, as the ova suffered by being shaken and left in the sun. The ova was forwarded for Christchurch, under Mr Farr’s, care, by the noon goods train, and reached the Curator’s house in the Acclimatisation Gardens shortly before dark, and quite unexpectedly so far as he was concerned. He, however, did the best he could under the circumstances. The first thing was to open the boxes, when the ova were found packed in the usual way with moss, but we regret to learn that a very large proportion of the eggs were bad, especially in one of (he boxes. Mr Beck states that none of them were looking very well so far as he could see, but he at once proceeded to turn them out into the breeding boxes. He can at present give no idea of the number of ova that arrived in a healthy condition, and judging from his statement, we should not be at all surprised if this latest importation, like the last, turns out a failure. The Curator describes the ova as being very hard and ou the whole, anything but a promising looking lot. He will, however, in a day or two, be able to give more definite, if not satisfactory, information as to the value of the shipment. Of one thing we may be quite sure, that everything will now be done that is possible to perfect the vitality of those ova that have arrived alive, and it is to be hoped that this, our latest importation, will not turn out to be wholly valueless.