NEWS OF THE DAY.

Globe, Volume IX, Issue 1098, 5 January 1878, Page 2

NEWS OF THE DAY.

City of Chbistchdbch Lodge. A summoned meeting of the above lodge will be held on Monday evening at half past seven, to instal officers, elect hall-keeper, and other business.

Cantebbtjey College. The ordinary monthly meeting of the Board of Governors, to have been held yesterday at 11 a.m., lapsed for want of a quorum. The following governors were present: —Mr Montgomery (chairman), Most Ilev. the Primate, Revs. Fraser and Habcns, Hon. J. Hall, Dr. Coward, and Mr Colbornc- Vcel. Having waited the prescribed fifteen minutes, the chairman said that as the business to be considered was very important, he would call a special meeting of the Board for Monday next, at 11 a.m. Dr. Turnbull and Mr Fereday arrived at the Board room too late to permit of the meeting being formed.

Lyttelton Regatta. —The distribution of prizes won at the late regatta took place at the Royal Hotel on Thursday evening. The commodore, the Hon. E. Richardson, occupied the chair, and proceeded to distribute the prizes, making appropriate remarks with each presentation. The following toasts were proposed : —“ Thi' Healths of Mr Mitchelson, the owner, and Captain Grundy, the master of the champion schooner Torea,” responded to by Mr Mitchelson and Captain Grundy ; ” “ The Healths of|Meesrs Gibbs*and Murdoch, the owners of the yacht Spray,” responded to by those gentlemen;” “The Health of the Crew of the Ringarooma,” replied to by Mr Miller; “ Captain Scotland of the flagship Gienlora,” replied to by that gentleman. The following toasts were also proposed;—“The Health of the Wellington crew,” “The Winners of the Oanpe and Double Sculling races,” <‘The Successful Competitors not included in the toasts already drank,” “The Unsuccessful Candidates,” “ The Commodore,” “The Vice-Com-modore and Working Members of Com mittee,” “The Health of Messrs Shaw, Saville and Co., and the New Zealand Shipping Company,” “The late Commodore, Mr Aynsley,” “ His Worship the Mayor.” A number of other toasts were also proposed and resp mded to, after which the meeting separated.

Squatter's Whist.—A friend of mins (says a writer in the “ Whitehall Review,”) was recently up country in New Zealand, on a trip round the globe. He stopped for a night at a squatter’s house, and cut in for a rubber of whist. Taking his seat, he casually asked “ What points P ” Said his partner, in surprise, not knowing but that he was addressing some neighboring squatter newly established, “ Why, the usual game of course —sheep points and a bullock on the rubber !”

Dttxedin Hospital.—The recently-elected medical staff of the Lunedin Hospital (says the “Herald”) have entered ‘bn ; theft duties. The new arrangement provides for eight visiting medical officers instead of four, as formerly, and the appointments are purely honorary. Of the four gentlemen who have hitherto formed the medical staff, and who were appointed by the late Provincial Government to act with the late Hr. Uulme, only one, Hr. [grown, will continue his Connection with the institution, Drs. Hockien, Ferguso'n, and Gil'ies, did not seek re-election. The Hospital is now amply provided for ,ag regards medical

Tire Late Shooting Case.— From the “ Oamaru Mail ” we learn that “ the lad Michael Vail, who was shot in the face by the lad James Scott on Christ mas Day, is progressing favorably. He is at present confined to his bed according to the strictinjunctions of his medical attendant, and is likely to be so for some days yet ; but no immediate danger is anticipated by Dr. Fleming unless erysipelas sets in. At the same time there can be little doubt that the unfortunate lad will be marked for life by the powder blown so mercilessly in his face.”

Masonic Anthem. —The “ New Zealand Times 11 ’ learns by private letter from Home that Mr Thomas’s anthem, composed for the installation of the late District Grand Master (Sir D., McLean), has lately been most success • fully performed at a festival in Sheffield. The writer says—“ I have much pleasure in stating that it was unanimously pronounced to be a very successful performance, and which we have been desired to repeat. My opinion is that the p ,Vf, e displays considerable talent, and contains the germs of very fair promise for present and future success.” Teamway Peodeety.— A meeting of the shareholders of the Greymouth and Kumara Tramway Company has been held to consider the financial position of the company. Mr Kennedy took the chair, and, after some discussion, the directors tendered their resignation. The meeting then elected the following directors: —Messrs Kennedy, Kerr, G. S, Smith, M'Beath, and Gilmer, and authorised the directors to mortgage the line to such of the shareholders as should advance the money necessary to complete the line in full working order. The resolution was passed unanimously. Seeiohs Accident. —The “ Southland Times ” reports a very serious accident which happened to a man named Thomas Fisher on Friday night. Fisher, who is one of a gang of surfacemen on the railway, was returning to his tent, which is at the northern end of the deep cutting above the Waipahi station, and in so doing followed a track along the edge. Unfortunately he fell over and sustained very severe injuries. His collar-bone and several ribs were broken, and his lungs were tom by the intrusion of the broken bones. He managed to crawl to his tent, and was there found on Saturday morning by a man named Samuel Stevens. For some unexplained reason the foreman of the gang would not send the sufferer to Invercargill, and accordingly Stevens took him to Clinton by the evening train. On Sunday morning a special train was despatched from Invercargill, and Fisher was brought to the hospital.

Deaths by Deowning.— The “ Bruce Herald” states that the man Ficquis, who was drowned in Lake Waihola a few days ago, was the son of the assistant manager of Contis’ Bank, London, and a nephew of the manager of that institution. —A painful accident happened on Saturday last at Meadow Bank, a farm owned by Mr David Carson, on the GHonore Creek, near the Clarksville Railway Station, Tokomairiro. Mr Carson’s little daughter, Devina, aged three years and a half, while playing on the bank of the creek with several other children, was suddenly missed by her companions. When last seen she was throwing stones in the river. The alarm was at onee given, and the body was seen in the water and recovered, but life was found to be extinct. Fatal Fun.—A man named John Donovan met with his death in a very mysterious manner recently (says the “ Palmerston Times ”). It appears that Donovan and a man named Harris were drinking together at the Agricultural Show held at Waikouaiti on the Jlst December last, and that towards evening they began skylarking. In the tussle or mock wrestling, Donovan was thrown. In the fall he must have sustained internal injuries, for later on the same night Donovan was apprehended by Constable Townsend and lodged in the lock-up, on a charge of drunkenness. The following morning he was too ill to be brought up before Mr Murdoch, and his illness assumed such alarming proportions the following day that it was decided to send the man to the Hospital. Two or three days afterwards Donovan died—the injuries previously received by him having terminated fatally. On receiving intimation of the fact Constable Townsend at once arrested Harris pending the result of an inquiry. Coach Accident. —The Hawke’s Bay “ Herald” of the 27th ult. reports that a coach accident of a most serious character, and which might very readily have been of a fatal character, took place about a mile beyond the Railway Hotel, Takapu. The Palmerston coach, with six passengers, one of whom was Mr H. R. Russell, was coming along the main road, when one of the horses shied at a gate, and dashed the coach against the post on the opposite side. It pivoted for a moment on the wheel and then righted itself. One of the passengers was thrown out, and another jumped out, both sustaining injuries of a more or less serious character. Fortunately the swingle-trees and other gea? smashed, and the horses got adrift, dragging the coachman, Mr Jones, off the bo*, but, with remarkable pluck, he no sooner touched the ground than he picked himself up again, holding on to the reins all the time, and eventually succeeded in stopping the horses. Personating a Peiest.—A sensation was caused at the local police office on Tuesday (says the “Mururunah Times”) by the trial of n person who represented himself to be the Rev. Michael Cregan, a priest of the Roman Catholic Church. Under various pretentions in connection with his sacerdotal character lie has succeeded in obtaining sums of money at various places, we understand, along the northern road, calling at all the principal towns, but devoting the proceeds to the one object apparently of his life, that of procuring intoxicating liquor. If appearances could be relied upomthe statement of the unfortunate to the el™ct that he had only been a few months in the colony, and had been silenced in Ireland for his intemperate habits, is very nearly the correct explanation of his appearance in this predicament. When before the bench the prisoner presented a sorry spectacle, dressed as he was in priestly garb without any appearance of pretence, yet evidently a slave to the degrading vice of drunkenness. Whatever be his history, the case was such As to excite commiseration at misfortune, as much as disgust at the crime which in his extremity he was led to commit. In pnrsuance of the order of the bench the prisoner was removed to Maitland on the following day to undergo two months’ imprisonment with hard labor. Before his removal, however, care had been taken to divest him of his professional garb, and to make his appearance as secular as his practices. Dressed in a superior suit df private clothes, it was difficult to identify the decent-looking prisoner with the confessedly de,graded and forsaken presbyter.

Mb Bowen at Rangioba.— Last evening there was a large attendance at a meeting at Rangiora, which was addressed by Mr Bowen. Mr H. Blackett was in the clv-.it-. At the close of the meeting the following motion, moved by Mr Mulcock, seconded by Mr A. H. Cunningham, was carri.d " Hiut a vote of thanks be accorded to Mr Bowen, and that this meeting desires to express its confidence in him as the representative of the district. The Rev. Chables Clabk.— The Wellington correspondent of the Dunedin “ Star’ sends the following summary of the correspondence which has been carried on m the columns of the “Post’ 1 as to Mr 0. Clark’s retention to the title of ‘ reverend : _ —One writer says Mr Clark prostitutes his position as a minister of the gospel. Mr Clark sends a telling reply. Ho points out that the title has been declared by the English courts to be merely one of courtesy. His name was known with that title to the colonial public, and therefore he retained it. Officers of the army and navy retfliu their titles tutor iotiring; schoolmasters retain their title of “reverend,” although they never preached in their lives ; while he does so constantly, and looks forward to resuming regular pulpit work at no distant time. He thinks his lectures arc productive of good, and quotes these words from a letter from one of the leading doctors in the town “ You are rendering to society infinite service by your lectures ; there is capacity for culture amongst the roughest people of‘the colonies which, once awakened, would do more for their moral elevation than dozens of sermons. Teach people to read good books snd the religious character of our race will assert itself.”

Pigeon Shooting. —We read in the “Sydney Mail” that there was some excitement on the Homebush racecourse one afternoon lately, on the occasion of a pigeon match, which was made up by a well-known bookmaker in Sydney betting £2OO that no one in the colony would kill thirty birds out of fifty, using an ounce of shot, at twentyfive yards rise. In his assumption that that ■was a feat not to be accomplished, he has been mistaken. Before a large number of spectators, Mr Waugh, who from the commencement showed great coolness and precision of aim, succeeded in effecting his object, in shooting thirty birds out of forty, all of which fell within bounds. He won the match easily. Of birds not scored to his credit, four fell dead out of bounds. He lost his first bird, which fell dead six yards out of bounds. The gun was then credited with four in succession, followed by a miss. hire dead birds and two misses were then scored, after which seven dead ones were within bounds, A miss, a dead bird, and a miss, added five more to the credit of the gun, followed by one in favor of the birds and oiae for the gun. There was then another piss, five to the credit of the gun; a miss, a bird,, a miss, and a bird grassed, sufficed the backer of the finest bluerocks he could obtain. Such a feat, it is said, has never been accomplished south of the line. The shot used was No. 8. The score as taken was as f0110w50,1,1,1, 1,0,1,1,1>1>0,0,1,1,1,1>1»1j1j1j0|1,0,1j1|1j1j1|0, 1, 0,1,1,1,1.1,0,1,0,1.