NEWS OF THE DAY.

Globe, Volume XXI, Issue 1673, 1 July 1879, Page 2

NEWS OF THE DAY.

The New Court House. —Tho contractor for the new Resident Magistrate’s Court House, Mr Williams, has obtained bis license to proceed with tho building, and tho contract will bo commenced at onco. The site chosen for the Court is alongside the Supreme Uourt, fronting the river. The Stad Haabeem —The New Zealand Shipping Company Limited has received a London telegram, dated 28th June, reporting the arrival of the Stad Haarlem at Q-raveseud i i Stoppage of the Akaboa Mail Coach. —Tho mail coach from Akaroa to Christchurch did not put in an appearance last evening, being detained probably by the floods, Mr B. P. Petrie, post-master, at Spreydon, therefore brought on tho mails from that place this morning, and took back the return mails this afternoon.

Thb Fioods IN the Nosth. — A telegram forwarded at II- a.m, this morning from Bangiora inform us that the floods are decreasing everywhere, notw Its'anding that there was heavy rain there last night and this morning. T'ue railway line at FJaxton was then still blocked. Our cox respondent stated there was a perfect muddle in the delivery of mails north of Kaiapoi, and the ai.-auge-ments fox possmger traffic between Kaiapoi and Bangiora wore not all that cov’d be desired. If A Eunaway.— A carriage and pair, belonging to Captain Clogstoun, of Eiocaiton, very nearly came to grief this morning. It appears that the horses being left for a short time unattended, suddenly ste’ „ed off at a gallop. On turning iito the Lincoln road, they were seen by Mr B. P. Petrie, who was oa horseback, and he started in pursuit, with the object of staying their progress. Two or three times he caught thereins, but could not in his position get a sufficient strain on them, so he simply kept up with the horses, and managed so to guide their course as to prevent a smash, eventually turning them up a heavy road in the direction of Halswell, by which means ho managed to bilng the runaways to a standstill. They had then travelled about four m les from the point of starting. Svdney Exhibition, —This morning some of the members of the local committee of the Sydney Exhibition visited the premises of Mr Mein, for the purpose of inspecting some samples or preserved provisions ho is about to send to the Sydney Exhibition. The excellent quality of the preserved moats and soups prepared by Mr Mein are well known to and highly appreciated by the Oanterbu. j pub’ ; o, and have been awarded the highest honours at tho Agricultural and Pastoral Association’s shows. However, their exhibition in Sydney will have the effect of extond’ng their reputation and opening out a now market for their exportation and consumption. Tho appearance of tho meats untinned, embedded in rich jelly, is of a highly appetising description, and would tempt tho most epicurean palate. The following varieties will be sent: —Oxtail soup, noodle soup, mock-turtle, pig’s feet, brawn, boiled beef, ham, and chicken, potted tongue, corned beef, spiced beef, potted beef, haricot, ox-chock, sheep’s tongues, boiled mutton, spiced mutton, corned mutton, rissoles, and minced collops. There is a marked difference in the quality of the moat preserved at Mein’s factory and that prepared by tho Victorian Moat Preserving Company. The latter, a tin of which was procured, for compr-ison with the local article, from one of the ships in the harbour, was flabby, soft, and st.lngy, with all the goodness extracted from it, and was in marked contrast with the Canterbury meat. There was also a great difference in tho soup prepared by a well-know a English exporting firm and Mr Mein’s article, the latter being far richer and fuller of the elements of the meat. The committee highly praised the provisions, and expressed their intention to recommend their consumption to the New Zealand Shipping Comptny. Ebsidhnt Maghsteatb’s Couet. Elward Dillon was this day brought up, charged with having obtained from Messrs Royse, Stead, and Co. an order for the payment of the value of £4O and a threshing machine. The accused was remanded to the 4th inst. It is stated that the advances were made on the faith that Dillon’s farm was a freehold, but that, since his bankruptcy it has appeared n the name of his brother.

Queen street Improvements.—At a meeting of tho works committee of the City Council, held this morning, instructions were given to the engineer to proceed at once with the fo..nation of Queen street, running from Lichfield street to Tuam street. Inquest. —An inquest '.is to be held by the Coroner, at the Mitre Hotel, Lyttelton, this afternoon, on the body of the diver, who lost his life yesterday at the barque Bells. Shipwreck.— A full account of the wreck of the schooner Swallow, at tho entrance of Tory Channel, and of the wrecks of the brigantine Akbar and schooner Pelican, at Timaru, will be found in another column. Fatal Accident to a Diver.—Yesterday a diver engaged in examining the damaged part of the barque Bells, lost his life in the performance of his duties. A fuff account appears in another column. The Apotheosis op M. Thiers.— lt is announced from Paris (says the ‘ Argus’s ’ co-.'espondent) that the French Government had intended exhibiting M. Yibert’s picture, “ The Apotheosis of M. Thiers,” at the Sydney Exhibition, and had it accordingly removed from the grand entrance hall of the Palais Bourbon for tho purpose of send mg it off. However, Madame Thiers objected, and at her request the picture has boon restored to its place, and will not bo a’Towed to cross the equator. Comforting fob Gas Oojipanies.— The excitement on the electric light has quite died away in London, but it has not been without wholesome and permanent effect. It has stirred up the gas companies and induced them to show how much better they can do their work than they have ffitherto been accustomed to do it. London is already distinctly improved in lighting, and progress in the same direction is daily being wade. The crossing at the end of the Embankment near the House of Commons is brilliantly illuminated with gas burned through four handsome. lamps. All the principal railway stations avail themselves of tho improved lighting, and nt least one parish—that of Lambeth has undertaken to light its principal street crossings after the manner of tho experiments in Waterloo road and Waterloo Place. Unlimited Liability.—A gentlomaa in Wellington received a letter from a relative in Scotland last week, who happened to be a shareholder in the City of Glasgow Bank, from which the following is an extract :—“ I have just paid the second call on my two shares in tho City Bank, amounting to £IOSO. Robert Caldwell, of Inverness, was unfortunate enough to hold thirty shares. His first call, £15,000, was heavy enough in all conscience. His second call is over £60,0f 0. Though a wealthy man a year ago, ho will not have enough to pay tho second call, and will be loft penniless. This comes bard at our ago. No more unlimited companies.” Turkish Gendarmerie. The “Irish Times ” of the 10th March last says : Tahir Boy, who is a nephew of the celebrated Turkish General, Osman Pasha, and held the rank of Honorary Captain in our service, after spending some months in the Constabulary Depot, Phconix Park, has for several weeks been at Maryborough, going through a course of final instruction ns to the method and system of the Irish Constabulary, with the object of founding a gendarmerie on a like basis in Turkey, numbering . 40,000 men. Ho has been at Maryborough under tho instruction of Mr Lucan Bingham, County Inspector, and Mr W. D. Green, SubInspector for the district, and has just taken liis departure for Turkey, where ne will be second in command of the new gendarmerie, under Baker Pasha.

Such is Life. —The Wellington “ Chronicle ” says:—A good story is told or a commission agent seeking business from a client yesterday :—“ Oh, no,” said the client; “ You’re a docent fellow, and all that sort of thing, but I’ve made up my minds to do business with Mr .” “ But,” replied the commission agent, “ho only filed his schedule three weeks ago.” The client: “ That’s just it. You see, I know exactly how much ho owes now ■ but I don’t know your financial position.” Lake Soundings. —-In Baikal (Siberia), soundings have been obtained which, for a lake, are truly astonishing. In the upper part the depth is about 3027 metres (about the height of Mount Etna), hut downwards the bottom constantly descends, and near the opposite end, a distance of some 350 miles, the depth amounts to 3766 metros. That .measurement far exceeds anything to be found in the Mediterranean Sea, which in its deepest part, has only 2108 metres of water. How such an extraordinary depression es that of Baikal could have occurred in the midst of a continent is a problem which greatly puzzles geologists, but the generally accepted idea is that it was the result of some volcanic eruption in past ages, and a subsequent subsidence of the crust of the earth to a vast extent. The lakes in the centre of these inlands, wo believe, are equally remarkable in point of depth. The extreme depths of the Taupo and Waikari lakes in the north, and Lake Wakatipu in the south, have never been fathomed. They are known to bo very far below the sea level. Sumner Entertainment. —Tie next of the series of entertainments at Sumner will take place on Thar- .ay evening next, when an excellent programme will bo provided. L.O.L. —The No. 3 Lodge, 0.T.8., will .hold their t;aul monthly meeting at the Orange Hall this evening at half-past seven o’clock. St. Mart's, Merivale. —A parish entertainment in connection with St. Mary’s, Merivale, will take place this evening, for which a varied programme has been arranged.

A NECEBSABY PbeCAUTION.— The town dark has receired ; nstruction s to writs tho Avon Hoad Board, drawing attention to the imperfcet condition of the fence by the mill race running along the Carloton Mill road. In many places the fence is entirely broken away, and consequently there is no protection against accidents, wHch r-e quite likely to occur under the circumstances, especially as the nights are very dark and foggy dflting a gr.-at part of the winter season. A Trespasses —Between three and four o’clock yesterday afternoon a drunken man on horseback amused himself by riding up and down the foot pavement in Cashel street west to the serious inconvenience, not to say danger, of tho pedestrians. Tliero was no police constable at hand at the time to remove the intruder. Evenhandbd Justice. —Dr. Foster was yesterday the defendant in the Resident Magistrate’s Court, in a case of getting off a railway train while : n motion. The learned Doctor was fined ; n the mitigated p enalty of 10s, the Magietiate remarking at tho time that he had himself been fined 20a for a similar breach of the law in his one day to reach Christchurch to discharge his official functions, but ha would let off the learned doctor with halt the amount. The Mammoth Minstbelb.— The programme ef Saturday evening was repeated most', successfully last night at the Theatre Royal by tho Mammoth Minstrels, every item being loudly applauded, and encores being' frequent. The ballads and songs in the first part went capitally, andl the same may be said of the sketches, &c., which followed, Messrs Kennedy and Oheavers having to respond to a triple encore. The farce of “ Put your Thumb up,” evoked shouts of laughter. To-night tho same programme will be repeated, and to-morrow a change of programme will bo given.

Cheistchubch Gaebick Club. —A number of gentlemen recently mot and formed themselves into an amateur theatrical club, to he called the Christchurch Garrick Club, for the purpose of giving occasional performances for deserving objects. It is a considerable time since one of these pleasant associations existed in Christchurch, and there is no reason to doubt that tho performances of tha newly-formed o l ub will meet with a large measure of success. An excellent opportunity just now presents itself for the club to give their initial performance by co-operating with the committee, which meet thin afternoon in the City Council Chambers to take steps in furtherance of the benefit to be shortly given to Mrs Walter Hill and her family. Oddfellows hip.—The half-yearly meeting of the Loyal Addington Lodge was held last evening, the Right Worthy Grand Master, in company with his Grand Officers, presiding. A large number of brethren of the Loyal Avon Lodge>ere also present. The following brethren were installed for the ensuing six months :—Bro. E. Taylor, P.G.; Bro. J. A. Hnnsmavm, N.G. ; Bro. J, Pago, Y.G.; Bro. T. Faviilo, .treasurer ; Bro. Brunette, recording secretary. At the conclusion of the ceremony, the Right Worthy Grand Master addressed the assembled brethren in '-a veiy impressive lecture, taking “Friendship, Love, and Truth,” for his text. The Lodge then closed in the usual manner, and an adjournment was made to Bro. Hausmann’s, where a very pleasant evening was concluded. Bro. Hansmauu stated that he had secured a piece of land in Adding!#i for th# erection of a Lodge, the corner stone of which would soon be laid. A banquet will take place this evening at Bro. Bourgeois’ cafe, Cashel street, in honor of the visit of the R.W.G.M. to Christchurch. Accident at Eaeaia. —A serious accident occurred near Rakaia on Sunday morning to a man named John Hogan, while attempting with a horse and dray to cross the river at Thompson’s, about four miles from Rakaia. Hogan is in the employ of Mr Fagan, and was coming from the camp of the men working on the Rakaia and Ashburton Forks railway to Rakaia for some horse feed. When near Mr E. 8. Coster’s, Somerton, he was warned by a Mr Alex. Davidson, who lives near, not to attempt to cross the stream. However, he persisted in doing so, and in his attempt the dray capsized, and was washed down, together with the horse and man. Mr Coster, who was luckily near at the time and saw the accident, rushed down, and after they had been washed down some twenty chains very pluokily dashed into the water and rescued the man. As it was he had a very narrow escape. Hogan was then carried to Mr Davidaon’ajjnousß and well cared for. The horse was drowned. Great praise is due to Messrs Coster and Davidson for their kind and prompt assistance.