NEWS OF THE DAY.

Globe, Volume XXIV, Issue 2502, 14 April 1882, Page 3

NEWS OF THE DAY.

Sudden Death at Kaiapoi.—Mr John Bennington, market gardener, aged flfty.one, died suddenly lost night. The cause of dea'h is supposed to be suspended action of the heart. An inquest will bo held. Hedge Cutting and Teimming Machine .—A gorse-cutter, made by Messrs Horceby and Sons, wag to have been exhibited in working action yesterday or to-day at Eiccarton, and a number of people went out expressly to see the capabilities of the machine put to the test in that locality. Mr J. O, Wason wag amongst the visitors this forenoon. Naturally the farmers take a keen interest in the matter, for of all districts Canterbury may be said to be yar excellence that in which gorse is utilised for hedges. Some months ago, considerable interest was excited in Tinwald and the vicinity through a resident’s purchase of one of those machines, it having been then calculated that pretty stiff hedges could be trimmed at a chain, instead of at a Is, as by manual labor. Such a result would make a trimmer a satisfactory speculation for contractors, leaving a fair margin of profit, after deducting £63 or £7O for outlay on machine, also wages for a boy direr and a machinist, &o. The make-s claim that per day five miles of hedge, two or three years old, can be cut on both sides and at the top. But it is not maintained that hedges of ten years’ neglected growth can be brought under control as readily as hedges regularly cut. Timber-felling is scarcely to be expected. However, yesterday and to-day the public were disappointed. The doorway from the machinery department, in which the cutter stands, is too narrow to admit of its exit, and yesterday Mr John Anderson, the agent in Canterbury, rode out to Biccarton to explain to any people that might be there that the trial would have to be postponed. Mr B. S. Smithurst, tea colonial traveller, states that notice of a trial will bo given at an early date. In this connection it may be mentioned that the widening of the door and removal of some adjoining : obstructions would also afford room for the free passage of fire engines in case these should be needed. Cube Boating Club —The recently ordered boats for this club, which were expected to arrive in time for the soulling races at the kte regattas, it appears have been mis-sent by the shippers from England to Melbourne. The president of the club has arranged for their being forwarded by one of the Union Steam Shipping Company’s vessels to Lyttelton with as little delay as possible. Bangioba School Committee. A meeting of this committee was held on Wednesday evening. All the members were present except Mr Keir, A letter was read from Mr Gurr, of Southland, declining to accept the appointment of head master. It was decided that applications for the office be received till the 21st. After passing some routine business, the committee adjourned. Sale op “ The Pinks.”— This well known property, for a long time the reside-.ee of the late John Bealoy, Esq., and now that of Dr. Prins, was put up to auction yesterday afternoon by Mr Charles Clark. After briefly dwelling upon its many advantages, the bidding was started by Mr H. Marks at £3OOO, and after a few bids had been obtained it fell to the nod of the occupant for £SOOO. The Ottoman Empieb —Lord Palmerston (remarks the ‘‘European Mail”) once said to Said Pasha of Egypt, in the presence of a diplomatist now living—“ The Ottoman Empire is like a leg of mutton ; nobody could very well eat it whole, but if slices are cut from it the joint can easily be devoured. This being the case, if you are independent you become a slice, and will be eaten up by Eranoa wi;h impunity ; but if yon remain part of the joint you will escape from the fate which is otherwise inevitable.” It is precisely this conviction which makes the ■Egyptians at the present moment peculiarly tenacious of the rights of their country as an integral part of the Ottoman Empire, and especially with the fate of Tunis staring them in the face.

Sudden Death.— Mr Dakin, th ® 9.. , church agent for Messrs Bainabury, EUudor and Co., died suddenly at his « B / d *“ oe morning. He has not been well J time past, having recently fallen d fit, since which time be has ..,.-3 much of pains in the head. As the deceased was under medical treatment, no inque Thbatbb Eotal —We remind our * eac ?®g! that this night and to-morrow are the last I opportunities they will have of seel f mithetio and highly successful opera E, I sent holding the boards at the Boya . success achieved by the talented cpmpa 7 “Patience” in Christchurch has been most pronounced, and it is to be withdrawn so y on account of the director’s determination keep faith with tho public in the production of other operas already promised, 10-mor (Saturday) evening will be a fashiona night, Lady Gordon and suite having expressed their intention of being present a i s lust performance. Cathoijc BazAAB. —Th) attendance yeatsrday was very gocd, the amount reah'CQ at the close of the day being £152. The band of the H.A.C.B 8. played selections of music at intervals during the evening, under the leadership of Mr Dempsey. The bazaar reopened this morning, at eleven o’clock, idb attendance up till two o’clock, although not such as to cause difficulty in passing from stall to stall, was good, and a steady trade is stated to have been done. The bazaar will continue open fill ten o’clock this evening, and also to-n arrow. Avon Eoad Boabd Office.— Tho four gentlemen constituting tho Avon Eoad Board arc divided equally as to the location to be selected for their new office. Two sites have been offered, one at tne corner of Kelly’s road, and the other near Buxton’s corner, Shirley. It is stated that the question will most probably bo referred to the ratepayers, U.A.O.D'—A meeting will be hold at the Carlton Hotel, at eight o’clock to-morrow evening, for the purpose of opening a new lodge in connection with the above Order. . Pbbsonal.—His Honor Mr Justice John- | ston has so far recovered from his indisposition as to allow of his transacting business at the Supreme Court this morning. A Wakninq to Witnesses. —An occurrence took place recently in the Auckland Supremo Court which should be a warning to witnesses. AMr Batjen was bound in |reoognizances of £IOO to appear as a witness. He was called, and did not answer. His Honor ordered that the recognizances be estreated. Later in the day the witness made his appearance, apologising to the Court, and supplicating a reversal of its decision. His Honor (according to the “ New Zealand Herald” replied—l cannot do it. The matter has altogether passed out of my hands. I cannot interfere. Mr Batjen may petition the Government. I have no power in this matter once the recognizances are estreated. Mr Batjen will have to pay £IOO unless the Government are merciful. He may be punished for non-payment. In any case he will be put to great trouble and expense to have the forfeiture reduced. Eoyai. Austbalian Cibcus. —The proprietors of this circus have every reason to be satisfied with the amount of public patronage accorded their opening performance last evening, the house being a full one, chairs, stalls and pit alike being fully occupied, the latter inconveniently so. Of the programme submitted. although there was much of the inevitable stock circus business, yet some of the items stood out prominently as deserving a well-earned meed of praise. The contortions of Signor Bartolo, in the first part of the programme, and also his daring action in ■ its second portion in tho porch equipoise with Mr Liz olio, were worthy of the most pretentious hippodrome. The equestrianism of Jack Cousens, a mere lad, was promising of a brilliant performer in the future, and the horizontal bar and tumbling business of Messrs Harris, Tindle, Lszelle and Alberto, elicited repeated applause. Tho master trick of the programme was that entitled funambulism by Onsko. This performance is wonderfully clever. On a bare slack wire, not thicker than an ordinary bell wire, suspended at a height of several feet from the ground, Cusko went through a series of tricks that almost exceed belief. Having poised himself on the wire, he performed with a hoop, this being followed by twirling a soft hat with a stick whilst standing on one leg ; th's was succeeded by enveloping himself in a sack to the waist and then divesting himself of it, still maintaining his balance. The trick horse Snowflake and the pony Sultan performed some comic tricks with almost human skill. A laughable incident occurred during tho performance of a frolic equestrian scone. In this a seemingly inebriated performer rolls into the ring from the audience, placing himself in dangerous proximity to the horse’s hoofs, when, alarmed for his safety, cno of the audience dragged him from tho ring and seated him on a chair out of danger. Thrice was this repeated, amidst tho laughter of the knowing ones and the cheers of the sympathising audience. A meed of praise is alio justly due to tho clowns, the chief of whom, Max Binklo, at once established himself as a favourite with the audience. The performance concluded with tho well-known faico of ’‘Billy Button’s Bide to Bradford," which pleased the youngsters amazingly. The performance may be pronounced a success, and it will bo continued nightly till further notice.

The Eppioaoy op Phases.— The prayer-for-rain controversy in the Melbourne papers extends to columns of correspondence. Thereupon the “ Australasian ” remarks : “ When we remember the sensation which a public declaration of the folly and futility of praying for rain would have made even in England 100 years ago, we get a measure of the changes we are passing through when we find a bishop maintaining a doctrine which at that lime would have stamped a man as an infidel or an atheist Then it is at the least odd to find the Bishop in one part of the colony eloquently exposing the childishness of expecting that prayer can affect the ordinary course of Nature, while, at the same time, his respected lieutenant in command. Dean Macartney, is, with the aid of several other clergymen, taking the course which the Bishop thinks only suited for the childhood of the human race. It is curious, again, to note that while the Bishop so far accords with the ordinary religious view as to limit his remarks on the futility of prayer to the sphere of what are considered physical phenomena, the Dean and his follow-ministers so far recognise the laws of meteorology as to hold their prayer meetings as close as possible to the autumnal equinox ” Station Property Sale.--The fiwynoombe run, situated at K-nkoure, Marlborough, was submitted to public competition at two o’clock yesterday by Messrs R. Wilkin and Co, Mr F. O. Tabart wielded the hammer, and after describing the property, which comprises 14 377 acres of freehold and 13,950 acres of leasehold land, together with houses, sheep, cattle, &3., called for a bid, which came after a little time, and the property was started at £3OOO. These were added to by bids of £SOO each till five figures were reached, after which £IOO bids ruled, the purchaser being ultimately found in Mr W. D. Wood, late of Wood, f-hand and Co. The attendance was not so large as the importance of the sale demanded, Ashbueton Bobouqh Council. —Messrs Richard Bird and George Millar Robinson, of Ashburton, have been nominated to fill the vacancy of one councillor, caused by the resignation of Rudolph Priedlacder. A poll will be taken on the 24th of April inst.

S. Manning and Co., Limited,— The business hitherto carried on by Messrs 8. Manning and Co., brewers, of Lower High street, as a private firm, has been merged into a limited liability company, and it is worthy of notice that all the shares were subscribed, and the company floated, without being advertised or offered to the public through the ordinary channels. .Ashburton Debating fcocißTY. A meeting of this society was held on Tuesday evening lest, there being a pood attendance. The president (Mr W. H. Zouch) occupied the chair. The election of vice-president was then proceeded with, resulting in the election of Mr Buchanan. The president delivered a very lengthy inaugural address. After several members had spoken, the meeting adjourned. Peolipic Bean Obop.—Mr Denis O’Oallaghan, Kaiapoi Island South, has recently harvested his bean crop of twenty-eight aotes, using a McCormick’s reaping and binning machine. During the whole of the work this machine made a splendid performance in cutting and binding up the sheaves firmly and in first-class form. The weight of the crop will give a further idea of the work done, when it is stated to have bean, since threshing, not less than fifty bushels [per acre. This mode of harvesting effected a considerable saving in the crop, and adds another proof of the incalculable usefulness of each machinery aids to husbandry.

Painful Accident. A rather serious accident happened to Mr Robert Millar, or Winchmore, iarmer, yesterday morning. He was feeding a chaff-cutter, when by some means his band was drawn into the cogs, and four of his fingers out off. “ The Wbskly Press.” — With tomorrow’s “ Weekly Press ” there will be published an Exhibition Supplement, containing large and faithfully executed woodcut views of the opening ceremony, Sir Arthur Gordon, and of Hia Worship the Mayor of Christchurch. The game journal also contains a ground plan of the Exhibition and a full account of the opening ceremony, as well as a comprehensive description of the exhibits. Intercolonial Weather Exchange.— Sydney, yesterday—Slight depression over Tasmania ; wind south-west but fine. On the west and south of Australia, wind S.W. and fine. At New South Wales, wind S.B. and threatening. Barometer—Portland, 30.3; Albany, 30.2 ; Sydney, 30.1. Ashley District, 1.0.0. F., MU.—The second annual meeting of the delegates from the lodges of this district was held at Bangiora on Wednesday. Prov. Q.M. Truman presided and gave an opening address, stating the number of members in the district was 423, the amount in hand £3984, the receipts for the year £O6O, the expenditure for the same period £348, He referred to the embarrassment of the Nil Desperandum Lodge in the purchase of a property which returned them vary little interest on the outlay. He had been ably assisted by the D.G.M., Bro. Orampton, who he regretted had lately met with a serious accident, and by Prov. 0.8. Robinson, who was the right man in the right place. Correspondence having been read, the balance-sheet and auditor’s report were passed. Accounts amounting to £7l Is 3d ware passed. The book inspectors’ report was considered and approved. On the motion of P.P.Q.M. Bro. Stephens, it was resolved to invest £3O in the purchase of a banner, a levy on members to be made for that purpose. £lO was voted to the bock inspector and to the G.M. for services rendered. It was decided to hold the halfyearly meeting at the Oust. The officers elected were—Prov. Q M., Bro. Orampton ; Prov. D.G.M., Bro. Gibbs ; and P.C.S., Bro. J. J, Robinson, The transaction of the routine business of the lodge then followed. “

An Old Trick.—A recent Melbourne paper say :—“ A new arrival from New Zealand by tho s.s. Ringarooma, named Thomas Mayne, who is en route to Europe by the s s. John Elder, has ropcrted to the police that be was imposed upon to the extent of £2OO by means of the ‘match-box trick,’on the 3rd inat, by two men whom he did not know. He states that on leaving tho Union Steamship Company’s office on the 3rd inst., after taking bis passage, he was accosted in the street by a man who claimed his acquaintance, on the ground that they were to be fellow passengers to England. After some conversation they retired to Kelly’s hotel, opposite the wharf, where they were joined by a third man, who introduced the matchbox, and declared that ha was worth £25,000. After a time Mayne was prevailed upon to play, and after being allowed to win a few pounds, the stake was increased, and he quickly lost £2OO, half of which he paid in notes, and the balance by cheque. On discovering that he had been swindled, Mayne reported tho matter to the police."