NEWS OF THE DAY.

Globe, Volume XXIV, Issue 2585, 20 July 1882, Page 2

NEWS OF THE DAY.

AoaissHXAi, Death of a Fsisokbb.— This morning, the hoisting of a flag at thesignal gt»?T«' denoting that something unusual had cccarred at the works along the Banner road, where the prisoners were working, was taken advantage of to circula'e a report that oil the prisoners had bolted, cautiog quite a scare ia town. The fact was, however, that a young man named John Cunningham, undergoing a sentence of eight years* penal servitude in Lyttelton gaol, to which he had bet-a transferred from Tim am, had met hi* death by falling head lorg upon some rocks. He was qjarrying on the side of a «lope t and slipping, fell about ten feet. When he was picked up life was extinct. The Pouch Foech.—-Detectives Grace and Benjamin, who were sent to Ghrutehnreh on duty during the Exhibition season,, will return respectively to Napier and Wellington this day. The contingent of policemen alsosent from Wellington for a like purpose, will return in & few days.

St. John's Gktsbck, Ranghobav—lt wirt be seen that the ni»ve aud aisle of the old portion of this church are for sale by auotioD, as Messrs Pollock and Thomson have fitted the portions of the new building, which will take its plaoe so soon as the old part is removed.

Pbdestbianish.—A-match for £5 aside has been arranged between T. Marr snd W. G-. Goodwin, to take place on Saturday next at Lancaster Park. There are three distancas, namely, 100, 200, r.nd 220 yards. It is expected that the raoe will be a very close ot?e, as the two contestants were vory equally matched for a similar stake a few days back.

General Seobblbff.—Mr Aroh. Forbe* concludes a long notice of the late General as follows :—Skobelc-ff was the most brilliant man I ever knew, and incomparably the finest fighting man. I regard his loss to Russia, in. any war in whioh she may engage, as cqnivaleat to the deprivation of an army corps.. His death msy be a stone in the temple of of the world's peace ; but it is not easy for me to speculate in cold blood over the international results of the abrupt close of the life as one eo lovable. Just as Skobeleff turned,, sobbicg in irrepressible grief, from the prematura grave of his beloved friend and tried comrade, Macgohan, so will many a heart all ever the world s oell at the thought of Michael Skobe'eff'e frank eyes clouded in death, of hit gallant, manly spirit gone from among, us. Itaiy and thb Egyptian Question. — Regarding the feeling in Italy ou the Egyptian question, the " Argus "" correspondent, writing from Borne on June 2nd says : " For eome little time past all men's minds, and all the columns of newspapers have been. full of Egypt. AH the comments in all the paper* here are oonceived in a spirit of the. bitteyest hostility to France. That theSultan should exerd his authority in Egypt, aa 1 that that should occasion such a revival ar.:l outburst of Mussulman national feelingas should eventually lead to sweeping the. French out of Tiais—this is what Italy pray*, and longs for. And snch an eventuality- is assuredly on the cards."

The Ameneqsbkt of sh.e OoNsrmjTiosj. —The following, omitting the formal part, i& tha text of the Bill introduced by Sir Gsorge Gray, and whiob. led to the important discussion of laßt evening : —(2) When a Bill making an amendment ia the Constitution hs» pasted either branch of the General Aisemblj, and has been rejected by the other branch, or has been by it so amended that the branch of the Legislature in which inch Bi 1 origiap.ted does not pass the same as so amended, and when in such oaso a resolution hes been carried by a mejoaity in the branch of tbe Legislature in which the Bill originated adopting the amencV maafc proposed in the Constitution whuh. whs embodied in the original Bill, the Speaker of suoh branch of the Legislature eh till transmit the said resolution to the Goy-fernor. (3) The Governor shall thereupon cause the said resolution to be submitted to a plebiscite, which plebiscite shall bo taken at suoh time and in such manner at the Governor shall, by proclamation in tha Government "Gsistte," prescribe; and, if a majority of votes of the eleeton of the colony for members of the BTouso of lUpiesentativea thereof shall be recorded in favour of each r? relation, it shall operate and have the same force and effect as if the e»me had been enacted by the General Assembly of New Zealand in Parliament assembled.

Hatbimonial Happiness.—The Beaident Magistrate's Court vu occupied the whole . of thii morning with a oaie briefly mentioned elsewhere. It wai sot attractive or important enough to be reported, but some of its humora »re worthy of being reproduced. A coupls —the husband a callow youth, the wife looking older—havediioovered in lesi ihm a jear that life is hard—very hard. The evidenoa •bowed him to be a truly Christian youth; he lings in the choir at the Baptist Church, Sydenham; he is and has long been a member of the Young Men's Christian Sooiety, and yet, for grinding, sordid meanness it would be hard indeed to beoome fcia equal in a soured lifetime were it thrioa as long as his. The wife, poor creature, seems to have Idevtloptd {a consuirelly bad temper; her tongue is sharp, likewise her nails. She scolded and she scratched. But, taking sH things into consideration, that is, what would come to any one under the same provocations, which were many and grievous. Item—He earned 35s a week, and expected her to keep houae on 10s a week. Item—He half-starved her, and he nagged her without end. The dootor, on this point, said she was in a very low state 5 the cause, insufficiency of food and long-continued worry. Item —He drove her to work charing, to save the food she would have otherwise eaten at home, and he gammoned—the word is used deliberately " gammoned "—to know nothing of her so doing j and lastly, he set her mothe"-in-law on to her, and, to a a leaser degree, his brother. Here is a sample of the evidenoo given by an independent witness:—After a quarrel very late one night he had given her two shillings and turned her cut, not of door, but out of -window. The next night, on going home, he ftund his wife lying oa the sofa. He knelt down and recited aloud hia prayers, and the following conversation ensued:— Husband : "Oh Emma, why didn't you oame back last night ? ' Emma : " Don't bother me." Husband: "Where did you go to, and how ranch did your lodging cost ?" " I went to Lodge's, and paid a shilling tor my bed." Husband : " And had yon any breakfast ?" "Yea; and I paid sixpence for that." Husband : " And, oh Emma ! what -did you do with the remaining sixpence ?" Unfortunately, the witness went away without hearing what became of the coin, though no doubt tho husband found out all about it. Well, at last he, not she, left the House, and told her to clear out, whereupon ahe brought her action. The Magistrate gave her a solatium of 10s pec week, and if his rebuke didn't wither up that pious young man it is because be is reserved for experiments in a hotter, very muuh hotter/ climate, indeed. Ltitelton Watbb Btoppbd.—The town clerk of Lyttelton informs the consumers that the supply of water to tho upper levels of the town will be shut off to-morrow (Friday). Yoong Men's Club.—The adjourned meeting with respect to the Young Men's Olub will be held at the City Council Chambers this ovenins;, at 8 o'clock. Amateur Orchestral Society.—A concert will be given by the members of this society to-night in the Oddfellows' Hall, when an excellent programme will be presented. Sydenham Police Station.—The Sydenham polios depot has been removed from Bowen street to the third house on the right band side of Gladstone J street, whioh was formerly known as Fourth street, and is situated on the north side of Bowen street. Pigeon Bhootins Match.—On Wednesday afternoon, at Bangiora, a series of sweeps Were shot off in Mr Huberts' paddock. A good aftiruoon's shooting took plaoe at pigeons and sparrows. Messrs Farrell and J. Burt wore the promoters of the match, and selejted the sides.

A Govbbhmbnt Viotoby.—ln the House last eight the Government announced that they would not proceed with any business, public or private, until Sir Gheorge Grey's Constitution Amendment Bill, which was under discussion, should be disposed of, nor would they consent to any adjournment of the debate. An interesting discussion ensued, and the fate of the Government depended upon the result. All the reliable Opposition members were at their posts, and as some Government supporters were absent the result was rather doubtful. The House divided, and, contrary to expectations, the result was a majority of four for the Government.

Ashbubtow Poitltbt Show.—The entries for the above show closed on Tuesday night, the total number received for all classes of exhibits being just twenty-one short of 300. A large number of admission tickets have already been sold, and it is anticipated that the show will in every way be a pronounced success.

Ashburton* Home.—The ma-?ter of the Ashburton Home desires to acknowledge, with thanks, the receipt of a parcel of illustrated papers, from A. Garrick, E:q , for the use of the inmates. AIIiBGBD Fobgbbt asd UTTBBING.—At the Ashburton Magistrate's Court on Wednesday, before his Worship the Mayor, Alex. -Clarke was charged with forging and uttering a oheqne for £3. The ohequo bore the name of Isaao Osborne, of the Hinds. Oa the application of Sergeant Felton the accused was remanded till Friday. liABBiBiNS at Kaiaboi.—On Tuesday evening, when all peaceably disposed burgesses were in their beds, some persons, whom the police are now in quest of, unhinged one or two gates and committed other acts of indiscretion, including the disfigurement of a horse's tail, the animal bting the property of Dr. Ovenden, who offers a reward of £5 on .conviction of the offenders.

rßxriDS.—The Lyttelton Hearts of Oak Lodge held their usual fortnightly meeting on Tuesday evening, at the Foresters' Hall. -P.A. Bro. Holland, on behalf of the lodge, presented P.A. Bro. Liwson with a handsomely framed certificate, which was suitably acknowledged. A lodge will be opened in connection with this lodge s»t Kaispoi, and the dispensation has been telegraphed for to Melbonrne, Two candidat s were proposed, and the lodge dosed. Thk Saltation Aemt. —As illustrating the way in whioh help and encouragement are being given to the above organisation, the " European Mail" says that " General " Booth read the following letter at a recent meeting in the Congress Hall:—"Dunedin, New Zsaland, April 5. Dear sir,—Can you see your way to send to the rescue of perishing souls in this respectable and highly favored city ? Herewith please find draft £2OO. The Lord reward you and your?. — Faithfully, A Wellwisher." Another noteworthy fact perhaps is that the *' War Ciy" has now reaohed a weekly circulation of 280,000, end the children's paper, the " Little Soldier," a circulation of 50,000. Thb Cttbt.—Very gen»«l regret has been «xpresEed among the parishioners of the Oust district at the proposed appointment of the Bev. E. H. Wyatt to Kaiapoi. The rev. gentleman has only bean in tbis district about aix months, and paroohial affairs were being brought into an improved stato through his energy and work as a visiting clergyman, and it is feared that his removal will do much to create a renewed degree of uncertainty on the question of keeping a minister in the parish, and do muoh to it jure th<i prospeots of the Cburoh for some time to come. The publio generally hope Mr Wyatt may not consent, and that the Eaiapoi parish may be supplied in another way, namely, by seonring the services of some clergyman who may not be employed, or one who would have a sufficient reason for changing from his parish to that, Wbathbb Exchange. New Zealand, yesterday—Fine all over, with moderate N.W. winds in the North, N.E. in the centre, and S.W. in the south. Australia—Fine

generally, with increased pressure on the * South coast and in Now South Wales, with light north wind in the West, and S E. in Tasmania. Barometer Buesell, 29.9 ; Wellington, 29 5 ; Bluff, 29.6. AustraliaAlbany and Hobart, 30 2; Portlaad and Sydney, 30.5. . - Leithfikld Public Libbaey.—The annnal meeting was held on July 17th. The report and balance sheet showed a total of forty-six subscriber;, and £24 10a as oubioriptions when those outstanding would be paid. Books had been purchased at a coat of £l9 6i 6d; the hall and library had received for entertainments and meetings £l3 lis. Expenditure for sundry alterations, insurance, lighting, &\, £l6 7s sd. There was a balance to the credit of the committee of £l4 I4t Bd, exolutivo of about £lO outitanding subscriptions. The Bey. H. G. Gould was ro-elected ' president; Mr Smellie, secretary and treasurer; Meisri Shaw and Mar oh ant, auditors; Messrs Dron, Harril, Birnie, Jas. Butsell, Traill, Franks, committee. At a committee meeting held afterwarda, it wai resolved that Mr Gould be empowered to obtain a piano for the hall at a cost not to exceed £4O ; that £lO be paid down and the re»t on deferred payments; that Mr Franks take charge of the hall u::d library on Saturday nights; and that the library be opened on Saturday nights for exchanges from seven to eight.

U.AO.D.—The half-yearly meeting of the Perseveranoe Lodge No. 116, U.A.0.D., was held on Tuesday evening last at St. Mary a Schoolroom, Park road, Addington, P.A. Bro. Peek presiding, There was a fair muster of brethren preient, and a large amount of routine business was gone through, and one member initiated into the mysteries of Ancient Druidism. The lodge then adjourned for harmony, and on resuming the undermentioned brethren were duly installed into office by the D.P. Bro. W. Skinner, in a very solemn and impressive manner:—A.D., Bro. O. W. Fisher ; V.A., Bro. Brown; sec, Bro. Hanan (re-eleoted) ; treasurer, Bro. Petrie (re-eleoted) ; I.Oh, Bro. Gilbert j 0.G., Bro. Holt; A.D. bards, Bros. Ohas. Hand and G. Stenhouie ; Y.A. bards. Bros. Loveday and Buchanan ; medical offioer, Dr. O. J. Bassell (re-elected). The lodge was then closed in due form by the newly-elected AD., Bro. Fisher. *

Ibonolads.—lronclads and their armaments are subjects of peculiar interest at the present moment. Bef erring to the Italian navy the "Pall Mall Budget' of June 2q4 states that:—"Experiments will shortly take place at Spezia to test the resistance of various forms of armour, especially that of the coming great ships, the Italia and Lspanto The prinoipal weapon brought against targets will be the 100-ton Armstrong muzzle-loader, as the 109 ton breechloaders whioh will form the armament of the Italia and Lepanto are not yet quite ready, though they, or at least examples of them, are expected at Spezia some time this summer. Till they are produced the 100-ton muzzle-loader remains the most powerful gun in the world, as the Italia and her sister ship will, when launched, be the most powerful ironolads. Meanwhile the Dandolo, sister to the Duillo, made a trial trip last week from Spezia to Genoa and baok, over a measured course. There was a fresh breeze and rough water. Daring the return from Genoa against a head sea the whole of the forward part of the deck was swept with water. Under these conditions the Dandolo made an average speed of 15 6 knots, and the Italian authorities expect her to steam fully 16 knots over the measured mile. But it must be remembered that the engines have so far been worked by Englishmen sent out by Messrs Maudslay, and the performances of the Dandolo under such conditions are likely to be better than anything that will be done later on in regular service."