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Hawke's Bay Times, Volume 17, Issue 967, 14 March 1871, Page 2

lii Massachusetts they open court, at the beginning of a term, with prayer. In Worcester, recently, an earnest supplication was made by a di>tinguisheil divine, closing with asking blessings upon the judge's wife and children; that they might be spared, in life and in health during his absence, and that, at the close of the term, he might be once more restored to the bosom of his family. As the presiding judge was a bachelor, his feelings during the service may be imagined. Lord Derby deprecates any servile imitation on the part of England of the Prussian organisation as unworthy of her, and relies upon the absence of frontier and our insular position as sufficient lo render it unnecessary to provide against the contingencies that are common to Continental nations. He also points out the injustice that may be done to individuals by compulsory enlistment, but his lordship singularly fails in instructing the Government bow our army is to be kept up, dismissing this subject with the following laconic observation :—" Its other reserve forces are wanted. Ido not enter into the question here—let the deficiency be supplied.'' The New Zealand Herald says that the work of the new lighthouse on the Bean Rock is in a very advanced state, and, when finished, will be a very conspicuous object upon the surface of the VVaitemata waters.

A coquette is one who steals your heart by.»her- address, and then steels her own heart to your addresses.

According to the Thames Advertiser,, some time since "it was a common practice in Auckland to transfer scrip in companies to'dummies' to avoid calls, and with an understanding that the property would be re-transferred if~ it ever should be- of value enough to, make that operation worth while. As. this was generally done by large holders, and the wealthiest men m the company, the effect was frequently to burst up, the companies, which had to be wound, up at great loss to the creditors. A good many companies, however, managed to keep alive, and in some of these now the scrip is of considerable value in consequence of better prospects. In the. instance we have been informed of, the gentleman went the other day to his * dummy ' and requested that the scrip be re-transferred, as now, instead of carrying with it a heavy liability, it was worth several hundred pounds. To.

his astonishment and disgust, however, the 'dummy' refused, saying that he had taken the risk and responsibility, and would now take the profit."

A favorite theory of protectionists is that the prosperity of a country may be measured by its exports, and we occasionally meet with very singular developments of this idea. One of the, strangest that has come under our notice is a recent report, by a special committee of the Auckland Provincial Council, on the local fisheries, and the best method of encouraging them. Evidence was taken to the effect that the New Zealand fisheries were superior to those of North America; and one of the witnesses, a mariner, stated that he had found a ready market at Batavia for 2cwt. of cured New Zealand fish. Upon these slender data the committee recommended that £4OO should be voted for the year to provide a bounty of 4s per cwt. on cured fish exported from the Province—Batavia and the neighboring islands being indicated as a promising market. Tha committee aL : o recommended that all boats engaged in the fishing trade should be i-elieved from all pilob, harbor, wharf, and light dues, and, if possible, from the duty on cordage, and the usual appliances for taking and curing fish. These suggestions were made in the face of the fact, pointed out by an Auckland that a good market may be found at ihe Thames for all the fish taken in Auckland. The committee appear to have overlooked the truth that business, like charity, should " begin at home," or they would not have recommended the Government to. subsidize the local fishermen, to relinquish a certain and profitable market at their own doors for the sake of a precarious venture in the East Indian Archipelago.

A correspondent furnishes the Inde-. pendent with the following : —A gentle-, man went the other day to a wellknown livery stable in this town and inquired the charge for a horse to take him to the Hutt. He was told 10s. He took the horse, and on his return, tendered half a sovereign in payment, but was told, to his astonishment, that he had ten shillings more to pay. " For what 1 " he inquired. " For the journey back," was the reply, ' you only en gaged the horse to take you to the Hutt." The gentleman seeing he was. caught paid the money and went away. The next clay he went and inquired the charge for a horse to take him to the Taita. He was told los. On his arrival at the Taita he put the horse up at the hotel and returned ro town by the coach, went to the stables, and tendeied the 15s in payment. "But. where is my horse?" asked the astonished proprietor. "At the Taita," was the reply, " 1 only hired him to, take me to the Taita."

The Fiji Times says:—«*We. regret to announce the death oi' Mrs Leggoe the wife of the missionary stationed at Lakeba. She came to Fiji with her husband in the year 1868, and was cheerful and happy in mission work. Having acquired the language, she was just beginning her course of usefulness, among Fijians, when she was called from the ' harvest field.' She died in great peace, after a painful and lingering illness. Her ' sun went down while it was yet day,' but it will be truly said of her ' she did what she could/ "

u The wild camomile," it is asserted in the Star, is making great havoc with crops of all kinds in the Ballarat district. About Jiearmouth, Barrumbeet, T a i Lai, and Warrenheip, crops have teen entirely mined. At Warrenheip, ■qre noticed one large paddock, in which the oats looked well two months ago, jj 0 w the wild camomile has completely monopolised the paddock, and the oats can hardly be seen. The farmers pronounce it worse than any other weed, even including the Scotch thistle."

It is asserted that one hour after the of London is lighted the air is deoxydized as much as if 500,000 people had been added to its population. Daring the combustion of oil, tallow, gas, &c., water is produced as well as carbonic acid ; in cold weather we see it condensed on the windows. By the burning of gas during twenty-fours in London more water is produced than would supply a ship laden with emigiants on a voyage from England to Australia, every pound of hydrogen producing 91b> of water.

The Thames Evening Mail, IChh March, announces the stoppage of the Tauranga Mail. It say:' :—Yesterday's mailman, with the Southern mails, was stopped, stripped, and searched, but the mails escaped, being secreted in the saddle lining. The mailman was compelled to return to Ohinemuri Detached parties were posted along the road, so that escape was impossible. Te Hira seems to be cranky. He stripped himself and tried to spear the mailman's horse, —In reference to the above, the Auckland Evening News says :—Mr Puekey has gone to Ohinemuri relative to the stoppage c.f the mail. He returns on Monday. The report is believed to be much exaggerated.

The downfall of Louis Napoleon re calls the cutting repartee which he i.> said to have received from Lady Blessington. The Countess had befriended him when he was a poor adventurer in London, and went to Paris to be near him when he had become prosperous. Much to her chagrin, he paid her no .attentions, but one day when their carriages were abreast in a thronged: street, Napoleon said " Countess, how long do you expect to remain in Paris 1 " She answered dignity and omin,ouß wit, "Only a short time. How' long do you expect to stay here % "

From the Thames Advertiser we learn that a .young man Christian Wilson met with a severe accident at a saw mill in Kikowhakarere. It appears that the last piece of wood on the bench was being drawn through, when, some one sp.eak.ing to him, he turned round to .catch what he was ..saying, still pushing the timber through the shoot, when his hand caught in the circular saw, .severing one finger, and severely mutilating his left hand. The lease of the mill had just expired, and in five minutes more the whole of the timber would have been sawn. He was taken up to town, and was placed in the Hospital, where everything was done to alleviate the suffering and -effect a cure.

The old lady that believes every calamity that happens to herself a trial, and e\'<ery one that happens to her friends a judgment, is not yet dead.

Law is like a sieve; you may see through it, but you must be considerably reduced before you can get through

A man who had suffered much at the hands of umbrella thieves, has outwitted tlieru by purchasing an oidfashioned blue cotton umbrella and breaking off six inches of its handle. He leaves it in the church vestibule and depot sit-ting-room with impunity !

The Chief Kabbi of the Dantzic Jews had taken a new house, and his flock determined to stock his wine-butt for him. An evening was set apart for the affair, and one after another the Jews went down into the cellar and emptied each his bottle into tjio big vat. When the rabbi came next day to draw off his dinner wine he found that t<bere was nothing in the cask but water. Each and every Jew had said to himself ihat one bottle ; of water could never be noticed in so great a quantity of wine, and all acting upon this, the rabbi had #ot got a drop of wine in his butu