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Hawke's Bay Times, Volume 17, Issue 973, 21 March 1871, Page 2

The battery which operates t'he Atlantic Cable telegraph is composed of five cells Eaoh cell is composed of a glass tumbler, a small disc of sheet copper, and a similar one of zinc, a few pellets of sulphate of copper and moist sawdust tilling the tumblers. This is all. It has no smell. A spoonful of vater upon ihe sawdust now and then is all it needs for support. It seems insignificant and powerless, yet does its work efficiently and well. The French cable uses only seven such cells, although twice as long as the other.—Telegraph Journal.

The Nelson Colonist says :—There are perils by land as well as by Kea> What i» to be done for those who snfl fer frorii an abhorrence of water a hydrophobia which impels them to drink more beer and spirits than is good for them; which injures their health mentally and physically, and brings ruin to so many homes? That is the ir-ualway of putting io. Every teetotal lecture/?; has told the story, until manypeople are tired of the truth, though its observance would " set them free." Here iV a paragraph that is now goinw the rounds of the newspapers :—" The number of lunatics confined \n the various asylums and gaols in New Zealand is 860. Of these it is alleged that 80 per qont. of the cases have been caused by intemperance."' How is this data arrived at ) Can it possibly be true ? If true, is it not a most frightful tiutji? That is to say, of 860 lunatics (a very large number for a population of the size of New Zealand), 685 are produced by intemperance, directly or indirectly. Or, ra put it more simply, four out of every five lunatics are made such by dyink. The number of lunatics is large, being, roundly, 3£ per 1,000 $f our population, or actually 1 & l-6th per 1,000 above the rate of lunacv in Scotland ; which, for }869, wa. 2| per 1,000 ; so that New Zealand shows absolutely 5Q per cent, more of lunacy than, proportionately to population, exists in Scotland, which is quoted because its latent reliable statistics are at hand. Biifc when the alleged causes are considered, tjhe statement that four-iifths of our lunacy is. produced by intemperance, and supposing that only half such allegation was true, does not the fact come like an oppression on the heart of every lover of his kind? Is it not time, by precept and example, by social practice and actual law, to, remedy this by abating a, prevalent curse 1

The Chinaman, says the Atlantic Monthly, is a great believer in spirits particularly in those with an ev\\ disposition. His upper world is peopled by gods, and his under world by multitudes of devils. Numbers of his kinsfolk are professional devil killers, and their services are often in demand to rid houses of these unwelcome visicqrs. During my stay in California, a dwelling in Sacramento became infested, and thereby ensued a high commotion in the Chinese quarter. The exorcist or devil killervas summoned,and in four or five hours of hard work slew or drove out the evil spirits. He burned incense before the family or household god, and fervently repeated many and diverse prayers. He mouthed numerous curses, wrote them with red ink on vellow paper, burned them on a porcelain plate, and stirred the ashes into a cup of water. He filled his mouth with this holy water, took a stout sword in one hand, and in the other held an engraved bit of wood weighty with virtue for the overthrow of demons. Then he stamped up and down the rooms in a vigorous manner, thrusting and brandishing his sword, holding aloft his magic wand, spurting water from his mouth in every direction, commanding the devils in his loudest voice to depart, yelling an 4 howling, and cursing and fighting, till the police hustled through the awed and excited crowd, scooped down the magician, decided straightway that the devils were all in him, and so carried him, panting and exhausted to the watch-bouse, there to meditate on the ways of the 'Melican man, and reuetf himself for fuither fearful encounters with the evil spirits that vex the good Chinaman's peace and happiness.

The inhabitants of the Einpire City have a lively recollection of the first Thames scrip fever, and now that the gold-fields are again advancing, in favor the Wellington Evening Post raises its warning voice as follows: "The Thames gold fields are agam beginning to attract attention. There seems Iq he no doubt that the Caledonian Claim has yielded very large returns lately, anq the fortunate of shares have received handsome dividends —but it does not seem that some of the other claims which receive ' honorable mention' W the Auckland papers and telegrams de-serve-it. Scrip of certain claims fl quoted at a price, and others, we are told, are ' inquired for,' but it is qui* 6 probable that this is in a great measure a dodg4 to get up another share swindle*

Previous experience ought to make "Wellington people extremely careful how they invest in Thames scrip, ancj if there is to be -another ;* bubble' got up it would be wise to allow the sharp men ,abo.ut the Thames to blow it and burst it among themselves.? Referring to the same subject, the Wanganui Evening Herald says:—"The Auckland papers are beginning to treat us once more to glowing descriptions of .certain gold claims at the Thames. These descriptions may be perfectly con-ect ; we hope they are ; but children who have been burnt very naturally entertain a nervous dread of tire, and people out of Auckland, n any of whom have gone through the flames of scrip and found ihe effects to be something dreadful, will not lend a ready ear to the reality n)f a reaction.'

The Fiji correspondent of the Dailv Southern Cross, under date Feb. 25, contributes the following :—" On the 14th inst, the Lovoni tribe, who dis tinguished themselves a short iime ago by killing and eating the chief of the Tokolau tribe, agaiu signalised themselves by making a ferocious assault on the >ame tribe, burning their village and killing 12 of them, having some of their own tribe, however, fatally wounded. Thakombau, to whom the Lovoni tribe are hostile, alleges that they are instigated by JMaafu, the Tongan chief, of whose ambition and treachery he complains bitterly. Maafu, we are informed, has organised a native army at Lakeba, which is daily drilled and disciplined according to the most orthodox plan. . . . . is at present full of native warriors, under Thakombau, who have been brought here to subdue the rebellious Lovoni tribe, but they only talk and strut about, and will doubtless go as they came. It is confidently reported that the Lovoni tribe intend to attack Levuka, and slaughter all the whites, Thakombau and his warriors non obstant; but we are not much troubled at the announcement."

We find the following in a late issue of the Nelyon Examiner :—-" About the last place in the province wl).ere wo should have looked for a loom for making stockings, in an advanced stage of preparation, is Bedstead Gully, Collingwood, within gunshot of the works of the Perseverance Company; yet here we encountered, a day or two ago, a well-known mechanic, JVjCr John Watts, engaged in constructing a hand loom for stocking-weaving, under the direction of Mr Alexander Gibson,-- an old Nottingham weaver, who many year* ago possessed a similar kind of loom, and made stockings in the neighborhood of Nelson. Mr Gibson lias lor several years past followed the pursuit of mining, but advancing age warning hirn that he is seaicely tit for the vocation which tries even the constitutions of young men, he desired to return to his old trade as a means o£ living, and meeting with Mr Watts, the latter, under Mr Gibson's direction, has for some time past been busily at work on a loom, now nearly complete, and which exhibits highly creditable wo»kman>hip, particularly when it is considered that Mr Watts had no knowledge of the machine he is making, except such verbal descriptions as Mr Gibson lias given. The loom, when .complete, will make two pairs of stockings at a time, and it is expected will capable of being worked by ateam- ■ power. As we, twenty-five years since, .wore worsted stockings made, by Mr Gibson, we can bear testimony to their \ alue, and we shall be very glad to see him again at his trade, and receiving such encouragement as may lead to new demands on Mr Watt's skilful workmanship to multiply looms until a creditable branch of industry is created. The wonderful degree of perfection to which the Prussians had brought their military organisation, and the simplicity, rapidity, and ease with which they were enabled to expand their army, is amusingly illustrated by the following anecdote, which si non vero 4 ben tropato: Von Moltke lay smoking a cigar on the sofa in his cabinet when his aide-de-camp brought him the news of the declaration of war. "So soon 1 " the General remarked, quietly; " I had hardly looked for it for a day or two. Just have the goodness to open that drawer." Within an hour the necessary orders were flying to the military authorities in all parts ■jef Gent! any.—Athenaeum.

The latest dodge in the face-painting is to paint the corners of the eyes with a dark blue line, which gives them a beautiful and soft expression. A little dab of vermilion on the end of the nose is also thought to be sweetly pretty.. The normal or average weight of a man of sft. in height is Bst 31b, and for every additional inch in height there should be an addition of 51b ; so that the average of a six-footer should be 12st. 121 b. Those who are very much below or very much above the«e weights can scarcely be considered as in sound health.