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Hawke's Bay Times, Volume 19, Issue 1378, 18 July 1872, Page 2

We have this evening to record another unfortunate occurrence, the direct result of alcoholic indulgence—the disappearance of a man named Whitaker, while suffering from delirium tremens. He was brought in from Waipawa yesterday by Cobb's coach, and taken to the hospital about 4 p.m., being then quiet, and able to converse rationally. He was placed in a ward with some other patients. This morning, sonic time befoie daylight, Mr Troy heard a great noise in the ward ill which he bad placed Whitaker, and going to him found him in one of the paroxisms of his disorder, raving, and throwing his boots at the phantoms by which he was haunted. Mr Troy left the waid to procure a composing draught, and re turning in about two minutes, found that the man had gone, having slipped quietly from the ward. The police were at once notified of the disappearance, and every search has since been made, but, so far as we have heard, without result. It has since tlaiispired

that a person who was abroad about the time of the patient's disappearance, saw a man apparently in light trousers run round Peters' corner dbwn Brown-ing-street towards the sea; but supposing him to be one of M r Johnson's bakers, thought no more of the matter. As it was very dark at the time, and the missing man had no clothing on but his shirt, it is feared that this was he, and that he has made away with himself. There is a slight chance that he is hidden in some part of Sciude Island; but he could hardly escape discovery for any length of time. A portion of the hospital fence was found broken down this, morning, and it is presumed that he had there rushed through. During his lucid interval yesterday, the unfortunate man stated that he had been for somes time an abstainer; but had been induced to break his pledge at a recent merry-making. In the Resident Magistrate's Court this morning the evidence of a defend- _ ant in a civil action was taken under the provisions of the Resident Magistrate's Act of 1870. The case was SamueK- & Co. v. Brown, brought in the Resident Magistrate's Court at Tauranga, a disputed claim of ,£45 6* 4d, and the evidence of the defendant was now taken in order to be transmitted to that Court. The first item in the account was a balance of £l2l, which defendant disputed, on the ground that no settlement had been come to. He further maintained that in the account he was both overcharged and insufficiently credited. —The provision under which this evidence was taken is very useful and convenient, in cases in which the plaintiff and defendant are resident in different parts of the Colony. This case, we believe, is the third heaul in the Napier court, under the section in question. The Launceston FiXarainer begins an article on the present prospects of Tas mania as follows :—" Dri'ting, dtif'ting, drifting! Customs declining; land fund gone; debt increasing; mad pro jects on foot to * revive' the colony ; what is to he the end of it?" Could any words be more appropriate for New Zealand ?

Some of our contemporaries must have a very keen sense of the ridiculous. The milkmen of Dunedin have been in the habit of temporarily leaving their pails at street coineis, and on some occasions have missed the contents on their return; while sometimes can and milk have alike disappeared. These circumstance. 6 we find described as " numerous petty thefts of an amusing nature." The streets of Blenheim have l>een tlooded live times within six weeks lately. The New Zealand Freight Company recently started at Auckland may now be considered fairly launched. The company expect one of their own ships to leach Auckland by the end of the year with a cargo. The following telegram from Hokitika, dated July 9, appears in the Auckland Evening Star: t At the cattle sale to-day four mobs of cattle sold at 25s to 30s per 1001 b. Eat sheep would command good pricos, there being none in the market. A case of foot and mouth disease in cattle is reported to have occurred in Victoria. The whole of the cattle, pigs, and horses on Mr Beaumont's farm, Werribee, have been slaughtered, and the farm quarantined for six months. The Auckland papers record the death, at a ripe old age, of Mr Hugh Coolahan, one of the pioneer settlers of that city, Mr Coolahan arrived in Auckland in 1842, and for many years carried on an extensive business in that city as a master baker, but latterly he carried on a large business at. the Thames. No turn*tables are to be used on the Port Chalmers railway, as the Fairlie engines, which are to be used on this line do not require them, as they can be turned on a curve of a very small radius. The rolling stock and engines have been made entirely under the supervision of Mr Fairlie, and the radial draw bar ami central buffer, invented by that gentleman, v- ill be adopted on -his line for the first time in the Australasian eolcniej.