MISCELLANEOUS NEWS.

Inangahua Times, Volume III, Issue 76, 12 February 1877, Page 2

MISCELLANEOUS NEWS.

Tbe Dunedin Star's special correspondent at Auckland sends the following interesting little romance :— " William Rose, a young man of fast habits and sensative disposition was brought before Mr Barstow this morning, charged with fraud. Shortly after bis arrival here he called on L. D. Nathan and Co., representing himself as an accredited agent of William Gibson, merchant, of Patea, and obtained £10. He next succeeded in obtaining goods from M' Arthur and Co. to the amount of £317, Meantime, young Rose, iv his travels about the city, had been introduced to a Miss — , who introduced him in turn to her mamma and sisters. He professed to be sweetly enamoured of one of tbem, whispered tbat fact in her ear, that he was fairly caught, and proposed a pleasant drive yesterday as far as Otahuhu. The proposal wsi at once accepted by the fair one, and the protean traveller hired a carriage and drove to the residence of the sisters. In the interim a telegram had been received from John Wilson informing the tolice that " Sweet William " was not a Rose of the Patean garden, but cf wilder growth; in fact, William Rose was a counterfeit, and the whole thing a fabrication. Detective Jeffreys was immediately on tbe alert, and went to the home of the ladies, where the carriage was waiting at the door. Out stepped William Rose, and at the same time several ornamental heads were seen at the doorway. The appearance of the detective sent a chilling influence through the young ladies, who knew their man, and immediately shrieked: and though stricken by a sudden stroke of conscience, Vv iliiam £o*e did not know Jeffreys, and wondered as be saw the retreating sisters ; but his wonder was short-lived, for the voice of Jeffreys sounded in his ears, and accompanied by two brilliant silk dresses, partly finished, he was driven to tbe police station, wbi'e the girls, disappointed of a rosy holiday, entered tbe house to weep—' perchance to dr?am !' '' The visit of a swarm of grasshoppers is reported in tho Yass local journal ; they have devoured the cabbages down to the stalk, on their track, and. still further de--vastation is dreaded. Nor where their ravages confined to those vegetables, for tbey attacked fruit-bearing trees and denuded them of their crop; potato foliage was swallowed, and nit a blade of^gras*** was left wherever they traversed. They are now steeling their course in myriads around Waroo, Regarding tbe Northern Territory, the South Australian Register says :— The rainy season has now set in, and our telegram from Port Darwin states that the enoimous quantity of sixteen inches of rain has fallen between that place and the reefs dui ing the past week. Tbe Adelaide river at the crossing is bank high, and the long streieh of country known as the Adelaide Plains is one sheet of water. The country just here is absolutely impassable for traffic of any kind at the present time, %ud for teams it will be so for months to come. The consequence is as all persons acquainted witb the territory anticipated, that the diggers and others on tbe reefs are practically shut out from obtaining supplies, and they will be reduced to semi -starvation. Their stock of flonr in all probability is nearly exhausted, and what little they have has gone bad. Tbere cannot be a doubt but tbat a very grave error wis committed in protracting the departure of the periodical steamer until after the rainy season had fairly set it, and there was no chance of getting the goods taken by her started up the country, The C..s!lemaine Representative relates the following incident in connection with Mrs Scott-Siddons' final performance in Melbourne : — "When Mrs Scott-Siddons left the theatre by the back entrance in Little Bourke street— a most unsavory neighborhood by the way — there were crowds of the gallery boys waiting there to bid her farewell. They smarmed, but they were qu'et. There was no rude jest, no lond laughter, no coarseness, no jostling, only steady waiting to say • good bye.' Then the lady in her modest prominade dress came out to get into the unpretentious waggonette. The boys then crowded up a bit to look at her. With true good nature and kindness she shook hands with a few of the nearest — I saw one boy kiss bis own hand af er it — aud just ns the cab was going away a sirmli fellow said ' give me a flower please.' The cab wa3 stopped, and the bouquets thrown by the dress circle were diyided as far as they would go among the throng. Not one asked for a penny, but all asked for a bud or a blossom, and when they were all distributed, the vehicle was going off, a tiny shrill voice gave the word and three cheers for Mrs Siddons were giveu with immense heartiness, if not in accurate time, and many of them ran after the cab calling ' Good-bye ' as far as the Town Hall. This was an evidence of genuine feeliny, regard and appreciation, and, be it reaieunered, was obtained, not

by an appeal to the lower tastes, but to the higher of the class of persous who are popularly supposed to care only for * breakdowns' and a liberal display of legs."