MISCELLANEOUS NEWS.

Inangahua Times, Volume IV, Issue 75, 1 October 1877, Page 2

MISCELLANEOUS NEWS.

SHorSly after $ o'clock; on Saturday | nfterneoov September 8, a youtlitof 19or 20' called? ab the- Sydney Observatory, an* left a small'box amassed to Mr Russell, the Government astreoomer: Upon beingpartially opened, \b was found' to contain? powde.r. Bfc was then taken< outside Uir* building' and opened l cautioosly by Mr KussclL Ec found it fo contain 4flbs of bfostbg powder, and' 16P matelies stand* ing on endv the sulphurous tips being uppermost:. A sheet of sandpaper was gummed to the under side of the lid, to that the friction in withdrawing the lid' i would igmto the matches,, and* oause an- ! explosion. A ginger-beer Uottlfe filled? with povrdev- was also found inside tho box. The combustibles were sufficient toblow the whofe- establishment down, and: the instrument seems t©> bare- been propared carefoffy. T&e- matter ha« beenplaced in the bands of the police. For a splendid specimen of ignoranceon the part of a writer in a public journal, commend ua to the following from thePbrtsmoath Time*, laigland::— Commodore Goodenoqgh was wotwded on theleft side and on the* ftaad, and* five menware also grounded. As may. U»-remem» bwed, the CoawsKktero gave a* salutary lesson to the savage? by destroying theirvillage, altboug& h» strictly prohibited'♦fee killing of Natives. The facts came prominently atwfc faJly before the public n» * letter pwbJwfe«J at the time by one of tfce officers of tie Pearl. The vessel nt owe "proceeds*! north to get cold! weather," but tetanus spasms set in. and the Commodore- and two of the injured stamen died. The- Commodore ws* buried! .at "Sydney, New Zealand," on August 1 2£, amidst mansfes4atioßS of respect from* th» highest to the lowest at that port. An intcrestseg experiment his beenmade at * horse s'nuehtoring establish* nwmt at Dudfcy. with tha view of testing a new system of slaughtering cattle by means of dynamite nnd thun Tratttßg'thenv out of psistereee mnro speedily and with less suffering thun by the ordmnry poleaxe. Two fitrre pnwerfhl horsws and* n. donkey (di.«tnl»&»n t for wort) were ranced in a line aboot &alf r yard apart under ft shed, the donftoy being placed fn flipcentre. A smffFl pnaer of dynamite^ with an electric fww attached, was? then placod on eae'i of their forehand's and ftufened in nositinn by a pieco of string under the j»w. Too wires wero thf>n coupled up in circuit and attached to the electric machine, whieli stood about fiveyards in front. Tho hnadle of the machine .being then turn°d, an electrib current wasdischarged, which exploded' the- threecharees simultaneously, and the uniYrmlg: fell dead without a straggle- The- wlv>lo affair was orer in two minutes, and theexperiment appears to have been n perfect success. It was conducted by Mr Johnsou, agent for Nobel's explosives, assisted by Mr Harris, one of the dvnnmite instructor*. By this tnonno, it is stated, nny number, even a hundred or »«oreentile may be in^t-nntly killed l>y thesame current of electricity. There cannot be a doubt that the present system of slaughtering cattle is open to the charge--of being cruol nnd barbarous? and the slightest want of skill on the part* of the slaughterer often subjects the unliappy beasts to horrible torture. Any attempt to extinguish life painlessly is a step in< tho right direction, not only as regardseattle, but also as regards criminals sen* teheed to capital punishment, whose caseequally deserf es consideration.— European • Matf. Reporting the font of a daring Americanwho, with his wife crossed the Atlantic in» an open boat, a home paper of July 28tb,says:— €t On Sunday the boat New Bedford, ten feet in length, safely arrived' at Nrwlyn, near Penzance. having on board Captain Crapps »nd his wife: Thevoyage from- the American shore occupied' forty-nine- days, during which time shehad to lay-tofoar times, once for threedays on-aecount of a series of storms.. During these times,. Crapps and his wife were drenched by seas, and their littlecraft must have foundered, bub for a floating barrel which they caught; and' used as a drogue or drag at the stern. Twice they refused offers fromsteamers to take thera on board, and'oncetheir rudder and the spare rudder had to be shipped during tfee height of a gale.. Daring one storm the captain, was personally steering for seveftty horn's- without relief from his wife; and oneoftht3>arms> was disabled. The course- of> tho voyage W4» marked by dead reckoning, as no chronometer would have acted in so small a- boat. The adrsntarous voyagers seemed very well, considering thair long privation* of ve9ts r rarely baying more than throehoars'" sleep." A. correspondent, who signs himself " A Briton," writes- to a contemporary to- point out that if MrsCrapps, who during the last three days of the roya^e was so ill us to be unable to render any aesistnnee, had died in JBrii'sii waters, Mr Crapps would have lipph morally guilty of manslaughter, lie trusts that Crapps will not bo made nv.cii of in this country,, having expose:: ,i woman to such thoughtless hardship &ud suffering." There are several lange clothes- pin manufactories in Penneylvania.aod.Olno,

and one in the vicinity of Saratoga, each •t. which is capable of taming out 1000 lnn B a nn °i 720t000 P ios P w ™* k ' Ow wy.QOO .boxes of pins are annually sent to The great event in cricketing circles has been the contest between the Gen* Neman an.l the Mayers. Three matches between these sides hare been played this season. The first match affcpr a three day a contest resulted in a draw. The Gentlemen, however, decidodly had the best of it. In tlw first innings they Btfored 427 to tho Players* 404. Tlie latter then wont in and made 119 in their mninas, when tho time was up, and the match was declared drawn. The second match was won by the Gentlemen, after an exciting straggle, by ono wicket. The third match is now being played at Princes ground. Tho first and socond were played respectively at the Oval and at Lord's. The two Grace's W. G. nnd G, F., playod on the side of the Gentlemen. The former, the Leviathan as he is callod, has not distinguished himself so much a* usual. In the last match ho was bowled by Southerton for 3. G. F. Grace, however, sustained the family reputation with 134. The names of toe Players are Jimp, Sontherton, Emmetr, Eastwood, Hill. Lillywhite. Pinder, Myorofi, Charlwood, Ulyett, and Lock wood. I menton these Players, as most of them are now known to you in tho flesh. The subscription for presentting a testimonial to W. G. Grace, tbe finest cricketer tlmfc ever lived, now amounts to £'400. The N.Z. Herald offers tho following explanation regarding tbe little boy " rai*» sent" to the Thnmea by tho Rotomahnna the other night : The police have been engaged in prosecuting inquiries respecting tbe little boy Frank who was so mysteriously placed On board the Rotomahana on Tuesday, and though they have not yet found his mother, have elicited some facts which will greatly aid them in their search. It appears that the little fellow is named Frank Godlington, and that a month ago bo and bis mother resided with a Mrs Byera in Lorno street On Monlay week Mrs Godlington took her departure for the Thames, leaving her son behind her. Some days after* wards Mrs Byors took sick, and not feeling able to attend to the child, she resolved to forward nim to his mother. She accordingly wrote to Mrs Godlington informing her of the determination, and desiring her to meet little Frank on his arrival. Tbe obild was consequently j despatched to the Rotoraahana, and sailed nway with tbe result already made known. Tbe little fellow is now in the charge of the Thames police, , who aro staking diligent search tor hi s tndtber. Sodontaij Pursuit* era enfeebling. Nature never intended us to sit in a doubled up position half our lire*, nftd accordingly she revenges herself upon those who do so by inflicting upon them indigestion, debility and very frequently lumbago and kidney dineaae. Persons whole avocations keep thorn indoors, behind* desks and work-tables, oati however counteract in a great measure, tho ill effects of such confinement by the use of ÜBOLPHO WOL7B'9 SflfllEDAM ABOXITIC Schnapps.— Advt.