The Kumara Times. Published Every Evening. SATURDAY, JANUARY 10, 1880.

Kumara Times, Issue 1022, 10 January 1880, Page 2

The Kumara Times. Published Every Evening. SATURDAY, JANUARY 10, 1880.

The Christchurch coach, with five passengers iind four bags of mails for Kmnara, passed the Bealey at an early hour this morning, and may be expected to arrive here about four o’clock this afternoon. The Rev. Father M'Canghey will celebrate Mass to-morrow morning at 9 and 11 o’clock, at St. Patrick’s Church, as he will return from Christchurch this afternoon. The Venerable Archdeacon Harper, of Timaru, will preach in Holy Trinity Church to-morrow evening. The usual morning service will not be held, in consequence of the ReV. E. A. Scott assisting the Bishop of the diocese at the service to take place in Hokitika at 11 a.m. At a meeting bf the Central Board of of Education at Hokitika on Thursday evening last, a testimonial and a bonus of of £lO was voted to Hits Janet Cornfoot, one of the late pupil teachers of the State School in this town. The appointment of Mrs S. Williams as Assistant teacher to the same school) recommended by the Kumara School Committee, was confirmed. Robert Wylde and Mary Jane Howe were also appointed pupil tea'chers. The Local Committee were empowered to provide a teacher for the Westbrook School, vice Mrs S. Williams resigned. In our report of the proceedings of the Resident Magistrate’s Court yesterday, the words “ Annie Williams was brought up on warrant ” should have road “brought up on Warrant for Contempt of Court in not obeying summons.” A meeting of gentlemen interested in the formation of a racecourse at Kumara, and the holding of race meetings at various dates throughout the year was held at Rugg’s Kumara Hotel last evening. After some discussion, a subscription list with this object in view was opened, and the sum of £SO was subscribed in the room by those present. It was resolved that should the Committee receive the support of the business people of the town, the clearing and forming the course

should he at once proceeded with. The meeting then adjourned. At a meeting of the Greenstone Prospecting Association, held at King’s Adelphi Hotel, Greenstone, last evening, it was resolved to send out a party of six men on Monday next, to prospect between Maori Point and the Three-mile Committee of the Kumara Literary Institute was held last evening; present—Messrs Janion (in the chair), Smart, Wiesner, Coghlafi, Wells, Moss, Duckworth, and Petrie (Secretary). The book committee presented the rules they had drawn up specially for the conduct and good-keeping of the library. After being discussed seriatim, they were all highly approved of, and, on the motion of Mr Coghlan seconded by Mr Wells, unanimously adopted. A penalty of half-a-crowu was resolved to be inflicted for the removal of any works of reference, maps, books, or newspapers, otherwise than in accordance with the Rules of the Institute. The passing of two accounts terminated the business of the meeting. It is expected the library will be opened during the ensuing week. A total eclipse of the Sun takes place on Monday inbi'nihg* at new moon (when, of course, it can phly occur). The central line of the eclipse passes through the North Pacific Ocean. It will not be visible in New Zealand, though it may cause atmospheric disturbances.

A novelty in the forni of a “pill administrator” may be credited to the inventitive faculty of a well-known citizen of this town. Discovering a neighbor’s parrot, which had escaped from bondage, in his garden our inventitive friend at once commenced the preliminaries for its capture by uttering a series of captivating expressions, which, when he found they were scornfully disregarded, became intermingled with sundry ejaculations as “Pretty Polly,” “You’d better come down out of that,” “Scratch a poll, cockey, ” “ Let me get hold of you—thats’ all.” Finding, however, hia efforts in this direction were of little Avail, and vividly remembering the effect of sugarcoated pills, lie adopted the following effectual plan to secure “Polly,” with due regard to her health and safety. Procuring a box of the aforesaid boluses, he transferred them into his double-barrel in tile place of shot, and, taking a welldirected aim, administered to the unfortunate parrot one of the most astonishing saccharine doses it had ever yet received. The last view of “Poor cockey ” was very indistinct; Owing to the velocity of her movements-. N.B.—The owner of the bird is at present anxiously awaiting an interview - with the patentee of the “pill administrator ” bn ufgent business. Dr Hector has formed ah original and somewhat curious theory of the reason for the exceptionally wet season we are experiencing. He thinks that the Gulf stream which passes from the equatorial regions to the south of the Auckland Islands has changed its course,, and* passing through Cooks Straits, has enveloped the Colony. As it flows to the Eastward* it carries with it a great quantity of moisture, which meeting the prevalent easterly wind, is condensed and descends on the land in the form of rain. As confirmable of this theory, it is mentioned that some strange fishermen, outside of Wellington Heads, caught some strange fish, which they took to Wellington, when the fish were recognised as belonging to the equatorial region, A few days ago, shoals of fish, declared by some to be entirely strange to this coast, were Caught in the Napier harbor, and it is suggested that they were of the same family.

Printers’ devils are generally supposed to be rcmuTierated for their labors with the coin known as “ monkeys’ allowance”—more kicks than half-pence—but that they are occasionally people of very great Consequence, is shown on the authority of His Honor Judge Hardcastle. During the hearing of a recent case at the District Court, Wanganui, he quoted from an eminent legal text book the following extract with regard to damages ;—Therefore, where some printer’s devils, who had been unlawfully imprisoned for six hours, brought thenactions, and the jury gave each of them £3OO damages, the Court declined to

meddle with the verdict, although it was proved that each of the plaintiffs had been civilly treated, and fed up6n beefsteaks and porter during the period of their imprisonment.” The reading of the qnotatation (says the Now Zealander) gave much amusement in Court, and for the nonce those despised atoms of humanity—the P.D.’s—went considerably up in the social scale. i The largest refracting telescope actually ►ift nSe is that at Washington, constructed by Messrs Alvan Clark, of Boston, the object-glass of which has a diameter of 2G inches. The one in course of construction for the Vienna Observatory, in the ; hands of Mr Grubb* of Dublin, will have lan object-glass of 27 inches diameter; |and by the latest astronomical news from the western world we learn that the Russian Government has authorised its wellknown astronomer, M. Struve to obtain, if possible, a still larger one. With this purpose he lately visited America, and we hear that he has entered into an arrangement with Messrs Alvan Clark fox' the construction of a telescope having an ob-ject-glass of SOiil, diameter, at a Cost of about 32,000d0L. (£6,6G7), and that Mr Clark has has gone to England to try to obtain the requisite discs of optical glass. Great Britain has already paid the United States 200,000 dollars for conveying the British Australian mails across the American Continent, in reference to which a traveller, writing to the Pall Mall Gazette, asks What is the benefit derived from this expenditure by the English people, to which, he says, the reply is that not only do they derive no benefit at all, but they actually play into the hands of their trade rivals, the Americans, by opening up to them additional markets in Australia afld New Zealand by means of the direct communication necessitated between those Colonies and San Francisco. Parts of the Bible have been translated into 200 tongues. The tongues, however, into which the entire Bible has been rendered are only 5G in number. A caution to pipe-smokers is contained in the experience of a French porter, who recently cut the forefinger of his right hand with a knife with which he had been cleaning out his pipe. The next day the finger swelled and the arm became inflamed, while tumours appeared under the armpits. The medical man called in recognised poisoning by nicotine, and seeing that amputation was necessary, sent the patient at once to a hospital, Where at last accounts he was lying in a very precarious condition.

Speaking at Hereford, Colonel Arbuthnot, M.P., said that the next question of the day would be the consolidation of the Empire. They had immense Colonial possessions, and in a few years their trade must equal that of any other country if the British Government would take steps without delay to bring about an alliance with the Colonists, in order to induce them to give England trade advantages such as they would not give foreign nations.

It is said Italian editors are undoubtedly the poorest marksmen in the world, not counting those of Indianopolis. Two journalists a Sicilian and a Neapolitan, lately fought a duel near Naples with pistols. The principals were posted at a distance of fifteen paces, and no fewer than eight-and-twenty shots were interchanged, but not one of them took effect. The seconds at last stopped the duel, and declared honor to be satisfied,