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Manawatu Herald, Volume III, Issue 77, 27 May 1881, Page 2

Mass.— lt is announced in another column that M&ss will be celebrated at Foxton Sunday next. Queen's Birthday. — Tuesday last was Observed as a close holiday throughout the district, in honor of the birthday of her Majesty the Queen. A large number of sportsmen j devoted the day to shooting, and in some instances capital bags were obtained. On Lkave.— Mr S. M. Baker, the Clerk of the Court, has left for Wellington on a week's leave of absence. Bridge.— We hear that Mr Gower has given leave for a bridge to be erected over the big drain which runs into the Manawitu at Long Reach. This will be good news for a number of people, as since the old drain has been pulled up, persons travelling up the river bank to Paiaka have been greatly inconvenienced, having to travel round by way of Moutoa. Found Dead.— On Tuesday afternoon last a man named Lawlor arrived at Foxton, and reported to Constable M'Anulty that he had seen the body of a man lying in a house situated at Ihakara's Bend, and known as " Ihakara's Cottage. " The constable at once proceeded to the house, and found the body to be that of a colored man named William Adams, who has been living there alone for some months past. The body was conveyed to Foxton, and an inquest was held before the Coroner, Mr Ward, a report of. which will be found in another column. Mr Pugsley, coachman, informs us that last Thursday Adams asked him to take his blankets down to Otaki, which he did. Adams told Pugsley that he was going to Otaki himself next day, but did not do so. He must have died that night or Saturday. The deceased used to do a little straw hat making, and collect money from the cattle drovers for the use of the paddock attached to the house belonging to the Maoris. Our Member.— The Advocate of yesterday says : — " We are happy to be aWle to state, on authority, that the Postmastergeneral wfll address his constituents in Manawatu immediately after the return of the Prime Minister from Canterbury. " We hope the iuformation will prove correct. Accounts. — Dr Barber announces tha vall accounts owing by him must be furnished by the 4th ulfc. otherwise they will not be recognised. Pompadour Minstrels. —This Company of juvenile performers is announced to appear at Foxton on Monday evening next. The company has lately made a tour through the Wanganui district, and have been most successful. Amongst the members are some of the boys who sang leading parts at Wellington with Gary's Company of Pinafore performers, and they do some of the Pinafore business with the present company. In addition to these, there are two more youngsters, who are said to be perfect marvels of ability im the neero lino. The troupe has been very favorably criticised by the northern papers, and we therefore anticipate that if the weather is favorable they will receive a good bouse on Monday. Mr T. Gray is the advance agent. We forgot to mention that the musical part of the programme is under the conductorship of Mr Cemino, the well-known Wellington bandmaster. Tenders. — The County Engineer invites tenders for various works to be sent in at next meeting of the Council. LandJfor Salt?. — Some sections of land are advertised in another column for sale by Mr Rockstrow. A Chance for the Revenue. —Here is a hint for the Colonial Treasurer. The San Francisco Pacific says that *' St Valentine's Day has come to be one of inflictions and impositions; a day for the indulgence of coarse tastes and low sentiments — wheu the vulgar-minded feel free to engage in practical joking through slang print, doggerel, daub, caricature, and vUe cartoon ; and when the envious, jealous, and hateful seise the opportunity toinfliot painon their rivals and foes, and to avenge themselves in mean and cowardly ways. . . . We wish the Internal Revenue Department would put a specific tax of a dollar each upon everything that purports to be a valentine." Mr Gladstone's Magic Fluid.— lt was observed that Mr Gladstone previous to his great speech on the new debate last week brought in with him a small bottle, which he placed in front of him, along with his papers. This bottle contained the famous sherry and the white of eggs, without which the Premier had never ventured of late years to make a great set Bpeech, and which is becomming more necessary to him than ever now that his magnificent voice shows sitjns of breaking. As it happened, the Premier had no reed to resort to this mixture during the delivery of his Bpeech. A preliminary sip of the magic fluid cleared his throat — rendered it, °as the French say, veloute— and from first to last his voice remained clear aB a bell, with just that suspicion of weakness at times which baa began with the past two years to manifest itself. J Brave Rescues. — During the recent gales the lifeboats of the National Lifeboat Institution at Yarmouth, Harwioh, Ramsgate, Clacton-on-Sea, Whitby, Palling, Caister, St. Ives, Porthdinllaen, Montrose, Berwick-on-Tweed, Redcar, Runswick, Staithes, Cullercoats, Ktssin^land, Nairn, Skegness, Winterton, and other boats have rescued a total of 143 lives, beside four vessels. The bravery and exposure of some of the lifeboat men on some these occasions have been unexampled in the history of lifeboat work, Borne of the boats' crews having been out consecutively, in raging seas and intense cold, twenty and thirty hours at a time ; and a few hours after reaching the shore, they have proceeded out again and again, in reply to the urgent signals for help from distressed ships. Pastoral Lands. — A comparative statement, recently published at Sydney, discloses a wonderful diversity of opinion among Colonial Governments as to the value of their pastoral lauds. la New South

Wales the average annual rental per square mile paid by pastoral tenants is 15s 7£d ; South Australia and Queensland show much below this at 4s B£d and 7a 10£ d respectively ; Tasmania and Victoria charge higher rentals than New South Wales, their rates being respectively £2 12s lOfl and £3 183 Id, while New Zealand comes next at £5 8s 9sl per square mile. Descriptive Music— Some people don't seem to appreciate descriptive music. A Boston composer has set the roar of Niagara Falls to music. When he played the piece over to a company of critics, and asked them if they understood it, the man, whose opinions tha rest agree with, said that it was very clear to him that the waiter had fallen downstairs, upset a hat tree, broken three soup plates and a lamp, and hit his jaw a blow that broke four teeth and made him howl. " But he didn't quite see what tripped the fellow at the head of the stairs. The composer at once leaped from the window and fled to the woods. — Boston Post.