Notes and Events.

Manawatu Herald, 29 August 1895, Page 3

Notes and Events.

Mr Woodford, an American travelItr, who has just returned to New York from Antananarivo, the capital of Madagascar, declares that the French troops in that country are in a deplorable condition, and that they have no chance of reaching the capital Ibis season. The Hovas, he says, are making preparations for a desperate defence, and if the French approach tbe capital are even prepared to abandon tbe city, and con* vert it into a pestilential spot through tiae slaughter and consequent decomposition of thousands of cattle. A yonng man named Herbert Wttkie, aged 25, a settler in the Wai-

i marlno district, was seriously Mured by a tree falling on him. He was carried by a party of 25 bushfellers i and roadmen through bush and bog to Pipiriki, and brought into Wanganui by canoe to the Hospital. The party had a terrible task, the carriers being up to the waist in mud, and it was difficult to get through thfc bush 1 at all. Slight hopes are entertained ' of the young man's recovery. He is a son of Mr Wilkie, of Greytown. , Seventy-five person were placed ; upon probation last year, as against ; 59 in 1893. Of these, 39 satisfac- • torily carried out the conditions of their licenses and were discharged, i two were re- arrested and committed 1 to prison, one absconded, and 88 still remain under the supervision of : the probation officers, completing i their respective terms of probation. ; Of the 633 persons placed on probas tion since the Act came into force in • October, 1886, 540 havo been disi charged after satisfactorily carrying ; out all the conditions of their licenses, i 87 have been re-arrested and sen-* > tenced to various terms of imprison • . ment, two have died, 16 have eluded I the vigilance of the probation officers, ) and 88 still remain under probation. i A race of horseless carriages between Paris and Bordeaux and back > (about 1200 kilometres) came off in ) June in the presence of a large num- , ber of interested spectators. There ■ were twenty one vehicles at the start i —omnibuses, light carriages and i bicycles - all using steam or petro , leum. They left the Galerie* Rapp, i on the Champ de Mars, and from ! the Place de la Concorde went in Indian file to Versailles, where the real start took place. Among the conditions of the race was one to the effect that no repairs must be eXecltcuted en route, save only such as could be made by the occupants themselves. At Orleans, Tours, Poitiers, and Angou!6me controllers were stationed. An idea of the general in* tcrest taken in the carriages and the race may be gleaned from the fact, that the President of the Republic offered to give a prize in the shape of a fine piece oi Serres porcelain to the winning carriage. It was awarded to M. M. Ponhard and Levassor's two seated petroleum carnage No. 5, which accomplished the round trip in 48 hours and 48 minutes, averaging a speed of 25 kilomitres an hour, and arriving at the Porte Maillot at 1 o'clock p.m. The prize of 40,000tY., however, was given to the four-seated carriage No, 16, of M. M. Pengeot fu;res. The Bank of New Zaaland Estates Company, Limited, was registered in London July 22nd, 1890, to acquire certain properties in Australia, New Zaaland, and Fiji, belonging to the Bank of New Zealand. The assets include extensive landed and other properties, mortgages, industrial undertakings, shares in companies, and certain open accounts. The assets originally stood in the books of the Bank at £4,270,269, and were valued in July 1890, at £3,107,993, and revenue from the properties in the year ended March 1890, having been £117,075 net. The authorised share oapital is £2,000,000 in shares of £10, £750,000 in 6 per cent, cumulative preference, and the balanoe in ordinary. All the ordinary shares, and £600,000 preference (total face value, £1,850,000) were issued to the Bank of New Zealand as fully paid in part payment for the purchase and an issue of £1,500,000 5£ per cent, debentures was made in July, 1890, by Messrs J. Henry Schroder and Co. at 95, and the debentures are to be repaid 31st De* cember, 1910, at 108 per cent., while the proceeds of the sale of the property are to be applied in purchasing debentures in the market, or in paying off debentures at 105 per cent, by drawing.