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Manawatu Herald, 18 October 1898, Page 2

Mr Cameron, Overseer of the Motoa Estate, invites tenders for ploughing which close on Friday, and for widening and deepening drains which close at the end of the month. Mr and Mrs McQueen and family left by the s.s. Queen of the South this morning. The result of the inquiry into the stranding of the Mapourika is that tbe Captain has been absolved from all blame and his certificate was returned. It was found that the mishap was caused by a big roller causing the j vessel to shear. i There should be a sitting of the ' Magistrate's Court on Thursday.

On Friday a woman averred at the Wellington Court that she did not think her husband had earned more than 15s a week for years past. "He goes out to look for regular work," she continued, " but he never gets it, and I often think he prays to God that he won't."

The newspapers " L'lntransig6ant " and " Le Gaufois " ask what is the use of the Russian Alliance to France.

Howard Gould, third son of the millionaire Jay Gould, disregarding the wishes of the family, has married Miss Clemmons, an actress. He forfeits a fortune of five million dollars.

Lord Brassey describes the. condition of the government of China as effete, corrupt, craven and helpless, with no policy and no power.

A correspondent from Rongotea writes:— One settler who has placed covers on several cows informed me that he left them off for several days during the warm weather in September, and his cows yielded between 40 and solbs less milk daily. He then replaced the covers and the milk yield at once went up the additional 4olbs daily. He is so satisfied with his experiment that he intends to use covers for all his cows next winter.

The Standard understands that a writ has been issued for the next sitting of the District Court, claiming £300 for breach of promise. Mr J. P. Innes is acting for the injured lady.

It is unlikely that the Garden and Orchard Pests Bill will be passed this session.

West Coast papers report that intense excitement was caused at Charleston last Saturday evening concerning a mysterious explosion of rocks at Parson's Beach, which was supposed to have occurred on the same night that the Mapourika was wrecked at Greymouth. On the Sunday hundreds of people visited the beach, and were amazed to see hugh pieces of rock hundreds of tons in weight hurled a thousand yards from the scene of the explosion, while millions of smaller stones were scattered about in all directions. The cause of this mysterious circumstance is unknown.

The death is announced of Mrs Tuke, wife of Major Tuke, of Napier, at the age of 64 years.

Captain Gourand, the leader of the French expedition against' the Mahometan chief Samory, in West Africa, has captured Samory and all his family and chiefs.

The Norwegian corps of skaters, a force, peculiar to the army of that country, is a body of soldiers armed with rifles, who can be manoeuvred upon ice or over the snowfields of the mountains with a rapidity equal to that of the best trained cavalry.

She: "And now that we are engaged John dear, how long shall the engagement be for ?" He (an absentminded lawyer, who has just drawn up a street-car lease) : " Oh, 99 years, I suppose."

The Auckland people have decided to erect a statue, to cost from £1500 to £2000, in memory of Sir George Grey, and in recognition of his services to Auckland and the colony.

" There is a slight touch of truck in this system of employers giving operative bakers a weekly allowance of bread, and it is not in keeping with our modern ideas."— Judge Denniston in the Arbitration Court.

The "N.Z. Times" says, some genius has been going about among the country settlers persuading them to allow him to adopt heroic measures suggested by himself for eradicating scale blight, and fungi from their fruit trees. His modus was to concoct some awful compound in a bucket, then dip a fork into it and stab the trunk of the tree. This he explained to the bucolics would have the tendency of impregnating the rising sap with his mixture, and disseminate it to the very tips of the leaves. The result would be, he declared, that the insects would let go quick and disappear for good. The result was that a great deal of damage was inflicted on the trees, many of which exuded all their sap and died, but not before the heroic person (who said he came from Yorkshire where this method was in vogue) had skipped to fresh vineyards and orchards new with almost incredible amounts of money squeezed out on promise of a permanent cure. It appears that the farmers who will not take the trouble to clean their orchards themselves are those most readily duped by anyone who comes along and professes to be able to do it for them." To this we may add that a gentleman with a Yorkshire brogue was round this way, but sold to trusting orchardists a concoction to paint on the trees, at ten shillings a gallon ! As the stem for less than three feet was to be painted and this was to clean the whole tree, the gullibility of human nature can be guaged.