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Manawatu Herald, 13 December 1900, Page 2

There are 2,300 church-bellringers the in diocese of Oxford. About 20,000 letters and newsarrive at the Vatican everyday. There are 256 railway stations within a six-mile radius of St Paul's Cathedral London, The dates of the next visits of Messrs Bridge and Andrews' representative are advertised to-day. The Town Clerk invites tenders for carting, dog registration, lamplighting and ranging. Tenders are to be in by noon ot 20th December. We have been informed that it has been stated on very good authority in Wellington that the Government will take over the Manawatu railway in May. A thanksgiving service in connection with the war will be held at St Paul's Cathedral on January 3rd. The Prince of Wales and Lord Roberts will attend. Messrs Perreau Bros, notify that they will have Christmas and New Year cakes for sale. They have also a large consignment of choice confectioneiy. Indignation meetings are being held throughout Cape Colony to refute Mrs Cronwright Scnreiner's charges at the Worcester Congress against the British troop 3. Of course it isn't so here. Friend : 11 Does your town boast of a football team ? " Suburbanite : " No, we used to boast of one, but we have to apologise tor it now." Advices from Noumea state that a party ot French convicts escaped, and had an encounter in the bush with the police. One man was killed, and several wounded on each side. Several of the gang are still at large, stealing cattle and burning houses. Lord Roberts had a splendid reception both at Port Elizabeth and Capetown. The New South Wales Lancers and a detachment of the Queen's Bays formed a guard of honour for the Field-Marshal at Capetown. " Coming events &c." In the shop window of the Messrs Perreau will be seen three wedding cakes, and to show the name the firm have got tor their manufactures, only one is Foxton, the others going to Levin and Palmerston. Mrs Hughes has now in full blossom in her garden a splendid climbing rose called the Rambler, in both red and white. The clusters are very thick, over 100 blossoms are to be counted on a bunch. They are well worth cultivating. A correspondent, writing to a contemporary, points out that " The Registrar-General's annual reports for England and Wales reveal the terrible and appalling fact that the number of women whose deaths are due to chronic alcoholism or delirium tremens has in increased by 120 per cent in 20 years. For the period 1870-79 the average deaths per million weie *4*3> aod for 1890-99 53.6,"

All the Stoke cases have broken down and the accused have been acquitted. Mr T. Westwood ordered iooo copies of the photographs of his children, when in Palmerston, and has already disposed of 800 copies. The Returning Officer, Mr Alf Fraser, gives notice of an extraordinary vacancy in the office of Mayor. Nominations must be in by Friday, 21st December. Cucumbers are becoming quite common objects in town, as Messrs W. Nye, G. Hughes, and J. Ingram have them for sale. Mr A. Cook, relieving officer on the Napier- Wellington railway section, left for Mauriceville for a short period this morning where he takes up his duties after six week's leave. At the last meeting of the Friendly Societies' Picnic Committee at Palmerston Messrs Perreau Bros.' tender was accepted for the refreshment booth at the New Year's Day picnic. Mr Day, who has been in charge at the local railway station for the past month, left for Eketahuna this morning. Mr Day was a most courteous and obliging official during his short stay here. The Ehrhardt Ordnance Company, of Dusseldorf, in Germany, is delivering in England eighteen batteries of quick-firing guns and 900 ammunition waggons, in pursuance of a contract with the South African Chartered Company. Mr W. H. Simcox has been reelected Chairman of the Horowhenua County Council on the understanding that on the conclusion of a law case the Council has on hand, he resigns to allow Mr John Davies to take that position. The estate of the late Cornelius Vanderbilt is valued at fourteen and a half million pounds. Alfred, the second son, gets nine millions, and Cornelius, the elder, only a million and a half, in consequence of his marrying contrary to his father's wishes. This is rather hard on the elder ton, and he will evidently have to economize. The Wanganui Herald says:— Miss Lily McKenna, the popular assistantteacher at the Castlecliff School, was the recipient of a handsome opal brooch on the occasion of the annual "breakup" of the Castlecliff School on Friday last. Mr Cresswell, chairman O/f the Committee, in presenting it on behalf of the Committee, congratulated Miss McKenna on the way in which the children had per- j formed at the recent concerts, and asked her to accept it as a recognition of her services in training the children. Mr Speirs will have completed the Manawatu Hotel by the end of this week, with the exception of about a week's work for the painters to put on Svine finishing touches. As Mr Spiers o.ly signed the contract on 21st October, this can be placed as a record for smart building in this town, Now that the house is completed everyone is astonished that the benighted action of a 'few, very few, people, were allowed to stop the erection of it on a section in the Main street. The hotel is well built and well arranged and all conveniencies. such as hot and cold water, good washhouse, and pantry, with hot and cold water, have been provided Drainage is arranged to take away all waste water, and the overflow rainwater from the roof is carefully conserved in a concrete tank 10 feet deep by 7 feet in circumferance. From the Eketahuna Express of the 6th inst. we notice the following : — A large number of Mr T. Lewis' friends assembled this morning to consider the question of presenting that gentleman with a testimonial in recognition of his many good qualities as post and stationmaster at Eketahuna during the 1 past eight years. Dr. Murray-Aynsley was voted to the chair. After some discussion, on the motion of Mr Potts it was decided that a sub-committee consisting of Messrs Potts, A. H. Herbert, Tumor, McDermid, and Rev.'J. Walker, arrange for the preparation of a testimonial, it being understood that something more tangible would accompany the testimonial. The time being so short, as Mr* Lewis will probably leave to-morrow, it was decided to ask the Railway Superintendent to allow Mr Lewis to return for a day in the . course of two or three weeks. Peculiar conduct on th« part of a son to his mother was disclosed at the Magistrate's Court at Timaru. The mother (says the Lyttelton Times ") is destitute and infirm, and the son, who is a shopkeeper in Invercargill, some time ago undertook to pay balf-a-Trown a week, and this arrangement was made an order of the Court. For some time past, however, the son had remitted the 2s 6d weekly in half-penny I stamps, which his mother bad great difficulty in disposing of. She consulted a solicitor about the matter, and a letter of remonstrance was sent. The result was that the 2s 6d came in halfpenny stamps as before ; but instead of being in sheets they were all separated, thus giving the old woman more trouble than ever. The Magistrate said that the son's action was a mean insult to his mother, and he ordered j that the amount should be paid weekly into Court, and that the ton should pay £1 is solicitor's fee.