LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Manawatu Standard, Volume 4, Issue 135, 15 May 1883, Page 2

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

A special notification appears elsewhere under " The Roads and Bridges Construe- j tion-Aot, 1882," m connection with the] Manchester Highways District. Mr John Stevens, M.H.R., elsewhere announces the places and dates for addreßsin* the electors of the Ranqitikei Electoral District. No doubt his ad* j dressds 6n political matters will be looked i forward to with considerable interest throughout the whole district. The Belfast Northern Whig notes with pleasuro that Mr Alex. Me Minn, a landowner, of Herdstown, County Down, ! Ireland, has witihhis customary liberality, reduced the rents of his tenants by •25 ; per cent., m consequence of the prevailing j bad^times. We sre requested to remind our readers that the next outward English Mail via San Francisco will close at Palmeraton on Friday, the 3 8th instant, at 7.45 p.m. Mr C. F« Wordsworth, of Raukawa, insert* a special notice elsewhere, to whioh attention is directed. We learn that Mr Harris, late of Halcombe, and now m charge of the nawlyopened War rengate sohool, has accepted an appointment under another Board, and leaves his present position at the end of the month. It was pointed out at the WaKganui dairy factory meeting that, if some scheme of the sort were not speedily adopted, the settlers of that district would have to throw their farms into pig holdings, and Wan ganui would sink down, ta the level of Turakina, which, as a gentleman present regretfully remarked, "was a flourishing place twenty-four years ngo." The gloomy threat thus held out did its work* and a dairy factory was instantly resolved upon. It is remarkable 'that a disease ilke lep« rosy ehouldflorish m Norway. From the returns just published this appears, however, to be the case.although the number afflicted is decreasing. At the end of 1875 there were 2008 patents reported m the country. At the end of 1880 tbenuraber had fallen to 1582. The disease is stated to be due to the consumption of food m an unwholesome con dition.particular ly nsh,and also to : uticleanlinesß. The membership of London Clubs aggregate nearly J 00,000, and their property 16 worth about £5,000,000. There are clubs exclusively for clergymen, and others exclusively devoted, to gambling. 1 Draw poker is the favourite game. ' 1 There were 2695 tons of newspapers and periodicals sent during la9t year through the New York Post Office to news-agencies andJJregular subscribers. There is an 1 rverage of thirty-five tons of newspapevs and periodicals mailed every day at the New York Post Office. The growth of the dairy interests m France m late years is quite surprising. Statistics show that France produces enough milk to form a stream one metre (40 inches) wide and n third of a metre deep, flowing at the rate of one metre per second, day and night, throughout the year. The young animals consume a pare of this enormous volume of milk, the French people .drink another large part, while the remainder is converted into butter and cheese. The Auckland Sugar Company are vigorously carrying on operations at their new works. Over 50,000 bricks have been manufactured for the erection of their new premises, and two vessels are lying at the point with materials for the new wharf. There are a good many enquiries as to Tfliether Major Atkinson ia going 1 to address his constituents before the session. We have always understood that he would . and .we are m hopes that he will see his way to doing so. The following is the result of the poll for tlie election of a metcber for Clifton Riding m the Rangitikei County Council, Dalziell, 61 ; Remington, 33 ; Fagan, 25 ; informal votes, 7. , The American trade returns continue to show a large preponderance of exports. In January last the excess of exports over imports amounted to 23,397,430 dols. •, and m seven months of the fiscal year ending with January, the excess reached the value of 77,972,899 dols. i An elderly lady m Athens, 6a. , owns the original manuscript of "Home Sweet ; Home," as written by John Howard Payne. The words of the poem as first wrtten are all interlined, with here and there an endearing expression from the writer to the lady who now'holds it. In the old days Payne wasdevotedly attached to her, and she has many of his letters. She has been offered a large earn for the manuscript. ' \ It h stated that of late years the, public feeling of the United States has been greatly modified, m the direction of the policy of free trade, and also that an increased desire has been expressed for an extension of commercial intercourse with ' the Australasian colonies m general, and particularly with New Zealand. Mr F. E. B. Sewell ot Foxton, flaxmiller, gives notice ojfbis intention to apply for his discharge m. bankruptcy. His solicitors are Messrs Hawkins and Son. The Freiich budget lately presented, al« locates 26 millions of francs to aericulture. The grants for agricultural education are cut down, and those for forestry largely j increased. A public subscription has been Btarted m Tasmania for the relief of the widows and children of the two victims of the murders ;at Epping — Wilson and Hoi man. The Southern Cross Lodge of Oddfellows have voted £10 towards the relief of the family of the late Mr. Murphy, mate of the Htiia. : Eeceased wasmember of the Lodge, but had not been so long enough to become entitled to the usual benefits. It is stated that to provide sor the con* centration of 50,000 troops at Moscow during the Coronation, thn Russian Ministry of war will allow a credit of 2,500,000 roubles ; and for the extra accommodation pf staff ofliceraand military representatives from Russia's Asiatic dominions another 100,000 roubles. .