LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Manawatu Standard, Volume IV, Issue 258, 27 September 1884, Page 2

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Mr Guinness has introduced a Bill tt abolish coroner's juries. We have received from the Government Statist of Victoria tho quarterly abstract showing the estimated population of that colony on the 30th of Jane last. The gross total is 945,703, coniprsing 501,567 males, and 444,134 females Tho estimated population of New South Wales oti (ho 30th of June last was 895,533, which was an increase, of 26,223 during the first six months of the year. An unfortunate accident happened on Wednesday night last, (says a Wellington paper) to Mr J. H. Price, hairdresser, of Lambton .quay. It appears that Mr Price was engaged professionally m "making up '" the faces of some amateurs who Were playing m the Princess Theatre, and, while, entering the stage by a sio^ door, he fell from the raised wooden footpath, a distance of 3ft, to the ground, and sustained a broken leg. The right leg was broken m two places below the knee, Dr HutchiHun was promptly m attendance, and rendered every assistance m his power. ] Mr Brnco'B Seaman's Representation Bill was read a second time on Thursday evening. Yesterday (says the Foxton paper) the skeleton recently found on the beaclr was interred m the cemetery at Foxton. It is now stated that the remains could not have been those of tho late Mr Betram, as it is known that some years ago he sustained a fracture of one of his legs, which would have been visible had the skeleton been that of the unfortunate gentlemau mentioned. No possible clue to this melawcholy waif of the sea has been obtained, which adds another to the long list of roystevous disappearances. We cannot let this occasion pass withont paying a deserved compliment to Constable M'Anulty for the great pains he took to get to relic identified if possible. Sam Kalletbn, a member of the Arkansas Legislature, was very fond of offering amendments to bills introduced. That was the limit of bis legislative capacity! One morning, after a night's hilarity, he entered the legislative hall just as the chaplain was asking Divine aid. The old man took a chew of tobacco, and listened attentively until the chaplain closed his petition with an. effective recitation of the Lord's Prayer. '• Mr Spoaker," said the old man, rising, " I move to strike out the words ' daily bread,' and insert, "as much bread as may be found uocessary for twenty days.' We have already done enough for the food sufferers." Says a Melbourne paper : — A mysteruos being occasionally occupies tho at tention of tha City Police Court, known as the " invisibles defendant." This is the euphemistic mode of referring to a gentleman of position charged with being drunk and disorderly. He is not required to appear m court, but pleads guilty (by deputy), and is fiued LI and no questions asked. His name is suppressed, aud everybody, we presume, is satisfied, and can usually afford to be. This pernicious custom of allowing a defendant's social position to mollify tho result* of lawbreaking is very discreditable, even to the magistracy, who, m dispensing justice, so often dispense with common sense. Says ''Aiticus" m the Melbourne Leader :— Society has been greatly interested at the reported betrothal hetween a venerable and popular Anglican clergyman and a youthful member of his flock. In fact, society talked so much on the subject that the dear old gentleman was talked out of it, and the dear young lady had also bashfully retreated from the engagement. It is a strange ■ thing that an experienced clergyman of seventy-five years of age is not to.be allowed to da as he pleases. A curious case is reported from Damascus, Pennysylvania. A merchant named Conddeback. who had been lying helplessly paralysed for three mouths, was cured m an instant by a stroke of H^htning. He was hurled across the voom by the shock, and immediately rose with his limbs strong and flexible. Dnringthn All-England match at Keuningion OvaVa very curious incident occurred, Stadd*, was batting, and an appeal was made for a catch by Bpnnor m the slips. Bbnnor undoubtedly stopped the ball with oiio hand, and there was no dispute as to its touching the ground or anything of that kind. Famuid's point — and it was a most unusual one— was that the ball had been returned too quickiy. "It had not been held sufficiently long by tho fieldsman to make it a honafide catoh ; but the stopping and th<! returning of the ball had been, as it were, one action. Wilsher, when spoken to on the matter, agreed with his fellow-; umpire, Farraud. . ■;_•.- According to the Lancet, "brain tension is not a proof of strength,- hut of weakness. The khit. brow, straining eyes and fixed attention of the scholar t>re not tokens of power, but effort. The intellectual man with a strong mind does his brain-work easily. Tension is friction, and the moment the toil of a growing brain becomes laborious it should canss. >Wo are, unfortunately, so accustomed- to see brain-work, done . with cffoit that we have come to associate effort with work, and to regard tension as something tolerable, if not natural. As a matter of fact, no man should ever knit his brow as he thinks, '[ or m any way evince effort as he works. The best brain work is" done .easily, with a calm spirit, an equable temper and m jaunty mood. All else is the toil of a weak or ill developed brain p training to accomplish a task which is relatively too great for it. We (Foxton paper) learn that Mr Hayward, President of the local Band of Hope, has arranged for Mr Patten, of Palmerston, to give a lecture ai Foxton on behalf of the funds of the Society on the 9th of next month. . . ' In what way Now Zealand producers of frozen moat get deprived of the legitimate profits of their industry may be gathered from the following advertisements which wo extract f^ora the Hnnts and Berks Gazelle of April 12 : — " New Zo°land mutton. — Thomas Stratford, butcher, Basin -.'stolen nnd Mortimer,, begs to inform his customers and public that owing to the demand for the above' mutton prices have - advanced m the marked, and consequently he is compelled to charge as under for cash— fore quarters, 8d per lb ; hind quaitors, 9d per lb; legs, 9£d per lb ; loins, 9d per. lb ; whole shoulders, B|ri pfirlb; who<e necks, 7jd per lb ; ; whole breast, 6£d. per'Jb." In the face of these retail' prices, frozen mutton is sacrificed wholesale at from 4d to 5d per lb. The name of a former resident m Port Elizabeth, Cape Colony, now a popular citizen of Wellington, crops' up nlf-as-antty m the Port Elizabeth Telegraph of August 12th. Noticing the buildings of the new Steam Mills Company, the Telegraph says :-^-" Old residents of this town nefd hardly be informed J wh«re James O'Shea's block of buildings wenj. Mr O'Shea was sortie 20 years ago the moßt extensive wool-buyer m the Bay, keeping hnlf a dozen horses always stabled and half a dozen clerks always ready to mount them to sally forth on the Grahamstown, Capetown, and Uitenhage roads to waylay farmers bringing m wool to this town. O'Shea's place occupied considerable, area \ for numerous outbuildings, stables, &c, were m rear of it. It is on part of this valuable and commodious site. that the new works of the Port Elisabeth Steam Mills Company have been erected."

Tim Dill introduced m the House by Mr Bratluliaw to make eight hours n legal days work waa throvra out by a majority of three. It has been, decided to withdraw the prospectus of the proposed Wellington Ij'sather Company until n more fayonable opportunity presents itself. The Oddfellows at Feilding are shortly to celebrate tho opening of their lodge m that town by a banquet. Tho Marlon papor linderstinds that Messrs Unlcombo and Shorwill are to erect new auction rooms at Feilding shortly, the site of which has not as yet been decided on. Accoiding to an American paper there are at present 20,000 active oil wells m Pennsylvania, yielding over-60,000 barrels a day. There are now nearly 38,000,000 barrels of " ile," or enough, to form a lake more than a mile square and 10 feet deep, stored m this region m tanks. Writes the Patea correspondent of the Wangahui Herald : — " I was fortunate enough to be m the rising town of Mnnaia on a sale day, and was surprised to see such a crowd of pakehas vicing tvith ftach other as to who should give the highest price for stock, whore but a few years ago nothing but wild pigs and almost equally wild men held undisputed sway. Stock brought good prices at the sale, and fully 500 head of cattle were sold, and a lot of sheep, pigs, and sundries. . . . The current number of the English Illustrated Magazine contains a very amusing sketch of an ad venture experienced by Mr Archibald Forbes, " the famous war correspondent" (to uso the customary reporter's complimentary phrase), on his recent lecturing tour on the Hokitika coast. It is entitled " Doughtown Scrip," and is from the pen of Mr Forbes himself. — Anglo-New Zealander,