LOCAL ANG GENERAL.

Manawatu Standard, Volume IV, Issue 283, 27 October 1884, Page 2

LOCAL ANG GENERAL.

, / . .. ♦ The s.s. Wakatipu on her voyage from Wellington on Friday took 84 horses. Mr Whyte (Foxton), who took first prize for dark.- Bramahs at the late show m Bulls, also took the champion prize m the same class.- Mr J. Stevenson, Bulls, who took first prize for brown and red game, also took the champion prize. The Makino Butter Factory Company, having found that the horse-power that they have hitherto used does not work very satisfactorily, have obtained a three 'horse-power steam, engine, which is vow being fixed. ! The Foxton paper is plunged m the I depths of dark despair. It appears that the Local Board has taken to post its tenders for works instead of advertising them. And Iho result to the public is something too awful to contemplate. The outlook is certainly a very gloomy one and the despairing local journal sees uo glimmering of hope and is sad and mournful m consequence. Thus does it give vent to its pent up feelinga : — " this sort of thing, and cattle wandering about the public thoroughfares all hours of the day and night, Foxton is retrograding at least 10 years." How terrible ! So great is the pressure of water m "Wellington now that when a burst takes place the wateV is projected to a height of 70 l feet and comes down the chimneys and puts the tires out,- and makes the housewives indulge m profane language. The streets become inundated, nnd crowds of people assemble to watch the the spectacle, and for the time being .the. scene is quite animated nnd impressive. This i 8 one reason why people bo lonp to have a water supply m Palmerston, just to cause a little diversion now and. again. The Wahganui School Committee have decided hot to exercise a vote with regard to the election of tho candidate for the vacant seat m the Education Board, as the members of the committee were not acquainted with any of the. gentlemen seeking office. This, we think, a very judicious and proper cause under the circumstances. The Halcombe and Bulls School Committees are supporting i Mf jury's candidature. Some of the children attending the Wanganui schools are so tired that they actually fall asleep m school. The cause has been ascertained by ono of the teachers to be due to the fact that these children were taken to the Salvation Army at night and thiis kept out late preventing them from getting sufficient sleeep. From facts mentioned .at a recent meeting of the Wanganui School Committee, there would appear to be a great deal more of real poverty there than is generally supposed. It appears (says th* Herald) that m some cases where children have been absent from school; it has only been on account of the uttei inability of the parents to provide boots and clothing for them. „ Through the instrumentality of one of the teachers, and one of the committee, some of the cases have been met, and the children are now attending'regularly. The Post's London correspondent, writing on the 11th .September, says : — Cnptain M'Lean, of the iron barque Firth of Lorn, which sailed from Lytteltpn on tho 26th April and arrived at the London Docks on 21st August, reports the following singular occurrence on 22nd July, when, m latitude. 29.81 N., longitude 39.40 W. a floating spar was seen, nnd being calm, a boat was lowered and the npar towed alongside. On examination it was found to be valueless, being worm-eaten throughout ; but a large shoal of fish which had accompanied the spar abandoned it and commenced eating the barnacles from the ship's bottom, by which the speed of the vessel was increased about two knots per hour, enabling her to hold her own from that date until her arrival, with any vessel she fell m with.

Ilfio is one oL Dr Mac'leod's aucciiotcs, communicated to " Good Words" : — "There was an old invalid man on Twi.'edside, who was tended by a faithful Al>igal. Liko many frail persons, ho was always anticipating his own speedy demise. ' I'm thinkin 1 , Nancy, 1 he said one day, ' that it canna be long uoo. I feel as if this verra nieht the end wud come, ' if it were the Lord's will it wad be real convenient, for the coo's gaen to calve, and I dintia weel see hoo I am to tend on ye baith.' " Minister : " Well John, I've nae doot, frae your long experience, ye cood occupy the poolpit for an afternune yoursel' should an emergency occur." Beadle: '•Hoots, aye, sir, there's nae difficulty m that : but then where m hael the parish wad ye get anybody qualified to act as beadle ?" A lunatic who was missing from the Wellington Lunatic Asylum for some days, was found at Johnsonville on Thursday evening by Constable O'Farrell The unfortuuato man accouuted for his absence m the following manner : — He left the asylum last Thursday week and went a consideiable distance into the bush to reason with himself, as he had some brain work to do. After a few days he went back to his home feeling hungry, having gone without food for six days. He further stated that he was. able to remain without food having trained himself, when a boy, to do so for seven or eight days at a time. The Colonial Secretary intimatod, at Friday's sittings of tho Legislative Council, that. a report had been received from the Inspector of Police at Greymouth, to the effect that informations had been, laid against twelve persons engaged m tho cockfight of which so much has been heard, and that convictions were expected m each case. The announcement was received by the Council with evident satisfaction. An Order-in-Couucil appears m the Gazette giving effect to. a regulation under section four of the Juries Act, 1880, by which every Maori between tho ages of twenty-one and sixty years, whose capacity to serve as a juror shall have been certified to the jury officer of the jury district within which such Maori shall reside by a Resident Magistrate having jurisdiction within such district, shall be liable and qualified to serve as a juror upon all juries which may be empanelled for any tiial or inquiry within such jury district, and m which trial or inquiry the person or property of auy Maori may be affected. The Masterton Borough Council, m response to an expressed desire on tho part of ratepayers at a recent public meeting, have decided to take advantage of the borrowing powers conferred , by the Municipal Corporations Act, and erect gasworks themselves. They have resolved, subject to arrangements, to j accept an oilier from the Wairarapa Gas Company. Mesßis Cole and Co., who recently sent a trial shipment of frozen fish from Auckland to Sydney, m the refrigerator of the Wairarapa, are so well satisfied with the financial result of the experiment; that they have engaged five tons of space m the steamer's chamber for j ten months. They intend to fill it every j trip tho steamer makes. The "fish are caught at the Thames, fifteen j boats being engaged m the work. The throwing out of the District Railways Leasing Bill by the Upper House renders the duration of the session (says an exchange) . rather uncertain, as there is now no telling when Parliament will be prorogued. The new proposals of tho Government to buy the railways is stated to bs not at all favorably considered by the members, and great resistance will be shown to suoh a course. This with tho fact that no Public Works Statement has yet been made, (and a big discussion is bound to take place upon that) seems to au^ur a protracted session after all. The Dunedin Evening Star concludes an article on the East and West Coasts Railway Bill with the following pertinent sentences ': — " It is true saying that one man may steal a horse whilst another may look over the fence. Sir Julius Yogel seems to be able to bring down with applause and success measures which if proposed by his predecessor m office would have been stigmatised as a flagrant attempt at political corruption. Wliat. would tho present Ministerial Press when m opposition have said abuut the Greymouth and Westport Harbor Bills, tho District Railways Leasing and Purchasing Bill, and last, not least, the East and West Coast Railway Bill?" The most interesting Scotch estate m the market just vow m Calonsay, a wild island off the coast of Argyllshire, embracing, with some adjacent islets, about 13,00 acres. Colonsay was the island home of the Mncneills, who"although they do not, like, the Macnabs, claim to have had a boat of their own at the Flood, are still a clan of the most respectable antiquity. The Morning Post states that Mr Bradlaugh is now understood to be no longer a member of the Masonic body. Some years ago' he was a member of the High Cross Lodge, at Tottenham (No. 750) ; but it is stated that he returned his certificate to the Grand Lodge when the Prince of Wales was chosen Grand Master, on tho retirement of the Marquis of Ripon, now Governor-Gene-ral of India. There died at his residence, Adelaidestreet, Lnunceston, recently. Robert Cowie.. He was born m England on the 4th December, 1802, and sailed m the Sarah, Captain King, from Grave- . send, the 11th January, 1828, for Hobart, where he arrived on the 13th June the same year. Gn the 28th October, 1828, he took up and settled on his grant of land known as Brookstead, on tho St. Paul's River, where he lived for 47 years. At the annual dinner of the Newspapei Press Fuud which was held m London a few weeks ago, the chairman, Lord Hampden, expressed his surprise that the leading journals of Great Britain had no special correspondents m the various coldnins, and gave it as his opinion that, if regular letters from them appeared m the English papers, they would be the means of still more firmly cementing the union between the mother couutry and her dependencies.