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Manawatu Standard, Volume IX, Issue 22, 24 December 1884, Page 3

J Briefly, but m all sincerity, and with the utmost cordiality, we wish our readres one and all A Merry Christmas. The paper prepared and read by Mr R. Leary at the last-meeting of the Wesleyan Young Men's improvement class will be riven again' by him after the holidays. The masterly manner m which the subject matter was handled by this gentle, man was greatly admired by the members of the class and those others who were present. The Tui was announced m the Foxton paper to leave to-day at noon, not midnight, as stated m our advertisement yeslerday. We learn from the Anglo-Ncw-Zea-lander th&t there are 65,087 marriageable men, and 44,422 marriageable women m New Zealand. Included m these totals are 4964 widowers and 7,296 widows. There is hope for all. The Star says that without any exception the handicaps for the Feriding sports have .given satisfaction, both to competetfflf* and the public. . A leading man m Wellington, m a private letter to a friend m Dunedin, Btates: "We are now very prosperous; things are not booming, but every one talks hopefully, and the money is beginning to come m. There are rumors of . considerable changes m the Civil Service and much reduction, especially m the Audit and Treasury. Yogel is m very bad health, but everlastingly at work. He is said to be at work at some plan of his own for remqdelling the whole Service. Whatever may be said against the Government, they are certainly industrious." Messrs Bentley Bros, are distributing i illustrated Show cards of a very superiorclass, the subject and coloring, bj^pftg exceedingly taking and ornam.WtaV Murdoch, ijhe captain of the Australian eleven, was married on the Bth instant to a daughter of J. B. Watson the well-known. Sandhurst reefer. His honeymoon trip was to Adelaide so that he could play there against the English'

The musical production of " Paradise^" will take place m the Foresters' Hall on Tuesday the 30th inst. The Jane Douglas arrived early this morning and was to leave at 2 p.m. The price of admission to the Assembly Ball to take place m the Foresters' Hall on Boxing Night has been reduced from 7s 6d to ss. The weather looks very unpromising for the approaching holidays. We learn that Mr T, King has given Mr Walkley a bonus of £5 on his purchase of the gates at the races. Mr Pringle turned out a splendid set of.harness to-day, being a special order, the workmanship m which was really a credit to our local tradesman. We have been requested to state that there will be service tormorrow evening at the Wesleyan church at 7 o'clock. All Saints' Church was being decorated to-day,large quantities of beautiful flowers and evergreens arriving from all parts of the districts. . j Formation contracts on the Trunk Railway are to be laid off for the Natives to take, up. The steamer Austral arrived at Adelaide tb-day from Plymouth, which port she left on the 14th ult. ' There is to be a united protest on the part of the Colonies against German annexation m New Guinea. The Union Company's Australian steamers now carry doctors, as an additional precaution against smallpox. Two special settlement applications from Wairarapa and one from Wanganui have been received by the Government. Areas will be allowed for setting apart for townships, and. other concessions have also been made to encourage the formation of other associations. The. Wellington hangman has been discharged on the burglary affair, but his mate the Maori stands committed for trial. We were shown to-day a pair of sculls manufactured to the order of Mr Park, by Mr Baucham of Ashurst out bf white pine timber. The oors are finished m a style far superior to the imported article and also considerably lighter. I The steamer Star of the South is now abandoned and was to be sold by auction to-day. A man named Crabtree, has been committed for trial, at Christchurch, for stealing and selling two valuable horses, and the larceny of building materials which he collected m a trap during the night. We believe a benefit concert will be tendered to Mr Harbott after the Christmas holidays, and have no doubt the affair will be a grand success. There will be midnight mass at the Catholic Church to-night. There will also be a carol service at the Anglican church. Mr Park's new fancy goods warehouse ; has been visited by numbers of admirers during, the past couple of days. The goods displayed m the extensive show room are many of them of such superior and rare quality as not to be obtainable elsewhere, having been imported as special lines by the proprietor. No doubt to-night, if at all fine, will give Mr Park enough to do to attend to the wants of purchasers. A Napier paper states that Messrs Smith and Cadman's splendid block of bush, 10,000 acres m extent, near Tahoraite, is about to be opened up by a branch railway, that will enable trucks to be run up to the sawmill. When all arrangements are completed it is intended to export totara logs to Auckland. The Native Minister has, we are informed, determined to sanction an expenditure of £500 m removing the snags which now obstruct the navigation of the Mokau River, a few miles below the coal fields. The coal deposits are on native land, but the Maori owners are anxious to see them worked, and also desire to open up the surrounding districts for settlement. We regret to hear that Captain Doyle is still seriously ill. Dr Leggatt, who was injured m the hand some time ago at the Nelson rifle butts,is to have a pension of i>s2 per annum granted to Mm. A large area of rough unoccupied Government land is shortly to be let m runs of from 650 to 2000 acres on perpetual leases. Some of the Wanganui and Taupo chiefs display anxiety to co-operate with the Government m the matter of public works and land settlement.