LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Manawatu Standard, Volume IX, Issue 112, 16 April 1885, Page 2

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

11l mnking fim;n};euieiits f(ir Queen's britliritty it must lie remembered the 241h of way fallu uu Suuduy.

A requisition m m course of signature asking D. H. Macarthur, Esq, to accept a seat m the Feilding Borough Council. Tiie rapid sal* of tickets for the Feilding Uoinau Catholic concert to take place on Friday next is a guarautee for the success of thu utitcrtaiuineut. In order that there be a proper military display on the Queen's birthday on this part of the coast, the Feilding paper suggests that the respective captains ot" the Marlon, Feildiug, and Palmsrston Rifles arrange fur a parade tv be held at Botne central point, and make all the necessary train and other arrangements. Says the Wanganui Herald'. — The attention of sheep owners to the clauses of the Act, which deal with the question of infected auimals, would save some of them from incurring heavy penalties m the courts. To-day a farmer was charged with having infected sheep, and allowing a ram amongst his ewes while they were infected. For this, he was liable to a heavy penalty, but as the inspector was satisfied that he acted through ignorance, the minimum fine of £1 was imposed. It is stated m the North British Agriculturist, that three of the men engaged to slaughter cattle suffering from foot and mouth disease, and belonging to Mr W. P. Webb, of Newstoad Abbey, have contracted the disease by holding their knives m their mouths. An application was, it is said, made to the Lords m Council to know whether the men were to bo isolated or slaughtered. I Mr King, the last of the " Seven Men | of Preston" who signed the original teei total pledge, has just died at Southport. He had attained the venerable ago of i 90. l Since the result of the voting at Palmerstou has become public m Feildiug, aueiit the extension of publicans and other licenses, quite a number of persons have started their iuteution to vote on the same ticket hero m order to keep pace with that more enterprising Borough. — Star. What's m a name ? The inhabitants of the Whan North township, near Auckland, are evidently loyal folk, for they ha*'o petitioned the Crown Laud Board to have their township re-named 44 Gordon," presumably after the hero of Khartoum, but, as it appeared upon inquiry that some Southern township had already appropriated the title, it was decided to adopt the uamo Wolseley after the commander of the Soudan expedition. The Timaru Herald says it is evident that the present Ministry regard the Legislative Council *' merely as a convenient means of pensioning off political followers." Tiie Wellington paterfamilias can now rejoice m cheap meat, for the Wellingtou Meat Preserving and Kefrigerating Company are now selling at tho following prices :— Prime roasting joints of beef, sirloins, and ribs, 3£d per pound for wish or 4d per pound booked. These prices seem to us to be extremely reasonable, and cheaper than are ruling m ! the districts which supply Wellington, which is a strange anomaly. This is from the Auckland Herald : — During the first year the Wairareka Dairy Factory, Waugauui, made 4 per cent, on the paid up capital. The directors recommended the amalgamation of several companies under one experienced cheese maker, so that a staff may be trained by which cheese of an uniformly good quality could bo secured. Refening to the fact that Gerald Massey, who was billed to appear three uights m Waugauui, threw up the sponge after the first night because of poor patronage, the Auckland Herald says, it is evident that a combination of Spiritualism and Freethought does not draw. The Government Life Insurance Board seeai to be getting to work pretty quick- | ly. They are overhauling the published tables of premiums, with the result that agents have received notice to cancel table DB3, and to discontinue taking any further proposals under its provisions. The taolo m quest iou is one under the deferred bonus scheme, and the only reason we cau imagine for its abandonment is that it does not pay, the rates being cut too fine. Writes the Waitara correspondent of the Wanganui Herald : — As showing the risk of shipping produce to the Home market, 1 might instance the case of a large concern m this township sending some 250 kegs butter home per direct steamer. The butter was prime, and no delay was incurred m putting it m the market, where it found a ready sale with a loss to the shippers of somewhere near 4180. The Salvationists held a tea meeting I at thoir barracks m Manchester street on Monday evening for thu piupoxe of bidding farewell to two of the district otlicers familiarly known as *' Jolly Jim " and " Happy Arthur." The meeting was well attended, and the proceedings were of an enthusiastic nature, ending with cheers and hearty shaking of the hands, &c. — Star The Post hear that upwards of 100 applications for commission m the Wellington Militia have been sent m to the Defence Department, and that, [ singularly enough, all the applicants want to be captains. The Defence Minister shonid form a company entirely of captains, so as to satisfy them. Lord Cairns is not snch a bad fellow after all. He has forwarded a cheque to Miss Fortescuo's solicitors to cover the coats incurred on her behalf This will enable tho dissupointed maiden to draw a clear £10,000. The directors of the Wanganui Dairy Factory have decided to send Home four tons of cheese by the first direct steamer. This shipment will be sent through Messrs Aitken and Wilson, of Wellington, through whom a shipment of 2£ tons was sent a short time back. Tho factory will likely close for the off season at tho end of May. The stock of cheese on hand is very large, but the directors fully anticipate working it all off before the factory opens again. We have lo thank Mr E, Cburtou for a li3t of all the British warships now m commission and their various stations. From it we notice that the Nelson, Miranda, Dart, Raven, Espiegle, Swinger, and Tnmar are on the Australian station, whilst the Constance, Heroine, Pelican, Sappho, Satellite, and Swiftsure are on the Pacific. Of those on the Australian Station many are small labor cruisers, and of no use m case of a war with Russia. — Herald, None of tho various steamers which passed Otaki on Monday on their way to Wellington saw any sign of the man-of-war reported to be m thai neighbourhood ; but Captain Gibbons, of the s.s. Waverley, which arrived from Patea. reported that a barque (probably the Akaroa, bound from Wellington to New Plymouth) had been seen off Patea. A Wellington paper thinks that an ordinary sailing vessel has probably been transformed into a man-of-war by an excited imagination, just as on a recent occasion a small coautiug steamer Keen m Fovcatix Straits whs telegraphed all over tho Colony as the Ii.M.S. Ruapehu. A civil case m London lat>-Iy lasted twenty-one days, and the taxed costs of the defendant amounted to the han.lsomo sum of £29.963 7s 3d. The fee for taxing this amount was £731 llsl The plan of having the evidence taken m shorthand was adopted at the Napier Court recently for the first time hi the nature of ati experiment.