LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Manawatu Standard, Volume X, Issue 1462, 23 September 1885, Page 2

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

On our fourth page to-day will b#> found, the- following: — Tolegraphic, Disastrous Visitation m China, Assaulting a \vif«\ Tho Pall Mall GazetteSctindnla. Sin sing on the Queen's Wharf ,and inißcMlnnrnns items. .The dnjwPNof. lh« Pnntlicon wlipvp fliifiois ontomltpd rcßts pn njllors. Uoc-i-nlh* nn pyact dupiicnte o^ thsß rloin» \vnn const nu;tod for .the nlmorvntory »t Niep, Imt liv nu ingrnioiis nrrflnGrPinent. if was plaeetl i:pon a rosc-rvoir, whit-ii m turn rests upon wntpr m a circular bnsin. This Rvstem of suspension is said to bp so perfect Ili.il, m spite of its great wfiighf, n single person can turn it comI letely round.

As a result of shutting up tho grog Rhopg iii Ireland on Sundayn, there is said to have been m the last five years a decrease of £5,500,000 m expenditure for intoxicating beverages. The following is a quotation from Gordon's diary : — Man is essentially a treacherous animal, and although the Psalmist said m his haste, ' All men arc liars,' I think he might -have said the same at his leisure. The University of Pennyslvania finds itself embarrassed with the Seyhert bequest of £12,000 for an investigation of Spiritualism. A commission was appointed to attend seances. A friend of the donor charges that the members were too strongly prejudiced against Spiritualism to give it a fair trial. Pie Baya that while m attendance upon the seances they were not m a proper frame of mind to discern the things of the spirit world. Their deep-seated hostility prevented any manifestations m their presence. It is intimated that litigation with the heirs of Seybcrt may follow. Colonel Wright, of Massuchussetls, ' has found women more satisfactory for the State census work than men, and 32 of his 40 clerks are women. The Invercargill Band, which will be the next to take part m the contest at the Exhibition, will be twenty-six strong, and will bo comprised as follows: — Bandmaster and solo cornet, two first cornets, one ripieno cornet, one soprano cornet, one second and one third cornet, one solo tenor sex, three horns, first, second, and bass trombone, solo and second enphoniums, three basses, and drums. It will be satisfactory to fishers to learn that three streams m the WairaraDistrict will be opened this season for trout fishing. A meeting of the Wellington and Mauawatu Acclimatisation •Society will soon .be held, the annual report being now ready. It is suggested that it would be better to postpone the opening of the season throughout the district from tbe Ist of October, at all events, to th« 15th. At tho beginning of last season a number of the fish, were full of spawn, and most of tho remainder were quite out of condition. Nearly thirty millions sterling have boon forwardfd during the last thirtysix years by American immigrants to their Home relatives. Mrs Kirkwood informs the Advocate that eighteen fowls have been stolen from her yard m Broadway,' Marton, within a few weeks ; also a lot of firewood. Two or three fowls were taken at a time. A suicide, probably unprecedented m its method, was lately committed at Cattaro, Dalmatia. An Austrian artillery officer named Berghammev, shot himself with aii old-fashioned muzzle-loading cannon. He rammed down a charge of powder and a shell, fired the touch hole with a match tied to a stick, and was blown to pieces. The bridge at Awahuri is again threatened by the Oroua, The Feilding Star understands that on the south side of the river the bank has been washed away about • ten fr-et, and the approaches will'be the next point attached. The idoa that England is ono of the mast enlightened counties of Europe is quits a misUko. The little kingdom of Portugal has just been putting us completely to shame by abolishing its hereditary peers, on the ground that " m a free country the duty of making the laws must depend directly or indirectly on the people's will, and cannot bo a matter of hereditary descent." Hpvr long is it to be before we learn a little wisdom from Portugal ? — Truth. Last night's Feflding Star anys: — Messrs Richtor, Nannestad, & Co. wore at the Makino yesterday to see what progress had been made m taking down and packing the machinery and plant of the sawmill which is to be removed to Tahoraite. They found that the work had been so rapidly advanced by Mr Murray and his intelligent • assistants that it will be on the trucks either tomorrow or next day. A comrnitteo meeting of the Palmerston Musical and Dramatic Society will bo held at the Club Hotel this evening, at 7.30 o'clock. There will also be a general -meeting on Friday, at 8 o'clock, at tbe Club Hotel. An accident of an uncommon nature occurred At Djtinislon on Saturday (says the Westport Times of the 11th)/ A lad of 12 years, Archibald Galloway by name, accident ly fell from tho tip-head into a heap 0f. 50 or 60 tons of ;i slack," amongst which he disappeared. When the mishap occurred a stream of. water was playing on the slack, for the purpose of clearing it away, aud the hoy was washed by the stream and his legs caught m the boxing. The water was immediately turned off and willing hands set to work to rescue young Galloway from beneath the tons of coal dust. The work was very exciting, as when the lad would bo just within reach tons of the slack would come down and smother him up again, — but after 20 ininutes' hard work he was got out, and just m time to save his life. Ho was insensible, but Dr Gaze brought him round. Artificial Rponge, made of cotton, rendered absorbent, and treated with a itis-plic ,has been invented m England, at Birmingham. A piece of the size of a walnut has absorbed water until it reached the size of a cocc.inut. It is so cheap that it need be used but once, so that sponge infection can be readily, avoided. It is a curious faot that wasp's nests often take fire, as" is uupposed, by the chemical action of the wax upon tlio material of which tho nest is composed. Many of the fires of unknown origin m haystacks and farm buildings may be I thus accounted tor.