LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Manawatu Standard, Volume X, Issue 1492, 28 October 1885, Page 2

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

At Stevens and Gorton's stock sale at Feilding yesterday attendance WHS gOQd api| competition lively, The Auckland Star calls' a banquet " that modern abomination." If the promises now made by the Feilding orchards are fulfilled, we will be able to export several tons of fruit this season after making liberal provision for home consumption. — Star. Mr A. Tompking, the delegate for the,. Halcpmbe Foresters Lodge, has left for Wellington to attend the meeting of delegates convened to be held m that city during this week. The meeting will take into consideration some imporant matters m connection with finance. It is stated that Mr W. G. Gannaway, at present officer m charge of the Foxtou Post and Telegraph office, is likely to be transferred to a station m the South Islaud. Missionaries m far-off countries like Burmah, say that a trreat deal of infidel literature is being distributed amongst the natives, especially among teachers. Bundles of documents, including luger soil's lectures, m the native tongues, are sent into towns and villages for free circulation. Journalists throughout the colony will regret to learn that Mr James Browne, the oldest member of the craft m this colony, is very seriously ill m Gißbourne, where he ha* been a resident for some years. He has been connected with New Zealand journalism for 23 years, and has been a pressman for nearly half a century. Au Italian ship han been sheathed with ulasß plates cast like iron plates, so as to fit to the hull m the same manner au the copper sheathing. The joints of the plates are made watertight by the uae of waturproot mastic. Them glass plates will not crush when encountering, rewstfince, and as they are insensible to oxidation, and exempt from encrustation their advantage over copper and iron plates is by no means small. The c<»st of the glass is considerably less than copper. Thus far the experiment is said to have proved successful.

The Pall Mall Gazette warns inteuding emigrants against Sooth Australia which, it says, is passing through an unexampled period of depression. ; Hotel keeping is not such a profitable business as it was seven or eight years ago (writes a contributor to the flawera Star). Several made them-, selves, wealthy men by serving out the long beers m days gone by. Yet there seems to be a strange fatality attached to our ex-publicans. Only one of them has been able to hold on to the money -thus Wade. Perhaps teetotal lecturer* will make use of this fact. Many persons who are not engaged m commercial pursuit! have peculiar ideas of banks and banking. Some imagine . that -the__banker_ .keeps, each. ...person's raouoy m a separate little or big box as the case may be. The following in* cident actually occurred m Hawera : — Jojhn C is a man who by thrift and industry. managed to save a tidy little sum. This he accordingly deposited m the Bank of — , not as a fixed deposit so that he would receive interest for it, but just :»t>n>ly placed it m the bank tor safe- keeping. Here id 1 where the joke, comes m : To make sure that his money is all right, John draws it nil out occasionally, takes it home, and counts it carefully. When he has ascertained that the amount is correct he again deposits it m the bank. This goes on at intervals throughout | the year. . , One hug, sayd a cautious suitor,- is worth a doz-n love-letters, and it can* not be introduced m a breach-of-promise suit. The following advertisement appears m a Wanganui paper. Wanted—Purchasers for 12 selected dairy cows, 5 years, very quiet, a few just calved. Price £5 each cash on delivery — [Cash means Bank Notes or Coin of the realm.] This advertiser has surely had experience of the significance of the letters, m the corner of a cheque— N. S. P. . . The Auckland Herald ot the 17th I instant sars :— " During Marshal Booth's night visitations' of the * upper class Auckland; brothels, m company with Major Barrett and Mrs Hutchison, tie lady superintendent of the Female Prison Gate Brigade Home, he ideatified an inmate of 'one of these establishments as the daughter of an English gentleman whom he knew m England. Theiriterviow between the Marshall and the fallen woman, as ho spoke to her of her friends at home, her fallen condition, and the sad tnture m store for her, if she persisted m her evil courses; was a very painful and pathetic one. Shortly after that visitation the police prosecuted her for keeping a house of ill -fame and- for sly grog- selling. Being a woman of refinement and of a sensitive disposition, she nrvcr got over the exposure and ; publicity attached to the proceedings m the Police Court, but sank into a state of ill-health, and died yesterday morning, thus closing the sad drama of a.wasted. wasted life." An anti-teetotaller, who lives within ten miles of Forfar, was driving home the other day with " just a wee drap m his e'e," when he was accosted by a clergyman, who earnestly advised him to become a total abstainer, assuring him that he would find the change Tory beneficial. He was speaking from personal experience. He felt himself stronger, his general health was improved, and he enjoyed his dinner hetter than ht> did before taking the blue ribbon. John heard him quietly, and then replied, "I can see, yon bad a hantle ,far'«r gane than me. I can take my meat brawly yet. Gee up, Donal." "We hadn't many social advantages at the place where I boarded, but the old man and woman were at outs, we had three varieties of mosquitoes, a cross dog and a hornet's nest m the orchard, au ugly buck m the pasture, a dead, rat m the' well, red ants m the pantry, a minister at dinner twice a week, the old { woman was determined I should marry one' of her girls, the old man wanted to borrow, money from me, there were six boys on the place all under fifteen, I gathered cowslips with the girls, ate onions with them, and kissed them all around the same day. It was livelyvery, very lively."— Chicago Herald. j Mr James Hughes has engraved a j handsome brass plate, which is to be i placed m St. Stephen's Church of England, Marton; m memory of the late Dr Arthur Taylor, who resided for many years m the Rangitikei District. The plate is 36 x 18in, nnd the inscription is the usual Church text, with illuminated initials. The oross at the top and the border surrounding the inscription are beautifully done. The new steamer which has been built by Messrs Robertson and Co., of the Phoenix Foundry,' to the order of the New Zoaland Government for Harbor duty at Wellington, was launched on Monday. The ceremony of naming her was performed by Mrs Larnach, m the absence of Mrs Ballance, the steatnei being christened the Ellen Ballance, ; atter the latter lady. Shortly after 6 o'clock the steamer, gaily decorated with bunting, was let go, and she glided swiftly and safely into the water, amid loud cheering trom the immense crowd of people who were present. She subsequently stoamad to the Queen's wharf, where she at present lies. Amongst those present at the ceremony was Colonel Sir G. Whittnore, Commander of the Forces, who displayed great interest m the proceedings. The new steamer's trial trip will take place m a day or two. Some time ago, a. ffentlernan found a large turnip iq his field of the shape of a man's head, with the resemblance of the features of a man. Struck with the curiosity, he had a cast made from it, and sent the cast to a society' of phrenologists, stating that it was taken from the head of Baron. Turenbourtz, a celebrated Poliah professor, and requested their opinion thereon. After sitting m judgment, they scientifically examined ' the cast, m which they declared that they had 'discovered an unusual : pro- 1 minence, which denoted that he was. a man of an acute mind and deep research, that he had the organ of quick percepr tion, and also of perseverance, with another that indicated credulity. The opiniou was transmitted to the owner ! of the cast, with a letter requesting as a i particular favour that he would send them the head. To this he politely replied : *' That he would willingly do so, but was prevented, as he and his family had eaten it the day before with their mutton at dinner."