Miscellaneons Items.

Manawatu Standard, Volume XI, Issue 1607, 13 January 1886, Page 4

Miscellaneons Items.

The papular supposition ihafc an ostvich never lays more than oue egg and drops that anywhere Mpbn the sand is nonsense,.says a writer who describes the ostriches on the American; plains. The female lays as many eggs annually as a goose or a hen, and covers then with as much care, usually digging a hole m the sand with her feet and depositing her eggs m. it daily nnttl the time for incubation comes, when she sits regularly upon them, and is fed by her mate; Very ofttn eggs are found singly upon the deserb dropped m a chase, or when the bird is unable to reach her nest. The egg of the ostrich is equal -in size and nourish meht to about two dozen ordinary hen's eggs, and sometimes weighs three pounds. iThe flavour is wholesome, and an omelette made of them could not be detected. One egg makes a good meal for, half-a dozen hearty persons, 'and the Indians use them yery extensively. They are often used by the residents of Pynta Arenas, and are sold to passing vessels for food; but there id a great r>k m purchasing the eggs of the ostrich, me shei 1 being so dense as to prevent accurate judgment as to their merit. A decaying hen's egg will not sink m water besuse of the gases inside the shell, but no such rule can be applied to the eggs of the ostrich. They will sink m water, whether good or bad and when a bad one is opened the odour is sufficient to destroy the peace of an entire village. The Temuka Leader says: — A n extraordinary item of news has reached ns from the Orari 'district /It appears that Mr Arthur Stdrv had a valuable dog chaiued ,up, and one day lan t week, a swarm of bees took it into their heads that his back would be a nice comfortable place to rest upon. They accordingly settled down upon i*, and evidently teem Bed the poor animal who*e howling attracted the attention of JMrs Stor}'. She at once let the dog loose, and he made for a creek hard by -.. into which he dived and remainedjUrider water some time. It is said he^reraained under water, his nose only being above it, for over an hour, and whe he came out it was found he had been fearfully stung by the bees. All efforts to mitigate the sufferings ..of tlie poor dog -proved unavailing,' and fie died shortly afterwards. This, taken together with the tact that t.wo persons hare died this year through having been stung by bees, would lead to the conclusion that there is more than the usual amount of poison hanging around bees this year. The "Victorian Parliament have passed a measure to prevent an evil practice which has sprung up m Melbourne m connection with bills of lading. TJie-4r<7M«thutf describes the practice;— "A speculator goes to the agents of a vessel, and offers to ship a ousand bales of wool if bills of lading are given him at once. The man may have very little money and he has no wool. But he lodges the bills of lading wflh a bank, draws upon them, and buys the wool. The whole transaction, is most unsatisfactonry, exposing' the parties to peril at everys turn. Such bills of lading ought nob to be signed, inasmuch as they are purely fictitious, but with a dozen or more ships on the berth, the competition is keen; some vessel is likely to be left out, and each , agent is anxious that his craft shonid not be the victim." The Argus expesses pleasure that the bill to preveut this practice has. beco ne' law,. a«d congratnlaies th«iChi'inber of Commerce, which initiated tha- legislation, on a victory by Which so lob^e and naischeviona a nqetbpd of doW, business will be stopped. , N.