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Nelson Evening Mail, Volume IX, Issue 314, 21 September 1874, Page 2

The Governor's yacht Blanche which was towed through the French Pass by the Taranaki yesterday morning, was signalled tbia afternoon at two o'clock. Resident Magistrate's Court. — Two cases were called this morning, bat in neither did the parties appear. They were Fisher v. Campbell for £50 Os 10d, and Kerr v. Fowler for £100, the amount of a dishonored cheque. This case, we understand, arose out of a betting transaction. Railway Arbitration Court. — On the Court meeting tbis morning re H. Stafford's claim, the Resident Magistrate said that he had just received the "Immigration and Public Works Act, 187 V the fourth clause of which provided that every claim for compensation exceeding £500 most be heard before the Judge of the Supreme Court of tbe district, unless the Minister of Public Works should give his consent to its being decided in the manner originally prescribed. The case was therefore formally adjourned until Friday next, in order to allow the Court to communicate wiih the Minister. The Act, which bears date August 31, would probably have reached Nelson before the hearing of the evidence in this case commenced but for a peculiarity in the manner of despatching mails from Wellington. It so happened that about a fortnight ago two steamers were leaving at the same time, one for Nelaon, and the other for Napier. Eight bags which should have been sent here were carefully put on board the boat proceeding Nortb, and it is only to-day that We have been able to welcome their contents. Nelson Fire Brigade. — The annual meeting of the Brigade was held on Friday evening, when twentyeight members were present. The balance-sheet for tbe past year was read aod adopted. Messrs Lightfoot and H. Wimsett were proposed as captain, when tbe former was elected by a majority of six. Messrs C. Hunter Brown and Stringer were propoeed as lieutenant, when the former was elected by a like majority. Mr Cooksey was re-elected foreman of the Hook and Ladder Company, Mr. Thomson oi the No. I Hose Company, and Mr Garrett of the No. 2 Company. Mr A. D. Jones was elected foreman of the Fire Company. Mr Wigzell was re-elected secretary, and Mr Brighten elected treasurer. It was decided tbat the annual dinner should take place on Thursday nexr, in tbe Masonic Hall. The Central Brigade will on that evening march down to the Port beaded by the Artillery Band, where they will be joined by the Port Brigade, and the two will unite in forming a torchlight procession back to town. The Westport Times says : — • • The recent wet weather has delayed the progress of the railway works, although Mr. M'Lean avails himself of every possible means of pushing on. Tbe works were commenced on the I3ib of August last, and since that date the highest time made by any men on the line has been sixteen days, and only two or three bave made that. Some few have made thirteen days, while the majority only average about ten. Under these circumstances their earnings have been scant, and (he benefit of increased population has not yet been made very apparent to the trading community. From the end of Adderley- street up to the crossing at Palmerston-street, the permanent way has been laid ready for laying sleepers and plates ; and on the arrival of the schooner Alert, from Wellington, with the first 60 tons of rails, Mr. M'Lean will at once commence tbat portion of his contract. Tbe balance of the iron work for the line is on board the ship Strathnaver, now at Wellington, and there will be little delay in forwarding on the material here. Several hundred sleepers have been also piled at tbe present terminus of the line, and everything, excepting the weather, favors the speedy completion of the contract." The Herald thus describes a diegraceful case which occurred in Wanganui: — On the night of Friday or Saturday morning last, a married woman was woke up by her husband, who bad just come in, calling upon her to come down stairs. The wife went to the head of the stairs, when she saw her husband and another man, (the latter with a bottle in bis hand.) The husband ordered her to come down and drink witb the man wbo was with him. It appears she refused, and the result was, tbe husband threw her down stairs, dislocating her arm and bruising her in a horrible manner. Tbe poor creature found her way back to bed, and during the whole of Saturday she was ucable to dress, no person rendering her any assistance. After dark she was able to gather a few tatters round her shoulders, and make her way to the surgery of Dr Samuels. The dislocated arm at this time was so swollen that the injury could not be reduced until wet bandages had been applied. Misery could hardly be pictured more completely than in the poor woman's appearance. The case is unparalleled for ita cold-blooded and unmitigated brutality, and the lowest instincts of humanity would at once demand the interference of P-& authorities. We shall say' no moje at pjresept) Jnjt await \he action of justice. ' - •

It is the intention of the Provincial Government to send down the greater * portion of the next batch of immigrants, i now due per ship Chile at Nelson, to i Westport, where they will be employed j at a moderate rate of wages in opening up the branch streets through the bush from Palmerston-street. This will be I a boon to the public, and a source of . immediate profit to owners of sections ! whose property will be rendered acces- ; sible. — Westport Times. i The Wellington Triubne of August ' 29, says : — -A very narrow escape from what might have proved a disastrous conflagration took place (ast evening i about eight o'clock. The Rev. Mr Ogg, on entering St Andrew's Church, I last evening, struck a match and it i appears the gas meter had not been i properly turned off, and uu explosion was the consequence, which, fortunately for Mr Ogg, took place ere he had entered far into the church. As it waa the rev. gentleman had bis eyebrows and whiskers most unpleasantly singed before be reached the street. A plucky man-of-war's man, named Corporal Stancolm, of H.M.S. Blanche, on observing the vivid light in the church, at once rushed io, and pulling off his jacket extinguished the flame at the meter. Stancolm desarves the thanks of tbe public at large for his decision and heroic conduct in rushing into — what to him was an unknown danger, and preventing the progress of the demon fire which, in a few minute 6 longer, might have taken such a hold as to have laid a large part of tbe town in ashes. We (Auckland Star) havo just seen a splendid sample of native grown oranges, ripe and full-flavored, aod quite equal in sweetness to those of the Azores, or the sunny islands of the Mediterranean Sea. These oranges were taken from a tree in a garden at Waikari, the property of the late Mr William Cook, an old and respected settler who took much interest in planting fruit treep, and in garden culture generally. The body of the tree was destroyed during the Maori war in 1845; but since that period it has sprouted forth, and last, week the sons of Mr Cook gathered from its branches no less than 876 orauges. The mortality statistics of Christchurch prove thai city to be the most unhealthy in the colony. The correspondent of an Otago paper thus comments on the fact: — " I may be allowed to question the wisdom of the founders of Canterbury in that they thought fit to lay out the area of their metropolis in a swamp. It strikes me very forcibly that even now hundreds of fathers, mothers, sons, daughters, and relatives innumerable, while mourning for the dead, are cursing the memory of these said founders for ever haviog made such an egregious blunder as selecting the present site ot fhe city of Christcharch. In fact, the multitudinous attacks of bronchial aud other affections arising out of the pestilential miasmata of the place, that are laying so many low, lead to the question of the possibility of shifting to higher gronnd before the population is decimated, and before too many Rachels refuse to be comforted. If, on the contrary, vested interests are already too strong, thon ail I can say is, let the people die. I have only to add, while on this subject, that those I who would be loudest in tha protestations on what they might be pleased to call my extravagant notions are those who are in affluent— or, at any rate, comparatively affluent— circumstances, who, while attending to their business matters during the day in tbe city, are enabled in the afternoons to drive out to their suburban retreats, safely removed from the deadly influences of the noxious vapors that they are only too glad to leave to those who are left to inhale them through circumstances of sheer necessity." Learning to play on a pianoforte is to become a thing of the past ! A patent piano player has just been invented by a Frenchman, by means of which, it is said, the veriest novice can perform the most difficult pieces. The instrument is thus described : — " It occupies a position in front of tbe keyboard of tbe piano, and extends from above it to the floor. Over the keys of the piano are keys corresponding to those beneath them. These are the fingers of the machine, and they have this advantage over the human hand, that they have a finger for every note. The top of the machine is about one foot in width, and has in the centre two rollers, which are moved by a crank. Tbese carry the music through, and as it passes the piano plays it. The musio is on paper, and tbe notes are made by cutting holes in squares. As these boles pass a certain point tbey allow a hammer to pass through, and the stroke of that hammer is communicated to its own key on the piano. Each key has its hammer. It only requires that tbese holes be cut at proper intervals, to strike any nutnher of keys in a given series, The machine can be adapted to any instrument with keys. Passengers to the Pacifin by the rail- j road across the American Continent, breakfast in the Sierras with twenty ( feet of enow around them; four hours j later they find wheat five inches high; j and the next day they see peach and pear treeß in blossom. ' The advocates of womens rights will , be gratified to learn that the cause is advancing in Westport. At the Muni- 1 cipai election on Thursday, two lady ~ voters, eaph proprietress of a wellknown hostelry, recorded their votes "like men;? *• ' a "

Tree-planting has been proceeded with vigorously along the railway lines in Canterbury during the past two months, and the same work is now going on in the Domain. The Bruce Herald states that the Hamilton diggings have 60 miles of head races, at on expenditure of over £20,000. The Kyeburn diggings have 90 miles of heed races, ut a cost of £10,000. St. Bathan's head races are about ten miles in extent, and have cost their owners about £30,000. A well-known member of the bar, whilst severely cross - examining an applicant for his discharge in the Bankruptcy Court, received a very brief, if not satisfactory, reply to some of his inquiries from tbe insolvent, who, from the " voreign indonation mifc vich he spoake de English language," could not well be mistaken for an Irishman. ' What property had you previously to going into business ? " inquired the barrister. "De same as vot I've got now," replied the bankrupt. '"Ah! and what may that be pray?" continued the legal geotleman. "Nonage," quietly responded the questioned individual. The barrister changed the line of inquiry, amidst a general laugh, which was not confined to the floor of the Court, and in which he good-naturedly joined. Spread of Methodism. — In a work just issued from the Wesleyan Con ference Office there are the following statements concerning the early progress of Methodism: — At the close of his life Wesley recognised 120,000 members of the society, 216 circuits, 500 preachers, and a vast, army of lay agency. Nathaniel Gilbert beard Wesley preach on Kennington-common, and on returning to Antigua began to preach to his slaves. Now there are 45,056 members (bearers many times more numerous) io the Western Archipelago. William Black emigrated from Huddersfield to Nova Scotia, and now the Conference of Eastern British America has 18,374 members. Some half-dozen Methodists went to the dock-yards at the foot of Lake Ontario, and the result is seen in the Canadian Conference, with its 65,812 members. Sergeant Kendrick began to preach at Cape Town, and now there are 12,888 members in South Africa. Some Methodists formed a settlement in New South Wales, and now under the Australian Conference there are 59,649 members. In 1814 Dr Coke and six missionaries sailed for Ceylon, and now there are 2622 members in tbat island and India. Sergeant Rose, a Methodist soldier, began to preach iv Cbina, and already there are two districts with 147 members. A German tradesman visited England, and exclusive of a large number belnoging to the Methodist Episcopal Church. There are in France Switzerland, and Corsica, above 2000 members and 900 attendants upon public worship. ln 1769 Boardman and Pilmoor were sent to America; now the Methodist preachers in the Uuited States aro counted by thousands and the adherents by millions.