A PETRIFIED FOREST.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume X, Issue 215, 28 August 1875, Page 4

A PETRIFIED FOREST.

The following description of a petrified forest, situated about six miles in a westerly direction from Caliatoga, appears in a San Francisco contemporary : — Presently we came to an unpretending wayside house, and a fence, and a board swung across the trees informing us that we had arrived at tbe " petriQed forest." Entering an arched doorway, over which was posted, "No person admitted without a guide ; charge 50 cents," we found ourselves within the tabooed enclosure. Presently, the " petrified Dutchman," ac the proprietor of the place is facetiously called, seeing et -angers within the " sacred enclosure," came tQ us, and, with a kiodly " yood morning," conducted us to the most interesting of its scenes. Now the whole country hereabouts— mountain-peaks aod ridges, and slopes and saddles— is composed of volcanic tufa. Some of the trees — petrifiedlay upon the surface ; others had been exhumed by the vigorous labours of this industrious German, who stood by our side. Here lay tbe trunk of a forest giant, tbe tufa picked out and thrown by its side ; away there lay the tops of others, witb their trunks still covered up by tufa. And we could see at a glance that much of the interest here, so strikingly apparent, was due to tbe appreciative labors of the "petrified Dutchman." The largest trees yet made visible are about 10 feet ia diameter, and, in my opinion, most of them belong to the redwood (sequoia sempervirens). The number discovered is from 100 to 200 — and all within an area of about 20 acres. There is one perplexing circumstance in this connection tbat perhaps some scientists could explain— it is this : — Many of the trunks of these trees are broken into lengths of about Gft. or 7ft., with the broken joints wideet on top. Now the question naturally suggested by this fact is, Were the trees petrified while standing, and been broken in their fall ; or were the fissures of separation created by an upheaval after their prostration and petrification ? Then, again, perhaps some one could favor us witb the probable epoch of this information. Theae would be problems worthy of solution. -— ■*■» It is rather a nice question about •"wing an R.M. in his own Court. The likelihood of such an occurrence is mentioned iv the Wanganui Herald. Major Edwards, R.M., figures among the defaulting ratepayers, " and," says the Herald, " unless he comes to the scratch at once, he may be placed in the peculiarly awkward position of hearing a summons against himself — rather a good joke, even for Wanganui." In an article on the honorarium to tbe M.H.R.s, the Timaru Herald tells the following story :— Some years ago there was a weli authenticated story current in Wellington, that three members, all hailing from the same province, agreed to live together for the session on economical principles, aad actually saved £280 out of their aggregate honorarium. They hired a threeroomed cottage, and took the household duties, cooking and all, turn and turn aboot , by which means tbey contrived to keep their expenses down to 10s a week each for the whole term of three months and a-half. Whenever an invitation to a dinner wbb received by any one of them, he immediately carried it in triumph to the "housekeeper" for the day, who made a proportionate allowance in his arrangements for "one mouth less." A document of a somewhat mysterious character has been left at our ( Marlborough Express) office by Mr. Bulliffe, the Wairau pilot, who on his way from the pilot-station to Blenheim on Tuesday last, found floating in the river near tbe mouth, a bottle about half full of gin, round the neck and cork of which a paper was carefully I secured by sewing. On the outside of the paper was written, with a blacklead pencil, the following words :— "Friend, read this inside." In obedience to this request, the stitches were carefully cut, and the following statement, also written in pencil, was found to be the contents : — "August 1, 1875. Cape Campbell. — If anybody should pick up this bottle, let it be a warning to them not to dri.k any of the poison that go*-3 ioto these kind of bottles, for it was gin that ruined me. — From a Friend." A Home paper narrates the following : — A Newcastle man, troubled with | a drunken wife, thought he would cure of her bad hahits by terror. When she was one day in a helpless slate of intoxication, he procured a coffin, placed ber in it, aod screwed the lid partially down. Waking up, but being unable to release herself, the wife demanded to know where ehe was. The husband informed her, through the half-closed lid, that she was in the regions of his Satanic Majesty. " And is thoo thor too?" she asked. "Aye." "And boo laog has thoo been thor ?" " Six monthß." " And boo lang has aa been thor?" "Three months. "Had away, then," said the thirsty wife, "and get's a gill o' whisky ; thoo Jcnaws the pleece better than aa do." A New Idea.— Mrs Coward, of Jersey City, struck a new idea the other week, beiog none other tban to kindle the fire with kerosene. "Strange," she murmured to herself, " that this was not known to the ancients." At this writing she is personally interviewing the ancients oa the subject.