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Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XI, Issue 52, 23 February 1876, Page 2

It has cost, says a writer in tbe Marylebone Mercury, £16,000 to establish tho Hornet. The proprietors of the Pictorial World hnve spent about £10,000. The World is said to have only cost £5000. The Daily Telegraph was bought by its present proprietors "for a song;" it pays £70,000 a year. We have been shown (reports the S. A. Register) by Mr Hardy, M.P., a sample of cork, nearly an inch thick, stripped from a cork tree grown by him near Mount lofty, at an elevation of 2300 feet above ihe sea level. In 1864 the then Government obfained from Spain a number of acorns of the genuine cork tree of commerce. Many of these were distributed through Dr Schomburgb, and Mr Hardy obfained twenty-five plants, of which twenty are aow in a flourishing state. The tree from which the bark referred to i waa taken ia over twelve feet high,

and is eighteen inches in circumference at one f**ot above the ground. The sample will be sent to Philadelphia, and; will no doubt form a noticeable addition to the lists of our products. It' is evident, too, that the ccrk tree <*ould be profitably cultivated here on a large seule. Tbe Leader, uuder " Scientific Gossip," has the following : — Mr Thomas Hargreavea, o Auckland, hss communicated to the English Mechanic a description of his plan for utilising tbe tides and waves by communicating their lifting power to engines on shore. The tidal machine would be very bulky and the wave machine subjected to trreat wear and tear. Of course, these objections npply to all applications of the same principle, aod perhaps less ao to Mr Hargreaves' plan than any other. He fastens his hollow float, in an 18ft. •ide, till the water hes risen 9ft., then loosens it, aod uses the power while it ascends and the tide continues to rise. He then lets it fill with water, and uses its depcuudiug force. A counterpoise weight brings the float to a position ready for tbo next tide. This counterpoise is also lifted by the tide. The power ia, in proportion to the bulk, very small, and the expense wou'd be considerable. Local considerations may render the application of value. A shocking revelation was made in the Bendigo City Police Court lately, which presents one or two points worthy of pointing out in a paragraph. An old hag (says the Advertiser) was brought up before the Mayor, charged with being an idle and disorderly person, without any visible or lawful means of support, and a mass of eviI dence was brought forward in support lof the indictment. She had loafed for I drinks at various shanties in the city, i begged off numerous tradesmen for ! money and provisions, and when they refused her, turned round upon them and abused them in the choicest Billingsgate. Next to colonial beer her great weakness was black puddings, and one butcher in particular received her delicate attentions to such an unconscionable degree that he at length threatened to give her in charge. On one occasion, when the day was warm aud the sun was at its meridian, the drunken female, under the combined influence, proceeded to undress herself in the very middle of a street thickly populated. The arresting constable in giving evidence upon this particular matter, said " An' your worship, bis 'anner the praste was passin' at the toime, and he had to put up his parasole to avoide the", contact. " The Bench and the Court, as may well be imagined, were convulsed on the instant, and the old offender received sentence with quick despatch. The Sub-Prefect of St. Omer, a town in the Pas de Calais Department, has been sentenced to pay a fine of £6 for having given orders to fire afc a lunatic who had escaped from custody. The punishment is a ridiculously lenient one, considering the nature of the offence. "When the lunatic escaped he took refuge upon the top of a house, and there be remained for two days, himself perfectly tranquil, but no one daring to approach him. He refused to be either coaxed or frightened down, and at the end of the two days the SubPrefect's patience became exhausted. He sent for tbe firemen and ordered them to direct their hose against the madman, but this also proved unsuccessful, and when the fugitive got thoroughly drenched he took off his soaked shirt and threw ifc afc his tormentors. The doctors then interfered and advised the dispersion of the mob ; but the Sub-Prefect could not think of being beaten by a madman, and then he called the gendarmes to his assistance. One witness stated that as many as 45 rifle and 35 pistol shots were discharged at the maniac by order of the excited Sub-Prefect The wounded man fell down a chimney, and when he was extricated he was found insensible from loss of blood and semi-suffocation by soot aud smoke. He had the good fortune to fall into the hands of a skilful surgeon ; and because he recovered from his wounds and his two days' maltreatment, a paltry fiue of £6 has been judged a sufficient punishment for his persecutor.

{For continuation see fourth page.)