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Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XII, Issue 57, 7 March 1877, Page 4

Latest from Salt Lake. — Biigham Young was kissed four thousaud four hundred and sixty-eight times ou his last birthday by his wives and children. We are confidentially informed lhat the Mormon sage has concluded, after going through this ordeal, that he won't have any more birthdays. An aclor became renowned, not so much for his histrionic performances es because ho would never lake any medicine, and his medical man was often obliged to resort to some stratagem to impose a dose upon him. There was a play in which the hero was sentenced, in prison, to drink a cup of poison. Our actor was playing this character one night in tbe provinces, and had given directions to have the cup filled with wine ; but what was his horror, when be came to drink it, to find it contained a dose of senna ! He could mot throw it away, as he had to hold the goblet upaidedown, toshow his persecutors that he had drained every drop of if. Our celebrated actor drank the medicine with the slowness of a poisoned martyr ; but he oejrer forgave his medical man, as was proved at hie , death, for be died without paying his kill.

A correspondent of the Otago Guardian writes from the Upper Taieri as follows: — The floods had scarcely settled when, after a few daya of almost tropical heat, a storm of great severity visited the district. This was a few days ago. The lightning was something grand to witness. The Upper Taieri plain at intervals presented to the sp3dator an appalling scene. Tbe deafening peals of thunder that followed flat h af e" flash of the lightning wee of unprecedented violence. In the Upper Taieri range a party of musterers were assembled in a hut for the night. They had just completed their task of drafting the several lots of aheep lo be taken down from the mountain to Ihe homestead, aod some 3000 sheep were confined in the yards for the night. Throughout that awful night the greatest anxiety was felt for tha safety of the sheep. The rush from the one side of the yard to the other at every crash of thunder, caused fears to be entertained that a large number would be smothered. Fortunately the flocks were found all right when daylight ap. peared. From the Serpentine we learn that the dwelling-house of Mr Rainham, miner, was struck by lightning during the progress of the storm. The family had retired to rest when, after a terrible flash, Mr Rainham about midnight got up nnd proceeded to ihe children' Broom ajdoioing to see that ail was right. His feelings may be better imagined than described when he discovered that the gable end of the house had been struck by tbe electric fluid, and (he room was full of a sulphurous smoke. Notwithstanding that several holes were pierced through the end of the house, the children escaped unhurt. . That individual state? that the atmosphere at the timeof the occurrence was almost suffocating indoors and out. That night will long be remembered by many residents iu this district. A man borrows £32 of a friend, for which he signs eight notes for £4 each, payable monthly. The first falls due and is protested. " This is rather promising for the others," remarks the lender. "Ob, they will be protested likewise," calmly replies the debtor. " Then why on earth did you sign the notes ? " " So tbat the shock would not be so great to you. You will only lose £4 at a lime this way." — Little words are the sweetest to hear ; little charities fly farthest and stay longest on the wing ; little lakes are the stillest, and little hearts the fullest' and little farms the best tilled. Little books are the most read, and little songs the most loved. And, when Nature would make anything especially rare and beautiful, she makes it little— little pearls, little diamonds, dews. Multum in parvo — much iu little — is the great beauty of all that we love best, hope for and remember the longest. A Kentish paper announces the death of the " Swanley Fat Boy, Richard Beenham." He was twelve years and four months' old, stood five feet iu height, weighed 25 stone (14lbs to the stone), and measured 69 inches round the waist. A woman named Annie Searle, alias M'Donald, was conveyed to the Napier hospital the other day. She had been brought from Waipawa, where she has for some time, beeu living with a mau named Sutherland, or " French Peter." On Thursday evening, the 15 th instant, the man and woman quarrelled, and the former struck the latter on the head with a tomahawk, inflicting a fearful wound. The woman has been lying at Waipawa in a most precarious state since the evening of the assault, but finding that she was becoming worse, it was deemed expedient to remove her to the hospital. Doubts are expressed as to her recovery.