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Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XII, Issue 69, 21 March 1877, Page 2

A contributor to the G. It. Argus says: We were sitting on the bank of the bine swift Tereraakau the other' day, when the conversation turned upon the question of preserving the Maori names of localities aud rivers as much as possible. " What couid be more musical than 'Kumara,' and yet close to it you have a frightful contrast ' Dilluaan's Town,' and what could be a better name for the river than < Teremakau ' — cold and swift?" " Yes," said my friend, "but these native names are not an unmixed advantage*; sometimes they lead to confusion, as for "instance, when I first came on the Coast I was tramping wearily aloug the beach from Hokitika on my way to Greymouth, and coming across a party of men working on the beach I asked "where's the Teremakau" "Terry M'Cow?" said one of them, "I don't know Terry, but I know his brother Paddy, and he is the biggest bla'guard on the Coast sure he is!" A Waipawa correspondent [tells a tale to a contemporary of how four of his fellowtownsmen invested their nipney on the race course at roulette, and lost £20. between them. The next day they determined to be wise in their generation, and Agreed to stake on different colors; but they had no better luck, their, united losses amounting/ to £16. They are now convinced that all is vanity except *'a shilling in and the winner to shout," ■ '■ • ■

A writer in the Otago^ Witness says:^— The rattway people have put,, up eyery where a. remark : ot singular; brevity -and fbrce-^ ?Stop." lam =remii}ide4, of, $$ man who, '^ finding one of these Notices; did^hat he%ss Sold, and stopped, r He sfcopped, all onii iky, .and the,besfe;,pat&b| one j nigh^, \Jiavidg a natural disinclination Nto ma):e~faod^br'\he v cow catcher. At the end of a forty-eight hours' stop, he went on and met bis fate. He now says that the next time he stops for an engine he will see the railway company somewhere first. "Shut this gate!" is another remark that the railways like tomake.,?. What an education m> manners!? "Pudding," the small child said.— " If you— what?" said her mother. — "If you're got any,' r '..was.the.reply.,. „ ... ~.^-, : ..^..,...~... r . ...,,. An English chess player named Wisker recently played six of the best chess players of New South Wales simultaneously. He was blindfolded, but he won two games out of the six. '- • --.-.-..- . ;. ; A popular clergyman says it is interesting to observe how many people go to the circus "just to please the children," and very curious to notice that sometimes it takes several able-bodied "men. 'and , motherly women to look after one litfile b"6y 6r^ girl on such an ocdasiou. 1.: -^ "-"r "■■•■ The Duke of Galliera, an Italian 1 grandee, who .a year ago gave '£800,000: for the improvement of ; the port. of Pefiba, has died, leaving a fortune estimated at" 180] million of francs, or £7,200,000.'. Ills widoif survives him,j but he leaves no .child,- only an* adopted sou, whose scruples as to the way'in which it was acquired are said r to;have' induced him to renounce the rich heritage 'to Avhich he has now become entitled. The Uniti Cutto"ica says the Duke?3 widow has sent £40.000 to the Pope, imploring hi3 benediction upon the •« suffering sqjil "of -her; late husband. The son is ;f earuingliij., living as a tutoral " coach," at wnicft: h&.| earns 12s a da y- : „ ■-.' " ''. : The Border Po«( of- the roth jiltimo relates:—ln last; Saturday's issue we" reported the loss of a child: aged threejyears and a half, the son of 'Mr" Peterson, farmer, of Talgarno, Upper had left his father's house, arid gpt lost -amongst the ranges. Since then tSe distracted father and numbers of tthe neighbors have been searching, and the first trace was discovered on Thursday last, seven days after the child was lost, where little footsteps wereifound in the bed of a creek. These were carefully followed up, and eventually the party came upon the little one, who was in the act of taking a drink of water from the creek by means of an old sardine tin. The spot where he was found was. about four miles from his home. On being asked where" he r \vas r going7 he replied that- he was goirg home, but he couldn't find the way. "He further stated that he had subsisted on grass. Between the spot where he was found and his father's home runs a steep and rugged range of mountain. In reply to; an enquiry "which. appeared in the Australasian as to the weight of the heaviest bullock - known, a . correspondent writes as follows from Accrington, England: — jln December, 1873, there was a first prize bullock shown at Edinburgh, Scotland, weighing, when living, 28cwt of 11 21b. He was purchased by weight at rod per pound, and slaughtered by Mr Thomas Townson, butcher, at the village of Wray, near Lancaster Eugland. At the above price per pound he amounted to £84 Bs4d." He weighed in ponnds 2026, and was a "magnificent rich roan, standing 16 hands 2 inches high, four years old. He was bred and fed in Scotland. Many inquiries have been made iu Eugland, but nothing equal to him has been heard of. The above particulars are well! vouched for by many persons well known,' as well as by the testimony of feeder, cattle dealer (who brought him out of Scotland), rind the standing o£ the butcher. : : I | • ; Travellers on their way from- Paris to Lyons met with: ah alarming and extraordinary adventure.. On approaching; Moulins the guard perceived -. that the! line was obstructed by an immense flame. A fire had broken out in Faubourg Chaveau,' bordering on thej-aihvay. ' The position iof the train Was most' critical.: Stop there it could not without being run into and smashed by the ekpress. So the guard ordered all the windows of the compartments to be closed, covered up the luggage wagons, and then tfie train dashed through the flames. The train on getting out of the flames and smoke, was stopped and examined, but.beyond the fright of the passengers -and a little scorching of the wood of the. compartments no harm was dbne. .The train. -then continued: its interrupted course, whi|el.the fire raged away. Before the fire was extinguished nine houses, 90 barns, and. 47 stables were burnt down. A great number of animals perished in theflames.' ". ' :' : C- ■ ••;■;•'■,. ■■'■ '/;;;• .•- _, ■- / ..'_.^,,..., y ■,