The Nelson Evening Mail. FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 9, 1877.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XIL, Issue 266, 9 November 1877, Page 2

The Nelson Evening Mail. FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 9, 1877.

To-day being a public holiday. Sunday hours are kepc afc the] telegraph office, aud consequently we had received no telegrams up to the time of our going to press. The morning being fine a large number of holiday-keepers have proceeded to Richmond, Motueka, and Wakapuaka, where amusements of various kinds are going on, and in addition to these numerous picnic parties have started for that favorite resort The Rocks. , The opening of the Choral Hall at Wakefield will be celefirated by a public tea this afternoon, and a concert in the evening. An inquest was held yesterday at Hampden before C. Broad, Esq., coroner, ou tlie body of John Moran. The particulars have uot yet reached us, but we understand thafc a man named Johu Murray was committed for trial at Nelson on a charge of manslaughter. A telegram: received in towu last night from the Lyell states that there have been fearful floods iv that district. Ara meeting of the City Council last night a letter was received from Mr Tutty tendering his resignation, which the Mayor was requested to accept with regret.— Mr Ke3teven wrote complaining of a nuisance arisiug from a cowyard in Hardy and Tasman streets. deferred to the Public Works Committee.— ln reply to a letter from the Town Clerk, the Harbormaster wrote stating that the use of gas for the harbor lights would be recommended to the Marine Department if it could be shown that it would not cost more than 1. epo3cne, and was not moro liable to be blown out. — A letter was received from Dr Squires enclosing the rider to the verdict afc the inquesfc on the late fire Tho Towu Clerk was instructed to reply that Mr Baigent was already taking precautions.— In the report ot" the Public Works Committee it was recommended that gas be laid on to Mr Hounsell's new house at fche Port. — The Cifcy Surveyor's report showed that the loss

A whirlwind of au extraordinory character passed over the villages of Cranleigh and Alford, Surrey, on the farm of Mi George Bruford. Oak trees of ten feet in circumfereuce are reported to have been snapped asunder, others where whirled in the air and carried miles away. In Alford the roofs of several houses were torn off, aud the material scattered far and wide. Two laborers in the same place, while at work in a field, were carried in the air to a meadow some hundreds of yards off. Under the heading of " Science and Superstition in Jamaica," the Pharmaceutical Journal says that in consequence of an increasing belief .iv witchcraft in Jamaica, and acts of poisoning connected therewith, the Government appointed a chemist to investigate vegetable poisons in the island. One of the plants examined was the E-pites suberecta, from which he obtained an alkaloid salt, oue thousandth part of a grain of which ia capaable of poisoning a cat. A correspondent writes as follows to the Maryborough (Victoria) Advertiser:— " A strange story has been circulated through Maryborough during the last day or two, which, if true, is not more than one remove from the trade which was some time ago carried on in African slaveg. According to our informant, a fine rosy-cheeked 18 months old boy haa changed hands for the sum of £5, the mother being the vendor, and a Chinee residing in the Chinese camp the purchaser. But what seems almost incredible is that the agreement for the disposal of the boy to his Chinese foster-father was drawn np by a wellknown legal gentleman in Maryborough." A correspondent in the Tasmanian Mail says.— How curiously selfish a usually liberal and right thiuking man may become when opportunity puts a good thing in his way, haa been illustrated in the incidence of Mr Berry's uew protectionist tariff. When that tariff was first proposed, it was intended to place a ten per cent duty on cornsacks and woolpacks made of jute. Two well to-do manufacturers of Melbourne were let into the secret, and they both went home (uukcown to each other) to Dundee, where they met in a jute fuctory, and became aware of each other's intentions. It was too jlate to withdraw from contracts made, and each went on his several way, one investing some Xi 5,000 and the other some £10,000 in machinery. They arrived back in Melbourne, and then they found that the item had been struck out of the list by Mr Berry in his amended tariff, as he had been convinced that jute would never be woven iv Victoria. There was nothing for it hut to go on with the works and risk the loss. A strong effort was made privately to have a duty of ten per cent put on. Not obtaining that, they lowered their pretensions to five per cent. That they did not obtain, and then found they could work at a profit without protection at all! Now that t they don't require it, and have made a trade without it, Mr Berry generously presents them with a ten per cent duty — in other words he makes them a present worth £10,000 or £20,000 per annum, at the cost af the squatters and farmers." The municipal authorities in Wellington are anxious to accommodate the inhabitants by enabling them to keep their chronometers correctly. They have obtained a cannon, which was to serve the purpose of a time-gun, to be discharged at noon daily ou the summit of Mount Victoria, a prominent landmark of the neighbourhood, and the site of a signal station, but they have found the article to be equivalent to the proverbial white elephant. As told by the Times, it was a small matter to tying this comparatively ancient weapon of warfare from Fort Britomart, Auckland, to Wellington, but how it is to reach its destined place on Mount Victoria is a problem with the City Council. Less than a mile has now to be traversed to place the guv in position on Mount Victoria, but though short is the distance rough and steep is the way. The Corporation, notwithstanding its numerous staff of employees, was unable to undertake the task, and tenders were called for. They were opened afc a meeting of the City Council and on the first being made known a groan escaped the lips of Councillors. The tender was the modest sum of £100. The second offer was £120, and there w.s was another groan. The third tenier was £60, but even this comparatively modest amouut seemed enormous in iheir eyes, aud lv the words of the advertisement, they declined to " accept the lowest or any tender." The Grey Ministry (says the Christchurch Pres.) have illustrated their liberality and worldly wisdom by initiating the practice of freely furnishing newspapers with reports even of debates, the habit hitherto having been ouly to telegraph the financial or departmental statements. Aud they and their friends have gone a step further by anticipating or competing with Rapsa'd. The following advertisement appears in the Wellington papers:—'* Sir George Grey's important speech in the House of Representatives on Friday last will be published by Messrs Lyon and Blair to-morrow. Price — one penny. It is considered desirablo that tbis interestiug exposition of the state of the Public _ -uau c es of the colony, aud the views taken by its emineut author of the state of political parties existing in the House, should be read and considered by all New Zeaiaud settlers." f ! Mr Fox, in the course of his speech in the no confidence debate, said he was never more amused than when Sir George Grey likened himself to a poor innocent little lamb. Of all aninials that run, walk, fly, or crawl, he considered that should be the last one to which the hon the Premier should likeu himself. Had he likened himself to a lion, or some voracious animal coming down on the Ministerial Beuches, thafc would havo been more feasible. He continued by saying that

- one parfc o£ fche Grey Ministry's policy was to be lavish in their promises There was nothing too great, nothing too good, nothing to be too much desired, or fco be promised to those whose support; would be accorded. Shakespere gave au admirable picture of such men. He would read them a few lines of the speech delivered by Jack Cade to his followers :— " Cadr —Be • brave then ; for your captain is brave, and vows reformation. There shall be, iv England, seven halfpenny loaves sold for a penny ; the three hooped pot shall have ten hoops; and I will make it felony to drink small beer; all the realm shall be in common, and in Cheapside shall mypalfrygoto grass. I thank you, good people; there shall be no money, all shall eat and drink on score; and I will apparel them all in one livery, that they may agree like brothers, and worship me their lord.— Dick— The first thing we do, let's kill all the lawyers.— CADE—Nay, thafc I mean fco do. Is not this a lamentable thing thafc of fche skin of an innocent lamb should be made parchment ?" And here was found the innocent lamb cropping up again. The Ten-Mile Creek is tha name of a stream which reaches the sea over fche auriferous beach fco the north of Greymouth. It was always believed that its watershed was highly auriferous, and lately this was proved by threo men obtaining in four .weeks, on a terrace six miles np the creek, seven pounds weight of coarse shotty gold. Mr R. Grant, an old and respected settler at Frankton, Otago, has been killed through his team of horses having bolted. No one saw the beginning of the accident;, nor knew how serious it was until Mr M. Dwyer stopped the two runaway leaders —which had broken away from the shaft horse— when fche unfortunate man was discovered at their feet, his leg linked round one of the tracing chains. The poor fellow, who was in the prime of life, is supposed to have been dragged at loast three quarters of a mile, and when released, insensible, he was found to be fearfully bruised, several of his bones were broken, and nearly all his clothes torn off him. He died a few minutes later. The Christchurch Press concludes an article on the privilege question recently raised as follows :—• The truth is, a very unnecessary fuss has been made about a very trifling matter. It is impossible to say seriously that the Governor hag interfered with the privileges ot the Legislature. Ail that he has done is to decline to do something j until it was certaiu that they would approve of ifc. Mr Wilson would have been appointed [ directly if it had appeared that those who recommended him possessed the confidence of the House. How the mere expression of the Governor's wish to waifc until he had ascertained thafc fact could be construed into even an inadvertent violation of Parliamentary privilege is a quesfcion which, when our legislators come to look at ifc coolly, they will be at a loss themselves fco understand. "JEgles" says (in the Australasian)-.— "In Scotland and other strictly pious communities, ifc has occurred fchafc little boys -without coin have been known to gamble for buttons. And bearing upon this, I have been told that some ono was speculating how a certain business man in Melbourne had contracted the pronounced inclination he displays for race horses and racing. His mother, a venerable Scottish lady, said, ' Well, onr James was aye a steady lad — but I do mind his coming home once or twice without a single button on his trousers.' " Gatignani's Messenger, of Paris, says:—" A curious fact has just occurred in a commune of the Aube. A swarm of bees escaped from a hive and astablished itself in the letter-box of the place, a few minutes after the letters had been taken away. When the postman went to the box the next morning he was like to be blinded by the insects, which rushed out of the slit, and absolutely prevented him from putting the key in the lock. The bees had to be smoked before the letters could be got afc wifchoufc danger." The Amtralasian of fche 13th instant haa fche following regarding two well-known New Zealand racing mares deported some time ago to the sister colonies: — ''The fact of Lurline and Calumny having produced colt foals fco The Peer has proved quite an interesting feature in (he turf world, and I presume we may attribute this to the circumstance that these mares were only recently distinguished heroines on the race track, and their names in the mouths of everybody. Mothers and sons have been interviewed daily by many who take an interest in turf affairs." The word "Caucus," so much in use just now, has, says a contemporary, an interesting origin, which was explained many years ago by a writer in the Knickerbocher Magazine. It seems that the Boston ropemakers and caulkers formed a patriotic society in 1 770, after an affray with the soldiers during the American rebellion. The Tories spoke contemptuously of their meetings as " calkers' meetings," and the word was frequently used by them to express contempt for any meeting of a patriotic character. The patriots adopted the term, and spoke of going "to the calkers to-night," or "holding a calkers," and the word wns soon corrupted into caucus, the Latin form of which has sent many persons to the Latin dictionary in search of it. February was a lively month in the Hawaiian Islands. On St. Valentine's day Mauna Loa broke loose without a moment's warning. The flames burst from the shell of the crater, and a column of illuminated smoke shot 16,000 feefc into fche air. On February 24th a submarine volcano found vent neap the entrance of Kealakeakna Bay — the scene of Captain Cook's death. About a mile from the shore jets of red, greeu, and yellow fire leaped from the sea ; columns of steam and spray were resplendent with rainbow tints; a rumbling noise was heard lika the grindiug of rocks in a freshet; blocks of incandescent, porous lava, two feefc square, were brought to the surface, where they floated nntil they were cool; the water boiled and emitted hot vapors. The eruption apparently came from a seam a mile long in the bottom of the sea. Receipt for making a Russian name: —Take three alphabets and shake them ijp in a hat, j then throw on a table, like dice— pick out of those that fall right aide up, stick them in a I like, then add either the " itch " or •• koff," and you have a genuine full fiedged Russian general's name—/!. N. Repot ter. The Tim's correspondent at Pera telegraphs the statement of a wounded English officer who has returned from Shipka Pass, who says that fche preliminary useless and bloody assaults on the front of the Russian position have beeu abaudoned, and the investment of the Russian right flank commenced. The natural obstacles encountered by the Turks are of tremendous magnitude. Guvs have been dragged by haud up heights almost impassable by unimcumbered footmen. In the charges and counter charges at the position gained by the Turks ou the Russian flank, the results were murderous. Ou the slope in front of the Turkish guvs defending fche line of the rifle-pits 210 Kussiau bodies were left within a space 75 yards square. Quarter was rarely given or taken in this attack. From the beginning of the attack on Shipka fighting was often hand to hand, and the dead outnumber J the wounded. The officer says the Turkish and Russian soldiers are tha bravest in the world, caring nothing for olds or death. Properly office.cd there is no limit to what they can accomplish. He thinks the losses on both sides in killed and wounded will reach the enormous total of 20,000, and thafc neither side has gained substantial benefit from the tremendous sacirftce. At the presenfc moment Shipka, owing to the deadlock, is of no value to either of the belligerents

In describing the provision made in San Francisco for extinguishing fire Mr Clark writing from America to a friend in Auckland, says:— « l called afc the office of a friend by appointment to go and see fche 'Insurance Fire Patrol ' harness up on the strike of 12 o clock. It took about six seconds to do it, but fche men were all standing about ready On fche alarm of fire at night they are ready in 13 or 14 seconds. The alarm, which is given by electricity, opens all the doors, rings a bell, which also denotes the number of the block, a whip strikes each of the horses, wbich are all harnessed and not tied up; the men .'sleep half dressed, the other portion of their clothes being on the engine; they come down a slide from the sleeping room, and the horses are in position. The fastening, too, is simple; and as before stated they are ready fco start in fourteen seconds. This patrol is generally first on the ground, and if the fire has not made much way ifc can often be put out with their hand engine, but their principal object is to save property." '£hrn Liverpool Po-t of a recent date gives the following important information respecting live Colorado beetles:— When the Glasgow post; office authorities were last week sorting the mail from America they came upon a sample parcel containing a tin canister perforated at the top. Upon examination the canister was found teeming with living and dead Colorado beetles and locusts. They put the living ones to death, and despatched the whole sample to the London postal authorities. The parcel was addressed to a person in Hawick. It is believed that the Colorado beetle found in the mail carriage between Plymouth and Bristol was a specimen in course of transit by post, portions of a card-board box having been found in tha van. The post office authorities have accordingly given instructions thafc the American mails should be carefully watched on arrival, with a view to prevent the transmission of such dangerous insects. The Scientific American says: — "The wool clip of the United States for 1876 was about 200,000,000 lbs; of England, Ireland, and Scotland, about 162,000,000 lbs, mostly combing; of the continent of Europe, about 463,000,000 lbs; of Australasia, about 350, 000,000 ibs; of Buenos Ayres and river La Plata, about 207,000,000 lbs. These are the principal wool-growing countries in the world, and produce 1,382,000,000 out of 1,419,000,000 lbs, produced on the entire globe. The selling value of fche total clip would probably aggregate 450,00 >,000 dollars. Oufcof 1,419,000,0001b5. of wool (the estimated clip), there would be fully a loss of 567,000,000 lbs. in scouring, making the net yield of clean wool about 852,000,000 lbs. The Animal World of September, 1876, says: -The following plan has proved successful in curing a dog of worrying sheep. Take the dog fco a butcher's, set him on to a sheep jusfc killed and quite warm ; let him attack and pnll about his prey, at the same tima slip into his mouth a handful of wool well steeped in train oil; fche wool sticks about fche dog's mouth— he cannot clear it away; the oil runs into his throat, and makes him so sick that he will not touch wool again. This plan is more certain than any cruel punishment from man's hand. Servant-Galism in these colonies has been pretty well expatiated upon, and the subject worked threadbare. But s feature has presented ifcself in Canterbury, which is specially deserving of notice. In the Christchurch R.M's Court, a girl sued an employer for a month's wages. The employer in question had instructed his agenfc in town to hire him a servant girl stating that he would give £5 a year moro than he was wont to give if her references were really good. In fact he looked upon references aa indispensably requisite. The agent hired a woman whom he knew, but when she went fco her situation she did not take her references with her, and the employer on that grouud objected to her remaining in his service. Ifc transpired that the servant " had leut some of her references to another girl, who had lost them." Mr J. G. S. Grant, the Dunedin Times is glad to hear, is turning his abilities in a ' direction in which they will be appreciated. He is engaged in the colossal task of making twelve thousand quotations from Shakespeare, and these the public will receive in a series of pamphlets J under the title of «• Bosom Thoughts." We have not always been able to givo approval to Mr Grant's efforts but we cau say thafc if he sticks to his object; in scholarly fashion, and does nofc make the " Thoughts " tha pegs upon which to hang allusions to passing topics, his labours should be deserving of substantial encouragement. Mr Mellish R.M. (says the Press) made an order yesterday that a skilled sheep shearer who had been a witness in a case should be allowed £1 for his day's expenses. Mr Izard submitted that the sum was too large, as the man was ouly a laborer; but the Court held that he was a skilled man, and was fairly entitled fco fche amount, as he would lose ifc through having had to leave his work to attend as a witness. Mr Izard the argued that the man was a " new chum," but Mr Mellish did not see how thafc could detract from his skill, as English shearers were no doubt as expert as colonial ones, Mr Mellish smiling the while at Mr Izard's assumption of colonial superiority.