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Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XIII, Issue 67, 19 March 1878, Page 4

Tho Auckland News publishes the following : — An incident occurred tLe oilier day which affords p very pretty illustration of the " Storm in a teapot," style, aud shows that the spirit which once denounce! th« pristine hurdygurdy from the Kirk pulpit still flourishes iu perennial freshness. In this case, however, the troulla was not music, but ornamentation. In a certain place of worship in this city (uot Presbyterian) various alterations and improvements were being carried out. Amongst the latter was a Sctipture text neatly and tastefully inscribed on the wall behind the rostrum. Now, the guileless artist, in all simplieity and in perfect innocence of Ritualistic proclivities, bad painted a Maltose cross as an appropriate finishing touch. A few of tlie members on a visit of inspection, gazed with speechless horror at this outrage, and getting very cioeb, announced tha dread alternative that the thing must be altered or they woull secede. Now, this wa3 becoming a serious affair, even from the financial point of view, because some of the leading objectois had been known, on occasions, to deposit as much as sixpence in the sacerdotal saucer. What was to be done iu this dire emergency? Well a solemn conclave was held, at which it was resolved, as a compromise, that the crucial eye-sore be altered so aa to reoemble soaietbing else. This wns dona with such success as to convey a very fair idea of a plethoric cauliflower. Thus the threatened schism was averted and the erstwhile objectors, so recently

at croag purposes, made satisfied and happy. Perhaps 'twere better thus. Compromise and cauliflower may be preferable to cross and confusion, but the f.ffair forcihly recalls the historical Quaker, who was so strongly opposed to capital punishment that he refused to "hang" his gate c "There is not a single masted irocclad building in any of the Government yards at the prespnt moment," ohserves the Daily Nctos of October 19, and it would seem as if the Admiralty bod decided to abandon this type of battle-ship altogether. The Tc.ncratrs and the Shannon, the latest additions to our armed navy, are still at homo, notwithstanding the fact that they wore reported lit for spa months ago, and have been under orders to join the Mediterranean command ever since (hey came ont of dock. Probably Mr. W. H. Smith thiuks we have had enough vessels of this stamp, which are never to be depended upon apparently for service, and thinks it high time we made a change. When the Nelson and Ncrthnmptou are out of the hands of the Dockyard authorities, there will will not be Another masted ironclad forthcoming for years, since no lines have been laid down for others, and three or four years must, therefore, necessarily elapse before any more can be completed. The turret vessels Dreadnought and Inflexible are progreasing but slowly ct Portsmouth, and two others, the Ajix and the Agamemnon, will be ready to launch by the time the former are fit for sea. Unlike the Italians, who have two vc-ssels in dock equal in strength to the Inflexible, and another under construction whose iron walls are to be a foot thicker, our own authorities appear to be quite natisfied with the present floating de- | fenceß, oud propose building men-of-I war lighter rather than heavier. The, [ Ajax and Agamemnon will probably I carry as heavy metal as their monster sister the Inflexible, but their armour will not be so thick. There is however, a possibility of steel plates being emI ployed for protection instead of 3 iron, for, since the gunnery trials at Spezis, considerable confidence has been felt in the listing qualities of the former me»al. A steel plats may be fractured by a heavy projectile, but' it stubbornly refuses to let the shot pus?, and as U is very unlikely that thy same spot will be hit twice iu a naval action, the opinion in favor of steel f?ains ground with naval nuen. But whether unartrioured vessels are not, after all, to be preferred, at any rate so far as seagoing ships are concerned, is a point still open to quesfion, and the circumstance that the flotilla of steel corvettes now building are all unarmoured, as were the Euryalus, Inconstant, Koleigh, and many other recent frigates, points uumistakeibly to the conclusion that our Admiralty possess considerable confidence in men-of-war of this type." The Thames Advertiser has the following :■—" Several Maori carvers from 1 the East Coast arrived here yes terdayuia Ohinemuii, to commence the work of carving the house which Hotereni Taipari intends to astonish the Europeans with, and to leave behind him as a memorial of his greatness. The timber for the house has been selected some time, and is in process of seasoning in readiness for the skilled workmen who have just arrived. The sides and other pieces of elegant carving are at Whakat.'ne, where the carvers reside, and Taipari expects to be able to persuade the Government to allow the Hinemoa to call there and bring on the timber. It is intended as a runanga house, to be erected on the old cricket ground at Farawai, and when completed will be an object of curiosity and admiration to the Maori and European. When all the timbers are collected it is expected that about one hundred skilled Maori workmen from the East Coast will be engaged to complete its construction, and it will be opened with great feasting and rejoicing amongst the Maoris." A Wellington correspondent gives us the tollowmg graphic description of Mr Barton, Al.rl.xt. :—« Mr Barton is a member of the Club : a jovial, pleasant man in company • plays dance music on the piano at eveningparties, and at dinners and dances is always merry as a grig. He tells lots of good Irish stones and is always brimming with Irish vivacity. He is about 55 years of age • a small man with iron-grey hair and beard, but active and full of spirits. On the other hand, he .is a most irascible, hot-headed, tempestuous old gentleman. In Melbourne he was always qnarrelliug with some one, and, as he had no professional income, was obliged to visit Dunedin. Thtrs he was incessantly quarrelling with theJJudges and magistrates, and was known as a most cantaukerous person. He quarreled fearfully, too, with Macassey, Darkie Smith, aud other lawyers. In short, his whole life has been one unceasing strife. He is always fancying that he ls being snubbed and sat upon by I someone, and iu consequence is always bodj nig over with rage." Tta Birmingham Post publishes an exl tract iroui a letter received by a large manufacturing house iu Birmingham from its agent in Japan. The writter savs :- i lne Japanese are now making a number of articles which I formerly purchased from you, and at prices beyond the possibility of European competition. In fact, quite a number of different classes of merchandise are being made in this country, and Europeans are obliged to discontinue importing iu consequence. This may appear somewhat strange to you nevertheless it is a fact. Bear in mind, Asiatics live as noother races can, and upon food which would not sustain a European house-dog. Frugal as badgers, industrious as bees, they undersell every labour market which they enter, and outdo every civilised artisan at his oavu trade. Anyone who sees a Japanese carpenter at work, with his toes for a vice aud his thighs and stomach f o r a bench, has seen tools well used, and goods equal to European turned out. They will, in fact, become formidable rivals of all | kinds of Western manufactures. The Japanese are always ready to learn, and to outvie everything That the West does, and this they do with less food, less air, less clothing, and less comfort than airy civilised workman.'

Writing on the decay of the manufacturing trade in Germany, the Iron Age says.— "lt is remarkable how improvident and shortsighted the German manufacturers were after the French war, at a time when money was plentiful and orders flowed into them from every quarter. They had a splendid opportunity of competing with the rest of the "world in manufacturing industries. France was out of every market for the time being. In fact, a better chance seldom comes in any nation's history than came then to the Germans, but actuated by a mistaken policy of immediate gain— to nse no harsher word— and regardless of the golden future that was before them, and without considering the immense desirability of retaining the trade that came to them so easily, the manufacturers by supplying goods of inferior quality, drove buyers away, and many firms now import from France things that are manufactured in their own towns because they caunot get a good article for a fair price at home. The balance of trade is of course now entirely in favor of France, and the Germans are gradually slipping back into their old lazy and slipshod style of work. A curiosity is exhibited at a New York cigar factory in the shape of cigarette papers made of water-cresses. They are manufactured largely in Spain by a gentleman who was cured of a long complaint by the use of water-cress. They are of a greenish color, and of a heavy texture. Recently, in the Victorian Legislative Assembly, Mr M'lntyre brought under the notice of the House the case of -a young man in the railwcy office, who had written to him (Mr M'lntyre) about some matter. Mr M'lntyre transmitted the letter to the Minister, and the reply he received was that if the young man wrote to a member of Parliament again he would be suspended, " Yes," interjected Mr Woods, " I will sack him next." " This, gentlemen," exclaimed Mr M'lntyre, "is a specimen of the reign of terror now prevailing. The civil service is demoralised. Men dare not call their souls their own." Mr M'lntyre concluded with a remark that Mr Woods should know better, for he had been dismissed himself. The hit was applauded so loudly in the strangers' gallery that Mr Wood's retort was. for the most part, unheard or misunderstood. " Yes," he said, pointing to ex-Ministers, "those men dismissed me, and I have had my revenge." The Timaru Herald thii3 discourses concerning the commercial changes in its district :— What is there stirring in the commercial atmosphere which produces all this restiess change ? Everybody seems to be either selling out or buying in, and nobody knows exactly who is who, or what is what. There have, we believe, been more transfers of business in Timaru during the last six months than during as many years previously, and still we hear of many coming and to come. The same thing is going on in the country too, and settlers who seem to have permanently taken root in the district are " cutting up" their property, and adopting a bag and baggage policy. To-day we announce that one of the largest mercantile firms in Timaru and Dunedin, a. firm intimately connected with the trade and commence of South Canterbury for many years past, and which has more recently established itself in London also, under names familiar here as household words, has been purchased off the face of the earth, and has handed over all its houses to a joint stock companys. What does it all mean ? la the present moment considered a favorable juncture for disposing of property or business connections ? Have the sellers out " made their pile." and resolved to retire without risking any of it ? Or is it that bad times are looming ahead, and that people are anxious to be quit of their responsibilities on any terms ? We pause for a reply. The Colac Herald thus records the death from fright of a horse, through seeing elephants :— " Some sensation was caused on Saturday afternoon, after the first performance at Cooper and Bailey's circus, by the procession of six elephants, who were taken down to Lake Colac. The animals seemed to thoroughly enjoy the few minutes thay were allowed to remain in the water. The sensational part of the affair occurred soon after the elephants left the meuagerie. Willtam Drew, the son of Mr Drew, the ■well-known carpenter, was riding along Gravesend street at the time, and the horse catching sight of the, to him, strange-looking animals, gave one plunge, reared almost perpendicularly on his hind legs, and then suddenly dropped dead. His rider fortunately eseaped without bodily injury. Several other horses appeai'ed much disconcerted at the sight of the elephants " Wars will never cease; nations are warring one with the other ; the various sections of society war against each other ; every political faction has its common enemy ; and man, whether in isolation or in congregation, is worried with and attacked by a horde of destroyers in the shape of diseases and sicknesses, whose name is legion. But happily an unmistakeable peacemaker is at hand, the most frightful diseases succumb to those unfailing and invaluable medicines, " GholLan's Great Indian Cures," which can be had of ail Chemists. Testimonial— Dunedin, New Zealand, 27th December, 1875. Sir,— Having suffered lately from severe rheumatic pains and general debility, I was induced to try your Rheumatism Mixture. I have pleasure in stating that, after taking the medicine for a few days, I lost all my pains, my appetite has improved, and I am altogether much improved in my health. I can recommend your medicines with much confidence. (Signed) Jane Eve.