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Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XIII, Issue 163, 8 July 1878, Page 2

; ■ .v ; - "~*' T * ~.'"'i' IT''.' j r A London telegram to the Post, dated Juiy 5, says:— The Australian cricketers have now played eight matches, and their averages, which have been made up for the first six matches, show the five highest batting averages to be:— Midwinter, 29, per , innings; Bailey, 26; Garret^ 10; C. Bannerman, 19; Spofforth, 18. As tofthe bowling, the three, best averages areJ^'Garret, a • wicket for every 3 runs; Spofforth, a wicket for every 4 runs ; Boyle, a-wick«t for every 5 rugs, ".-.., The , Post of Thursday says :— Metei Ngatuhi Wereta Te Rangi of Foxton, Manawatu, is a religious, social , and" temperance reformer of a very determined and practical type. He has issued a ukase in the columns of Te Wauanga propounding certain laws for the regulation of all the people $i£his settlement, which laws are " to last for -ever." The following are the laws:—!. K&ep'.to the true worship an.fl love each . other, because true worship i* the fountain of all Jc nowledge. 2. If auy person travel in pu^'Sttlements on the Sabbath such person will be fined jn the sum of two shillings and sixpence; 3. Let not any person get drunk in our settlement, or on any of the roads' which lead to our settlements. If any men on" women or children are found rfrunk. there, they will be fined ia-the sum. of five shillings each.' Then it seems that a 'committee and two. native policemen have been appointed to ensure that these laws are carried out and evildoers punished; also to look after the sheep and cattle on a Sabbath. How this Ma->ri re former is going to enforce the 'penalties he imposes on drunken Maoris, who may refuse to pay, is not explained. Neither is it 9tated whether similar penalties will attach to Europeans However, we shall sfce-- how; this crusade against Sabbath desecration and intemperence gets on. If the law3 ar£ supported by the public opinion of the natives in the district they may be inforced; .! if> not,! they will probably prove a dead letter. The Timaru Hera'd mournfully anticipates a prolonged session, and " that the wretched members— horrescimus referentis — may make up their minds to spend Christmas &t'- Wellington." Our contemporary founds this opinion upon the fact that not only will the proposed Government measures'; including the Land Tax Bill, the Extension of the Franchise Bill, the Native Lands Bill, and the Licensing Bill take up a good deal of time iu being dealt with, but that a whole lot of side questions such as the correspondence between the Governor and the Secretary of State, and the Governor and Ministers ; the position taken, up by Sir George Grey with respect to the Land Bill ; the detention by the Government of a proportion of the Canterbury Land Fund ; the quashing of the prosecution of Proudfoot, and the, notorious . Jones bill of. costs, will furnish fruitful themes for acrimonious, debate, and take up much time. This view may possibly be a' correct one, arid for that matter we begin to think that iu future the Parliamentary ' sessions wili always be long ocea. • That will partly result; .froa) the abolition of the Provincial Councils throwing more work upon the hands of Parliament.— Post, •■■■■>■ „<>

m . f,r • A ■ paSsfrfc*. adzingFiiKighine, <lrastßicle}l.by L i Mes3iß,Wn|^t and Edwards [ "fllgnsv* rtE M|t« Swjnbqrnf I of tie? MeiltoSpie ..Steam SaWfoilla, #p? tHe^ontiptors of jsoe Port£|igu|i& raif^ay, has beef; on viewer the iasiiiejraay9'aVth^or^l3ttleßog*fefi atrcet wtfsk It isf- ec&ploy'eti to cut the shallow grooves required in railway sleepers as beds for the rails; and the cotters operate on the wood somewhat in the same way 83 tha cutters of a moulding machine. Hand labour is entirely superseded save for loading the" sleepers t^on the frame jiboye the cutters. The 'sleepers are &rrie<l fr6n) the loading-board to the adzes by an eadfess band, and held fiinrly in position when the rotary . knives and, saws are reached. Grooves are cut quickly and neatly out of the wood. The machine is made to run on rails, so that it may be employed close to the spot where sleepers have to be laid. It appears thafc machine adzea are absolutely itecessalry on the Port Augusta works, on .afe'Cotifrt hi ike trite manner in which the engineera require the sleepers to he prepared for the permanent way. A London correspondent says:— "Tttey have started lighting our lamps by electricity at Insfcf and the grea.fr.race of Jtamp-lighters swift oIE fobt is ffoonsed. Qtfe &urn of a handle fa- Waterloo, place, and^eVeiy lamp in Palf Mtil! shaved forth' simultaneously; another turn, and no light, but rather darkness visible,- instantly follows. Magnetism turns dp the gas. electricity kindles it, magnetism turns it oil again, with infallible correctness, and so complete hits been the success of the '; publip^rialsi that'the .system will immediately be adopted fn all the. large towns." Two young women met yesterday. They had not aeen each\other for two months. The following 'conversation ensued :- 'v Been to Lon£ Btaneh. ' VTiiete tfere you ?"' uTo Saratoga/' "Any of era?" "Yes, Diner two of them Count's:" '" "tw n&ve any:?" "■ Thirteen,; one waft stn JkrV* , >:■&&& that girl wBo Had been to Long < Bf aaeh went home? and 1 sHed ■ oiifer tetfrs ' di Vexation, | though the fact of the matter wria that they . had neither of them had any offers at all, and both knew it. She has taken a solemn oath that another time she would let the other girl speak first, and raise her out of -hep-ljopt^ if she has to invent a Russian Msinc«£to do it.— Chicago Tribw e The London correspondent of the Arqus writes ;— What is the use of it ?" is a disparaging remark one often henrs, as regards the existence of iflanjr things, from wasps to the House of Peers- and it Is a question difficult to answer. One cam otily hope that there is more in the- thing in question --than meets the eye, as in the case, for example, of toads, l»ookinakers-^I doa'fc ' mean novelists, but stinging nettles, and home rulers. : W^ endeavour to ' think that nature has made' no" "mistakes; that " not a moth with vain desirej is frizzled in a fruitJess fire, or but subserves another's gain." • And anything that encourages'this sanguine view is welcome. The 500 weasel sent for t .l this country by New Zealand, to thin its rabbits, is iu this regard a good sign, for until now who have ever seen any use in weasels ? A pound a bead 13 offered for them, which is more that what used to .be given iri the good o'd times for wolves' heads. Bnt there' is a difficulty, it seems, ." in supplying ydur esteemed order as per niail." It is not easy, as we all know, to catch a weasel .asleep; imagine then, the difficulty, of catching 500. of them. . , A farmer who recently arrived from NewZealand, named John Booth, was walking up Little Lonsdale-street west about 9 o'clock yesterday morning (says the Melbourne Argus of the 20th instant), when two young men accosted him, and begged a 6d. of him for drinks. Iu a moment of weakness he pulled out a purse coataining 14 sovereigns, for the purpose of complyiug with the request. The purse was instantly snatched from his band by one of the suppliants, while the other robbed him of his watch and chain. He called- for -assistance, but the the thieves decamped before anyone came. Booth reported the affair at the Detective-office, and gave a- description of the offenders. The case was entrusted to Detectives Ward and Hayes, and in the afternoon these officers found two men. ia Bourke - street who answered the description given of the offenders, and arrested them. One gave his name as Arthur Lake, and. described .; him-, self as a laborer, and the other was a sailor' named Joseph Duffy, alias Liverpool. The stolen watch was found in Duffy's possession, and both .prisoners were identified by Booth as Ihe' persons who had robbed him. In an article on the position" of affairs in Europe, the Melbourne Argus says: — "A comparison of the revenues of Great Britaiu and Russia respectively shows that while the former raises £80,000,000 with the greatest ease, and could increase this, on an emergency; to £100,000,000, without imposing an undue strain upon the national finances, Russia raises £71,000,000, of which amount no less than £25,000,000 is obtaitied on a tax of alcoholic liquors. Not only so. iu 13 out of 83 provinces, including Turkestan, Trans Capcasia, and Poland, the expediture exceeds the reTenue by about £6,500,000; so that her acquisitions of territory are a source of financial weakness to her. Her bauking capital is about £100,000,000 ; while that of England is about £800,000,000, irrespective of the euormous sums invested in insurance, building, and friendly societies. Then again, when Russia wants to borrow money she can on'.y do so afc-6£ per cent.; England can obtain as much as she requires at 3J. Russia is obliged to go abroad for loans, whereas the annual savings of England, which amount to £240,000,000, would furnish her with the means of waging war on the largest scale of magnitude imaginable, and would enable her to subsidise her allies to any exteat." "